*I don't own anything I may use*
Jinkusu stood with his legs shaking and eyes trembling in fear. It was not just fear he was feeling though, Guilt, Sadness, And most of all. Regret. How could he ever live on now? He would have to live with the weight of everyone's death. That was if they lived through this.
Jinkusu felt regret at what he had just done. They were all going to die and it was his fault. Not to mention one of his clanmates was horrifically killed in front of him. The headless corpse still lay on the ground releasing a steady red liquid.
The small cave began to be covered by a killing intent. This intense murderous aura was not coming from the Mist ninja who continued to bring his sword down on the Uchiha kids.
Jinkusu turned his frightful eyes to see Naruto simmering in rage. Although his face was calm, a storm of madness raged on in Naruto's mangekyo sharingan.
Naruto was angry, that much was clear. Watching his family be injured in front of him was unacceptable. In Naruto's right hand, he held the shiny scythe that had already been stained with blood in its short-term of use. While in the boy's right hand was the big gunbai ready to do battle.
Naruto dashed forward with a fury that shined like a polished gem in his eyes. He brought the scythe down to cut the man clean in half. That was when the man turned around last second and held Naruto back with his own blade.
The man's ruthless teal eyes stared back into the angry eyes of Naruto. But the man noticed something about Naruto. It wasn't the fact a six-year-old kid was welding a weapon much bigger than him. Not to mention, Naruto was surprisingly strong for his age and size. And Naruto's face, it looked so familiar. Not to mention the strange eyes which reminded him of someone from the past. But that man was dead, Right?
It was at that time, Naruto was replaced by the image of his father. For the first time, Naruto witnessed the man's eyes show emotion. They went from sadness to a quick seething rage that could match his own rage.
"You." The man said in a blank tone but possessed an underlying rage. "Have 'that' mans eyes." with his last statement, he quickly punched Naruto with enough force to send him crashing into the stone wall.
Naruto coughed out blood as he was not prepared for that mighty blow. He stood to his feet and spit out the last drop of blood. Readying his weapons as this man had to pay. Naruto rushed back in as he clashed weapons with the man who seemed pissed off.
Sparks illuminated the cave which was flashing red. The sounds of their blades clashing was almost deafening. Combined with the killing intent rolling off the two warriors made their battle almost unapproachable for the faint of heart.
CLANG!
Following the loud clang was the cry of pain escaping Naruto's mouth as he received a kick to the gut. "You look like him, along with your chakra feeling similar."
"Wh-what are you talking about?" Naruto rose to his feet and stood on his gunbai.
The man aimed his sword directly at Naruto. "Are you, the son of Naka Uchiha?"
Normally Naruto would be surprised at the random question. But at this moment Naruto felt proud. Proud of being the son of such a great man. His face portrayed how he felt as a confident smirk rested on Naruto's face.
"You better believe it." Naruto focused again and calmed himself. If he fought with rage he'd make mistakes and not be at his best. Naruto stayed calm like his father had always instructed.
Across from Naruto, the black-haired man narrowed his eyes, and his killing intent soared. Naruto faltered and took an unconscious step back from the killing intent which connected with him in full force. The force was enough to cause the other kids to recoil and some were even knocked out.
"I am going to kill you, You're death will lay my sister's soul to rest." The man said and lunged toward Naruto with the aim to stab him right through the heart. So he could stare Naruto down as he ended his life.
Naruto witnessed the man approaching as his eyes were able to predict the path. He evaded to the side as Naruto dodged the approaching death blow by the skin of his teeth. Naruto brought the white gunbai up and quickly blocked a blow from the man who brought his blade down with crushing force. It felt like an elephant had just dropped down on him.
But now Naruto understood why this man looked at him with such anger. His now deceased father had killed his sister. It was an understandable feeling as Naruto wanted Itachi dead for betraying the clan. Rage was something the two ninjas shared at the moment. Both fighting for revenge.
Naruto became intangible as the man fell forward. But with a quick pivot, the man turned around with his blade poised to take Naruto's head off. But once again, he found himself not connecting with the Uchiha.
Using a quick step, Naruto dashed forward as he sliced the man's shoulder open. Blood quickly began to roll down the injured arm as the mist shinobi looked surprised. Naruto had used the man's surprise and off balance to his advantage and capitalized on it, just like Madara had instructed to do in battle.
Capitalize on your enemies weaknesses, that was one of the key skills to victory and Naruto had no problem taking advantage of those weaknesses.
The man scowled at being injured by the spawn of Naka. "Don't get confident, your death is all but certain." It was then the man let an evil smirk tug on his lips. "Since your dad won't be here to save you." he said in a mocking manner.
Naruto so badly wanted to lash out with his anger but used all his might to recall the anger which wanted to burst. But Naruto knew this man was only trying to taunt him. His father had made sure to lecture Naruto on not rising to taunts. Madara said the same thing in his notes.
But Naruto was quick-witted and let his own evil smirk cross his face. "Just like no sister will come to save you." Naruto responded in the same mocking manner as his enemy.
The man's smirk vanished in an instant as he scowled before schooling his features. "You are also quick-witted just like him, you are too much like Naka. Another monster like him does not need to be born."
Naruto released a cold hmph as he got ready for battle once again. There was a big chance he could die along with everyone else, but that could not happen.
The man appeared behind Naruto and kicked him across the cave. Naruto crashed into a thick set of train tracks and he left a body-sized dent in the metal.
Naruto quickly rolled out the way of a blade which had destroyed the tracks completely. He stood up and blocked another blow from the man above, but found it increasingly difficult.
The green-clothed man pushed their blades apart as he punched Naruto in the face and delivered a vertical slash that cut through Naruto's clothes and then his skin. Without giving Naruto time to rest, he pressed on the attack as Naruto was injured and basically easy picking.
