Months had passed doing D-rank missions with the genin. Everything from babysitting, to pulling out weeds, to cleaning the river bed. Everyone on the team had gotten used to my short answers, dull expressions, and my lateness and I soon grew more attached towards my teammates.
I started speaking a little bit more and there were a few times were I expressed something other than anger or boredom, which made the group happy. I also got to know the village better (shortening the number of times I was late) as well as a few of the other teams as well when the Hokage sent me with them on missions.
Hinata's group was okay. They were a bit quiet, except for Kiba, and I seemed to get along with him the most out of that group. Must be the wolf in me. My favorite group, by far, was Shikamaru's group. They were very relaxed but knew when to get serious, and I was glad to have found someone challenging to play shogi with. The other group, I got more personal with since I was told by Kakashi that I needed a taijutsu trainer. He had then introduced me to a… friend of his: Might Guy.
Now, Guy was a bit eccentric, but he knew what he was doing when it came to taijutsu. He was very interested in my fighting style and, after hearing what Kakashi had told him, he wanted to have a spar with me. Needless to say, we were both impressed with the other and he claimed that my 'youthful spirit' was astounding and he wished that I had been placed on his team and not his 'arch rivals'. With him as my taijutsu teacher, Kakashi having not been highly skilled in that area, I was soon on yet another training regimen.
You see, I trained with my own group as usual, but I also had genjutsu and ninjutsu training. Combine that with taijutsu training and overall, my days were like this.
Get up at 3:30am and run 50 laps around Konoha with Guy and his student Lee while wearing steadily increasing weights (staring with 15lbs until my current 125lbs). Then, I had taijutsu training until 7am with an hour break before I had to be with Kakashi and my team for our normal training. That lasted until sunset or whenever our missions were finished with, then I had ninjutsu and genjutsu training with Kakashi which normally lasted until around 10pm or later depending on how much I get done.
Needless to say, I was always exhausted by the time I returned home and only made food for myself half the time. Sometime around the middle of the month though, I had collapsed from exhaustion and my training was put on hold for a few days until I was well enough to continue. It didn't surprise Kakashi one bit when I suddenly collapsed in the middle of a spar. He even told me when I woke up that he'd been expecting me to collapse almost a week ago and he was surprised I lasted this long. I merely said that my body was used to harsh conditions.
Luckily, I hadn't collapsed since and Kakashi had shortened our after-session training due to my quick progression, which gave me time to start working on my own jutsus that I had started to create while in captivity. I knew that when you mixed two chakra natures you end up with different abilities than what one would expect. For instance, when I mixed lightning and water, the lightning was much more powerful and I was able to control storms a bit. Wind and water created snow and ice, but the one I enjoyed most, was fire and lightning as well as lightning and wind.
I learned that when you heated the lightning element with fire, you create a heat so intense that you can melt just about anything. Like I did to escape my prison. Lightning and wind was a bit harder to do.
I didn't know how they would work together being seemingly unacquainted in all aspects, but when I mixed the two the reaction was interesting. The first time I tried the two elements canceled each other out so I tried with more lightning and ended up with burns from the shock. So I tried putting them into different shapes in hope that the shapes may affect how the lightning travels.
I found two shapes that worked; a sphere of air that held the lightening inside and a rod. Now, I knew rods were extremely good for conduction and when I created a rod out of air and wrapped the lightning around it, I ended up with a magnetic field around the rod. One end attracted metal and the other end rejected it. I wasn't sure about the specifics and just assumed it had something to do with the lightening changing the particles in the air.
Using what I had found, I tried to see what I could do with the ball first and discovered it to be nearly useless, except to make it easier to get lightning to the enemy by throwing the ball. That, and it worked as a decent light source too. The rod though, was another story.
I could use the rod as a lightning conductor and could potentially stab the enemy with it and make them become magnetized. When I do that though, depending on how many times I hit it, the magnetism decreased. I also discovered that I didn't have to waste chakra making the rod as any metal weapons could do the same thing. With the magnetism, I could control the direction of weapons and use it both offensively and defensively.
Thinking about all of this, a loud crackle in my headset nearly had me falling from the tree I was situated in.
"Shi! Pay attention!" Kakashi's voice shouted over the headset.
"Sorry."
"Now have you located the target?"
I sniffed the air for a moment. "Yes."
"What's the distance to the target?"
"Five meters. I'm ready."
"Ready to go." Naruto announced.
"Me too." Came the other two replies.
"Okay. Go!"
Everyone jumped out of their hiding places and Naruto grabbed the cat. The thing immediately started attacking him and I sighed as I took the animal from him and tried to calm it down, but it attacked me to; most likely noticing the wolf in me.
"Does it have a ribbon on its right ear? Is it our target, Tora?"
"It's the target for sure." Sasuke answered.
"Okay. 'Operation Capture Tora the Lost Pet' complete."
"Isn't there a more important mission we can work on?!"
I winced and glared Naruto for shouting so loud in the earpiece as I passed the demon cat over to Sakura. He grumbled but apologized quietly and we returned to the mission's office. I felt a little bad for Tora though when the large, rich woman came and practically strangled the poor cat. I could see why Tora ran off. I would too if I had to live with this woman.
"Now then," The hokage said. "Kakashi's 7th unit's next mission is babysitting Yojyu's boy, grocery shopping at the neighboring town, helping dig up potatoes at—"
"No!"
I sighed, knowing that Naruto was going to snap sooner or later and it couldn't have been any sooner. Pulling out Icha Icha Paradise, I started reading; with Kakashi giving the book a glance over my shoulder as Naruto started arguing with the hokage. I had finally bought it after much thought, and it was surprisingly a good book, even with the erotic mental images.
Finally taking some initiative, Kakashi punched Naruto on the head just as the hokage started a lecture on the ranking of missions and their importance. None of us were paying any attention though as Kakashi and I were reading my book and the others were listening to what types of ramen Naruto had yesterday.
"Listen!"
"I'm going to get scolded later…"
I heard Kakashi mumble and I smirked with a small snort, which he answered with a smack to the back of my head.
"Okay, I understand. If you insist, I will allow you a C-ranked mission. It's to escort a certain person."
"Really? Who? Who? The feudal lord? Or a princess?"
"Don't get so hasty. I'll introduce him now. Can you please come in now?"
I didn't close my book, but turned to look at the newcomer. The moment the door opened, I smelled the strong scent of sake and enjoyed the scent while simultaneously deciding that I was going to have a drink before we left on this mission.
"What? They're all kids! Hey, is the smallest one there with the idiotic face really a ninja?"
Naruto laughed until he realized the man was talking about him and I had to hold him back while Kakashi told him not to kill the client.
"I am the bridge building expert Tazuna. Once I have returned to my country, I will have all of you protect my life with yours while I complete the bridge."
We were dismissed, and expected to meet at the gates in two hours so I turned to our client, not caring about packing because I never unpacked from my last mission with Guy's team.
