Chapter 20: Humble Pie
Gaara didn't know how. But he knew they were here. He could feel them, like they were some sort of beacons that only he knew were there. They were approaching quickly, finally ready to start their true battle.
Inside him, Shukaku could also feel their presence and his container's excitement. It excited him as well. Finally there was a pair of enemies that could force its host to release it. Thus giving it the chance to bask once again in the sunlight and blood that it was determined to spill. If it was quick with them, maybe it could rush back to that Konohagakure and massacre the village as well.
Shukaku's bloody ambitions fueled its growing desire to escape quickly. Thrashing mercilessly against Gaara and his steadily weakening resolve, he could feel it beginning.
- Shortly After -
Sasuke dropped down to a lower limb. As he landed, his face took on his usual unconcerned mask. These Suna-nins had something to do with the fighting back in the arena before they left. He needed to keep them from escaping, even if it meant killing them. Dead or alive, a shinobi was always useful to some degree.
"Yo dobe, I call first dibs on Gaara," Sasuke announced abruptly. He needed to test himself.
"Fine, just don't get yourself killed."
"Hn."
He watched as Gaara began clutching his head. Then his skin seemed to have begun cracking, like he was suddenly going through a growth spurt and his body could no longer contain it.
"You, that have companions…" Gaara said in a quiet voice that was somehow heard by everyone present. "You, that has an ambition…You, that is like me…" The cracks of his skin were quickly spreading around the right side of his face and body.
"Once I kill you…I will be the one to have destroyed all of that…Only then can I survive…" His eyes began to glow a strange yellow color as a killer intent began to leak out. "Only then can I feel alive!"
The duo stared as he suddenly dropped to his knees. He right arm was twitching uncontrollably for a moment before it suddenly seemed to grow and contort. It was clear that it was only sand, but the sight of his arm seeming to mutate like that was…scary. And the effect reached up his shoulder and covered half of his face as well, forming some kind of animal. Needless to say that his already great chakra potential seemed to nearly triple in that instant.
'Gaara…?' Sasuke could help to question silently. 'Looks like this battle won't end as quickly as I thought. He must be a Jinchuriki like Naruto…'
Then he spotted the yellow eye. It sent shivers down his spine involuntarily.
Gaara lowered himself into a crouch that reminded him of the time Naruto had been using that red chakra in the forest. If that was true, then…
Before he could even finish that thought, Gaara had leapt up and was in his face with his mutated arm pulled back. Sasuke barely was able to dodge the strike and leap away. The swing also destroyed the tree trunk, causing it to topple over.
Hiding behind another tree, Sasuke held his shoulder gingerly. Somehow, in the time it had taken him to reach this safe spot, it had been clipped by a particularly heavy branch. The throbbing pain could only hint at the damage. With a silent growl of pain, he shoved the dislocated shoulder bones back into place.
"Are you afraid of me!" Gaara demanded. "Uchiha Sasuke!"
Trying not to fall into the boy's trap, he tried to think up a strategy quickly. If he didn't end this very quickly, that would mean that Gaara could and probably would overwhelm him. His chakra had not only increased in that instant, but also his speed. He was nearly as fast he used to be before the last month of training. How much more could it increase if he continued to mutate into that…creature?
But what Gaara said next broke his concentration.
"Afraid of my existence?"
Sasuke couldn't think. The only thing he could do was try to not let his rage build up. If what Kakashi-sensei said was true, then if he allowed himself to fight like that then that damned curse seal would activate and sap his strength. But Gaara reminded him of Itachi in a way.
"Has your fear overtaken the hatred, the killing urge?" Gaara continued. He knew what he was doing. It was just a matter of time. "Is your reason for existence as puny as that?"
Sasuke climbed to his feet as he made up his mind. If that was how Gaara wanted it, then he was going to get it! "Curse you... ITACHI!"
Flashing through his best techniques handseals as his Sharingan flared to life, Sasuke finally stepped out from behind the tree. He and Gaara dove for each other, both with the clear intention of mutilating the other.
"Raiton: Shunshin." Sasuke vanished in a flicker of lightning, landing behind another tree, ready to strike. He finished his last seal and a white-bluish blade made of lightning appeared. However, the most noticeable thing was the sound. It sounded like 1000 birds chirping at once.
The Uchiha growled, and he mentally released the first gate of the forbidden Hachimon technique. Kaimon.
Sasuke saw Gaara landing on a branch and saw it was his chance to strike. Out maneuvering everything in his path, Sasuke charged Gaara in earnest as soon as he landed. "CHIDORI!" The raven haired genin punctured through the other side of Gaara's shoulder; parallel to where Naruto's Rasengan hit.
The pale skinned Genin's hand went straight through, leaving a gaping hole in the jinchuriki's shoulder.
"I see…" he muttered. "…so that was why…the reason why I'm so excited…I JUST GOT THE ANSWER!"
Sasuke backed up and just watched the nin carefully as his red eyes returned to black. He was told to only use the Chidori four times a day, and only if he had all of his chakra and he was at his maximum. Anymore and he could risk severe chakra depletion.
Kakashi's warning had been very clear-cut.
"It's the pain…" Gaara all but whispered as the whole in Gaara's shoulder reformed itself. The look he shot Sasuke could only be considered that of murderous joy at finding such a powerful opponent. "DEFEATING A MAN STRONG ENOUGH TO HURT ME AND UTTERLY DESTROYING HIM…THAT'S WHAT GIVES ME AN EVEN GREATER SENSE OF EXISTENCE!"
Despite himself, Sasuke couldn't help but to smirk. But Temari was on the verge of panic because she was sure that the real monster was well on his way out.
And she was right.
