Hi All,

Here is the complete chapter 42. I hope it's was worth the wait! I know I'm absolutely shit at updating, but I'm trying not to procrastinate so much when it comes to this story. I have too many ideas that I want to do for this story. I have a beginning, I know the middle and I know where I want this to end. So please bare with me on this!

If you have any criticism or general comments please either PM me or put it in a review, I do read everything that I get and try to take it on board.

On that note, if anyone would like to be my beta for future chapters, please PM me. I know my grammer is iffy at best so hopefully with a beta it would read better!

Finally, (Sorry for the wee ramble!) I am stumped for a name to call Matsuho's Agent, its bloody hard to keep coming up with different words to describe him! Any ideas let me know!

OK enough of my spiel! I hope you enjoy this chapter!

Disclaimers: See chapter one!

"Bring him home, Naruto."

Turning around he looked at the older bed ridden teen, a bright smile plastered itself on his face.

"I will dattebayo!"

Day break covered Sunagakure with a strong whistling wind making its way through the streets; powerlines swaying backwards and forwards. The male members of team seven shared a room; Naruto was snoring, the top cover partially covering his body. Sai and Kakashi were looking at a map of the surrounding area, a red circle giving the location of where Kankurō was found. Sai looked up from the map, glancing to his sleeping teammate, then to his superior;

"Do you think Gaara is still alive?" A few moments of silence followed the question, Kakashi looked at the pale teen, for a few moments before answering;

"All we can do is have faith in his abilities, to keep himself alive long enough for us to aid him." Sai looked unblinkingly at his superior, then to the snoring teen spread out on his bed. Before he could say anything, Pakkun entered the room, leaping effortlessly onto the bed the pair were occupying.

"I've picked up on Gaara's trail." Reported the Ninken, putting his paw on the map, giving a rough location were the trail picks up.

"Good job Pakkun." Praised Kakashi, giving his summons a one-eyed smile, "Sai. Inform Baki that we have a starting point to track down their Kazekage." Sai nodded, and left the room. "Naruto wake up. We've got a starting point to find Gaara." As soon as he finished his sentence the blonde was out of his bed; alert and getting himself ready to head out. Pakkun looked at his summoner, as their eyes met, they shared an amused smile.

"Meet up with team Guy and lead them to us." With that the pug was off, kicking a track of dust behind him as he sprinted up the main causeway.

Sakura stood at the foot of Kankurō's bed, writing down the boy's vitals. His condition improved greatly once the antidote was administered to him. It took time, but the results were promising. Once finished with her observation, the young Kunoichi placed the chart back and walked over to the nearby bench. Laying on top of the worksurface were three capsules filled with a lilac coloured substance, carefully she picked them up and placed them in her medic pouch. Footsteps approached the room, echoing of the walls, turning around she spotted Sai and Baki;

"We're heading out in five, Sakura." Stated her teammate before heading back to his male colleagues to finalise his own preparations. Baki left with the teen leaving the young Kunoichi to sort her own stuff out.

Team Seven stood below the Kazekage building awaiting the Suna team which was to join them for the rescue.

"Sorry for the delay." Called Tamari as she and her squad approached their Konoha counterparts. Kakashi gave the group a once over:

"Everyone's here? Good let's head out." Before the group could even make a couple of steps, Baki called out to the, halting them in their place. Giving Kakashi a slight nod he turned to his shinobi;

"Tamari. You and your team will remain in the village and patrol the boarder." As soon as the words left his mouth, a chorus of displeasure and anger flowed from the Suna squad.

"What do you mean by that!" Tamari exclaimed, anger etching in to her words.

"It's an order from the top." Was her only answer. "Their reasoning is: If the other nations were to become aware of the Kazekage's disappearance, there's no telling what the other nations would do."

"It's all the more reason for us to rescue Gaara!" pointing towards team seven, "They came all this way to help us find him and bring him home!"

"I'm sorry." Baki said looking at his young charge, symphony lacing his words. "It's out of my hands."

"What's the point of us Suna shinobi if we can't be the ones to bring our Kazekage home!" her voice breaking with emotion.

"I will go!" shouted a voice from above, drawing everyone's attention. Balancing on top of the railing was Lady Chiyo. For a several moments she stared unblinkingly down at them. "The only Suna shinobi you'll need to send is me!"

"Chiyo-Baasama!"

"But that's…"

"I'm already retired, you know… I can do whatever I want!" with that, she leapt of the railing effortlessly, shocking everyone below. She landed in a crouch scaring Naruto and Sakura, while Sai remained unfazed by it. "I won't allow a foreign nation, to be the one's to bring our Kazekage back."

Multiple sand columns rose and fell as the demonic dragon repelled attack after attack from the duo, the winged beast showed no signs of fatigue or slowing down for that matter. Exhaustion was screaming throughout Gaara's body; he was finding it harder to draw on his dwindling chakra, even the boost given from Shukaku was fading. A torrent of green flames hounded at his sand barrier; cracks were deepening, portions of the shield were succumbing to the sheer heat and power. Digging his heels into the torn-up ground he summoned what little reserves he had left into the wall of disintegrating sand. For the briefest moments it seemed like it would work, but it was all for naught; as a hail of hellish fire pulverised his meagre defence, the shockwave sent the teen hurtling through the air along with molten sand and searing flames.

