Hey, how's everyone doing?
Welcome back to I will become a ghost. A story, that after 11 years is slowly crawling its way to the finish line.
We're not there yet though! So let's get this show on the road!
Big shoutout to:
. 2.0, Gamesdean1, partridgejonathan1, BlackDog1988, RedKitsune9, .paprika, Black Wind V2, Nelsotan, TheDangerousDino, D18vin, Narutoclover, Heartlessromantic1, 3mark3o, Son goku738, Airam23, Kage Alucard
Reviews:
Nithu velu: Thank you for your continued support and kind words! I hope this chapter will be to your liking!
Dom. Jr: I'm not planning on giving Naruto any crazy mind boggling powerups. It defeats the point of the entire story. They are supposed to struggle. Kenpachi is supposed to be stronger. The problem lays that Kenpachi knows that the only way they are a threat to him, Is by working as a team, and he'll continuously try and keep them separated.
Enjoy the chapter!
Stalker1: Only building it up even more hehe! Thanks for reviewing. I greatly appreciate it!
KingYamYam: Hey! Glad to have you back here! We're slowly edging closer to the end. We'll have to be patient a little while longer! I hope the remodeled chapters were okay!
Gamesdean1: One of the other reviewers above asked something similar. Kenpachi is definitely supposed to be as strong as he is. This isn't a story about how Naruto is the strongest or will become the strongest. This is a story about their struggle against overwhelming odds, about losing over and over again, yet remaining steadfast. Our boy, Naruto won't get any crazy over the top powerup that will suddenly put him at Kenpachi's level. He's going to have to fight him the old fashion way. Sheer willpower.
Thank you all for supporting the story! It keeps me motivated while I unfortunately continue to struggle with finding proper time and right mindset to write the story ;p
Enjoy!
The trio darted from left to right, dodging the attacks Kenpachi was throwing at them, before countering with their own. Jutsu clashed with Kenpachi's attacks before canceling each other out or bouncing off and crashing into buildings.
Naruto broke off from his teammates and dashed straight forward, his blade aimed to pierce Kenpachi's heart, but to no avail. Kenpachi bashed him into the ground and went on the offensive himself, dashing towards Itachi who was weaving through hand signs.
Kisame intercepted the charge and matched Kenpachi blow for blow. In terms of pure strength, he came closest to the Reaver.
Kenpachi quickly took the upper hand and blasted 'Hoshigake' away, giving him a free path to Itachi.
A fire attack that clearly resembled a dragon, charged forward and hit Kenpachi head on.
With an inhuman roar, he pushed the attack upward and sent it into the dark sky. He replied with a beam of red chakra that struck Itachi and sent him flying off into the village.
'Orodochi' slammed his shoulder into Kenpachi and continued the clash, his blade twirling in his hand before attempting to cut him open.
Kenpachi easily regained his composure and reached for the incoming blade with his claw. Blocking it. Using the weapon, he pulled Naruto close and grabbed him by the throat. He glared at the blonde and proceeded to smack him into the ground repeatedly.
Kisame rejoined the fight and managed to free Naruto from Kenpachi's grasp. Together the two attacked the Reaver, completely in sync with one another. Their training was paying off.
While the Reaver blocked or dodged any attack that was aimed at him, he was being pushed back. slamming his foot onto the ground, a sphere of demonic chakra shot from the ground and nearly pierced the two, forcing them to back off.
Both Naruto and Kisame were out of breath and took this moment to try and regain their composure. "What now?" The Akatsuki agent softly asked.
"I have no idea. I was afraid that even with your help we wouldn't be able to take him out."
Kisame nodded. "It won't be long until he takes one of us out. If that happens, this fight is over."
What Kisame said was true. The reason why they were able to keep fighting was because they kept overlapping. Whenever one was sent flying, or taken out of the fight, another took over. Constantly keeping up the pressure.
This gave one of them a moment of reprieve, to gain his bearing once more. Initially they wanted to attack together as a team, but Kenpachi made it clear, he was having none of it. Constantly keeping one of them away. Once they realized that, they used it to their advantage.
