Who Are You Really

by dopeboyb

"Who are you really? Are you my friend, enemy or are we something else Sasuke?" Naruto asked his eyes staring into mines. I wanted to lie to him, I wanted to tell him he is just a friend, no he is just an obstacle in my way.. Fem Sauske x Naruto

9. Chapter 9

Who Are You Really
Chapter 9

"One minute on the dot. Impressive—it only took you all a week & a half."

Kakashi said, sitting on a railing of the large shipping vessel that he, Sasuke, and Naruto managed to steal. After taking out the dock guards, slipping onto the ship was easy, obviously, no shinobi were present, so taking out the rough bandit guards was easy for them.

Kakashi hoped the ship arriving with reinforcements, and other probably illegal cargo, would be as easy to seize, but it's best to prepare for the worst.

Sasuke grumbled to herself. Kakashi's idea of avoiding detection from both Shinobi and Bandits was to minimize the chances of getting caught approaching the boat, which would be easier if it was docked. Of course, their sensei had to choose the most difficult type of approach, when the ship was not docked and in the middle of the channel in the docks. Kakashi's idea was to approach the ship as it prepared for departure with the fleeing Gato and his few guards. A lot of the crew would be busy trying to prepare for the journey, meaning that they'd still be on the ship, but out of their rooms and moving about the vessel.

Also, his method of approach was a pain. Team 7 and Team 8 had to hold their breaths, crossing at least 500 meters of water underwater before scaling and boarding the ship. The ship has propellers, wave wash, and not to mention underwater currents they have to navigate before reaching the ship, all under one minute, because as soon as they used chakra in their approach, they were under the possible detection abilities of a sensor shinobi. Approaching the boat by water running across led to the possibility of being spotted, and although Kurenai could cast a genjutsu over a vast area making that approach easier, it significantly lowers her battle ability. Waiting for the ship to dock was the second-best option; the crew may relax, and be less active, but the guards of the crew would be expecting an attack then, and that also provided their target with the best opportunity to escape. Once Gato was already on board and departing was the best time to get him, which Kakashi explained. Team 8 would focus on the reinforcements, brought to stop Tazuna from completing his bridge, as soon as the ship begins to leave, that left the ship with fewer defenders, assuming most of the crew who were fighters were going to off-board at port. Team 7 would attack the ship, later joined by Team 8, seizing the unsuspecting fleeing Gato as he embarked.

The plan strictly relied on Team 8, and specifically the combination of Shino's bugs, Kurenai's genjutsu, then Kiba and Hinata's taijutsu to quickly defeat the mercenaries before helping Team 7 defeat the stronger guards likely remaining with Gato, as well as searching for him on the massive ship. Shino mentioned that if they managed to spot Gato before he boarded, they could also plant a bug, making it easier to find Gato when Team 8 joined them, but no one was sure if they'd even manage to spot Gato.

Overall, three days prior to the ship's supposed arrival, they were able to conduct their individual parts of the overall plan rather quickly; both Teams genin were surprised at the amount of not only information but also meticulous planning Kakashi and Kurenai had been doing this whole time. Originally, Sasuke thought this mission would be nothing more than an escort mission, a simple there and back type of thing, but the level of dedication for this mission was something she'd expect for protecting someone like the Daimyo, the constant, rotating guards; the training, the intel gathering of what's going on in the village, at local pubs, and restaurants, markets.

It was all just surprising, and it thrilled her; her first mission as a shinobi was an S-ranked escort/ HVT (High Value Target) capture/kill mission.

I bet Itachi didn't even experience this!

"Kakashi! Kakashi sensei!" Kiba was running on the water towards Team 7. From the top of the shipping vessel, Sasuke could see Kiba waving frantically at them as he ran.

Kakashi got up off the railing, jumping off the shipping vessel, followed by Sasuke and the rest of Team 7.

"What is it, Kiba?" Kakashi asked, hands in pockets, leaning back in his usual cool, relaxed, lazy stance.

"The ship! It's here. A villager spotted it approaching the docks with the same serial numbers Gato's ship is supposed to have."

Kakashi's eyebrow raised at this.

"So, they came earlier, huh... This likely means one of two things: the men sent are stronger, being able to organize quickly and send Gato reinforcements, or weaker because they came so quickly."

Naruto was looking at Kakashi as if he were speaking gibberish, while Sasuke and Sakura were pondering which they believed to be more reasonable.

"Either way, it looks like it's time. I'm glad you all have been training with your battle-ready kits, and since you're already wet, it shouldn't be much of an issue. Let's go!" Kakashi said, leading the four genin towards the village ports.

"Have you been able to see a man looking like he's being escorted?" Kurenai asked Hinata. They were in a building near the ports, the last road before reaching the ports. Anyone coming or going from the port would take this road.

Hinata had her Byakugan active. From their position, she could see through the building onto the center of the T-shaped road. Anyone who took a right towards the ports or getting close to the main road from the ports would be in sight of her Byakugan.

"No, sensei." Hinata said, focusing her breathing. They had assumed their spotting position as soon as word reached Tazuna's house about the ship being spotted off the coast.

Kiba and Team 7 should be here any minute.

Kurenai turned to her other student, Shino. Shino had a consistent stream of insects crawling from under his sleeves in an organized line out their building via a window in their room. As soon as Team 8 heard that their target was going to be reaching the docks soon, Team 8 immediately went into action. Kurenai had Kiba go and tell Team 7, who were out training for the mission, while Shino, her, and Hinata went to a building close to the docks where they could wait and gain some information.

