What is weight? A planet's grasp on the matter upon it? More generally, the downward force with which anything possessing mass was subject to, provided it's within the gravitational pull of a more massive object?

Both were adequate descriptions. Neither were helpful in understanding the Keijūgan no Jutsu. At its heart, it was a body modification technique, a brand of ninjutsu renowned for its risk factor. It took the matter that composed the technique's target and put it in this wishy-washy state of existence. It was still there, taking up space and able to interact with the environment, but it was also not in many of the ways that mattered.

This wasn't nearly the only technique to take advantage of this state, and there was a wide spectrum of completion. On one end was not putting a target in that state at all, so that it was fully present. On the other was storage scrolls, which fully transformed the target into a state of nonexistence, fully separating them from the world. In the middle (where exactly depended on situational factors) were elemental techniques like the gravity duo, Futon vacuum ninjutsu, and Katon entropy ninjutsu.

And the Henge if you tried to transform into something smaller than yourself (I had wondered why that wasn't done more—it was difficult and dangerous to put your body in that state for an extended period of time). There were plenty of others, I was sure, but I didn't know what they were just yet.

Where did that mass go? Well, researchers had no fucking clue. But I have a theory, based on both what I knew of science from my home world, and from canon. I think that there is a separate dimension parallel to our own, and these jutsu were all minor applications of space/time techniques. In fact, I think we've even seen that dimension in the anime.

Obito could make his body fully present but intangible using his Mangekyō technique. I was just going to move past the fact that it shouldn't be possible, since by all accounts fully removing yourself from the common plane without any part of yourself left behind as an anchor should cause your body to unravel, because I think we've established already that sharingan were fucking bullshit. After fully disappearing, Obito seemed to even enter his own personal dimension, which is where he fought Kakashi. That place was shown to be desolate and empty, not full of junk people had sealed away, so I think that there are an infinite number of these dimensions that are created when needed and destroyed once they were no longer so.

People in this world didn't really understand how utterly magical that was. They didn't really understand physics as a concept. That is the reason why this jutsu wasn't well known until the Tsuchikage brought it into prominence, and why, even after that, it was so poorly utilized.

Haruto was about to be treated to an up close demonstration of just how broken such a simple ability could be.

Using internal chakra manipulation, I pinched a nerve in my spine, focussing through the sharp pain. It would have been debilitating years ago, but now it only brought focus and power.

Teppōmizu Dainidankai: Omoi Manto (Flash Flood Second Step: Heavy Cloak).

I couldn't Open a Gate™ and I'd never try. I had figured out the theory behind it, and decided it was a boorish, self-sacrificing technique with no finesse, and that there were easier, more refined and far safer ways to attain a result that was barely less powerful. My Flash Flooding wasn't one of them, but it gave me the resilience to give myself other boosts that would take my taijutsu to the next level all the same.

With an ease born of extreme practice, I drew Yang-skewed chakra from my Seimon (Gate of Life), forming my defensive outer coat. Maintaining that, I discretely cast the Keijūgan on myself, taking away as much weight as I could.

"Yeah, I'm sorry too," I said, circling the tree. It was harder to walk normally in my current state; the gentle wind was threatening to take me away. To keep it from doing that, and to keep from showing my hand, I used chakra sticking to keep myself on the ground.

"I was just starting to like you."

I didn't use the shunshin. I didn't use the Tosshin. The first wouldn't have worked right in my current state, and there wasn't anything in the exact right location for me to use as a tether. Instead, using a red bandage I had discretely unwoven with Ninpo: Seikatsu no Harigane no Jutsu (Ninja Art: Living Wire Technique), I pulled a particular tag out from between the folds of my bandages and placed it on my own back, where it stuck. It activated.

When I say I shot towards the Yatsureta clansman like a rocket, I meant it in the most literal sense. There was an explosion, and the propulsion tags, which I had refined to the best of my ability at Gari's behest, hurled me forward at breakneck speeds. Though it had been made to be as directional as it possibly could be, my spine would have still shattered and pierced my heart if not for my Flash Flooding. Instead, I felt nothing beside a pain in my neck from the whiplash.

I was in front of the shocked ninja a blink later. It was so quick that I, despite all my practice, almost acted too late. But only almost. The millisecond my tag activated, accounting for my lagging reaction time, I added all of my weight back. My fist was already extended into a punch.

To reiterate. I was propelled at speeds that, under these conditions, only an incredibly light object could reach. Then I added my original weight back. Due to physics, my speed wasn't affected. My momentum was.

Haruto skipped.

Once. Twice. Three times. But…no. I couldn't pat myself on the back just yet. On the last bounce, he rolled over midair and reoriented his body. When he reached the ground again, he extended one arm, likely using chakra to assist as he transitioned a graceless tumble into a backwards handspring.

