Tsunade set out from the gates of Konoha with Shizune and Tonton beside her while her Anbu remained in the shadows. They had received word from Naruto that he and Jiraiya were close to Tanzaku Gai. With their destination in mind, the large group left the village to bring back one of the Godaime's apprentices and a Sannin that had a hard time listening.
The group needed to ensure that Tsunade was seen on her way to the prominent gambling town so as to ensure that Jiraiya would make his way there, as it was very clear that he would not listen to Naruto or Tsunade even if they beat him over the head with their words. Because of this, the Anbu needed to remain out of sight when they entered any town or village. To that end, the Anbu brought with them several disguises as well as new seals that were placed on their masks that put a Henge over their mask. This was done because a full body henge could be easily detected and dispelled. If a Henge was dispelled, the guard of the Hokage would be exposed and identified while a Henge that only covered the face with the use of the mask was far more difficult to detect as it used stored chakra in the mask. The chakra that is stored is made invisible to sensors until used thanks to seals worked into the array. It required a sensor nin to be close to the Anbu to be detected.
As the group set out, they were focused on their first destination, a gambling town close to Naruto and Jiraiya's position but far enough away so that they couldn't be confronted by the pair too quickly and have Jiraiya claim it as a false sighting. Little did the Godaime know that her plan would also lead to her being set upon by the final Sannin.
A few hours after they left, two individuals in black cloaks with high collars and single sleeves adorned with red clouds complimented by straw hats that had tassels all around the hat except in front of the wearers face were looking at the semi-ruined village from the top of the forest canopy. There was also a small ornamental torque hanging to the left side of the wearers face. From what could be seen, one was tall with a large sword wrapped in bandages, with a white skull for a pummel on their back held their thanks to a harness that went over the persons left shoulder, while the other didn't have a unique identifying feature. They had violet nail polish on their fingers and toes with pale blue shinobi sandals with white leg warmers that were worn over their sandals.
As the wind began to ruffle their cloaks and hats, the larger of the two spoke up. "So, any thoughts on returning to your home?" The shorter one said nothing for a while. When they did speak, it was with a monotone voice. "Focus we need to find out target." At those words the taller one gave a manic grin before they went towards Konoha with the intention of sneaking into the village.
The repairs to the village were coming along nicely. Most of the debris has been cleared from the roads while many businesses managed to reopen their doors. From clothing stores to eateries, life in Konoha was getting back to normal.
Taking advantage of the quite, Kakashi and Yugao were walking down one of the many streets arm in arm. Yugao was wearing her sleeveless Anbu body suit as well as her gloves and gauntlets while her usual Anbu flak jacket was replaced by her Jonin flak jacket. One her back was her sword tied up with a white sash. Just because they were not being invaded did not mean a shinobi or kunoichi did not go out without their weapons.
The two stopped their walk in front of a small tea shop as they bumped into Kurenai and Asuma. Yugao smiled at seeing her friend with someone as Kurenai was one to rebuke many advances. Maybe she would open up to someone other than her and their other friend. "Well, well, well" spoke the Copy Nin. "Seems that we aren't the only ones out for a stroll, aye Yugao-chan" teased Kakashi with an eye-smile, implying something more was going on between the two Jonin. His words caused the two to stutter and blush at the accusation.
While the two Jonin calmed down, the former and current Anbu Captains were drawn to a familiar presence coming from the tea shop. Noticing the shift in their friend's demeanor, the two Jonin nodded at their colleagues who signaled something hostile was near. Before the four left, Asuma and Kurenai nodded that they understood.
Inside the tea shop, the shorter of the two figures in the black cloaks gestured for his companion to follow him as he left the money for their tea and snacks on the counter. Sensing what was about to come, the shorter one he led his partner to an isolated area near one of the rivers that ran near the outskirts of the village in an undamaged area, navigating the streets of Konoha as if the figure was once a resident of Konoha.