Gaara gave a broken shout of pain as the debris cauterised his flesh; littering his body in multiple angry burns, his sand armour long gone. As he was sent flying back a large black claw snatched him up in mid-flight, before it slung him towards the scarred ground. A roar of triumph pierced the surrounding area, followed by a plume of roaring fire. Shukaku barely managed to catch the teen before he impacted the ground, shielding him from the fire. His yellow eyes locked onto the flying demon; his black pupils narrowing to mere pins, he let leash his sand. A tsunami of sand erupted from everywhere smashing into the midnight black dragon.

"You're going to die now!" Shukaku screeched out as he encased his enemy. Tighter the bindings of sand wound around the beast restraining its movements. Once it was completely tethered, the Ichibi pulled at every binding, ripping the beast apart. Howls of agonising pain filled the expanse, carrying for miles. Ichibi watched with gleeful satisfaction as the enemy was no more. Taking his eyes off the scattered remains, he turned to the precious cargo he held within his sand.

Woodenly the young Jinchūriki turned his head, exhausted teal eyes looked up at him.

"I take it we won?" Shukaku snorted at that.

"More like kicked his arse!" this earned staccato bouts of laughter from his host, followed by ragged coughs. A small sigh of relief slipped past scarred lips as demonic chakra flowed through the teens body. Slowly the searing pain began to ease.

"Go soft there, Shukaku."

"Don't know what you are talking about brat." Muttered the demon as he turned to look at the scattered pieces of thier enemy. "That was too easy."

"Yes, it was." Came a voice directly behind him. In a blink of an eye his entire body froze, no amount of willing his body to move worked. "Now, you will die."

Team Seven and Lady Chiyo moved swiftly through the forest, navigating it with practiced ease. The journey so far was silent, only the sound of the odd dull thump from a tree branch.

Aged old eyes watched the Blond-haired teen, trying to figure the boy out. Ever since they left Sunagakure, she felt the faint presence of another chakra mingling with the boys own.

Demonic chakra began to lace itself within it's hosts body, the more he focused on saving his friend and fellow Jinchūriki.

"We need to go faster!" thought the boy, his eyes turning demonic. Feeling the power Hinako was freely giving him, he propelled himself further ahead. Old eyes widened at the power the boy used effortlessly, while his own teammates didn't batter an eyelid.

"Hey, Naruto! Wait up!" called Sakura, "Geez..." before she went that little bit faster, along with Sai. At the back of the group, Chiyo turned to Kakashi;

"Why's that kid trying so hard to save Gaara, who's from a different village?" the Jōnin tilted his head to face her with a blank expression. "And what in the world is he?" she watched as her companion faced forward again. Silence followed before he answered;

"He's also a Jinchūriki." Surprise etched itself on her wrinkled face, "He has the Kyūbi sealed within him." Kakashi continued;

"Indeed, Naruto probably doesn't have much attachment to the Hidden Sand itself. But Gaara is a Jinchūriki just like him. More than anyone in Sunagakure, Naruto knows how Gaara feels. After all, Jinchūriki are treated the same regardless of what village they are from. That's why he feels such a strong need to save him. It doesn't make a difference to him; if he's from Suna or Konoha. For Naruto, Gaara is a friend that has felt the same pain as him."

Weary eyes stared into the past, as she listened;

"Naruto's dream is to become Hokage. He was frustrated when he heard that Gaara was made Kazekage. But at the same time, he was also very happy for Gaara from the bottom of his heart."

"Naruto has a mysterious power." Hearing this Chiyo turned to look at him, "However small the words he exchanges, he makes friends immediately, with everyone he meets." For a few minutes the pair remained in heavy silence, before the Elder spoke;

"I myself, have lived a very long life. I've seen many things. And in my own way, I've learned the nature of things in this world. Learning that the alliances with other lands were only for show, what I did was to create resources to protect the Sunagakure." The Jōnin got the meaning behind those words;

"I'm the one who used the jutsu and forced the possession of Shukaku on Gaara, after consulting with his father, the Yondaime Kazekage. What I did to protect the village only ended up hurting it. And now a village I avoided because I couldn't believe in alliances is trying to help us. Everything I've done might have been a mistake. Now, I've gotten old and learnt to give up easily."

"Kakashi…" he looked at her, "Young people have so much potential within… I'm so envious."

"Oh no, you're just getting started…You are still very young." Joyous laughter escaped her tired body, causing an eye smile.

"That's right… There might still be something an old bag like me can do." Her eyes hardened in determination. 'There's something I can do.'

"Yes, it was." Came a voice directly behind him. In a blink of an eye his entire body froze, no amount of willing his body to move worked. "Now, you will die."

Matsuho's agent rapidly went through the hand signs for the killing blow. As soon as it was complete he slammed his hand into the back of Shukaku's frozen body. Just like the ones before him; ribbons of chakra began to peel away from his body…

(Insertline)

Naruto was about to launch himself further ahead before his stomach felt as though it dropped, quickly he stabilised himself; his eyes wide, hand clutching his stomach. The others caught up with him, both Kakashi and Sakura were in front of him looking slightly worried;

"Naruto, what's wrong?" asked the Jōnin. Slowly he met his sensei's eye, a look of disbelief shone vividly in those sapphire eyes.