Damn. That was some impressive resilience. Not to mention skill. That was squirrel level parkour there.

Landing in a slight crouch, he raised his hand open for me to see. It was the universal "I come in peace" expression, and that meant actual fuck all to a shinobi. It didn't matter what you were holding if your entire body was a weapon. I couldn't afford to let up or relax after that meaningless gesture, so though I would personally rather talk things out, I couldn't afford to give him any openings. Stalling on paper might benefit me, with my team nearby, but it might benefit him too in a way I can't currently see. I needed to keep my guard up.

"A little girl really shouldn't be able to hit that hard," Haruto complained, rubbing the lump that was surely forming on his head. I had gotten a good lick in, but I expected him to be a lot more hurt than he actually was. Aside from the dust and the friction burns from hitting the dirt, only his shoulder seemed to be really damaged. I deduced that was where I had actually made direct contact, and that was nowhere near where I aimed. He'd been able to twist himself at the last millisecond to a more defensive posture.

"A chunin really shouldn't be able to get up after that," I shot back, squaring up as I surveyed the ground. At each point he had bounced off of it, there was a small crater, but that wasn't due to my actions. From the way that the rock flared outwards at the edges, I could tell Haruto had done that himself.

Did he overload chakra sticking? I wondered. That's what the marks look like. He cushioned his force with a mini explosion of his own.

That was…novel. I'd have to keep that trick in mind, If I found myself in this position and didn't think my Flash Flooding would be enough to protect me. But the timing must be a bitch, and I doubt Haruto found himself in this predicament often enough to practice. It was all intuition.

"Well, we don't have ranks here. Since there isn't a hidden village," he replied.

He had a point. Still, the spirit of the message still applied.

"We thought you sucked," I said bluntly as I fed golem seeds into the ground. I needed more pieces on the playing field in order to keep my agility at top notch. The explosion trick was too uncontrollable; it was a good opener, but beyond that I had to be selective in its usage. If Haruto predicted it, the linear movement could very well be used against me.

"I suppose I'll take that as a compliment," he said, and, to be fair, it kinda was. To a ninja. Damnit. "Look, I know that might look bad, and I'm sorry for almost stabbing you. But can we talk about this like grown ups…er, you know what I mean. Before things spiral even more."

His eye flickered downwards, and I could tell he felt my clones.

"Let me apprehend you, and then we can talk as much as you want," I returned.

"I would but your sensei will kill me no matter what you say, and I have too many people depending on me," he said placatingly. It was a good point. Nonetheless, it made my path clear.

"I'm sorry, but if you're right, sensei is going to kill you either way," I said. "Giving up now would up your chances. At least we'll hear you out."

He sighed. "You're right. I'm sorry Kasaiki-chan. It's too early for me to die. So I'm going to need you to help keep me alive."

You could call Haruto a shitty ninja for saying that outright, but it didn't matter at the end of the day. It was obvious he was going to try to take me hostage; he only had that one course of action. I just laughed.

Just a few more seconds.

"Remember when you told Iwao, you must be the strongest genin I've ever seen? And he'd said, you'd think. Yeah, that's about to make a lot more sense."

Right on cue, the clone seeds I planted finished gestating, and four burst out of the ground encircling him. He spun through hand seals so quickly they were a blur, but I could tell what was going to happen from the way he landed on Hitsuji.

Kami damnit. Lightning again.

Arcs of electricity burst from him in a ring, destabilizing my jutsu and even stalling the Doton component of the explosion tags inside. Since it was fūinjutsu and the seal itself wasn't damaged, they still went off, but it was delayed long enough for Haruto to notice them and get away. He'd see that trick coming from here on out.

But I had plenty of others.

Blinded by the light of his own attack, he couldn't see as I flipped though seals of my own. I removed my weight again, lunging forward with the Tosshin. I added the weight back just before the lightning fucked up my Doton technique, and I barely felt the waning electricity through my Heavy Cloak.

Despite my surprise attack, Haruto wove around my strike, unwilling to take it head on this time. Ducking around me, he chopped at my neck, trying to knock me unconscious with a single strike, but I spun counter to him and blocked with my forearm. Though he wasn't using his full strength—since he wanted to keep me alive—he was still full grown and I was but a pre-teen. No amount of chakra enhancement to my elbow joint could overcome the difference in leverage, and I ended up punching myself in the cheek. I was damn sick of this body.

Still, it was a glancing hit, and it didn't stop me from trying to drop-kick him in the side of the knee. He turned it just in time so that I hit it head on instead, which was far less debilitating for him, and would have hurt me if not for my Flash Flooding. Before he could capitalize on my compromised position, I had already substituted away with a clone who wasted no time in exploding. He dove to the side.

