Another Word For Monster

by Kuma Akuma

Konoha's Boogeyman. Jinchuriki. Hero. Traitor. Murderer. These were the names of Naruto Uzumaki. He left Konoha 3 years ago a broken man, looking for a peaceful life. But the shinobi life doesn't let peace come so easily. It calls you back. Through violence. Through war. Through blood. Monsters didn't get peace. And shinobi? That was just another word for monster. Light AU.

12. Chapter 12

Konohamaru frowned as he thought over the squad list for his future assault on Naruto. He wasn't getting a choice on who he wanted to invite, which was frustrating. But he supposed orders were orders. The injured shinobi looked out of the small carriage he was in, looking at the trees. He had been sent back to Konoha with the rest of the shinobi deemed to injured to fight. It was frustrating, being taken away from the battlefield. Taken away from Gaara. But while he went away from one goal he went towards his other.

The traitor.

Which brought him back to his list.

Sasuke Uchiha. Lightning specialist, with some fire capabilities. Expert swordsmen. He grew up with Naruto as a member of his Genin squad. Konohamaru remembered seeing him several times growing up. Hiruzen had invited him over to their compound a couple times to have dinner. It was only a couple times because...well Naruto and Sasuke were testy around each other to say the least. Still, he was a capable shinobi. Unfortunately, he was no match for Naruto in straight combat. He supposed that was fine. In all honesty...none of them were. Not even him. Still, the Uchiha would be useful he supposed. A low Jonin rank shinobi, one with the Sharingan no less. His elemental jutsu were a pour matchup against Naruto's speciality, but hopefully he had copied some with his Sharingan that would be useful. He would have to ask him. He supposed Sasuke's swordsplay paired with his own bojutsu should be enough to tie down Naruto, at least temporarily.

Sakura Haruno. To call her a healer would be disrespectful. She was the most accomplished iryonin Konoha had ever produced since Tsunade Senju of the Sannin. Of course, it made sense, considering she had studied underneath her until the woman was placed on an indefinite leave. Of course, being a student of Tsunade Senju meant more than simply otherwordly healing abilities. It also meant taijutsu skill that could only be paralleled by shinobi like Might Gai and the Raikage. While it was unlikely she was truly on that level, she was likely the best taijutsu combatant here despite that not being her typical role as a shinobi. The devastating strength she wielded would be enough to significantly hurt any shinobi, even someone like Naruto. The issue was three-fold. Firstly, she couldn't touch Naruto with his armor active. Likely none of them could. There would need to be ways to open up gaps for her to hit. Secondly, she was a healer first and foremost. She was trained by the best healer ever. She followed the rules of iryo-nin like it was the scripture of the Sage. Her strength would not be of a benefit unless she was the very last shinobi remaining, in which case the mission would likely be a massive failure if not a pyrhicc victory. Thirdly, and certainly not lastly, was the fact that Naruto had been taught by the very best of taijutsu experts as well. Hiruzen Sarutobi. He was no slouch. And even if he was, Naruto knew much of Tsunade's style considering the woman had taught him some lessons as well. Additionally, it was likely that Naruto and Sakura had trained together throughout their years. Sakura herself had likely taught Naruto some of her moves. A difficult situation.

Shikamaru Nara. Likely the brains of the team. Konohamaru would have to have several meetings with him to define what the best course of action was. He wasn't a direct combat style fighter, like most Nara. Still, his Clan jutsu could be helpful in tying Naruto down. At least as long as he could actually touch him. Still, large chakra signatures were difficult for any Nara Clan member to hold. It was impossible that he would be able to hold Naruto for any significant length of time. Likely only three or so seconds. Still, three seconds was a lot of time in a battle of shinobi. Time for an opportunity. They would have to create a point of attack for Shikamaru to slip his jutsu in, but if they did...an opportunity arose.

Sai. Konohamaru frowned. He barely remembered the name. Who was he? He would have to discuss with the shinobi about his abilities in how he could be useful in battle. It was...unexpected that leadership would give him a shinobi that he had never worked with much less heard of to lead into such an important battle. His grandfather would never have done that. But this was Danzo...

Konohamaru shook his head.

Tsume Inuzuka. A Clan Head. This was surprising. He didn't know much about her, but he could assume that she exemplified the absolute very best of Inuzuka Clan abilities. From what he knew of their abilities she likely wouldn't be able to pierce Naruto's shields, but she should be a capable nintaijutsu in her own right. Maybe capable of stalling Naruto. He would have to know her exact capabilities, but it was definitely something he could work with.

Them in addition with a squad of ANBU.

Konohamaru frowned. It was a mission that was possible, but it would require a significant opening. He would have time to strategize with his squad going into the mission he supposed. How to take down Naruto Uzumaki? It was a question many villages had been faced with during the war for six years. Ever since he had ascended to a Kage-level shinobi.

The Kusa invasion? There was nothing significant there. Naruto had led the conquering of Kusagakure before it was annexed into Konoha. He had won the entire battle in a matter of months. It was what had brought him to prominence as a potential candidate to becoming the next Hokage. There was nothing to learn there.

Kanzaki Bridge? Onoki had proven a challenge for Naruto to defeat, but he also had a Kekkei Tota. Not exactly something replicable for anyone on his squad, and nothing they could replicate together either. Besides, his wind had been capable of cutting through the jutsu of the Tsuchikage. Corralling him in one area was not a possibility.

The Gene Stealer was a potential source as well. An S-class shinobi. He had pushed Naruto to the brink at the age of 18. But he also had access to multiple Kekkei Genkai, courtesy of his scientific experiments and stealing the gene factor from clans across the Elemental Nations. He would only have one Uchiha on this mission, and while the hidden techniques of the Nara and Inuzuka Clans were great they did not translate well to the durability and speed that Hiruko had possessed.

But he supposed there was still something to take away from the Kanzaki Bridge incident and the Gene Stealer. The first was intense defense. Hiruko demonstrated intense durability thanks to his genetic theft. It had allowed him to keep up with Naruto's insane offensive capabilities. Onoki's flight had given him the unique ability to defend against Naruto's offensive capabilities. It wasn't a direct defense through the traditional manner of speaking, but it made the old Tsuchikage unassailable through traditional means. It was good fortune that he had not been able to pass the ability down to any further generations. Maybe there was something they could replicate in their abilities. Could Sakura's iryojutsu effectively function as a defense? No, Naruto could just kill them all with serious injuries quickly. It would fail.

He supposed there was another way out. Offensive pressure via jutsu. Onoki had been capable of this as well. His Kekkei Tota would kill Naruto instantly if it had managed to land. It had forced him to remain defensive, always cutting up attacks rather than attacking Onoki. It was only after the elderly man had used up too much chakra that Naruto had managed to successfully attack him. They wouldn't win a battle of endurance against Naruto, even with their numbers, but if they kept utilizing attacks in a rounds system using their superior numbers, they may be able to keep him defensive the entire fight. Of course, even if that worked, they still had to find ways of actually damaging him after he activated that wind of his. They could try to take him down before he activated his armor, but it was unlikely. The armor came as easily as breathing to him now, he knew that from experience. And Naruto's skill without the armor was nothing to be scoffed at as well.

Konohamaru sighed as he looked up at the sky. He knew one thing. This would be a difficult battle.

---

Sasuke grunted as his arms fell to his sides, his body dropping to his knees as his mother looked up at him. They were underneath their house in the private Uchiha Clan Head training grounds. Mikoto's eyes were a cold blood red in that strange pattern Sasuke had never seen before.

"Get up."

Sasuke grunted, trying only to fall back to his knees once more. Mikoto frowned.

"Your physical conditioning needs to be better Sasuke. That's the only way this training will continue."

Sasuke grunted, glaring up at his mother.

"How are you this strong? You've been retired ever since I attained the rank of tokubetsu."

"I trained," Mikoto stated. "You did not truly believe I would simply sit around, did you?"

Sasuke grunted.

Mikoto sighed, sitting in front of him.

"Sasuke do you know how I achieved these eyes?"

Sasuke looked up, staring at the strange pattern of the Sharingan that he had never seen before.

"No...I've never seen them. Are they..."

"Yes, they are what the rumors claim. They are the Mangekyou Sharingan."

"So, the rumors were true! They do exist."

Mikoto nodded, allowing her eyes to revert back to their normal black. "Indeed they are. They are powerful eyes. A trump card that can defeat nearly all else. They are undoubtedly the reason why Madara Uchiha was able to rival Hashirama Senju."

Sasuke's eyes widened. "So, you're on the level of Madara Uchiha?"

Mikoto barely held back her laugh, a small smile forming on her face. "Sage no. I may possess the same tool, but I am far from able to utilize it on the level of Madara Uchiha. If Hashirama Senju came back to life today, he would defeat me with ease. No, I am not on his level. But I do possess his tools."

Sasuke frowned. "But how did you achieve it?"

"That is what I am trying to teach you Sasuke. How to achieve these eyes. How to stand stall and be equal with your brother and your father."

"So, father and brother..."

"They do possess a Mangekyou yes. They have elevated beyond it."

"Beyond the Mangekyou? Is that possible?"

Mikoto smiled, but it was one full of sadness.

"Yes. The Mangekyou...come at a price. They are a darkness that feeds on the soul. It is a power driven not be love, but by hate."

"What? But you told me Uchiha grow strong with love?"

"Alas, what comes out of love my son," Mikoto stated, placing a hand on his shoulder. "Hate is the natural opposite of love. It is born of it. The Mangekyou feeds on this power. Nurtures it. It is a powerful weapon, but a dangerous one. Its power easily corrupts. Both your soul, and your vision."

"What are you talking about?"

"Use of the Mangekyou Sharingan eats away at your vision. Using it will eventually make you go blind."

"What? Why would anyone use it then?"

"It grants power. A tantalizing power. It is hard to resist. But there is an escape from this blindness."

Sasuke cocked his head, confused. Mikoto smiled and pointed at his eye.

"Two users of the Mangekyou Sharingan who are close in relation can...trade...their eyes with one another. It unlocks a new eye, the final stage of the Sharingan. The Eternal Mangekyou Sharingan. It solves one of the two problems with this eye of ours. You can retain your vision with no worry as to how many times you use the Mangekyou's abilities. Your father and brother have undergone this operation successfully."

Sasuke's eyes widened, as if his entire world had been destroyed and reformed in a manner of minutes.

"That's why they're so strong...the gap between us...it was bigger than I ever thought."

"No, they are strong without their eyes. They help surely, but both are still incredibly powerful shinobi with a regular Sharingan."

"So, the gap is even wider."

"And that is the reason you must train," Mikoto stated. "Before you unlock these eyes we have, you must grow in strength to be capable of resisting the urge to call upon them. Until you have reached a satisfactory level, I cannot help you unlock these eyes in good conscious. As your mother...I could not bear seeing you succumb to their whispers."

Sasuke frowned, listening to his mother words. Slowly he stood up, his eyes hard. He raised his sword once more, his crimson eyes blazing. Mikoto stood to face him, nothing but a lone kunai in her hand. She smiled.

"Come my son."

Sasuke charged.

---

Naruto Uzumaki was well aware he was being followed when he was leaving Hacho Village. It was clear as day, especially considering his assailants were not really attempting to hide their chakra signatures. Frankly speaking he was frustrated at how easily they had found him. Kakuzu made sense, he was an experienced bounty hunter, but this wasn't him. Kakuzu didn't work in a team. So how had they found him? And more importantly, who the hell were they? The blonde kept his senses sharp as they approached. Soon he would be finding out he supposed.

He felt the disturbance in the air in an instant. He wasted no time in unveiling his staff, deflecting the senbon to the ground around him. His eyes narrowed, watching the weaponry clatter to the ground. Poison was on them if the clear liquid was any indication. Before he had time to make any other observations a mist began to roll in. Naruto's eyes narrowed. Poison and mist? Some sort of Kiri strike force? Both were staples of Kiri Hunter Squads, especially senbon. Of course, it wouldn't work on him regardless. His staff whipped forwards, Fūton (Wind Release) chakra swirling around his weapon before he swung. The gusts of air blew the mist away and slashed down all trees in the area like butter. The blonde's senses did not dull as they fell, careful to watch for nearby enemies.

A blade came down from above. Naruto swung upwards, blocking the attack, and gritting his teeth. His arms strained under the force and his veins threatened to burst from the strength. Select people in the Elemental Nations had this level of strength. And his assailant was one of those few.

