Chapter 15- Teardrop On Fire
Anko moved swiftly through the trees with a speed only a trained jōnin could attain. Everything blurred around her. Her lungs felt as if they were on fire, and her legs protested with each step she took. But she pushed on, knowing her little brother's safety was up in the air.
The moment she had entered the forest she had run nonstop, tracking every trail her snakes pointed out for her. Her bastard of an ex-sensei was back in town, and she needed to stop him before he found Naruto. If he were to even get the idea that Naruto owned an all-powerful Bloodline Limit capable of creating and copying other Limits… Anko didn't even want to think of the implications.
She stopped as the scent of ozone filled the air. A flash of lightning hit the tree just ahead of her, and when the light faded, she could see Iruka standing there, static electricity dancing around his body.
Anko smiled. Iruka was an S-class fighter; now they had at least a chance against Orochimaru.
"Where is Orochimaru?" Iruka asked curtly. Anko noted the uncharacteristic anger in his voice – probably why his control over his Limit was slipping.
"Follow me!" she shouted, jumping past him and dashing off.
Iruka was quick to follow, keeping pace easily with the jōnin. He ran alongside her, looking ahead for his target. With his bioelectric control, he began sensing for any living things within a mile's radius. The snake might be able to hide from his once and former student, but a literal human lightning bolt pissed beyond all belief was another story entirely.
Immediately, he had several signatures – recognizable as human, by the patterns he could sense – but scratched them as not their target; all of them had the feel of common genin. Coming up on a particularly empty part of the forest, he could sense two signatures. One with enough power to be on par with Hatake Kakashi, and the other wasn't even comparable.
"Found him!" Iruka shouted.
Anko dismissed her snakes and followed her crush. Compared to her snakes, Iruka might as well be a bloodhound on steroids; how else like him manage could someone to find Naruto after a prank?
-0-
Kabuto watched as his master paced the tree branch he stood on, a noticeable oily leer plastered on the snake-man's face. He had both arms once more, having regenerated after his battle with Naruto-kun. The silver-haired ninja found himself smirking. After today's events, how could they not rejoice?
Sasuke's use to Orochimaru was phenomenal. The Sharingan would allow the snake-master to copy jutsu at unheard-of speeds, not to mention make his enemies quiver in fear at the sight of the spinning, blood-red eyes.
But Naruto… the word did not even exist to describe how useful he would be. Not only the Sharingan, but every Bloodline Limit in existence! Byakugan, Mokuton, Jikiton, Sharingan… There truly were no limits!
Orochimaru stopped his pacing with a thoughtful look. "Perhaps I should have given him my seal after all."
"Why didn't you?" Kabuto blinked. His master hadn't marked the boy? Why would that be?
The Snake Sannin took a moment to collect his thoughts, before explaining. "Like that damnable Rinnegan before it, Naruto-kun is in possession of a Transcendent Limit. I genuinely do not know how his body would have reacted to the presence of my Mark, and with the risks already inherent in receiving one… No, Naruto-kun has become far too valuable to my plans to risk needlessly, especially so brazenly as that."
"What of the Uchiha and Haruno?" Having taken the Kyoukagan as a new target, Kabuto could not help but wonder about his lord's plans for the two.
The traitor Sannin considered for another moment before replying. "They still have their uses. Otogakure still has a place for them, but for now, we'll concentrate our efforts on Naruto-kun.
"Kabuto… I'll need you to infiltrate the Hokage Tower. Find me every last scrap of information you can on this… Kyoukagan."
"Of course, Orochimaru-sama," Kabuto obeyed, his glasses glinting ominously in the dim light.
The scent of ozone suddenly assaulted Orochimaru's nose. Above him, a storm picked up, clouds darkening and bellowing as the winds rustled the leaves. Looking up, he could feel the incredibly trace amounts of chakra in the lightning that flashed through the sky. Yet it was so minute that he could only barely sense it at all. Whoever this was that seemed to believe he was actually hunting him – him, the greatest of the Sannin! – was clearly incredibly skilled at Raiton techniques, to be using natural lightning with so little chakra spent.
He looked off in a particular direction, wondering who it might be. Anko had had no talent for Raiton jutsu; clearly it could not be her. An Inuzuka was out of the question – they hunted by scent, and he had made sure to thoroughly scatter his trail, partly because he knew his former student had access to various snakes with tracking capabilities.
Whoever this was, however, clearly must be a strong opponent. Being able to use natural lightning in combat was a difficult feat, one that had even escaped Orochimaru himself. But there was one way…
"Kabuto," Orochimaru said. "Now would be a good time for you to take your leave."