"Shukaku…."

Yagura Karatachi sat in his office, hand pausing, he turned in his chair and stared out of the window.

Han walked silently down a dirt road, staggering suddenly, hand covering where his seal lay.

Bubbles drifted lazily through the air, dancing on the light breeze. The bubbles paused in the air before popping all at once, his pipe dropping to the floor as he sat there stunned.

Fū sat playing within a nest of beetles, laughing as the smaller ones scurried around and over her. The laughter stopped suddenly, everything seemed to go silent as they all felt the sensation of emptiness.

Bee was walking through the village, his pace faltering drawing the attention of a shinobi.

"Is everything ok, Bee-san?"

"I don't know..." the Jinchūriki muttered as he rubbed his seal.

More ribbons of chakra dissipated into thin air; feeling himself fading, Shukaku used what last bit of strength he had and encase the recovering Kazekage in a shell of sand, before sending it in a random direction.

Matsuho's agent gave a shout of anger, as he watched the ball of sand disappeared. Rage coursed through him, it boiled more violently when he noticed the smug look on Shukaku's face. Pouring all his anger and rage into the killing blow. Chakra erupted from the tailed beast chests, the sound of dissipating chakra echoed loudly like thunder, in moments the last sliver of Shukaku's chakra faded into nothing.

"Shukaku…."

"What about Shukaku?" asked Lady Chiyo, her aged old eyes surveying the Blonde.

"He's…" Closing his eyes he went into his mindscape, once there he watched as Hinako paced up and down, anger coming of her in floods.

"He dares!" she screamed, smashing a clenched fist into a bar. The sounding impacted caused waves in the water. "He dares butcher us!"

"Is…is Shukaku really..." quietly asked the boy, fearing the answer he already knows. The radiating anger and hatred lessened, as the prisoner looked at her jailer. Her eyes softened at the boy;

"I'm sorry, Naruto."

A single tear ran down a whiskered cheek; sorrow filled eyes looked up at his sensei. Everyone got the message loud and clear; taking charge, Kakashi ordered everyone to set up camp, so they could rethink the whole situation.

Hinako sat kneeling on the floor deep in meditation, feeling for the faint threads that bound all Bijū together. Closer she fell into her subconscious, the clearer those threads became. Once the threads became as clear as day, she strummed on all eight; crimson eyes watched as three shattered, but the others glowed signalling that the other tailed beast were alive.

"Shukaku, Matatabi and Son Gokū. All have fallen to Matsuho." Coming out of her meditation, "The bitch is going to pay for this." in a blink of an eye Hinako went from calm and tranquil wind to a roaring storm.

Around a camp fire sat team seven along with Lady Chiyo; no one had spoken for the past hour, each person stuck within their own thoughts. Kakashi sat with his pervy book out, yet, he made no move to turn the pages as his sole attention was on his blond-haired charge.

Naruto slouched against a tree trunk, staring unblinkingly into the fire. Sapphire eyes dull with pain and sorrow; he knew his sensei was watching him, but he didn't want to meet the man's eye, fearing what he would see. For a few minutes he felt his charge slip into meditation, but that was short lived; hearing every word she said, feeling the calm and tranquillity be replaced with fury and hatred. He wrapped those emotions around himself like a blanket, sharing in Hinako's own maelstrom of darker emotions.

The other team members stiffened and looked wide eyed at the boy; watching in shock as his features began to become more feral, demonic chakra seeping out of him. In moments everything settled, but the darker chakra lingered;

"Naruto…" Sakura started, but the sentence fell short as unholy red eyes met hers.

"Yes, Sakura-Chan?" asked the boy sweetly, a smirk rivalling that of his eternal companion plastered on his face.

"Are you alright?" the look shot over his face, even to her the question sounded stupid.

"Why, yes. I'm just fucking peachy." Sarcasm dripping of his words. "My friend has been brutally killed. Not only has Shukaku been slaughtered by the bitch's pet, but Matatabi and Son Gokū have also been wiped from existence!" scarlet eyes growing darker, hellish chakra matching the boy's mood.

"So, to answer your question…." Abruptly he turned his head, looking in a seemly random direction, eyes narrowing like a predator 'homing in on its prey. Everyone slowly got to their feet, anticipation running high. An animalistic growl vibrated loudly from the teen, along with Hinako's chakra spiking;

"The bastard is heading this way!" just as he was about to leap in the direction of Matsuho's agent, a faint chakra signature registered with his sharpened senses. "Gaara…" he breathed out, flickers of cobalt blue emerged within the demonic eyes. In an instant he was gone, propelling himself towards the diminishing chakra signature.

Nestled within an impact crater, sat a sphere of sand; slowly the object began to lose its shape. As more and more sand fell away, it revealed a weak Kazekage. Gaara laid there, barely holding on to life. His strength rapidly leaving him, an ice-cold shiver ran down his spine; looking up he saw Matsuho's agent emerge from the shadows. He couldn't do anything except watch the demon walk purposely towards him, weapon drawn. The sound of footsteps ceased, feeling the anger and rage radiating of his assailant, he willed his head to move so he was looking the other in the eye.

"Do…do your…worst." For a moment they stared at each other; a twisted smile graced the demon's lips.

