Disclaimers: I OWN NOTHING! Nothing, Nothing, Nothing! Only my OC is mine and that's fine and dandy with me.
Author's Note: This might be longer then my last but that's a good thing. Some misspelling, some OCCness and all around good time. Enjoy!
Chapter: Distress goes up in flame
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Zabuza and Haku kept to their word. If the squad happens upon any of the culprits, they handed them over to the two: The Genins never asked and the two never said.
So for over the next month things went routinely: they wake up and do their morning exercise, head on up to the bridge, did a quick sweep and helped out during the day. The boys continued to help with all the lumbers and heavy lifting, not once complaining but Tazuna seemed to complain for the squad near the end of the days when he got very tipsy. None of the workers took him seriously by then and the squad ignored it whenever he did.
After work and before dinner, they all trained either in the surrounding forest, under the bridge using their chakra to stay above the water or hang under the bridge, or in their attic doing their katas when it rains heavily outside. During all this, a clone would stay watch over the household and would report any strange sightings. When they trained together, the boys didn't let up on Sakura because after pulling that little stunt when she trained with Kakashi, they knew she could take it and everyday Sakura is slowly catching up thanks to them and Kakashi.
Tazuna and his crew are working on the bridge every day without much physical hassle due to the squad making sure there are no troubles brewing and finishing the first half of the bridge, it has motivated the crew to keep at it.
Up until they heard that Tazuna's home almost got attacked.
But Naruto, having thought ahead just in case, already had a clone standing by in between shifts and knew that both Zabuza and Haku can't be everywhere they are stationed and can't be seen if they want to keep being undercover. Three thugs crashed through the living room window and made to grab Tsunami but were interrupted by a blonde blur catching them by their arms. The Naruto clone told Tsunami to find her son and hide, to not come out even if it sounds like she should. She did as she was told and when Zabuza and Haku showed up, they didn't ask; they just picked up what's left that's still breathing and hauled them to the closest emergency room.
After that, the rest of the squad showed up to see the clones washing the floor and Tsunami sitting on the steps, holding her son who looked scared out of his mind, both staring at the blonde clones but only Tsunami had a smile on her face. Tsunami explained that the Naruto clone showed up, took care of them and their other two friends picked them up. The squad looked at Naruto when he dispelled his clone but the blonde's face didn't change when he saw what happen through the clone's memories. Sasuke, Sakura and Kakashi were skeptical about Tsunami's version but Naruto never elaborate, he kept it to himself and when Sasuke asked him that night about it, the blonde shrugged and said that some people needed to be taught a lesson. Sasuke couldn't get to sleep after that but when his blonde finally crawled into his sleeping bag later did he wrapped his arms around Naruto and both fell asleep instantly.
The day after the incident the workers' motivations were shaken and a few quit but Tazuna kept at it, working with the remaining few along with the squad, determined to finish so his village can thrive from the outside world.
OOOOO
Gato however was seething and throwing things in his tower, smashing most of his expensive collection and screaming at the top of his lungs.
"God fucking dammit to hell! I want those punks killed! I want that bridge builder and his family killed! I want every last one killed!" He screamed as he threw more things around and smashing everything else.
Zabuza sat on the couch, watching the boss have a tantrum while Haku stood behind him with his mask on. Elbow on the couch headrest, hand on his chin and his other hand holding his glass cup, Zabuza watched in boredom. Up until:
"Send the word out! I want every available man here by the end of the week! This will end and it will end now!" Gato screamed at his men and they scrambled to get it done.
Zabuza sighed as he rubbed his temple 'Those kids will be slaughtered' were his thoughts as he once again turned to watch Gato yelling orders. Haku heard the sighed and laid a hand on Zabuza's shoulders, trying to offer what he could. Haku smiled behind his mask when Zabuza laid his own hand on his and gave it a squeeze.
OOOOO
Roxanne's eye opened to a dark room, listening to the sounds in the room and blinked.
Opening her eyes a bit more and looked to the window to see that the sun hasn't risen yet and turned herself onto her back, blinking at the ceiling above her.