His subordinate nodded once, before vanishing in a spray of leaves. His master was about to enter another fight, and though he was, without a doubt, one of the strongest, the man was still slightly weakened from his fight with Naruto-kun. Whoever it was that wanted to fight him, clearly had no idea of what he was about to get into.
Orochimaru spun, as a lightning bolt struck the branch next to him. As the flash cleared, it revealed a chūnin (from what he determined from the garb) hanging off the side of the struck tree, holding onto the side with chakra. The snake-man could see the scar running across the bridge of the newcomer's nose, but moving to his eyes, they glowed from the sheer amount of electricity running through the man's body, waiting to burst forth with the force of a thousand thunderstorms.
Another figure jumped out of the treetops: his former student, Anko. And if looks could kill, Orochimaru knew he would be instantly reduced to nothing but a smear on the tree bark.
Orochimaru chuckled. "My lovely student, how long has it been?"
"Not long enough," Anko snarled, a kunai gripped tightly in each hand.
She readied herself to attack, but was stopped short as Iruka's voice pierced the air. "Don't. I'll fight him."
"But…" she protested.
"You're strong, Anko," Iruka told her, "but for this battle, I'm going all-out. I need space. I don't want you getting caught up in my attacks."
"But… I…" she tried to say, only for the words to die in her throat. She wanted so much to fight this man, to make him pay for every sin he had ever committed against her. Then again, there was Iruka, an average-looking chūnin who just so happened to possess a nearly extinct Bloodline Limit.
Iruka turned towards her with promising eyes. Anko could see his own want to make this man pay, but his heart… She could now see why he wanted her to stay out of this battle; besides getting caught up in their large scale attacks, her anger would make her careless. He wasn't out for revenge; he was here to defend the village and to protect Naruto.
Reluctantly, she nodded.
Iruka jumped to a nearby branch. While in the air, he threw up a scroll, and as he landed, he snatched it with an outstretched arm. Drawing blood, he used his other hand to unfurl the scroll, wiping the blood on his thumb across it. Throwing the scroll into the air, it exploded, and out of the smoke came a pair of meter-long metal rods. Iruka outstretched both his hands and caught them both at the bottom.
Across the gap, Orochimaru watched with interest. At the sight his opponent drawing a pair of weapons, Orochimaru had a snake slide out of his mouth. No sooner did the hilt of the Kusanagi-no-Tsurugi appear out of the snake's mouth. The fell katana fell into the traitor's hand as the snake receded back into his mouth.
"How interesting," Orochimaru observed. "I suppose I am about to witness the legendary Hyakurai in action, then?"
Iruka made no motion.
The snake went on, "I do find it interesting that the most feared Bloodline Limit of Kirigakure is to be found in Konoha, of all places. Supposedly, the Hyakurai had been wiped out by the Fourth Mizukage himself during the Bloodline Purges . I assume, then, that you are the lone survivor of your clan."
The academy teacher snorted. "Indeed. I am the only living person who can use the Hyakurai."
Orochimaru's laugh sent a shiver up both Iruka and Anko's spine. "Oh? Are you so sure about that? What of Naruto-kun? Surely, you must be teaching him something…"
Both of the Konoha ninjas' breath caught in their throats. They were too late.
"WHAT HAVE YOU DONE TO HIM!?" Anko roared.
"Nothing," Orochimaru truthfully told them. "Why would I want to ruin perfection? There was nothing for me to do. All that is needed is for him to grow stronger, but that will come in time. Already, he shows so much promise."
Orochimaru licked his lips, his golden eyes eerily shining in the dark. "I have never seen such a magnificent Bloodline Limit. Soon enough, Naruto-kun will belong to me."
"I'll kill you before that happens!" Iruka shouted.
Faster than the eye could track, Iruka raised a rod and sent a lightning bolt at the tree Orochimaru stood on. Just as the electricity gathered at the weapon's tip, the snake jumped out of the way as the branch was instantly turned into countless splinters. Iruka jumped onto the side of a tree and then pushed off, adding chakra for speed. As Orochimaru reached the peak of his jump, Iruka greeted him in the air. In one split second, Iruka pulled back on his rod, beginning to charge it with enough electricity to power all of Konoha. Faster than the human eye could track, the rod connected with Orochimaru's body. Before the former Sannin could even look surprised, the area lit up with a flash of lightning with the two combatants at the center, the massive amounts of electricity easily frying all of the snake's insides.
"Raisen no Jutsu!" Iruka announced as he landed lithely on a branch.