"I plan to." Readying his blade, he brought it down on the teen; the blade piercing his flesh cleanly, straight through his heart. Gaara's body gave a small jolt as the pain flooded through his tired body. For additional measure, Matsuho's agent twisted the weapon, causing the young Kazekage to cough up blood. The demon watched excitedly as the light faded in those teal eyes. Hitching breathes grow far and few between, before a final strangle breath left the boy. Carelessly the blade was removed, he grimaced at the crimson liquid that trickled down.

"Filthy blood." Wiping it on the other's clothes, sheathing his weapon he looked down on the boy. "I can't wait to see your kind back where it belongs." Cracking his fingers for dramatic effect, relishing in the feeling it gave. "Now to finish the job." Clicking his fingers, white flames erupted covering the corpse before him.

SMACK

A fist smashed him in the face hard and fast, launching him into the surrounding scenery. I a casual wave a hand, the white flames were extinguished. Blazing crimson eyes stared menacingly at the emerging agent; unholy chakra crackled and swirled around the whiskered teen.

"Well, well, well. The stinking fox as come to rescue his little friend." Said the agent in a condescending voice, as he brushed of the dirt. "How sweet." A growl vibrated threatening from the blond as he got into an offensive stance.

"Are we going to play?" using the same tone of voice, he withdrew the weapon that killed the Kazekage. With in a blink of an eye, he was in front of the other male weapon, slamming down the blade on to the boy. Naruto barely got his own weapon poised to block the ferocious attack; the two weapons grinded against each other, taking his chance, Matsuho's agent angled his sword so that it slid down the boys' kunai, and with the momentum he twirled himself behind the teen and kicked him in the back.

It happened so fast for the Chūnin, he found himself being sent flying away from his friends' body. Feeling Kyūbi's unholy chakra blazing through him, he righted himself, using the broken kunai to help him stop. Skidding to a full stop, he straightened up and discarded the tool without a second thought. Subconsciously he focused some of the demonic chakra into his open hand, shaping it into a sword. The blade was a red as the chakra that created it, the hilt guards were two foxes in crouching positions, their tails wrapped around the bottom of the blade.

Taking a deep breath, he opened himself up to Hinako, allowing all her experience flow freely. As if by second nature, he fell into a stance ready for what's to come. Both men stood opposite each other, sizing the other up. As if on the same wave band, they met in the middle, blades clashing together, sparks flying. Blow after blow, parry after parry, the two danced, neither one gaining the upper hand.

As the two fought a shape rose up from the ground, in seconds it morphed itself in to a replica of the agent. Waiting for its chance to strike when the pair got closer and the teens back was turned to him. He didn't have to wait long, as the teen was pushed back, he emerged from his hiding space and attacked the boy. Caught completely off guard, Naruto didn't react fast enough to stop the other blade running him through. Shock and pain filled his body as the original mimicked the clone, plunging his cold steel into the boy. Both twisted their respective blades causing Naruto to shout out in pain. Leaning in closely to the whiskered teens ear he whispered;

"You never have, nor will, best me." To emphasis his point he pushed his bladed deeper even though the hilt was already flat against the Chūnin's stomach. "I'll take great pleasure in watching this world fall." At the same time, both demons withdrew their swords, listening happily to the sounds of pain being drawn out of the Jinchūriki.

Time seemed to slow down around Naruto; his grip loosened on the blade, causing it to fall to the ground, kicking up a small cloud of dirt. Wide, disbelieving sapphire eyes stared at nothing in particular; blood running out of his mouth, splattering the ground below. Matsuho's agent watch as the blonde's body swayed for a few moment then dropping to his knees before him, head slumping forward.

Smiling sadistically the fiend dismissed his copy and gripped a handful of blond spiky hair, yanking his head up. Naruto weakly gripped the mans wrist, trying to pry his hand of his head. The other man laughed at such a weak attempt, pulling his hair even harder;

"My Mistress gave me clear orders not to kill the nine-tails, but you." He paused when he felt four chakra signatures getting closer. Smiling even wider he added;

"But you. Are fair game." Twisting the Jinchūriki's hair harder, "Any last words?" flinching slightly when Naruto spat at him, in a heart beat the smile disappeared, soulless eyes filling with rage. Forcefully letting go of the sun kissed locks, he wiped the offending fluid of his face. His rage doubled when he noticed the satisfied smirk on the teens face, letting his rage out, he smacked him, feeling slightly better after wiping the smirk off his face. It took a few seconds for the disorientated Chūnin to get his bearings, once he was somewhat recovered he spat out the blood that was pooling in his mouth. Some of the crimson liquid went on the agents' boots, again he couldn't help but give the bastard a satisfied smile. Having enough, Matsuho's lapdog gripped Naruto's face so they could look the other in the eye. He knelt down, his hand still holding the others face tightly;

"You're going to pay for that, you little shit." He snarled out, empty eyes meeting defiant azul ones. "Any last words?"

"Go to hell, you bastard." Spat out the blond, getting more blood on the others face. Breathing out a heavily, cobalt coloured eyes watched as the man stood up in barely controlled anger, turning his back on him. The Bijū Killer tightly gripped the handle of his blade, everything boiling over. Letting everything out, he turned on his heel faster than lightning, his blade slicing through the air with him. Stopping himself perfectly, as he stood side on to his enemy, the blade in a downwards position.