Maneuvering around Naruto's swings he grabbed him by the throat and picked him up with one hand. "Your death is here." He said looking Naruto directly in the eyes.
Naruto said nothing as he phased through the man's hand and then the ground. At the area Naruto was just standing, multiple fireballs connected with the area.
The man jumped away in the air to evade them but saw Naruto in the air waiting for him. With a great heave, Naruto brought his scythe down with the force of a falling mountain. The man blocked the attack but was still sent to the ground.
Naruto landed in front of the kids who had just helped him. Mira and Jinkusu stood beside him ready for battle, just like everyone else.
"Did we get him?" Mira asked with trepidation.
"No, he's too strong to go down so easy." Naruto answered without taking his eyes off the place of impact
"Can we beat him?" Jinkusu asked with a hint of hope.
"No." Naruto replied grimly. He did not want to bring their hopes down but the truth was, this man was stronger than all of them.
With his last statement, the smoke cleared, and out walked the killer. "Nice trick, too bad it won't work." He disappeared from his position and came back into view above Naruto. His feet slammed into the boy and buried him in the ground. He sent two quick punches to Naruto's face before anyone could react to his presence.
Mira was the first to react as she tried to cut the man's side open but was sent into the rails of the roller coaster by a punch. Jinkusu followed as he also tried to slice the man but was delivered the same fate.
The man rose and kicked the bloody Naruto in the gut once more. He smirked at the damage being done to this boy. It was then his eyes caught the hateful glares of the other Uchiha kids.
"Gonna protect your friend or what?" He jested with another stomp to Naruto's chest.
The Uchiha's raged and rushed forward. The man moved and began to cut through them like a knife does wet paper. They were being utterly destroyed as the man was pulling no punches or slashes.
When he finished, the kids rested on the floor half dead. He walked back over to Naruto who had stood on his feet once more. "Bastard." Naruto Wheezed out. The man saw Naruto turn to look at the girl embedded into the side railings.
Flashing in front of Mira, the man picked the girl up. "Is this someone close to you?"
"Put her down!" Naruto yelled and moved forward, only to be batted away.
Mira struggled in the grip as she tried to escape. It was for not as the man squeezed tighter. "G-get a-away Naruto-kun." Mira got out as she pleaded for Naruto to leave.
Naruto narrowed his eyes in rage. There was no way he was going to leave Mira behind.
"Naruto-kun? How…affectionate." The man quipped as he aimed to the sword in his hand toward Mira's chest. "Let me show you what your father did to me, all those years ago."
The man began to move the sword further and Naruto rushed forward with all his speed. That was when a blur appeared and quickly disappeared with Mira.
Naruto let out a sigh as he kept his eyes focused on the confused mist ninja. That is when Naruto heard the voice of someone close to him.
"Don't worry, I got things from here." Shisui proclaimed as he set Mira down. The boy patted her on the head and gave a reassuring smile. Shisui then looked toward the person who had injured so many people from his clan.
Shisui narrowed his eyes as he wondered what this person was doing here. Mei had said this was a low-ranking base with nothing but supplies. So what was, "Arlin Grail, why are you here?"
"Shisui The Teleporter, What a surprise." Arlin rolled his neck and looked toward the older Uchiha. "What are you doing here? The Uchiha are supposed to be in the Leaf village."
"Don't worry about it." Shisui waved his hand and pulled out a tanto while getting on guard. Shisui knew of Arlin since he was a high A rank ninja in the bingo book. Known for his massacre of a leaf platoon after witnessing the death of his sister. But was allowed to live after Naka spared him on a whim.
Without wasting any more time, the two vanished from view in and the only thing which could be seen were the sparks coming from there weapons.
Crescent blades of flames shot from Shisui's tanto and Arlin barely managed to dodge them. Shisui slipped through the guard of Arlin and cut the man open before sending him rocketing to the ground with a heavy punch.
"Damn…Uchiha." Arlin rose on shaky legs. There was no hope of him beating Shisui. The boy was young, but already an S-rank ninja. It was then his eyes spotted someone from the cave entrance. The woman had long flowing purple hair and soft beautiful features. And one eye. Arlin's eyes blazed with anger before he shot off and completely ignored Shisui.
Naori didn't even look surprised as she blocked an attack from Arlin. "Long time no see, Arlin Grail." Naori spoke in a tone unlike her. Naori was emotionless as she parryed attack after attack from the angry man in front of her.
"You dare show your face." Arlin seethed with rage as he pushed the women outside from the fierceness of his attacks. The two were outside battling in the pouring rain.
The Uchiha clan head found her, and was surrounded on all sides by countless Mist ninjas and the like. Her fellow comrades landed around her ready for battle. Many of them had grins since they loved to battle and this was a battle of the like they hadn't experienced in years.
"All of you are going to die." Arlin basically growled out. He relaxed his features and gave the order to kill them. "Your son won't last much longer."
Naori glared at the person across from her. Within seconds, Naori was in front of Arlin and sent him flying through countless destroyed amusement rides. "You leave my son out of this." Naori sent a chilling death glare toward the man. As her chakra radiated off her.
Arlin moved with his full speed toward Naori. He brought his sword down with all his force onto Naori who countered the attack with a greater force.
Arlin found himself being blown back several feet. "It said she was retired! How is she still this strong?" Arlin cursed in his mind as the official ninja records announced that Naori as retired. The woman started a family and had to take care of her new son. Thinking of Naruto caused a sour taste to form in Arlin's mouth as that brat was just like his father in the war. "The apple doesn't fall far from the tree."