He turned to look at the body, only to find it glowing as it fell through the air. On instinct – and with a curse – Iruka threw the rods high into the air and held out both of his hands. The boom then issued through the area, taking trees and debris with it in an explosion stronger than any exploding tag.
Orochimaru landed on a branch across the clearing, his head shifting as he looked for his opponent. On time, the smoke cleared to reveal Iruka, surrounded protectively by a translucent shield. The danger past, Iruka dropped his Raiton: Raijinheki and caught the rods as they fell back to the earth.
Orochimaru scoffed. If this person was really a mere chūnin, then Jiraiya was a eunuch.
This battle was fun, but – as Orochimaru noted before Hell had broken loose, – his reserves were still depleted from his battle with Naruto-kun. Of course, that simply meant he couldn't use some of his best techniques; otherwise, he would have ended this before it even began.
Iruka, having used that moment to determine how much power to use, unleashed every ounce of amperage he held with his body. Actinic blue-white danced around him in a chaotic, but graceful, dance, gouging into the sides of trees and arcing between the medal rods he held in both hands.
Suddenly, the energy changed color, turning a deep, electric blue.
The academy teacher found himself smirking. Blue lightning was many times more powerful than regular electricity. As a descendent of his clan grew, so too did the power in their body. Young children always had the weakest capacitance; adults, fresh out of puberty, had a tendency to have the highest reserves. Very rarely among his clan, certain members had such large bioelectric capacities that their bodies began to compress it, thus creating the far stronger blue lightning.
Unfortunately for Naruto, it would still be a few years before he could begin learning the really high-level abilities that the older members of his clan had been capable of.
Anko's mouth dropped. She had been Naruto when the boy had released his full power. But seeing Iruka in that same state… There was just no comparison between the two. The differences in power and experience seemed like a vast ocean. It was something she would have to talk to Iruka about, but for now, she ogled him.
-0-
"Kakashi," an aged voice said, bringing the man back to reality.
"Sorry, I guess I'm kind of out of it today," he sheepishly voiced back, rubbing the back of his head.
The aged Hokage shook his head. With his battle-hardened fingers, he poured tea into the former ANBU captain's cup. He knew the man wanted nothing more than to be at a bar with his fellow jōnin teachers – Tenzō, Asuma, Kurenai, and Gai – drowning out his worries.
Today, Sarutobi thought it appropriate that he invite Kakashi over for some tea. He also just wanted to have a chat with the man, to learn more about Team Seven's rapid growth in strength.
Sarutobi sipped his tea. "It's alright," he said as he placed his cup down demurely. "Your team is in a rough situation. Look at this way, however: they are quite possibly one of the strongest teams in the exams. Not many teams can claim each of their members as possessing a Bloodline Limit, much less someone capable of using multiple others."
Kakashi eye-smiled, "You do have a point there," then returned to seriousness. "Still, I worry about them, especially Naruto. I wonder if I made the right decision."
"This will only help them grow. It was a good choice." Sarutobi took another sip. "All three of them were trained well. Even Sakura-chan's growth rate is amazing. Tenzō has been teaching her well."
"Yes, he has," Kakashi agreed offhandedly, sipping his own tea before Sarutobi could notice that his mask was down.
"Sasuke, too, has also seen an impressive jump in abilities. I knew having him taught under the legendary Copy-Cat Kakashi was a wise choice."
Kakashi blushed from the praise, though his mask hid it.
"And Naruto-kun…" Sarutobi's face graced itself with a smile. "Even I never knew he held so much potential. Going from dead-last to the strongest of his generation; I suppose that is just Naruto-kun for you. He is, after all, the number one most surprising ninja in Konoha." Kakashi chuckled at the nickname he had given Naruto. "Iruka, Anko, Tenzō, yourself… All of you are bringing up one fine genin."
The conversation seemed to enter a lull at that point. Kakashi poured himself another cup before passing the teapot to his commander-in-general, who himself poured a cup as well.
Now that Kakashi thought about it, there was one question that bothered him.
The scarecrow looked up from his cup. "How strong is Iruka?"
Sarutobi finished his sip. "In all honesty, I don't know."
Kakashi blinked. He hadn't expected that as an answer. "Do you have an idea?"
Sarutobi took a second to think about it. "When I was deciding who would be the next ANBU commander several names popped up. Yours, Gai-kun's," Kakashi winced, "and Iruka-kun's were among the list I had created of possible candidates."
The Sandaime paused, watching as Kakashi digested what he heard. For the Copy-Cat, to hear Iruka had been a choice candidate for ANBU commander was quite the shock. He honestly couldn't imagine someone like Iruka as the one to hold a job like that.