"Kami, would you stop doing that?" he whined.

"Would you stop trying to kidnap me?" I shot back. "I know I'm cute, but come on."

The implied accusation was so shocking to Haruto that he lagged for a second, and I was able to pinch my nerve again and gather even more skewed chakra. Enough to maintain my cloak and then some. I dove in, and he again formed signs too fast for me to track. This time, they ended with Tora, but he didn't bring his hand to his mouth, and from that plus his posture I pieced together that he was going to perform a rare defensive Katon technique.

I could stop and disable it with my Fire Sealing Method scroll, but I'd lose my momentum, have to abort my attack and possibly give Haruto the perfect chance for a follow up. Instead, I decided to take a risk and dove straight into the curtain of flames that sprung up as Haruto slapped his hands to the ground.

I felt the heat of the Katon chakra lick my skin. It definitely gave me first degree burns through my Heavy Cloak, and I could see my bandages start to smolder out of the corner of my eye. But I was going so fast that I only felt that for a moment before I burst through with a mighty punch that I didn't care was telegraphed.

Teppōmizu Dainidankai: Yōken (Flash Flood Second Step: Yang Fist)!

I felt a brief sense of satisfaction as my blow landed, but that was short lived as the solid form beneath me popped into smoke.

Shadow clone? Damnit! He must have done that the moment he cut off our line of sight with his fire.

I had cursed my immature body just moments ago, but now an advantage to it became clear. I heard nothing and felt nothing with my active chakra sense, but suddenly Haruto was behind me, and would have hit me across the back with a hammer arm if I hadn't caught a glimpse of him through my peripherals. He couldn't exactly hide in my blindspot when he was so much bigger than I was.

Still, there was no time to dodge. I spun around with a cross block, not making the same mistake as before by using both arms to brace myself. That compounded the effectiveness of my heavy cloak, since Haruto effectively hit a cushion that hit another two cushions, but I was still lifted off my feet and thrown. However, I landed on my feet effortlessly.

"Damn, what kind of bloodline—" he began, before groaning. "Of course. You're a Bakuhatsu, aren't you? That explains the explosions."

Excuse me the fuck? Bakuhatsu? Fuck off—ehem. Stay cool, Kasaiki. Stay cool.

As much as I wanted to correct him, and as much as I vehemently wanted to convey my offense, it wouldn't be in my best interest strategically, so I grit my teeth instead.

The Katon chakra stuck to my bandages was reigniting. Yeah, it'll do that. I'd need to take care of it before it became a problem. With no other option, I unfurled my scroll as far as it would go and wiped away the flames as if it was a towel. It wasted half of the seal on there, since the patches were so small, which was annoying.

Haruto stopped giving me the chance to undo his progress, and I saw him mold the seals to another ninjutsu. I threw a kunai as I dove with all my chakra-enhanced might, cutting off the sequence, and I detonated a clone underneath him before it even finished gestating.

There was no blast, since it was buried far enough underground, but the effect it created was similar to Iwao's Trailblazing Star. A plume of dirt erupted underneath Haruto, and he stumbled as the stone underneath him broke into fragmented pieces. I was there in a flash, engaging him in a furious bout of taijutsu.

"What is your endgame, here?" I asked, still trying to reason with him. Because I was fairly certain this was a misunderstanding, like Haruto claimed. I just couldn't risk the possibility I was wrong. "Do you really think taking me hostage will save you from Biwa-sensei? Don't you know what he's capable of? If you hold a kunai to my throat, he'll disintegrate you before you can even cut it."

He jumped over my leg sweep with ease.

"I have no doubt he could," Haruto replied easily. He was barely even breathing hard. "If he had the ability. Luckily for me, the Tsuchibokori no Biwa watching us right now is just a clone. Hence, why he hasn't cut in already."

My heart dropped at his words, and I barely had time to skip away from a roundhouse kick. Haruto knew? He knew Biwa-sensei was a clone? How? We'd split off from the original and Endo-sensei long before we met Haruto!

Or, was it long before we thought we met Haruto? Has he been watching us ever since we first made it to Sōgen?

I ran a wide circle around my opponent, keeping well out of arm's reach. I couldn't afford to take my eyes off of Haruto, but from another perspective I could see that he was right. Both Iwao and Biwa-sensei were watching from a distance. Why hadn't they jumped in yet?

Haruto casually countered my circling, ensuring his back wasn't to Biwa-sensei.

"You've all underestimated me. Plenty of people do. That's your loss. Accept it gracefully, and rest assured that you won't die at the end of this. It's okay."

His tone was gentle and confident. Haruto was truly being earnest. Unfortunately, he didn't really have a grasp on my true personality. If he did, he would have said just about anything but that.