"Zabuza Momochi..."

The man said nothing, instead launching a kick at Naruto's chest that sent him stumbling backwards. The swordsman then swung the massive cleaver that was his blade, Naruto ducking underneath it instead of bothering to engage directly. He would not win a battle of straight physical strength without using chakra to enhance his capabilities. And against three opponents of this caliber that was not something he could consistently afford. Zabuza was not going to give him a moments respite, lashing out with a series of swings that Naruto deflected rather than blocked. As soon as the blonde was able he leapt away, a frown on his face. Senbon shot towards him in the air, forcing him to deflect with his staff lest he be poisoned.

"Who's your ally?"

Zabuza was still silent. Naruto frowned.

He would have to force it out of him it seemed. The blonde prepared to rush in only for him to feel a strange sensation as he felt a hand clasp around his head.

'What?'

The blonde was flying through the air the next thing he knew, barely able to control his body.

'What the hell!'

He flipped, smashing through trees on his way to the ground. He cratered into the ground, his back hurting from the repeated impacts but his eyes sharp.

'Who the hell in this world is capable of doing THAT?'

"Well, well, well...I expected better from a Jinchuriki I won't lie."

Naruto's eyes snapped upwards, and his heart sank. All of a sudden, he was aware of the tenuous situation he was in. This was a problem indeed. Facing Zabuza Momochi, whoever this hunter shinobi was, and Kisame Hoshigaki at once? He was strong. He was confident in his abilities. He'd reckon in a fight with any of them individually he would win. But he was not stupid. There was no way in hell he could defeat all three of them at once.

Hoshigaki by himself was a horrible matchup for him. He knew his abilities well from the Bingo Book.

There was only one choice. Flee.

And he was about to do just that.

"Wait."

Naruto didn't listen, bolting at his top speed, the world flying by him in a blur of green, blue, and brown.

"Are you done running yet?"

Naruto's eyes widened with horror as Kisame Hoshigaki was keeping pace with him. The man looked like he was trying sure, Naruto was incredibly fast, but this was unexpected. The man's physical capabilities had been underestimated if anything. Naruto grit his teeth, lashing out with his staff only for Kisame to block the weapon with what Naruto assumed was Samehada, his legendary blade. Naruto grunted, lashing out with a kick that Kisame merely blocked with his forearm. The man didn't stumble or grunt, despite the chakra enhancing the blow. Naruto's eyes widened.

He was very, very fucked.

"I said stop wait!"

Naruto halted, although not because of Kisame's request. He merely recognized he stood no chance at running away from the man. He would have to create some form of a distraction. Something to give him a moments pause to create distance between the two. He could not fight this hulking monstrosity of a man while fighting at least one other A-class shinobi. Kisame Hoshigaki was likely stronger than all but one Kage in existence. And with that ability of his blades...

Naruto grunted, preparing to weave through handseals.

"I come to you in peace damn it! I'm not with those other two chuckleheads!"

Naruto's eyes narrowed.

"Fat chance."

"I'm serious! I mean yes I came with them, but I'm here under orders."

"Tell the Mizukage to fuck off."

"Please, the Mizukage would kill me if she got the chance. No, I'm here under the Amekage's orders."

Naruto paused. The Amekage? That was...unexpected. He had no business with Rain. What would the Amekage want with him? The small upstart village that had only recently been recognized as a great power? Then it clicked.

"Tell the Amekage I have no interest in becoming their Jinchuriki."

"What," Kisame stated, snorting. "Please. He doesn't need a Jinchuriki. None of them, including you, could even come close to beating him in a fight. Even if I fought him with you. Besides, I'm strong enough to take down practically every Jinchuriki myself."

Naruto wanted to be insulted by that statement but found he couldn't be. Kisame likely could back that claim up if only because of his unique skillset. But that wasn't what was interesting about what he said.

"The Amekage cannot be that strong. The Raikage is the strongest kage in the world and even he couldn't boast to be able to take on a complete Jinchuriki like Killer B and yourself at once."

"Well yeah...cause the Raikage is weak."

Naruto frowned; eyes narrowed. Kisame sighed, shaking his head.

"Look I don't have much time. Zabuza and Sasori will be here soon. They're not that slow. I came to in-"

"Sasori? Sasori of the Red Sand? Who the fuck sent him after me?"

"What can I say? The Raikage really wants your head. Anyway, back to the point, the Amekage wants to speak with you. In person. No ulterior motives."

Naruto snorted.

"You expect me to believe a kage wants to meet with me with no ulterior motive? Impossible."

Kisame shrugged. "He wants to talk with you about an idea he has. Up to you if you go or not."

"So if I say no."

Kisame shrugged.

"Way I see it, you've got three options. One, you fight off Sasori and Zabuza and hope you don't die. Knowing your strengths against theirs...you'll likely win, although it'll be hard fought. Two, I can join in cause I am technically getting paid for this and I can just tell the Amekage that you tried to kill me. Then you die."

Naruto bristled at how he said it so matter-of-factly.

"Third?"

"Third you say yes and I help you get rid of these shitstains because I have a vested interest in making sure you reach the Amekage alive. Sound fair?"

Naruto frowned. He didn't have time to effectively weigh his options here. If Zabuza and Sasori arrived, he would be forced into a choice. Could he trust the Hoshigaki? No, absolutely not. But a verbal promise that he wouldn't try to at least kill him during his fight with Zabuza and Sasori was better than nothing. Then he could focus on dealing with the man. If he actually helped him in defeating his two assailants even better. If they died fighting each other? Best case scenario. Of course, that was before Naruto felt a familiar dark chakra enter his senses. Judging from the frown that appeared on Kisame's face, he sensed it too.

"Looks like your choices became thinner. Either you agree to go with me...or you die."

"Kakuzu," Naruto muttered, recognizing the amalgamation of chakra anywhere. "Forcing my hand here."

"There you are!"

Naruto turned, Zabuza appearing right next to the crater, a frown on his face.

"Why the hell did you throw him so far Kisame? You're still a rookie at assassination I see."

A hulking abomination slowly appeared next to Zabuza, a massive tail coated in poison extending from the hunchback.

"I'm reluctant to agree with this idiot. His body would make an exquisite piece of art in my collection...stop making this process take so long."

"Too bad he's not yours to collect," came the call from across the crater. The group of shinobi turned to see Kakuzu staring down at Naruto. "He's mine."

"The hell is he doing here," Zabuza muttered.

"I came for the price on his head."

Zabuza grunted. "Tch. Get in line. The Uzumaki is my target."

Kakuzu's eyes snapped upwards to glare at Zabuza.

"Then I'll kill you too and take both your bounties then runt."

Zabuza looked like he was about to blow a gasket, raising his blade at Kakuzu.

"Needless to say, I will not be assisting you if you battle with The Huntsman, Momochi. Our target is Uzumaki per the Raikage's requset. I have no quarrel with anyone else."

"The Raikage," Kakuzu hissed. "That bastard double crossed me."

'So that's who hired you,' Naruto muttered. 'He really hates me.'

"He hired you too," Zabuza questioned. The man laughed. "Must've been unable to get the job done the first time! Ha! Would you look at that! A second bounty failed for the man who's calling card is only having failed to kill the Shodai Hokage!"

Kakuzu's eyes would have been red with rage if they could change color.

"It's not a failed bounty unless I die in the process of acquiring it or he dies by other means. Neither have happened yet. But I can certainly kill you and him you loud mouthed brat!"

The two groups of rogue nin were emanating killing intent and chakra, the air thick with tension. The area would soon become a battlefield, that much was clear. Kisame glanced at Naruto.

"You made a decision?"

Naruto grit his teeth. He didn't like it, but he had no other choice. Almost any pairing other than agreeing to Kisame's offer would lead to his death. Kakuzu alone was a massive threat if their last battle was any indication. A battle with Zabuza Momochi and Sasori of the Red Sands involved as well would be extremely messy. He would be meeting Hinata and Jiraiya if Kisame joined in. Wordlessly he formed a clone of himself, looking at Kisame with resolution in his eyes.

"Take me to him after we finish killing these three."

Kisame grinned, raising Samehada at Zabuza and Sasori.

"Glad to know you agree!"

Zabuza's and Sasori's eyes narrowed.

"Traitor," they hissed. Kisame wanted to snort.

"I know rogues aren't about to criticize me for being a traitor. Nobody here can talk about walking away from responsibility."

Well, that was one thing that everyone in the clearing couldn't argue with.

Naruto stared at Kakuzu.

Kisame stared down both Sasori and Zabuza.

And then all parties moved.

Zabuza swung the Kubikiribocho downwards with incredible force, only for Samehada to meet it. The clash of the two blades sent a wave of force throughout the ground, kicking dust into the air. The two struggled for dominance briefly, Zabuza slowly losing ground until a massive tail shot towards Kisame. The powerful shinobi grunted, twisting Samehada to blow the Zabuza's arms wide. The shinobi turned, blocking the tail of Sasori with his blade. The hulking figure of a man did nto stop there, the tail immediately recoiling before launching forwards again. Zabuza moved in tandem, swinging his blade at Kisame's back. The man grunted, using Samehada to block Sasori's tail while simultaneously grabbing Zabuza's hand, stopping his blade from cutting him in half. Kisame grunted at the strain of holding back the power of the two attacks. Zabuza snarled, raising his leg and smashing it into Kisame's chest. The man shot backwards, skidding across the ground. Sasori wasted no time in capitalizing on this, a storm of senbon shooting from his mouth. Kisame blocked them, only for his eyes to widen as he saw small orbs of glass in the storm as well. He leapt away to avoid the poison clouds that exploded into existence upon the orbs hitting the ground, only for Zabuza to appear before him. The man roared, smashing their blades together with a force that forced them through three trees.

They smashed to the ground, rage on Zabuza's face as he swung his blade once more with masterful skill. It was a shame Kisame matched this skill, deflecting every slash with one hand. Zabuza grunted, using both hands to come downwards with an overhead slash only for Kisame to block it with one arm. The man grinned, his sharp teeth glistening in the sunlight.

"Come on Zabuza...you've never been able to beat me. I'm the strongest of our generation."

Zabuza snarled, rage filling his eyes. "I'll just kill you to prove you wrong then."

He broke contact, twirling his blade to come upwards with a horizontal slash that Kisame blocked. The man took a step in, his shoulder smashing into Zabuza's chest. The man grunted, taking a step back from the sudden force. Kisame wasn't going to give him room to manuever, getting in close and lashing out with a punch that Zabuza tilted his head to avoid. The bandaged man grunted, one hand freeing itself from the hilt of his blade and pushing against Kisame's arm, freeing his weapon. He roared, swinging Kubikiribocho at Kisame's head only for the man to duck underneath the slash. Zabuza had expected that however, spinning the entire way through and kicking up dirt with his feet directly into Kisame's eyes. The swordsman grunted, desperately wiping at his eyes to free them of dirt. That brief time was all Zabuza needed, swinging downwards horizontally, and forming a deep cut on the man's body. Kisame hissed, skipping backwards, eyes snapping up at Zabuza. The man was grinning, running through one handed handseals. Water spewed from his mouth, a small opening in the bandages ensuring they weren't drenched as a clone of himself formed to his right. The clones charged just as Kisame landed.

The clone roared, unleashing a downwards slash that Kisame blocked with his blade, but his eyes never left the original. Zabuza appeared at his right, his body low to the ground in a crouched position, blade angled up to cut his opponent in two. The blade swung, only for water to fly through the air. Zabuza's eyes widened as Kisame was suddenly where the clone was, and his clone was destroyed by the Kubikiribocho. Before the man had any time to react Kisame's foot shot upwards, smashing into Zabuza's jaw. The man skipped across the ground, until he came to a stop as he impacted against a tree. Zabuza's head snapped upwards as Kisame appeared in front of him, Samehada descending. He desperately swung Kubikiribocho upwards, the flat side of the blade stopping Kisame cold.

"That was a dirty trick Zabuza."

"Since when did you use the substitution," Zabuza stated, a note of laughter in his voice. "What was that you said when we were training? There was no way someone like me could force you to use that jutsu?"