For a moment nothing moved, not even a sound from the surrounding area. The Bane of Tailed Beasts, relaxed turning to face the boy once again, feeling smug at the look of pure shock on the boys whiskered face. Gently he placed the pad of his index finger on the teens forehead and gave it a little push. Soulless eyes shone gleefully as it slipped off and onto the ground, the rest of the body swayed slightly before falling to the ground. Blood started to run out of the severed body, painting the floor red. The joy was short lived as the four signatures he felt before arrived;

"Chanara!" Sakura shouted out as she came flying in fist blazing blue. Unfazed by her, he gripped her out stretched hand and flung her over him into the surrounding area. Toppling trees followed shortly after. Giant ink tigers came at him right after he parried the first attack; effortlessly he dodged the ink beasts' measly attempts to try and hurt him. Destroying both beast with ease he jumped into the air to miss the tree that was hurled at him by the young Kunoichi. The sound of chirping birds filled his ears, looking behind him, soulless eyes met mismatched ones. Kakashi jab his hand towards the enemy, punching a hole right through his chest. The Copy-cat nin kicked the bastard away from the rest of the team; making him collided with thick branches and anything else on his way to the hard ground. Both Sai and Kakashi appeared next to the fallen Demon Slayer; without a second thought both brought down their weapons, stabbing him in the heart.

Satisfied with him being dead, the pair returned to the others. Chiyo was kneeling in front of the young Kazekage, while Sakura was clutching her deceased teammate. Tears were rolling freely down her cheeks. Sai respectfully pick up his friends' head and carried it to where the rest of his body was. Pakkun arrived moments later followed closely by team Guy, it didn't take long for the others to notice or feel the sombre air around the four.

"Kakashi." Said Guy looking from the Kazekage to the slain member of team 7. "What happened?" no one spoke, the Copy-cat nin just looked at his friend with broken eyes.

"Matsuho's lapdog, that's what happened." Came Naruto's voice, startling the ex-Root member and all those around him. Through sheer reaction, Sai dropped the talking head of his friend, causing it to land face first. His body reacted to the fall, scaring the shit out of pink haired Kunoichi.

"Ahhh!" cried Sakura as she lobbed the reacting body away from her. Everyone else was in different states of shock or being freaked out by the whole thing. Luckily for Naruto his thick hair rested to the side, allowing him to see his body which was slumped against the tree which, his insanely strong teammate hurled at the bastard.

"Time to put myself back together." Joked Naruto, as he watched his body get up and make its way over to the rest of him. Everyone else simple stood there dumbfounded as they watched Naruto direct himself;

"Left. No, no, no! The other left!" He instructed irritatedly, "Take two steps forward. That's it. Now reach down." Finally, his own hands wrapped around his head and cradled it as if holding a baby. "Hey guys!" getting everyone's attention, "How's it hanging." Joked the Chūnin as he hung freely from his own hand. A stupid smile plastered on his face, Kakashi was the first to snap out of his funk;

"Put your head back on Naruto, or I'll get Sakura to do it for you."

"I'm not touching his head." Came his response from the Kunoichi.

"Fine." Muttered the boy as he brought his head up to were it belongs. "I was only having a bit of fun." A thought popped into his energetic mind, taking the only opportunity he'll ever get; tipping his head downwards he looked at his arse.

"What on earth are you looking at?" Asked Sakura, as she walked up to her not-dead friend.

"Trying to figure out why Kiba likes my arse?" A blush bloomed on her cheeks at his answer; not knowing what to say to that, she just kept quiet. Shrugging, (which was really weird to see) he placed his head back on properly; as soon as it was on, steam began to come from his neck. In moments he was healed completely, the only evidence of his decapitation was a faint scar.

"Better Kaka-sensei?" he asked looking at his team leader. His attention was drawn to Gaara's remains. "I was too late to save him." Chiyo was about to answer him, but someone else did;

"Yes, you were." Turning around and getting into a stance, everyone else doing the same. There stood the Demonic Agent, not a scratch on him. "You see, I have a job I really want to finish. So, if you don't mind." Snapping his fingers, again white flames erupted over the deceased Jinchūriki's body. As soon as they erupted all over the teen, they were gone.

"You'll never touch him again!" spat out Naruto angerly, eyes blazing red.

"Oh, I think I can." Confidently stated the agent, sword at the ready.

"I don't think so." Said Lee as all the teens stood next to their comrade, each of them ready for anything. "We have the power of youth with us! While you are alone."

The Bane of Bijū began to laugh, pinching the bridge of his nose;

"No, you spandex loving retard." He began, while all around him soldiers emerged from the shadows. "It is you that is outnumbered." Weapons were drawn on both sides; the air was thick with anticipation. "Kill them." As soon as he uttered the last syllable, pandemonium exploded as both sides clashed against each other.

Tenten jumped into the air, unravelling her giant scroll and unleashed a maelstrom of weapons down upon the battlefield.

Neji moved fluently from one enemy to another; parrying blows and striking with deadly accuracy.

Lee and Guy were having a blast, as they crippled enemy after enemy with their powerful taijutsu.

Sakura stayed back with Lady Chiyo, protecting Gaara's body, annihilating any soldiers that got close.