"Heh. Hehe. Ha ha HA!"

Blood pounded in my ears as a villain laugh fell from my lips unbidden.

"Lose?" I chortled coldly. "I lose? As if I'll accept that from you. Not when you haven't even seen half of what I'm capable of."

I formed hand seals slowly, assuredly.

"I don't do shit gracefully," I snarled. "If I lose, then I go out with a bang. Shall I give you a demonstration?"

Fuck it. We ball.

With a stomp of my foot, I planted a great seed. One of only three I possessed—two if we're being technical. The ground rumbled and cracked sharply as the seed gestated, and Haruto backed away warily. Faster once I took his place, placing my body between him and my weapon, and, more pressingly, over the spot of ground I had shattered with my earlier explosion. Idly, I unwrapped the bandage around my arm.

"You've been so concerned with taking me alive," I snarled. "Let's see if you can survive the consequences of your actions."

The ground erupted behind me, and I didn't turn to look.

"And don't you ever call me a fucking Bakuhatsu again!"

…ah damn. I couldn't keep a lid on that one after all. I need therapy.

Doton: Jūtan Bakudan no Jutsu: Juu-roku no Kao (Earth Release: Carpet Bomb Technique: Sixteen Faces)

Thirty-two faces was just enough to get Minato, but even though the future Yondaime Hokage was an outlier of the most absurd margins, he was ultimately eleven years old, like me. Haruto clearly held the skill of a jonin. I held no illusions that my signature technique wouldn't be enough even at full capacity. So, sixteen faces would be sufficient as a distraction.

Heavy Cloak. Lightened Boulder. Rush.

As soon as the payload made its final split, I selected a face most directly above me and rush replaced with it, rationalizing the existence of the crater I left behind and hurling me up into the air. Higher and higher I flew, quickly reaching an altitude beyond what I've ever dared attempt. Only when I began to feel lightheaded did I add weight to my feet.

The wind was loud and strong up here. Momentum was all that kept me on track, and I needed to reverse it quickly before I was blown miles away. I cast Fūton: Daitoppa no Jutsu (Wind Style: Great Breakthrough Technique), which I had finally picked up from Daigo, at just the right angle to combat the outside forces, and I was hurtling back down towards the ground, lips pulled back in a snarl and I wrenched down my left arm, reeling in what was stuck to the bandage with my chakra. I hadn't returned its weight yet, because I needed to wrangle it into position.

The ground was fast approaching, but I had shot high into the air. In the dark of the night this high up, I couldn't really even see Haruto or my team. The periodic explosions from my Carpet Bomb were all I had to orient myself, and I had to work without my gaze wavering. It would all be for naught if I missed.

My fingers met stone, and I felt for the edge I had chosen this piece for. I found it, and used chakra sticking to clamber over so I was above the object. A difficult feat, since it was well over ten times my size, but I managed. Air resistance did all the work in orienting it properly so that sharp boulder fell point downwards.

I was ready. Sticking my feet to the flat back, I took out a tag and stuck it in the rock, near enough to the point to prevent any mishaps. Then, I finally gave it back all of its weight.

"Doton: Sekai o Kudaku Dangan no Jutsu!" I choked out, entirely inaudible over the sound of the wind.

Earth Style: Breakworld Bullet.

In my past life, I've been skydiving. Hell, I'd taken paratrooping courses—the Navy was the fourth largest air force in the world, and two of the entries above it were also divisions of the US military. Falling from great heights actually wasn't new to me.

Falling from them without a parachute was. Unable to take a deep breath, as air went everywhere but in my lungs, I had no choice but to go full send, unsticking my feet and fighting the wind current to level out. I watched as the boulder, at its full weight (which I estimated to be eight tons—the size of a large elephant), fell silently from above, cloaked in darkness. Crucially, without assistance from chakra. Making it virtually undetectable.

I had no time to track its progress closely as I was in mortal peril. There was a simple solution to my problem, but I was shooting fish in the dark. I thought for sure my prior actions had created enough "fish," but as I cast Kawarimi after Kawarimi, and my tether failed to connect with anything to replace myself with, I began to panic.

Replace. Replace. I was not going to die from fucking up one of the basic five.

I was far enough down to clearly see the boulder splash against the ground. Yes, that word choice was intentional, and thank fuck. That meant it had probably actually worked! The Seiatsudan (Suppression Round) tag wouldn't have triggered if there wasn't a chakra signature nearby. Haruto, in some capacity, was caught!

Holy shit I had no time to celebrate. Replace. Replace. Why the hell didn't my carpet bomb blow more shit up?

Fucking replace!

One second I was falling. The next I was standing on the ground, utterly motionless. It would have been a flawless landing if I hadn't stumbled and fallen over, a garbled scream in the back of my throat.