The two individuals were stopped by the four Jonin as they walked by a fenced off river. As the six stared each other down, the shorter of the two unidentified figures spoke. "It's been a long time, Kakashi, Yugao, Kurenai, Asuma." The words and voice the Konoha Jonin heard gave them pause. It was as if they were being addressed by a former comrade Yugao and Kakashi were the first to recognize the voice as the individual reached for their hat. Of course they would recognize the voice, its owner had been a comrade of theirs while Kakashi was still in the Anbu. "I recognize you now …" spoke the one-eyed Jonin as the persons hat was fully removed by still obscured their face. "… Itachi Uchiha" concluded the Copy Nin as Itachi lowered his hat past his face.
Itachi is a fairly tall man with a fair skin complexion and raven black hair that he wore in a low ponytail as his center parted bangs fell to his chin. He has pronounced tear-troughs under his raven black eyes. On his forehead was a Konoha hitai-ate with a slash running through the symbol on the plate.
Once reviled, the lager of the two cloaked figures spoke as he reached for his own hat. So you know these people, Itachi? Well, allow me to introduce myself." As they spoke, Itachi opened his cloak to allow him to use his other arm, showing his mesh armor under a navy blue "V" neck shirt. When his face was visible, Yugao recognized the man immediately. She believed she knew who they were when she saw the sword on the persons back but she couldn't be sure as it was possible the last owner could have been slain and the blade taken by someone else. Now however, she knew who the other person before her was.
Before the tall man could introduce himself Yugao spoke, "You are Kisame Hoshigaki."
Kisame is a very tall, blue skin man with many shark-like features such as his circular eyes, and his twin rows of large, sharp teeth. He also three small facial markings under his eyes that bore a resemblance to gills. He has spiked up deep blue hair and wore a hitai-ate that was more like a hat with the top cut out and had earmuffs sown in. Like Itachi, his hitai-ate also had a slash through its center.
Kisame was surprised. Most of the time, he wasn't well known outside of Kiri unlike his companion. "Ho? So you know me?" questioned the blue skinned man as he dropped his hat to the floor like Itachi had done. "As a kenjutsu master of Konoha, I know all those that have a great skill with a blade beyond our walls" spoke Yugao as she reached for her swords' handle. Kisame gained a manic grin when the purplette said she was a kenjutsu master. He was always itching for a fight and the thought of crossing blades with another got his blood pumping.
"Hehe well see about that" commented the shark faced man. Acting quickly so as to prevent his partner from flying off the handle, Itachi spoke "Enough Kisame, we are not here to fight." Kisame reluctantly reigned in his urge to fight, however sensing the growing tension grabbed the handle of his bandage wrapped sword.
"Why are you here?" questioned Kakashi. He, like the others, was curious as to what two S-ranked missing nin wanted in Konoha as it was out of character for such high-profile criminals to enter into one of the Five Great Villages. "You don't need to know our objective" spoke Itachi as he activated his Sharingan, implying that if they stayed there would be a fight.
The Konoha shinobi were undeterred from the Uchiha's hidden threat. "Well you see, you are both missing nin, so we can't just let you move about freely" spoke Kakashi as he revealed his sharingan. Seeing that the missing nin were not backing down or willing to answer Kakashi's question, Kurenai drew her kodachi, Asuma dawned his trench knives, Kakashi drew his chakra saber and Yugao drew her katana demonstrating that they were willing to fight the infamous missing nin.
Silence enveloped the six, as if waiting for a silent signal as the wind blew dramatically. Kisame was the first to break it as he drew his large sword from his back and punched a hole in his cloak for his other arm, showing he was wearing thick, padded, white vambraces. The unofficial signal was given with that movement. Kakashi and Yugao charged Itachi while Kurenai and Asuma charged Kisame, separating the two missing nin.
The former Anbu Captain was surprised at how the four Konoha shinobi divided themselves until he realized their strategy. Kisame is far more vulnerable to Kurenai than himself while she was also skilled in using her blade to keep the Kiri swordsman at bay. Adding the Sarutobi to the mix ensure that Kisame would always be pressed in a close combat situation. While that is where Kisame prefers to be when fighting, it also means that he cannot use any of his jutsu that he would normally rapid fire due to his exceptionally large reserves.
