The wheeling winds circled the forest, dark and cold.
"Go on, Chōji. At the moment everything's valuable, no matter how small," Shikamaru prompted softly.
"Well, all right." Chōji exhaled. "When she climbed back up, just for a second, I saw something snap out of her."
"Right. The scouts mentioned that. Some kind of black rubbery substance, right?" Shikamaru questioned.
"No, but—" Chōji sighed. "How should I put this? It looked like there was a core to it."
"A core." Shikamaru fell silent. "We need more data to make conclusions, but I think I understand what you're talking about. You're saying there was something external to her body, something that she let out."
"External, but—like she was exuding something, maybe? Yet its core wasn't the same as the core of her body."
Shikamaru tapped his chin. "Medical expertise, maybe? She said just now that medical ninjutsu was better—"
Nōtō flew backward through the air.
Shikamaru's eyes widened.
"Priest, are you okay?" Ino stammered. She reached forward. "I can heal you! I'm sorry that you got hurt, so please, don't encourage that kind of—"
"Fine." Nōtō rubbed his temples. His hand sealed quickly behind his back, Kakushiro's up, and she's recovering her elemental balance. My sense of touch is limited for now.
Understood, Shikamaru signed back. He looked upward. For the time being, we can't rely on you to fight her, then?
Shrine Maiden Entry is pretty dependent on my sense of touch. Under the circumstances—
Kakushiro emerged from the darkness. "Lightning Release: Gian!" A bolt of lightning pierced rapidly into Nōtō's body.
Nōtō shot backward again. His fingers clenched with the force of the electrical force.
As expected of an opponent this level, she's trying to cut down our available fighting forces immediately. Shikamaru's eyes widened. He tensed, his arms clapping together. She's smart and deadly. I need to think a Plan B out as soon as possible.
Nōtō straightened. His weary eyes narrowed. The glasses lay shattered, cracked across the ground. The rosy lenses cast light through them, their pieces glimmering. Nōtō's fingers quickly signed, Run now.
Shikamaru didn't hesitate.
Chōji, a step slower, nonetheless dashed behind the others.
"What's going on?" Shikamaru demanded.
Ino panted heavily. She ran up the hill quickly.
"Those glasses let me see chakra pressure points. They're made of—" Nōtō's voice broke off. "It doesn't matter right now. Point is, I can't use Susano'o Mikoto without them, at least not effectively enough to handle an opponent like this."
Shikamaru fell silent. "Got it," he stated. "Any other techniques you know about?"
"Welcoming Approach: Thousand-Armed Murder, Summoning Technique, one Water Release Technique." Nōtō scowled.
"Why are we just running?!" Chōji demanded.
Shikamaru exhaled. "Of course not. We're not just running. We're trying to come up with a plan."
Ino nodded. "There's not a great chance she'd permit us to leave, either."
Nōtō nodded. "In all my life, I've never run from a fight. We're just moving away for now. We have to come up with something, though—" His voice trailed off. His eyes widened. "Shit."
"What?" Ino demanded sharply.
"She's cutting us off. Look at that line of smoke in the forest." Nōtō's finger rose.
Shikamaru gritted his teeth. Okay. I need to come up with a plan, or we're done for. "Chōji, you take the front. Nōtō, you keep an eye on our back. Ino, you're with me, in the center."
The group followed Shikamaru's directions.
In this time I have to figure out what's going on. Determining anything from her personality is totally pointless. Shikamaru tapped his chin. Her technique use is pretty indicative of a few things. Earth Style, Water Style, Flame Style, Wind Style, Lightning Style. Everything. But something doesn't fit. If she is this talented— Okay, for a minute, let's take the immortal proposal first. Let's say, for the sake of argument, that she somehow managed to become immortal. She lived two hundred years. If that is the case, then she must have managed to somehow do that, yet never learned any extra techniques in that time frame? Bullshit. Shikamaru shook his head briefly from side to side. So she's cheating to learn all those different release styles. The number of techniques she actually learned is about average for a chūnin or jōnin or even a little below average. The only weird thing about her is the number of different release styles. So she must have done it using some kind of trick or sneak technique, probably connected to the Earth Style from earlier—
Chōji screamed loudly. He rushed backward along the ground, drawn away by black rubbery tentacles.
"Chōji!" Shikamaru extended his arm. Shadows wrapped around Chōji's body.
Nōtō placed his hands together in a downward triangle. Golden light soared upward around his body, taking the form of a massive being with a thousand arms. The arms drove into the black tentacles rapidly.
Chōji fell motionless. The tentacles raced away.
Ino launched herself forward. A chakra scalpel formed in her hand.
We're trapped like rats. Nōtō glanced over his shoulder.