Damnit. I'd need to practice sticking the landing if I wanted to go sky high again. That was just embarrassing. Thank fuck that a built-in mechanic of the replacement technique was that it erased existing momentum. That was what saved my life.

But I wasn't done yet. Where was Haruto?

"That was utterly absurd."

I instinctually lashed out with a mule kick, but my legs still felt like jelly from my flight, and the boneless strike was easily diverted. I was tackled to the ground, though not as viciously as was probably warranted, and my hands were pulled behind my back despite my squirming.

"Mother fucker," I spat as I was manhandled into submission. I tried to kick him in the nuts, but I couldn't get the angle right.

"Whoa, easy kid," he said. "It's fine, it's cool. I'm not going to do anything. Even after…that. Like, come on. Was all that really necessary? I don't even understand what happened over the last two minutes. I thought the kami themselves were trying to strike me down."

"How did you get out?" I snarled. "One or both of your hands should have been trapped in stone."

Since the boulder was natural and not a Doton product, Raiton manipulation wouldn't destabilize it. Only Doton would free him, and without both hands free to mold seals, he shouldn't have been able to cast any.

"Saburō took my hand's place. I better…oh."

Did…did the fucking lizard use a replacement variation of the summoning technique? That was bullshit!

Then, he turned slightly, and I saw what gave him pause. Between us and the giant, deformed boulder, stood Biwa-sensei, his arms crossed. A half step behind was Iwao, unconsciously mirroring him.

"Wow, you are…quick," Haruto said, and I squirmed so his mouth wasn't directly next to my ear. I could tell, he was using his usual bravado to hide his apprehension. He hadn't noticed them get so close.

"If you would be so kind to let me—" he attempted, taking a step to the side as if he was going to walk around the duo. Casually, Biwa-sensei inserted himself back in Haruto's path.

"I'm not known for my kindness," he said, neutrally.

Haruto sighed, the reality of the situation sinking in for him.

"Saburō is encased in stone," he said. "He's going to run out of air soon. Please free him."

Iwao looked to our sensei, who gave him a nod. Running through the hand seals for the Moguragakure, my childhood friend reached through the stone, pulling out the Yatsureta nin's familiar with one hand and ignoring the repeated slaps of its spiny tail against his forearm as it struggled in his grip.

I felt a thrill of bitter satisfaction. I had lost the battle—that was undebatable. But the war? That was less clear cut. I was taken as a hostage, and if my team hadn't made it in time to capitalize on the opening I created, it would have been a total victory for my opponent. It was almost guaranteed that someone of his skill level could have freed the lizard, even while keeping me subdued. Instead, my actions had secured us a hostage of our own.

"One wrong move and I'll snap its neck," Iwao declared, in case that wasn't abundantly clear.

"Please don't," Haruto said, tiredly. "I'm not looking for any bloodshed. I never was. All I wanted was to talk things out. But then your little she-devil dropped a mountain on me. Isn't that a little much? I thought she was the nice one!"

Iwao's derisive scoff showed what he thought of that assessment.

"Imai isn't some helpless girl you can simply take hostage," Biwa-sensei drolled. "She's a proud Iwa kunoichi. And more of a rabid beast than a child."

Though he mostly said it as a power play over Haruto, I couldn't help but feel a little fuzzy inside at the praise. Even that little bit at the end sounded more like playful banter than condemnation. I had been worried for days now, not knowing where Biwa-sensei and I now stood. I was beginning to think that I had unknowingly crossed a line that we would never be able to ignore. This was…well, I don't know if it was a step in the right direction. But it was nice.

"Mou, you think I'm a beast, sensei?" I asked, fake pouting. The positive connotation in my old life wasn't used here; the word was exclusively demeaning.

"I better play the part then."

Channeling chakra to my tongue, I united the cortex embedded there with the slot on a particular tooth. I tasted rather than saw the puff of smoke as my jaws were forcefully separated and I bit down on cloth-wrapped metal. Throwing my head downwards slightly and relaxing my bite, the kunai handle slip past my lips until my teeth caught on the end ring, and I quickly performed a tongue maneuver that reoriented the kunai to the side, biting down on the now horizontal handle and swinging the point up at Haruto's vulnerable neck in one continuous motion.

My homage to Zabuza was interrupted when the Sōgen nin, rather than dropping me in shock like I hoped, bucked his entire body. My diaphragm opened, and the compression left me gasping involuntarily, so the kunai dropped harmlessly to the ground with a clatter.

"Ridiculous!" he spluttered over my sudden coughing fit. "How—where did you even get that?"

"Careful with my student," Biwa-sensei said coldly, and Iwao held out his arm for Haruto to see. From the frantically scrabbling claws and tail, I could guess that my teammate had increased pressure on the animal's neck.