"More! I want MORE!" Gaara yelled as a large, bulky tail sprouted from his spine. His chakra increased to nearly double what it had already been with the formation of that tail. Temari was staring in surprise and fear. Sasuke stared with surprise, intrigue and determination at Gaara. He wouldn't allow himself to show any fear.
Itachi was a much bigger threat than Gaara, and he would be damned if he let Gaara capture his fear.
Hidden in a nearby tree, Naruto now had a thoughtful look on his face. He took in the battle in an instant and quickly realized who the inevitable victor would be unless Sasuke was still hiding more stuff. Even so, he could not help but to be surprised by Gaara's transformations.
The more he transformed, the more youki he could sense. He was certain it was youki, having used some of his own tenant's in the past. It was an enormous amount, but he could almost bet that there was still much more in hiding.
Crouching down in that animal pose again, Gaara cried out, "Here I come!"
With a burst of speed that now rivaled his own, Gaara launched himself at Sasuke. Realizing that he wouldn't be able to dodge entirely, his Sharingan reactivated instinctively. It was entirely due to that that he only got a scratch from one of Gaara's claws on his arm. Attaching himself to the underside of a tree branch, he watched as the Suna-nin's arm contorted and stretched out. The claws caught on trees and stopped the boy's dive.
Then using his plunge and claws in conjunction, he once again launched himself back at the Uchiha. But this time, Sasuke was ready. The Uchiha ducked under Gaara's strike with his Sharingan's scary predictability and swept the jinchuriki's knees from under him.
Tripping Gaara, Sasuke hopped into a tree about 10 yards worth of distance between him and Gaara. The Uchiha released the first gate once again and regained his breath. Though the first gate only left him tired, he refused to attempt going beyond it. It was pointless in this particular battle.
He couldn't do anything more than what he did as Gaara reached him.
Block.
The blow sent him flying. To his surprise, he hit a mass of orange and black that cushioned him as they hit the tree. The cushion didn't last, instead it disappeared in burst of smoke shortly after impact. Sliding away from the trunk, he watched as the real boy suddenly landed near him, cracking his neck experimentally.
"Having fun yet, Sasuke?" Naruto asked with a peculiar tone to his voice while his eyes never left Gaara. "Stand back and let the real Shinobi do the work."
Glaring at the boy for a moment, Sasuke's pride got the better of him. "I don't need your help, dobe!"
He glanced down at the Uchiha who was still lying on his stomach, looking up at him with disgust. "Really, and you're knocking down trees because this is boring? Or haven't you had your fill of fiber yet?"
Growling dangerously at the blonde, he finally nodded his consent, if reluctantly. "Fine, help me out here, dobe."
"My pleasure," he said, jumping away to a branch a little closer to Gaara.
"You are not my prey at this time, Uzumaki," Gaara growled as a dangerous killer intent flared up. "UCHIHA IS!"
Before Naruto could react, Gaara had launched himself at Sasuke again. Seeing this, Sasuke merely rolled off the branch he was on. A smirk grew on his face as he watched Gaara destroy the branch while glaring furiously at him.
"Gotcha!" a familiar voice said as strong arms caught him. "…again."
As Naruto landed on another branch, Sasuke shoved him roughly away from him. "Stop saving me! I can take care of myself!"
"Naruto! Sasuke-kun!" a feminine voice cried from somewhere nearby.
"Sakura/-chan?" they said, both looking for her. What was she doing here?
Using their distraction to his advantage, Gaara rushed forward for a third time. This time, neither boy noticed. A feral grin crossed his face as he drew back his arm to take a killing swipe.
Then a flash of pink and red appeared in of them. A girl he vaguely recognized as their third teammate stood in front of them with hand signs ready. "Doton: Doryuso!" Spears of jagged rock rose from the ground, nicking Gaara in the chest and back with a slash.
Gaara turned towards Sakura and the redhead hit with his right Ichibied arm. The impact with the tree was powerful enough to give her agonizing pain.
"Sakura-chan!" Naruto called out, worried for his teammate.
The raven-haired genin placed a firm hand on his teammate's shoulder. It would be foolish to rush in there now, Gaara could easily kill her. Especially if Naruto did something rash again. But then again, he was having a tough time restraining himself as well.
Then they saw something change in Gaara's eyes. It wasn't the maddened look of the nin that they had just faced, but the eyes of a sad, isolated child. But that look quickly disappeared and was returned to what it had been.
"What's the matter?" he asked, sneering at them. "Weren't you gonna fight me?"
Turning his attention to Naruto, Gaara's gaze turned cold, very cold. "What does she mean to you?"
"What I feel about her is irrelevant!" he yelled. "Leave her alone or I'll kick your ass!"
Gaara scowled at that. A scowl that was very impressive due to his misshaped face. Then the extended arm that held Sakura suspended to the tree tightened its grip, making her scream even while being unconscious.
Naruto and Sasuke both flinched reflexively as deadly glares lit up their faces. Pakkun and Shikamaru, who had wisely stayed hidden, were the only ones to notice that something was different all of a sudden. Something in the tree canopy above them was moving…
"Now what?" Gaara asked. "Aren't you gonna kick my ass?"
"Of course!" Naruto yelled. But he didn't move, he didn't have to just yet.
"Fuuton: Daitoppa!" multiple voices cried out from above them. As Gaara, and Temari looked up in surprise at the dive-bombing Kage Bunshin blondes, Naruto and Sasuke jumped off to a tree branch above Gaara.
"Naruto, I need you to give me some of your chakra. I have a plan," Sasuke stated.
"And what plan might that be?" Naruto inquired.
"Glass is made from sand right? To make the glass from sand, sand is put under intense heat. And your bijuu's element is fire, so I could glass Gaara if I had enough chakra." Sasuke explained in earnest.