"Would you like a drink?"
"Huh? Shouldn't you be getting ready or something?"
I nodded. "Yes, but I already have."
He gave me a look, but couldn't pass up the drink and the two of us headed out to have sake. We had a good time, talking about his family and how his bridge work is going. It was nice to sit down and relax after all the training I had been doing, which reminded me that I had to let Guy know that I wouldn't be around for a while. We both left the sake shop a bit tipsy and he went to wait at the gates while I quickly let Guy know about my mission.
"Good luck my youthful friend!"
I waved and headed over to pick up my pack from my apartment before going towards the gate with a sigh. I'm a little drunk but they'll never know. The only thing that could gave me away anyway, was the slight pink tinge to my cheeks and the smell. I mentally shrugged and noticed that I was already at the gate with Tazuna and, surprisingly, Kakashi. He rose a brow when I came over and gave a glance at a slightly rosy-cheeked Tazuna.
"You went drinking with Tazuna, then?"
I gave him a slightly confused glance in return. "How?"
"You're not the only one with a good sense of smell."
I nodded, mentally noting that for later, and he shook his head as the genin started arriving. We'd just barely walked out of the village gates when Naruto shouted.
"All right! Let's go!"
I cringed, his volume not something I was enjoying at the moment as Sakura sighed.
"What're you all excited about anyway?"
"Because, I've never gone outside the village before."
"Hey." Tazuna pointed at Naruto. "Will a kid like this really be capable of this mission?"
"I wonder." I mumbled so Tazuna could hear me.
He and Kakashi laughed. "Don't worry, Tazuna. I'm a jounin and Shi is very skilled as well. There's no need to worry."
I wondered why Kakashi complemented me, but my foggy mind didn't really want to focus on one thing for very long at the moment. I'll have to fix that or I'll be a liability should something happen. I sighed again as I thought of everything that could go wrong, a little cloud of depression floating over my head as I stared off into space. Kakashi clapped me on the back with a smile.
"A depressed drunk, huh? Don't go getting all weepy on me."
He chuckled and I rolled my eyes.
"Neh, Shi! You've been outside the village right? What's it like? What'd you do?"
I tensed a bit and shook my head, not wanting to talk about it. He looked at me a bit confused, and continued.
"Well… where'd you come from? What village?"
I shook my head and shrugged.
"What? You don't know?"
"I do not remember."
Kakashi spoke this time. "You have memory loss?"
I nodded. That was the best way I could describe it. I didn't remember anything from my previous world. The most I could remember was God and the painting of a younger Naruto.
"What about your sword, Shi?"
"Stole it."
Tazuna laughed. "Very blunt, aren't you, Shi?"
Naruto nodded. "Shi's always been like that. He didn't even talk when we first met him!"
I sighed and ignored Naruto and the rest as I listened to the forest and checked for any scents. Most of them were small bird or rabbits, and occasional fox here and there, but there were two that I didn't recognize that had been following us for a while. I turned to tell Kakashi, but he nodded. He already knows. He didn't look at me, but he mouthed orders that I could make out. "When they attack I want you to stay out of the fight. It's time to see what the kids can do and who the ninja are after. We'll only step in when things start getting out of hand."
I gave a brief nod and as we passed a small puddle, I noticed Kakashi give it a look and turn to me. I gave another short nod and we continued walking, sticking towards the back and next to each other.
Almost instantly, Kakashi and I were wrapped together in chains by two ninja. I would have groaned at the predicament but now was not the time as I used a substitution jutsu (something I easily learned during my training) just as the chains tightened and supposedly killed Kakashi and I.
"Kakashi-sensei! Shi!"
The two of us sat and watched from the trees as the enemy ninja went after Naruto next. The kid was frozen in fear and shock, but Sasuke was quick to stop the chains and pin the two ninja to a tree. He landed a good kick on each ninja before they detached themselves and charged at Tazuna and Naruto. Sakura did the right thing and moved in to protect Tazuna, but I could sense her fear. Sasuke also moved in and was prepared to take the hit which was when Kakashi tapped me as the signal to move in.
He took the one attacking Tazuna while I went after Naruto's attacker. Grabbing the man's metal hand, I sent electricity through it and knocked him out instantly. Kakashi, on the other hand, went for the more direct approach and rammed the guy in the throat with his arm. The genin stared at us in shock and happiness, thankful that the two of us were alive and they figured out that we'd done a substitution.
"Naruto, sorry for not helping out right away. We got you hurt. I didn't think you wouldn't be able to move." Kakashi said.
Tazuna breathed a sigh of relief and I dragged the enemy ninja over to a tree where Kakashi dropped of the other one, so we could tie them up. Sasuke and Sakura were praised and I sighed, knowing what was going to happen now. Sasuke egged Naruto on, just like I thought and I went to stop Naruto before they started a fight.
"Naruto!" Kakashi beat me to it. "There's poison in these guys' nails. We need to take out the poison right away. Shi."
I nodded and grabbed Naruto's hand and pulling out a small bottle. He looked at me scared, but I gave him a look.
"Don't move."
He closed his eyes and bit his lip, but I didn't know why. I mentally shook my head and opened the bottle. I rubbed some of the slime onto his wound as Kakashi started seeing what Tazuna knew and explaining the situation. During my travels, I learned what was immune against most poisons and took my time to find antidotes for many of the poisons I was faced with. My blood also worked as an antidote due to Orochimaru's experiments, but I'd rather avoid using it at all costs. For one thing, I didn't know what side effects it had if used on another person. With a mental sigh, I took out bandages to bandage his hand as Kakashi started to question what to do next.
"This mission is out of our league. Let's quit! We need anesthesia to take out the poisoned blood out of Naruto, too. We need to go back to the village and see a doctor!"
Kakashi thought about what Sakura said, but when he looked at Naruto the kid did not look ready to back down so he pushed the issue to see how Naruto would react.
"This sure is a burden. Let's go back to the village to cure Naruto since what Shi did only works partway."
Naruto pulled out a kunai and stabbed it into his hand, shocking everyone including Kakashi who didn't expect Naruto to make such a stupid decision. I rolled my eyes and kicked Kakashi in the shin.
"Hey!"
"Idiot."
Kakashi frowned as I went over to bandage Naruto's hand, but he started to speak.
"This mission is still on!"
I nodded with a closed-eye smile and tilted my head to the side. "You're going to die from blood loss."
It was quiet for a moment before Naruto turned blue and began silently freaking out. Kakashi even came over and smiled.
"It's not good if you don't stop it right away. Seriously."
I rolled my eyes at Kakashi's teasing as Naruto began freaking out. I smacked him on the head and grabbed his hand to bandage it. I noticed the wound already healing, but I didn't say anything about it as I wrapped his hand properly.