But then, he couldn't see Gai in the position, either. The horrors… That was another thought for another time.
"Of the names, my first choice had been Iruka," Sarutobi went on, sighing and shaking his head. "I pestered him about it for a while, but each time, he would say he loved teaching more than anything."
Kakashi chuckled. "I'll bet Naruto changed that view."
Sarutobi shook his head again. "My grandson is beginning to act the same way. I fear for the teachers each time he sets foot into the school. If not for the Hyakurai's sensing capabilities, I suspect things might be much worse. Of course, unlike Naruto-kun, Konohamaru was never quite desperate enough to escape into the sewers."
Both men shared a laugh at that. They calmed down after a moment and poured more tea.
Sarutobi liked these little sessions he had with various jōnin – more commonly Kakashi and Iruka nowadays, mainly for information on their students. They were always relaxing. Not to mention a cheap escape from paperwork.
Sarutobi frowned. "But in all seriousness, I suppose I would have to rank Iruka-kun as on the verge of mid S-class. He has been called the next Senju Tobirama for all his skill in elemental manipulation."
Kakashi let out a low whistle. He had known Iruka was strong, but that strong? It was insane! He had never seen Iruka at full power, but if what Sarutobi said was correct, Iruka was easily one of the strongest in the village.
The threat of having his face melted off suddenly became much more real. At first, he'd thought Iruka hadn't had the balls to do it, being too kind to stoop to such a thing. But now that he thought about it, the threat must have been used before.
Seeing the copy-cat sink into his seat with a frightful look, Sarutobi raised an eyebrow. "Something wrong?"
"Bad memories," Kakashi admitted as he brought the cup up to his mouth.
"Ah, yes," Sarutobi nodded sagely. "He must have used that 'face-melting' threat of his on you. I must say, it was quite intimidating for me too."
Kakashi choked on his tea.
-0-
Orochimaru smeared a line of blood along his forearm and then slapped the palm against the ground, summoning forth a snake with multiple heads. The snake master himself jumped atop the highest, relishing the thought of a battle this intense – it had been so very long since he had fought such a strong opponent.
Each of the snake's heads lunged at Iruka, hissing, however the teacher himself didn't bat a eyelash. One rod raised above his head, the other pointed at the nearest oncoming head, instantly a lightning bolt struck down out of the sky, striking the upright weapon and channeled through the other, punching a hole straight through the snake's head. The other three hissed briefly in pain, trashing about, before attacking again as one in rage.
One head tried to flank him, coming from the side with its mouth wide open, but Iruka simply leapt aside, slamming a rod deep into its skull. The head hissed in pain, rearing back as its fellow followed snapped at him from above; Iruka dodged nimbly, shoving his other weapon into the roof of its mouth.
The third, however, having dug its head underground, managed to catch Iruka off guard, the impact hurling the man into the air. Salivating with anticipation, the snake head dove forth, maw open in full preparation to devour him. Iruka, however, merely smirked as he hurled a kunai at the space in between its two nostrils, followed by a bolt of lightning into its open mouth; the hiss of pain sounded strange, muted as the jaws slammed shut in reflex.
Landing, Iruka turned, watching as the three heads converged, rearing up in anger. Smirking, the chūnin formed a single hand-seal. In an instant, lightning from the clouds overhead lanced downward, striking all three metal points on the snakes' heads simultaneously. The massive summon vanished in a puff of smoke.
"Interesting," Orochimaru's voice echoed eerily from around the clearing. "That storm cloud must of course be a product of your own jutsu, I suspect."
Iruka's head swiveled as he sensed for his target, trying to seek out the man's bioelectricity. He could sense the electric current in Anko's body; he didn't have to look to know she was chewing her nails in apprehension.
In truth, the cloud had been created by a jutsu. Before he had come to the forest, knowing a battle with the snake Sannin was likely going to unfold, Iruka formed cumulonimbus clouds with a large fire jutsu he knew. To a human generator of his type, the cloud augmented his abilities on a much larger scale. In the middle of a battle, though, it was painstakingly difficult to do, at least not without getting tagged by an enemy.
"Is there a problem with it?" Iruka answered back. He needed the bastard to keep talking; he was getting a general idea of where he was.
Orochimaru chuckled. "Of course not; it has been a long time since I've had such fun. Strong opponents are, after all, few and far between."
"Being on top of the world can do that to you," Iruka continued. There!
Orochimaru's bioelectricity was rapidly coming toward him from underground in an attack. Iruka smirked as he quickly slapped his hands to the ground.
"Raiton: Kanmai no Jutsu!" he shouted.