"Nice plan," Naruto said as he gathered an unspecified amount of bijuu chakra. He gave Sasuke approximately half of said chakra, hoping it would be enough. The Uchiha felt invigorated, as if he were using the first gate but in a far, far more beneficial package.
"Hn." Sasuke muttered, weaving through hand signs. "Katon: Gouryuuka no Jutsu!"
The Kyuubified Dragon Flame Jutsu roared in its entirety, impacting the Shukaku's vessel. Sand started succumbing to the heat and pressure of the jutsu, turning white before turning into glass.
Naruto then shot at the glassed Gaara, cocking his fist back and breaking through the glass, reaching Gaara's face. The Suna nin rolled backwards, his face invigorated with psychotic intent and rage. At that instant, the two rivals knew they were in for a long fight.
- Inside The Village -
Son Goku was on a rampage.
He did his best not to outright kill his enemies, but his control seemed to seep further and further into nonexistence. It was clear to anyone with a shred of wisdom, that Goku as a thirteen year old boy, did not possess the discipline he had in other timelines due to the nature of his world. The shinobi world happened to be so impure, that even the clearest of water would have trouble maintaining a crystal glean.
He intrinsically wanted to do the "right thing" but it was more fun and fulfilling to let himself go.
"Katon: Goukakyu no Jutsu!"
The Saiyan shot through the flame cast by a group of Oto-nin, and nearly decapitated them with four welcome aimed frontal kicks to the head. Upon clicking the ground with his left boot, Goku's hands were seen crushing a Red Ribbon Army robot's face into a scrap heap. The next moment, he was uprooting a tank with his left hand and then punted it with his right foot toward a group of Suna-nin, creating a resounding BOOM.
Taking on hordes of humanity and machine alike, Goku evaded every single strike.
When genjutsu was applied, the Saiyan did not register what was going on because he was immune.
Dodging a kenjutsu strike from a shinobi who believed they had gotten the drop on the kid, Goku shattered the sword with a palm strike and then elbowed the man's ribs into oblivion. Jonin, chunin, tokubetsu, whatever.
Goku could not be stopped.
"He's awesome damnit!"
And a certain doctor with eyes all over the village watched in horror and awe as his armada was being torn to bits and pieces by a single boy...no entity.
He had to get that kind of power on his side immediately. And yet, the Mercenary known as Tao Pai-Pai had been slaughtered by the child. No one else in his ranks even came close to rivaling that man, and yet he was fodder to Son Goku.
Maybe he had to change tactics. Instead of directly incapacitating the boy — which seemed impossible as best — he needed a hostage. The only person that came to mind happened to be that bitch he heralded so much. The one with the bluish dark hair and pale lavender eyes.
Hinata Hyuga was it?
Yes, she would be the perfect bait to lure in Son Goku. After re-purposing the boy for Red Ribbon Army likeness, he would seamlessly collect all seven Dragon Balls with his sheer might, and then they would conquer the world.
As for incapacitating him once he arrived, Gero had a few buttons to push. If the army played their cards right, even the likes of Son Goku could be defeated.
But first, he needed to successfully kidnap a Hyuga heiress in the gestation period of her shinobi career!
"We are far superior to Kumogakure. This will not be an issue."
And then he made the call, changing the target from Goku to Hinata instantaneously. The doctor smirked like a madman.
- Five Minutes Later -
The next five minutes introduced Naruto and Sasuke to just how outclassed they were. Gaara was essentially just as resilient as Naruto was and his chakra levels were enormous. Though all the weight of the sand had prevented him from gaining any significant increase in speed, his control over his sand had increased. To the point that the particles floating throughout the air were trying to latch themselves onto the two and consume them in a coffin of death.
The only way Naruto was able to keep the sand off of him was by keeping the Fuuton: Daitoppa activated constantly. Though he was feeding the jutsu just enough to keep the sand away, the toll was becoming a burden when compared to what he delivered to Gaara.
He'd unleashed over twenty Kage Bunshins who were leaping from one tree to another to confuse Gaara. The blondes would take passing stabs and slashes with the Kaze Kage Bunshin no Jutsu. But he was fast to realize that that just wouldn't work, the sand was either able too compact and become harder than steel or instantly repaired any damage that had been dealt. He had to tear that armor off so he tried the infamous Uzumaki Naruto Rendan, which was only another exercise is futility.
Finally starting to feel exhausted and desperate, he employed a technique that he had always refused to use. He stuck a kunai tagged with an explosive note under the boy's tail. The result? Only a badly deformed Gaara-creature, nothing else.
Sasuke didn't have much luck either. Katon Jutsu's were out of the equation, and only Raiton Jutsu's seemed to be affecting him, but only somewhat. The Uchiha also tried to preserve his chakra, but he knew he couldn't dodge forever. He refrained from using the Hachimon for the past 5 minutes, but he knew if they wanted a chance he would have to use it.
'Nothing's working!' Naruto realized as he fought to come up with a new plan or more chakra, whichever came first. Even Naruto's tailed cloak wasn't beating him as it did in the exams beforehand.
'But how…? He's strong, I'll give him that…But…this is ridiculous! I beat him before, but he wasn't in this form! Something has to work on this guy!'
Finally dropping to his knees involuntarily, his earlier excessive use of chakra in the exam and in this particular fight had finally caught up to him. He could barely move. But he was positive that he had more than this! In fact he knew he had much more. But there was something…stopping him. Something that was preventing him from being able to reach it. And as he tried to find out what that something was and get around it, his body suffered from its apparent lack of chakra. He could only guess that he was weaker than he was prior to the start of the exam!