Kisame's eyes narrowed, and a growl erupted from his throat. His foot snapped up once more, but Zabuza was expecting it this time. He tilted his body, avoiding the blow. With a grunt he leapt away, ignoring the screeching of their blades scraping against one another. Kisame turned on his heel, watching his opponent with narrowed eyes. Zabuza grunted, dashing forwards once more, his blade spinning around him. Kisame roared, rushing forwards to meet him. Their blades collided, their arms bulging with effort as they tried to overpower the other. It wasn't long before a victor was decided, Zabuza slowly beginning to struggle to surpress Kisame's strength. Just as the man gained the advantage in their clash Zabuza pulled back altogether, causing Kisame to misstep. The man stumbled forwards, causing Zabuza to smile. His blade swung upwards, desperate to cleave off the man's arm only for him to twirl in a way that altogether defied what logic dictated a man of his size could do. Zabuza's eyes widened as Samehada swung upwards, smashing into Kubikiribocho and throwing his guard wide. Kisame took a step to stabilize before he leapt forwards, his forearm smashing against Zabuza's body. The man's body bent, causing Kisame to grin. Just before the force could throw Zabuza backwards he reached out and grasped his arm, the sudden yanking motion almost ripping his shoulder out of its socket. Zabuza winced at the pain, but he never lost focus as Samehada descended, the weapon aiming to cut him in half. He roared, grabbing Kisame's forearm with his grabbed hand and flooding his hand with chakra similar to how one would mistakenly perform the tree walking technique. With a cry of pain Kisame's skin rippled and exploded in a shower of gore, the skin on his forearm torn. With his arm now free Zabuza pulled back but was unable to avoid Samehada shredding down the front of his body, creating a deep bloody wound. The two combatants leapt away from each other, eyeing their injuries and their opponent cautiously.

"You're doing better than I expected I'll give you that."

Zabuza snorted.

"Maybe you're just not as strong as you thought, did you ever think of that?"

"Not even for a moment."

Zabuza's eyes narrowed. "I'll enjoy killing you."

Kisame grinned. "Yeah, well come show me you even can!"

The two charged each other once more, their blades colliding once more. However, before the two could continue their battle they were not forced to separate via a storm of shuriken stabbing themselves into the ground where they had once been. Both turned to see Sasori's hulking form watching Kisame with interest.

"Your body would also be quite an exquisite piece of art. I do not have a Suiton (Water Release) specialist as powerful as you."

Kisame grinned.

"You'll have to kill me first."

"That will not be hard."

A storm of senbon shot from around Kisame, causing his eyes to widen. When had the puppetmaster set this trap up? He grunted, weaving through handseals at a blistering pace to unleash a storm of water that stopped the senbon's momentum. Zabuza did not give him any room to breathe, charging in once more in an attempt to cut off Kisame's arms. The man grunted, spinning, and deflecting the Kubikiribocho with his own blade. He stepped inwards, lashing out with a kick that smashed into Zabuza's chin and sent him flying backwards. Kisame then turned towards Sasori, rushing forwards only for his tail to stop Kisame's downwards slash. The hulk of a man grunted as his attack was held still by the tail.

"Just how strong is this thing?"

Despite his mouth opening Sasori made no comment, instead a storm of senbon shooting outwards. Kisame leaned backwards, displaying unnatural flexibility to avoid the attack as the senbon merely cut his clothes as he leapt away. Sasori gave him no room to breathe, another section of his body opening to reveal another tail. The two appendages shot forwards, threatening to spear the swordsman through. Kisame grunted, leaping away and watching in frustration as the attack speared through the tree behind him like it wasn't even there. With a grunt Sasori's tails ripped the tree to pieces, quickly grabbing the falling pieces of wood and sending them flying at Kisame. The man deflected the pieces with a quickness, throwing Samehada around like it was weightless. The projectiles were destroyed, little more than spects of dust and sawdust in the air as Zabuza appeared before him, his blade covered in rotating water. Kisame's eyes narrowed as Samehada blocked Kubikiribocho, this time forcing him to use two hands to stop the attack. Zabuza grinned, the grinding of his water shredding some of the bandages around the legendary blade. With a roar Samehada's spikes shot forth, forcing Zabuza backwards.

Kisame's eyes narrowed.

"You learned Kushimaru's technique."

Zabuza grinned, raising his blade to point at Kisame.

"And now...you die."

Kisame grunted, glancing at Sasori. He had been unusually still during their battle. What was he planning? Zabuza noticed this, his eyes narrowing.

"Don't take me lightly Kisame. This isn't those same battles we had when we were training!"

Kisame looked back at his fellow former Swordsman of the Mist, eyes filled with boredom.

"Zabuza...if you keep trying to pressure me like this, I'll cut off both your arms and leave you to bleed out in this forest. I'm only not killing you out of distant camaraderie."

Zabuza's vision went red, his body blitzing forwards at speeds most shinobi could not match. His blade howled for blade as he swung it down, chakra and water enhancing the blow. No normal shinobi would have been able to dodge, much less block such an attack. It was a death sentence.

Kisame was no normal shinobi.

The Samehada flew forwards, chakra enhancing his physical strength as the blades crashed together. A massive shockwave shot forwards, blasting dust and grass into the air. Even Sasori had to use chakra to stick to the ground to avoid being sent flying. The two powerful swordsmen locked eyes, killing intent radiating between them. Zabuza roared, unleashing a flurry of slashes only for Kisame to block each one, a resounding BOOM echoing across the battlefield every time the blades met. The two stood in the center of a massive crater, the formation only deepening every time their blades cracked together. Neither gave any ground, a display of masterful skill as attacks that would have threatened to cut mountains in twain were halted by nothing more than another's blade. Neither was willing to give any ground. To allow for the other to know that they were their superior. No, it was a battle of ego as much as it was a battle of skill. Most would regard the sight as beautiful.

Sasori thought it was a waste of time. This was not an effective way to fight Kisame Hoshigaki. If Zabuza did not understand that he would simply kill them both and be done with it. He raised Hiruko's arms, it's forearms opening to reveal twin barrels. With a grunt of effort, he fired pellets that contained poison at an astonishing rate. A minigun. Rare technology, even for the standards of the Elemental Nations. The two swordsmen noticed the attack and disengaged, although it was only Kisame who was forced to continue to flee, threatened as he was by the never ending cannisters of poison. He escaped into the trees, but Sasori was not one to stop just because obstacles were in his way. He would simply coat the entire area in poison. He grunted once more, clouds of poison beginning to fill the forest. Zabuza could only watch in annoyance at his battle being stopped. He wanted to prove himself superior to the supposed strongest of their generation. Zabuza wanted to spit.

There was only one man in their generation he accepted as his better. And it was not Kisame.

Sasori stopped his attack, eyes narrowing on the forest. Surely the man had at least been poisoned. If he could confirm that he could effectively put a timer on this battle. Of course, when he saw the shadow growing on the ground, he realized his hopes had been crushed. He leapt to the side, barely avoiding Kisame smashing him to pieces. The puppetmaster whirled Hiruko, his twin tails lashing out to stop any follow up strike. He had been fortunate, Kisame halting to stop the poison-coated weapons from hitting him, sending them both flying away. Sasori grunted, unleashing his third and final tail as he raised the miniguns attached to his forearms. He would bring all of Hiruko's weapons to bear against the threat if it were necessary. Kisame Hoshigaki was not a threat to be underestimated.

"Almost had me there I'll admit," Kisame muttered, raising Samehada. "But I'm afraid this fight is over...for both of you."

Zabuza snarled. "Please. You're lucky we haven't landed a killing blow on you yet."

Kisame smirked. He was well aware that any hit by Sasori was decisive. He wasn't immune to poison and Sasori would die before giving him the antidote. Zabuza, if he somehow managed to actually land another blow, would hurt, but it certainly wouldn't be decisive. But he had his methods to counteract both of them.

"I was just warming up," Kisame stated, weaving through one-handed handseals. "It's about time I spice things up! Suiton: Bakusui Shōha (Water Release: Exploding Water Colliding Wave)!"

Kisame belched a massive amount of water from his mouth, one that put Naruto's own utilization of the jutsu to shame. Zabuza and Sasori's eyes widened at the massive amount of water that quickly began to flatten trees and submerge the area. Desperately the two leapt around the battlefield, finding perches as they quickly climbed the escalating amount of water without being submerged. Kisame had changed the entire geography of the battlefield in but a moment. They were now fighting on a large lake, and the man didn't even look tired.

"I don't suppose you have a plan to counter this technique, do you? Considering you trained with him."

"Tch."

Sasori wanted to sigh. He had expected that.

"Well...I hope your use of Suiton (Water Release) can measure up to his then."

Zabuza wanted to assure his...companion that it could, if only due to his own ego. But after that scene he had just witnessed.

He was not sure he could.

---

Naruto grunted as his forearm collided with Kakuzu's, the two men staring each other in the eye.

"So, you're back...get more of those extra lives of yours then?"

"You'll soon be added to them."

The two said nothing else. Kakuzu lashed out with a punch, only for it to be batted downwards by Naruto's staff. The man continued this course of action for a moment, gauging the blonde. He did not find him wanting. There was no gap in the defense. Not a single one of his blows made it by his defenses. As to be expected by someone trained in the ways of the staff by Hiruzen Sarutobi. There was no slowness in his movement either. He had fully healed from their last battle. Disappointing, but expected. Tendrils burst from Kakuzu's back, lashing out at Naruto like vipers. The blonde grunted, wind instantly whipping around his staff as he spun it before him, forming an impenatrable wall of air around him that cut anything that tried to cross its boundaries. The thread fell to the ground as soon as it attempted to pass the buzzsaw, useless. Kakuzu's eyes narrowed, halting the attack. Instead, one of the masked creatures from before exploded from his back, its head curling around his body unnaturally to remained connected to his body and opened its mouth. Naruto frowned.

The blast of flame that shot from the creature engulfed the duo, flames licking the ground and trees around the battlefield. A figure shot from the flames, Naruto, his body covered in light burns. He had no respite however as he saw two clones of Kakuzu form from the ground beneath him, each leaping at him. That was when his own clone leapt into action. The clone of Naruto grunted, his scythe fully forming around him to cut the clones in half. He turned, his eyes watching as he saw the real Kakuzu charging the original, his body oddly discolored. The clone frowned, leaping forwards and blocking the attack with his staff, grunting as he fought against the force. Kakuzu's eyes narrowed, but he had no time to counteract as the original lashed out with a thrust of his own staff at Kakuzu's neck. The man slipped the blow, his attention split between the duo. His hand reached out, grabbing the original's staff, and using it as leverage to flip his body into the air. His legs split, lashing out with kicks at both his opponents that they both blocked. Kakuzu's eyes narrowed, tendrils shooting from his back the second he landed. They shot towards both Naruto's, only for them both to leap away from the assault. Kakuzu quickly pulled his threads back in, charging the clone.

The clone grunted, slashing out with his scythe to discourage the offensive, but Kakuzu was clever. The man's eye carefully watched the distortions in the air, weaving into the clones' guard without being grazed by the cutting power of the elemental weapon. That was when he realized his mistake, the clone's eyes grinning with mischief. His head snapped to the side, seeing the distortions rapidly changing shape to form a hook. The clone pulled, attempting to behead the bounty hunter only for him to roll forwards, the blade wiping by overhead as Kakuzu rolled onto his hands. With a grunt the man pushed off, his feet smashing into the clones' arms before he kicked, forcing the clone's arm to snap at an awkward angle. As if that wasn't enough the direction forced the clone's own weapon to cut off its head, the twin injuries making it dispel in a puff of smoke.

Just as the bounty hunter landed the original Naruto was there, an elbow aimed at Kakuzu's face and his staff nowhere to be seen. Kakuzu caught the blow, responding with his own punch that Naruto weaved. The blonde took a step inward, desperate to get in Kakuzu's guard and land a body blow only for the bounty hunter to take the attack on his shoulder as he bent his knees. Kakuzu grunted at the impact but stepped forward nonetheless, wanting to make the fight even more compact. One hand swung to the side, smacking Naruto's arm wide before a compact punch flung forwards, smashing into the blonde's face. The blonde's head snapped backwards, blood shooting from his nose. Kakuzu grunted, his arm extending thanks to his threads as he reached up, his hand grabbing Naruto's face. He pulled, his knee flying upwards to smash into the blonde's face. He smirked only for the blonde's body to inflate awkwardly. Kakuzu's eyes widened, but it was too late, the explosion catching him unaware.

