I do not own Naruto Shippuden or any of the characters.
Crystal
Naruto opened his eyes and groaned. He was in a hospital bed with Tsunade and Kushina on either side of him.
"Good morning," Tsunade greeted waking up the other woman. "You should know that we located one of Orochimaru's hideouts and I sent Team Kurenai with Kakashi, who we filled in on you and Sasuke's deal. I'm sorry but he promised not to harm Sasuke or stand in the way of his escape."
"How long ago?" Naruto groaned.
"Two days," Tsunade stated. "You'll have to leave by tomorrow to give them backup."
"But Jiraiya is going to spend today teaching you a new jutsu," Kushina stated. "You'd better get going."
"Where's my cloak?" Naruto questioned.
"It...um...it was ruined in the explosion," Kushina said sympathetically.
"Right," Naruto sighed. "Okay. I'll have to go without it. I'd better get going. Can you ask Dad to make me a new one?"
"Sure," Kushina smiled.
Naruto nodded and stood, teleporting home where he got dressed and retrieved his swords which Kushina had laid on his bed. Then, he met with Jiraiya in the Third Training Ground.
"You'll be learning a collaboration ninjutsu," Jiraiya stated. "Normally I would pair you with Gamariki, like before, but for now I think Gamatatsu and Gamakichi will work better."
Jiraiya had Naruto summon them and Naruto questioned them about their chakra natures. Gamakichi had Fire Style. Gamatatsu had Water Style. With no Water Style Jutsus.
The first ten hours were spent teaching Gamatatsu to use a Water Style Jutsus eventually ending with Gamakichi shoving grass up Gamatatsu's nose to make him sneeze so he could blast water out of his mouth all at once. After that he could do it, until Naruto started trying to synchronize his own chakra with Gamatatsu's.
"What is this?" Kakashi breathed looking at the scattered pieces of crystal the size of horses.
They could see people and some times bits of people in them. Some of Shino's bugs had been crystallized as well. After a few minutes of digging, his other bugs had managed to dig some of the others out, leaving them in a small ball of crystal.
"I'll have some of my bugs take it back to be analyzed," Shino stated before freezing, looking sideways. "Wait, that insect. It's still alive."
"Really?" Kiba questioned. "How?"
"It must be immune," Shinno stated. "You'll have to give me time, but I can breed more if you do."
"Do what you have to Shino," Kakashi said. "Hinata, lead the way."
Hinata nodded and she, Kiba, Akamaru, and Kakashi left but after a few minutes, they stopped when a massive cloud of smoke appeared around them, making them all cough and their eyes water. After a moment, several voices began laughing.
"What's the matter?" one questioned. "Can't see through our smokescreen?"
"I would have thought the Byakugan was better than that," another sneered.
"That's right," a third laughed.
"Shall we begin then?" a fourth questioned.
"Let's," the third, a deep gravelly voice replied just as a massive man with a near-ape-like build, sharp pointed teeth, long messy brown hair, grey pants and gi with red highlights, and one arm three times the size of the other crashed down where Kakashi had been, his massive arm forming a massive crater.
As the others scattered, two ninja, one with messy brown hair, a blue scarf, dark grey vest, tan pants, and a confident and cocky smile and the other a tall man with grey hair, a breather mask, and a black robe appeared on either side of Kiba and Akamaru, attacking him. The fourth shinobi appeared in front of Hinata smashing her away from the others before chasing her. He wore a very shiny grey full body suit, had a single lock of pink hair on his forehead directly in the center sticking out of his suit's hood, blue eyes, green lipstick, and as he ran his body distorted and stretched as if he was made of water.
As Hinata landed, she activated her Byakugan just in time to leap over one of the ninja's arms.
"My name's Nurari," ninja stated kicking Hinata back before she could even land.
Hinata stood and sprinted at Nurari sending out several pulses of chakra with each strike. Nurari's torso continuously bent and stretched out of the way of the strikes as his limbs attacked her seemingly on their own.
"How can you...you can't!" Nurari stated slamming his fists down and making Hinata dodge backward. "Impossible, not in this smoke screen!"