"You're right. Not that it matters. We stop him here or die trying."
Kisame grinned, baring his sharp teeth. "Let's do this then!"
The two charged forward while Itachi inched closer and closer, trying to take the Reaver by surprise.
The clash resumed once more.
Konohamaru watched with dread as he and his teammates neared the elevator. He had feared going against the Reavers ever since seeing the footage of Suna.
A multitude of explosions shook the village. The fighters looked over their shoulders as smoke clouds rose from behind the buildings.
"Can you imagine going up against that guy?" A young woman asked, trying to find any form of movement.
"I heard he single handedly caused the destruction of Suna's reinforced wall. He went toe to toe with a dozen of kage level shinobi…and walked out unscathed."
"Who is fighting against him now?" Konohamaru asked, turning to witness distant figures dashing over rooftops, clashing against each other.
"It's Naruto." A tired Sasuke said, carrying a wounded Asuma to the assembly area.
Konohamaru's eyes widened. His head whipped back to the fight. Only now did he recognize the distinct blonde hair. "Naruto?"
"Next time you plan on dragging his name through the dirt, do some background research." Micheru spoke as she gently put Kotetsu down. She barely knew the man but from what she heard he had been a good fighter and comrade.
"I've got other orders." Now he understood. Naruto had been assigned to fighting Kenpachi. He stared at the fighters in the distance. Konohamaru knew that Naruto had fought the man before but had suspected he wouldn't go against him again.
"How is it going up there?" Ino asked as she knelt beside her former sensei, checking his wounds.
"The Reavers are starting to pour their entire might against us. We're holding on for now, but barely."
"Is the gate still holding?" Konohamaru asked.
Sasuke glanced towards its general direction. "For now. But from what I heard from Kakashi; they are increasing the pressure."
Two green blurs could be seen from the top wall, dashing from tower to tower, destroying a dozen of them in a moment's notice.
Konohamaru recognized the blurs as Gai and Lee. The two taijutsu experts. Undoubtedly, they had opened their inner gates.
The sound of the nearby elevator drew their attention. Off stepped wounded or tired shinobi. A few immediately rushed over and helped guide them towards the assembly area, easing them into a seat and offering them some water.
Konohamaru recognized his old classmate, Hibaru and ran over. "Hey Hibaru!"
She looked at him with a dull expression, but never slowed her pace. A gash went down the side of her face, blood dribbling down onto her chunin vest.
Moegi and Udon joined his side. "How did it go? Where are Kano and Itoh?"
her face briefly contorted into one of grief, before it turned back into passiveness. "Kano is dead, Itoh was last seen at Sector 4."
They looked at her with sympathy. "We're so sorry, Hibaru."
She brushed past them and into one of the nearby buildings, designated as a resting space. Carefully guarded by an anbu squad.
"Did you see the look on her face?" Udon asked, his hands fidgeting.
Moegi wiped the tears from her face. "I can't believe Kano is dead…I remember as if it was yesterday that we played together in the academy."
Moegi and Kano had been close until their genin exams. There they gradually grew apart, to no fault of their own.
"I thought they kept teams together. Why is Itoh fighting in a different area?" Udon scratched his chin, trying to figure out an answer.
"That's because sector 4 was overrun. It had to be retaken. They probably asked for volunteers." Sasuke answered. He had been listening in from the back.
Naruto came flying out the smoke, his feet skidding over the ground. His guard was up, and his arms were scorched. If he hadn't blocked the last attack, he would've been dead.
Itachi came crashing in next to him. His robe was heavily damaged. The entire upper left part, including the sleeve had been ripped off, revealing the mesh shirt underneath. His arm was blackened and hung limply to his side.
"Are you okay?"
Wincing, Itachi barely gave a nod. He didn't trust his voice it seemed.
"Ok-" Naruto jerked his head to the right, barely dodging the metal steel pipe that Kenpachi had thrown as a spear. It left a thin cut on his cheek.