The man was thrown from the location, burns covering his skin. He grunted, much of his clothing destroyed as he rose to his feet. His eyes searched wildly for his opponent, barely managing to find the blonde right before he landed a blow. The bounty hunter ducked the punch, slipping into Naruto's guard and pulling a kunai that he quickly covered with lightning chakra to thrust into the blonde's lung just as he did in their last battle. The blow landed, only for the blonde to disappear in a puff of smoke, clouding Kakuzu's vision. The man grunted, spinning to block the kick that was aimed at his body. Naruto grunted, pulling back his leg only for Kakuzu to burst forwards. The man lashed out with his kunai, forcing Naruto onto the defensive. The blonde barely dodged the series of slashes and thrusts by the skin of his teeth. Desperately he reached out, smacking his hand against Kakuzu's wrist. The slight pause halted the wild flurry, giving him time to create a clone to his side. The clone stabbed forwards with a kunai of its own, forcing Kakuzu to block with his own weapon and giving the original Naruto time to lash out with a kick that collided against a web of Kakuzu's threads. The force sent the bounty hunter skidding backwards, his eyes locked on his two opponents.

The two blondes glanced at each other briefly before they rushed forwards. The clone lashed out with its kunai, only for Kakuzu to duck underneath the blade. He grunted, lashing out with a punch that the original batted aside with his hand before it could reach the clone. The clone flipped above the arm, unleashing a downwards kick that Kakuzu blocked with his forearms, grunting from the force behind the blow. The original Naruto raised his leg, smashing his foot into Kakuzu's chest and forcing him to roll backwards to negate most of the force of the attack. The original Naruto frowned, dashing forwards and lashing out with a punch that Kakuzu slipped, allowing the punch to graze against his shoulder as he stepped into the blonde's guard. He quickly grabbed his shirt, twisting his weight and tugging to throw Naruto onto the ground. Before he had time to continue his assault the clone was upon him again, lashing out with a series of attacks with the kunai that Kakuzu blocked by hitting the clone's wrists. The bounty hunter grunted, his eyes flashing to the side as he saw the original stand up once more, unsealing his staff.

Kakuzu grunted, his skin color darkening briefly as he allowed the clone's kunai to hit his skin, only for it to scrape off harmlessly. The clone's eyes widened as Kakuzu's skin returned to normal, but it was too late. The man lashed out with a kick that smashed into the clone's throat, forcing it to disappear in a burst of smoke. The original Naruto took that as his single to leap forwards, his staff swinging at Kakuzu's head only for the man to leap, twirling around the staff as black threads suddenly burst from his back. The tendrils quickly wrapped Naruto's body, restricting his movement. Grunting, Naruto desperately tried to rip himself free as Kakuzu landed, but it was to no avail. The bounty hunter grinned, pulling out a kunai that he covered in lightning chakra before he thrusted it towards Naruto's throat. The blow landed, wood filling the air courtesy of the log that Kakuzu struck. The man's eyes narrowed, irritation on his face. He turned, his eyes locking onto Naruto's location. The blonde grinned. Kakuzu snorted, launching the chunks of wood at him like projectiles to spear him through, only for the blonde's staff to spin, deflecting the attacks.

The two combatants stared at each other, carefully measuring their abilities. Wordlessly a clone appeared next to Naruto once more, a puff of smoke and slight distortion in the air the only signals that it was not there before. Kakuzu grunted, watching as the two rushed forwards. The man instantly began to blur through handseals as he skipped backwards, his eyes tracking their movements. Just as he finished, he smashed his hands on the ground.

"Doton: Yomi Numa (Earth Release: Swamp of the Underworld)!"

The ground before Kakuzu immediately twisted, forming a dark swamp that both versions of Naruto quickly sunk into. The duo's eyes widened as Kakuzu began to weave through additional handseals. The ground around the bounty hunter and left-over swamp from the trap began to swirl together, rising into the air before it formed a massive dragon that roared its presence to the world.

"Doton: Dosekiryū (Earth Release: Earth and Stone Dragon)!"

The dragon roared as it shot towards the two versions of Naruto, prepared to crush them alive underneath its weight. Naruto grunted, glancing at his clone. The copy of himself nodded. Water began to swirl around both of their staffs, rotating at incredibly speeds as the dragon neared them. With a grunt both of them launched their weapons, the rotating water around it allowing it to saw right through the dragon, similar to how water eroded earth. The destablized beast crumbled before it reached them, but they were not out of the woods yet. They still needed to free themselves from the trap they found themselves in. The clone of Naruto began to weave through handseals, its eyes scanning the swamp.

'Swamp is just water...even if this is a Doton jutsu."

"Suiton: Hahonryū (Water Release: Tearing Torrent)."

The blonde's clone thrust his palm to the side towards his original, the liquid in the swamp surging forwards and pushing the original to freedom. Naruto grunted, pushing off the ground and weaving handseals as his eyes locked onto Kakuzu. Just as he landed, he slammed his hands on the ground.

"Suiton: Mizu Kamikiri (Water Release: Rising Water Slicer)!"

The swamp water churned before a thin line of surging water shot towards Kakuzu, carving through the ground seamlessly. Kakuzu grunted, dodging the attack and sprinting towards the original Naruto who rushed in to meet him. The two collided, each throwing a punch that the other caught. The two quickly locked hands, chakra surging through both of their bodies as they tried to overpower the other. They came to a stalemate, only for black threads to shoot out from Kakuzu's back like a spider's web and descend on the blonde. Naruto disengaged, leaping away to avoid being trapped once more by his opponent. Kakuzu was not one to be dissuaded so easily, his threads digging into the ground and ripping up chunks of earth that he threw at both Naruto and his clone. The clone, unable to defend itself, was easily dispelled by the projectiles. The original on the other hand managed to slip around the technique, closing the distance towards Kakuzu in the process. If the man worried at this, he did not show it. Instead, his threads shot from the ground like snakes, desperately trying to ensnare the blonde. Naruto grunted, desperately avoiding the attacks despite having no idea where they would come from next. Suddenly a thread shot from the ground, wrapping around his ankle. It was inevitable. He couldn't avoid all of the attacks. Kakuzu grinned, beginning to swing the man from his ankle before he threw him back towards the swamp. It was only through the activation of his armor that Naruto managed to avoid being trapped once more, the thick swamp water swirling into the air as his wind armor distorted it. The blonde grunted, flying away to land right next to his staff, once more as Kakuzu stared at his opponent, his threads slowly receding back into his body. Naruto picked up his staff.

The two glared at one another, irritation on both of their faces. It was clear getting past the others defenses was going to be a trying process. Kakuzu grunted, dashing forwards as Naruto did. The bounty hunter's kunai met the blonde's staff only for the Fire mask to leap from his back once more, its mouth open wide. Naruto's eyes widened and he leapt backwards as flame burst forwards, threatening to burn him alive. He dashed to the side, the gout of flame following him as tried to narrow the gap. Kakuzu was desperate to stop the advance, his Wind mask sprouting and unleashing a blast of wind to fuel the flame. The gout turned into a massive conflagration, forcing Naruto backwards lest he be caught up in the inferno that was the combination technique. The searing heat began to evaporate the swamp and forced sweat to pour from his brow. Before the blonde could figure out a way around the jutsu he felt a hand clasp his ankle. His head snapped downwards as he was pulled underground, a desperate Kawarimi (Substitution) the only thing that stopped him from being effectively trapped. Kakuzu stood over the imprisoned log, an annoyed look on his face as he glared at his opponent. Naruto frowned. His wind armor flickered to life once more, wrapping around his staff to form his scythe before he shot forwards once more.

Kakuzu grunted, deftly dodging the series of slashes as the roaring inferno surged behind them. Naruto grunted, swinging downwards as kakuzu dodged the attack. The blonde didn't hesitate, rotating his scythe and kicking dirt and rock into the air to cover his body. Kakuzu turned to the side to avoid the follow up slash, but that was what Naruto had wanted him to do. His foot lashed out, cracking against Kakuzu's jaw and sending the man stumbling backwards. Naruto roared, quickly closing the gap, and lashing out with his scythe, cutting Kakuzu's arm off at the shoulder. The man hissed, leaping away, and clutching his injured body. Naruto was in no way going to give up his advantage, leaping forwards at his opponent. In response the Fire and Wind masks appeared behind Kakuzu once more, only this time the Water mask joined them. The trio of elemental natures let loose a storm of jutsu, forcing Naruto to retreat lest he be caught in the combination. The combination joined the massive inferno, creating a storm of elemental chakra that scorched the ground and sent out a blast of heat that formed a crater with the two combatants at the center before the elements died down. When the smoke cleared the two opponents looked at each other. Kakuzu grunted, the threads in his body shooting forwards towards his arm and pulling it back in, reattaching it. Naruto frowned.

"Bullshit."

Kakuzu said nothing. Instead, he charged Naruto. Naruto frowned, swinging his scythe, and unleashing a flurry of airborne blades that the man leapt over. Naruto snarled, raising his weapon to block the downwards kick that cratered the ground beneath his feet. He snarled, pushing Kakuzu off of him, only for the man's body to be coated in lightning the second he hit the ground.

'He's using Kumo's armor!'

The man blitzed forwards, moving faster than Naruto could react due to the enhanced abilities given to him by the jutsu, his fist smashing into the blonde's face. Naruto flew backwards, his back smashing against the scorched, raised ground. Kakuzu snarled, the armor dropping as he unleashed another storm of the the thread tendrils at the blonde. They would have connected, had another Naruto not appeared directly in front of the blonde in a puff of smoke, splitting the attack with his own wind scythe. Kakuzu grunted as the original blonde stood. The two lookalikes glanced at each other before they shot forwards in a burst of speed. Kakuzu grunted, slamming his hands on the ground. The ground shook briefly before massive amounts of the thread shot from the ground, attempting to ensnare the duo. However, it was in vain. Both versions of Naruto either dodged or cut away the tendrils. They could not reach them. Even if the tendrils came from behind the other would leap into the fray, stopping the attack with their scythe. Kakuzu grunted, two of his masks shooting off of his body to each side of the crater as his bodies skin became discolored. The two masks opened their mouths.

"Die!" Kakuzu roared.

A massive blast of air and fire rained down on the trio only for both Naruto's to go back-to-back with each other. The original Naruto grunted, the wind around his scythe disappearing only for a torrent of water to swirl around it, rotating at rapid speeds. Kakuzu's eyes widened as the two Naruto's increased the tempo of their spins, the wind and water coalescing. He couldn't believe what he was seeing. A beautiful combination technique, executed at the drop of a hat, to counter his own technique. The blonde had countered one of his most powerful strategies, the ability to mix-and-match elemental combinations with his extra hearts...after one battle. So, this was Naruto Uzumaki.

The blasts of fire and air met the typhoon of water, clashing for dominance in an outpouring of chakra. Steam began to fill the area as the water evaporated, but it changed nothing. The blonde simply created more water with his chakra. Eventually the attack ceased, steam so thick it covered the battlefield replacing it. Kakuzu grit his teeth. Then he heard a voice.

"I don't need to see you to know where you are."

The bounty hunter grunted as he felt a powerful thrust in his stomach. He grunted, blood shooting from his mouth and gut as he saw the staff of one Naruto Uzumaki spear through his body like one would a fish. He winced, feeling one of his hearts be destroyed instantly by the force of the attack. He had lost a life. Water jutsu was no longer on the table outside of the ones he already knew. He shot back from the force, being sent flying from the steam as the staff collided with a tree. He grunted; his body pinned as he saw the two forms of the Uzumaki rush towards him from the mist. He snarled, watching as his two hearts that were already out appeared in front of him in a burst of speed, unleashing a conflagration of flame to delay the two. The two blondes leapt away from the attack, careful to avoid it without the staff to allow for their own combination technique. That gave the wind mask time to rip the staff out of Kakuzu's body and break it. Kakuzu nodded, allowing his hearts to be reassimilated into his body. He couldn't afford to take risks with one of his hearts destroyed in an instant. If he used that technique to target his hearts...this would quickly become an unprofitable venture.

Naruto narrowed at his broken staff on the ground.

"This is why I'm happy we used yours. It's just chakra then."