"She attacked me! Stop!" Haruto demanded, and I felt him shift his weight. Bringing one leg up, I could feel his knee at the small of my back. Normally, that wouldn't be a threatening stance, but with chakra enhancement boosting his strength, it would only take one sharp, upward jolt to send my spine into my brain stem.

"I may want peace, but don't take that to mean I won't do what I have to," he said. "I might not be from a Hidden Village, but I'm a ninja."

"Sensei," I spluttered, still coughing. "He's been watching us since we got to the country. He thinks you're a clone."

I needed to convey that to him, but I had to be careful of my wording. Haruto thought Biwa-sensei was a clone. Yes, he was right, but I didn't know how confident he was in that assessment. It would be stupid to outright confirm it to him.

That's what I thought, anyway.

"Oh? And what makes you think that?" Biwa-sensei asked, his tone almost bored.

"Let's skip over this part," Haruto said, referring to our attempts at gauging exactly what he knew. "Despite what you think, I truly do want a positive working relationship, though I'll settle for lukewarm at this point. I never intended to harm you, even indirectly. You are my greatest ally. It just so happens that it was to my benefit that you played your part uninformed. There's no need to change course now."

"Speak plainly," Biwa-sensei ordered.

"I'm trying!" He took a deep breath. "Look. You're right. I've been watching you since you arrived in Sōgen no Kuni. I watched your arrival through Saburō's eyes. You, Tsuchibokori-san, created a clone while your real body embarked on a separate mission with your other compatriot. The Kunoichi."

Well, I suppose that explained why Endo-sensei didn't sense him. I should think that even she wouldn't be able to notice a lizard, even one who could use chakra. Their signatures were probably too alien for her to flag as abnormal, if they were even significant enough to register in the first place.

"My clansmen have been keeping an eye on your progress ever since," Haruto said. "I knew Iwa would send someone eventually. It was only a matter of time before someone came to take back what Yamasaki Toyokazu had stolen."

I arched an eyebrow at that. It wasn't too absurd for Haruto to intuit that Biwa-sensei was after Yamasaki. What else could he possibly be after in this country?

However, it was news to me that Yamasaki Toyokazu had stolen something that Iwa wanted back. That hadn't been included in our debriefing. So how the hell had Haruto known that?

"I'll be upfront, now," Haruto continued. "Yamasaki Toyokazu is a menace, and I want him dead. He's too powerful for me to contend with. The few people in this country capable of getting rid of them are just as likely to throw the country even further into chaos as he is. They wouldn't care about the collateral damage. I support you in your quest because you aren't utterly insane and blinded by bloodlust."

"You want me to kill him for you?" Biwa-sensei asked, dubiously. "That can't be all. Why bother with all this? If you helped me, communicated in earnest, I would have gone straight to him and taken his head."

"And that's the problem," Haruto said with a sigh. "I want him dead. But not yet. You came too early. So, I had to stall you. Forgive me; you would have insisted on expedience, to the detriment of thousands."

Iwao was no longer strangling the lizard, so Haruto removed his knee from my back with a low groan of relief. His leg was probably stiff.

"Explain," Biwa-sensei commanded.

"Of course. See, Yamasaki Toyokazu has been plotting ever since he arrived in this country. He wants to create a settlement. A mockery of a Hidden Village, which would be a true utopia for missing-nin. Of course, he would preside as ruler. His goal is especially problematic because Hidden Villages can't be populated solely by ninja. There need to be craftsman. People to provide food. Women to bear children and grow their population. Without those things, their society is doomed to collapse."

I had a sinking feeling that I knew what Yamasaki's solutions to that problem would be. Haruto confirmed my theory.

"Yamasaki Toyokazu is a very sick man," Haruto said, grimly. "He has decided that the nomad clans should form the foundation of this village. However, they won't be valued and respected neighbors. They won't even be a lower caste. They will be slaves."

No shit. This was a hypothetical village ruled over by immoral missing nin. Of course they'd skip over everything else and land on slavery.

"We're in the early stages of this plan, since the village is still in an unfulfilled state," Haruto continued. "But Yamasaki will make it habitable soon. And when he does, the nomad clans that haven't already been captured will be herded there. Already, the guards of some are being bought off, or even assassinated and replaced by Yamasaki's lackeys. That's what I was speaking to the guard of the Tengu group about. He was fortunate enough to catch one of these takeovers in the act. Others are not. Most of the jonin I mentioned days ago—Murakami Masanori, Yoshida Masataka, Nomo Hideo—have joined under Yamasaki's banner."

That was definitely alarming, but it only raised more questions.