Kakashi and Yugao were able to press the former Anbu Captain with their exceptional skills in wielding their blades. While Itachi was skilled with a blade due to his time in Anbu, the two before him had far more time practicing and utilizing those skills. Their quick attacks also ensure he was unable to utilize his best field as even if he could catch one in one of his many genjutsu, the time it would take to cast will leave an opening that the one he didn't catch would be able to take advantage of. The strikes came far too quickly for Itachi to set up a genjutsu either as each time he dodged or blocked a strike with a kunai, that he had drawn from under his cloak, the other would be there to follow up. This quick set of strikes as well as the fact Yugao neglected to make eye contact with him meant that the former Anbu Captain was out of his preferred method of fighting.
Yugao was a short pace in front of Kakashi. She had both of her hands on the hilt of her sword as she struck with a left sided diagonal slash. With the aid of his sharingan, Itachi easily stepped back to avoid the attack. With his focus on the purplette however, he nearly missed the falling downward slash from Kakashi. The cut had grazed the bottom of his cloak, cutting into the garment. There was no respite as Yugao maintained the pressure, as was standard for Anbu when dealing with high profile targets, by moving around Kakashi's right side and trusted her sword forward at Itachi's abdomen. Itachi deflected the strike with a kunai and stepped to the left in an attempt to take Yugao's back. This was a hazardous decision as Itachi soon found Kakashi at his back, who was swinging his chakra saber in an attempt to decapitate the rouge Uchiha.
Thanks to his sharingan, Kakashi saw the Kawarimi no Jutsu that Itachi had used to avoid the attack. Understanding the intelligence of their foe, Kakashi and Yugao acted quickly, moving to prevent the former Anbu Captain from attempting to aid his partner. Showing a minor amount of annoyance in his normally stoic eyes, Itachi was forced to dodge a right diagonal slash. With the skill she possesses, Yugao is easily able to fight ambidextrously with a sword. Itachi wove around the strike easily enough only to need to bring his kunai down as his eyes went wide in surprise. The duo had anticipated his choice of dodge as Kakashi had come head on from the right with a left to right upward diagonal slash. While Itachi had caught and deflected the strike, his sharingan showed Yugao's sword coming back up and with his kunai away from him he was in trouble.
Pushing chakra to his feet, Itachi launched himself backwards and onto the river to avoid the slash. As he landed, he felt a stinging sensation on his chest. Not risking to look towards the pain, he dabbed his fingers over where he felt it only to feel the clothes in the area torn and a sensation of pain from the spot. He wasn't able to gleam anymore information than that as the duo were once again in his face. Itachi once more leapt back and threw his kunai. As his kunai left his hands he went through several hand signs. "Suiton: Ryusuiben" called out Itachi as he gathered the water from the river around his hand before flicking it forward to change Kakashi and Yugao's charge path as they dodged the attack. Succeeding in his intention, Itachi went through another set of head seals calling out "Suiton: Mizu Kamikiri!" Sharp slices of water moved towards Kakashi and Yugao along the surface of the river forcing the two to separate even further. Taking advantage of this, two bunshins of Itachi formed next to the original before charging his opponents. Seeing the condensing chakra in their cores, Kakashi knew what was happening. "Yugao! Move!" called Kakashi as he leapt back while throwing a kunai at his bunshin. Yugao seemed to charge toward her bunshin and swung her sword at her target.
Before her sword made contact, both bunshin exploded as the chakra that made up their being condensed to the point they let the energy out, kicking up a massive amount of water. Itachi was not deceived. His eyes had seen it all. The Yugao that had charged his bunshin was an illusionary bunshin she layered over herself while Kakashi threw a kunai that had a concussive explosive tag attached. The bunshins had been popped prematurely so their targets escaped. With the space created, Itachi once again made to move in order to help his companion only for him to land next to him with a new cut on his cheek.
Asuma and Kurenai charged at the former Kiri swordsman. Asuma kept his elbows tight and close to his sides while Kurenai held her kodachi out as her free hand was in a half ram seal. Kisame, in an impressive demonstration of strength, held his massive odachi with one arm as he turned his body ninety degrees as he held his arm as if her were curling his massive sword. Asuma launched a right straight towards the blue man. Kisame for his part, turned his blade slightly to intercept the strike. As soon as the two weapons made contact, Kisame used the force of the strike to quickly swing the blade around with more than double the force if he would have swung it on his own. Sadly, the swing seemed to barely miss Asuma. Kisame was surprised that his swing missed. Someone of his caliber should not have missed such a free strike.