The clone shrugged, no staff in its hand. Instead, it drew a kunai, raising the weapon at Kakuzu. Kakuzu's eyes narrowed. Could they still use the combination technique with the kunai and the staff? He would have to find out. He leapt into the fray; his body coated with his defense as he lashed out with a kick. The clone deflected the attack with its forearm as Naruto thrust his wind coated staff at his heart. A spear. Kakuzu grunted, whipping his body to the side ferociously to avoid the attack, and lashing out with a punch aimed towards the blonde's head only for the clone to catch the offending appendage. Kakuzu grunted, wishing to continue the assault only for the original's eyes to pulse with power. That was the only signal he got. He grunted, chakra flooding his feet to push him into the ground with overloading, watching as visible distortions in the air, high velocity wind, carved through the area he had just been. He grunted, weaving through handseals before he unleashed a storm of flame down at the two beneath him. They shot away, headed in different directions but their eyes locked on him the entire time. His eyes narrowed.

'It's not confirmation without forcing them into an attack that they have to use it against...but it's likely they can't do it without the staff. Good.'

Kakuzu allowed the winds of his wind heart to form behind his back, allowing him to fly in the air. He stared at the duo only for his eyes to widen as the original's staff was covered in water. The liquid shot towards him, threatening to wrap around his body. Kakuzu snarled, dodging the attack only for the clone to appear next to him, its body covered in Naruto's pattened wind armor. Kakuzu barely dodged the slash of its kunai, his eyes wide. The clone did not slow down, continuing the assault wiht a series of slashes and thrusts that constantly kept Kakuzu on the backfoot. He couldn't formulate a counteroffensive, not when he was getting no room to breathe. The clone thrust forward with the kunai, the wind chakra extending off it. He grunted, turning, and allowing the wind to scrape against his Doton (Earth Release) enhanced skin. He grunted, feeling the slight cutting sensation as he turned, throwing a haymaker that would have struck the blonde had he not ducked underneath just a millisecond before it made contact. Kakuzu snarled, another head sprouting from his back to glare at the clone. It opened its mouth, a bolt of lightning shooting fowards and spearing into the clone's gut. The clone grunted, the lightning unable to pierce his armor thanks to his elemental advantage, but the force of the attack pushed him backwards, sending him flying backwards. Kakuzu would have watched the attack if he didn't feel something wet on his ankle. He glanced downwards; his eyes wide as he saw a tendril of water around him. The original Naruto on the ground grinned before he pulled, dragging Kakuzu down to the ground. The man roared as his body hit the ground, the ground shuddering from the impact. The original Naruto and his clone watched the smoke clear, eyes narrowed. All they found was a log.

Their eyes snapped open only for tendrils to wrap around their entire bodies. They grunted, unable to turn but they could feel Kakuzu's presence behind them. The sinister chakra.

"Good fight. I win."

Naruto glanced at the clone, and it nodded, its body bulging unnaturally before it detonated, blasting both the original and Kakuzu away from each other, both covered in light burns. The two landed ungracefully, rising to their feet to glare at one another.

"Clever."

Naruto grunted, forming another clone at his side, this one having another staff. Kakuzu's eyes narrowed.

"So that's your strategy..."

The man grunted, chakra flooding his system as the threads inside his body swirled together. He grunted, his body gaining a light blue hue, similar to the lightning chakra he had demonstrated briefly, but calmer. Naruto's eyes narrowed. Kakuzu grinned.

"You're not the only one with a strategy boy...and with my age...I have decades more experience."

Naruto grunted, his wind armor exploding around his body and his scythe. The clone grunted, water storming around its staff.

"Let's see whose strategy holds up then shall we."

Kakuzu grinned before he disappeared. Naruto's eyes widened, shocked that someone could move fast enough for even him to be unable to see it. His eyes widened as his clone disappeared in a puff of smoke. The blonde vividly remembered Kakuzu's fist impacting with his gut. How had he moved that fast? The blonde had no more time to ponder the idea as his head violently snapped upwards, blood bursting from his mouth as he ascended into the sky.

'What?'

A tendril wrapped around his body, a jolt from it waking him up before he was smashed roughly into the ground. He grunted, feeling his body groan at the action.

'He got through my wind...but that technique should be lightning based.'

His body was drug through the ground, towards Kakuzu. The tendril snapped awkwardly, the blonde's body spiralling towards the bounty hunter. Kakuzu grinned, lashing out with a punch that cratered against Naruto's cheek. Their eyes met briefly but, in that moment, Naruto saw the look in Kakuzu's eye. The satisfaction. He thought this fight over. Naruto grunted as his body skipped across the ground, thrown by the force behind Kakuzu's fist. He smashed through dozens of trees before he came to his stop, bruises and splinters of various sizes in his skin. He grunted, slowly ripping the chunks of wood out of his body as more of his blood poured to the ground below. His staff was on the ground in front of him, his hand being unable to hold onto it the entire time. In front of that stood Kakuzu, the faint blue hue of his body still around him. His eyes themselves glowed an ominous blue. It was ghastly.

Naruto grunted as Kakuzu grabbed him by the throat, lifting him into the air helplessly.

"This was more effective than I thought it would be."

Naruto groaned. He couldn't understand it. How was he suddenly being overpowered? How had Kakuzu developed this speed? He hadn't had it in their last battle and developing speed like this took more than the amount of time between their bouts. Had he absorbed a Kekkei Genkai? Was that possible?

Kakuzu raised a glowing hand, smashing it into Naruto's stomach. The blood coughed up blood and bile, the liquids splattering all over Kakuzu's chest. If the bounty hunter minded, he did not show it, lashing out with another blow that made Naruto cry out for pain.

"It's so satisfying to have beaten you. Tch. And they thought I would fail to get a bounty. Maybe I'll take the Raikage's as recompense for this slight."

Another blow.

"You are no Hashirama Senju."

Naruto snarled, his hand catching the next punch from Kakuzu, causing the man's eyes to widen. Naruto's eyes narrowed, feeling the blood rush through his body. The same sensation he had felt during his battle with the Iwa shinobi back in the Land of Earth. No. This was different. More intense. More vivid. Clear. His vision was clear. He saw Kakuzu's hand fly towards him and had simply caught it. The movement wasn't slow, no it was still mostly a blur. But he could see it. And that was all he needed. His other hand snapped upwards, grabbing Kakuzu's hand around his throat as he smashed his feet on the man's chest.

"Don't you do it," Kakuzu muttered. "You'll rip out your own throat."

Naruto grinned, the blood trailing from his lips and crazed look in his eyes giving him the look of a demon.

"Let's find out."

Another clone of Naruto appeared at his side, swinging downwards with his scythe as Naruto overloaded chakra to his feet. Kakuzu grunted as his arm was cut clean off before he was sent flying away from a massive overload of the Ki Nobori no Shugyō (Tree Climbing Practice). The man skipped across the ground, using his Doton jutsu to protect his body from the numerous bruises and cuts he would have received as he skipped across the ground. Still, that jutsu by itself was not enough to stop the two massive bruises forming on his chest. He slowly stood, coughing up blood onto the ground. He glared up at Naruto, watching as the blonde and his clone grinned at him like savages, staffs in their hands.

"Got your arm," Naruto said, waving the appendage like a monkey. The blonde grinned, raising his scythe before both he and the clone unleashed a storm of wind blades that shredded the appendage to pieces. Kakuzu frowned. That...was a problem. He could attach a new body part to his body, that was fine. He would simply take it from someone else. But he was now down an arm against the Uzumaki. Everything from the middle of his bicep down was missing. That...was a significant disadvantage. He supposed it could be worse. Any normal shinobi would bleed out from the injury, but he could use his tendrils to stop that from happening.

Naruto grinned, slowly walking forwards as he saw the blue hue ignite once more. The blue glow was even stronger at the stump that used to be Kakuzu's arm. Suddenly everything clicked as he saw blue lightning crackling across the tendrils.

"You're channeling the lightning armor through your tendrils instead of outside your body...it's like enhancing your muscles with chakra on steroids."

Kakuzu grunted, but that was all Naruto needed to know that his guess was correct. It was an impressive technique. Naruto didn't even know it was possible. No...it likely wasn't possible for anyone but Kakuzu and his unique biology. And the man had capitalized on that. What a unique technique. Part of him wanted to know what jutsu it was. How did it work to be able to pull off techniques like that? Was there anything else Kakuzu was hiding?

A worry, but he had the advantage now. He could handle whatever the man threw at him, of that he was sure.

He stared at Kakuzu's eyes, victory in his own.

"Didn't you say you were going to kill me?"

Kakuzu snarled, rushing forwards to meet the now-charging blonde and his clone.

---

Kisame grinned atop his man-made lake, Samehada held at his side as he looked at his two opponents. Zabuza grunted, weaving through his own one-handed handseals. Kisame watched with a curious expression, analyzing the man.

'He'll finish with dog. Judging by the signs he's making clones.'

Kisame's analysis was proven correct as water reached upwards, two additional forms of Zabuza forming next to the man, water rotating around their own versions of the Kubikiribocho. Kisame grunted but had no time to assault the clones as the three tails of Sasori shot forwards. He grunted, Samehada moving at unbelievable speeds to deflect the attack without taking a single step backwards. However, Zabuza was determined to change that his clones dashing forwards and slashing out with their swords from low and high angles. Kisame grunted, leaping back and allowing all five of the attacks to miss. He grunted, dashing back inwards as water shot into the air behind him. He smashed his shoulder into one of the clones as Sasori's tails retracted, water filling the air as the clone was destroyed. He grunted, spinning on his heel as the other clone surged forwards, ducking underneath its blade before he tore it to shreds with Samehada.

The man grinned, turning to look at Zabuza and Sasori only to see the hulking form of Sasori, with Zabuza nowhere to be seen. His eyes widened, his head shooting downwards just as Zabuza shot from the water, his blade carving upwards. Kisame grunted, leaping away but he was too slow, unable to avoid all the attack. His lower abdomen was cut, blood trailing onto the water below and beginning to slowly dye it red. Zabuza grinned as blood trailed off his blade before he dashed in once more. Kisame grunted, their blades clashing in the middle of the lake and sending water flying in every direction from the force. Zabuza grunted, swinging downwards with an overhead slash that Kisame parried, twisting his feet and hands as he spun to blow Zabuza's weapon wide from the force. He grunted, lashing out with a kick that Zabuza just barely managed to guard against with his forearm. The force behind the blow brought the man to his knees, but Kisame was not done. Roaring he brought down Samehada, only for Zabuza to snarl, allowing his body to sink into the water to avoid the blow. Before Kisame could follow he was desperately defending himself from an onslaught of senbon that threatened to poison him, courtesy of Sasori. He grunted, glaring at the puppetmaster across the water.

'I can't push Zabuza because of Sasori...and I can't get rid of Sasori because Zabuza will immediately force me back.'

He grunted as Sasori raised his miniguns, the pellets of poison flying fowards once more. Kisame grunted, allowing himself to sink into the water as well, the poison forming a thick cloud above the lake.

'I can't just wait for him to exhaust his supply of weapons either.'

He grunted, raising Samehada to deflect the slash of Zabuza underneath the waves. The blow wasn't slow, despite moving through the liquid. Of course, that didn't surprise Kisame. Being able to fight underwater was staple training for Kirigakure shinobi, and that went doubly so for any of the Seven. The blades clashed, the shockwave sending waves of water on the surface. The two locked eyes before they unleashed more assaults. A thrust to the body, parried. A downwards horizontal slash that would have cut the body in two. Dodged. A slash at the legs meant to cripple their opponent or bleed them out, blocked. A cut aimed at the throat. Ducked. Their blades slashed outwards, clashing once more. The force behind the attack sent both them and the water between them flying backwards, temporarily creating a vacuum that the water quickly filled. The two glared at each other, each weaving through handseals.

Suiton: Suikōdan no Jutsu (Water Release: Water Shark Bullet Technique)!

Suiton: Suiryūdan no Jutsu (Water Release: Water Dragon Bullet Technique)!

The two techniques collided, the beasts of water battling for dominance before exploding in a surge of water. The sprout was so powerful that both Kisame and Zabuza were drawn into it, thrown into the air by the velocity. The two didn't let their eyes leave each other the entire time, their blades as the ready as they fell to the large lake below, the poison having been covered by the water. The two grunted, water from the lake whipping upwards to coat their weapons, rotating water around the Kubikiribocho while Samehada merely absorbed the technique, growing as more of its bandages fell to the water below. The two roared, slashing out at one another. Their blades collided, but this time Samehada had the advantage. The sentient sword absorbed Zabuza's water, breaking through the enhanced cutting power and smashing into the Kubikiribocho directly. Zabuza's eyes widened as he saw a crack form on his blade before the power of Kisame's slash sent him flying into the waters below. The monster of a man landed on the water deflty, a grin on his face as he lifted Samehada and placed it on his shoulder.