Eventually, we reached the shore of a lake and boarded a boat to cross. The mist was extremely thick and I relished in the scent. It'd been a while since I played with the morning fog so I played with my chakra a little, making a smoky dragon and had it float around. Naruto was thoroughly amused as I had the small dragon do circles around his head. When we looked up though, the bridge was above us and Naruto shouted out in excitement before being shushed.
Still playing with my little dragon, I half listened to Kakashi and Tazuna's conversation about Gatou. I had heard about him before, so I ignored most of their conversation.
Tazuna basically gave us a guilt trip about what would happen if we gave up and Kakashi felt like he had no choice, while I chuckled quietly to myself. As bored as I was, I directed my little dragon so that he was face to face with Kakashi and everyone watched as they had a very short staring contest. I say short, because the little dragon squirted water in his face. The group, aside from Kakashi of course, laughed as he gave me a look that I shrugged at. Not soon enough, we landed in a small port side town and headed off again.
"If they were to attack, they will send jounin level ninja instead of the chunin level ones. Oh well… I'll be counting on you Shi."
"Huh?"
He sighed, dropping his head in defeat when Naruto ran out and threw a kunai into a bush.
"There!"
There was complete silence for a moment, Sakura and Tazuna getting more pissed off by the second. I decided to humor Naruto, and scanned the area for scents. Surprisingly, there were no birds or animals except for a single rabbit and I couldn't smell any people, but that didn't mean that they weren't downwind. Kakashi frowned as Naruto threw another kunai at the rabbit I smelled earlier and he went to check it out as Sakura hit Naruto upside the head. Naruto rushed over and apologized to the rabbit, but Kakashi was thinking and I was worried. I suddenly picked up a scent nearby and heard the familiar sound of a weapon being thrown; a large weapon.
"Everyone duck!"
Everyone dropped to the floor, Naruto having to get tackled by Sakura just as a sword flew over our heads; embedding itself into a tree a few yards from me. The man standing on the sword was the source of the scent and I recognized him from the bingo book I own. His face was covered by bandages and he had grey pinstriped pants with camo leg and arm warmers that looked almost like cow print. I blinked at that thought but shook my head when I started imagining him as a cow.
"Oh my, my, you are Zabuza Momochi. The exiled ninja of the Hidden Village of Mist."
Naruto started charging, but Kakashi put his hand out.
"You're in the way. Stay back, everyone. Shi." I became alert at the sound of my name. "Watch over them."
Nodding, I brought Naruto back over by Tazuna.
"Why?!"
"He's different. He'll kill you in a second."
Naruto looked at me like I was joking, but once he saw I was serious he gulped.
"If he is our enemy, I can't win like this."
Kakashi reached up to his headband and I frowned. I knew from our training that he had the sharingan eye that could read every move, but I also knew that it tired him out if used too long.
"Surround Tazuna and protect him. Don't join the battle. To not interfere with the battle is teamwork. That includes you, Shi."
Kakashi lifted his headband fully and Sasuke explained what the sharingan was to Naruto. Zabuza put in his input and fog began to crawl in.
"Shi."
"Yes."
"Keep an eye on him."
I nodded, knowing that he couldn't see me but he'd understand. He wanted me to try and track his scent since I could distinguish between the original Zabuza from any clones he should make. The only exception to that rule were kage bushin, but Naruto is the only one I know who can do that.
"Let's cut the chit-chat here. I have to kill that geezer right away."
The group surrounded Tazuna and Zabuza pulled his sword out and landed onto of the water and started embedding chakra in it. The mist grew even thicker and I focused even more on his scent as best as I could with the water in the air trying to cover it up.
"Shi?"
"Sh. Be quiet, Naruto."
My hearing will come in handy in this situation too. He nodded and didn't say a word as the mist grew even thicker and Zabuza's voice echoed through the mist.
"Eight points."
"What is it?" Sakura exclaimed.
"Be quiet." I growled.
She shut her mouth as Zabuza continued. "The larynx, spine, lungs, liver, jugular vein, collarbone, kidney, and heart. Now, which vital organ do you want to get struck at?"
Kakashi let loose some of his killing intent and my breathing shortened. I was used to it to some extent, but this was a bit intense for the genin. Their scent of fear was beginning to overwhelm my senses and I grit my teeth to keep my body in control.
"Don't worry. I'll protect the four of you with my life. I won't let anyone on my team die."
I could hear the conviction in Kakashi's words and the genin could as well, so my focus returned just in time. I smelled a water clone behind me and right in the center of our circle around Tazuna and I spun around just as he landed, stabbing a kunai in between his ribs instantaneously. The others jumped back in surprise, but I scowled as the water clone held tight to my kunai.
"Shi! Behind you!"
I didn't move because I knew Kakashi would be there. He shoved me forward and was cut through as I rolled back onto my feet and sniffed the fog filled air. It was hard to tell, but I knew he had used a water clone as he brought a kunai to Zabuza's throat. The fog was really making it difficult to tell if this Zabuza was real or not and it took me a moment, but it was a moment too late.
"Clone!"
Kakashi spun around, as the real Zabuza swung his sword. Ducking, the sword flew over Kakashi, but Zabuza pinned it in the ground and used the leverage to kick Kakashi into the lake. Zabuza rushed to finish him, but I threw out makibishi.
"How idiotic."
I scowled at the insult and followed Zabuza with my eyes just as Kakashi popped out of the water. Something was wrong and I soon found out when Zabuza appeared behind him doing familiar hand signs.
"Crap! Water prison!"
The genin gave me confused looks but understood when the water surrounded Kakashi, trapping him in the water sphere. I growled to myself and struggled to stay where I was and not leave the genin exposed. Kakashi trusted me with keeping them safe. But I can't keep them safe with the enemy around. Nor can I leave Kakashi behind.
"Now then, Kakashi. I'll finish you off later. First, I'm going to get rid of them. Water clone technique."
A water clone came up and disappeared into the mist. I cursed under my breath and, before I could get a location of the clone, it kicked Naruto.
"Shi! Get Tazuna and the others and run! You can't win against him! He can't move as long as he has me trapped in this water prison. He won't be able to use his water clone once you get away from him! Run for now! Shi! Go!"
I clenched my fists as Sasuke stepped forward. Holding my hand out, I glared at him.
"No. Go protect Tazuna. Think up a plan. I'll keep him occupied."
"Wha—"
"Just do it!"
He flinched, not used to me speaking harshly, but nodded and went over with Tazuna and the others.
"Shi! What are you doing?!"
"Saving a friend."
I pulled out my sword and crouched down.
"Oh? Here I thought you were just another kid like the rest, but that look in your eyes. Heh, it's got me excited."
I growled and charged at the water clone, easily getting within reach and surprising Zabuza with my speed. The clone splattered and I went straight for the original. Three more clones came up and I dodged one fist, another kick, and a sword swing. I swung my sword which he dodged and used that chance to shove my right fist into its stomach, electrocuting it. I kept the shock contained, so as to not shock Kakashi across the water, when I was suddenly hit in the ribs by the back of one of the clone's swords, feeling ribs break by the sheer force as I was thrown across the water.