He sprinted forward in retaliation, aiming his claw at the ground in front. Kenpachi charged forward as well. Letting out a burst of chakra, Naruto sent himself up to the sky and came down just as fast, his hands clasped together, jackhammering Kenpachi into the ground.
"Suiton: Suidan no jutsu!" A powerful torrent of water slammed into the ground, right where Kenpachi was.
Landing on the ground, Naruto slammed his foot onto the ground. "Doton: Chidōkaku!" The ground shot into the air, sending the Reaver into the sky. "Que, now!"
Que who had been standing by, came swooping in and engulfed Kenpachi in a ball of flame that sent him flying into the forest far, far away.
The blonde turned to see Kisame standing on top of one of the nearby buildings. Glancing around he noticed they were at the center square again, near the command center.
~Naruto, update. What is your status? ~ Mayu's voice rang through his earplug.
His hand, still painful from the earlier attack reached for his mic and switched it on. "Stand-by."
Naruto looked briefly at Itachi. "We bought ourselves a bit of time. Try and get patched up."
"It was a good idea to study Doton jutsu, brat." Kisame hopped down on the ground.
Naruto nodded and headed toward the command building. "Try and help Itachi."
While he was marching over, he glanced at the shinobi activity once more taking place at the center square. They had taken cover the moment their fight was steering into their direction.
Konoha had suffered damage because of their fight, but it was inevitable. As long as casualties would be limited, structural damage was not a problem.
Looking down at his outfit he noticed that wear and tear was clearly starting to show. His left sleeve was ripped away, leaving his clawed arm exposed. His outer jacket, despite some damage was still looking fine.
Anbu gave him a nod as he approached the command center. He ignored them and pushed the flaps aside, stepping inside.
Looking to the entrance, she saw her fellow hunter and friend walking in, limping slightly. Blood seeped from underneath the short sleeve of his outer garment and trailed down his arm. He had a large cut above his eyebrow as well and she could clearly make out scorch marks across both his arms.
Mayu quickly walked over. "How are you guys holding up?" She waved with her hands, and someone quickly handed her a canteen. Removing the cap, she gave it to the blonde who used it to rinse his mouth of blood.
"We are still standing. Itachi has taken a heavy hit. When Kenpachi comes back, he will focus on Itachi first. Once Itachi is dead, it will be a matter of time before he picks off me and then Kisame."
Mayu was startled by the casualness Naruto spoke. It was clear that Itachi was a close friend of his, and to have him talk like that, made her feel uneasy.
"Is there anything we can do?"
"Have the second squad standing by," His voice rumbled. "How is the situation at the wall?"
Glancing down to his claw for a second. "Holding for now, but it's becoming increasingly difficult."
"Has Konan been deployed?"
Mayu shook her head. "Not yet. We are considering it though."
Konan's ability to create exploding tags by the thousands would help them immensely. She could take out entire swathes of Reavers. But by doing so, they would reveal their last surprise. After that, there wouldn't be any more trump cards.
"Why don't you take a seat, Ghost. You don't look well." She placed her hand on one of the wounds and her hands glowed green, trying her best to patch him up as best he could.
His leg was twitching, and his wounds kept bleeding profusely. "He'll be back any second. I need to head back out. Give the order for 2nd squad to prepare for battle with Kenpachi."
With that he turned back and walked out, pausing at the door as he nearly lost his balance. Taking a deep breath, he pushed on.
Mayu and the others were watching him leave with apprehension before turning to Shikamaru, who had been watching the conversation in silence. "Contact Rome's squad. Tell them to meet us here for debriefing."
Shikamaru nodded at her and went to work.
Mayu felt immense grief bubbling underneath the surface and her heart ached for Micheru especially. How Naruto was describing it, he was about to die. It would utterly break her daughter.
Rome gave a nod to the fighters atop the wall and went down. He had been taking over for Micheru, who had been taking care of the wounded, catching a slight break. Pulling on the lever, the elevator plummeted to ground level.