Shino started releasing his insects as Kurenai and Team 8 approached their building. Shino first sent his insects capable of flight ahead of them to board the ship. Shino was now giving Kurenai a pretty accurate assessment of the targets, personnel, weapons, possible level of training, as well as a detailed layout of the ship. All this information they were able to get because of his Aburame clan jutsu and their training with bugs. Shino was the best example outside maybe Shikamaru for what a boy from a noble clan of Konoha could do. His assistance may not always be flashy but needed none the less.

"Kurenai-sensei, there are at least 100 bandit-level trained sailors/crew, 5 shinobi trained individuals who I estimate are chunin to genin level, and one person at least jonin level. I say this because he has killed two of my insects, and I do not want to risk alarming him by sending a third. He can be found at the ship's command and control center, currently" Shino said as he sat cross-legged on the floor, holding a hand sign that allowed him a better read on his individual insects on the ship and those approaching the ship.

Kurenai thought about this. Based on the numbers, it's highly likely that some of the 100 crew members were meant to be the reinforcements to the unit dedicated to stopping Tazuna from completing the bridge.

As Kurenai finished thinking this, the door to their overwatch position swung open, and she was met with the faces of Team 7. Kakashi had his usual bored and uninterested look as he approached her with his hands in his pockets. Sakura was looking nervously at her as she followed behind her sensei. Naruto looked rearing to go, as if at any moment he would take off and start the operation on his own. Lastly was Sasuke, who looked pleasantly pleased. Her usual cold and emotionless exterior somehow didn't feel as cold in that moment.

Sasuke observed as Team 7, plus Kiba, walked into the building designated as their overwatch location and the beginning location for their assault. Team 8 was already doing their part in the operation. Hinata had her trained Byakugan eyes on the road that would lead to the ship in search of Gato, and Shino was sitting near the window, as a steady stream of bugs left his body and headed towards the ship and their crew gathering information.

Sasuke heard Kakashi speaking to Kurenai. "Kurenai, what's the situation?"

Kurenai immediately began briefing Kakashi and the rest of Team 7. "We have established the approximate strength of the crew Gato hired as reinforcements on the shipping vessel. Shino was able to find 100 bandit-level trained sailors/crew, 5 people of at least chunin level, and one person at least jonin level on the boat. Based on the number, I suspect that some of the chunin and most of the crew were meant as the reinforcements for the group attacking the bridge."

Kakashi nodded his head in agreement. "Team 7, do a last-minute gear inspection. Take accountability of your weapons, their conditions. This will be our last opportunity before the assault."

Immediately, Sakura, Naruto, and Sasuke formed a semi-circle, still wet from their training earlier, but pulled out their ninja tools and kit. Naruto pulled out a scroll, which had been protected in his ninja pouch, which was waterproof.

Kurenai instructed Shino to give Team 7 a description of the interior of the ship, which he obliged immediately, giving Team 7 a detailed account of the boat's layout.

Naruto knew all his equipment was there and in good condition, since the beginning of their training for the assault on the ship. Kakashi had made both Team 7 and Team 8 swim in their full assault gear, meaning everything they wanted to use on the mission to assault the ship they had to carry with them when they did their underwater swim or were running around the practice ship.

"I'm assuming you already destroyed the other vessel." Just as Kurenai said this, a loud explosion could be heard from the direction of the practice ship.

"That was it." Kakashi said as he whipped out his book, sitting in a chair.

Sasuke watched as Naruto began to furiously draw a seal on one of the scrolls he had pulled out. "What's that, pipsqueak?" Sasuke asked curiously.

Naruto just looked up at her with a small grin that she found incredibly cute. "It's a very poor replica of the seals the Fourth Hokage used for his Flying Thunder God Technique."

This made everyone's head snap to the blond as if he had said something perverse or offensive. Everyone but Kakashi, who was aware of Naruto's progress with the technique, and Shino, who was too focused on his jutsu to allow this to distract him, had amazed, confused, and disbelieving looks on their faces.

Sasuke asked the question the rest of the room was thinking, "What do you mean?"

Naruto's grin grew wider. "This seal will allow me and anyone in contact with me to return to this scroll. Assuming we stay within 1.5 miles from the scroll; we can all just poof and end up back here with our target. I worked really hard on this, but I can only use it once before the seal gives out and won't be able to be used anymore. I'm still missing something within my seal formula. But I figured if we all needed a quick escape, this would be a good option." Naruto said.

Full of surprises, Naruto Sasuke thought, smirking as she looked down into her shinobi pouch.

Kiba wasn't letting this go as simply as Sasuke was, though. "You're telling us that you have recreated the jutsu that Lord Second made and Lord Fourth mastered? You, the dead last of the Shinobi Academy?" Kiba said in jealous disbelief.

Naruto grumbled under his breath. "You don't have to believe me, Kiba. It's the truth. If we need to use my version of the Flying Thunder God Technique, we can just leave you behind and you can walk back!" Naruto said tauntingly.

Kiba growled at Naruto like a rabid dog.

"Naruto!" Kakashi said warningly.

"Kiba! Enough!" Kurenai said with a steely glare.

Kiba just growled a bit more before going to join Hinata, who had started back at her task of trying to spot Gato as he approached the shipping vessel.

Naruto chuckled softly under his breath as he continued working on the seal.

Sakura sighed softly. "When did you learn the Flying Thunder God Technique, Naruto?"