He didn't have time to dwell on it as he brought his sword around to perry Kurenai's horizontal strike. Kisame soon began to experience vertigo from the ringing caused by the clash of blades. Despite the dizziness he was experiencing, Kisame let his sword guide his movements. Unknown to many, Samehada is a sentient sword. This allowed the sword to direct Kisame's movements to intercept Kurenai's follow up right diagonal strike and thrust itself toward Asuma to create space for its wielder. Kisame eventually figured out that the reason for his vertigo was genjutsu. This was due in part that Samehada was not whining with discomfort. If only one of them was experiencing such effects, then it had to be something like genjutsu. The other reason he knew was when Samehada sent a pulse of chakra through his system and suddenly his vertigo was clear.
Feeling angry at being caught in something so simple, Kisame began attacking more aggressively, gripping the handle of Samehada with two hands. Due to the ramp up in pace Kurenai was unable to cast any new genjutsu. Knowing the genjutsu was their best means of beating the former Kiri swordsman, Asuma stepped up is offensive to allow Kurenai to cast another genjutsu. Sadly for the Sarutobi he misjudged a block, allowing the large weapon to stop against his shoulder. As soon as it did, Kisame gave a sharp tooth smiled. Kisame pulled the large sword towards him, applying as much pressure as he could against Asuma's shoulder. The next thing Asuma felt was his shoulder being torn into as if several hooks were being ripped from his shoulder. The bandages wrapped around his sword were torn away with the strike, revealing deep blue, long scales that seemed to shred what they were dragged against.
Kisame stopped his offensive and was about to explain the properties of his weapon of choice until a tree sprang from the ground and quickly began to bind the blue skin man. As Kurenai rose from the tree poised to kill the former Kiri swordsman. However Kisame was once again saved by Samehada. As soon as he was free, Kisame swung his weapon at the genjutsu mistress. Kurenai was forced to perry the strike with the flat of her blade as her weapon was not designed to fully stop such a heavy weapon. Asuma took advantage of opening and struck out with his able arm as he once again held his trench knife in a reverse grip. Kisame acted quickly and threw a straight kick at Kurenai's stomach so he could keep his blade free for the Sarutobi, only for the kick to graze its target as another pulse of chakra came from Samehada.
What he had experienced was Kurenai being a little closer than she was. When his vision returned to normal from the poorly constructed genjutsu that even an academy student could recognize, Kurenai was a few paces away from the former Kiri swordsman holding her stomach from the heavy strike that still lightly connected. Now caught off guard be being caught in such a poor excuse for a genjutsu, Kisame froze at an important moment. If not for Samehada, Kisame would have gotten more than scratch that cut onto his cheek. Registering he is in a bad situation, Kisame retreated to the river after swinging Samehada in a wide arch to prevent the two Jonin from collapsing on him.
Kisame landed next to Itachi with a soft splash as Asuma, Kurenai, Kakashi and Yugao regrouped at the edge of the river. The two S ranked missing nin then synchronized their hand seals to call out their jutsu, "Suiton: Suikodan no Jutsu!" Two large sharks made of water charged the Konoha Jonin. Acting quickly, Kakashi and Asuma unleashed their own jutsu. "Katon: Dai Endan!" was the jutsu released by Kakashi while Asuma complemented it with his own "Futon: Reppusho!" The four jutsu collided releasing a massive explosion of force, which forced the shinobi brace themselves.
Danzo was sipping tea in his home. Tsunade had left to bring back Jiraiya and Naruto. The reconstruction of Konoha was going smoothly and many of the Genin were pushing themselves to improve with the recent invasion they were forced to experience. Overall, Danzo was happy to see his village becoming stronger under a Senju's reign once again. Suddenly something peaked his interest. The Warhawk had felt a few spikes in chakra in one of the outer areas of Konoha. "Hmm strange" commented the Warhawk. Curious about the event as there should be no foreign combatants in Konoha and the training grounds were much further, there should be no spikes in chakra that strong within the village. Standing to his feet with the aid of his cane, Danzo made his way from his home to the area he had sensed the fighting with speed a man of his years should not possess.