Along with his ink creations, Sai joined the fight using his ingrained skills, effortlessly taking out any enemy that challenged him.

In the midst of the battle, Naruto and Kakashi were engaged with Matsuho's agent. Swapping between attacking and defend the pair slowly pushed the demon away from the main battle. The demon held his own against the pair with minimal effort, each attack parried then followed through with an attack of his own. He knew what they were doing, so he played along, acting as though they were getting the upper hand. Everything was going according to plan. A few more minutes and the rest of his army would arrive and separate them, to be picked off one, by one.

"Konoha Whirlwind!" called Guy and Lee, as they demolished the last remaining troops. Once the last soldier collapsed on the floor, silence reigned only the distant clashing of steel from further in the trees could be heard. The supposed victory lasted mere moments as a familiar ear-piercing screech filled the surroundings making everyone clutch at their ears, to try and dampen the god forsaken sound.

Four fell beasts flew overhead, breathing fire down on the assembled ninja. Everyone scattered to avoid the fire, falling right into the enemies' trap. With everyone split up, more soldiers emerged and attacked the scattered ninja.

Tenten and Sai hid in the overgrowth, watching as soldiers began to make a sweep of the area looking for them. Sai turned to his female counterpart, putting his finger to his lips to sign quiet; Tenten gave him a 'nah shit, sherlock' look in return. As quiet as a mouse, the ex-Root member began to draw a menagerie of animals, in moments his scroll was full. Again, he looked at his companion as he ran through a series of signs telling her what his plan was. Once he was done, Tenten nodded her head in understanding and stealthily left the overgrowth for higher ground.

The Kunoichi found a suitable place to hid, high above those who were searching for them. Now, all she had to do was wait for the sign for her to rain hell down on them. She didn't have to wait long, as she spotted black mice scurrying across the floor. Unfazed by the rodents, the troops continued on with their search. Each of the ink creations moved to a soldier each, then made their way up their target; as they reached the head of the enemy.

Sai watched and waited for his creations to get into position; once they were he directed them to the face of each enemy, then made them exploded, blinding each of them.

Tenten watched as the enemy was distracted with the exploding in rodents obscuring their vision. See that as the sign, she unravelled her large scroll and unleashed a hail of weapons down on their heads. Those below stood little chance against the downpour of weapons; shouts of pain and surprise filled the area, a handful of injured troops managed to get themselves behind a tree safe, others however dropped dead where they stood.

"Find them!" cried the group leader as he pulled out the offending ninja tools, "I want their heads!" discarding the tools carelessly. A large armoured warrior gave a long whistle; he held it for a few seconds then stopped, silence followed before echoing howls answered.

Hearing the answering howls, Sai brought several of his other ink creations to life and let them loose; as they were doing their thing, he moved to join Tenten who remained hidden high above. The ink animals homed in on their targets and both sides engaged in battle; the wounded demon warriors fought with as much grace as their wounds allowed them. Both Konoha shinobi watched and acted as necessary; picking their targets wisely and not staying in one place too long. The tide of battle seemed to start going in favour of the young Chūnin, as more of the Agents soldiers fell victim to either their wounds or Sai and Tentens' attacks. Both shinobi watched as the remaining victims were forced back to back in a tight circle, while the ink creations circled their pry. In a blink of an eye the drawings leapt at the remain troops, but they were destroyed by the demon hounds that teared out of the surrounding foliage. The hounds made short work of the remaining ink drawing; once they were destroyed they gave a howl of victory. The Alpha hound walked up to the group commander nuzzling his hand. A tired pained smile graced the leaders' lips as he affectionally scratched the demons head, a soft breeze danced its way through its surroundings, carrying all the different scents. As the breeze gently tickled the hounds senses the each growled menacingly, heads turned in the directions from which the ninja were hiding.

"What is it boy? Did you find those stinking humans?" asked the commander as he looked in the direction the hounds were growling at. "Shall we get them down here, so you can play with them?" looking over his shoulder at a petit woman, he jerked his chin, seeing her understanding he turned his attention back to the hiding ninja. Behind him the petit warrior removed a small black orb, in seconds it gave a faint yellow glow, then turned blue. A smile rose on her face as she spoke into it;

"We need you to get some rats down from the rafters." The orb pulsed blue once before returning to its original state. Moments later a screech resonated through the air, accompanying the sound of beating wings.

Once receiving the support request, the lead rider raised her hand and flicking it downwards signalling to the other three riders, receiving their nods in understanding, she guided her mount to bank right then into a steady incline. She didn't need to look back as she knew the others mimicked her manoeuvre. As they closed in on their intended target; she firmly pressed her heel into the side of the beast, feeling a growl in response to her command; a wide smile graced her lips behind the helmet.

Feeling the firm press against its side, the beast growled in understanding in what its rider wanted. Opening its beak like mouth, it let loose a screech which resonated through the air.

Rapidly approaching their destination, the winged demons got into position and breathed fire down onto the canopy of trees below.

Sai and Tenten looked at each other and moved from their original spot, dodging the torrent angry green fire. As soon as they moved to another branch, more fire rained down on them. It became harder and harder for them to stay in the trees.

"This is déjà vu all over again!" called Tenten as she hopped onto another branch. Flaming leaves were raining down from the burning trees; smoke grew thicker as more trees were set alight by the demons' flames. "We need to get out of here!"