Naruto, not looking up from his writing, responded, "Well, I still have lots to learn. Like I said, this seal can only be used once before it deteriorates completely, and I can't teleport as far as the Fourth Hokage could. But I have been working on this for a long time, I guess probably two months now, and just learned this much. Sasuke and I did the third jump together to make sure I could transport people like it's supposed to." Naruto said plainly.

Sakura was shocked, looking at Sasuke as though she had committed a crime, but the girl just ignored her.

"So, Sasuke helped you with your experiments. Isn't that kind of thing dangerous?" She asked.

She could imagine that doing something as complex and complicated as space-time ninjutsu was probably dangerous, and there was no telling what could have happened to them had something gone wrong, and she and Kakashi-sensei would be completely clueless as to what happened to them.

Naruto smiled, scratching the back of his neck at this, clearly embarrassed. "Well... Yeah... I tried telling the bastard that! But she didn't listen to me; she never listens—you know her!" Naruto said, giving a soft glare to Sasuke, who still ignored the two of them as she meticulously sharpened her kunai one by one.

Sakura just looked at Naruto, offering an understanding smile before looking at Sasuke. I know Naruto is brash and irresponsible at times, but I'd never expect you to risk your life, Sasuke. How can you avenge your clan if you were to die? You believe in him that much?

The more she thought she understood about their Uchiha teammate, the more questions Sakura was left with.

"He is here!" Hinata said, her eyes still staring through the walls of their overwatch building.

Hinata could see a group of individuals walking on the main road before they turned right down the road which led to the ports. That individual had six other individuals circling him in a protective formation; it was obvious to Hinata that this was their target, Gato.

Kurenai immediately moved to the window and skillfully peeked her head out for a moment to get a look at the suspected person. She saw seven people walking down the road towards the ports. Six men circled one man in the middle; he was of short stature with brown hair, wearing a suit, and wore dark sunglasses. In other words, he perfectly matched the description of Gato that they had, and he was headed to the ports, most likely this man is our target. She quickly left the window just in case one of the men with him was a shinobi.

Kurenai turned to Kakashi, who was looking at her over his book. She gave him a small nod, telling him that she also believes that the person Hinata spotted was indeed their target.

Immediately, Kakashi got up. "Well, Team 7, that's all the time we've got. Let's move out."

"Shino, try to place a bug on Gato. The men around him don't look that trained; you may be able to do it." Kurenai said as Team 7 prepared to leave.

Sasuke stood with the rest of her team, wrapping her shinobi weapons pouch around her leg. Naruto finished up a last-minute detail on his scroll before looking it over a few times, then smirking.

She gave a small smirk of her own, internally happy to see his smile, even if it was a small one.

"Perfect. Hey, Kurenai sensei, please don't step on this scroll when you guys leave. We can use this as a quick escape if things go south! Shadow Clone Jutsu!" Naruto said. They had trained two weeks for this; each member of the two teams knew their roles like the back of their hands at this point.

Naruto would leave a shadow clone with Team 8 as a quick means of communication through Naruto to Team 7.

Kakashi led them out of the overwatch building, immediately running at full speed to the channel that connected the ocean to the docks, with Sasuke and Team 7 hot on his heels. All their training and skills would be tested today.

The group reached the point where they'd proceed to the ship underwater. They hid in a nearby fish market as they waited for the ship to depart. From their location, they could see the ship at the docks, its crew moving around the ship, as some were exiting the vessel with heavy boxes of cargo, probably all filled with drugs & other illegal contrabands.

Kakashi looked at his team to assess their condition. Sakura was having a conversation with one of the local market shop owners, doing a good job of blending in and making it seem as though she was just shopping around. Sasuke had bought a cup of tea and was sitting at a small table on the edge of the market by herself, closest to where they would dive into the water when the ship was leaving port.

Naruto was… Kakashi looked around, searching for Naruto. He eventually found the boy on one knee with food in his hand, offering it to a weak-looking little kid who was obviously orphaned and living on the streets. Kakashi imagined that the boy hadn't eaten anything for days and hadn't been getting much kindness offered to him either, because he was outright terrified of Naruto, who was just trying to offer him some food.

Naruto was supposed to maintain a closer distance to Kakashi just in case of an emergency with Team 8, who had his shadow clone with them for communication.

Sighing, Kakashi whipped out his book, keeping an eye on the vessel Gato was attempting to use in his escape from the Land of Waves.

Kakashi knew roughly 15-30 minutes had passed, and by now Kurenai and Team 8 should be making contact with the reinforcement unit that just arrived; they would capture or kill them, whichever was easier.

About 30 more minutes passed with Team 7 being incognito at the fishing market before Kakashi noticed that the ship was leaving the docks and headed back out to sea.

The ship's pace was that of a normal vessel leaving the docking area, headed back to sea; nothing seemed suspicious, and the boat wasn't in a hurry, so he assumed that things must be going according to plan. He looked towards the entrance to the fishing market and saw Team 8 running in. They split off, and Kurenai hurriedly jogged her way towards him.

Outside of some small scratches on her, and Team 8 looking a bit winded, they looked fine. "It was as we guessed: 53 reinforcement troops came, 50 of the bandit-level crew along with two chunin-level leaders. None of them wanted to surrender, so we managed to decommission them all. We are ready for the next phase." Kurenai said as she caught her breath next to Kakashi.

