(Welcome back! This is the Eighth Chapter of a 10 Part Arc. Jando is unconscious and no one else is around. Will Kuroda go all out in order to defeat the Jonin Kaneo? I love feedback and constructive criticism, so please leave a review so I can improve my writing and storytelling skills. Enjoy!)
"Crap, he is too fast," Kaneo thinks, trying to urge his clones to appear before his young adversary can get in range to attack, "I can't go underground yet." He squats down and channels chakra into his legs, strengthening them, and then leaps up to the ceiling. At that point he flips over and laces his feet with chakra so that he can land on the ceiling and not fall.
Kuroda's clones immediately split off in opposite directions, intending to climb the walls of the cave. Meanwhile Kuroda imitates his opponent and rises into the air with his kunai poised to strike. But Kaneo is more than ready for him and defends himself with a kunai. The sound rings throughout the room as the metal clashes. Unable to levitate, Kuroda falls back to the ground. He lands easily and starts to try another attack, yet now the fog clones are fully formed and he is surrounded by them.
Meanwhile one of the shadow clones has managed to climb high up on the wall and is now standing on two kunai that are embedded in the wall. He reaches into his pouch and gathers up three shuriken in each hand. Then taking careful aim he launches them at the enemy in two separate waves.
Kaneo spots the attack and does a cartwheel to slip in between the first wave, and then he deflects the second wave using his kunai. "Pretty inventive," he thinks before he stops funneling chakra to his feet. He falls down to the ground, flipping in mid-air to be upright, and then disappears within his army of clones.
"You are way out of your league, kid," he calls, his voice echoing around the cave, "You can't even stand on the wall, so how do you expect to beat me." Several shuriken zoom out of the fog, making their way straight towards the clone high up on the wall. Without the ability to maneuver it makes it hard to defend himself, yet he manages to dodge them by falling down and grabbing hold of his kunai, holding onto them like monkey bars. This strategy doesn't work for long as a second wave comes up from the fog, this one with three times the amount of projectiles. The clone has no chance and he explodes into smoke when the weapons strike him.
"One down," Kaneo thinks from his hiding place, "Now where is that other clone and where did the original disappear to? I can't sense him within my forces anymore."
Suddenly an explosion goes off at the edge of the area that Kaneo's Jutsu extends to. The fog clones are blasted away and are slow to reform. Each individual molecule of gas coalesces into a pile and then morphs until it mimics the Smoke Ninja's form and appearance. Then a second explosion goes off on the complete opposite side of the clone contingent and those copies are wiped away.
"What the hell is going on?" yells Kaneo as he rises up from the ground, "I can't detect him at all, so how is he doing this?" A third explosion goes off and then another, shooting dust and debris all over the place. The bombs continue to go off until all of his clones are completely blasted away and won't be able to reform for several minutes.
"Nowhere left for you to hide," calls Kuroda, running at him from several meters away.
Kaneo quickly makes hand seals and shouts, "Ninja Art: Poison Gas Jutsu!" He moves his head back, his cheeks filling up, and then he blows out and releases a small cloud of violet colored gas. Kuroda cannot divert his momentum and he runs straight into the poisonous gas. It quickly infects his system, his face and hands turn purple and he stumbles to the ground, landing in a pile at his enemy's feet.
Kaneo starts to smirk until the body explodes into a small cloud of white smoke. When he looks again he sees the corpse of his dead subordinate. "Substitution?" he guesses, while noticing a sizzling sound, "But what is that sound? It is like something is burning." He instantly leaps away, seeing the body covered in explosive tags. The body erupts into a torrent of flames, reaching out in all directions. He covers his face with his arms to protect it from being burned.
"That little bastard," he thinks as he lands and slides back on the floor, "So his first two attacks were just a distraction so he could set up that little trick. But where is he now?"
"Earth Style: Headhunter Jutsu!" Kuroda says as his head and arms pop up from the ground and latch on to the Smoke Ninja's legs.
"What the…?" Bosch yells as he is dragged into the ground. His feet and ankles are trapped underground, leaving his upper body vulnerable to attack. In a panic he tries to make hand signs for his trademark Jutsu.
"Oh no, you don't!" trumpets Dantoloxo as he lands on the ground a few meters away, causing everything to shake.