"Looks like Samehada is done playing around with you too...Zabuza."

"Is it done with me?"

Kisame whirled, raising his blade to block the three tails that shot towards him at impressive speed. He managed to block two of them, but at his angle he couldn't deflect all three. He twisted his body, the third tail only barely slicing into his shoulder. It was a shallow cut, barely enough to draw blood. But Sasori's blade was poisoned. The pain itself was manageable, but he that was not his worry. Had he been poisoned? Was a cut that small enough to allow a lethal dosage into him? He wasn't sure. He slipped back, avoiding any follow up as he glanced at the wound on his shoulder. There was no discoloration, but that wasn't enough.

"You'll be dead in five minutes."

"Five minutes Sasori? That's a slow acting poison for one such as yourself."

"It's better to preserve the bodies of particularly unique specimens as much as possible, yourself included, even if it does make the battle more troublesome. Art takes patience."

Kisame's eyes narrowed. Slow acting poison? If it was a small dosage, it was likely he'd survive. His immune system wasn't weak thanks to his training with the Seven. He doubted he had an immunity to this specific poison, but if it was a shallow cut, he would likely only get very sick instead of actually die. But he couldn't guarantee that either. He had to find out just how much of the toxin was in his bloodstream.

"Quite egotistical aren't you," Kisame muttered. "To think you'll survive five minutes against me."

"No."

Kisame grunted, raising Samehada at Sasori.

"I'll rip you right out of that fucking puppet Sasori."

If Kisame could have seen Sasori's face he would have seen shock. How had the blue-skinned man known he was in a puppet? He had no time to ponder this as Kisame dashed forwards, instantly getting inside Sasori's space despite the man desperately trying to leap away with Hiruko. Samehada grinned, reaching out and grabbing Hiruko by the tail, pulling the puppetmaster back in.

"Get over here!" he roared as he brought Samehada down. The weapon smashed downwards, shattering Hiruko as the puppet exploded and a lithe figure leapt away to avoid being damaged. Kisame glanced upwards, grinning as he saw the real form of Sasori. The man's body didn't even look natural, with a strange protrusion in his chest.

"Hello," he whispered, a crazed look in his eyes. Sasori stared at the man, an irritated look in his eye.

"I liked Hiruko."

Kisame just grinned. Before he had time to react though the water around him shot upwards like thousands of small bullets, slicing into his skin. He hissed, rolling away from the torrent of bullets as Zabuza rose from the water below, completely drenched and looking at Zabuza with eyes filled with murderous intent.

"I forgot how much I hate that fucking sword."

Kisame ignored his fellow swordsman, looking at Sasori instead. He was the threat here. If he got hit again, he would definitely be poisoned, and that wasn't something he could handle. He would have no way of bargaining with the puppetmaster for the antidote. He doubted Samehada could heal damage from poison. He wasn't sure. Nothing felt off currently, but if he was poisoned and the battle drug on for too long Zabuza would actually pose a threat to him. This wasn't a tenable situation. Kisame raised his blade once more, eyes narrowing. He needed to end them both.

His eyes locked onto Zabuza.

Get rid of the weakling first.

Kisame moved, using chakra to enhance his abilities as he blurred forwards. Zabuza's eyes widened, raising Kubikiribocho to deflect only for Kisame to grab the blade with his bare hand and yank it to the side. The blade went wide, blood on it from the cut that formed on Kisame's hand. The man didn't seem to care. Instead, he swung Samehada downwards, forcing Zabuza to leap backwards without his blade lest he be carved in two. He couldn't wrestle Kubikiribocho from Kisame's grip off brute strength alone. The man grunted, a thin of aura of chakra appearing around him from the density before he rocketed forwards. Zabuza's eyes widened, only seeing a blur before a knee crashed into his stomach. The man heaved, the bandages on his face stretching as his mouth opened wide. Kisame wasn't done however, swinging the Kubikiribocho like a hammer, the hilt smashing against Zabuza's temple. The man's head snapped to the side at an awkward angle, blood staining his bandages. Kisame grunted. He wasn't dead yet. He raised Samehada, prepared to slash downwards only for high projectile to wind to force him to use the Kubikiribocho to defend himself. Sasori grunted, the high-powered water jets beginning to wear on the steel of even the famed weapon of Kiri. Kisame grunted, leaping away, abandoning the blade as he stared at the puppetmaster. It seemed the man was not willing to let Zabuza die.

Zabuza rushed to regain control of his sword, his body shaky from the quick onslaught Kisame had delivered. Despite that, his eyes were locked onto his opponent, never wavering in their intensity. Kisame frowned as the man began to weave through handseals. Water began to swirl in front of the man, causing Kisame's eyes to widen.

"Suiton: Daibakufu no Jutsu (Water Release: Great Waterfall Technique)!"

The massive spiral of water in front of Zabuza surged forwards, a massive typhoon of water that threatened to overtake the blue-skinned man. Kisame was not worried, instead raising his own legendary blade. He swung it downwards, Samehada swallowing up much of the chakra in the technique, allowing the rest of the technique to wash over his body harmlessly. He was wet, but that was about all the mighty attack had accomplished. He grinned, only for the grin to fall from his face as he saw neither of his opponents where they previously were. His eyes narrowed, glancing around only to quickly raise his blade to deflect the pole of steel that crashed into Samehada. His eyes widened as he saw Sasori utilizing the weapon, spinning it around deftly, as though he was an expert weapon user. The man lashed out with several more thrusts, only for Kisame to block them all. The man couldn't reach Kisame, not his skill with the pole was not that great, but it had surprised the Hoshigaki.

"Since when did a puppet master get interested in close combat?"

Sasori smirked, disengaging, and allowing the pole to be resealed into a seal on his wrist.

"Just long enough to distract you."

Kisame's eyes turned, his eyes snapping to the side as the Kubikiribocho swung downwards, slashing down across his body to form an 'X' shaped wound courtesy of Zabuza. The man hissed, clutching at the wound once more as his blood was utilized to fully repair the Kubikiribocho. The man glared at Zabuza, who glared right back. The bandaged man rushed forwards, slashing out with his blade only for Kisame to deflect it. The blow was light, not even staggering the man. Kisame's eyes widened.

'He's still recovering from when I hit him! His balance isn't back yet!'

With that the man pressed his counteract, blowing Zabuza's guard wide with a surge of force and swinging downwards with Samehada. Zabuza brought his blade up in time to deflect it, but his guard was weak. Samehada blew through the guard, Zabuza's body meeting the flat of Kubikiribocho as he was sent flying. His body skipped across the water, Kisame chasing him. Zabuza desperately tried to raise some form of a guard, but it would be useless. He couldn't defend against the attack any longer. Kisame roared as Samehada came down, only for Zabuza's body to suddenly jerk awkwardly and him to fly through the air and land next to Sasori. Both members of the Seven Swordsman of Kirigakure looked at the man, one with a look of curiousity, the other of outrage.

"Never put your fucking threads on me again, you understand?"

"Oh...so that's what you did."

"I couldn't have you dying. I'd rather have some form of support against Hoshigaki."

Zabuza looked like he was going to continue to protest only for Sasori to completely blow him off, instead opening his mouth. A storm of senbon shot forwards, pressuring Kisame as he was forced to use Samehada to deflect the weapons. Zabuza took advantage of the man's defense to rest, his breathing ragged. Once he was rested, he charged in once more, only for a wall of water to rise in front of him, forming a clone of Kisame. He roared in outrage, slashing out with his weapon, and cutting the clone in half. He shot forwards, aiming to cut Kisame from the side, only for the man to deflect with Samehada. Zabuza grinned. He had left himself open! Sasori's poison would land.

He was shocked when none of that occurred.

Kisame grinned, tilting his head towards the puppetmaster who was currently fighting off two water clones of Kisame, forcing him to stop the attack. Zabuza's eyes narrowed, irritation flashing on his face as he continued to pressure Kisame. The man snarled, quickly deflecting one of Zabuza's slashes with one hand holding Samehada. He used the other hand to reach out, grabbing Zabuza's wrist and pulling the man into a knee that smashed into his stomach. Zabuza grunted, bending over only for Kisame's fist to backhand him. Zabuza stumbled backwards, his vision swimming as Kisame raised Samehada. The man grunted, slashing downwards horizontally as a massive wound opened on Zabuza's chest. Blood filled the air and Zabuza fell to the water, his body floating. Kisame dropped the Kubikiribocho, a look of disgust on his face.

"Tch. You used to be able to handle at least that much. When did you get so weak?"

Kisame's eyes narrowed, leaping away as he felt heat at his back. He turned to see flames covering the water where he once stood, steam filling the air. Kisame stepped into it, unafraid. This was his domain. Sasori was a fool to forget that. All the Seven were trained to hunt in the mist. Of course, by the time he found Sasori he realized why the strategic brain of a puppetmaster had done such a thing. There was no steam around the...man? That seemed like too strong a word to describe this loose mockery of humanity that stood in front of him. The cord that extended from the thing's stomach like intestines wrapped around him, connecting to two propeller blades that were spinning so rapidly the steam could not get close.

"What the hell is this?"

Sasori turned, staring at his opponent.

"Me."

Kisame grunted. The...thing...was certainly something. The chakra Samehada was sensing from him was off somehow. And what was that strange protrusion on his chest? Was Sasori even human? The man shook his head. It didn't matter. He had a job to do. Get the Uzumaki to the Amekage. Sasori was in the way of that. Human or not he would fall. He had used chakra to overwhelm Zabuza, but he doubted that would work with Sasori. The man was far too experienced, despite his youthful look. He should be in his forties if the date of birth in his bingo entry was correct. Not someone to be underestimated. The man snarled, leaping forwards as chakra surged in his legs, but Sasori was prepared. His propeller blades stopped Samehada in its tracks, although not without the horrid sound of screeching metal. Samehada snarled, its body wiggling in Kisame's grasp. Kisame felt its annoyance. He would have to use both hands to shatter through those propeller blades it seemed.

The monster of a man lashed out with a kick, the blow smashing into Sasori's chest and sending him flying. The force was so great it blew his body parts apart, causing Kisame's eyes to widen.

'Did I kill him!?'

That line of thought was quickly solved when Sasori's body reassembled, as if pulled together by string or pieces of a puzzle. Kisame stared, confused.

"What the..."

Sasori snorted.

"You will never be able to kill me. Art is eternal Kisame Hoshigaki. And I have become art. You need not fret. You shall soon become art as well."

Kisame's eyes narrowed. That was true. He had no idea how to kill someone he couldn't even damage. Was that even Sasori's real body? It could be a puppet for all he knew. But Samehada was saying the source of the chakra was coming from there. What the hell was going on here?

"What are you exactly?"

"I already told you. I have become one with art in its true nature. Eternal."

Kisame frowned. That certainly wasn't helpful. The man raised Samehada, watching as the propeller blades spun around Sasori. Kisame snorted. Those things weren't a threat. He could break them with Samehada. But he doubted that was all the puppetmaster had to offer. No, there was likely much more in store. The small holes that opened on Sasori's wrists, the glint of sunlight revealing small barrels inside them clarified that. Kisame dashed to the side, barely avoiding the quickly moving projectiles. He hadn't even seen what they were, merely noticed the blurs of danger and reacted. He didn't have time to figure it out as more of the blurs shot towards him, Kisame desperately trying to avoid the projectiles. He grunted, noticing as one knicked his clothes but didn't pierce his skin.

Were they getting faster?

He grunted, allowing Samehada to consume more of his chakra than normal as the sword grew in size. He placed it in front of him, allowing the projectiles to clatter uselessly against the sentient sword, falling into the water below. That was when he saw them. Senbon. But moving at an incredibly fast velocity. That was unexpected. Sasori had turned one of the most basic shinobi tools and combined it with rare technology to make it incredibly dangerous. More so than they normally were. That type of ingeneuity was something Kisame admired. The puppetmaster was clearly intelligent. Nullifying himself to blunt force trauma, utilizing technology that only the richest in the world had.

Kisame grinned.

It would be fun to battle him. The man glanced at Sasori, the shinobi maintaining the assault. Then he glanced at Samehada, the sword clearly irritated at being used as a shield.

"If blunt force trauma doesn't work," Kisame muttered, allowing himself to slip into his lake below. Sasori fired into the pool, but even with the power behind the senbon they could not reach Kisame. The water changed too much, the senbon immediately slowing and going off target upon contact with the water. It was a useless endeavor. Sasori stopped the storm of projectiles as Kisame slapped his hands together, Samehada swimming over to his back as he stared at his opponent.