Down below them the hounds and warriors watched as the pair tried to avoid the attacks from above and the burning greenery. It was only a matter of time before they were forced down to the ground, and the demon hounds could have their way with them.

"Patience." Smoothly said the commander as he idly stocked the Alphas' fur, "They will come to us. And then, they are all yours."

Sai was running through multiple plans to try and escape the trap they were in. He knew what they were doing; trying to force the pair down to the ground, were they would more than likely have to engage in close quarters combat. He knew he could handle that but, he wasn't sure how his companion would fair. Lower they were pushed, soon they would play into the demon warrior hands. Breathing was getting that much harder for the pair of them; the smoke alone was getting denser; the heat was another pressing factor of finding an escape route.

Sounds of buckling trees grew louder, branches snapping and fall down with hellish fire eating away at them. A rather loud popping sound followed several more drew to boys' attention to a buckling tree, that had a massive split running up its trunk.

"There." He thought as he saw a way out of this mess, "We can use that to our advantage!" He turned to his counterpart;

"How many explosive tags do you have?" Tenten looked at him for a second then reached into her into her tool pouch, pulling out a few tags and handing them to him.

"What are you planning to do with them?" she asked hoarsely, coughing a couple of times. Taking the offered tags, he replied in a similar tone of voice;

"You see that tree with the massive fracture running up its trunk?" getting a nod he continued, "I'm going to collapse it. That should give us enough of a distraction to get us out of here." As soon as he passed on his plan, he jumped into action; those below watched him move, wondering what he was planning.

"What is he up to?" asked the small female as the group watch him place something in a large split in a tree. The commanding officer's eyes widened as he realised what the boy was doing;

"Everyone scatter!" he barked just as the boy jumped away.

BOOM

The resulting explosion sent chunks of splintering wood in every direction. Both Sai and Tenten waited anxiously to see if the plan worked and sure enough, the ancient tree came crashing down in all its flaming glory. It crashed down where the group of soldiers previously occupied kicking up a mixture of ash and dirt. The pair didn't waste anytime in jumping to the ash ladened ground and left the area to go and find their team members.

As the ash settled, Matsuho's soldiers emerged from their hiding places, the commander surveyed the devastated for a moment then a slow sweeping motion of his outstretched hand. All around them, the roaring flames began to die out, cutting the heat considerably. Turning to the petite women once again her ordered her to call off the air support.

"You can all stop playing dead now. The rats have run away." All the 'dead' soldiers got up from their spots, pulling out any imbedded weapons. "Those who have all your limbs attached help those who weren't so lucky." Knowing that was being taken care off he turned to the plump women in the group;

"Time clear up this mess." Knowing what he was talking about, she moved in front of him; removing her leather gloves, she began to make a series of intricate hand movements. Nothing seemed be happening, but slowly, her hands began to glow a golden colour; steadily the colour became more prominent until finally she stopped the hand movements.

Kneeling down she lovingly touched the scarred earth and released the energy she held in her hands. It dissipated into a million balls of light no bigger than a grain of sand, and washed over the ground like a great wave, spreading across the dead ground evaporating the soot and ash as it went; finally, it climbed up the smouldering trees before dissipating into thin air.

Standing back up she put her gloves back on and watched her work unfold before them; tiny stems of grass began to emerge in sporadic patterns, as the earth itself appeared to be knitting itself back together. While that was happening, the trees began to return to life; branches regrowing, buds growing and sprouting leaves. In minutes the fauna was returned to its original state, except the tree destroyed by Sai.

"I never get tired of seeing this." Said the petit female as she slung her arm over the other's shoulders. Both women smiled at each other, "You have to teach me that, Hachimitsu." her smile dropping slightly as the other rolled her eyes.

"We've had this decision a century ago, Kimoto." Kimoto pouted at her answer, ignoring the light laughter from her squadmates.

"I don't know about you lot, but I need a bath and a strong drink." Everyone agreed completely with his statement, and one by one they disappeared into thin air.

Lee and Neji found themselves separated from the rest of the group; each taking in their new surroundings. Using his Byakugan he tried to find the rest of the group; after a few minutes he located both Sai and Tenten hiding in some overgrowth.

"I've located Tenten and Sai." He informed his teammate, the other turned to him;

"Where are they? Are they alright?"

"They're safe for now." He was about to add more, but the sound of shovelling feet next to him brought his attention back to them. All around them multiple warriors made themselves known; Some wearing the same armour as before, while others were in heavier armour.

"It seems we have our own worries." Said Lee as he got into a stance, "But we have the power of youth with us!" As soon as he finished his sentence, he was engaging the soldiers.

"Konoha Whirlwind!" his attack was intercepted by a heavily armoured warrior, who grabbed the teens leg and swung him around, hurling him back in the direction he came from. Hitting the ground hard, Lee rolled a few meters before he flipped himself upright, digging his heels into the dirt to slow himself down.

Neji was next to his friend within moments, palms outstretched ready for anything. Using his Kekkei Genkai to try and find a weak spot.

"What are we going to do about the rest of them?" he asked, "He moved quickly for someone in that amount of armour." Both watched as the other soldiers got into some sort of formation; the heavy armoured warriors spread themselves evenly amongst the rest of the troop.