'Why did I wake up? Is something happening'
She turned her head to see Milo on his stomach on the other bed, snoring without a care in the world and a little drool spot on his pillow under his mouth. Smiling at her Jonin, Roxanne sat up and stretched her arms above her head, yawned and scratched her head. Dropping her hands to her lap, they curled around each other as Roxanne took to doing her breathing exercise, closing her eyes and stretched out her senses.
Something woke her up for a reason and she's going to find out why.
Since she and Milo have been traveling around by foot to and through Lightning Country, she saw no need to wake up at dawn to get in her exercise when she gets it during their travels. So like Milo, she gets up by mid-morning where they enjoy breakfast together before they head on out. They had finished the mission the Hokage wanted them to do a couple weeks before and just recently finished another mission the day before. In between that, Roxanne dragged Milo to the very North of Lightning country to a cliff side cave where he grumbled about being holed up in a hole quite literally but this time he was allowed to roam around while Roxanne was in containment. Their little hole in the wall just happens to be almost the exact same hobble like the one in Rock Country with a door to the right that leads the way down for the duration of Roxanne's stay. This new place was as deserted and vacant of life, well, of people he should say cause he does notice animal tracks and later Milo found out was the best fishing spot.
When that was finished and they moved to the East of Lightning Country did they quickly finished a mission that was waiting for them after Roxanne's isolation and are now resting somewhere in the South, much to the enjoyment of Milo, who kicked out a protesting Roxanne that very same night for a little company. Said protest died when Milo promised that when they leave, she'll lead any way back to Fire Country and he'll assist in any odd jobs they get into. If Milo is willing to finally get his hands dirty in exchange for an uninterrupted night, then who was Roxanne to complain and she left to purchase her own room for the night.
This morning though, something is brewing, she can taste it in the air.
Keeping her eyes closed, Roxanne turned her head to the right and spread out her senses. When she felt nothing there, she then turned to her left and did the same.
Only for her eyes to snap open. She growled quietly before throwing the blanket off her and made a clone.
"Stay with Milo" She said quickly before gathering a different bag and threw in a spare set of clothes, shoes, some weapons and a spare canister. The clone smiled and sat down on the bed, legs crossed under her as she watched her boss move quietly around the room, picking this and that. When she was done, Roxanne strapped the backpack onto her back so it won't move as much during the trip and stopped when she saw her weights. She nodded to them.
"You wear them, I won't need them till I get back" the clone nodded as she laid down, fluffed her pillow and threw the blanket over herself.
"I'll find you when I'm done" Roxanne whispered as she climbed out the window into the early morning air.
OOOOO
Something was tickling his nose.
He tried rubbing it but went to a different part of his nose. So he swatted with his hand thinking it a bug and nuzzled down in his pillow. When it went to his ear, Naruto groaned out loud and sat up without opening his eyes, rubbing his ear. Turning his bed head to his left, he open one eye and saw a piece of feather and the hand holding it in front of his face. Opening both eyes and looking up, Naruto yawned and climbed into the lap of the hand that held the feather, hooking an arm around the waist and burrowing into the chest.
"Was that really necessary?" Sasuke asked as he too sat up after being awaken and yawned when he felt his blonde move away from his spot on his chest.
"What's going on?" Sakura asked as she too woke up from the chatter of the room, yawned and sat up, smoothing her hair down with her fingers.
"Zabuza has some news" Kakashi answered. That got all them on alert, Naruto yawned one last time and looked up.
"What's going on Zabuza-san?" Zabuza smiled at the blonde and rubbed his back, looking around the room before giving his answer.
"Gato has ordered for all his men to come to this village"
"When?"
"Maybe end of the week if he has enough. Maybe sooner if they all show up early" Resting his cheek on the blonde bed head, Zabuza continued rubbing the back of Naruto, almost lulling him back to sleep but he spoke up:
"How many?"
"With the men he has now and the rest coming, maybe 100 or more"
"I can easily make 50" Naruto said as he leaned against Zabuza chest and the hand on his back moved to his hair.
"Me too" Sasuke said as he moved from his position on the sleeping mat to the other side of Zabuza's lap and wrapped an arm around his back. Zabuza smiled as he wrapped an arm around the kid and put his head on top of his hair, closing his eyes.