Seconds later he stepped off and went to the assembly point. He had just been called in by Mayu to be debriefed. Gritting his teeth, he tried to push down the anger that threatened to boil over. He knew what she meant with the order. 1st squad wasn't going to last much longer, and they needed to prepare.
"Rome? What are you doing down here? You, okay?" Micheru asked as she saw him approaching. She had been trying to clear the blood off her hands.
"I'm okay Micheru. Mayu asked me to meet for a debriefing."
The petite blonde furrowed her eyebrows in confusion "Why?"
Micheru hadn't been privy to the details of the Tokubetsu squads as Konoha had been describing them as. All she knew was that Naruto's squad was assigned to Kenpachi.
He hesitated but decided to be truthful regardless. "I'm assigned as the secondary squad to engage Kenpachi, in case the first fails."
She stared at him as realization struck and fear was started to appear on her face. "Is Naruto dead?"
"I don't know, Micheru. All I know is that I'm ordered to head to command."
She climbed to her feet. "I'm tagging along."
"Where are you going, Micheru?" Sakura asked as she came walking out of the supply hub.
Rome ignored the kunoichi and placed a hand on Micheru's shoulder. "You need to stay here. Your job is to make sure the wall holds."
"But…"
"I know you care for Ghost. But we can't let emotion take control. You are needed here."
She slumped her shoulders, her head tilted low. "Please let me know, okay?"
He smiled, trying to reassure her. "Of course." With one last nod he turned and headed for the headquarters.
"I'm sure Naruto will be okay." Sakura said as she walked over.
Micheru looked towards the eastern part of the village where the clashes could be heard. "I doubt it…"
A painful cry drew Sakura back to the wounded, giving Micheru a sympathetic pat on her shoulder as she left.
Breathing in deeply, with her eyes closed, she pushed aside her fears and instead focused back on the task at hand.
"Where can I help, Sakura?"
Before she could respond, a massive explosion could be heard, and a large building collapsed. Exactly where they knew Kenpachi was.
Sakura looked at it with dread before waving Micheru over, and together they went to work.
Itachi covered his face, trying to block the incoming wave of smoke that erupted from the collapsing building. He stared at the destroyed building in shock. His teammate and close friend, Naruto had been sent crashing into it by their foe Kenpachi.
Kenpachi hadn't been amused by their previous attack and had charged back in with a vengeance. First, he had taken Kisame out of the fight and then quickly came barreling towards the blonde. Slamming into Naruto with neck break speed.
Itachi turned his back to the ruins and lowered himself into an offensive stance. His eyes were ablaze with his advanced gekkei kenkai, the mangekyō Sharingan.
As Itachi went blow for blow with the Reaver he knew it would be futile. His nimble and agile movement kept him out of Kenpachi's reach, but all his foe had to do was get one good hit in.
Dodging underneath the stretched limb, he slammed his palm into Kenpachi's chin, snapping his head up. Quickly twirling he continued with a kick, creating some distance between each other.
In one fluid move, his Susano form encased him, a fiery blade in his hand. He swung it down, hitting Kenpachi with the full might of his ultimate ability.
The Reaver came crawling out of the crater and looked up at the large glowing manifestation. "Interesting."
The massive blade swung down once more, but this time Kenpachi was prepared and held out his claw. It glowed bright red in preparation before grabbing the incoming attack, stopping it dead in its tracks.
With his free hand he released a thin red beam, that pierced both the Uchiha's protective encasing, along with his shoulder, sending him flying out the back.
He landed painfully on his back; the impact caused Itachi to cough up a mouthful of blood. Slowly he got back to his feet.
"Uchiha. Why do you persist?"
Itachi looked down at his burnt arm. The tincture had done little except ease the pain. All he could do, was twitch his fingers every so often. "Because it's the right thing to do."
Kenpachi stared for a moment longer before disappearing in flashstep.
Itachi let the man appear in front of him and at the last second, he created spikes made out of black flames of Amaterasu.