Electricity swam across the ground, coiling and cracking as it gouged it and channeled enough to affect the approximate area. Amidst the dazzling display of electric blue, Orochimaru shot out of the ground, avoiding electrocution.
In retaliation, the missing-nin swept Kusanagi outward, the blade extending almost instantly. Iruka hopped backwards, avoiding the gouge carved into the earth in front of him. Faster than the blink of an eye, he bent his legs backwards while performing a single hand seal, barely missing the swipe of the long blade. Touching the ground as he bent backwards, Iruka sent a spinning torrent of electricity surging through the ground towards Orochimaru. The snake master leapt to avoid it, but was met in midair with another Raisen no Jutsu. The massive surge sent the traitor backwards through the air, crashing through several trees in the process.
Orochimaru's appeared out of the wreckage, limbs broken and flesh burned. But with a quick release of chakra, a new Orochimaru slithered out of the body of the old, whole and unharmed.
Anko fought back the urge to vomit, back in her position in the trees.
Multiple snakes slithered out of Orochimaru's opened mouth, and then those snakes opened their mouths, even more snakes surging forth from those, until a tangled mass of wriggling serpents were headed towards Iruka. The man himself frowned, as blades extended forth from those snakes' mouths.
Drawing only a single senbon, its purpose became immediately clear as hands immediately flashed through handseals upon throwing it. "Senbon Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!"
One senbon became thousands, however Iruka wasn't finished yet as he formed one more, unique seal.
"Raiton: Raijinsu!"
Electricity lashed out to grab the senbon, an enormous and intricate web of metal and lightning. The electric "threads" sheered effortlessly through the serpents, severing them into bloody chunks even before they could even come close, shredding Orochimaru's Senja Hōjin. Orochimaru was forced to shed his old body a second time, as the attack cut into him as well, his arms disappearing in a mist of red. As the discarded shell fell to the ground however, something different could be noted about this new form: in place of legs, Orochimaru's body from the waist down now resembled the tail of a snake.
Just as he reached Iruka for a close combat battle, Iruka stuck out his hands and called for his weapons. The metal rods spun through the air, drawn by electromagnetic forces into their master's hands. Iruka felt the slap of metal against his palms in time to parry Orochimaru's strike, deflecting to the side and lashing out with his free arm to catch Orochimaru in the head. He was unable to follow through, however, as the Sannin's tail reaching beneath his guard to trip him. Iruka rolled out of the way as the Sannin punched the ground where he had been, cracks radiating out from the point of impact. The academy teacher continued the roll as the tail came crashing down, and again as another fist hit next to him. That had given Iruka enough time, however, to charge up another attack, striking Orochimaru squarely in the chest, the snake-man crying out in pain as he was thrown backwards.
Back in the forest, Anko had to clench her fists tight, to keep from chewing on her fingers themselves. "Come on, Iruka-kun." This fight was nerve–wracking to watch, even for her.
"You fool!" Orochimaru roared as he shot forward. Iruka rolled into a handstand and hopped out of the way as the snake master impacted the dirt. He then jumped to the side as Kusanagi carved another path of destruction.
Iruka flashed through hand seals as he stood. "Fūton: Daitoppa!" A powerful wind picked up and launched the Sannin across the clearing.
"Good, now I've got room to work," Iruka muttered to himself, summoning his weapons and sticking them into the ground. Lightning from the clouds overhead lashed down to strike the rods, the electricity arcing back up again to enter Iruka.
Seeing what was happening as he righted himself, Orochimaru's lower half returned to normal, seemingly melting and reforming at the same time from his previous form of a serpent's tail, back into a pair of (somehow still clothed) human legs.
He intends to finish this, the traitor realized.
The amount of electricity that the supposed Chūnin was gathering left no doubt that this was going to be his strongest move. If that was to be the case, then Orochimaru needed to counter that with something equally strong. The only problem was: he didn't have enough chakra for a Kuchiyose: Sanjū Rashōmon.
"Dammit," Orochimaru muttered angrily as he bit both of his thumbs. He had played around too long; his reserves were near empty. If the Umino's attack was strong enough, it might actually be able to break his defense; Orochimaru hoped it didn't come to that.
Iruka pulled out another scroll amidst the actinic blue dancing around him. With a swipe of his blood, a pair of weights, comparable to the ones Lee and Gai wore, materialized, slamming into the ground with enough force to crater.
What's he doing?! Anko questioned. Why pull out something like that?
Iruka strapped them on as Orochimaru readied his hands. Feeling that the preparations were complete, Iruka held out both of his hands. Another bolt of lightning struck the rods and continued the dance as the electricity was channeled into Iruka's hands. A ball of light formed between the Chūnin's hands, steadily growing larger as more electricity channeled into it.