'Then ninjutsu and kenjutsu will do the trick!'

The water around Sasori surged as sharks of water immediately swarmed around him, leaping at him. It was only due to his already active propeller blades that he managed to deflect the initial assault. The S-class shinobi's eyes narrowed, leaping away from the jaws of the horde only for them to pursue. The puppetmaster raised his hands, barrels appearing from them as gouts of flame extinguished the horde, steam floating into the air. It covered the surface, but that meant nothing to his opponent.

Kisame shot from the water like a torpedo, his body flat and horizontal, Samehada extended. The man began to spin, turning into a massive missile that would shred anything it touched. Sasori stared down the approaching missile, raising his hands as a barrel appeared on them. Wordlessly a jet of water shot forwards, threatening to pierce through Kisame. The man grunted as Samehada met the water, Samehada's chakra absorption and his force allowing him to plow through the attack as though it wasn't there. Sasori frowned, leaping away as Kisame dived back into the water like a shark, moving too quickly underneath the liquid to be seen. Sasori frowned, eyes whirling to try and find where Kisame would strike next. He was at a disadvantage in this environment. Kisame was highly tuned to fighting in water covered environments, while he was not. This didn't even account for the fact that Kisame was an incredibly powerful Suiton expert. If he stayed in this environment, he would die.

Sasori began to dash towards the edge of the large lake, desperate to get back to some form of dry land. Just as he neared the edge Kisame shot up from the water in front of him, his blade swinging through the air and forcing Sasori backwards. The puppetmaster frowned, opening his mouth and unleashing a cloud of poison gas that forced Kisame away from the man lest he be poisoned. Sasori frowned as he watched Kisame land on the water across from him. He really didn't want to use that technique. But it seemed the monstrous man was going to leave him no choice at this point. Sasori reached to grab a scroll only for Kisame to blitz forwards, forcing him to abandon the action lest he be destroyed.

"You really think I'd let you draw another puppet!"

Sasori grit his teeth, dodging to the left only for Kisame to swing Samehada in that direction. The man quickly summoned his pole, the weapons colliding. The force behind Kisame's strike sent Sasori flying backwards, skidding across the water. Kisame kept up his pursuit, joy on his face. Sasori frowned, opening the mechanism on the left side of his body. An uncountable amount of chakra threads sprang to life, surging towards Kisame. The man leapt away, careful to not let his body suddenly get controlled by the puppetmasters abilities. Quickly he began to swing Samehada around at any thread that came to close, the blade's chakra absorbing abilities quickly proving the ineffectiveness of Sasori's strategy. Or it would have if that had truly been Sasori's strategy.

Sasori drew a scroll, unsealing it to reveal hundreds of spears that he quickly used the chakra threads to grab ahold of. Kisame's eyes widened as he saw an armory of weapons bear down on him, all controlled by one man. Then he moved, desperately swinging Samehada around to avoid getting stabbed by the neverending assault of spears. His entire focus was spent on blocking, the number of spears simply not allowing him any opportunity to counterattack. The man grunted as he heard Samehada gurgle as it deflected yet another attack.

"Yeah, yeah I know you want to eat his chakra. Gimmie a minute."

Kisame caught one of the approaching spears, attempting to use it deflect the remaining weapons back at his opponent only for his eyes to widen as it was quickly ripped from his hands despite his attempt to hold onto it. The force destabilized him, allowing two spears to stab into his chest. The man heaved, blood shooting from his mouth, but he kept moving. He couldn't afford not to lest he be turned into a pincushion. He swung Samehada, cutting the chakra threads on the spears on his body and kept moving, the blade deflecting the remaining weapons. Sasori was not going to let up, allowing his spears to flick upwards from underneath the water, the liquid obscuring Kisame's vision. The man grit his teeth, letting himself sink into the water just as spears flew through the area he once was. Sasori tracked him underneath the waves, his armories worth of spears continuing to pursue him at high speed despite the liquid slowing them down. Kisame grit his teeth, swinging Samehada to block several projectiles as he weaved through one-handed handseals.

"Suiton: Senshokukō (Water Release: A Thousand Feeding Sharks)!"

The water around Kisame swirled, forming a thousand sharks of water that all charged forwards to meet the oncoming spears. The two sides clashed, resulting in a storm of displaced water and flying steel. Some spears cut right through the sharks while others bit and destroyed the iron spears. The resulting chaos was too much for either person to track, even a detail-oriented person like Sasori. The displaced water shot into the air as the frenzy ended, resulting in a spout of liquid that covered the area. Sasori frowned, closing the contraption on his body as he felt none of his spears. They all had been destroyed. He watched the waterspout, his narrowed. It was too large to be natural, even with the amount of water that had been displaced. His suspicion was proven correct as Kisame descended from above, Samehada overhead. The man roared, swinging downwards only for Sasori to dodge the attack. Samehada touched the water, creating a massive surge of water that would have separated the two had Sasori not reached out with his chakra threads and quickly gained control of Kisame's body. The man's eyes widened as the arm that held Samehada was forcibly turned, cutting off his head. Sasori smirked, only for his eyes to narrow as Kisame and Samehada collapsed into water. A clone. Where was the real one?

Kisame exploded from the water behind Sasori, Samehada swinging with force. Sasori grunted, raising his propellers to block only for the metal to shatter as Samehada destroyed it. Sasori's eyes widened at the result, but Kisame merely laughed. The blade shaved into Sasori, wood and metal flying in every direction before he was sent flying. The man skipped across the water before he came skidding to a halt, his body twisting in awkward, unnatural ways. The way his spine was positioned was certainly a death sentence. The right side of his chest was missing, and his right arm lay on the water. Then, the man's spine straighened and he stared at Kisame, as if annoyed rather than in pain. Kisame's eyes narrowed.

"Now that doesn't make sense."

"Like I said," Sasori muttered, his arm flying back into his undamaged hand. He sighed, sealing the appendage into a small seal on his wrist. "Like my art, I am eternal. You cannot kill me."

Kisame frowned, looking at the spinning gears and trails of poison that leaked from inside Sasori's body. It trailed down, into the water. It looked like...no...there was no way was there? But then the iron in his stomach that should have been intenstines...the propeller blades. Suddenly everything clicked for the Tailess Bijuu.

"Your body is a puppet. You're a fucking puppet."

Sasori nodded, tilting his head.

"Did it really take so long to figure out?"

Kisame's eyes narrowed. Well shit. His opponet was a puppet. How the hell was he supposed to kill someone who was a puppet? How had he even turned himself into a puppet? Could you even kill him? Was he even alive?

Sasori shook his head, looking at the injury to his body.

"You're quite the annoying opponent Hoshigaki. Your blows are enough to seriously injure my body. The rumors of your physical strength don't do you justice. Truly you would make a fantastic puppet if I could utilize your physical strength like this...especially if the sword would still recognize your abilities."

Kisame grunted, bracing himself.

"Unfortunately," Sasori muttered. "It also makes you quite frustrating to battle. By my estimations defeating you would be much more trouble than it is worth. I need not lose many puppets to defeat you. I can always collect you later when I'm more equipped for the battle."

Kisame frowned.

"So, you're leaving? That's anticlimactic. Here I was enjoying the idea of shredding you with Samehada until I found a way to kill you."

Sasori snorted, turning on his heel.

"I have no interest in this battle anymore. Besides, don't you have an Uzumaki to rescue?"

Kisame frowned. That was true. He didn't really have the luxury of finishing Sasori off right now. The large man turned, ripping out the spears in his body and glaring at Sasori.

"Next time we meet," he muttered, waving the spears before he dropped them into the water below. "You're dead Red Sand."

"Likewise, Monster of the Mist."

---

Naruto grunted as Kakuzu's fist smashed against his staff, the body part slipping back before his wind could carve into it. His clone was quick to act, water rotating rapidly around its staff as it whipped it at Kakuzu's head. The man ducked, only for Naruto's knee to snap up and smash into his chin. The man grunted, stumbling backwards from the force. The clone pounced instantly, staff whipping at Kakuzu's legs. The man leapt into the air, flipping backwards as the water around the staff cut into the ground as sharp as any weapon. The bounty hunter stared at his two opponents, one original one clone.

'His coverages against taijutsu are better. I'm better than him, probably even with one arm. But the gap is close. The clone compensates. I need a countermeasure.'

The Lightning mask shot from Kakuzu's body, landing on the ground next to him as the wings of the Wind mask sprouted from his back. Naruto's eyes narrowed, grabbing a kunai from his kunai pouch as he noticed the blue hue fade from Kakuzu's threads. He launched the wind-coated weapons at the bounty hunter. Kakuzu didn't react as the wind mask's head sprouted over his shoulder and unleashed a blast of wind that forced the weapons to clatter to the ground. The clone's eyes narrowed.

"He's using Lightning and Wind. He counters our water."

"There's no way he expects to beat us in a battle of wind specialties though."

"No...but it does give him maneuverability."

The two had no more time to talk about it. Kakuzu's skin gained the strange, earthy discoloration demonstrative of his defensive Doton jutsu. The man was going to fight with three elemental releases now. The man flew towards them, moving faster than he ever could on land as the Lightning mask opened its mouth. A bolt of electricity crackled out, blinding them temporarily from the flash. The bolt cratered into the ground, not designed to hit them. The two's eyes snapped shut, but they were not helpless. Their senses expanded, feeling Kakuzu fly towards them through the wind currents. They raised their weapons, spinning their weapons as two tendrils of thread speared out at them, stopping the attack cold. Kakuzu's eyes narrowed, his lone arm lashing out at the clone. He gripped its staff, his jutsu protecting him from the rapidly rotating water. The clone's eyes narrowed, glancing at the original who was currently defending himself from a swarm thread. He was on his own.

The clone grunted, using the additional leverage of his two arms to force the staff downwards to block the upwards knee Kakuzu sent his way. The man grunted, the Fire mask spearing over his shoulder and opening its mouth. The clone's eyes narrowed, loading its feet with chakra to blast into the air with its staff. Kakuzu grunted at the shockwave, watching as threads connected his forearm with the staff, his grip too strong to be destroyed so easily. The clone's eyes widened at the display, but it had no time to focus on that as a spear of lightning courtesy of the Lightning mask was aimed directly at it. It quickly changed elemental natures, an armor of wind shrouding it and its staff to easily deflect the elementally disadvantaged attack. What it was not prepared for was the gout of flame that threatened to burn it to ash. The clone's eyes widened as the flames washed over it, shooting into the air.

Kakuzu's eyes narrowed. That hadn't worked. His conclusion was proven correct as the clone emerged unscathed from the flames, still holding its staff. Its eyes were narrowed. It grabbed its staff, ripping it from Kakuzu's arm to stare at his opponent.

'Its defenses are just as good as the originals with that armor. I should assume all abilities are equal outside of ability to withstand damage. Only combination jutsu's with fire will be able to break that armor.'

Kakuzu allowed his Fire Mask to separate from his body as he saw the clone move in a burst of speed, sending gouts of flame at it. It was aiming for his Lightning Mask. That was fine though. The man prepared to intercept only for the original Naruto to appear in front of him, his arm covered in tendrils but otherwise fine. His armor was already cutting through the tendrils.

"You thought some fucking string would hold me back that long?"

Kakuzu grunted, raising his arm to stop the overhead slash from Naruto. Unfortunately for him, the wind on his staff instantly retracted, missing his forearm entirely before it lurched outwards, spearing into his gut. Kakuzu grunted, feeling the weapon scratch against his skin. It didn't pierce, thanks to Doton: Domu (Earth Release: Earth Spear). The blonde's eyes narrowed. Kakuzu grinned, shoving the blonde to the side thanks to the defensive properties of his armor. He shot towards his Lightning Mask; the heart desperate trying to avoid the thrusts of the clone. He reached his arm out as he saw the wind around the clone's staff spiral into a massive spear. The mask couldn't avoid that attack!

The original appeared in his way once more, wind exploding around him in a vicious tornado. Kakuzu's eyes narrowed. He couldn't block this one. He leapt backwards, gritting his teeth.

"Katon (Fire Release)!"