Gaara wasn't in much better shape either. All those brutal blows to his body, regenerating his sand body back into it's original shape, and even from futilely trying to ensnare the boys in his sand had drained a large portion of his youki's reserves. If he didn't bring out his full power soon, these insignificant boys was going to beat him!
"Finally had enough, dobe?" Sasuke asked as he dropped down next to the blonde. "We need a plan or we're probably gonna die."
"Nope," he groaned. He was sick of losing. He was sick of Sasuke always coming to his rescue, even if it was occasionally in his mind. He was sick of the Uchiha attaining the credit that he'd worked so hard to build so easily. It was time for him to battle and not be overridden by the boy. "I c-can…keep…g-going."
But his body was sending a completely different message. He was almost at his limit. It thought that it couldn't handle much more.
Snorting at the boy's attitude, Sasuke said, "Yeah, sure. And you're eating bark because you're hungry right?"
Naruto didn't bother to retort, just glare.
"Naruto," Sasuke said, his tone was different. Something had changed in it. Enough for the blonde to look at him curiously. "Take Sakura and run away. I can stall him for a while. After that, you watch after her…I don't want to see any of my precious people die."
Friends…? Precious People...?
Do you have someone who is important to you? The question suddenly rose up inside his mind.
A memory of Iruka-sensei protecting him from Mizuki's shuriken rose up. Then when Kakashi told them that he'd protect them from Zabuza. His own strength in protecting Sakura from the Oto-genin and Sasuke. Him almost dying on the bridge to Haku's senbon while trying to save Sasuke.
When a person has something important to protect, that's when they truly become strong.
Something inside him suddenly changed. It was then that he'd finally realized what it was that had prevented him from reaching his true potential. His own curiosity. He had wanted to test himself against Gaara to see where they stood in comparison to each other. The boy was stronger than the limits he'd unconsciously put on himself.
His ragged body didn't seem to hurt anymore. All he could feel now was an undying urge to protect everyone he loved or acknowledged. They were depending on him to do that. And he would!
Gaara, who'd finally been able to repair his body from the latest assault, was grinning broadly at Naruto. The boy was finally reaching his limits! So he was truly superior to the blonde after all. Now to finish the job.
He stopped from launching himself at the Uzumaki and Uchiha when he saw the blonde suddenly pull himself up to his feet. There was something different about his expression. It was one of pure determination…
Silently, Naruto removed the black jacket he wore and tossed it aside. Ignoring the Uchiha's widened eyes, Naruto brought his hands up to form the tori seal. No more playing around, no more holding back at all. He was going to protect everyone! NO MATTER WHAT!
"Hey, Gaara," Naruto called out as he focused his newly rediscovered chakra while distracting Gaara for a second. "I'm gonna take you DOWN! Tajuu Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!"
Over a thousand shadow clones suddenly appeared in the trees surrounding the greatly surprised Gaara who was looking around in an almost worried gesture.
As the blondes launched themselves in a circling attack pattern, Shikamaru tried to examine the boy's chances and what his strategy could be. With that many clones, it would be likely that he was planning on some kind of mass Rendan and not be too concerned with his other jutsus. There was simply no way he could have much in his reserves after unleashing all of these clones…right?
Sasuke stared at Naruto with true surprise. How come the blonde had seemingly endless chakra? Was there any limit to his amount?
Temari could only stare, trying to understand where all this brat's new found power had come from.
Gaara was too busy watching the stalking blondes in the treetops that he failed to notice the trio that were underneath him on the ground. That is until a sudden and extremely powerful wind lifted his massive form off the tree limb and into the air. He was only given a second to glance downward to see them running in a circle under him with large tornadoes surrounding them. The combined power of the three tornadoes lifted him clear of the tree and out into the open of the small clearing.
As one unit, several dozens of the clones launched themselves at Gaara. Among the mass of fists, feet, and even an occasional forehead, the blondes were calling the syllables of the Uzumaki Rendan.
"U-Z-U-M-A-K-I B-A-R-R-A-G-E!"
The final blow, powered by three dozen blondes, sent the mostly mutated and mangled Suna-nin flying towards the ground. But he never touched down, instead his back was violently introduced to numerous fists. The power behind that sent him flying back into the mass of clones again.
This time he was semi-prepared for it. Spreading his arms, Gaara summoned a large amount of sand out of the earth. It rose up and covered him protectively for a second before it suddenly began twisting and spinning into a funnel.
"Suna no Tatsumaki!" was barely heard through the sand. The sand tornado kicked up large amounts of sand and debris, and sent powerful gusts of air out.
It was only thanks to his Sharingan that Sasuke could see that strange chakra that was also in the winds. He raced full speed back to Sakura. Picking her up, he had just barely enough time to clear the immediate area as the chakra-enhanced winds reached them. He had to get her away from here, it was too dangerous.
It was with great reluctance that he ran from the battle with the girl in his arms.
Pakkun, smelling the youki in the air, was fast to retreat to a safer distance with Shikamaru only a second behind.
The winds were so strong that they tore trees apart, even right out of the ground. It went without saying that nearly all the shadow clones were destroyed instantly. The small clearing that had previously been there was now greatly enlarged to nearly a two hundred meter diameter.
As the sands retreated back to the earth, Gaara emerged, his mutilated form repaired once again. He was breathing heavily as he felt his tenant's youki slipping away quickly. That sand tornado took far too much youki and he only used it as last resort of desperation. He couldn't keep this up for very much longer. If he didn't take his final form soon, Uzumaki would almost definitely beat him!
He just happened to look up in time to see a mop of blonde hair crash face first into the ground, kicking up a small dust cloud. Gaara couldn't help but smirk as he watched Naruto stiffly pull himself to his feet, whining like a baby.