Kakashi nodded his head. "Well, glad your conditioning is good. Let's work!" Kakashi said before diving into the water, shortly followed by Kurenai.

Each member of both teams, when they noticed their respective sensei dive headfirst into the water, followed suit. One of the civilians watched as six young teenagers ran extraordinarily fast towards the sea before disappearing as they dived off the docks into the water below.

Must be nice to be full of youth. The older lady thought with a smile before turning back to continue her shopping.

Sasuke swam towards the ship's hull. As she got closer, the bottom of the ship got larger and larger. She estimated that she was on a perfect converging course; all she would have to do was continue swimming straight, and the ship's path would naturally intersect with hers.

She was correct, and 50 seconds after she dove into the water, she placed a hand on the ship's hull as it tried to blow past her. She used her chakra to stick to the hull's surface before climbing up the hull from underwater. Using both hands and feet all the way to the top, she kept her focus as she approached the railing at the top of the ship. She expertly peeked over into the ship when she was able to and saw a hiding Naruto. Quickly, she threw herself over the rails and towards the two.

Naruto was hiding between two large shipping containers as they waited for the rest of the team to gather. It didn't take much longer, though; they were quickly joined by Kiba, then Sakura, then Hinata and Shino. Before long, Kakashi-sensei and Kurenai-sensei approached them.

"Good, we all made it without raising any alarms." Kurenai said to the group. "Shino, do you know where Gato is?" She asked. Shino nodded his head.

"There are three decks below us. Gato is on the third deck with that jonin-level threat. I have instructed my bugs to remain out of sight and out of that area, so my intel on the third deck is minimal." Shino responded.

Kurenai nodded her head.

"Alright, Team 7, Team 8, you know your objectives. Let's get to it!" Kakashi said before taking off towards the lower decks with Sakura, with Naruto and Sasuke on his heels.

Team 7 would go and assault the lower floors, making a path towards Gato, while Team 8 would clear the main deck and the command-and-control center above, taking control of the ship and directing it towards a port on the northern end of the island. Away from prying eyes, and anyone in the village who may be sympathetic to Gato and his cause. Sasuke had her Sharingan activated as they made their way down to the second floor of the ship. The noise of the ship's engines and waves splashing against the ship could be heard.

Team 7 expertly broke off into two teams, Sakura and Kakashi heading towards the bow of the ship as she and Naruto made their way towards the aft. Their plan was simple: the team would clear each floor, securing or dismissing any threats as they made their way lower towards their target, Gato, preferably without alerting the crew and Gato that they'd been boarded and were being seized.

She and Naruto would split off, attacking rooms across from each other they encountered as they worked their way to the aft. Sasuke reached for the door handle to a room, slowly twisting it. The last three rooms she had cleared had been private rooms, probably housing for the crew members of the ship. She slowly twisted the door open and stepped in, softly closing the door behind her. In the room was a man, his back turned to her, writing at his desk. When she got in range, she reached out and grabbed the sitting man, putting him in a rear-naked choke. He fought her, standing up, forcing her to jump on his back and wrap her legs around his waist. He swung blindly behind his back, trying to strike her off of him, letting out choked, gasping gurgles as he tried his best to get her off him.

He switched tactics, running towards a drawer in his room before turning and slamming Sasuke back into one of the sharp edges of the dresser. Sasuke let out an annoyed and pained gasp as her back stung due to the force of the larger man's tactic.

Sasuke squeezed the man's neck as tight as she could, with the anger and annoyance she was feeling. The man was getting more desperate now; he reached back, grabbing a hold of some of her hair and trying to yank Sasuke with all his might over the top of him and off his back.

"Fuck you!" Sasuke hissed, as she impaled her kunai into the man's neck. He immediately stopped pulling her hair, both hands grasping at his throat trying to stop the blood pouring from it. Sasuke jumped off the man's back quickly, giving them some space. The man turned around, looking at her with both a horrified and angry expression. He dropped to one knee, then fell forward on his face, the pool of blood coming from underneath him expanding at a consistent pace.

I was trying not to kill you Sasuke thought as she tried to rub the portion of her back that had been rammed into the sharp edge of the dresser.

A small knock came to the door before it opened and closed quickly, with Naruto stepping in. "Hey, you were taking a while, so—" Naruto stopped his sentence halfway, looking at Sasuke then the body multiple times before an angry look began to rise on his face.

"I thought we agreed that we weren't going to kill people!" Naruto said in an angry, annoyed hushed whisper.

Sasuke glared at him in response, narrowing her eyes. "We are shinobi; we have to kill. But I tried not to! He didn't want to go down without a fight. He was annoying me, and it was taking way too long!" Sasuke argued.

"Still, we agre—" he was cut off when she placed her index finger on his lips silencing him.

"Naruto! Not right now! Later, really. I will argue with you all night later, just not right now," Sasuke said, annoyed.

Naruto was seething at her and was shaking; it was obvious he wanted to argue and fight with her more, but his face was also bright red at the intimate contact of her finger on his lips; he just nodded and exited the room. Sasuke sighed before looking back at the dead man one last time.

My first kill.

She was oddly okay with it, unlike Naruto who seemed to treasure every life. She had just taken one simply because he was fighting too hard for his life, simply because he was an annoyance to her in that moment. Kakashi and Kurenai had allowed both teams the option to kill, and she was sure that by this point, all of Team 8, if not some, had their first kills. Naruto was always against it in their pre-mission briefs, saying that he'd just knock everyone unconscious, and they'd take them prisoner back to Konoha. She had known he was serious when he said this but figured that he would have to do it at some point, so she didn't argue with him then.