Naori rushed forward and attempted a horizontal slash but the attack was blocked by Arlin. From the side, three kunai launched toward the Uchiha. Naori predicted the movement and easily sent the kunai flying back towards the mist ninja and watched as they found a spot in their head. Ripping through the skull and tissue like a knife through water.
Using the opening, Arlin went for a lunge to impel Naori but doing a quick jutsu, Naori created a shield made from earth to block the sword with a sharp clang.
After this, the battle for Thriller Grand commenced as Uchiha's joined the battle against the Mist ninjas in front of them.
"I'll avenge my Sister." Arlin said while sending a death glare that showed all the fury he felt.
"It was war, people die. It's something we all have to accept." Naori announced firmly before she uttered the last part much softer.
"Then when I kill Naruto, It will just be war." Arlin voiced as he rushed back to meet Naori who was sending him a glare with her own red eye.
"Leave him alone, he has nothing to do with this." Naori's blade glowed with chakra before she swiped it down and sent out a gleaming blade of chakra out. It was in the shape of a crescent moon and whistled through the air like 10 alarms.
Arlin was able to block the first one but found two more connecting with his sword. His legs began to tremble and his arms felt like melting jelly, While sweat poured off his head in waves.
BOOM
BOOM
A volley of the chakra blades connected with Arlin's location and a cloud of dust began to rise. Naori stared intensely as she made sure all of those attacks were connected. Butterfly Volley was an attack from her sword style meant to apply pressure and keep your enemy suppressed.
Arlin appeared from the smoke a bloody mess as his clothes were now destroyed and only his pants remained. Cuts littered his body from battles of the past and even now. "Strong as ever." He spat out a mouth full of blood before quickly going through hand signs Naori knew. "Hidden Mist Jutsu." Arlin jumped into the mist like a ghost and disappeared like one.
Naori turned on her feet and watched as all the other Uchiha members were engulfed in the mist as well. She gritted her teeth, living in the mist was such a pain. "Just like we practiced everyone!" She dropped into a stance and pulled the other sword from her back while keeping her head on a swivel.
Naori sidestepped and shot one of her swords out and felt it connect. The sound of a painful moan gave her the answer as she retracted the sword. On the end of her blade was a Mist ninja with her sword in his chest, right where the heart was located.
Unlike other members of the clan, Naori didn't enjoy battle or killing people. That was something she and Naka didn't share, That man lived for a good battle and was even worse during the war as he thought Minato Namikzae was below him. Didn't turn out too well for Naka as he was in the hospital later that day.
But when Naka was clouded by darkness and believed only power mattered, he killed all his enemies, Child, Man, or Woman, it did not matter to Naka.
Now was not the time to think about that as her thoughts went back to the battle taking place. Naori sensed around in the thick mist to try and get a feel for her surroundings. Good, the others were still alive and fending off attacks.
The violet-haired woman tilted her head as a sharp blade of water in the form of a kunai rushed past her hair with a whoosh. Naori began to duck, evade, and leaps with graceful steps. Much like a butterflies flight pattern. "Are we going to hide all night, it's storming out here if you didn't notice." Naori poked for a reaction but got nothing as Arlin was keeping quiet.
Naori widened her eyes as she felt something enter her sensor range. Lighting lit the park up and in the mist, Naori saw a Water Dragon rushing towards her. Naori quickly flew through hand signs and slammed her hands onto the wet ground. A wall made from the earth rose to protect her from the dragon which crashed into the wall like a horde of bulls.
From behind Naori she could sense another attack coming and she saw the Water Dragon through the mist. Naori abandoned the wall and jumped into the air.
Arlin smirked as she fell right into his trap. Without wasting any time, Arlin thrust his blade and smirked as it ripped through Naori. Thinking he had the battle won, Arlin smirked. That was when Naori puffed away in smoke and Arlin dropped to the ground with a scowl. He was being outclassed in this fight, Naori was still stronger.
"Fire Style: Fire Dragon Bullet!" From the ground, Naori releases a stream of fire from her mouth that ripped through the mist unbothered. On a path to engulf Arlin who remained calm despite the situation.
Going through his own hand signs Arlin prepared to counter. "Water Style: Water Shock Wave!" the whole section where Naori and Arlin were fighting began to flood and destroy even more of the amusement rides. They had moved a reasonable distance away from everyone else.
Naori quickly jumped away as her jutsu was washed away and did not want to be crushed by the raging waves. Naori found herself dodging multiple water jutsu as now Arlin had an even bigger supply of water for his jutsu.
"Let's put this to rest." Naori turned around and began to channel fire chakra into her palm. A sphere of fire formed and began to glow brighter and brighter, unaffected by the rain hitting it as if trying to douse her flame.
"I couldn't agree more," Arlin said from atop a building. He went through hand signs. "Water Style: Water Dragon Blast." An even bigger dragon formed from the water and towered over even three-story tall buildings, the thing was a massive beast.
Naori looked at the giant dragon jutsu impressed. It had been a long time since she was pushed this far. The ball of fire in her hand had been condensed to a finite point and shine like a mini star. It was powerful and dense, only becoming a ball of pure energy. "Fire Style: Shatterforce!" Naori slammed her hand on the ground. A burst of heat followed by power made itself present as large pillars of flame shout from the ground like erupting volcanoes.
The whole section was reduced to ash and Arlin found himself engulfed in the pillar of flames. The ground shook for several seconds and the sky became covered with ash clouds.
Naori stood on one of the crumbling buildings and smirked proudly. "I still got it." Her eyes then narrowed as she could see a pile of rubble moving. Naori wasted no time and sent a Fireball towards the pile. The pile was engulfed in a fiery explosion a second later.
Making her way towards the pile with her sword ready, Naori used her sword to move the giant boulders out of the way. It revealed a melting piece of metal that was in the position Arlin was in. She guessed the moving around was him using the Substitution Jutsu to escape.