"Shi!"
I ignored Kakashi and the others and flipped back into an upright position, holding my ribs. I put my long sword away, pulling out a kunai, and spat out blood to the side from under my scarf.
"Haha! I like you! Quick on your feet and that animalistic look in your eyes reminds me of myself during that exam."
"What exam?"
I scowled at Naruto as Zabuza told him. "Fights to the death between the students."
I didn't give him a chance to continue and started making the hand signs for another jutsu.
"Storm beast."
A water wolf erupted from the lake, landing in front of me as I laced it with electricity. I hadn't quite perfected it yet, so it was only the size of a small wolf but it would have to do for now. Zabuza looked surprised and the wolf charged as I finished yet another jutsu.
"Wolf runner."
The wind attack was aimed at the wolf, but it wrapped around it and pushed it forward as well as giving it a magnetic field. The two left over Zabuza clones went to swing their swords, but they rebounded off the magnetic field as the wolf continued towards the real Zabuza. His eyes widened, but then he smirked and I just barely noticed the hand sign.
A large water dragon jumped out of the water, taking my wolf jutsu in its mouth and hitting me square in the chest with it. I just barely held back a scream as electricity surged through my body and the magnetic field transferred to me, causing the kunai I dropped on impact to come flying back at me and hit me in the shoulder. I hit a tree and fell to the ground still shaking from the after-shocks.
"SHI!"
"Is that enough time?!"
They stared at me in shock, but I gave them a closed-eye smile.
"Kick his ass."
They gave a smile in return, aside from Sasuke who smirked. I pulled the kunai from my shoulder with great difficulty and plunged it into the ground, allowing the left over electricity and magnetism to escape my body. Then I watched as Naruto did his signature move and waited for the plan to reveal itself as they attacked another water clone. The Narutos were easily defeated, but Naruto tossed Sasuke a fuuma shuriken.
"The Fuuma Shuriken, the Shadow Windmill!"
He threw the shuriken at the clone, but it flew right past him last minute and went after the original. I smirked, coughing up blood. Nice plan, Naruto, Sasuke. Zabuza caught the first shuriken but missed the fact that there was another one in its shadow. He managed to dodge it though, by jumping over it. What he didn't see, was that the shuriken was actually Naruto; the real one.
"This is the spot!"
Naruto threw the shuriken, forcing Zabuza to release Kakashi. The guy was so blinded by rage, that he went straight for Naruto despite the fact that Kakashi was right next to him. Zabuza went to throw the shuriken, but Kakashi stopped it with a murderous look.
"Kakashi-sensei!"
"Naruto, your plan was impressive. You have all sure grown and Shi… I'm sorry. I'll take care of the rest."
I couldn't even answer at this point. The electricity was finally gone, but I still felt numb and my shoulder had burns around the kunai wound because the kunai had conducted the electricity. My breathing was dangerously shallow and I was afraid to move should my ribs puncture a lung. Needless to say, things didn't look good for me especially when Kakashi and Zabuza started getting carried away with the water jutsus. Thanks to their water dragons, I was also soaked to the bone.
"Suiton Daibakufu no Jutsu!"
You can't be serious. I quickly used some of my leftover chakra to do a few hand signs.
"Water Prison."
It was basically the same thing Zabuza did, only it protected me from the giant wave Kakashi had just unleashed as long as I held onto my kunai that was in the ground. It hurt my shoulder and my ribs, but it was either that or be swept away and deal with even more damage. As soon as the water retreated, I released the jutsu and fell to my hands coughing up more blood. I couldn't focus on what was happening a bit further away as I tried to sit back up. All I could figure out was that everyone was surprised, cautious, and tired. Gritting my teeth against the pain, I used the tree behind me to stand and tried to walk to the familiar sounds of my teammates. Naruto, as always, was the loudest.
"Zabuza was killed! He… He was so strong, but he was killed so easily by a kid that's not that different from me! We… We look like idiots! I can't accept this!"
"I understand how you can't believe it, but this is real. In this world, there are kids who are younger than you and stronger than me."
A third voice joined the conversation and my vision was so blurry that I couldn't even figure out what I was walking towards anymore.
"Your battle ends here for now. I must go dispose of this corpse. It's a body filled with secrets. I also suggest you have your companion treated soon. If you'll excuse me."
Suddenly, my strength gave out and I fell forward as arms wrapped around my waist and I landed on someone's chest.
"You okay, Shi?"
"Me?… What about… you?"
Kakashi sighed and pulled his headband down back over his eye.
"Just a bit of chakra exhaustion. I'll live. You on the other hand are in seriously bad shape."
"You don't say."
He took off his back pack and gave it over to Naruto, who we'd been ignoring since he came over and started acting worried. Naruto took the pack and Kakashi helped me onto his back.
"I don't know what kind of shape you're in but I should take you back to the village, you know."
"No."
I could only whisper it, my strength completely gone at this point, but I heard Kakashi chuckle.
"I thought you'd say that. Well, our mission hasn't ended yet." He said, speaking to the others. "We need to take Tazuna to his house and see what we can do about Shi."
Tazuna, being good natured and all, smiled and tilted his hat up.
"Sorry about that, everyone! Just come rest at my house!"
We started walking and I knew Kakashi had lied when he said he was just a little exhausted and with him carrying me, he wouldn't be able to last long. I knew I had a bit of chakra left and hoped it would be enough. He needs it more than me. The others can't carry us both. I pushed the chakra into the hand that was resting on Kakashi's chest and gave him what I had left.
"Shi! What are you doing?!"
I smiled under my scarf just before giving in to the black oblivion; Kakashi shouting my name in the background.
The sounds attacked me all at once the moment my consciousness returned. Naruto's voice was too loud and Sakura trying to shut him up was just as bad. Not only that, but I could sense their fear and concern and it was overloading my senses. I tensed, only to whimper in pain as my ribs shifted and my shoulder ached and the sounds went quiet for a moment before flaring up again. As I grew more and more angered, I could feel a fire burning in my body and I was having a hard time pushing it back. I could hear voices now, but they only added to the chaos in my head.
"Is Shi going to be okay, Kakashi-sensei?"
"She should be okay. I've healed her ribs as much as I could and we should actually be thankful that she was shocked. The heat from the electricity closed up her shoulder wound."
"But sensei, she has a really high fever!"
I knew why too. I had it happen when I collapsed from exhaustion the last time. When I pass out, my body has to reboot (so to speak) and any barriers I put up against the experiments weaken. The more I'm injured, the more I want to release the side of me that I would rather keep hidden. The fever was merely a result of me fighting against it.
"Ah! Kaka-sensei! I think she's waking up!"
I heard a yelp of pain from Naruto as Sakura yelled at him. "Shut up, you idiot! You're too loud."
"Why don't you guys go outside?"