"Jeez, Gaara," Naruto whined. "You could warn a person before you do something like that! That was a rock I landed on!" And indeed, there was an exposed boulder under him that looked like it had just been hit by a sledgehammer.
Gaara only smirked wider. Whatever had fueled Naruto to suddenly gain so much chakra, it had also increased his resilience incredibly. It hadn't escaped his notice that the blonde was complaining about hitting a rock with his face, rather than what had caused him to. That would mean that Naruto was somewhere close to his own level, if not higher, to simply shrug off an attack that would've knocked another unconscious upon impact.
"You wanna play, Uzumaki?" he asked snidely. "Fine, then. Let's play!"
Crossing his arms across his chest, he formed shuriken out of the sands of his arms. Naruto couldn't exactly see what he was doing, but he did notice the slight indentations that appeared on the boy's arms. Before he could react, Gaara whipped his arms apart and launched almost countless shurikens.
"Suna Shuriken!" he cried, as the speeding weapons hit Naruto.
The force behind them was enough to pick Naruto clear off the ground and send him flying backwards. Speeding up to the boy, Gaara gave a mighty swing that further sent the boy careening into and through trees. Rather than follow, the Suna-nin stayed in the open where he had easy access to the ground and sand.
'Ow…ow…ow…ow…ouch!' Naruto cried out mentally as he destroyed one tree after another. After flying nearly forty meters skyward and through five trees, he came to a stop. Dropping out of the deep imprint that he left in its bark, he fell a short distance to another limb under him.
He just lay there for a moment to catch his breath. The searing pain in his back was considerable. But thankfully, the pain began to lessen and quickly started to heal. It would take a little while, but enough.
As his breath finally came back under control, he sat up and slowly pulled himself to his feet. Hanging in tatters around his waist was his shredded white undershirt. Now he was truly grateful for removing his sweater. It had cost a bundle and he didn't want to ruin it during his first time wearing it.
Looking back in the direction he'd just come from, he could feel Gaara still there, waiting patiently. That boy just didn't seem to have any limits! How could he beat him? And he had a feeling that if he didn't do it quickly, the Suna-nin would only draw on even more power. Well, if he had any left in his reserves after all that he'd just used.
But what could he do that could even stand up to the boy? None of his fuuton jutsus seemed to be working. His barrages, while excellent at disfiguring Gaara, just weren't cutting it. What else could he use?
"Well I'll be…" Pakkun muttered as he watched Naruto climb back onto his feet after being sent flying through nearly a half-mile of woodlands. The boy merely glanced down at his ruined shirt before absentmindedly tearing the remains off his chest. "That boy is as tough as rubber."
"Where is he getting that kind of strength to stand up again?" the Nara boy near him wondered aloud.
"Naruto," Pakkun said as the boy suddenly looked up towards where he came from. "Is much more than what we thought, it would seem."
"Gaara," the boy called out. "You're really starting to tick me off!"
He launched himself forward with an ease that was surprising. As though he'd not just been sent crashing through the very trees he was jumping over.
"Back for more?" Gaara called as he watched the blonde approaching. Crossing his arms again, he formed his sand shuriken. "Suna Shuriken!"
As the weapons were approaching him, twenty Narutos suddenly appeared. They flashed through three hand seals and then a wall of wind erupted around them. The wind was just strong enough to deflect the sand weapons.
Snorting at them, Gaara drew back, ready to attack. But rather than attack, as they approached, the blondes starting running in circles around him with their tornadoes still spinning. Gaara only realized what they were doing after the winds increased in power, lifting him off the ground.
"Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!" was shouted as a dozen clones appeared around him.
"U!" was shouted as several feet connected to his stomach, sending him farther upward. "Zu!" his back was once again introduced to several fists. The blow sent him flying forward, into several pairs of feet. "Ma!" He tried swinging his tail around his body, but proved to be a mistake. While he destroyed his most recent attackers, he left his back open. "Ki!" the kicks sent him higher still.
Over in the trees, Sasuke, who had returned quickly after leaving Sakura a fair distance away, watched as on the ground a small group of blondes began sending several more flying high into the air. What were they up to? Didn't they know that those Rendans, no matter how many Kage Bunshins he used, just didn't work? He must have some other kind of plan.
It was because he was watching the group on the ground that he saw it. One of the numerous blondes had been sent flying up even higher than the others.
"Rendan!" the final blow didn't send Gaara crashing to the ground like he'd expected but in the opposite direction.
Because his jaw had been used to fling him up, he was able to spot the single blonde above him. He was holding some kind of bright blue ball. That didn't surprise or scare him in the least. It was the amount of chakra he could sense that was gathered inside the ball. It must be some kind of bomb to hold that much chakra! Sasuke decided that the moment may just be the finisher.
He quickly opened the first gates and then made another Chidori in his right hand this time.
With a roar, Gaara swung his arm up to hit the boy away. Naruto, in response, brought the spiraling sphere down to intercept the blow. When the two hit, there was a loud explosion of sound as the highly spinning ball of chakra winds met the chakra-enhanced sand fist. Both boys were trying to force the other's attack away while trying to get at their opponent.
But it was a complete stalemate.
Then glowing cracks began to make their way slowly down Gaara's arm. Despite the fact that sand was charged with his and Shukaku's energies and nerves, he didn't feel any pain from the invading chakra. That is until the cracks under the sphere finally gave way and the ball entered.
With a horrible sensation of cutting, ripping, and shredding tearing its way down his arm, Gaara screamed as his sand arm literally exploded. He was too caught up in the pain and shock that he didn't notice Naruto until it was too late. The blonde was in his face again, holding another sphere in the other hand.
He was too late to stop the boy from thrusting the sphere. All Gaara could do was reflexively compact the sand covering his chest with as much chakra and youki as he could while hardening it.