Naori let out an annoyed sigh. "He's definitely going to be a problem in this war." This also meant she had to be careful with Naruto. His life would already be in danger due to being a ninja, but this was different. Someone was directly after him. Naori could not lose her Son. A world where Naruto did not exist was a place she did not want to be.
Back in the cave, All the kids were being treated by Shisui and any others who knew the basics of medical treatment. They were getting ready to leave and continue the fight.
"Are you okay Brother Jin?" Mira questioned the boy who looked downcast. His shoulders slumped and a depressed aura radiating off him.
Jinkusu stayed silent for several seconds and Mira stayed quiet for once. "No, it's all my fault." Jinkusu held his face in his hands.
"No, it's not! Nobody knew what would happen by pressing that." Mira tried to convince Jinkusu but found it incredibly difficult.
That was when the bottom of a sharp scythe was slammed on the ground in front of him. The loud clang which echoed across the cave caused everyone to look toward Naruto.
"You're right, it is your fault." Naruto said harshly as he looked down towards his brother. The boy looked terrible as his face was struck with dry tear stains. The truth was if Jinkusu never touched the paper, none of this would have happened. "The first step is admitting you are in the wrong, Now. What's next?" Naruto queried.
Naruto's gaze then washed against everyone else in the cave like a wave crashing on the shoreline. "That goes for all of you! I know it's hard and things may look grim, but things will get better, I promise it."
His words lit a fire under the Uchiha's. They all gripped their weapons and began to wobble to their feet. The kids who once looked as if it was all over now had a blazing inferno in their eyes.
Naruto then looked down towards Jinkusu who was still looking away. A pale hand then blocked the vision of the headless body Jinkusu had been looking at. Jinkusu followed the hand upwards to see Naruto's hand extended.
"You're greef, I will shoulder it all. Because I said I was going to walk in front of you and take all your pain."
Jinkusu found it hard to look Naruto in the eyes but he felt locked in place by his stubborn gaze alone. He remembered the conversation he had with Naruto at the pier a couple of days ago. Naruto had vowed to carry all his pain and the clans.
But the least he could do was carry his own burdens. Jinkusu tightly gripped Naruto's hand and pulled himself up. "Yeah, I'm sorry."
"You can apologize to me by slaying our enemies." Naruto then turned and got ready once again for battle.
Shisui watched Naruto with a smile. But the smile faltered into a grimace. "He's putting on a front, being true to the situation and not to yourself. A leader must always show up…even when they don't want to." Shisui could see the slight shakes of Naruto's hand along with the fluctuation of his chakra. That is what it meant to be a leader. You had to show up no matter what. Like a wall standing through everything, suffering the fierce winds that come with change and the ravishing strings of time. But yet, that wall would never fall.
Even though Naruto was in constant pain and also suffering from the backlash of everything that happened, He was still standing ready to go.
"Okay, let's get back out there, We can morn later!" Shisui commanded as he strapped his tanto onto his back. There was a battle to win.
Exiting the cave they all witnessed the sounds of battles and shouts from shinobi releasing their jutsu. The ground which was wet and possessed multiple puddles was now completely red. Damaged clothing and dead bodies rested all over the place.
Thankful, none were Uchiha and all enemies so Naruto didn't care. Now was no time to show remorse to enemies. This did not mean that the Uchiha were untouched since many were injured.
It was then the massive sight of flames erupted from the ground. The pillars of flames threatened to destroy the whole park if this kept up. They all braced for the shockwaves which knocked some of them off their feet.
Naruto slammed his gunbai into the ground and shielded Mira who was clinging to him, and those behind Naruto also got some cover from the shockwaves but not much. He was sending chakra into his feet so as to not be blown off his feet, It seems some of the other kids were able to quickly do the same things and remain standing if only barely.
Shisui blew hair from his face. "That was something!" A laugh escaped his lips.
"Mom is this strong?!" Naruto internally gaped at the strength of his mother.
"Is everyone ok?" Naruto asked as he looked over those who had to climb back to their feet."
"N-no, I hit my head." Jinkusu massaged the point of impact as he felt an aching pain.
"So you're fine, let's get moving as I am sure many ninjas will try to converge on my Mom." A cold light flickered in Naruto's eyes as the thought of enemy ninjas trying to take away his Mother caused his blood to boil, while his 3 tomoe spun in excitement as if in agreement with his thought process.
They all began to move to the location of the destruction with their heads on a swivel while the rain still stormed on. As they got closer, the buildings began to appear burned and crumbling from just the slightest movement. The water evaporated and more rain dropped but only turned into a steaming mist.
Naruto witnessed the destroyed area with amazement and growing respect for his Mother's strength. His thoughts were halted however as water jutsu and other ninja tools rained down upon them.
Naruto swung his gunbai and a fierce wind shot out like a launched cannon ball. The ninja tools were blasted away as if they weighed nothing. While Shisui crafted a green ethereal arm that swatted away all the jutsu as if he was smacking a house fly.
It was then a thick mist took place over all their eyes like a canvas blocking their view. Naruto frowned at the annoying mist, it was something he was still getting used to. Without wasting much time, he extended his sensory bubble and managed to dodge a kunai aimed for his head.
"Everyone! Expand your chakra and shape it into a bubble around you!" Shisui yelled into the mist, but even his voice sounded distant like he was shouting from another room.
Naruto focused intensely as he moved through the fog. He felt around with his chakra but was picking nothing up. Strange. Did he get separated from his clan?
If so, he had to get back soon as possible since nothing good ever came from being alone in a cold cloud of mist. Naruto sent chakra to his feet and leaped out of the mist in one jump. Once the mist clouded away, Naruto found himself on the lower part of a roller coaster that went high and low with many flips along with twists.