Back at the fight, the Jonin were in a standoff with the two criminals. Kisame for his part was getting annoyed. He was used to far more straight forward fights like how he was dueling against Asuma. Fighting against someone like Kurenai is difficult for him and if not for his sword, Kisame would have perished during the fight. He would rather switch with Itachi as genjutsu is more his field.
Itachi was no different. While in Anbu he was proficient with a sword if not one of the better users than many others. However, the two he had been facing were used to wielding their weapons since they were Genin so he was greatly outclassed when it came to dueling. They also understood his skills in genjutsu as it is his preferred method of combat so they did what they could to prevent him from having time to cast his illusions or allow him to look into any eye that wasn't Kakashi's own sharingan. With the way things were going, he may need to use a card he doesn't like using.
"We are getting nowhere Itachi" complained Kisame gruffly. Itachi wasn't liking their odds either. He had already been wounded by Yugao thanks in part to her longer weapon. If things continued then there is a high likelihood that they will be overwhelmed. Afterall all, a horde of ants can bring down a snake. They have even yet to confirm if their target is still in Konoha.
Taking a deep breath Itachi spoke to his companion, "Stay calm Kisame. We cannot rush this fight or else we could find ourselves at a disadvantage. We have already been here too long and already are running the risk of having additional Konoha shinobi show up." Kisame had to admit that Itachi was right. With the time they have spent fighting someone would be bound to miss four high ranking shinobi, so they needed to wrap this up and find their target.
Across from the missing nin, the Konoha shinobi were having a conversation of their own. "This is getting us nowhere Kakashi" gritted out Asuma. His shoulder was in bad shape but at least his arm was still usable for this fight. Asuma would definitely be petitioning for a change to the flak jacket when this was over. "I know" replied Kakashi as sweat rolled down his face. "Right now, we are holding the line. So far, our best option is to defeat one of them and capture the other. They have shown that they can combine ninjutsu of the same element." The others could agree that if Kisame and Itachi were allowed to work together they would be overwhelmed by combine ninjutsu.
Both sides seemed to think that their isolated conversations were done as Kisame hefted his sword to his right shoulder while Itachi readied his kunai as well as a handful of shuriken in his free hand. On the other side of the river, the Konoha shinobi readied themselves as well. Suddenly a new sound was heard in the silence. It sounded as sandals were sounding on the road accompanied by a cane. All combatants shifted their eyes toward the sound, only for those from Konoha to widen their eyes in surprise. "Well well well" spoke an older voice, "I had sensed a few ticks of chakra being used in the village, but I did not expect to see such vulgar characters behind this villages great walls." While Kisame didn't know just who he was looking at, the others were surprised to see Councilman Danzo before them.
"Danzo-sama!" spoke the Konoha shinobi. Danzo nodded slightly in acknowledgement of their words. "Before you are taken into custody, do you care to tell me why you are here?" Before Itachi could speak, Kisame said "Why don't you go back to your home old man. This is not a place of those who can barely walk" making reference to Danzo's cane. At that, Danzo understood he would not get any answers from the two. He was curious though as to why Itachi was back in the village. Danzo dropped his cane and began to walk forward. Along the way he pulled down the part of his top that hid his other arm. The next words he spoke were cold and emotionless, "Unlike my two colleagues, there is a reason I still sit close to the top, near the Hokage. Let me show you why is was a rival to Hiruzen even in his old age." With that, Danzo's one visible eye opened slightly and the bandages with seals sown into them which kept his hidden arm from deteriorating from a poison that merged with the chakra network of said arm were cast aside.
Suddenly the old man vanished before everyone's eyes, well except for Itachi's and Kakashi's. Acting quickly, Itachi moved Kisame out of the way of the attack by side kicking Kisame while ejecting chakra from the bottom of his foot as if he were tree hoping, moving both himself and his partner away from the old man. Danzo suddenly appeared where the two missing nin were standing, his back to the Konoha shinobi. Itachi quickly Shunshined to Kisame's side, putting all combatants in a triangle of sorts.