The sphere hit his chest. With a funnel of wind and a loud explosion, he was sent flying to the ground, impacting with punishing force. But ringing in his ears was Naruto's voice, "RASENGAN!"
"What the!" three voices said at the same time. Two of them were awed beyond comprehension at what the boy had just done. The last was of shock and amazement, having recognized the jutsu instantly.
Dropping to the ground near Gaara, Naruto collapsed down to his knees, panting. All those Kaze Tates, Kage Bunshins, and two Rasengan sure took a lot out of him. If Gaara could still get up after that then he was screwed. Yet, he couldn't stop the large foxy grin from growing on his face.
It was only the second time he had used the Rasengan in battle, and it worked beautifully! Not only had it been able to destroy Gaara's sand arm, but it sent him to the ground with enough force to create a three-meter wide crater. Now that was a powerful jutsu!
"You!" came a voice of pure blood lust and anger. Naruto glanced over at Gaara who was slowly climbing to his feet. "You're dead!"
One thousand birds chirped once more.
"CHIDORI!" Sasuke's hand pierced straight through Gaara's torso, leaving another big puncture hole. The lightning nullified the sand, making the lot of it wither away.
And then he struck, aiming for Gaara's blind spot. Using a shove to propel himself, Sasuke whirled around and slammed his fist into Gaara's throat.
Gagging as his air pipe collapsed momentarily, Gaara couldn't stop Sasuke as he spun around again and punched him in the chest. The blow was strong enough to knock any air in his lungs out, forcing his air pipe open. Rendered unable to move, Gaara could only watch as Sasuke performed the final ritual kick to his abdomen. The kick, coupled with Gaara's return to the ground, was almost powerful enough to crush his spine.
"Shishi Rendan!"
Catching himself before he fell to the ground and skidded away, Sasuke was able to spring lightly away. Looking up as soon as he came to a halt, Sasuke saw Gaara grasping his stomach and convulsing awkwardly with strangled cries of pain.
With a primal roar of pain-induced fury, sand exploded from the ground they stood. It engulfed Gaara completely and rose very high into the air. But the same sand also sent Naruto tumbling away as the true form of Shukaku emerged.
This time, the amount of Chakra and killer intent coming from Shukaku scared Sasuke. The Uchiha backed away in fear of the bijuu before him.
Shukaku had returned at last.
- Back In The Village -
An Oto kunochi frowned as she saw her doton jutsu shatter because of Hiashi's strike. "I hate you Hyuga people!"
Hiashi grinned, dodging more shuriken that she generated and threw towards him. He then rushed forwards, his sheer speed leaving a dust trail. The woman's eyes widened, and then one palm strike to the heart later and she was...obviously dead!
However, in her place came a litany of droid-like robots blaring a RR logo.
"TARGET: HINATA HYUGA. DNA: 99% MATCH."
"Targeting...my daughter?" the patriarch said to himself, his anger threatening to get the better of him. "You dare..."
Despite his prior disdain toward his eldest, perhaps he had jumped the gun. She was strong, so much stronger than he could have ever imagined.
Perhaps Son Goku was not a bad influence after all.
Maybe he was just wrong damnit.
Fatherly pride began to creep back into his heart, and his all-seeing eyes were beginning to heal from their own blindness. He had to get to his daughter! First it was Kumogakure all of those years ago, and now it was some R and R village? Whoever it may be, nobody was allowed to tamper with his people, and especially not his own flesh and blood.
She was still his child.
Hiashi snorted. "Nobody will be allowed to get close to her on my watch."
As the growing group of machines descended from the sky and trekked toward the clan head, the Hyuga stood pact, gathering chakra into both of his palms. He would tear through anything and anyone to protect his lineage!
And then the bots raised their canisters to charge red photon energy, Hiashi struck with a vengeance.
"Hakke Kūhekishō!"
The perfected, vacuum wall palm ripped straight through the group of machines, ending all of their artificial lives.
"TARGET: HINATA HYUGA. DNA: 99% MATCH." "TARGET: HINATA HYUGA. DNA: 99% MATCH." "TARGET: HINATA HYUGA. DNA: 99% MATCH."
More and more robots seeped in to take its place, causing a bead of sweat to go down his head. This would not be easy.
"HYAAAAAH!"
BOOOM! CRASSSSH!
SMASSSSH! PSSSSSH!
The rest of the assailants were reduced to bits, with the last of the mechanisms being ripped in half savagely by a particular Saiyan child. Tossing both halves of the robot into the pile with the rest of his "kin", Goku incinerated them all with a yellow ki blast.
BOOOOOOOOM!
Hair blowing in the wind at the outset of his own attack, the boy faced his best friend's father with a battle-crazed expression. Hiashi stared back with a piercing glare, Byakugan eyes unrelenting in their figurative assault. Was the boy finally showing his true colors after all these years of dormancy? Was he finally turning on them like he feared upon inspecting him as a child?
And then Goku smiled. What? Was he enjoying war?
"You must be Son Goku, I presume?" He played the fool.
"Yup!" The boy responded callously. "You look a lot like Hinata."
"Indeed, she is my daughter," the man responded, not letting his guard down. "Would you happen to know where she is?"
"Uhhh..." Goku stammered, not used to facing the pressure of a caring parent. "Let me check."
"And how would you do that, child? Are you playing me for a fool..." The parent began, tone dipping lower and lower.
"Nope I can sense her energy," the boy said, closing his eyes and sitting Indian-style along the war torn ground. "Gimme a sec." Hiashi watched for any potential deception, but found the exact opposite of the evidence he was looking for. The boy told zero lies!
And then he was caught off guard by the boy punching the ground, shaking the entire village block vigorously.