The Reaver came to an abrupt halt and dashed to the side, barely able to dodge the attack.
"Nice try." Kisame's voice spoke.
Kenpachi couldn't respond in time and got hit by samehada, hurtling him into the academy building.
Kisame lowered his blade, letting it rest on the ground. He too had been battered by Kenpachi. He was breathing heavily, and blood poured from various wounds. "You, okay?"
"No." Was Itachi's sole response. His voice was laced in exhaustion and pain.
"Where's the br-," he stopped midway before trying again, this time with more concern. "Where's Naruto?"
"Is he dead?"
"I don't know."
Short sentences and seemingly without emotion, but done with purpose. The three knew that letting their emotion run during a fight could ruin everything.
The three had formed an unusual friendship over the years. One that had been forged through hardships, but one that wasn't without its difficulties, especially between Naruto and Kisame.
Regardless of the difficulties they had, the bond had only grown stronger over time.
Kisame stared at the building for a moment longer before lifting the blade up and letting it rest on his shoulder. "Let's assume he is."
A wave of red chakra erupted from Kenpachi's location and came barreling towards them. With a shout, Kisame quickly formed a flurry of hand signs. "Suiton: Suijinheki!" A wall of water emerged in front of them and quickly rose to protect them.
The red wave crashed into it, and for a moment it was at a stalemate. "Itachi, go for the counter!"
Itachi jumped up and threw a series of kunai and shuriken towards their foe.
Kenpachi was having none of it and canceled the attack out with a quick burst of chakra.
"I can't hold it for much longer!" Kisame roared over the sound of the two attacks clashing against one another.
Itachi landed and looked about. Behind them was the main road. A major trafficking point for supplies, reinforcements and transporting wounded. The attack would undoubtedly cause major damage.
"Hang on!" Itachi darted around the attack and charged Kenpachi head on.
"Unexpected."
Itachi ignored him, his hands in a seal. Two clones appeared his side and the clones both performed a jutsu
"Katon: Gōkakyū no Jutsu!" Both flew to the sides of Kenpachi, initially amused by the strange attack.
The real Itachi dashed forward in blinding speed and aimed a kick at Kenpachi's face, who blocked it. Using the momentum, Itachi twirled in midair and used his other leg for another strike. Kenpachi's head snapped back, his claw reaching for the Uchiha.
Itachi, still in flight used his legs to kick off against the Reaver, using the momentum to do a rotating flip. While rapidly approaching the ground, his hand grabbed Kenpachi by the shoulder and threw him over his shoulder the moment his feet touched the ground.
While Kenpachi lay in a crater, A kunai appeared in Itachi's hand and struck his foe in the shoulder, initially aimed for the Reaver's most vital organ. A small jerk saved Kenpachi at the last moment.
The large wave of chakra dissipated and a new smaller one formed in front of him, blasting Itachi in the sky.
Kenpachi slowly got to his feet, his hand reaching for the kunai that was still embedded in his shoulder. He pulled it out with a grimace before letting it drop to the ground with a clang. He looked over his shoulder to where the fireball had impacted. "Using your 'jutsu' to keep me firmly in place. Interesting tactic, yet a costly one."
Itachi landed on one of the nearby roofs, using his hand as support. "You alright, Kisame?"
Panting, Kisame nodded. It had taken a lot of effort to keep the attack at bay.
"Are you though?" Kenpachi said as he appeared in front of the blue-skinned man. His claw was firmly wrapped around his throat. He squeezed tight before throwing him onto the ground. He whipped up Kisame's leg with his own feet before grabbing it and started twirling around to gain momentum.
Itachi came running over but was far too late. Kenpachi threw his opponent towards the same building he had been hammered into earlier. The academy groaned but remained standing.
"And then there was one."
Itachi locked eyes with Kenpachi. A drop of sweat made its way down his face. "So, it seems."
Ten minutes later.
Naruto slowly managed to push past the collapsed entryway of the building he was laying in, and onto the streets. He shook his head as he tried to clear his sight. Blood dripped onto the ground.