"Oh yes," Hinata smirked. "I can see every attack you throw at me."
She sprinted forward again. Nurari threw a punch but Hinata swept it aside and jabbed him dead center of the chest, sending three blasts into his heart. For a moment, he screamed in pain then took a breath as Hinata grinned.
"Just kidding," Nurari smiled.
Hinata's eyes widened and she leapt over Nurari's arm.
"What?" Hinata gasped. "Did I miss?"
Before she could react, he wrapped his arms around her then spun and threw her into the ground forming a massive crater. He pulled himself down to her and began attacking her from all sides and she avoided the attacks while repeatedly hitting him back.
"That's impossible!" Hinata gasped hitting him in the heart with two hands only for him to continue. "How?"
This time, before she could react, both of his arms and his foot connected with her sending her flying. Hinata stood, stumbling away and holding her hand to her injured shoulder.
"Such a shame," Nurari stated rising from the ground like a pillar of water before reforming his body. "Even though you can see me, you're still helpless."
Hinata glanced down at her hands seeing something one them. It was a liquid on them but not water. It was obviously blocking her attacks.
"You use the Gentle Fist I see," Nurari laughed. "That jutsu is useless against me."
Man I wish I had my sword, Hinata thought as Nurari prepared to attack her again.
"Are you sure you don't want that smiling boy to come back and help you?" Nurari questioned.
Hinata took her stance just as Nurari shot forward, pummeling her before smashing her through several trees. She landed on one knee, holding herself up with one hand as her Byakugan deactivated. She tried to move but even the slightest of twitches made her entire body explode with pain.
"Go on Nurari," the one with the scarf and vest ordered. "Finish her."
"With pleasure," Nurari smiled walking forward.
Suddenly, the area began to shake and Nurari froze looking around.
"What is this?" Nurari demanded.
"One more time," Kiba's voice shouted. "Fang Over Fang!"
"Kiba!" Hinata gasped.
Just then, trees began to fall and create enough wind to blow the smoke away.
"Hinata!" Kiba said landing beside her. "Are you alright?"
Hinata smiled but fell against him.
"How...Kiba, how did you..." Hinata muttered barely able to speak.
"It was easy," Kiba smirked. "I just used my attack to stir things up a bit. I made a miny windstorm and got the air moving. Next thing you know, goodbye annoying smoke-screen. Now that I can see and smell again, we've got the advantage. No more fun and games for you buddy. Get ready, 'cause you're goin' down!"
"You're the ones that should get ready," a new voice stated before a short ninja with long white hair, grey skin, and a dark purple cloak with several barrels extended from his sleeve leapt out of the bushes and fired several canisters out of the barrels that released a violet smoke and Kiba picked up Hinata and he and Akamaru leapt up to a branch above them.
"Idiot," Kiba growled. "How could I have forgotten the other guy?"
"Yeah that was stupid," the one with the vest stated as all of the enemy shinobi appeared above them. "Well then, now that we know all of their strengths and weaknesses, this time we finish them!"
Suddenly the leader looked around in surprise and fear.
"What the..." he mumbled. "No it can't be."
He put his hand to his head for a moment and grit his teeth.
We're being surrounded, I can sense it, he thought.
"Rinji what is it?" the one with the breather mask questioned.
"Quick another smokescreen!" Rinji ordered. "Retreat now!"
"What the?" Kiba questioned as the ninja blew smoke around them and they retreated. "Why? I don't understand!"
"It would seem, the enemy's senses are very acute," Shino stated appearing above them, over the smokescreen.
"Shino!" Kiba gasped.
"It's very disappointing," Shino stated. "Just when I had almost finished weaving my net around them."
"Is everyone alright?" Kakashi questioned landing opposite Shino.
"Kakashi-sensei!" Kiba said happily.
"Well, at least we're all together," Kakashi sighed.
"Yeah...but...Hinata..." Kiba stated.
"How bad is it?" Kakashi questioned. "Can you move?"
"I'm fine," Hinata smiled unconvincingly.
"Sensei, did you wrap things up with the big fella'?" Kiba questioned.