The thing was defiantly a gut-wrencher. Naruto looked to see he had moved in the opposite direction of where his mother was. "We fell into the trap, the jutsu and ninja tools were a distraction."
"Are you lost, Uchiha."
Naruto turned his crimson eyes to the sound of the voice. The voice came from a boy who was around the same height as Naruto but only a few centimeters taller. The boy possessed a fair complexion with short messy greyish blonde hair that falls over the right side of his face in the form of spikes. Cold pupilless pink eyes that could match Naruto in how uncaring they seemed. A marking the same color as his eyes rested under his eyelids with two points on each side.
Naruto observed the gear which he wore. In his hand rested a guardless katana which was a blaring weakness to Naruto. The boy's pants were black and matched the ninja sandals. Covering his body was a mesh armor undershirt covered by a sickly green striped kimono top, with black gloves and Mist headband.
"Who are you?" Naruto asked before dropping into a red stance with his gunbai and scythe.
The boy's hard stare did not leave Naruto's eyes. Either he was naive or confident. Looking an Uchiha in the eyes directly was an easy way to die. The boy then spoke in an emotionless tone.
"My name is Kagura Karatachi."
If Naruto was surprised, he didn't show it. Karatachi. That was the last name of the fourth Mizukage. That also meant this was the son of Yagura. This also meant he was strong, and a strong opponent meant a bloody battle.
But a question rang in Naruto's mind. Why was the son of the Kage in this low-level base? What were they hiding here? Was keeping this a low-level base a way to conceal what was truly being kept here?
Questions for a later time, now he had to kill this person and get back to the others. The kid's soldiers stared each other down unflinching to the rain poking at their skin. Lighting raced in the dark clouds above lighting up everything below in a blue glow. The winds howled ferociously due to being so high up.
On an unspoken signal, the two rushed forward and clashed their weapons together. The two bounced off each other and separated, within a breath they were back at it.
Using both the scythe and gunbai in combat at the same time was at first challenging, but as he went through battles and multiple sparing sessions, Naruto became better and better. His growth was frighting and abnormal.
His current adversary Kagura was proving worthy as their movements matched each other step for step as if they were dance partners in a dance of death on the stage which was war. Dancing over the fallen comrades and enemies with little regard.
All that mattered was this fight and coming out on top. Kagura's blade wisp through the air like a soaring arrow. The deluxe katana connected with the heavy body of Naruto's gunbai. The white shield was quickly moved out the way and the sharp edge of Naruto's scythe swung across his vision.
Kagura managed to lean back just in time and only got his hair blown in his face. A small cut on his nose opened and blood slowly ran down from his nose to the bottom of his chin. It hung on his chin before slowly dropping to the ground with a soft plop on the water puddle.
Kagura reached up and wiped the blood from his chin. "You managed to take first blood, Impressive." Kagura complimented Naruto in his cold tone of speaking. But due to his voice lacking any emotion that went with complimenting someone vacant, the compliment was more insulting.
"I'll be taking your life next." Naruto responded just as coldly.
Kagura let a dark smirk cross his lips as his pink eyes focused on Naruto's weapons. Though they were bigger than him, Naruto used them as well as he could. "I'll take his weapons away from him, this will leave him defenseless and at my mercy." With his plan ready, Kagura went through hand signs.
Chains made from water shot out towards the gunbai in Naruto's left hand. This was one of the purposes of the Water Chain jutsu. The chains made from water wrapped around the gunbai and with a hard yank, Kagura pulled the gunbai. He was expecting the weapon to be launched from Naruto's hand, but he underestimated the strength of the Uchiha.
It didn't matter, Kagura moved in with a lunge meant to stab Naruto in the chest. Kagura managed to cause Naruto to lose his footing and be an easy target. The tip of Kagura's blade became cloaked in potent chakra and cut through the air with ease.
Naruto witnessed Kagura rushing towards him with his blade. He was off balance, yes, but defenseless? No! His eyes caught sight of Kagura's eyes and he placed the boy in a genjutsu which caused him to shoot right past him and stab into one of the metal poles holding up the roller coaster.
Naruto quickly turned around with every intention of taking advantage of this. He brought his scythe down along the boy's back and dug into his skin with a clean cut. This also served as waking the boy from the genjutsu he was in.
Kagura widened his eyes in pain at the feeling of having his back sliced by cold metal. The pain was immense and almost enough to make him black out. He turned and did a slash towards Naruto that only clipped the edge of his clothes.
Kagura grits his teeth at the pain and stands to his feet. He had to kill Naruto, that was his mission. If he returned home in a worse state than his enemy his father would not be pleased, and training would be even harsher than normal.
"Thought I was defenseless? How absurd." Naruto mocked. He had led the poor fool into a trap. His attack was meant to cut, but Kagura's armor wrapped around him reduced some of the damage from the attack.
Kagura wanted to lash out, but rising to the taunts of your enemy was bound to end in your death. It was a ninja rule to never let your enemy see your emotions. His father beat that into him for sure.
But this fight had gone on long enough, it was time to see an end to this. Kagura rose to his feet shakily. In order for this move to work, he had to get rid of Naruto's gunbai.
"Water Release: Water Bullets!" Kagura spit out big globs of water towards Naruto who only moved the gunbai up and swatted them away. Water chains then shot from Kagura's arm and quickly moved before Naruto could see them.
The chains wrapped around Naruto's gunbai tightly. With a mighty yank, Kagura pulled the gunbai from Naruto's hand and watched as it fell off the ride. "Now!" Kagura mentally shouted and quickly dropped into stance.
"Seven Sword Demons: First Act!" Kagura yelled as chakra channeled along his blade and the railing under them began to creek.