"Shit, I forgot about him," Kaneo thinks, messing up the combination of hand seals he was making.
The grey elephant rears back, lifting its trunk high overhead. Then it bends forward, making its trunk completely straight, like a rifle lining up for a shot. A torrent of water erupts out and hits Kaneo right in the center of the chest. The attack is so powerful it rips him out from the ground and carries him across the cave until he smashes into the wall.
"Very impressive, Dantoloxo," Kuroda compliments as he assesses the damage, "And it looks like he has internal injuries."
Kaneo is breathing heavily and has blood spurting out of his mouth. He rests against the wall, not able to stand up.
"You said you wanted a one-hit Jutsu," the elephant replies proudly.
"That I did," Kuroda nods.
"It is one of my best attacks," Dantoloxo brags, rubbing his trunk nonchalantly against his shoulder.
"Thank you very much for your assistance in this matter," Kuroda says, bowing formally, "Your performance was impressive. I look forward to seeing you in battle again."
"My sentiments are the same," Dantoloxo replies, returning the gesture, "I'm very interested to see what kind of ninja you will become."
"An interest that many people have about me," Kuroda murmurs, mostly to himself.
"Well, I'll be going then," the elephant declares before exploding into smoke and transporting back to wherever he came from.
"This isn't possible," Kaneo complains, as he wheezes and coughs up blood, "I am a Jonin, there is no way I should lose to a Genin."
"I pity your kind. You stick to these structures and ideas about the world that you have invented. And when something different happens all you can do is make excuses," Kuroda lectures as he stalks towards his enemy, "You refuse to accept the reality of the situation, even when it is happening right before your eyes. People like you won't have a place in the world I'm going to create."
"I am the top Genjutsu user in my village," Kaneo says, stuck in his own little world, "I can't die in some worthless place like this."
"See, even now you're still caught up in your own delusions," Kuroda says, "Goodbye Kaneo of the Hidden Smoke. I'll make sure to say hello when I join you in hell." With a swift motion of his arm he slashes the man's throat. Blood pours out of the wound, staining his shirt red. Kaneo weakly attempts to cover the cut with his hands, but it is too late and he is already finished. His body goes limp and his arms fall to his sides.
Kuroda wipes off his bloody kunai on the dead man's clothes and then turns to go check on the rest of his team.
"That was astounding," Kayo says with genuine amazement, "How did you come up with that strategy?"
"I simply altered the one I used to defeat the first Smoke Ninja," Kuroda explains, "Since I didn't have Jando's eyes to back me up this time I played on my enemy's weaknesses."
"What do you mean?" Sakura inquires, her brow furrowing in confusion.
"First, he underestimated me," Kuroda explains, holding up one finger, "He classified me as a Genin and kept me there even when I displayed abilities that surpassed that class. Second, he was arrogant. He assumed that just because he was a Jonin that his Jutsu were superior to his subordinate's. But in the end they have the same fundamentals and work the same way. Bosch couldn't sense me when I dug underground with my Earth Jutsu and neither could Kaneo."
"So you went underground immediately after your first attack," Kayo surmises, "And while your one clone was distracting him you came up and planted explosive tags all over the area."
"Wait, but what happened to your second clone?" Sakura asks, "The one that used the replacement Jutsu."
"Good eye, Sakura," he compliments, nodding his head, "I sent him off to find a way out of these caves once I knew my plan would succeed."
"But what do we do now?" Kayo questions, "My legs are too badly damaged, I can't walk on them. Everyone else is injured as well."
"Mine are just surface wounds," Kuroda says dismissively, "As for the rest of you, it won't be a problem."
"What does that mean?" Kayo questions, "It's not like you can carry all of us all the way back to the village. And your chakra has to be running low by now."
"It's not even close to low," Kuroda smirks, "And besides I won't have to carry you if you can walk on your own."
"I told you I…" Kayo starts to argue, but before she can finish she sees a green glow emanating from Kuroda's hands.
"What is that?" Sakura asks.
"How do you know the Mystical Palm Technique?" Kayo demands, "You never received any medical training."
"Not any that would be on file," Kuroda says with a devilish smirk before he places his hands above one of her wounds.
"You know medical Ninjutsu?" Sakura says in wonder, "Could you teach it to me?"