"Why though?" I asked, my feet still dangling uselessly above the ground. "People have tried to build settlements here before. It's never worked. The nomad system is still the only means of survival. Even these outposts don't get enough rain to grow crops or sustain wildlife indefinitely. What's changed? Why do all of these big time players think Yamasaki's plan will amount to anything?"

"For the same reason I was trying so hard to stall you," he replied. "Yamasaki actually does have the means to ensure the village's success. Once he's through with it, the land surrounding the village will be enriched. Farming will be more than possible, and so will rearing livestock."

I absorbed the claim for a moment. It sounded like utter bullshit. What, was the Shodaime Hokage back from the dead, kicking it here with amnesia? According to my mental map of canon, Orochimaru shouldn't even be working with Hashirama cells or making Tenzo's yet. But if it really was a load of crock, then how was Yamasaki able to convince so many jonin? And, better yet, why did Biwa-sensei look like he's seen a ghost?

"Through what means?" I asked, since Biwa-sensei didn't seem like he was going to.

"Senjutsu," came Haruto's immediate reply, and suddenly everything made sense. My wide eyes met Biwa-sensei's but I broke contact before I could find any meaning in his gaze.

Senjutsu. Of fucking course. There went my plan of avoiding that topic like the plague in Biwa-sensei's presence.

Was senjutsu capable of that? Better yet—

"How the fuck can Yamasaki use senjutsu?" I asked. He was considered an elite jonin, but he wasn't that elite. Like, think Asuma equivalent. Not even to Kakashi's level, much less Jiraya or heavens forbid Minato.

Surprisingly, Biwa-sensei was the one who answered me.

"As our guide hinted at, Yamasaki Toyokazu was designated a high profile target because, during his abandonment of the village, he stole one of two noble summoning contracts possessed by Iwa shinobi," Biwa-sensei revealed. "And while doing so, killed the last summoner. Presumably, he signed the scroll after, making him the primary contract holder. I assume the cause of the hold up is that he is having difficulty summoning the clans' sages."

He directed that at Haruto, who nodded.

"If he manages that, Yamasaki won't have to do a damn thing," he continued. "He can just sit back and let them do all the work."

He took a long, deep breath.

"You," he said, looking pointedly at Haruto. "You want this village built?"

"Not in Yamasaki Toyokazu's image, but yes," Haruto agreed. "I think it would be incredible for such a place to exist. To give the future children of Sōgen a place with food security and…security security. My clan didn't think something like this could ever be possible, just a short time ago. Now that it's in sight, however, I've realized that there is very little I wouldn't do to make it a reality."

"Well, then, that's a problem," Biwa-sensei said. "Because I have no intention of letting you use Iwa's summoning clan for your own devices."

Internally, I sighed. I knew there was no chance of Biwa-sensei helping strangers out of his own good will, without benefit to himself or Iwa. Especially when senjutsu was involved. The art freaked him out for some reason. I think he must have had a traumatic experience.

"The summoning clan may have historically been aligned with Iwa's ninja, but they aren't your servants," Haruto pointed out. "If they have decided to help in the creation of the village, then you have no right to obstruct them."

"They formed that decision based on the lies of a murderer," Biwa-sensei snapped. "They loved Inoue-san. I'm certain they grieve his loss deeply. If they knew Yamasaki was the one to kill him, they'd sooner tear him apart themselves than work with him."

Wow. This situation was even worse for Haruto than I thought. Biwa-sensei had a personal stake in this. I assumed Inoue-san was the previous summoner, though it was strange that the name didn't ring any bells. They and Biwa-sensei must have been friends, or at least as close to friends as Biwa-sensei could have.

"You may be right, but that doesn't mean they won't be sympathetic to the plights of those who live here!" Haruto exclaimed. "Please, just allow the situation to unfold. Once it does, I'll lead you to Yamasaki myself. You will leave this country with the summoning scroll, just like you desire. It will be a flawless mission. Surely a few weeks is a small price to pay for that!"

"I refuse," he said coldly. "I assume you misled me before, regarding Yamasaki's location. I also assume you will not divulge his actual location, no matter what torture I inflict upon you. I will scour the entire country to find this village, if I must."

"You won't be able to. It is designed to be a true hidden village. And Yamasaki knows that he is hunted in particular by those from his homeland. If you think you can find it from above, you are mistaken. He's accounted for your flight ability; I know that for a fact."

That he knew to bring it up at all lent credence to his claim. It wasn't a common precaution to consider; the fact that a handful of Iwagakure ninja—like Biwa-sensei, some of the high-ranked Kamizuru and Kazuhiro's Sky Division—could fly was often overlooked. Few would go out of their way to find a means to contend against such a power.