"Act? Sword? I don't know what this is, but it can't be good by how much chakra is going into his blade." Naruto analyzed with a growing suspicion this wasn't going to end well. Naruto also got into a stance with his scythe and got ready for his next attack. "Eternal Rest!"
Chakra gathered at the end of Naruto's scythe and he moved to attack. Naruto performed the first attack in Madara's style. Grave Marker. A hurricane of blade strikes released from Naruto's scythe that appeared at hard angles and would be nye impossible to defend against.
"Misty Coverage!" With his final shout, sharp chakra blades cut through the air like a hot knife through butter. The chakra blades were sharp and defined to perfection. The angles it released were even more absurd than that of Naruto's. It left cuts along the metal railings as it moved with an unstoppable force towards the oncoming blades of Naruto.
As Naruto witnessed Kagura perform the attack, his eyes spun hypnotically. Respect was then formed for his enemy, Kagura. Naruto's eyes widen as he predicted where the attack would land. It was unavoidable. He truly felt amazed by the beauty of this…Act.
Likewise, Kagura felt himself impressed by Naruto's attack. He now respected the Uchiha in front of him. It was a shame this attack would kill him. If things were different, maybe they could have been friends.
With two powerful attacks clashing at such a high altitude, the sounding clash of metal and chakra blades traveled distances. The roller coaster they had been going up and down on began to shake before the platform they were standing on crumbled under their feet and sailed to the ground. With Naruto and Kagura falling to the ground.
They landed with a crash and groaned from the pain. Naruto had seen better days. The boy's right sleeve was gone and a deep wound ran across his chest and several other parts of his body. Blood dripped from him like a broken faucet as his legs wobbled due to feeling completely numb.
Naruto was still ready to fight if needed. But his body could not keep up with him. His sharingan flickered before going off and turning his eyes black. Naruto had still not managed to master stage 3 of his sharingan. This couldn't be an issue if he wanted to grow stronger.
Kagura pushed a metal pipe off him as he got to his feet, ready to fight once again. His top was gone and only revealing the heavily damaged mesh armor plating underneath, and even that looked as if it was going to fall off at any moment. Blood rolled down his face and blocked out one of his eyes.
The two panted heavily as they looked at each other with tired grins. Each clutching their own wounds. Their chakra was low and their body's out of energy. The two young shinobi stood up only on willpower alone.
"Y-you g-got lucky, Uchiha." Kagura panted out and gripped his blade with shaky hands.
"S-say what you will, Karatachi." Naruto held the scythe in his hand with a somewhat firm grip.
In the distance, Kagura could see blurry figures jumping in this direction. He also knew that it was time to go. After collapsing part of such a large structure, people would no doubt close in on it.
To run away from his enemy. How Kagura hated this feeling. But to survive and fight another day would be better than dying a fool's death. Gaining his breath back, Kagura spoke. "Well finish this next time, don't die until I kill you first." Kagura then took to the trees and began to retreat.
Naruto smirked. That was a battle he would be looking for. This was a tie and it didn't sit right with his pride. He had won no fights this night, facing defeat in every battle. With his body finally having enough, Naruto fell back expecting to fall on the hard ground.
Instead, it was in the arms of his Mother who rested his head on her lap. This allowed Naruto to see her worried face which was wet from blood and rain. A worried expression played apparent on her face as her lone eye roamed over his body.
"Naru-chan, What happened?!" Her voice cracked under the situation of everything. Naruto was severely injured and the surroundings were proof of his battle.
Shisui looked at Naruto with worry as well. But he noticed something. The boy was…Smiling. He also noticed the rapid shaking of Naruto's hand which was still holding the bloody scythe.
"So that's it?" Shisui thought amused despite the situation. "He's just got done from a battle." The messy-haired teen received a sharp glare while also mixed with an annoyed glare from Naori which made him recoil.
"I can see that." Naori said in deadpan.
"Not just any battle, he seems to have met his bloody rival." Shisui pointed out which caused Naori to look at her son again.
"I think he may be right for once." Naruto grinned which caused a vein to pulse on Shisui's head. Before Naruto coughed blood onto his mother. "It was a draw, but I did a number on the other guy."
"Don't speak, we'll get you help." Naori's eyes glistened with unshed tears as the state of her child felt more painful than any attack she suffered.
"Naruto-kun!" Mira appeared as she held his hand and looked ready to break down. The girl was covered in wet dirt and bloody from having to fight her way over here with the rest.
Naruto turned and for once, smiled at the girl. "Glad your okay, Mira-chan." His eyes then closed and sweet unconsciousness took hold of him.
"Is he going to be okay?" Mira asked in worry.
Naori looked at Naruto one more time. "It's going to take some time, but yea."
It was then one of the male Uchiha spoke up. "We killed all of the Mist ninjas, We are now searching the area for any survivors or anything that might come in handy."
Naori nodded in response. "Great, let's all regroup at the medical bay. It will let us all heal in a more desired location." Naori stood to her feet while giving a side glance at the forest. It was the direction Kagura had leaped off to.
Naori had managed to see the final clash between the two kids. And if she saw correctly, This war would prove increasingly difficult. However, the Mother was filled with pride. Although the battle may have been a draw, Naruto was still able to defend against the attack and counter with his own attack.
As time passed and the storm eased up, the clan had moved to the medic bay and were being healed. While they began to rest, Naori had sent those able to move out to contact the camp and let Mei know they succeed.
"Lady Naori!" One of the Uchiha entered the door as he bowed before the women attending to the injured.
"What is it, Kelvin?" Naori asked the brown-haired man who was rather short.
"While we were exploring the place, we managed to find a group of hostages." Kelvin gave the good news.