"But Kaka-sen—"
Naruto was cut off with a hit to the head and I heard them exit the room, leaving me with Kakashi and a scent I didn't recognize. I felt something touch my forehead and tensed again, only to recognize its smell. Wearily, I opened my eyes as Kakashi took his hand from my head with a relived look.
"It's about time you woke up. We were just about to have breakfast."
Something was wrong, I could tell just by how nice he was being to me. It's got to be Zabuza, but he's dead… unless…
"He's alive."
He sighed. "Yeah. I was kind of hoping to tell you later, but oh well. So how are you feeling?"
I groaned and tried to sit up, to which Kakashi rolled his eyes and helped me.
"You really didn't have to do that. You'll only end up making your injuries worse."
I breathed heavily for a moment, trying to catch my breath while mentally hating myself for getting into this kind of shape. I couldn't even sit up without feeling like I ran around Konoha 1000 times.
"You said there was breakfast."
He chuckled at my humor and asked if I thought I could make it to the table in the other room.
"Are you crazy? She'll probably collapse!"
I blinked and glanced at the young woman who was ringing out a wet cloth. Not happy that she'd think of me so weak I frowned, glad that Kakashi had left my scarf on.
"I'll be fine."
Kakashi rolled his eyes and helped me stand, being careful of my shoulder and ribs as he led me into the living room where the rest of our team had already started eating. Sakura looked at us in shock, while Naruto looked at me worriedly and Sasuke looked like he could care less.
Kakashi helped me sit down at the table and took a seat himself next to me, which I was grateful for since I didn't know how long I could keep myself upright. He then put food on my plate for me so I wouldn't have to reach across the table and I silently began eating, ignoring the looks Sakura and Naruto were giving me.
"Shi? Are you okay?"
I looked up at Sakura and nodded.
"But Shi! You're hurt! You should be sleeping o-or something, right?"
I glared at Naruto, who promptly shut up and I returned to my food. It was good and I tried to finish quickly as my ribs began to ache again, but I wasn't as quick as Sasuke and Naruto who both dashed off the moment they were done. I blinked and gave Kakashi a questioning look.
"They're training. Tree climbing."
I nodded, but rubbed my temples.
"Can I go out?"
Kakashi raised a brow, but shrugged. "Sure. If you feel up for it."
I gratefully stood, allowing him to help me as we walked to the forest away from where Naruto and Sasuke were training. It was nice to only hear the sounds of the forest and Kakashi helped me sit down at the base of a tree. I was a bit surprised when he sat down next to me. He closed his eyes and relaxed as I did the same.
"So what do you hear?"
I opened an eye and looked at him, but he hadn't moved so I closed it.
"Everything and nothing."
"Can't just give me an easy answer, can you?"
"No."
He looked at me in shock as I gave a small smile. He then reached towards my scarf, but I grabbed his hand just as he grabbed the edges of my scarf.
"What are you doing?"
"Just wanted to see what you're hiding."
He smiled, but I frowned. "Probably the same thing you are. Nothing."
He dropped his hand as I let go and he sat back against the tree again.
"You got me there."
"If you were so curious, why didn't you remove it when I passed out?"
"Hm… Probably because I'm a gentleman."
I rose a brow at that, but mentally shook it off as I relaxed once more.
"They're competing, yes?"
"Who?"
"Naruto and Sasuke."
"Ah. I suppose they are. They both want to be stronger than the other and Naruto's been improving faster than Sasuke expected… Wait. You changed the subject."
"Glad you noticed."
He sweat dropped and I smirked.
"Mah, I guess there's no arguing… I was impressed though. You have really improved your jutsus. How did you come up with that last one?"
"Extra time… experimenting."
I wasn't pleased to have to use that word, but it was the only one right for the situation.
"Water and lightning boosts shock power and wind increases speed."
"I see, but what about when Zabuza's water clones went to attack it and their swords bounced back?"
"Lightning and wind. They create a magnetic field. Comes in handy unless I get hit. The magnetic field transfers."
"Which is why you were hit by your own kunai."
I nodded, tired from my long explanation. "I didn't expect the water dragon. It's possibly the only weakness."
"What do you mean?"
"If it was an air attack, the magnetism would be canceled out. Lightning attack would evaporate the water. His attack decreased the shock but didn't affect the magnetic field."
"Interesting. That jutsu of yours requires precise amounts of each element in order to work. You've got to be pretty smart to figure all that out, Shi."
"I suppose."
He nodded and stood up, holding his hand out to me.
"Come on. Let's head on back. Maybe if you rest up today, I'll let you watch Tazuna or the two brats tomorrow."
Taking his hand, I accepted his help up. "Only because you don't want to."
He rubbed the back of his neck with his free hand. "Mah, you caught me."
I rolled my eyes and started walking back with him. The moment we reached the house, he made me go lay down and even I was surprised at just how quickly I fell asleep.
The next morning, Kakashi went into Shi's room to wake her up in order for her to go with Tazuna to the bridge. What he didn't expect, was the immense amount of chakra he felt as he was walking down the hall. Thinking the worst, he hurried to Shi's room with his kunai at the ready. Surprisingly, there was no one else in the room aside from Shi who was obviously the source of the chakra, judging by the grey chakra cloud that covered her as she thrashed in her futon. Being extremely careful, not exactly knowing what was happening to her, Kakashi put his kunai away and slowly approached her; keeping quiet so as to not alert the other household members.
"Shi. Can you hear me? You need to calm down or your wounds will get worse."
He reached out and touched her arm and her eyes suddenly snapped open, revealing slit pupils. Kakashi released her in shock, just staring back at her as she continued to breathe hard. Shaking himself from his shock, he reached out again and her eyes immediately widened as she scrambled out of the futon and away from him; getting down in her familiar animalistic crouch.
Still confused by what was going on, Kakashi tried to find a way to calm her down. This obviously isn't normal. She's acting like a frightened animal. Something must have triggered this, but what? And how can I fix it? He very slowly headed towards her, stopping completely when he was a few feet from her and she growled dangerously. Holding his palms out defensively, he knelt down to try and make himself seem like less of a threat.
"Come on, Shi. It's me, Kakashi. Surely you can fight this, whatever this is. What if Naruto comes in? You wouldn't want to scare him, right?"
Her eyes softened for a moment as she spoke.
"Naru… to?"
Kakashi, seeing that mentioning Naruto seemed to get to her a little bit, nodded and continued.
"Yeah. You know, Naruto. Sakura and Sasuke too. Who knows what they'd do?"
The grey chakra started easing away and Kakashi started coming towards her again, when her breathing shortened further and she grabbed at her side. Something's wrong. She probably ended up moving one of her ribs out of place since they hadn't fully healed. I have to finish this quickly before it gets worse.
"Ah, see what you did Shi? You made your wounds worse. Now I'll have to fix them again."