"Me too" Sakura said as she moved from her bedding to the boys to be close to the group.
"And what kind of sensei would I be if I let my kids do all the work?" Kakashi said.
"A good one?" Naruto said and Zabuza chuckled quietly so he don't jostled the boys on his lap much. Sasuke smiled as he felt the rumble from the chest he was leaning on, Sakura giggled into her hand and Kakashi shook his head.
"So what's the plan? What are we going to do?" Sakura asked as she stared at the two adults in the room as did the boys and both Zabuza and Kakashi sighed.
"At the moment, nothing. We'll do what we usually do and when the time comes, we'll know how many and"
"And we'll go down swinging if we have to" Naruto added, fist pumping in the air
"We'll go down swinging" Kakashi agreed.
"Come on" Zabuza nudged both boys "Let's get you back to bed, still have a couple hours before your shifts starts and I have to get back to find out any more news"
Both boys nodded and hugged the man first before crawling off his lap and back onto their sleeping bag, Sakura having moved back to her own. Zabuza ran his hands through their hairs for a moment, staring at the boys as they got comfortable in their shared sleeping bag looking back up at the man.
"I'll see you two later, okay?"
Naruto and Sasuke nodded as they curled into each other and closed their eyes. Standing up, Zabuza smiled to Sakura and nodded to Kakashi before slipping out the window. Kakashi watched as his form disappeared into the early morning air and took a deep breath before laying down on his mat, staring at the ceiling and listening to the sounds coming from the window.
OOOOO
Two days has passed in high alert for the squad but they kept at their routine so not to draw to much attention to themselves, trying to act as normal as one can be with the knowledge they have and to not scare their client and his family. However the family knew something was up and would be very careful in and out of the house, even with their clone bodyguards.
But that morning two days after, before Naruto and Sasuke were to head out with Tazuna for the morning shift, Zabuza showed up at their attic room window, looking like he hasn't slept in those two days. Pacing back and forth, growling and hissing as he went, then stopped to look at his audience:
"Tonight, the last of Gato's men will arrive and they'll storm the bridge in the morning. I lost count after 150" rubbing his face with both hand and running them through his hair pulling at it "I believe in you all but these are blood thirsty assholes and I don't think you'll make it out alive" Falling to the floor, Zabuza sighed regretfully, looking to the boys with sadness in his eyes:
"I promised her I'd take care of you. I don't know if I can with that much in an army and even with Haku and Kakashi backing us up… I just don't know. You are just kids you know? Kids that shouldn't have to worry about someone else's war" Zabuza stopped himself from saying more and dropped his head into his hands, trying to calm his breathing. He heard shuffling and felt Naruto climb onto his lap while Sasuke draped himself behind his back, both wrapped themselves around the man. Zabuza sighed and sniffed before one arm went around the blonde and the other arm around the back of Sasuke.
"We're tougher then we look, Zabuza-san" Naruto quietly said as he nuzzled his neck.
"We'll figure out a way" Sasuke added.
"Together we will" Sakura said as she sat in his other lap with a hand on his chest.
Kakashi didn't say nothing, there was nothing to say and so, sat down by the group to offer his quiet support.
All of them failed to notice or sense the dark form on the roof, listening in and formulating a plan.
OOOOO
That night in Gato's tower, on the top floor where the big boss sat laughing while getting reports of his men arriving, rubbing his hands together in obvious enjoyment. At the top floor, the entirety of the room is a wide open space with windows all around. Gato sat in a high back chair on one end and his men sat in various areas with couches, chairs and tables everywhere. To the right of Gato's seating area is the stairway leading down and a door that leads to a huge bathroom.
"Set up the PA system, I want all of my men to hear me loud and clear from all the floors" He yelled with glee at everything going his way for once.
In the corner to Gato's right, on a long couch, sat Zabuza with a hand on his face and a glass of brown liquid in the other. Haku stood behind him, worried behind his face mask about his partner but having no idea how to help him and so stayed close in quiet comfort.