But he seemed dead set on minimizing casualties, even amongst their enemies.

You sure are naive, Naruto.

She thought, leaving the man's lifeless body in the room.

She walked out into the hallway and saw three bodies slumped against the walls of the cramped walking space. Naruto was dragging one of the men into the room opposite the one that held her first kill. "These three came while you were in your room. Help me hide them," Naruto said as he dragged away a man. Sasuke sighed before dragging another into the same room. She noticed that all three of them were still breathing, with lumps and bruises starting to form on their faces, probably due to their run-in with her blonde teammate. She flipped the men over before tying their hands with a zip tie. Naruto brought in the last man, and she tied up his hands as well.

"Ready?" He asked her. They still had a few more rooms to clear before they would go down to the next floor and meet Sakura and Kakashi in the middle before attacking the third floor that held Gato together.

Sasuke, with a focused look in her eyes, nodded her head.

The rest of the first deck went the same, with Naruto and Sasuke clearing rooms, capturing and tying up or, in Sasuke's case, killing a few with Naruto nearly throwing a fit each time. Eventually, they cleared their half of the first deck and made their way to the second, which, like Shino's description, held the kitchen and many of the maintenance rooms for the ship. Here, a lot of the people Naruto and Sasuke encountered were in groups of 3-4, probably working together on the maintenance of the ship. Naruto and Sasuke swiftly dispatched the groups of men before hiding their bodies in the ship's boiler room and proceeding to Team 7's meet-up area near the middle of the ship's 2nd deck.

Kakashi and Sakura were already there when Naruto and Sasuke arrived. Kakashi was on alert, but his posture was laid back and relaxed as he sat on the steps that would take them down to the 3rd deck, where Gato was. Sakura had a few cuts from her encounters with the enemy and a busted lip but otherwise looked okay. Kakashi greeted them as they joined him.

"Hey, assuming no issues?" Kakashi asked.

Both Naruto and Sasuke shook their heads, indicating that everything was going as planned.

Naruto felt the memories of one of his clones that was with Team 8 securing the ship's command center appear in his mind. He waited and reviewed the memory before speaking to Team 7.

"Team 8 has completed their assignments. Kurenai-sensei and Hinata-chan are making their way here now." Naruto said to his team.

They all nodded in understanding, while maintaining their defensive positions, watching all ways of approach. Although the next people Team 7 expected to encounter were Kurenai and Hinata, and they had just spent the last 20-30 minutes clearing every inch of the ship, they wouldn't let their guard down. During the team's training, Kakashi and Kurenai would use these types of moments to try and counter-ambush the teams, so they learned quickly the mission isn't over until they returned Gato and their prisoners to Konoha.

They heard hushed footsteps approaching them from above, coming down the flight of stairs towards them.

Soon, Kurenai and Hinata came into view, joining them, Hinata's Byakugan in full effect.

"Kiba and Shino are guarding the prisoners we have and taking them to the command center. They will be on the second floor collecting those captured there; so far, we have 25, so roughly half of the remaining crew." Kurenai said to them but mainly to Kakashi, who nodded.

"Well, let's go get Gato."

Based on Shino's description, the bottom floor of the ship would be where Gato was. He hadn't seen too many people go down there, so it was likely that there wouldn't be heavy resistance besides that shinobi who Shino leveled as a 'jonin-level threat'. The group made their way down the stairs to clear the bottom floor, using Hinata's Byakugan as they approached the room where Gato and that man were.

"I think they are expecting us." Hinata said in a hushed whisper as the group walked closer to the room.

"Why do you say that, Hinata?" Kurenai asked.

"Well, the 'jonin-level shinobi' is just staring at the door, as if he expects us to walk through any moment."

Kakashi thought about this. It's possible, if this shinobi was a good sensor, to have noticed the two teams by now, but it was already too late; the two teams had captured most of the ship and all their crew except these two.

"Well, let's not keep them waiting any longer." Kakashi said, Spartan kicking the door open.

The group entered to see Gato hiding behind a man. He had onyx-colored eyes with ash-gray hair tied up in a ponytail. He wore glasses with a black trim and wore a black robe with red clouds on it. He was smiling at them, welcoming and friendly, but everything about Sasuke's senses was telling her that this man was not happy to see them.

"Aha, if it isn't Konoha shinobi, and they sent Kakashi the Copy Ninja, and Kurenai the Genjutsu Mistress. What do I owe the pleasure of your company today?" The man said, completely relaxed as he took in the two jonin and four genin in front of him, all holding defensive postures towards him. Kakashi and Kurenai immediately recognized this man and were put on guard instinctively, which rubbed off on their students, whose relaxed postures tensed as well.

Kurenai broke the silence first. "Kabuto Yakushi, the third most wanted missing ninja from the Leaf. As a Konoha jonin, I demand you surrender and come into our custody to face the crimes you stand accused against the village!" Kurenai spat.

The man just chuckled in response, ignoring her as he performed Genjutsu Dissipation on his arm, dispelling a genjutsu Kurenai tried to cast on him.

"Why would I do that? I am enjoying doing my research with Lord Orochimaru."

Kurenai's eyes narrowed as she continued, "By 'research', you mean experimenting on innocent people, you sick freak."

Kabuto's smile didn't falter. "Ah, I don't expect your small, ignorant minds to grasp the genius and potential of Lord Orochimaru and his work. What you call 'experiments' are merely steps towards evolution, a better future."