His hand reached towards her ribs and she snapped her head up and growled at him again. He steadied himself, slowly continuing to try and reach her in order to heal her ribs, watching her eyes for any sign of serious aggression, but was surprised to only find fear; something he's never seen coming from her. She seems like a really strong person, from everything I've seen. But what or who could have possibly made her end up like this? There's obviously something that someone's not telling me.
"Shi. I'm only trying to help you."
"He… lp?"
"Yeah."
He was extremely shocked to see her begin to cry. A single tear fell down her cheek and her eyes returned to normal as she clutched Kakashi's flak jacket.
"Help… Help… Help…"
Unsure about what to do now, he began healing her ribs allowing her to hang on to his jacket until he finished and discovered that she had fallen asleep again. Well… That was certainly unexpected. Looks like I'll have to keep an eye on the brats today after all. It's best she gets some more sleep anyway. He sighed quietly and laid her down, somehow managing to get her to release the death grip she had on his jacket before he headed out to check on his students; silently wondering about what had just happened.
Morning didn't come around soon enough. My ribs were aching again, if not worse than last night. I couldn't quite remember everything that had happened, but I knew that it wasn't good and that I'd gotten a bit out of control again. Let's hope it wasn't one of the genin who found me like that. I groaned, forcing myself up, and headed into the other room. Once I got there, I leaned heavily against the wall a bit put out that there was no one there. Where's my breakfast?
I growled lowly and sniffed the air. There was one unfamiliar scent and one that I recognized as the young woman who was in my room before. All three scents were in separate rooms of the house and none were near the kitchen. With a light sigh, I hobbled my way outside to find that it wasn't morning. It was actually mid-afternoon.
"No wonder." I muttered to myself and took another whiff of the air.
Sasuke and Naruto's scents were around the same area as before while Kakashi's was—
"Yo."
Behind me. "Kakashi."
"You shouldn't be moving around. You hurt your ribs again last night."
"You found me?" It was more of a statement than a question, but he nodded, helping me back into the house and to my room. I wasn't fond of him helping me all the time, however, I couldn't exactly argue about it either. He laid me down on my futon and I let out a deep breath.
"You want to know what happened."
"Yes, actually. I was definitely not expecting to come upon something like that last night, and I don't appreciate the fact that you're hiding things from me."
"It's my life and I do not wish to share it."
"Shi."
His tone was harsh and cold, bordering unemotional strictness. I kind of wanted someone to know what Orochimaru had done to me, but I was not as comfortable as I seemed with the people around me. I still did not trust anyone really, and I was purposely keeping myself from having others become too attached to me. It was the only way I could protect them and myself.
"I cannot control what happens. Just be sure to understand that there are some things better not known, Kakashi."
"How am I supposed to—"
"You cannot help me." I stared back at him with a completely serious expression, leaving no room for arguments. "Nobody can fix what has been done… and nothing can change what is going to happen. Goodnight."
I rolled over, facing away from him in a slightly painful position, until I heard him leave. Truth was, I wanted someone to help me. I had always wanted someone to help me, but no one ever came and I was forced to grow up and help myself. That's how it was and is probably how it will always be. The further I stayed away from them, the further away they'll be when Orochimaru finds me and takes me back. I know he will too. It's not like him to risk losing something. Let alone someone he wants dead.
The next couple of days, I slept less and focused more on getting my strength back. My ribs were just about healed and my shoulder wound wasn't as bad as before. So I was currently doing pushups with Kakashi; Sakura on my back and Tazuna on his.
"196, 197, 198..."
"199, 200. Done?"
"No. 300 more."
I groaned, but kept going when Tazuna spoke up.
"I wanted to ask you earlier but, why are you still here when I lied to you about this mission?"
I let Kakashi answer this. "'To abandon your duty is not courageous. Below the courageous, there is nothing.' Those are the previous Hokage's words. That is the way of the shinobi. Shinobi don't move because of money alone."
My eyes started sliding closed and I relaxed as I continued doing pushups, not knowing that Kakashi had stopped and was watching me in amusement.
"You doing okay, Shi?" Kakashi asked, watching Shi continue to exercise with a grin on his face. When she didn't answer, he became confused along with the others in the room and Sakura leaned over to look at Shi, getting off her back with a giggle.
"I think she fell asleep, sensei."
The three laughed quietly until Kakashi finally stopped her and brought her back to her room. She hasn't been getting enough sleep anyway. It's better for all of us that she rests now since we'll all be heading out to the bridge tomorrow. He let her sleep and soon it was time for dinner. Sasuke and Naruto came in late and pretty beat up, both collapsing at the table just as Shi wandered in with a yawn. She too collapsed at the table, resting her head on the cold wood with only one word escaping her lips.
"Food."
A few people at the table chuckled and a steaming bowl of food was soon placed before her. She dug in eagerly while Naruto laughed and poked her arm.
"Neh, neh, Shi. You're gonna get fat! Save some for the rest of us!"
Shi let out a low growl and clutched the bowl closer to her. "Get your own." She grumbled as she shoveled another piece of food under her scarf. Naruto just smiled at her, until they both spotted Inari glaring at them with tears streaming down his face.
"What?" Naruto asked.
"Why do you guys bother to try so hard?! No matter how hard you train, you're still no match for Gatou's men! No matter what glorious claims you make or how hard you work when facing the strong, the weak will only end up getting killed!"
Shi scoffed and Naruto just rolled his eyes. "Whatever kid. I'm not like you."
"I'd hate to be like you!" Inari yelled. "You don't know anything about this country, yet you're being so nosy! What the hell do you know about me?! I'm different from you! You're always clowning around and acting so cheerful! You don't know how hard life can be!"
Shi gripped her chopsticks so hard they snapped in half and Naruto spoke up with a cold voice.
"So it's okay for you to pose as the star of a tragedy and cry all day? Just keep on crying forever you idiot! You sissy!"
Naruto got up and headed towards the door as Sakura yelled at him.
"Naruto! You've said enough!"
Something flew by her head and her eyes widened as a half of a chopstick was stuck in the wall behind her.
"Shut up." Shi had also stood up and Sakura shrunk away from the heated look in her eyes. "You shouldn't be talking about matters that don't concern you."
Shi slammed the rest of her broken chopsticks down on the table and set a withering glare at Inari before following after Naruto. Dinner finished on a sour note and Kakashi took that chance to speak with Inari.
"Can I join you?"
Inari didn't say anything, so Kakashi sat down next to him and began speaking.
"Naruto didn't mean any harm by what he said. Sometimes he just doesn't use his head." Inari continued to stay silent, so Kakashi continued. "Tazuna told us about your dad. Like you, Naruto also grew up without a father. Actually, he's never known his parents and he's never even had a single friend. The truth is, he's had a rougher past than you."
"What about that other guy?" Inari muttered. He wasn't happy at how Shi had glared at him before and frowned as he remembered.
"You mean Shi? Well, first off, Shi's not a guy." Kakashi said as he rubbed the back of his head in embarrassment.
"What?!"