"Sir! The last of our men have just arrived and are here in the lower levels!" someone yelled from the stairs. Gato laughed and clapped his hand for the attention of the room before being given a microphone to get the attention of the rest of the 5 level tower.
Tapping for sound testing, Gato started:
"Men, we are all here because this town doesn't seem to understand the fact that we own them" A cheer from all floors "They don't seem to understand that we control this town" Another cheer "That we take care of them by keeping them in line!" another round "We give them protection and this is how they repay us!? By building a bridge!? By thinking they can do better than us!?" outrage sounds.
"Well. We'll show them, won't we?" he chuckled "When tomorrow comes, when the sun rises, we'll slaughter them all like mincemeat and burn the bridge to the ground" More cheering.
Zabuza tuned out after that, not wanting to hear how his kids will be killed tomorrow and how he broke his promise to his kin, something he's never done before and the agony of that low blow just makes him want to throw himself to the wolves.
But he won't. Gulping down the burning liquid, he hissed as it went down and grabbed the bottle to refill his glass. He'll fight them all if it means his kids will live, of that he's sure. Clanking the bottle down and slumping back against the couch, Zabuza sighed and put his hand back on his face.
Then he felt a tick. Removing his hand, he searched out his senses but didn't feel nothing out of the ordinary except the signatures of the entire building. Looking around the group and the windows but saw nothing. Looking to the stairway, ignoring Gato as he kept motivating his group, Zabuza stared because something in his gut is telling him to look.
"What's wrong, Zabuza-san?" Haku had noticed Zabuza looking around in alert.
Suddenly his eyes widen when he felt all the signatures changed unnoticeably, from the lower levels coming up to the level below them. All the different signatures changed from individuals to one single chakra copied times whatever amount was on those floors and as he looked around the room, no one seemed to noticed this change.
Turning back to the stairs his breath hitched and his body froze.
A dark head of hair with blue streaks climbed up the stairs, dressed in a black outfit with a brown fuzz wrapped around their waist that he'd knew anywhere.
'Roxanne' Zabuza's mind screamed but he could not move. Haku from behind him stiffen at the sight of the new comer.
Gato noticed the girl coming up and announced it to the floor.
"Well boys, looks like the entertainment has arrived and she looks doable" He laughed at his own joke and his men joined in, calling out to the girl with cat calls and whistles.
Roxanne stood in the front overlooking her surroundings, counting the men on this floor and then turned her head to looked at the boss man to her left who is enjoying the view from where he is standing.
"Hello" and she snapped her fingers.
Gurgling, screams and thudding sounds came right after.
"Hey!" His scream was cut off by a hand wrapped around his throat and being lifted a foot off the floor, clawing at the hand that held him, trying to breathe.
"So I heard that you were the man to talk to if I needed something done in this town" squeeze "I also heard that you and your men were going to do a little chaos tomorrow" Bring his face down to hers as she sneered at the purple face "I also heard that you were going to kill some of my friends"
Waving a free hand over, a clone appeared with rope next to Roxanne, throwing one end over the rafter above them and tied a noose at the other end.
"See, when I heard that, it didn't set well with me. And when something don't set well with me then I do something about it" Grabbing the noose, Roxanne put it over Gato's head and tighten it, dropping the big man onto the floor as he coughed the much needed air.
Taking the other end of the rope from her clone, Roxanne smiled: "I also don't like it when someone threaten what is mine" and pulled until just the feet was at eye level.
Choking, grabbing at the rope Gato struggled hard but that only made the rope tighten around his neck. He kicked, wheezed, scratched and turned blue in the face.
Roxanne watched him the entire time, never blinking and didn't let go of the rope, her tail unwrapped from her waist and twirling around in enjoyed bliss.
Zabuza watched on the sides, able to stand now and studied the girl in front of him. He hasn't seen Roxanne in some time now but yes, he could spot the difference: her form is now more defined with the hidden strength he knows she hides from the world. She had purple streaks before and now it's blue. Her tail, oh her tail looks just as beautiful as the last time he saw it as it waves through the air. Her face is where the most difference is: her sharp cheekbones, her plump lips and the color of her eyes always stopped his breathing. He watched as Roxanne's eyes lit up at the struggling of the boss man, at the upturn of her lips as she watched the life slowly drain from his eyes and when the last wheeze came from his lungs, she 'mmph at his lifeless form. A clone came up to Roxanne, whispered something as she whispered back and the clone gave a salute before gathering the rest of the idling clones around the room.