He limped forward. To his right he saw Itachi ducking underneath the swings of Kenpachi, while Kisame was nowhere to be seen. Whether he was dead, he didn't know. He reached a broken wall and sat down on it.
What he did know was that Itachi wouldn't last much longer. He looked down at his claw. Chakra-wise he still had a bit left, but his body was physically exhausted. He reached for his mic and clicked it on. "Mayu."
Naruto? Give us an update. ~
He straightened his back. He reached for his katana and held it in a reverse grip. "Get the second squad ready."
~What's going on? Give us an update! ~
Itachi got jackhammered into the ground and didn't get back up. Kenpachi turned and locked eyes with Naruto.
"We're fighting in the north-eastern part of the village, near academy. Kisame is down. Itachi is down. I'm about to go down."
~ Just hang in there, Ghost! ~
Kenpachi made his way over to the blonde, until they stood a mere few feet apart. The massive, towering figure hovering over Naruto. He had cuts and bruises and was panting heavily. "Your friends are incredible fighters."
"I'm sure they appreciate that."
"Sarcasm doesn't suit you." Kenpachi rumbled.
The image of Jiraiya floated in front of the blonde's eyes. Gritting his teeth, he glared at the Reaver with his lone glowing eye. "There will be one who will end you."
"They all say that."
They both stared at each other for a moment before Kenpachi's claw shot up to the sky and grabbed the incoming attack. It was one of Naruto's clones.
"Good try."
Naruto tilted his head. "Wasn't done yet."
The kage bunshin exploded, engulfing the Reaver, while the real Naruto rolled backwards and hid behind the broken wall.
A large red wave blasted the smoke away, and sent the real Naruto hurling towards the wall, crashing into it, hard.
Despite his exhaustion…despite the pain he was feeling, he still tried to get up. He knew it wouldn't be enough to kill the man, but any damage he could inflict would help the second squad. Unfortunately, he wasn't successful.
Kenpachi stepped over the rubble and grabbed Naruto by his leg, dragging him back into the open. The Reaver had a blood pouring out of an open wound on his shoulder, as well as burn marks over his face. Despite this, he threw Naruto onto the ground with immense strength.
Kenpachi looked around and saw that in the immediate area there weren't any shinobi around. "You've done a remarkable job at keeping me away from any critical areas."
Naruto tried to push himself back up, but a massive deep gash on his lower bicep caused him to buckle and drop back down. It had cut through his muscles.
Kenpachi reached for the katana and pulled it out of Naruto's hand, nearly breaking his arm in the process. The Reaver looked at the blade for a moment before tossing it away. Despite this, Naruto still tried to get up.
He crouched next to the blonde, his hand reaching for Naruto's hair, gripping it painfully tight and pulled his head back. "You just don't know when to give up, do you?"
"Because that's what i-it means to be shinobi."
Kenpachi let out a sneer. "Shinobi. The very definition of ruin and destruction." He slammed the hunter's face into the ground, blood pouring onto the cracked bricks of the road.
He stood back up, his hand still holding onto the bloody head of the barely conscious Naruto. He looked around, noting a few onlooking Anbu, who were tasked with maintaining a perimeter. "Everyone looks to you, to take me out. Killing me would undoubtedly help your cause, but my brethren wouldn't fail, He pulled him to look him into his eye. "But I think ending you, in front of everyone would send a similar message, wouldn't it?"
Blood dribbling out his mouth, Naruto still managed to sneer. "P-p-people despise me. It would do you little good."
Kenpachi tilted his head. "Maybe you as person. But what you, as a Hunter represents…It bolsters morale. They all tend to fight harder whenever they are accompanied by inspiring individuals. Hunters…Akatsuki…S ranked fighters."
"Y-Y-You've done your research."
"Indeed."
Kenpachi started walking down the main street. Dragging the limp, yet conscious body of Naruto behind him.