"I've only used this once," Iruka told Orochimaru amidst the ruckus of his attack. "It's an attack I had forbidden myself from using. But, for you, I'll make an exception."
-0-
"What is that?" Ino said as she looked up to the night sky.
It was much too bright to be ten o'clock at night.
"Tch. Troublesome…" Shikamaru muttered, choosing to ignore it as he continued walking.
Not satisfied with such an answer, Ino leapt up into the trees, much to her team's chagrin. She grunted as she pulled herself to the top of tree, perching herself on the tallest most point.
The sight she beheld was nothing short of stunning. It was as if the sun had come up early. Above it, a bolt of lightning looked as if it had struck the ground and gotten stuck, dancing as if trying to release itself.
"What is that?!" a voice asked from the tree next to Ino.
The platinum blonde looked over to see Shikamaru and Chōji having joined her in their own tree, awestruck at the sight.
"I don't know," she breathed in awe.
-0-
The ball was so bright now that Anko had to shield her eyes against it. Iruka-kun seemed to be pouring everything he had into that attack. He must really want to destroy Orochimaru, was the stray thought she had.
"I'm not going to die!" Orochimaru slammed both hands onto the ground. "Kuchiyose: Nijū Rashōmon!"
Two massive, demonic gates sprouted from the ground. Their evil eyes almost seemed to stare at Iruka in anticipation, as if telling him it was futile. All Iruka could do was smile.
-0-
"Okay, seriously," Shikamaru said, eyes wide. For once, his laziness had been completely dispensed with. "What the hell is going on!?"
"They just sprouted out of the ground! Like daisies!" Chōji muttered, his bag of chips lying forgotten on the branch in front of him.
Ino was silent, stunned. Whatever was happening, this was something huge.
-0-
"It's over!" Iruka shouted. "RAITON: RAIKŌHŌ!"
The sky lit up as a beam of pure energy rocketed towards the Rashōmon gates, gouging the earth before it as it roared.
The first gate was shredded like paper, the demonic metal flash-melted into liquid on contact. The second gate held… barely… but not even a second into contact with the attack, it already began to glow red hot.
Orochimaru clenched his teeth as he poured whatever chakra he had left into his only defense. Otherwise, his death would be a real possibility if he did not. But even then, light began to leak out as the second Rashōmon gate began to bulge and warp, then finally failed altogether. Orochimaru only had an instant to stare, wide-eyed, before he was engulfed in angry light.
Beyond the dispelling gates was a line of destruction. Trees were vaporized or uprooted, dirt scattered into the air. The very air itself almost seemed to groan in agony as it parted in rings around the attack.
Finally it was done. No more chakra to feed the attack, Iruka stopped. The light disappeared, darkness once more flowing into its place. Above the field, the storm, no longer necessary, was quailed, silence taking over where the lightning left off. A gentle breeze began to carry away the clouds and the smoke of battle, revealing stars in the nighttime sky.
"Iruka-kun!" Anko cried, dashing onto the scene. She reached him as he collapsed to one knee, sweat-covered and panting.
Both were shocked, however, to hear a faint chuckling. Orochimaru still stood, alive, yet at the same time, half of his body was missing, boiled away by the attack. That damage came to naught, however, as the snake shed his body one last time and slid onto the ground. With obvious pain, he stood back up.
"Impressive," Orochimaru spoke, smiling despite the situation. "You actually managed to come so close to defeating me. Alas, I'm afraid we will have to call it a draw. Both of us have no more chakra left to call on. Nevertheless, it was indeed the most fun I've had in a long time."
A kunai was in Anko's hand, faster than she could blink, as she charged her former master. However unexpectedly, a Konoha ANBU appeared in her path, disarming her effortlessly.
"Great," Anko spat. "We have a spy in Konoha."
The spy kicked her, sending her sprawling next to Iruka.
"I can see," continued Orochimaru, "why the Yondaime Mizukage went to such personal lengths to exterminate your clan." Iruka snarled at the pasty-faced missing-nin. "It would have been beyond foolish to send anyone less than a Kage to finish them."
"I'll kill you!" Anko roared, but was stopped as Iruka placed a hold on her hand. She stopped, but wanted so much to finish what was started.
There was no words to adequately describe how she felt about seeing her master once more. Simply put, she wanted to murder the bastard and then paint the forest red with his entrails. Nothing less would appease her for what he done to her.
But she had to think about Iruka. If not for this treacherous ANBU, she would have been able to finish this madman off, however if she left the Chūnin's side, this spy would easily be able to cut him down. Naruto would never forgive her if she let that happen.