"Try using hit and run tactics, to see if we can't separate the heavily armoured ones from the rest of the troop." Suggested the Hyūga.

"Right!" pumping himself up again, Lee aimed right for the middle of the formation, "Konoha Whirlwind!" Again, just as his attack was going to connect, a heavily shielded warrior intercepted his attack. The Chūnin went from offensive to defensive in a Nano second. Feeling his ankle being grabbed, Lee twisted his body and brought down his other leg onto the warriors' head. The soldier raised his arm to parry the blow; as the attack connected, his armour rippled slightly in a light purple colour. The teen noticed the slight change in colouration of the armour, before he was lobbed in a random direction.

While his friend attacked the middle, Neji attacked those directly in front of him. Using his gentle fist technique, he went from on enemy to another. He too noticed every hit he landed, the area around the impact rippled in a faint purple colour. Using his Kekkei Genkai, he zoomed in on each impact site, noticing several small seals and strange symbols become visible every time he hit them. He brought himself back to the battle quickly, narrowly evading a sword thrust aimed for his side. Breaking off his attack, he jumped back several meters, before dodging another attack from one of the Brutes brandishing a massive two-headed axe. The boy ducked and weaved to avoid any of the hits from connecting; any opening he got, Neji grabbed with both hands and dished out his own volley of attacks. The Brute didn't seem fazed by the teens attacks, as his armour was protecting him from damage, wielding his massive weapon he swung widely trying to decapitate the Shinobi who in turn bent forwards getting under his guard; seeing this opening Neji sprung up and slammed one open palm into the warriors elbow joint and the other in his armpit where the armour didn't cover. A shout of pain ripped itself from the mans mouth, his grip on his weapon loosened and it dropped to the ground with a thud.

"Eight Trigrams One Hundred Twenty-Eight Palms!" with that he began to go through the stages of his attack. Faster and faster he went, hitting multiple points on the body. All over the armour it glowed purple, as it absorbed more and more of the attack. Seeing it wasn't enough, Neji tried to refine the flow of Chakra that he was expelling into the others body. As he was reaching the end of his attack, he refined his chakra as much as possible, and it seemed to be having an effect as the seals and strange symbols began to buckle under the strain. As he reached the final number he slammed his palm into the middle of the cuirass, sending the soldier flying back making him collide with a boulder, shattering it to pieces.

A few more soldiers engaged him in battle, their swords hacking and slashing through the air as they tried to land a hit on the teen. At first it seemed they were attacking blindly but, they were moving him into a corner were two more Brutes lay in wait. Kunai in hand, the Jōnin parried the blows and attacked; as he was going to embed his cold steel into a soldier's flank, a fist came at him on his blind spot. The blow hitting its target dead on, sending the ninja tumbling to the floor several meters away. Neji bounced of the floor a few times before he came to full stop, kicking up mounds dirt.

Disorientation clasped itself tightly around the Hyūga, a prominent ache filled his head; once his head stopped spinning so much, he shakily started to get up, but a heavy foot forcefully pushed him back down. Seconds later he felt several senbons puncher his skin rendering his body limb. Pinned to the ground in more ways than one, he managed to turn his head to the side and looked up at the heavily armoured demon, sun light gleaming of the giant blade that was being raised, poised to be brought down on his head. Neji felt dread wash through his body at the thought that this was it for him; he tried to push the heavier women off him, but the foot pressed that much harder on his back. Resigned to his fate, he closed his eyes, waiting for the final blow.

Lee got precariously up off the ground, his large round eyes looking back at the battlefield;

"I'll need to use a different tactic if I'm going to win against these worthy foes!" he thought as he took everything in. "I think it's time I drop some weight." Reaching into his leg warmers, and proceeded to remove the weights, letting them drop to the ground causing an impact crater due to the insane weight. Readying himself, the young Konoha Shinobi propelled himself into battle once again, but with a massive amount of speed.

Lee truly embraced the meaning of 'hit and run'; striking each soldier in a blink of an eye, then disappearing before they could react. Again, and again he did this, not dropping into a predictable pattern.

Being attacked from all sides, Matsuho's soldiers began to tighten their ranks; normal soldiers on the inside while the heavily armoured ones on the outside creating a shield.

Using his insane increase of speed, Lee began to look for a weak link, so he could do more damage. Periodically he attacked the outer soldiers, trying to pry them out of formation. As he was about to make another round of attacks, he saw Neji getting punched in the face, sending him flying. This gave the warriors an opening, seeing the boy distracted just for a moment, but, it was all they needed to tackle to Chūnin to the ground, pinning his appendages to the ground. Just like his Jōnin friend, his body went limb from the senbons that sat embedded in his body.

"Bring the spandex freak over here!" called the female demon, doing as order, they dragged Lee unceremoniously by his spandex, towards his fallen friend. As soon as they got near enough he was dropped on the ground opposite his comrade. No matter how much he tried to will his body to cooperate, nothing happened, so he was forced himself to watch, as the demon raised her blade high over her head. Catching each other's eye, they both saw how scared the other was; the last people they would get to see. But happiness shown just below the other rampaging emotions, at least they would die amongst friends.

Lee watched as the blade was brought swinging down, fighting with himself not to shy away.