"Damnit! She's not in the village anymore!"
"What? Where is she headed?"
"I-I'm not sure! But I have to go after her right now!"
"Wait, I may have a lead."
The boy looked up impatiently, he was raring to go. "Yes?"
"Those robots were targeting her. They all had a strange R and R logo on them. Any ideas about who they are?"
"The Red Ribbon Army. Had a run in in the past with those guys, they're bad news. But what are you trying to say?"
"They're the ones," Hiashi begun, relinquishing his dojutsu. "They're the ones who took her away from the village!"
Goku clenched his fists, looking at the ground due to his own failure. "It's my fault, I'm the one who let her go!"
And then he looked up to see the adult in the vicinity smile grimly, his palm placed on the shorter boys right shoulder.
"I see the impact that you've had on her, Son Goku," he started. "I can only assume what you two mean to each other, but you have my regards. If you need support or assistance in your mission to save Hinata, do not be afraid to come to me."
"My mission?" The boy looked up, meeting his elder's eyes.
"Yes, you are going! Nobody else can do this except for you!"
"Right right I knew that." And with that, Hiashi ceased his grip on the Saiyan's shoulder, fixing his face into a look of affirmation...and threat?
"Now go. See to it that she's brought back alive and well, I know you are more than capable of it. Do not disappoint me."
Goku gulped, sensing the man's energy level spike to a level beyond his own with this last statement. An enraged Hiashi was something to behold!
The boy recovered from his stupor and tightened his resolve, smirking. "Hai, I won't let either of you down! You can count on me."
The two nodded at each other, with the man of visual prowess looking at the boy of absolute strength fleeing the scene. Except, it was not on foot.
The Saiyan closed his eyes, focused his ki properly, and as if he was a professional at it levitated off of the ground. While it was implied during the Chunin Exams that Goku had a capability of flight based on his performances, it could have been argued that he simply propelled himself with his ki and lacked genuine, out of this world aerodynamic ability.
Whelp. The boy could actually fly on command.
Watching the boy wobble through the sky in an uncoordinated fashion, Hiashi chuckled despite the circumstances. His daughter had a bond with a kid who possessed the raw power to change the world in any way he saw fit.
She was in the safest hands known to man.
- Elsewhere -
"FREE… FREE… FREE… KILL, KILL, KILL!"
Luckily, the sand raccoon ignored them…instead heading straight for the outer wall in order to annihilate the village. Nothing could fight against that thing.
Unfortunately even though it didn't notice them, by simply trotting by them it had let off huge waves of sand and wind which knocked them clear off of their feet.
"Is that Gaara?" Shikamaru asked as he made his way toward the duo, fear actually creeping into his voice.
Before his question could be answered, Naruto's gritty determination returned. It was time to summon Gamabunta...
"What the hell is that…" Sasuke questioned with his scarlet eyes, staring at an incoming projectile from the sky. "It's coming right for that thing?"
The boys watched as a figure charged straight at Shukaku wielding dangerous speeds, who had turned its head to stare at it, its large sand mouth opened.
In fear.
- Flashback no Jutsu -
"Son Goku..."
"That's my name," was the uncharacteristically cold response.
"You are strong. Mother wants your blood. Right now."
"Can you at least wait until the exams? Me and Hinata are good and tired-"
"No! I...WILL KILL YOU TODAY...SON GOKU!"
"You will not. Especially not in my home."
"Heh. If you stand in my way...I will just have to kill you first."
"Why are you so adamant about fighting him?" The girl ignored his threat.
"Because I need to feel...alive! The last guy's blood was so distasteful. And you," He paused, pointing directly at his initial target.
"If you do not fight me right now..."
He commanded the sand to begin to converge in the girl's direction.
"I will paint this room with her blood."
Son Goku's eyes then widened. Was he contemplating letting the girl die for the sake of rest?
"Hinata-chan...you want this guy?" Was Goku not THREATENED by him?
"Or you want me to take him?"
"I-I can't really move right now," the girl blushed and smiled in front of him. Nobody lived to do that.
"So...I need you to save me. Just this once."
"...Gah, fine. I'll be back in a few," his prey said, pushing himself off of the couch and into the path of the sand. "Can you please open the window real quick?"
"Hai Goku-sensei!"
They smiled at each other so warmly. It made him want to throw up.
And so he himself smiled. Viciously. As his prey walked forward with...authority, his sand hastily retreated back into its gourd?
What the-
WHOOSSSH!
Before he knew it, he was out of the apartment and on a grass surface, with a vengeful animal crushing his head into the ground. This did not just happen to him!
His sand had yet to even make it out of the apartment...
It was then, that Shukaku knew he had nothing on Goku's potential wrath.
"I don't care if you wanna fight me, in fact I would love to."
And then the hand moved from his entire head to his esophagus.
"But if you ever." The boy began, and then he felt his body get lifted from this throat. "Threaten Hinata like that again."
His throat was being crushed, and breathing was no longer a possibility. And gag he did.
"I will see to it that you never threaten anyone else ever again."
And then he felt intense warmth to his face, generating the same kind of fear that he was used to his prey having. The tables were turned on him!
"If we fight in the exams," his prey began as the ball was sizzling with heat in his hand. "You should go all out from the start. I wanna feel alive too..."
- Present no Jutsu -
Now he was all out from the start...and yet he was petrified.
"YOU…! NO! YOU CAN'T BE HERE, I JUST GOT OUT!"
The huge beast was hysterical beyond belief.
"Yes, it's me!" The figure shouted in a booming voice. It could not be who they thought it was...
"NOOOOOOOOOOO!" Shukaku wailed, he sounded like he was about to start crying.