"The ANBU," explained Iruka, "would be too much for you." He had a gut-feeling about this one, one that he wasn't about to shove aside.
"I know," she whispered back, if reluctantly.
"You'll have to forgive me for cutting short our little reunion, my former student," Orochimaru said. "But I'm afraid have… other matters to attend to." With that, the fake ANBU appeared next to his master, and the two disappeared in a swirl of leaves.
"We were lucky," Iruka said as he fully stood. "If that one had been looking for a fight, it would have gotten ugly."
Anko didn't say anything as she stood next to him. Iruka wobbled for a second, before hunching over.
"If wouldn't be too much trouble…" Iruka began to ask, smiling wryly.
Anko shrugged and pulled his arm around her neck – chakra exhaustion was a real bitch to deal with. Without making another noise, the two began their long trek back to civilization to report to the Hokage.
She was glad, though, that it was dark, otherwise, Iruka might have noted the blush on Anko's cheeks.
-0-
"What on earth was that?" Chōji asked, long after the lights had faded.
Team Ten were still up in the tree tops, discussing what just happened.
Shikamaru rubbed the side of his face. "Judging by the way that storm disappeared right after, and how those gates appeared out of the ground, I'd guess a battle of some kind."
"Do you think it was a genin?" Ino questioned, doubting it herself.
"Not a chance," Shikamaru told her, uncharacteristically bluntly. "The chakra to summon those gates alone would be more than most Chūnin could handle, let alone a genin. That blinding light afterwards must have been some kind of attack, and if it broke through those gates like that, the amount of chakra it had to have had would be just as monstrous."
Ino nodded. "So, who do you think did it?"
Shikamaru muttered something under his breath that sounded like 'troublesome'. "It would have to be somebody A-class ranked or higher."
"But that doesn't answer who it was," Ino said, rubbing her chin in thought.
"Alright, hey, here's an idea… How about we go and ask those guys, 'hey, why are you fighting?' and then run for our lives while they try to kill us too." The sarcasm could be seen dripping off of Shikamaru's words.
Ino sighed. "Fine! Let's just keep moving before someone else finds us, then."
-0-
"Orochimaru-sama," Kabuto began, "I saw the entire battle." He took off the mask he had taken. "It was… quite the show."
"Indeed," Orochimaru grinned as he leaned against a tree – everything, every part of his body hurt. "Had I been at full strength, I would have finished him, but my battle with Naruto-kun before had worn me out already, leaving me with only two-thirds of my original reserve."
"I see," Kabuto said, adjusting his glasses. "Even if you were going easy on him, you must admit the Hyakurai is an impressive Bloodline Limit. It's on par with Kimimaro's Shikotsumyaku."
"Speaking of which," Orochimaru said, turning his gaze onto Kabuto. "Bring Kimimaro-kun to Konoha as soon as possible. I want Naruto to copy his Limit!"
Kill Joy no Jutsu: Well, it's been a while. I decided to take a break from Shattered Eyes and work on some of my other stories. I have been seriously neglecting them, and the change-up was nice. Now I'm not in a rut, and it's still only halfway through summer. By the way, the next chapter of NDS is completed; I'm just waiting for my beta to put the finishing touches on the chapter. And I'm almost done redoing a chapter of Nevermore and am close to finishing the next chapter as well. Tenko is also two/thirds of the way done. Trust me, it's been a boring summer.
For a while, I had people questioning just how strong Iruka could be. Well, I hope this chapter gives you an idea of how strong he could be. And I also thought you guys could use the treat.
The next chapter will pick-up with Naruto. I haven't started the next chapter yet due to other projects, but I'll most likely begin it shortly. There won't be much action, but we'll see some interesting stuff come our way.
Not much else for me to go over, but at least there were a plethora of techniques.
I would also like to thank my beta reader for going farther than ever and adding the translations of my techniques and finding a new name for the jutsu section of our story. Some are recognizable; others are new. By the way, I'm hoping the Kanji for the techniques' names show up; if not, I'm sorry it didn't work out.
I proudly present to you…
Forbidden Scroll of Techniques:
Raisen no Jutsu 「雷閃の術」– Thunder Flash Technique
Ninjutsu – Clan Technique
A standard attack technique of the Umino clan, formerly one of their favorites due to the simplicity and ease of use. Naruto makes use of this technique often, although he does not know of its name. By concentrating a large, but loosely-knit charge of lightning-based chakra into their palm, the user can create a devastating stun attack.