"The sensor you brought will not be enough either, as most of Yamasaki's forces are out infiltrating the nomad groups. You will not find the village without my help. And so, we're at an impasse." He chuckled. "Really, you have no choice in the matter at this point. I'm only explaining this as a courtesy, and to keep you from killing me now. Your real body will continue to search fruitlessly until I receive word that it's time to point you in the right direction. You'll have to be patient and rely on me."

Oh, no. Haruto made a gigantic misstep. I had been wondering why he was being so talkative. He'd realized Biwa-sensei was a clone, and thought that meant he couldn't communicate with his real body. He thought it didn't matter what he'd told us, now.

"Let me be abundantly clear," Biwa-sensei said coldly, and I felt Haruto stiffen as my teacher bit his thumb and began to run through hand seals. "I don't have to do a damn thing you say."

He slapped his hand to the ground, and there was a puff of smoke. When it abated, Biwa-sensei's messenger wasp rose into the air with a bone-chilling buzz.

"No!" Haruto gasped, horror in his voice as he realized his entire plan had just gone down the drain. "No! How could you—you're a clone! You shouldn't be able to use jutsu! I saw the other one…"

He trailed off, and I felt his skin grow clammy as reality set in.

"I'm an S-ranked ninja, boy," Biwa-sensei spat. "I know ninjutsu that you can scarcely dream of. Now, here's what's going to happen. I am going to guide my other self here. And then, you are going to immediately bring him to Yamasaki's hideout."

"I refuse," Haruto said immediately. "For the sake of my people, I can't do that."

"Well, I refuse to allow Yamasaki to poison my treasured comrades' minds for another minute," Biwa-sensei spat.

"Then…then…a compromise!" Haruto stammered. "I'll take you to the village. I can draw him out. But in return, allow me to sign the contract. I will facilitate the transformation of the landscape."

Biwa-sensei stared at Haruto, bewildered.

"Why in kami's name do you think that I'd let you sign the contract instead?"

It wasn't for Iwa's benefit if one of their two allied noble summoning clans had foreign sympathies. If enemies found out, and if they made a deal with Haruto, they could sabotage the war effort or use the summons to leak intelligence. And that was just the logical side of things. Biwa-sensei probably felt that letting a foreigner sign the contract was like spitting on this Inoue-san's memory.

"Because, once the deed is done, I'll happily allow you to kill me," he declared, to all of our shock. "Leaving the contract fully in your hands. Yes, that is a price I'm more than willing to pay."

All was quiet for a moment. I thought for sure that Biwa-sensei would shoot him down again. He wasn't exactly one for compromise.

"Very well," he said instead, to all of our shock. "But it is as you say. I have no right to tell the sages what to do. I will allow you to sign the contract. I will give you one day. And at the end of it, regardless of if you convince the sages to help you, I will kill you and take the contract back."

I didn't think that Biwa-sensei thought Haruto would agree to the deal. It was totally unreasonable—Yamasaki has had this contract for a long time now, and he's only just gotten close to fulfilling his goal.

However, Haruto nodded resolutely.

"I accept," he said, quite literally signing his own death warrant.

A sour feeling curdled in my gut. I didn't like what was going on. I wanted to be the good guy. I wanted to make this horrible world a better place. And, once again, Iwagakure was forcing me into a position to do the exact opposite. If he was telling the truth, Haruto just wanted to provide a better life for the people of Sōgen. It wouldn't be right for him to die.

What the hell should I do?

- - - { ワナビー } - - -

AN: The whole senjutsu freak out thing Biwa-sensei had at the start of the arc wasn't completely random; it had immediate plot relevance. I'd say this mission is one of two missions in act two that will directly guide Kasaiki to a certain set of abilities that she will need to become a legend. You might be able to guess a few, but there's a lot more directly tied into this.

Writing the fight scene made my brain hurt. I'm terrible at science, so I had to do some physics research. I hope everything makes logical sense. Speaking of, there is foreshadowing in this fight for a big plot twist I have planned in act three, which is quickly approaching. Just a few things need to happen first. That's the war arc, btw.

I know there is a percentage of my readers who will be mad that Kasaiki lost the fight. Some people in this fandom want a story with a steep incline and no dips, where the protagonist gets outrageously powerful and faces no real adversity. Sorry. I think that's lazy and boring, so I won't be doing that.

I find it genuinely hilarious how frequently people read my entire 350000 word (so far) fic, hating on it in the comments every step of the way because I didn't tailor it to their specific tastes. I rarely bring attention to it because it doesn't matter, but seriously, this happens a lot. God, I wish I had that much free time. Even if I had some mystical way of knowing what those tastes were, I wouldn't conform to them. I'm writing the story that I want to read, which is the story that over three thousand other people and counting want to read too. So, sorry internetrando204739 (that's not a real person I'm calling out, relax), I'ma do what I'ma do.

Anyway, I'll see you guys soon!