"YESSSSS!" The boy growled, "This invasion is OVER!"
The Saiyan continued toward Shukaku, who simply watched in horror for a second before sending a huge blast of wind at him.
"Not strong enough!" Goku shouted irately, "Go away and train!"
The wind blast hit the Saiyan, who despite his inexperience at aviation flew straight through it.
WHOOOOOOOOSH!
Inevitably, Goku ROCKETED into Shukaku's sand body and demolished it in one fell swoop Superman style. Emerging from out the husk known as the Ichibi, was Gaara's neck in the palm of the aliens hand.
Not wanting nor caring about dealing with the psychotic genin beyond defeating the sand monster thing, Goku roughly tossed the redhead into the dirt near the group of genin and focused his attention to the Dragon Radar that was embedded into his pockets prior to his little detour.
While his energy sensing was proficient, Hinata's signature was not particularly strong and the Red Ribbon droids themselves could not be sensed due to their lack of genuine life-force. It was a common sense move to use the radar to get a beat on where exactly she was or would likely end up being, rather than relying on a fluctuating beacon as directions.
Save Hinata, destroy the Red Ribbon Army, and take the Dragon Balls. Three birds with one stone.
Before the speechless genin could muster a single word, Goku ignored them all and fled the scene altogether, flying away with a greater purpose.
Both of the incarnations of Hagaromo's will were jealous, with Sasuke's case being far more severe.
As strong as he had gotten up to this point, he was absolutely fodder compared to Son Goku, and it was beyond infuriating to acknowledge. Naruto's growth rate was already dastard as it was, Goku blew them both out of the water, the ocean, and the sky simultaneously. Itachi remained his primary focus, but to see someone who he considered below him in the form of the aforementioned boy consistently outperform him to THIS degree was asinine.
Maybe Goku was above even Itachi? It did not seem possible but neither was the ability to fly. If only he had that kind of power...
For the blonde, it was simply a matter of Goku being an entity that broke down his ability to comprehend. At first, he seemed like a strong but otherwise normal orphan who happened to share similar circumstances in life to himself. It was great having such a relatable friend by his side, at least until he was ripped away from his livelihood for a five year hiatus. Despite being amicable upon his return, the friendship they used to have did not rekindle itself, as both of them had changed over the course of time. Goku was aloof and only cared about what he cared about, Naruto had Sasuke, others, and then Team 7 to fill the void. And then everything came to a head during the preliminaries, where the boy took Hinata's side instead of seeing the voice of reason that she went overboard with the intent to humiliate Sakura.
And despite this, the grudge that he and Sasuke held over the incident did not seem to matter nor be relevant to Goku. It was like telling a force of nature that you did not like or appreciate its existence — absolutely nothing changes. Goku was Goku.
And Goku was stronger than himself and the rest of the genin combined based on how easily he just one-shot a TAILED BEAST! One. Shot.
He and Sasuke both barely survived pushing Gaara to even get to that point. Musing aside...
Naruto could vaguely see Gaara falling nearby, the sand had protected him from most of the damage but he could see that his opponent was ruined.
The container hit the trees, slamming into branches painfully, breaking through the brush before finally hitting the ground.
"Ow…" Gaara cursed in his state of utter shambles, "what… the… fuck…"
Naruto chuckled from his position, a Mister Satan-like grin forming. "I beat you!"
The blonde then noticed his foe was still conscious, and began to walk toward Gaara, who was staring at him in horror.
"No…" Gaara tried to move away, "Why...why did Son Goku have to...show himself?!"
"I don't know," Naruto said in his trot, giving the redhead a rhetorical answer. "I guess because he had to protect his village?"
"Protect…?" Gaara whispered, "Friends? Village?"
Gaara watched as the blonde stopped before him. Uzumaki Naruto… he was just like him. And yet he protected his village, he loved his village, he would die for his village. The sand genin couldn't fathom it.
"Wait." Sasuke stood, pulling out a kunai as he glared at Gaara, "There's one last thing to do."
Gaara couldn't move, even if he wanted to. Maybe he should just roll over and die, his existence was now meaningless. Sasuke began to slowly walk towards him, and the boy closed his eyes tightly, waiting for the blow. After all these years, all the failed assassinations… this was it. He was finally going to die.
"No!" A female voice cried out, and Gaara's eyes snapped open, Temari, his sister.
"Leave him alone." Kankuro was there as well.
Sasuke glared at the two as they stood in his way, "Move or I'll kill you too. That bastard nearly killed all of us and wrecked our entire village. I'll fucking kill all of you!"
"Teme…"
"Naruto..." Sasuke voice was firm, not liking where this was headed.
Naruto said what the Uchiha expected him to, "Maybe we should let them go."
"I can't just let him go." Sasuke glared back at Gaara, who was watching, immobile. His teammate needed to learn that sometimes people had to die, and this specific guy definitely needed to die.
"I say we let them go too." Shikamaru yawned.
"What?" Sasuke and Kankuro both said at the same time.
"You saw what he can do!" The Uchiha continued heatedly, gesturing at Gaara, "They're our enemies, we have to kill them now or they'll just come back!"
"The Sand was tricked," another voice interrupted as a sagely man with white hair landed by Naruto, glancing at his exhausted student. He looked unscathed, "The Kazekage is dead — Orochimaru has been posing as him for months. He's the one who is behind the attack — the Sand ninja were just puppets."
"Our father is dead?" Temari gaped.
"Yup. Sorry." Jiraiya was not sorry, "Now leave. Sasuke, put that kunai away before you hurt yourself."
Sasuke glared at Jiraiya, but did what the Sannin commanded.
The Leaf genin watched as the two Sand ninja cautiously picked up their brother and left, heading away from the village and towards their own country.