"Great." The woman smiled at the good news. "Anything else?"
Kelvin nodded. "We also found a bloodline holder."
Everyone who wasn't paying attention turned and eyed Kelvin. This was indeed great news. This would also serve the added benefit of increasing their standings in the rebel camp.
"Do you know what bloodline they hold?"
"The boy is from the Yuki clan."
Naori widened her eyes. That was the same clan as Esdeath. "Where is the boy?" after hearing Naori's question, Kelvin signaled for those outside to bring him in.
They came in and laid the passed-out boy on the table. Naori walked over to gain a look at him. He seemed to be eight years old and tall for his age. The boy's hair was neck length and a dirty white. It was most likely from the dirt and rubble covering his sharp and hard face.
Above the boy's right white eyebrow, Was a scar that reached to the side of his hairline. Covering his skinny body were rags stained with blood and other things which left a bad smell in the room.
"How did you guys know he was a Yuki?" Naori asked Kelvin.
"On his cage read, Yuki scum." Kelvin answered as he remembered the people trapped like animals. He then looked at the other people being treated. They ranged from Men, Women, and children. Some of them were Shinobi while a vast majority of them were just regular people caught in the crossfire.
Naori frowned in sadness. A look of pity crossed her face as she saw all the people being treated. War was never a good thing and always led to mass suffering.
"Naori-sama. Naruto-sama is awake." Another Uchiha said coming from the back of the place.
Naori quickly moved and her maroon long skirt flowed with every step she took. Naori basically busted the door down with how fast it opened. There Naruto was sitting up in the bed. In the bed next to him was Jinkusu while Mira sat in a chair in the middle of the two.
"Naru!" Naori rushed over and enveloped Naruto in a tight hug, The corner of her eyes stung with happy tears but she blinked them away. Naruto returned the hug with a soft smile on his face. "How are you feeling? Does it still hurt? Do you need me to get you something?"
"Mom." Naruto grabbed his mother's wrist and stared into her eyes calmly. "I'm fine."
Naori sighed before hugging Naruto once more. "I was just worried."
"I'm fine too." Jinkusu said sarcastically in his bed. They had been healing in this private room. Izumi had come to heal them to the best of her abilities.
Naori giggled into her hand softly. "I am glad you are okay too, Jin-chan." Also hugging the long-haired boy.
"Hey! Where's my hug!" Mira said and jumped on Naori's back getting a surprised yelp from the woman.
"Mira-chan! What are you doing!" Naori looked behind her to see the messy-haired girl holding onto her back.
"I'm getting a hug of course!" Mira said like it was obvious as to what she was doing.
Naruto chuckled at the action until he winced and grabbed the aching pain in his chest and abdomen. Under his black mantle, his body was wrapped in bandages that scratched at his skin. Feeling across his mid-section, Naruto was sure another scar had formed from Kagura's last attack.
Naruto's actions did not go unnoticed as the others looked at him with worry. He only waved them off. "It's okay, just a slight pain."
At his words, Jinkusu looked down in guilt. The guilt of everything was eating him up. Everything went into shambles and it was all his fault, One of his brothers died. It was then a pillow connected with his face.
"Stop moping around, it won't change anything." Naruto told Jinkusu sternly.
"Yea, didn't we all talk about this." Mira also lectured to Jinkusu. While Naruto was sleeping it had just been the two of them talking.
"You're right, Sorry." Jinkusu offered a weak smile in return.
"While your here Mom, I've got some important news." Naruto grabbed his Mother's attention as he was serious once again.
"What is it?"
"Before we entered the cave, we overheard one of the ninjas talking about a supply line moving in the south." Naruto gave the important news with a straight face. This was a big deal for the rebels and would only help them. The more supplies the better, not to mention the additional ninja they had picked up tonight and their clan of course.
Naori hummed while Mira climbed off her back and sat in her chair. The Mother then spoke up. "That will definitely be something to tell Mei-sama." She then smiled at Naruto. "Good job Son."
Naruto only nodded at the praise.
"Now get some rest you two." Naori said and got up. "Come on Mira-chan, Your brother wants you."
"Goodnight Brothers!" Mira waved one last time before she exited.
Next Day
Mei and company landed in front of the crumbling gates. The morning sun shined upon the place. Behind her were Ao, Esdeath, Tier, and Kenpachi along with a good number of rebels. they had been informed by the Uchiha that they had succeeded. Without wasting much time they had set out when the moon was just starting to set.
"Way to keep the place clean." Kenpachi said blankly. After his statement, the big sign overhead fell to the ground in pieces.
"Right." Mei smiled faintly before walking into the park under the orange sky.
As they advanced through the camp, they could see the fallen buildings and blood stains on the ground. All kinds of weapons lay scattered along the ground next to broken buildings and in some cases, Dead bodies which still carried the thick smell of blood lingered in the air.
They could also see the burnt ground and scorched buildings. It was then that they saw the fallen pieces of the roller coaster that lay on the ground. Countless sword marks littered the metal and railings up above.
"Is that?" Ao gasped in surprise.
"It looks like a Sword Act." Tier remarked gravely as she ran a hand on the sound carvings in the metal.
To the side, Mei jumped up on the track and looked at the sword marks. It was indeed a Sword Act. "Seven Sword Demons."
"There is something else." Kenpachi announced from the other side. Mei leaped across the gapping hole and landed next to Kenpachi softly. "It seems whoever was fighting countered with their own Sword Act, But I've never seen these kinds of sword traces."
Kenpachi was an experienced swordsman and participated in many battles and wars. The second ninja war as a child, The third ninja war as a man, And now the Mist civil war.
"Interesting." Mei hummed in thought. Whoever these two warriors are? They were very skilled. "Let's go meet up with the Uchiha, they might be able to inform us."
