They were on him like hounds. It was clear the three had experience working together, as they effortlessly filled the gaps the other would leave. Even the injured man had gained a second wind, the death of his comrade pushing him beyond the pain.
Katsuo was getting overwhelmed. The Uchiha's Sharingan tracked all his movements as if they were in slow motion, guiding them away from herself and her teammates. The kimono-wearing Shinobi danced in and out of his range, a skinny bo staff constantly swatting at his limbs.
The sword of the built shinobi carved through the air towards him. He'd constantly had to maintain bones to meet the blade, splitting his attention even more. The constant clash with the steel were even causing them to chip ever slightly, something the young Kaguya had never experienced before.
The bo staff of the kimono wearing man constantly batted at him, providing even more openings for his comrades to exploit. The thin piece of wood didn't hurt, especially compared to the fierce strikes of the Uchiha and the sturdy steel of the built man's sword, but the constant poking wasn't something he could ignore.
He couldn't create another earth clone, he didn't have the experience with the Jutsu to split his chakra beyond the half he'd already done. It didn't help that he wasn't given even an inch of breathing space, making the use of any Jutsu at all near impossible. He scoured through his brain for something, anything to help with the situation, but found nothing.
He was not going to die here. The Kaguya were relying on him to lead them into the future. While Kimimaro managed the eternal aspect of the clan (or at least tried to), Katsuo was the one actually working to push them forward. His death would in turn sentence the rest of his kin to a similar fate.
More bones erupted from underneath his skin, this time from his chest and ribs. His forearms became two blades pointed towards his hands, which had been encased in a cone of bones themselves.
He couldn't do any hand signs like this, but it wasn't like he'd get the opportunity either way. Outward facing bones sprouted from his knees, and his toes had blades as well. He didn't have the skill level to constantly micromanage the bones, which meant he'd have to leave them out the entire time. Katsuo's greatest attribute had always been his mobility, so he'd never attempted something like this.
Being outnumbered with the Sharingan tracking his every movement meant his mobility was near useless. He wasn't going to get an opportunity to play to his strengths so he'd have to try something new, which was why he'd covered himself in bone from the chest downward.
His movements slowed from the effects of the dense bone sprouting all over his body, but in turn it gave him more facets to attack with. Every movement could cause damage, even if it hadn't been meant as an attack. Against the greater numbers, he'd be needing it.
The whir of the bo staff overhead forced him to raise his guard on instinct. The Uchiha moved to push his guard, allowing her teammate's attack to hit true. Her fist shot forward only to halt halfway, not wanting to skewer herself on his extended bones.
The wood of the bo staff met his bone-encased arms, chipping slightly. Katsuo kicked backwards, his spiked foot batting away the sword of the built man. Using his momentum, Katsuo brought that same foot downwards toward the Uchiha, who dodged backwards.
The bo staff from the kimono wearing man struck at his left cheek, forcing his head to move sideways. Katsuo grabbed the extended staff from the man's hands, his superior strength pulling the man forward.
With a twirl of the staff, he blocked another slash from the injured man's sword, the staff creaking in its attempt to hold him. Two thrown kunai lodging into the gaps between his bones on his ribs, causing him to grimace.
The sudden damage caused his intended strike to slow, the kimono wearing man ducking under his wild swing. The man wove through hand signs, a bullet of harsh wind crashing into Katsuo's body. The force lifted him off of his feet, until he was brought downward by the injured man's sword.
Looking to take advantage of his situation, all three rushed forward. The Uchiha and the kimono-wearing man weaved through hand signs, while the injured man held his sword up high. Katsuo willed the bone encasing his hands back into his skin as quickly as possible, weaving through his own hand signs.
'Doton: Dai Datchi Tate-Jutsu'. A dome of rock encased Katsuo's body, shielding him from the hurling fireball and bullets of air he'd still felt the impact of through his defenses. After another flurry of hand signs, Katsuo's body began sinking into the protected ground underneath, the familiar sensation of 'Moguragakure no Jutsu' striking his senses.
The Uchiha and Kimono were preparing another Jutsu to strike at his already falting dome of earth. The injured man stood slightly behind, catching his breath and nursing his legs. Katsuo had to take him out as quickly as possible.
Bone encased his hands again, turning them into pointed spears. His body shot out from underneath the ground behind the injured man, who attempted to jump back. Katsuo's arm raced forward, finding purchase in the man's left side.
His teammates' attention turned toward him as he shouted in pain, forcing them to halt the Jutsu they'd been preparing. The man's grip on his sword tightened, using all his strength in an attempt to cut down his assailant.
Katsuo couldn't afford to give the man any breathing room, so he'd just have to take the force of the attack. The steel of the sword struck at his shoulder where there'd been little bone to protect it. The small layer of bone protected Katsuo slightly, but not nearly enough to stop the metal from cutting through his skin.
With a grind of his teeth Katsuo endured through the damage, his other spear-tipped hand stabbing into the man's lower chest. His foot struck at the man's already injured leg, causing him to fall to the ground.
Katsuo wasn't able to confirm the man's death, instead jumping to the side to avoid two hurled kunai. Kimono raced forward, having regained his bo staff. The wood struck at his exposed thigh with a greater force than before, causing Katsuo to buckle slightly.
He ducked under the spinning wood aiming for his head, swapping out with his left foot. Kimono jumped over the attack, bringing his staff onto the side of Katsuo's neck. The Uchiha rushed in, thrusting another kunai into his already wounded side.