Danzo slowly looked over to missing nin, drawing two kunai he had stored in his robes. He began to coat the common shinobi knives in futon chakra, greatly sharpening the weapons to the point that forged steel could not stop them. Since the process took next to no time for the elderly shinobi, Danzo charged the missing nin once his kunai were ready. Itachi could clearly see what Danzo was doing to his kunai thanks to his sharingan. The elderly man was sharpening his weapons causing Itachi to go wide eyed. 'This is bad' thought Itachi. 'If he hits us with those kunai, he will cut through us with ease' panicked the older Uchiha as he recalled what he learned about Futon chakra and how it interacts with weapons.
Danzo charged the two missing nin again, this time not as fast as when he first appeared and crossed the two kunai he held in front of his chest as he ran. Kisame jumped in front of Itachi and held the handle of Samehada up with the tip down to give himself the most cover with the flat side of the blade. He was planning on taking advantage of his weapons ability to absorb the chakra of others and their attacks to stop the kunai. However, something unexpected happened. Danzo demonstrated his mastery over Futon when he changed the properties of his kunai from being sharp to being conduits for a massive windstorm like when Suna shinobi utilize battle fans. The force of the wind that slammed into Kisame when the weapons made contact and threw him into Itachi, despite Samehada absorbing the chakra in the attack, causing the two to slide slightly above the water.
Itachi grabbed Kisame by the belt that he used to hold his sword and swung the former Kiri shinobi to be behind him as he fired a Katon: Gokaku no Jutsu at the Warhawk. Danzo merely scoffed at the incoming flame. He once again altered the flow of the wind around his kunai to where they were in actively repelling the wind around them, creating a vacuum effect. Danzo threw his vacuum effected kunai at the incoming fire. The kunai barreled through the flames with ease while also destabilizing fireball. Itachi's eyes widened in surprise at the way this Elder of Konoha was using only one element to combat him and his companion. Danzo once again used Shunshin to appear in Itachi's face however he was forced to block a right hook from the Uchiha.
The other shinobi of Konoha were not ideal in this confrontation. After Danzo launched the two missing nin back they rejoined the fight and charged Kisame. Kisame acted quickly and sent a Suiton: Suijinheki at the oncoming Konoha contingent. The four were not deterred as two went around it and the others went over it. Itachi saw how pressured he and Kisame were so decided that they needed to make an exit. By now more shinobis were more than likely on their way and Danzo had turned this fight from even to one-sided and not in their favor. Without warning, Itachi grabbed onto Kisame again and layered a rushed genjutsu over the two of them before Shunshining away to mask their escape. What everyone else saw was Itachi and Kisame vanishing in a murder of crows, though Kurenai had saw through it immediately so she was able to break the others out of it with negligible issue.
"They are headed to the West Gate" stated Danzo. "After them" he ordered the four. Kakashi and Yugao set out after the two criminals while Asuma and Kurenai stayed behind. With the trouble past, Asuma stayed to have his bleeding shoulder wrapped and Kurenai stayed to aid her wounded comrade. The three that stayed behind made their way to dry land so as to rest and apply proper dressings to Asuma's wound. As soon as Danzo made it back to land, he began to breath heavily and fell to his knees. "Danzo-sama!" shouted Kurenai who rushed over to the Elder as soon as she was sure that Asuma could hold the gauze she packed over his wound.
"Bring me my bandages" he ordered the raven-haired woman. Without hesitation, Kurenai rushed over to Danzo's bandages. When she returned to the Elder's side, he had his right arm out and his fingers splayed. Kurenai noticed his arm seemed to be turning a sickly purple as she approached. "Quickly! Wrap my arm!" he ordered. Kurenai didn't hesitate and followed the orders of her superior. Acting quickly, as the arm was getting darker the more she lingered, Kurenai made sure the bandages were taught and that the Elder could move his arm comfortably with no issues. When that was done, Kurenai made her way back to Asuma who had removed his flak jacket in the meantime.
As Kurenai was bandaging Asuma's shoulder, Kurenai asked. "Pardon me Danzo-sama, but why did you not use clean bandages for your arm? Surely that is healthier than reusing what you had discarded." Danzo eyed the woman while she worked. "It is because of the seals in the bandages. They allow me to continue to serve Konoha despite the aliment that afflicts my arm" he told the Jonin cryptically.
Before she could ask Danzo to elaborate, Kakashi and Yugao returned. Given that they did not have their foes in tow, it was safe to say that they failed to apprehend them.