"Your friends will watch as I end you. It will break them before sending my army through. Slaughtering every last one of you."
The demonic chakra poured from Naruto's claw, reverting it back to his human hand. "Y-y-you think t-t-too highly of m-me. I-I-I have no f-friends…"
"Lies. I've seen how you care for your companions. How you jump to the girl's defense. Rest assured. She'll die."
As they neared the wall, Shinobi got alerted to their presence and were watching with apprehension. They had all been giving strict orders to not engage, and steer clear of Kenpachi.
~Naruto, are you alright? ~
His hand twitched but couldn't find the energy to lift it. After a few more moments, they neared one of assembly areas.
"Naruto!" Ino screamed and started sprinting towards him but came to a quickly as overwhelming dread took hold of her body.
"Wretched creatures. You have tried to stop me. You have failed. I will give you one last offer to surrender and let my armies march through." He lifted Naruto up and held him up in the air in front of him, his arms hung limply to his sides, his head dipped forward.
Ino looked at the body of Naruto fearfully. She couldn't make out whether or not he was still alive, but everything pointed to the latter.
"You-you monster!" Ino screamed as she tried to force herself to move.
"Ino you have to stop! You know Kenpachi will kill you instantly! We have to wait for the backup squad!" Shikamaru hissed at her, he too was frozen on the spot.
Hinata came running out the building and came to an abrupt halt when she saw Kenpachi. She gasped when she recognized who he was holding. "Oh my god…Naruto!" She took a step forward. Her eyes locking on Kenpachi. But like Ino a sense of overwhelming fear struck her. Freezing her in her spot.
"Ghost fought admirably. But he lost. Look to him as an example for what you are about to fa-"
Kisame's feet connected with the side of Kenpachi's head and sent him crashing into the side of a building.
Ino looked at the Akatsuki member with wide eyes. His entire appearance had changed. Gone was his robe. He now clearly resembled a shark. He had merged with his blade, his ultimate trump card.
Kisame crouched next to the blonde and turned him on his back. "Brat. I need you. I can't do this on my own." He reached for his pocket and grabbed the flask. Pouring the last bit of the tincture into Naruto's bloody mouth.
Coughing and choking he turned to his side, his eyes shut tight, trying to block out the pain. "I-I t-thought y-you were dead."
Kisame stood back up and looked towards the ruined building Kenpachi was residing in. "Not yet."
"Itachi?"
"I don't know."
With a lot of effort, he managed to at the least, sit up.
Ino and Hinata came running over and started looking over Naruto's wounds. She gingerly placed her hand on the side of his head. "Kisame-san. He can't fight anymore. the potion you gave him isn't meant for-for this."
Kisame looked at the blonde. His face was a mix of cuts, bruises and blood. His outfit was in tatters, and his outer robe had been discarded. Revealing the dark undershirt. "I can't fight him alone, Naruto."
Naruto slowly opened his eye and took in the features of his teammate. He looked beyond exhausted. Numerous cuts covered his body and blood was forming underneath his feet. Regardless, he stood tall, or as tall as he could in any case.
"H-help me up, I-Ino"
"You can't be serious!" Ino exclaimed, looking to Shikamaru for support.
Shikamaru stood in front of the blonde. "Naruto…You can't continue like this."
His shaking hand reached for his pouch and stuffed a few chakra pills in his mouth. A burst of energy filled his chest and Naruto straightened his back, if only slightly. "Shikamaru, t-tell them to hurry up with R-Rome's s-squad."
Shikamaru gave a nod. "Alright. Ino, help him up."
Ino and Hinata looked at him with shock. Still, they listened and pulled him up. He swayed on his feet before he managed to find his balance as more energy coursed through his body, courtesy of the chakra pills.
Naruto briefly looked at Ino and Hinata before he turned his gaze to Kisame. "I'm r-ready."
Together the two charged towards Kenpachi who came walking out of the ruined building. Leaving their allies watching as they continued their clash against their monstrous foe.
Some short cut sections, i apologize for that!
Until next time!