Kakashi, who had been silent, chimed in, his voice cold and steady. "A future built on the suffering of others is no future worth pursuing. Your 'evolution' is nothing but a path to destruction."

Kabuto's chuckle grew into a laugh. "Destruction, you say? Necessary sacrifices are needed for any significant breakthrough. You of all people should understand that, Kakashi, given your own history."

Kurenai cut back in, refusing to let Kabuto's words shake her. "No matter how you try to justify it, your actions are unforgivable. We will stop you and Orochimaru, no matter what."

Kabuto sighed theatrically. "You really are set in your ways, aren't you? It's quite sad, actually. You're limiting yourselves, blinded by your so-called morality. Working with Lord Orochimaru has granted me knowledge and power the likes of which you can't even begin to comprehend."

Kurenai hissed realizing they were wasting their time talking to this psycho, "You also have knowledge about Konoha's most wanted criminal's location. There is no way we are allowing you to escape us. The ship is already completely under our control. Surrender along with Gato, and we will spare your lives."

"Aha," Kabuto said, raising a hand to his chin as if to think about what Kurenai said to him.

As he pretended to ponder, he launched some senbon at the group, forcing them to jump apart from each other and also clearing a path to the door. He quickly launched himself out of the room and up the stairs, headed for the main deck.

"He's escaping! Hinata, Sasuke, secure Gato. Naruto, Kurenai, with me after Kabuto!" Kakashi said, taking off after the missing ninja.

Naruto and Kurenai took off after him, finally catching up to Kakashi who had caught up to Kabuto on the ship's main deck. They were fighting each other as the ship rocked due to the strong waves impacting the sides.

Kakashi ducked under a right hook from Kabuto, sending an uppercut to Kabuto's exposed midsection. Kabuto sidestepped the blow and tried to stab Kakashi in the leg with a senbon, which forced Kakashi to disengage and jump back away from the man. He was immediately replaced by Kurenai, who engaged the man in Taijutsu.

"Be careful, Kurenai! He is using a technique that will cut your ligaments and tendons if he touches you, and his senbon are laced with poison!" Kakashi said as he dropped to one knee and coughed up some blood that had poured into his mouth. He had learned about Kabuto's technique the hard way; several of his tendons in his right arm had already been cut, and he was stabbed once. Whatever poison Kabuto was using had a neurotoxin component to it because he was losing feeling in his body and finding it hard to keep his vision focused.

Just as he warned Kurenai, Kabuto blocked a high kick she had sent at him, grabbing her leg, touching her knee, and cutting the ligament that allowed her to freely use that leg.

"Ahaa!" Kurenai yelled in pain, instantly feeling something wrong with her leg. She disengaged from Kabuto as well, Naruto rushed in with a Rasengan in hand, trying to hit Kabuto with it. The man wisely jumped back, and Naruto's Rasengan impacted the floor where the man once stood, ripping a hole in the ship. Naruto could see the floor under the hole he just created with his Rasengan and growled to himself, looking up at the man whose smile had not changed.

Sasuke rushed to the scene as soon as she could. When she got there, she saw multiple holes in the first deck, where Naruto must've missed Kabuto with his Rasengan. Right now, the man was fighting off both Kakashi and Kurenai's Taijutsu assaults, as Naruto stood back watching with intense eyes for an opening.

"Naruto!" Sasuke said as she approached, never taking his eyes off the man. Naruto spoke to her, "Be careful, this guy is dangerous. He has some jutsu that will cut off your ligaments, and Kakashi says we can't use too strong of a jutsu, or we will destroy the whole ship."

Sasuke took in this information as she watched the fight happening in front of them. Both Kakashi and Kurenai sensei were getting injured in this conflict, while Kabuto seemed to have taken minimal damage. But from the looks of it, Kakashi was fighting without his right arm, and Kurenai was limping and fighting without her left leg.

He is dangerous, fighting him in Taijutsu is as dangerous as fighting a Hyuga, but we aren't left with much of an option on this ship! She thought as she heaved heavily, trying to catch her breath.

Naruto growled as blood dripped from his mouth. He got up and ran in to assist Kakashi, without hesitation Sasuke ran in as well. If he could harm you just by a touch, then fighting him would be like my training against Hinata. We have to damage him without getting touched in return.

Naruto threw some Kunai at Kabuto, forcing him to disengage from Kakashi. Sasuke joined Naruto in throwing some Kunai at Kabuto, but she also curved a few of her Kunai so they would hit the Kunai that Naruto threw and missed, before those Kunai impaled themselves against the ship. She deflected them in a way that redirected them to Kabuto's new position.

At the same moment, Naruto had closed the distance and was throwing a punch at Kabuto's face. The Kunai she had deflected were now heading for Kabuto's back. Kabuto ducked under Naruto's punch, pulling out a Kunai and doing a 180 to block the deflected Kunai coming at his back. He managed to block two of the three before one lodged itself into his leg. Grunting, Kabuto stood up; he had three Sharingan eyes staring at him menacingly. Two red eyes watching for any signs of him fleeing, and a pair of blue eyes stared at him with such determination it was honestly the most intimidating of the set of eyes on him.

Kabuto sighed, standing up much against the wishes of his leg, which let him know how it felt by sending sharp pain up and down his leg. He pulled the Kunai out, before placing his hand over the wound and sealing it with his medical ninjutsu knowledge.