To Zabuza, everything stopped when she turned her eyes to him with a tilt of her head and a whisper of a smile on her lips, and his legs slightly shook from being able to see those eyes again. He watched as she tied the end of the rope she held to Gato's now limp legs and fully turned to him, looking him over just as he looked her over. Zabuza took a deep breath and let it out slowly, finally relaxing his body after 2 days of Gato's so called plan and took a step forward.
Roxanne disappeared and he turned to stop her from slicing another throat but,
Roxanne stood in front of Haku behind the couch Zabuza was sitting on, a knife ready in one hand and the other pulling off the mask. Haku allowed her to do so and only because he has a weapon ready in his sleeves if she made the wrong move. When the mask is fully removed, Roxanne dropped it on the couch behind her and looked at the face staring back at her, tilting her head this way and that, leaning in close or leaning back. When she memorized every speck of that face, Roxanne leaned in close and breathe in the other's scent but stopped midway, raising a brow.
"You have my Zabuza's scent on you" Both eyeing each other but only Haku slightly clenched his jaw which earned him a smirk. Glaring now at the girl but Roxanne took another deep breath and blew it back at Haku. The stinging of that air snapped his eyes wide and he saw the air had turned cold and misty, earning a gasp from him.
"How"
"It's easy to tell if you know what to look for, especially when I'm this close and could actually feel the chill from your body, and don't think I didn't know that little toothpick you have will do anything when there's another in between your legs" Haku blushed at that but jumped when he felt something poking him in the thighs and looked down to see a fuzzy appendage holding a blade to his crotch. Clenching his jaw, taking a deep breath then looked up at the girl who is smiling at him as he discard his weapon and held his hands up to show they are empty. One last tilt of the head, Roxanne turned her back and wrapped her tail around her waist.
A steel needle was ready to inject itself into her back when suddenly Haku was bend over the back of the couch, a knee to his back and his hands clasped to another pair of hands up and over his head being pushed down.
Haku grunted but smiled "You're fast but" He clutched at the hands tighter "It won't help you"
Gathering his chakra to his hands, he let his chill flow to those hands to freeze them but stopped when Roxanne chuckled to his sides. He turned his head to see one Roxanne leaning against the back to the couch with a smile as he felt the ones holding his hands shake from quiet laughter.
"You should know better than to play with fire" the hands clutching his grew tighter and pulled back with more force that had him arching back with a hiss. "Because little boys will always get burned when they play with fire"
Haku looked at Roxanne in confusion. Then he felt it.
The cold he was flowing to the hands are now being pushed back but with intense heat instead and he could feel it going from his hands to his arms, through his shoulders and to his body. He tried to struggle but he couldn't, the knee dug in his back as the hand held him further down and back. The heat kept coming, making him pant and sweat but it just kept flowing through his entire body. He tried to flow his own back, pushing with all his might, pushing his chakra as hard as he can but it kept dissolving because of the heat!
Too much. It was Too Much!
"Zabuza-san!" he screamed but Roxanne chuckled at his weak attempt at getting help.
"Zabuza knows better than to interfere with my play time" At those words, Haku slightly moved his head to look to the tall man, pleading with his eyes to help but Zabuza only blinked and slowly shook his head.
"I've told you: she knows what she's capable of. You should of backed off when you had the chance and now you will learn your lesson"
Haku whimpered.
The heat kept coming, filling his entire body down to his core, consuming every inch until he couldn't take it anymore and collapse.
"Consumed by the fiery depth within, come forth anew, for like the phoenix: you are reborn!"
As his hand were let go and the knee in his back let off, a pair of arms wrapped around his body and the last word he heard before darkness took him: "You are a real boy now"
Haku's limp form was picked up by the clone, being handled carefully as if he's precious cargo as one helped with adjusting Haku onto the back of one clone for easy transport and once satisfied with it, the clone waited for further instructions.