Raiton: Raijinheki 「雷遁・雷陣壁」– Lightning Release: Lightning Encampment Wall
Ninjutsu – B-rank
Essentially the lightning-based version of Suiton: Suijinheki, one of the few defensive, lightning-based available. The technique creates a barrier of electricity capable of deflecting even solid objects. The shield is usually omnidirectional, generating a 360-degree spherical coverage around the user, however skilled practitioners of this technique, such as Iruka, are able to limit how much of themselves the barrier covers (i.e. a hemisphere rather than a full sphere, if attacks are only coming from one direction.) It should be noted, though, that the shield can be pierced if the attack possesses enough force; thinner or higher-velocity attacks usually stand a better chance of doing so, for that reason.
Raiton: Kanmai no Jutsu 「雷遁・神舞の術」– Lightning Release: Gods' Dance Technique
Ninjutsu – High C-Rank, Clan Technique
A technique adopted by the Umino clan for its versatility, this move causes lightning to rain down upon an area. Being not a particularly powerful Raiton jutsu, most barrier techniques are able to deflecting it, however the electricity has a large area-of-effect – even if the attack itself is blocked, opponents still have to worry about the grounding effect, making this technique especially good for stunning opponents. Especially skilled users are even capable of controlling the path of the lightning, concentrating the strikes onto one place.
Senbon Kage Bunshin no Jutsu 「千本影分身の術」– Senbon Shadow Clone Technique
Ninjutsu – B-rank
A variant of Kage Bunshin no Jutsu, in which the user creates replications of an object rather than themselves – in this case, senbon. With this technique, a single thrown weapon can become an entire barrage, which can often have the unintentional bonus of catching the opponent off guard by the sudden increase in numbers. (Note that Sarutobi Hiruzen is known in canon for using Shuriken Kage Bunshin no Jutsu in his battle against Orochimaru – this is essentially the same technique, only with a different type of weapon.)
Raiton: Raijinsu 「雷遁・雷神巣」– Lightning Release: Thunder God Web
Ninjutsu – Mid A-rank
Used in tandem with Senbon Kage Bunshin no Jutsu, a devastating lightning-based attack which cuts down targets with a web of sharpened lightning, similar to the science fiction concept of monomolecular wire. The downside to this technique is that it requires several stages of work to set up, before it can be used, however for a ninja with skill and the need for a powerful attack, this is a choice Ninjutsu.
Senja Houjin 「千蛇方陣」– Thousand Snake Phalanx
Summoning – Unranked
An area-suppression technique in which Orochimaru summons a wave of snakes, which themselves then summon another, larger wave of snakes, and so on. With such massive numbers, the idea is to bog down, pin, and crush the opponent with overwhelming force. (It should also be noted that Sasori of the Red Sand, Orochimaru's former partner in Akatsuki, possesses a similar move within several of his puppets, through use of storage/summoning seals within the puppet's arm compartments, called Senju Soubu, or "Thousand Arm Manipulation Dance".)
Fuuton: Daitoppa 「風遁・大突破」– Wind Release: Great Breakthrough
Ninjutsu – C-Rank
This technique creates a large explosion of wind from the user's location, easily leveling everything in its path. A variation of the technique involves a smaller blast of wind which gets ignited with flame.
Kuchiyose: Sanjuu Rashoumon 「口寄せ・三重羅生門」– Summoning: Triple Rashomon
Kuchiyose: Nijuu Rashoumon 「口寄せ・二重羅生門」– Summoning: Double Rashomon
Summoning – A-Rank, defensive
A multiple, simultaneous summoning of the Rashomon Gate, with a corresponding multiplier in defensive power as a result.
Raiton: Raikouhou 「雷遁・雷吼砲」– Lightning Release: Thunder Roar Cannon
Ninjutsu – S-Rank, kinjutsu
A forbidden attack created by Umino Iruka, it has only seen combat twice, due to both the massive damage it is capable of inflicting, as well as the amount of setup and charge time it requires. It has been labeled as a kinjutsu, due to the fact that an ordinary person, not in possession of the Hyakurai kekkei genkai, cannot use this attack without the risk of electrocution and/or a potentially lethal backfire. In order to produce the necessary electrical power for Raikouhou, the user must possess either massive chakra stores – rivaling that of a Kage – or else call upon outside sources such as a thunderstorm or electrical generator; without any of these, it is not possible to build up the necessary voltage needed for this attack.
Essentially, this attack is a massive charged particle cannon, capable of superheating any material on contact via heat convection, such that anything struck by the beam is thus instantly vaporized. Such, too, is the recoil caused by this attack, that heavy weights are usually required in order to counterbalance it.