"You have very excellent eyes, Sasuke Uchiha. I'm sure Itachi will be proud. I can't wait to tell Lord Orochimaru-sama about this." Kabuto said with an evil smirk on his face.

Upon hearing her brother's name mentioned, Sasuke's glare turned into a disgusted and menacingly hateful glare. "You know him?" Sasuke practically spat.

"Of course, I do. I am from Konoha, of course, and your brother is a valued member of our organization." Kabuto said as if this was all public information they should all know.

"What organization would that be?" Kakashi said, over labored breaths.

This made Kabuto's smirk widen. "Well, we are an organization comprised of many like-minded… individuals who strive for the same purpose. We are known as the Akatsuki."

Naruto looked at Kurenai and Kakashi-sensei. "Who are the Akatsuki?"

"I don't know." Kurenai responded.

"I haven't heard of them." Kakashi said.

Kabuto sighed. "Well, that's to be expected. We are very secretive group, but don't you worry. One day soon the entire Shinobi world will know of the might of the Akatsuki!" Kabuto shouted.

"What does the Akatsuki want with Gato?" Kakashi asked.

"Well, he is important to us." Kabuto said blankly.

Naruto was sick of this. He could answer all their questions when they had Kabuto in custody.

Charging in again, Naruto engaged the man in Taijutsu. He blocked a punch sent by Kabuto and recognized his mistake immediately. Instead of punching through Naruto's attempted block, Kabuto opened his hand and grabbed Naruto's arm, tossing him with a single-armed shoulder throw. At the moment Kabuto grabbed his arm, Naruto felt intense pain shoot across his arm; Kabuto had cut off all of Naruto's ability to use that arm. Not giving the boy an opportunity to recover, he punched the boy in the face while his medical jutsu was active. Naruto let out a loud, painful cry.

This should completely blind him, if not only in his left eye.

Kabuto had no time to bask in his achievement. He was immediately engaged by an angry-looking Sasuke Uchiha, as well as Kakashi. Kurenai ran as fast as she could to the injured Naruto, who was rolling on the floor, clutching his eye in pain.

She reached him and sat next to him as he cried out in agony.

Each cry Sasuke heard from Naruto angered her and made her heartache. Glaring at the man before her, she'd swear to make him pay.

"Naruto! Naruto, it's me, Kurenai. What's wrong!?" Kurenai said, placing a gentle hand on Naruto to try and get him to stop moving so she could look at his eye.

"It hurts, Kurenai-sensei! I feel like my eye is burning in its socket! I can't see!" Naruto said.

Kurenai felt a cold sweat forming.

If Kabuto has an ability that can cut off ligaments and affect your body internally from a single touch, much like a Hyuga, then getting a direct punch to the face like Naruto just did, he may lose his eye!

Kurenai calmed herself as she took a steadying breath. "Let me see it, Naruto." she said as calmly as she could, although she was filled with worry for her friend's student.

Naruto stopped rolling, still groaning in pain, as he timidly pulled his hand away from his eye. Kurenai let out a gasp, which instantly concerned Naruto.

His eye was burning, but not as bad as it was moments ago. A cool sensation was beginning to take place, replacing the fire that he once felt. He felt Kurenai's hand on his face, covering his eye. "Naruto, I am applying some medical ninjutsu to your eye. Please let me know how it feels. I should be able to at least reduce the damage until we can get you looked at by a professional medic." Kurenai said, her voice surprisingly calm, which eased his own nerves somewhat.

Naruto felt the coolness, then just as suddenly as his eye caught fire, it stopped, and he could see! But something was strange. He not only could see even though he was sure his left eye was closed, but he could also see the chakra flowing from Kurenai's hand into his face. He felt like he could see straight through Kurenai as well; he could see her black lacy panties and her nipples through her shinobi fishnet and her exterior clothing! He could see almost 360 degrees; it felt like around him.

"Umm, Kurenai-sensei?" Naruto asked hesitantly.

"Yes, Naruto?" Kurenai said, with a hesitance in her voice he heard and recognized.

"I think something is funny with my vision." Naruto said, unsure.

The woman didn't reply.

"Sensei?" The boy implored, getting worried now.

"Something is definitely… different with your eye, Naruto." Kurenai finally said.

Naruto felt his stomach drop at the word "different" Kurenai said. He almost didn't want to ask his next question but asked anyways. "What is different about it, Kurenai-sensei?"

Kurenai paused for a moment. Naruto could see her hesitation through his closed left eye. Opening his right eye, he looked at her. Opening his left eye, he could see an outline of her body but her entire chakra network as well. He felt like he could see her quickened pulse as she replied. "Your left eye has transformed to the Byakugan."

"Huh?" Naruto asked.

Kurenai took a steady breath. "Your left eye has transformed to a Byakugan, Naruto. Are you okay? Can you sit up? Can you see?" She asked worriedly.

She had no idea why Naruto had a Byakugan in his left eye, but having a Hyuga as a student, and having visited the Hyuga compound, as well as worked with the clan before, Kurenai was 100 percent certain that the pale grey eye that stared back at her was the Byakugan. At first, when she rushed to Naruto's aid when she saw the pale eye, she instantly thought the worst and that Naruto had gone blind because of Kabuto. But she soon saw the enlarged veins around the eye socket and immediately recognized the activation of the Byakugan.