"No," Kakashi sighed. "I couldn't finish the job."
"I see," Kiba sighed. "Ours got away from us too."
Naruto sighed looking back at the others. They had just left a hot spring that they had stopped at when the others all argued for it despite Naruto's reluctance. The others were straggling, as Naruto knew they would, still being lethargic after the wonderful treatment of the spa. Naruto's own lethargy was eliminated by his fear of dread, pertaining to the same team they were supposed to be reinforcing already. They were late because they had stopped at the spa. Naruto was not pleased about it.
"Slow down Naruto," Yamato called.
"Hurry up!" Naruto snapped. "Good God you guys. We're already late!"
"That may be true but we need to be able to move when we get there," Sakura stated.
"If you don't get moving, I'm leaving you all behind!" Naruto snapped.
"Byakugan!" Hinata said activating it and searching forward.
She looked past tree and bush after tree and bush until she saw...herself? She raised her right arm and let it fall. Yes, definitely her. She whipped her head around but had a similar effect, this time seeing several dozen of herself, all translucent and wearing her own surprised expression. She looked in another direction and even more, this time lined up horizontally rather than filling her vision like just before. She covered her eyes, squeezing them shut as a headache set in and fell to one knee.
"Hinata?" Kakashi questioned. "What's wrong?"
"I saw us, endlessly over and over," Hinata stated.
"The Byakugan failed?" Kakashi questioned.
Shino sent out his bugs but they simply swarmed around before returning.
"We thought we had them surrounded with my bugs but it would seem they had an outer perimeter we didn't take into accounting," Shino stated. "Here they come."
Suddenly, several white shuriken shot out of the trees before exploding into swarms of diamonds.
"Look out!" Kakashi shouted leaping into the air with the others.
The diamonds shot around them, obliterating the trees around them. Soon, a woman with a green dress decorated with a camellia and black hair appeared beside Shino.
"Jade Crystal Blade!" the woman said as a blue blade made out of pure crystal formed on her arm before she slashed at him.
He kicked off of a branch and toward the ground under her slash, then jumped off that branch just as she smashed that one. A moment later, another attacked Kiba but he avoided her slash and punched her then dropped down as Akamaru smashed the woman away. As Kiba landed, he looked over at Kakashi who was fighting yet another one. Kakashi was using a kunai but after a moment, the woman he was fighting formed a second blade and slashed at him stomach. He drew a second kunai and barely blocked it, beginning to struggle to keep her away. Suddenly, another crystal crashed into the branch at his feet before a swarm smashed it, Kakashi leaping out of the way. He pulled up his Sharingan and the woman he was fighting smirked.
"Kakashi the Copy Ninja," the woman sneered. "That Sharingan won't do you any good. My Crystal Style can't be copied."
A fair distance away, Hinata hid in the bushes, still exhausted from nearly dying. After a few moments, however, she jumped out of the bushes as crystals flew through them. As she landed a fourth one of the woman appeared and slashed at her. She ducked under it and jumped back preparing to fight.
"You can't fight me," the woman sneered. "Your Byakugan doesn't work. You should just surrender now. I promise, I'll make it quick. You won't feel a thing."
"No," Hinata said gritting her teeth. "I won't back down. I can't. I will stop you. Byakugan!"
She activated her Byakugan, instantly seeing fifty of the woman but grit her teeth and focused through the headache until her vision focused and she could see only one woman. The woman grinned and charged forward slashing at her with her Jade Crystal Blade. Hinata ducked under it then stood and silently prayed she was seeing correctly.
"Eight Trigrams, Thirty Two Palms!" Hinata said darting at the woman. "Two palms, four palms, sixteen palms, thirty two palms!"
The second hit smashed the woman into a tree and the hits continuously blasted out the other side of the tree through the woman. When Hinata finished, the woman slid to the ground and Hinata smiled. Then the woman turned to crystal and shattered. Hinata spun around to see another who had the Ram Seal ready.
"Crystal Style, Jade Crystal Prison," the woman smiled.
Hinata moved to jump but a glowing ring of light appeared below her before crystal shot up out of it, encasing her.
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