"Haha, it's true… But I don't really know much about Shi."
"Why not?"
"Well, you see, Shi came to our village a few months ago. Apparently, she was a bodyguard for a group of travelers and she ran into Naruto on the way. He had… gotten into some trouble and Shi had protected him. After that, they got along pretty well and she ended up on our team."
"But how? Isn't she too old?"
Kakashi sweat dropped. I'm glad she's not here to hear this kid. She'd probably kill him. "I suppose you could say that, but Shi was only as strong as Naruto and the others when she first came here."
"But why was she mad at me? I didn't do anything wrong."
"On the contrary. I assume part of it has to do with the fact that you hurt Naruto, but I think Shi has also had a rougher past than you. She's never mentioned anything about her family and she only remembers up to a few years ago. From what I know, she's been living on her own since then as a bodyguard."
Inari's eyes widened at that, but Kakashi kept speaking.
"Not once have I seen her show any other emotion besides her bored expression or her angered one. Naruto though, seems to make her happy but I've never seen him cry or complain either. He's always trying his best to get people to acknowledge him. For that dream he'd risk his life at any time. He's probably sick and tired of crying and for all I know, Shi's the same way. They both know what it really means to be strong, just like your father. In fact, Naruto may understand your feelings better than anyone else."
"What?"
"He doesn't seem to be able to not be concerned about you." Kakashi smiled before standing up. "Mah, I better go check up on him and Shi. Knowing them, they both collapsed somewhere."
Sure enough, Kakashi headed off into the woods and found Naruto sleeping, completely exhausted, up against Shi who was also asleep. He gave a small chuckle and went to pick up Naruto from Shi's arms only for her eyes to snap open and a low growl to come out of her throat; her eyes flashing silver for a split second. Her growl stopped when she saw who it was, and she handed Naruto over easily.
"About time." She muttered as she got up and stretched a bit with a yawn. "Mm, tired."
"That's the same thing you said before the bell test."
Shi gave him a half-lidded glare and he laughed as they all headed back.
"I like my sleep."
"I'm sure you do. It's a shame you don't do it more often."
"Nightmares."
He blinked at the answer and turned his head to look at her only for her face to be blank as she watched the stars above them. Nightmares? Of what? I should really speak with the Hokage about this when we get back. Shi's obviously hiding something and I doubt she'll tell me straight out. The two of them stayed quiet the rest of the way back and once Kakashi had put Naruto in his own bed, he went to check up on Shi only to find her in the same state as Naruto; completely knocked out. He shook his head in amusement and went to his own bed to sleep. He had a feeling tomorrow was going to be a long day.
The next morning, I awoke to a very loud yell from down the hall.
"AHHHHH! I overslept!"
I groaned and got up, leaving the room just as Naruto raced down the hall and back to his room. I rubbed my eyes tiredly and yawned, walking over to where I could smell the daughter of the family (I never did get her name) and blinked at her, silently asking the question that was on my mind.
"Your sensei wanted the both of you to sleep in."
I nodded and grabbed Naruto by the back of his collar just before he could run out the door without me.
"Gak!" He choked. "Shi! Let go!"
"No rush." I muttered out tiredly and he sweat dropped.
"No rush?! They left us behind Shi!"
I hummed and scratched the back of my head, letting him go and following him out at a slower pace.
"Hurry up Shi!" He shouted at me as we jumped through the trees, but I suddenly stopped. I smelled blood.
Turning away from him, I jumped in another direction before landing in front of a huge boar that looked as though someone had cut it up with a sword. Naruto landed behind me and noticed the cuts as well as others that were on the trees nearby, heading in the direction of Tazuna's house. Someone was sent after Inari and his mom.
"Naruto."
"Ah. Come on, Shi."
I nodded and he jumped off, but before I followed him, I made sure to help the poor boar out, using the medicine salve and bandages I had in my pouch. When we finally reached the house, I spotted Inari running towards two armed swordsmen.
"I got them. You get the brat."
He nodded and we hurried off. Naruto used a substitution on Inari, also managing to grab his sister, distracting the two swordsmen.
"Sorry for being late, but a hero usually shows up at the last second. Great job, Inari!"
He smiled and I appeared behind the two men without them noticing.
"Well, well, if it isn't one of the loser ninjas Tazuna hired."
"That's not very nice." I muttered and they both turned around to attack me, but I ducked their sword swings and heel kicked one in the face before swinging a right hook into the other one's ribs. They both fell to the ground and I began tying them up while Naruto spoke with Inari. I finally got his attention once I had finished.
"Naruto. The bridge."
He nodded. "You're right. If they attacked here, then the bridge is also in danger. I can count on you here, right Inari?"
"Yup." The boy nodded, wiping his eyes and I ruffled the kid's hair, surprising him.
"Bye."
The boy gave me a smile while Naruto smirked. "Man, it sure is tough being a hero."
"It sure is!" Inari shouted as we headed off to the bridge.
On our way there, my thoughts went on to think about something a bit depressing. If Zabuza is there, will we even have a chance to defeat him? Kakashi and I aren't exactly back in shape yet and I doubt Sakura could do much, no offense to her, but she's more of the book smart type. And what if there's more than just Zabuza? Will we be able to hold him back as well as others? More importantly, will I be able to hold back?
"Oi, Shi! Are you listening to me?!"
I blinked out of my reverie and glanced at Naruto.
"No."
"Shi!" He whined. "I said I think we should make a big entrance. What do you think?"
He smiled, but I sweat dropped. "Idiot."
"What?!"
"Is it really smart to give away your position right from the start?"
"Well—"
"Surprise is the best element, but… do what you want. It'll be a good distraction."
"Yosha!" He fist pumped and we headed out onto the bridge. I stayed in the shadows, using the fog as best I could as I tried to pinpoint everyone's location. Sakura's by Tazuna, and Kakashi is in front of Zabuza. Then Sasuke is… isn't that the same scent from the third voice? The one who took Zabuza away… So he did bring backup, but this isn't a good situation. I already smell blood.
Barely able to see through the fog, I frowned when I noticed a bunch of ice sheets formed nearby with Sasuke in the center and the head of a masked kid poking out from one of the sheets. I took a chance and threw a shuriken at the figure, knocking him out of the ice just as Naruto disappeared from my side. A smoke bomb must have been thrown and, just like he said he would, Naruto took center stage.
"Naruto Uzumaki has finally arrived! Now that I'm here everything will be fine! The main character of a story usually shows up in these types of situations and instantly kicks the enemy's ass!"
I heard Sakura cheer just as shuriken were thrown at him by Zabuza. I was about to reveal myself, but the masked kid did something unexpected and countered Zabuza's move with his senbon.
"Haku, what is this?" Zabuza said, and the masked kid answered.
"Zabuza, these kids, please let me fight them my way."
"So you don't want me to interfere, Haku? You're soft as always."