The two jumped back to the ground and got back on track to the location of Uchiha's. In the back, Esdeath and Harribel were talking to each other.
"I bet you it was Naruto who performed those attacks."
"Hmph, That weakling is probably dead. Let alone counter the Sword Act."
"We'll see." Harribel chuckled after her words. Esdeath just didn't see it, Naruto was special.
The group was at the Medical Bay where other Uchiha had instructed them. Mei saw Naori sitting down in a chair with her two swords leaning next to her. Naori gestured for them to sit at the long table across from them.
Naori handed a small list of papers to Mei who took them with a nod. "This is just a small report of what happened, I can answer any questions you may have."
Mei nodded and handed the papers to Ao who started to read through them with a keen eye. "What happened? I thought you said it would be a stealth operation. This place is a war zone."
Naori let a somber look cross her face. "One of the kids triggered an alarm which alerted the whole park to intruders. And as you can see." Naori forced a smile. "A big fight broke out."
"Sorry things didn't go your way." Mei offered an apologetic smile. This clan had really been through so much. The promised land they thought would be, is only hell. The real heaven is still out of reach.
"Did you find the supplies here?" Mei continued the questions.
"Yes, A lot of weapons even though most of them are damaged. We located food that was stored in the cafeteria." Naori smiled, Happy to announce the good news.
"Is the little clan heir still alive?" Mei teased. Though she was teasing, a part of Mei wanted Naruto alive. He may be young, but his potential was limitless. Ameyuri had told them as much. 'Training Naruto was really a privilege. Those words came from the mouth of a grinning Ameyuri Ringo, A member of the Seven Swordsman.
So the privilege should have been Naruto's.
Naori giggled softly into her hand. "Yes, My son is heavily injured though." Her laugh stopped and a sad looked was replaced once again.
Mei really felt pity for the woman in front of her. Not only did a large part of her clan die to one of their own, but they also had to flee their own village. Now the woman's only child was in a war he might not survive.
"What happened?" It was Harribel who spoke up. It was a surprise to the mother.
"He got into a fight with Arlin Grail and some other person." Naori stated coldly.
"He fought Arlin!" Ao reacted with shock.
"Why was someone like Arlin even here is the real Question?" Esdeath pondered as she folded her arms under her bountiful chest.
"I'm just guessing, but it may have been to defend one of your clanmates." Naori pointed a finger at Esdeath who widened her eyes.
This was big. If they had finally found him. She would accept the Uchiha into their forces. Esdeath had been searching for the boy since the war started two years ago. Once they had been attacked by Yagura himself and his large army.
A huge chunk of them had been killed or scattered across the globe. She had known of this boy since she had been training him for a short time. His parents had given her a large sum of money to do so. Since after all, Esdeath was the clan head of the Yuki members.
"You found Sonagi! Where is he?" Esdeath asked standing to her feet.
"He's in room three in the back." Naori gestured with her head to the back. Esdeath nodded which was a silent thank you along with the sincere look in her eyes that were normally cold as icebergs.
"One last question." Mei said. Naori gave the leader her attention. "Who was fighting on that roller coaster?"
"It was me."
A solid but young voice echoed from the long cold hallway. They heard the sound of footsteps which led to Naruto Uchiha making his entrance. His spiky dark violet bangs hung above his brows, pale skin highlighted by the endless abyss of darkness that was his eyes. A fresh set of black clothes. He wore the typical Uchiha clothing which was a black mantle with pants just as black, around his waist was a dark obi clipped together by a white belt.
"You?" Mei Inquired doubtfully.
"It'd be in your best opinion to not underestimate me, let alone an Uchiha." expressed with a voice tinged in nothing but pride and self-assurance. Though he was still in aching pain, Naruto still managed to walk as if he was the most powerful person.
"Haha! You're something else!" Kenpachi laughed, but he couldn't help but respect the kid.
Harribel nodded to herself and seemed to be pleased. While Ao scowled in the back.
"Back in my day, brats like you-"
Ao was cut off from talking when Mei started to smile sweetly at him. "Shut up…or I'll kill you."
"Yes ma'am." Ao nodded and looked down and began to shake in terror
"I was fighting Kagura Karatachi." Naruto spoke unbothered as he placed himself next to his mother.
"Th-that's the son of Yagura." Mei voiced, shock all over her face. It felt as if someone had just dumped a bucket of cold water on her face while she slept. "Did you kill him?" Mei threw out her other question in a shaky tone.
Naruto scowled. "No, I'll be sure to next time."
"No, it was a good thing you didn't. If you killed Yagura's son, He would search Water Country himself until he found us. The end result would end in a battle we are not ready for."
"That would make sense, But we managed to rescue a good amount of shinobi being kept here." Naori put forth her two cents.
"It would be best if went on a spree to rescue a bunch of trapped prisoners and hostages, It would also be in our best interest to take over more of these supply points." Naruto spoke in a calculative tone as his mind raced through potential ideas to help the rebels out.
Mei looked at Naruto with hidden amazement. The young Uchiha was already going through ideas to help them out in the future. He was very calculative and possessed a mind that was sharp as a Nara's. Mei was glad to have Naruto on their side.
"But I do have some good news to give you." Naruto knocked Mei out of her thoughts as he looked her in the eyes.
"Oh, what's that Naruto-kun?"
"Before everything broke out, I managed to hear news about a supply line moving in the south."
Mei became serious in a heartbeat. "Are you sure?"
"Positive."
Mei placed a hand on her chin and thought. Everything they had learned today would help them. These Uchiha were a blessing. Her mind made up, Mei smiled.
"You guys completed the mission and it is with great joy, That I welcome you to our rebellion."