The Fire Mask leapt forwards, sending several gouts of flame at the clone only for the original's tornado to expand, his body invisible in the storm of wind to stop the attacks cold. Kakuzu frowned, only able to watch as his Lightning mask was destroyed by the clone, the black mass falling loosely to the ground, useless as the mask on its face shattered. Naruto grinned.

"You can't use that convenient little Raiton (Lightning Release) jutsu without that mask, can you?"

Kakuzu's eyes narrowed. His Fire Mask shot back into his body; the man desperate to protect his remaining hearts.

"Come closer and find out."

Naruto took the man up on the invitation, shooting forwards. Kakuzu grit his teeth, his threads shooting from the stump where his arm used to be as they suddenly began to glow red. Naruto's eyes widened as the threads burst into a mighty conflagration, a moving whip of flame that Kakuzu could control. The blonde's tornado was able to beat the threads back, their flames unable to spark his tornado, but he wasn't able to get close to the man either. The threads kept stopping him cold, forming massive flaming walls that took him too long to cut through. This wasn't efficient.

Kakuzu roared, a mass of thread shooting fowards and forming a massive flaming ball. The man roared, swinging the weapon downwards. Both the original and the clone leapt away, desperate to avoid being crushing by the flaming assault. Kakuzu's eyes narrowed, his threads splitting off to chase both of his opponents, eyes dashing between each one as they separated. The clone's scythe spun, slashing through the offending tendrils as it desperately attempted to fend off the assault. The original's eyes narrowed, weaving through one-handed handseals before he unleashed his jutsu.

"Fūton: Kazekiri no Jutsu (Wind Release: Wind Cutter Technique)!"

The blonde waved his hand, blades of wind shooting towards the threads. The attack cut through the threads, however the flame around them sparked the jutsu, creating a massive conflagration that exploded into the world with force. The original flew backwards, the explosion destablizing his tornado as he was thrown backwards. Kakuzu's eyes flashed, and he instantly focused his attention on the original. His Fire mask leapt from his body, unleashing gouts of flame to distract the clone as Kakuzu dashed towards the blonde, his skin discolored. Just as Naruto rose to his feet, he was instantly defending himself. Kakuzu lashed out with a kick that he blocked, but the man was not done. The threads from his stump of an arm shot forwards, desperate to catch Naruto. The blonde weaved around the threads, eyeing them like one would hungry snakes. Kakuzu grinned, punching forwards. Naruto turned, allowing the blow to smash into his shoulder. He grit his teeth as he felt the force behind hit. That would bruise later. Still, he weathered the attack and stepped inwards, his foot smashing onto Kakuzu's. The man winced, the brief stab of pain allowing Naruto to reach forwards and grab the man's throat. Naruto twirled, flipping Kakuzu over into a choke, desperately trying to suffocate the man. The attempt was in vain, the threads of Kakuzu snaking around the blonde's body and pulling him away from the man. Naruto grunted, straining against the threads only for Kakuzu's fist to smash into his stomach.

Naruto belched up spit and blood, feeling his ribs creak from the blow. Kakuzu grinned, launching another punch as his threads held Naruto in place. Blow after blow rained onto the blonde, blood shooting from his mouth as his chest and stomach were brutalized. Kakuzu grinned at his handiwork, quickly pulling out a kunai to slash the blonde's throat only for a clone to appear in front of Naruto in a puff of smoke. The weapon slashed its throat open, only for a massive explosion to separate the two fighters. Both of them rolled to their feet, burns covering their bodies. Blood trailed from Naruto's lip, signs of the internal damage. Kakuzu grinned. The man was prepared to dash forwards once more only for him to feel scraping at his back. He turned, irritation on his face as he saw a kunai on the ground. A slight distraction from the other clone. It was still busy in combat with the Fire mask, the mask never ending its flaming assault. It likely used the brief reprieve to free up the original.

Speaking of the original Naruto appeared in front of Kakuzu just as the man turned back around, his foot smashing into the man's chin. Kakuzu groaned as he bit his tongue, blood spurting in his mouth as the force from the blow forced him upwards into the air. Naruto leapt after the man, his staff spinning as he smashed it against Kakuzu's liver. The man grunted. The blow wasn't strong enough to bypass his enhanced body to hurt him, but that wasn't what Naruto was aiming for. The blonde roared with effort, continuing to swing his staff with Kakuzu on it. The man's eyes widened as he felt him forced through the air before Naruto Naruto threw him into the ground. The man grunted at the impact, but otherwise was fine. That was until he saw the blonde finish weaving handseals.

"Fūton: Renkūdan (Wind Release: Drilling Air Bullet)!"

The compressed ball of Fūton chakra smashed into Kakuzu, exploding like a bomb as it leveled trees around the man. Naruto landed, grabbing his staff. He wanted to look at his handiwork, but there was an opportunity here. The blonde turned and dashed towards his clone that was still engaging with Kakuzu's Fire mask. With a roar Naruto threw his staff forward, only for a wall of black thread to stop the weapon from spearing through the Fire mask. Naruto turned, irritation flashing on his face as he saw Kakuzu on the ground, the threads from his shoulder spearing through the ground.

"Katon!"

The Fire mask recognized the order, instantly retreating back to its master's side. Naruto and his clone stood side by side, both holding their weapons as they stared down their opponents. Kakuzu's eyes narrowed, irritation on his face. Naruto twirled his staff waiting for the next engagement. Both Kakuzu's and the original Naruto's eyes locked onto one another. Kakuzu smirked.

"So, your grand strategy was use a clone to supplement your taijutsu and ninjutsu because you couldn't defeat me in combat before hm?"

Naruto frowned.

"If I remember correctly, you're the one who ran from our last battle."

"If I remember correctly, you're only alive because of the demon in your stomach healing you after I pierced your lung."

"Oh? Think you can do it again?"

"I've killed you three times over in my head already. Let's make it four."

"How about you make it a reality first?"

"Gladly."

Naruto's eyes narrowed, his wind armor surging around him. The storm around him whipped dust into the air. The violet glow from the center of the storm stared ominously at Kakuzu, never blinking, as if a god was reigning judgement down upon the bounty hunter. Naruto had the advantage. That was clear to both fighters. The question was, could Kakuzu overcome such an advantage? Likely not.

Naruto shot forwards with a crack, the tornado carving into the ground signifying his approach. The Wind and Fire mask appeared at Kakuzu's side, both opening their mouths to unleash an unholy conflagration to burn the blonde to a crisp. Just when it looked like the two elemental storms would collide the clone of Naruto appeared, hands in the dog sign.

"Suiton: Teppunokyū (Water Release: Imminent Danger)!"

The clone spewed a torrent of water from its mouth, the liquid swirling around it in a tornado similar to the wind armor around the original. The clone grunted, swirling in with the original to create a massive deluge just as it met the conflagration. The two combination jutsu collided in an explosion of steam, sending waves of heat throughout the area. The clone dissipated under the intensity, while the original Naruto skidding backwards, burns forming on his skin. He grunted, cracking his neck as his wind armor surged around him. Kakuzu grunted, his jutsu protecting him from the worst of the heat but small burns were visible on his skin. His masks on the other hand were hiding behind him, desperate to avoid anything that could have shattered them.

Naruto grunted, leaping into action as his scythe spun. The weapon carved through the ground, forcing the Fire mask into Kakuzu's back as he soared into the air. The tornado turned, Naruto chasing after him through the sky. Kakuzu grunted, forming the tiger seal and unleashing a ball of fire that Naruto speared through without worry, the flames simply not powerful enough to capitalize on their elemental advantage. His wind would snuff them out. And snuff them out they did, Naruto appearing above Kakuzu with his scythe raised. He roared, swinging downwards only for Kakuzu to narrowly dodge, feeling the displaced air rush against his body. The bounty hunter shot upwards, fist swinging upwards to smash into Naruto's stomach only for the blonde's knee to block the attack. Kakuzu grunted, feeling the winds cut into his earthen defenses as he pulled his hand back. The rotating winds were too much, even for his defenses. The blonde picked up on this, the tornado exploding even more violently. Blasts of wind shot forwards, smashing into Kakuzu's body like haymakers. The blasts failed to pierce his skin, but they didn't need to. The Fūton: Renkūdan exploded with mighty force, blasting Kakuzu into the ground below. The man grunted, slowly rising to his feet only for two clones of Naruto to appear in front of him in tuffs of smoke. He grunted, slipping their punches, the black threads of his jutsu spearing out and goring through them only for their bodies to inflate. The man grunted as they exploded, the shockwave reverberating inside his body. Burn marks began to singe his skin. Even this was too much pressure for his jutsu.

The tornado swirled above, unassailable. Kakuzu grit his teeth. He had thought his combination technique in addition to his Raiton usage would have allowed him to triumph over the insane defenses the blonde possessed. After all, in straight taijutsu combat he was better. With the additive of the lightning chakra he should have been able to put the blonde down. He hadn't expected him to react so quickly to the technique. Now it wasn't even possible for him to use with the loss of his Lightning heart. He would have to acquire another one, along with a Suiton heart. The man shook his head.

Was it even possible to defeat the blonde? Not as he was now, that was clear. His growth in strength was...meteoric. He had already ascended this far above him. He would need time to defeat him. Time to strategize. Time to grow. Even with all of his experience he was still losing to some shit faced brat! As if Naruto had heard him his voice boomed over the area, carried by the wind.

"What was that you said? I'm no Hashirama Senju?"

Kakuzu grit his teeth, feeling the chakra gathering in the blonde's body. He had to run. He was severely underprepared.

"You're right," Naruto muttered, the tornado increasing in size. The ground far below was dealt shallow cuts from the power of the natural disaster. Trees billowed in the winds, barely remaining in contact with the ground.

"I'm better."

The blonde shot towards the ground, descending like an angry god. Kakuzu desperately tried to get away. The man let his Fire mask leap from his back towards the storm, the beast unleashing the strongest gout of flame it could on such short notice. Meanwhile he desperately activated the Doton: Moguragakure no Jutsu (Earth Release: Hiding Like A Mole Technique), to find some form of defense to avoid the attack. The flames were swallowed up entirely by the wind, merely serving as a distraction. Even the Fire mask itself provided little resistance, being torn asunder by the storm of wind that was the Uzumaki. The blonde came down like a comet, impacting with the ground with a roar as a massive shockwave blasted through the battlefield. A surge of wind blew through the area, toppelling trees and sending dust flying into the air. Naruto's eyes narrowed, raising his scythe, and letting his wind armor drop as the dust began to clear. There was a massive hole in the ground, with a deep carving in it courtesy of his attack. The blonde's eyes glowed, irritated.

"He got away."

He was tempted to pursue. But which way had the bounty hunter gone? He couldn't sense underground. He had no way of knowing where the man went. The blonde sighed, rubbing the back of his head. He would have to be satisfied with having taken three of the man's hearts. He wouldn't be coming after him again. At least not anytime soon. He doubted Kakuzu would simply give up. But it would be some time. The man would come next with a strategy.

A whistle garnered his attention. The blonde turned, eyes narrowing as he saw Kisame, the man grinning at him.

"That was some show. I'm half tempted to fight you right here myself just to see who would win."

Naruto's eyes narrowed. A battle against Kisame right now? The blonde eyed the blue skinned man, noticing the severity of his wounds. The man had clearly taken quite a bit of damage fighting against Sasori and Zabuza. But he was injured himself, and Kisame had a larger natural chakra pool than even he had. Even if he had originally planned to double cross the man, in his current state it was entirely possible that he would lose. Kisame's abilities were well known. His own chakra being stolen to replinish someone else's. He had no way of countering Kisame's abilities.

But that didn't mean he would show that worry.

"If you want to die...try it."

Kisame grinned.

"Maybe later. For now, the Amekage wants to meet you."

Naruto's eyes narrowed.

"You never told me what for."

"Like I said he has an idea," Kisame stated plainly.

The blue man placed Samehada on his back, his shark teeth eeriely in the sunlight as a grin formed on his face.

"Tell me Uzumaki, have you ever entertained the thought of changing the order of this world?"

Before the blonde had any time to react Kisame's face sagged, and his skin became slightly paler. The man collapsed to the ground, mumbling something about poison. Naruto blinked.

---

And with that, the "Introductionary Saga" is complete. And with it the first three arcs of this story. There's only three more left. It is also...undoubtedly the biggest chapter in this story and likely will be until like...the very last couple fights. Then again we had four S-classes in one place, and one high A-class in Zabuza. They're all incredibly powerful shinobi. Now the question remains, what the hell does the Amekage want with Naruto?