I guess it'd be too much to hope for Kōju or Sasuke or Kakashi to show up right now. Shikamaru's brow dripped with sweat. Think, think. What would be the best move? Clearly it's immune to fire, whatever it is, so we can't rely on that. He glanced toward Nōtō. "You have any ideas?"
"One." Nōtō clapped his hands together. "Water Style: Water Tiger Bullet." A roaring tiger, fur comprised of rushing foaming water, spat a bullet at the flames. The forest fires died out. "We make for the cliff."
Shikamaru nodded.
The group ran toward the cliff, no pretense of fleeing in orderly or composed fashion.
As Shikamaru reasoned it, the cliff was a good pick—the elements of it were a difficulty in being surprised, which would protect their lives.
Nōtō bit his thumb and slammed his palm against the ground. A large black bear turned toward the path, standing in the way of the horror with the black tentacles that crawled and ran across the ground.
The group eventually reached the high rock.
A slightly hysterical laugh broke from Chōji.
Nōtō gravely looked downward. "Shikamaru, do you think it'd be possible to injure it from here?"
"Injure?" Shikamaru's brow furrowed. "You're talking about piercing it?"
"It has some redundancy in organs, but it bleeds. Also, Chōji managed to damage it." Nōtō scowled. "I'm not entirely sure what this black stuff is, but one thing I do know is this—it's biological, not some kind of Yin Release technique."
Ino pointed wordlessly to a hollow in the back of the rock.
Nōtō climbed through the rock, hurrying through the darkness.
Smoke rose around the height of the cliff to the clouds.
"They'll probably see the smoke and come here, right?" Chōji asked in a quiet voice. "The others."
Nōtō nodded. "But, if they do, do you think they'll have any more luck with this—immortal beast than us?"
Chōji looked downward.
"Shikamaru. You need more data, don't you?"
Shikamaru's eyes widened.
Nōtō wrapped a cloth around his hair. His eyes blazed with the faint echoes of some heroic nature obscured by the era. "Chōji. I'll understand if you don't want to accompany me, but we need to figure how this thing works."
"No—" Chōji drew in a shaking breath. "You're right. I'm not going to be afraid." He stood upright, his palms lifting in the air. "Come on."
"Wait!" Shikamaru frowned. "If you give more time to me, I'll work it out—"
Nōtō's eyes flashed. "You don't have enough information, do you?"
Ino glanced downward. "No matter how much time they have, it won't matter if you can't use it."
Shikamaru exhaled.
"Don't worry about it. We'll take care of business." Chōji threw one thumb up in the air. The pair hurried to the edge of the stone and prepared their plan.
Revenge
The flames ascended higher, cracking logs descending as the flames roared upward around the field.
Kakushiro glanced around. "There it is, it seems—they've decided to remain frightened rats to the end. Well, that's no trouble." She started forward again. "I'll simply have to—"
Chōji rolled rapidly downhill, slamming toward Kakushiro.
How much of an idiot does he think I am? I'm not a monkey, to be toyed with at their whim! Kakushiro stepped to the left, carefully avoiding the flames. Rage filled her heart.
Arms crossed in front of his chest, Nōtō rolled downhill on a boulder. His feet kept even time with the boulder's shifts.
Kakushiro's eyes widened in shock.
Nōtō leapt off the boulder suddenly, a large kunai in hand. He lunged toward Kakushiro's heart.
Kakushiro's eyes narrowed. Suicide tactics, hm? I suppose I can't object—
Nōtō's fist blurred forward.
Kakushiro's eyes widened in shock. Repeated impact? Her body vibrated for an instant. Tentacles lashed out of her body, wrapping up Nōtō's body.
The boulder crashed into Kakushiro.
Kakushiro rolled backward. Nōtō's arm hung at an angle as the boulder drove into his body.
Nōtō exhaled.
She's worried about her impact. She's worried about—about—her heart. The heart is a vulnerable point. Come to think of it, she reacted the same way to Chōji. Does the rest of her body work that way too? Can't say. Shikamaru gritted his teeth. How do I transmit the message?
Ino caught Shikamaru's arm. Her eyes narrowed.
Shikamaru blinked in surprise. Eh? That's right. He nodded to her. How many hearts? Probably about five hearts. He signed out the information rapidly.
Ino clapped her hands together.
For a brief instant, Ino's mind and Nōtō's minds swapped places. Ino ducked backward, leaning against the boulder.
"Okay. The reason your Susano'o Mikoto didn't work is because she has five hearts," Shikamaru stated briefly.
Kakushiro's fist drove into the boulder. Pieces of the stone exploded.
Ino leapt backward, using the space to defend her life.
Nōtō scowled.
Ino quickly released the technique.
Tentacles lashed around Nōtō's body.
Nōtō's eyes narrowed. That technique—she must have waited for the second of weakness in transition. Really an immortal is annoying; they know every trick in the book. One of the tentacles wrapped around and tightened around his leg. He sucked in a tight breath as the bone shifted locations.