Katsuo stabbed at her extended arm, barely hitting his mark. A deep gash formed on her forearm, but it didn't stop the Uchiha. The kunai in her other hand swung forward, but the pain from Katsuo's attack weakened her aim. The metal struck one of the extended bones of his rib, glancing off of it.
Kimono's staff struck against the back of his right knee, bringing him to a kneel. The glint of another kunai entered Katsuo's peripheral, forcing him to bring his arms up to block the would-be fatal stab to the neck.
Katsuo rolled forward to avoid the incoming attack from Kimono's staff, kicking out at the Uchiha to stop her from impeding his movements. The Kaguya sprung to his feet as quickly as he could, swatting away the poking wood that was constantly a nuisance.
A whirr filled the air as the wood spun, striking at Katsuo like a snake, who swatted away the attacks with his bone-encased arms. The Uchiha was hanging back from the dance, her chest heaving up and down constantly.
It seemed she didn't have enough stamina to continue at the pace she'd been at thus far. The swirl of crimson fading back into its original dark color. She couldn't maintain the Sharingan anymore.
Seeing that his teammate couldn't provide backup at the moment, the speed of Kimono's attacks grew. The bo staff spun and twirled, leaving a whooping sound with every movement.
A few of the bones encasing Katsuo's body had finally returned to their sanctum underneath his skin. Although still outnumbered, he didn't have to face the constant battering from all sides anymore.
Katsuo's own arms whirred to meet the strikes of the staff, the cracking of wood against bone echoing from their dance. Another creak from the beam of wood gave him an idea, which he immediately sprung into action.
Letting one of the strikes hit him in the shoulder, Katsuo spun on his heels. His spiked foot raced towards Kimono's torso, causing him to swiftly position his staff to block the blow. The wood shattered from the force, but did its job in protecting its wielder. The Uchiha swiftly reentered the fight, a small ball of fire forcing both parties to jump away.
"Shion! We have to retreat!" Her voice cut into the silence that had befallen of them when the battle first began. Shion's face hardened, but he didn't argue. His eyes darted to the fallen bodies of his teammates, causing his expressen to worsen.
"I'll meet you again, boy!" He nearly spat the words out, his harsh voice contrasting his boyish face. "I swear to you! I will avenge Akio and Chen!" The two used a substitution to vanish into the treeline. Katsuo wanted to chase them, but he couldn't deny that the intense battle had left him winded as well.
With a huff Katsuo fell to the ground, spreading his limbs to take up as much space as he could. For what felt like hours he laid there, his eyes faintly tracing the clouds visible from the clearing they were in.
It wasn't until the call of sleep threatened him that he stood back up. He'd been here for a reason, and he still hadn't fulfilled that.
The fierce battle had pushed him a little ways away from the tattered carts, so he was glad to see that it still remained in its previous position, a thick slab of earth splitting the carts in two. The caravan leader and his guards were nowhere to be found, most likely fleeing during the beginning of their battle.
Katsuo sighed to himself. It only reinforced the fact that Konoha would know what happened here. He could only pray that they thought he was working alone, the great village's further involvement would impede on his clan's movements.
Coins were scattered across the ground where the carts lay, which Katsuo dutifully picked up. The first cart was mostly empty, having a few coins and the merchant's identification. The second cart, however, was where Katsuo found the seals carrying all the goods.
With an extension of chakra all of the seals opened at once, temporarily surrounding him in a puff of smoke. Katsuo frantically waved away the smoke, impatiently wanting to see the goods inside.
Kunai, tantos, and katanas clattered against the ground, slightly piling on top of eachother. If Katsuo could guess, there were about 15 swords of good quality, which would be put to use amongst the clan.
Sheets of paper slowly fluttered with the wind, causing a smile to grow on Katsuo's face. There was more than enough chakra paper for all of the children to make use of, as well as extra that a few adults could use as well.
Katsuo frantically gathered the sheets, not wanting any to blow away in the wind. The last object unsealed were a group of letters that obviously belonged to one of the Shinobi. Katsuo was going to ignore them, but a tiny part of him pushed himself to read through them,
After a brisk skimming of the first letter, Katsuo found out their author; Reiko Uchiha. The first few letters were addressed to her friends, detailing them about any notable events she'd experienced during her travels.
The majority of the letters were mission reports she'd have to give to the Hokage. Both fear and tranquility coursed through Katsuo's body as he read who they were addressed to. Hiruzen Sarutobi was Hokage, which meant that Minato Namikaze was dead. Katsuo felt a bit of relief that his knowledge wasn't completely useless, but it also meant that the Akatsuki was alive and active.
The last letter dismissed all of those thoughts, Katsuo nearly dropping it as he read the letter. He read it a second and third time just to make sure he'd read it right, before turning to the scroll within the letter.
Dear Father,
Although I've tried my hardest, I couldn't figure out the technique. Chen says it's just the constant travel that's keeping me from any success, but I'm starting to think that I'm just not ready for it yet. I know you said this would help me with the Chunin Exams, so I hope we have time to work on it together when I get back. We're almost in the Land of Water, so I should only be gone for a couple more weeks. I've been really missing Daigo, and I can't wait to see him. Tell him I said not to slack during his first academy classes, or he'll never be a ninja like big sis.
See you soon,
Reiko.
Within the letter was a scroll, its title positioned just so that Katsuo could read it without unfurling the paper. For a while he'd wondered where his next step in improving would be, and this must have been a sign from someone greater on the direction he should take. Upon the scroll read its title; 'The Basics of Summoning; How To Obtain a Contract.'