Naruto sat up, rubbing his eyes. He could see much more clearly, but the difference between his two visions was causing him to have a headache and to see doubles at times. Naruto closed his right eye, looking through the Byakugan only. It eased his headache, and he didn't see double. Taking a page from Kakashi, he adjusted his headband over his right eye, covering it to put less strain on his eyes.

"Are you feeling better?" Kurenai asked, with a protective hand on his shoulder, her eyes fixed on Kakashi and Sasuke, fighting Kabuto. The two were coordinating attacks well and were managing to push Kabuto back. He was bleeding profusely from several wounds, and Kakashi and Sasuke were not giving him an opportunity to heal those wounds.

"Yeah, as long as I keep an eye covered, I should be okay." Naruto said, getting up to face Kabuto.

Kurenai stood weakly next to him. "Alright, let's go finish this." she said to Naruto, who merely nodded before dashing off faster than the injured Kurenai could, into the fray.

"Multi Shadow Clone Jutsu!" Naruto said, before fifty clones appeared on the main deck and rushed Kabuto, giving Kakashi and Sasuke a chance to disengage and catch their breaths.

Naruto joined the two with Kurenai. Kakashi glanced at Naruto once, looking back to the fight before quickly doing a double-take of Naruto. "Naruto! What happened to your eye!" The jonin said in an uncharacteristic, surprised tone.

Sasuke, who was already staring at Naruto in disbelief, recognized his eye as a Byakugan.

How does Naruto have a Byakugan? He isn't a Hyuga. This shouldn't be possible.

"I don't know; one moment I was fighting Kabuto, he punched me, my eye hurt a lot, then it didn't, and Kurenai-sensei said I had a Byakugan."

Kakashi looked at Kurenai, who just nodded, reaffirming that is what happened.

Kakashi sighed; he knew that most clans with a dojutsu were super protective and hostile when it came to their dojutsu, added that times three for Konoha's most powerful dojutsu clan. He could only imagine the political circus this would create with the Hyuga Clan back home. But that had to wait for later; right now, they had to deal with Kabuto.

As Kabuto methodically sliced through the throng of Naruto clones, the battlefield was soon cleared of the doppelgangers. Breathing heavily from the exertion, Kabuto paused, looking around at the Konoha ninjas with a mixture of amusement and disdain. "Well, this has been fun and all. And although Leader-sama will be upset, Lord Orochimaru will be even more so if I were to perish today," Kabuto mused aloud, his eyes scanning his opponents with cold calculation. "And seeing that Gato is already in custody, I don't see the need for me to risk my life fighting you anymore. Farewell, Konoha ninja," he announced with a smirk before swiftly throwing a smoke bomb to the ground.

The smoke enveloped the area in a thick, obscuring fog, but Naruto's Byakugan pierced through the veil of smoke. "You're not going anywhere!" he yelled, his voice laced with resolve. Without hesitation, he flung a kunai with precision, his Byakugan tracking the trajectory through the smoke.

The kunai found its mark, embedding itself in Kabuto's shoulder burrowing into flesh. "Ah!" Kabuto hissed in pain, his hand instinctively reaching to his wounded shoulder. "You brat." he cursed under his breath, anger and surprise flashing in his eyes. The pain was sharp, a stark reminder of the peril he faced if he chose to linger any longer.

For a fleeting moment, Kabuto considered turning back, his pride stung by the unexpected hit. The thought of punishing the audacious ninja for his insolence was tempting. However, the pragmatic side of Kabuto knew better than to engage further. The mission's priority was his own survival and to report back to Orochimaru with the valuable intel they needed. Gritting his teeth and suppressing the urge for retribution, Kabuto pressed a hand against his wound to stem the bleeding and focused on his escape.

With a swift series of hand signs, Kabuto prepared his next move, a jutsu to ensure his disappearance. As the smoke began to dissipate, Naruto and the others could only watch as the outline of Kabuto's form blurred and then vanished completely, leaving behind a trail of unanswered questions and a burning resolve to stop him and the Akatsuki's nefarious plans.

"Dammit! He got away!" Naruto said, growling as he tried to stand but instantly recognized his mistake, losing consciousness immediately. Before he could hit the floor, though, Sasuke had grabbed him, holding him protectively—Kakashi would argue 'lovingly'—in her chest. Sighing, the man turned to Kurenai. Kakashi and Kurenai had to basically rip Naruto away from Sasuke just to check on him and make sure that he was okay.

"He's just suffering from chakra exhaustion. Using the Byakugan so much so soon probably sent his chakra cords and nervous system into shock. With some rest, I'm sure he will be fine. ANBU are on the way, so they can look him over once they arrive." Kakashi said to Sasuke, after Kurenai and he finished checking the boy over intensely for any possible wounds.

"Let's wrap this up." Kakashi said to Kurenai, leaving Naruto with Sasuke.

Kurenai nodded as the two jonin made their way to the ship's command and control room, to check on Hinata, Sakura, Kiba, and Shino, who should have rounded up the crew and be bringing them to the docks on the north side of the island.

A/N Hey that's all for this chapter, with this we are done with the land of waves arc interesting developments; but I'm sure at this point a lot of you will have questions as stated in the previous chapter stick around to actually uncover and understand what's going on, I hope you all are enjoying the story so far. Please tell me what you think; also, I will be moving to a different state this weekend. But will have chapters already written and edited so it won't feel like a lull in my posting schedule. Lastly, this is now my best story in Reviews, Favorites and Follows, thank you all for the support and although I know the star is Fem Sasuke and Naruto, i still thank you and hope you stay till the end, until next time!