"I can't stand letting this kind of thing persist. Sorry. I have a tendency to steal men's hearts." Kakushiro's face turned into a grimace. The tentacles reached toward Nōtō's chest.
Nōtō's eyes widened. He gritted his teeth. That would have been wonderful information to know before—
Chōji punched Kakushiro hard in the face.
Kakushiro's head turned to one side. The tentacles loosened from the impact. With a loud growl, she charged toward Chōji.
Chōji swallowed. His body curled upward defensively.
What can I do? Nōtō's eyes narrowed. I need to figure how to damage her, despite the difficulty. Susano'o Mikoto is out— He exhaled. Wait. If I can just remember how it works, I won't need to worry. He lifted his arms. Think, think. Focus. You can remember how it works. What were her chakra points before I lost that?
The air glowed, pressure blasting downward as Nōtō walked forward.
Kakushiro choked Chōji tightly. Her eyes narrowed. "I've grown sick and tired of you—"
Nōtō's hands blurred through the air. "ORARARARARARARARARA!"
Kakushiro sighed. "How many times do I have to say it? It won't cut me. Your techniques are useless—"
The air darkened.
Nōtō raised his finger. "I finally figured out the anatomy of your body." He grinned.
Kakushiro's eyes widened in shock. "What are you talking about?!" She glanced over her shoulder.
"The number of heart pressure points I had to target was significantly higher than expected. You have five of them, do you not?" Nōtō exhaled. "If it hadn't been for the assistance of Shikamaru, I could have done nothing."
Kakushiro's eyes widened in shock.
"I have struck the only pressure point I could. I'll count off your destruction for you. Nine. Eight. Seven. Six. Five. Four. Three. Two. One."
Kakushiro's body expanded, pressure expanding out of the flesh.
"Zero." Nōtō exhaled.
Kakushiro's body melted into fleshy goo, black swelling up with the rest.
"We did it!" Chōji cheered loudly.
Shikamaru sighed.
"Would one of you mind carrying me? I can't move that well." Nōtō sighed heavily.
Ino frowned. "I'll try."
"Eh?"
Nōtō glanced toward Chōji. He sighed heavily.
"I mean, why do you feel weak?" Chōji went on, his brow furrowed.
"Probably the forest weather, the smoke. Something along those lines." Nōtō quickly concealed his limp. His hair darkened in the smoke, pieces of ash catching in the edges of his hair. The look in his eyes was now one of sorrow, and his once pure black hair had traces of silver. He looked old, too old, too old for this sort of work any longer.
Shikamaru looked briefly at Nōtō, shrugged, and turned his gaze back to the road unburnt sections of the forest. "We should try to return to Hidden Leaf."
"We haven't located Naruto." Ino spoke briefly.
"Your breathing is pretty shallow. I don't really know what happened back there, but you're tired, and not in a good way. Chōji's shell-shocked, Ino's mind is probably still disoriented from switching bodies so many times, and Nōtō's tired as hell. If I was sure I could rescue my best friend, believe me, I'd be doing it." Shikamaru paused. "But if we go out there right now, we're in trouble, or asking for it."
"Shikamaru—" Ino swallowed tightly. "I'm willing to believe in it. There's no one who came here who isn't. Even if we're all shaking, we're saving Naruto's life."
Shikamaru raised an eyebrow.
"Well—he's a Hidden Leaf shinobi. We wouldn't be doing our duty if we didn't save him, right?"
"Don't give me duty. I'm asking, as a person, do you want to save him? Or don't you?" Shikamaru questioned in a solemn tone.
Chōji blinked.
"I've had enough of honor. I've had enough of it." Shikamaru shook his head heavily from side to side. "I've had enough of honor and duty. It's buried too many good people recently. Don't do it for honor or for duty. If you're going to do it, do it because you want to. Because you feel it's the right thing. Not because you're obligated to."
"You're going whether we say we want to or not, aren't you?" Ino demanded sharply.
"Yeah, if you're going whether we say so or not," Chōji demanded.
Shikamaru nodded. "He's my friend, and I'm only super-tired. Even if we lose to those Hakubo people, I'll take my odds." His eyes narrowed. "But that's my choice. You make your own."
After a moment Ino and Chōji stepped forward. "Let's do this," the pair said together.
Nōtō threw one thumb upward in the air. He smirked, his eyes narrowing.
"Nōtō-san, should you bring your glasses?"
Nōtō shook his head. "Too late. They're effective in part because of the curvature of the lens. I wouldn't take high odds on them working." He leaned on Ino, his body tracing the path again. "Let's rock."
Shikamaru nodded. "Okay." He hurried through the dark flames in the forest, the sky darkening with the far-distant smoke in ways uncertain and perhaps mystic.