Roxanne nodded her head then walked around the couch to stand in front of Zabuza. They stared at each other as Zabuza bend down and picked up Roxanne, who wrapped her legs around his torso and her arms around his neck, and they connected their foreheads together, closing their eyes. They both breath in the other, committing to memory the difference from then and now.
"I've missed you"
"Not as much as I missed you"
Bringing his face closer, Roxanne nuzzled his cheek and neck, adding her scent to mix in with his as Zabuza purred in pleasure, tightening his arms. He shivered a bit when her hand ran through his hair and gave a hiss when she tugged his head back to expose his neck to her nose. Roxanne purred as she nipped his neck for a second then nuzzled into it.
"Oh, yeah. Definitely missed you" They both chuckled. "So, what's going to happen now?" Zabuza asked as he looked around the floor to see that the clones have shoved all the lifeless bodies to the middle of the room, piling them up on top of each other.
"Now we make our way down and out of this building" Roxanne said as she laid her head down on his shoulders, still running her hand through his hair.
"Alright" Zabuza waved a hand for one of the clones "You, take my sword" the clone went to the side of the couch and lifted Zabuza's sword with ease and shouldered it.
"You have been training hard" He chuckled then made his way to the stairs, the two clones following behind. "I remembered last time it took two of you to carry my sword" he chuckled.
As he walked down, Roxanne lifted her head to watch as they made their way down to see that more of her clones were piling the bodies in the middle on the next floor. The scene repeated itself all the way down to the main floor and when they did reach the final floor, they saw 4 clones come up to them, two were carrying a large red canister and the other two were carrying sacks.
"Boss, we're done. Everyone else popped out and the money bag is evenly distributed"
"Money bag?" Zabuza asked as he looked to the sacks.
"Jewelry and money. One for you for your troubles and one for me for my services"
"And the canisters?"
"Gas. We're going to burn this tower to the ground. Start from the top and light her up" Two clones smiled and disappeared. Zabuza shrugged and made his way out the double doors, followed by the other four clones. When he reached a distance from the tower, he disappeared and reappeared at a nearby cliff side, sitting himself down on the edge as Roxanne made herself comfortable on his lap. The clone that held Haku laid the boy down up against a tree behind them and sat down, adjusting Haku so his head laid on her shoulders. The clone that held Zabuza's sword embedded the sword into the ground and sat in front of it to lean back. The last two clones dropped the sack and sat next to it.
Minutes ticked by as they waited. Soon they saw a spark ignite from the many windows and the fire spread quickly to all floors.
Roxanne laughed. Zabuza smiled as he held his girl close to him and rubbed her back, setting his head on her hair and watched as the tower engulfed in flames.
A distance away, eyes widen at the sight from their perch on the roof. The person stood and watched, making sure what he saw is what he saw. Running to the edge of the roof, Naruto jumped down to the window sill and saw Kakashi already by the window, sitting and looking to the flames to the distance.
"Kakashi-sensei, do you think he did it? Do you think Zabuza-san did that?" Naruto asked as he pointed out the window. Naruto stirred from his place by Sasuke and sat up, rubbing the sleep from his eyes and looked up.
"What's going on?" he asked and Sasuke sat up also, squinting to the window. "Why does it look red outside?"
"Gato's tower is burning" is all Kakashi said.
"What!?" both boys exclaimed, sleep long forgotten.
Sakura shot up from her place on the floor by the sudden shout and looked around for the danger. Upon seeing nothing, she turned to see Kakashi's silhouette by the window surrounding by a red glow.
"Gato's tower is burning" Kakashi repeated again. The Genins gasped and scrambled to get up off the floor and ran to the window to see for themselves that yes, in the same direction of where Gato's tower stood is now burning in flames. Naruto's clone popped out as Naruto stood next to Kakashi, leaning into him and an arm wrapped itself around the blonde's shoulder, holding him close.
"Did he do it so we wouldn't have to fight?" Naruto asked his sensei. Both Sasuke and Sakura looked to their sensei but he remained quiet as they all watched the flames.
OOOOO
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