I searched around for Naruto, but when I spotted him inside the ice sheets, I mentally smacked myself in the face. That idiot. It would be better if he just stayed outside to attack. Quietly, I debated with myself on what to do. I either had to help Naruto and Sasuke, or help Kakashi with Zabuza. I wanted to do both, but I knew that if I tried to send a clone in with Naruto, it'd be destroyed. And sending a clone to Kakashi wouldn't help much either.
I bit down hard on my lip, letting the pain try to bring me back to my senses as my eyes scanned back and forth between Kakashi and Naruto. Zabuza can stop my best technique with his water attacks and since Haku uses ice, fire should work, but Sasuke tried that. And technically, he's not using ice attacks, he's either using speed or cloning. I sighed.
"Forget it."
I hurried over towards Kakashi as I heard Zabuza start laughing.
"Heheheh. They don't yet have the strength to destroy their hearts and kill another person. That young man knows the true pain of being a shinobi. A real shinobi can't be created in a peaceful village like yours, because you can't gain the most important thing. The experience of killing."
"Then what can we do, sensei?!" Sakura yelled as I slowed down and hid my presence, walking up behind Zabuza without a sound.
"Sorry but—" Kakashi slowly lifted his hand towards his headband. "I'm going to end this instantly."
"Heh, sharingan again? Is that the only thing you can do?"
I saw Zabuza reaching behind his shirt and I moved instantly, grabbing his hand and bringing my sword across his neck before he could attack.
"Why do that when he has me?" I spoke softly to Zabuza as his eyes widened.
"Shi!" Sakura shouted out in joy.
"Idiot, what are you doing?" Kakashi muttered.
I blinked at him. "Helping."
"Che." Zabuza scoffed. "You think this'll stop me?"
He swung his body around to kick me in the face, but I ducked and spun my sword around until it was pointed at his neck again. He ignored it and continued trying to attack me, but I kept dancing around him, just out of reach. Then, I suddenly stopped and started walking towards Kakashi, shocking them both.
"What the hell?! You just ignoring me now?!" Zabuza shouted.
"Not quite."
I stabbed my sword into the ground and kicked seemingly air. Unfortunately for Zabuza, I actually kicked the chain I had wrapped around his form while I was dodging him, and brought it down to the ground, tightening it around him. With his arms pinned to his sides, I walked up to him and got in his face.
"Nobody fucks with my team." I told him with ice cold eyes.
His own eyes grew wide but he still laughed. "Ha! And what the hell do you think you can do?"
I turned towards the ice where Naruto and Sasuke were still fighting and smirked back at him over my shoulder.
"They may not be able to kill, but I can."
Leaving him with that, I dashed to where the ice was only for me to feel a dark murderous intent from directly behind me. I ducked and brought my right foot up in order to kick Zabuza in the chin, but he had predicted this and knocked my other leg out from under me before my foot could make contact. I saw something metal aiming for my face and barely managed to twist my head to the side as the kunai sliced through my scarf.
Zabuza lifted the weapon again, but I kicked him in the stomach and stood up with my head tilted down, as he slid across the slick surface of the bridge. I pulled the two parts of my scarf off and stared at them sadly before tucking them away.
"That was my favorite scarf."
I muttered with my head still down, blocking my face from view. Then, I lifted my face up and pulled a hand through my short hair, a crazed smile on my face.
"You really shouldn't have done that."
Cloudy grey chakra started to cover Shi's form and her eyes became slits as they changed from their usual blue to a striking grey. Her canines became more pronounced and black marks started sliding down her left arm, as her breathing grew ragged and she slid down into her animalistic crouch. Electricity sparked off her body as well, it being the most uncontrollable of the elements, and her chakra gave her the appearance of a wolf before she suddenly disappeared in the surrounding mist.
Zabuza wasted no time trying to find her, as did everyone else in the area, until Shi finally showed herself. Her arm had come across in a sweeping motion from behind Zabuza and he dodged, but only barely. He swung his huge sword, but she easily jumped on top of the swinging blade and ran up to him. Wasting no time, he twisted the blade in a way where she was forced to jump off, but instead of jumping to the side like he expected, she jumped forward and over the top of his head; the chakra on her hand giving him three long scratches on his face and nicking the edge of the bandages covering his mouth. Damn, she's fast, and she's not even using a weapon. What the hell. Guess I'll have to change tactics.
Making a quick hand sign, Zabuza made the mist thicker and he closed his eyes. Meanwhile, Kakashi was silently worrying about what was taking place, not only in front of him, but with Naruto and Sasuke too. I'm worried about them, but I don't want to leave Shi here dealing with Zabuza alone. Although, with the way things are going, she might actually be doing better than I would have… but the chakra she has… Where is it all coming from? And how could she even be this powerful? It's almost like she's one of the jinchuriki. And if that's true, then I need to stop her before this gets out of hand.
Suddenly, something flew past him, hitting the ground hard but somehow managing to stay upright. Shi let out a low growl as blood dripped down her left arm from a gash near her shoulder and she glared into the mist. Kakashi lifted up his headband and activated his sharingan, but it wasn't much help towards him at all because the mist was so thick. It's been a long time since I've been in a battle under such dangerous conditions.
"Shi, you need to calm down and start thinking rationally. You're not going to be able to defeat him acting on instincts alone."
When he received no answer, he turned to give her a glance and became even more concerned. This was not Shi anymore. She's completely lost herself. This really isn't good. For all I know, she may not even be able to tell friend from foe. And all this over a scarf? Kakashi watched Shi carefully, while still keeping his senses on alert for Zabuza when she abruptly charged back into the mist, heading towards where Tazuna and Sakura were at. Oh no! Kakashi was there instantly and blocked the path between Shi and Sakura, who was shocked at the amazing turn of events.
"Shi! Think about what you're doing!"
Shi paid no mind to his shout and ran straight at him. Seeing no choice, Kakashi regretfully pulled out a kunai to defend them from Shi's attack only for her to dodge to the side and jump towards them again.
"Kyaa!"
Right as Shi jumped, a blade lashed out of the mist and sliced through her back and down her upper thigh. She hit the ground and didn't move, as Kakashi's eyes widened. Shi hadn't been attacking Tazuna and Sakura, she had been protecting them from Zabuza while he'd been distracted with worry.
"Stupid pest…" Zabuza huffed. "Weren't fast enough… this time around… were you?"
He wasn't exactly in the best of shape and had multiple cuts as well as deep gashes all over his body. His right arm in particular was bleeding fairly heavily from wound near his elbow.
"You desire to save these brats clouded your mind. Che, and here I thought we were similar."
Shi slowly lifted an arm and placed it under her, trying to rise from the ground, but her other arm gave out on her. Kakashi stood in front of Zabuza now, determined to keep his attention on himself. He ordered Sakura to stay put and he jumped into the mist after Zabuza, his mind set on finishing this. I won't just copy anymore. I'll show Zabuza my own jutsu. And end this, for all our sakes.