"Probably not," Kuroda admits, "I'm not a master of it. I can only heal minor injuries, just enough to keep you from bleeding out or dying of shock. Anything really serious has to be treated back at Konoha Hospital."
Sakura's eyes widen and she watches in amazement as the cut on Kayo's leg stitches itself up and seals back together. He works diligently, healing as many of the smaller wounds as he can on Kayo, Sakura, and even Jando.
"We'll just have to wrap all of the more severe stuff for now," Kuroda muses, "But your lives aren't in danger anymore."
"I still don't think I'll be able to walk," Kayo complains.
"I guess I will have to carry you after all, Sensei," Kuroda replies, suppressing a secret smirk.
"There is something I'm still confused about," Kayo says as she brushes her hands over her freshly healed skin, "When you came to save me you said that you didn't have any choice. What did you mean?"
"Exactly what I said," he responds, "In that moment in time I was forced to be there, even if I wanted to be somewhere else or doing something else."
"That still doesn't explain anything," she responds.
"It is an insurance policy," he says.
"An insurance policy?" she inquires.
"To be more precise it is a life insurance policy," he explains, "At least on your side, that is."
"And what is it on your side?" she questions warily, trying to figure out his true intentions.
"An asset insurance policy of course," he explains, "It would be irresponsible for me to let any of my investments be destroyed."
"So is that what we are to you?" she asks disbelievingly, "Just an investment, a valuable tool?"
"If you want to think of it that way you're free to do so," he responds, arcing his eyebrow coolly. "But you're much more important to me than just a simple tool. If you weren't then I wouldn't be risking my life to protect yours."
"So this is a part of the contract we signed?" Sakura asks.
"No, this is extra," Kuroda explains, "A gift from me to you to show how much you mean to me."
"So then, is this what that curse mark is for?" Kayo asks, trying not to be too obvious as she presses him for more information.
"Very good, Sensei," he says, "That is correct."
"How does it work then?" she asks.
"In simple terms, it is a summoning Jutsu," he reveals, "If your life is about to come to an end I will be summoned to protect it."
"What, so I'm immortal now?" she asks sarcastically.
"Don't be silly, death is inevitable for all living beings," he says, "I've just made sure that yours is delayed."
"But basically as long as you are alive to step in then nothing can kill me?" Kayo asks.
"No, the seal is far from perfect," Kuroda explains, "Any attack targeting a vital spot, that would result in instant death, triggers the seal and summons me in front of the attack."
"It is impossible to account for any and every scenario, the mathematics for that would take centuries to calculate," Kayo argues.
"Maybe so," Kuroda acknowledges, "But I had to do very little calculations."
"Then how did you…" Kayo starts to ask.
"Moving on," Kuroda says cutting her off, "There are some very crucial things that the seal cannot protect you from."
"What are those?" Sakura asks.
"Poison, infection, suffocation, drowning, extreme blood loss, freezing, and burning are all things that can still kill you," Kuroda warns, "And of course internal things such as strokes, heart attacks, or internal bleeding can send you to the afterlife as well."
"So you can save us from a lot of things, but we are still vulnerable," Sakura summarizes.
"Is this what he was doing when he disappeared from the village after the 7th Hokage's death?" Kayo wonders as she analyzes all she has learned so far, "But how is this even possible? He is still just a child. Is Kuroda part of the next generation of geniuses to emerge in the ninja world? Or is someone else working behind the scenes?"
"Yes, and I would be most appreciative if you both would be more conscious of your situation in the future," he says he heals the last major injury on Sakura, "Oh, and before I forget, neither of you is to reveal to anyone that I know medical Ninjutsu."
"Why not?" Kayo inquires.
"Secrets are secret for a reason, Sensei," he replies, with his devilish grin, "Now, we should all get some rest before we head back to the village."
(The Smoke Ninja have been defeated and the purpose of the Curse Mark has been revealed as a way to protect Kuroda's allies from death during combat. But what other secrets is Kuroda keeping? As always, if you want more information on my characters you can see their bios on my profile page. Be warned, there may be some spoilers. Also I'm in the process of getting pictures drawn for the characters, but I have no idea how long that will take. If you're interested in drawing and have a DA account then send me a Message. Enjoy the next chapter, and please review.)