Betaed: by Doodledon122
Chapter: 5
The full moon sat high in the sky as it neared midnight. Slowly, the camera descended upon the Leaf Village, bathed in the glow of the night. It zoomed in on the back portion of my home, focusing on me as I stood at my anvil, hammer gripped tightly in my hand. I was covered in sweat, grime, and smears of filth from working for so long. Again and again, I swung the hammer, striking the red-hot blade that had once been a length of steel. The sound of clanking metal echoed through my forge as my foot pressed down on the floor pedal to keep the blade in place.
It had only been a few days since my confrontation with Senshi, but that encounter had driven me to push the progress of my secret project. Locking the frame and joints together had been the easy part, as had inserting the chakra canisters. The most challenging aspect had been getting the joints to bend and swivel properly. If they were too tight, they wouldn't move at all; if they were too loose, they risked rattling apart. After hours of trial and error, I finally had everything assembled perfectly. Now, I was on to the final piece.
With one last swing of my hammer, it was finished. I released the foot pedal, letting go of the clamp holding the still-red-hot spearhead in place. Using a pair of modified tongs, I grabbed the spearhead and dunked it into the vat of oil beside the anvil. A stream of flames shot up as I quenched the steel. After removing the now-hardened spearhead, I admired my work as I watched the remaining oil drip from the blade. A quick file test confirmed that the quench had been successful. Now, I just had to fit the final piece into place.
Placing everything on my workbench, I took a moment to appreciate the project before the final steps. It was a prosthetic designed for my right arm, to be attached just behind the elbow and extending up to the length of my bicep. The frame was made of iron bars and swivel joints, mimicking the form of my forearm and ending just after the wrist. The large empty space where my arm would be was filled with a reinforced glass chakra canister, though it was currently empty. Attached to the wrist joint was a slot just big enough to fit the tang of the spearhead. I slotted the spearhead into place, then used a vice to pin it shut, locking the blade into position and completing the prosthetic arm.
This project had been kept a secret, even from my two closest friends. I hadn't told Kaen because I wasn't sure I could trust him. Then again, with his Byakugan, he might already know. As for Senshi, I wanted it to be a surprise when we met up tonight. Now that it was late, I wrapped the prosthetic arm and quickly cleaned myself up before exiting my home. Normally, it would have been a casual stroll through the quiet village, but with the prosthetic, I had to be more careful. I took the alleys and backstreets, making my way toward the village gate.
As I passed the entrance, I stopped upon hearing a conversation between Sakura and Sasuke. I rounded the corner just in time to see Sasuke lay an unconscious Sakura on a bench before rushing out of the village gates. A thousand thoughts raced through my mind before I decided I had to inform Senshi. As I rushed through the village, I ran into Senshi himself.
"There you are," he said, breathing heavily. "I was starting to think you were bailing on me. Why do you look like you were running for your life?"
"I think I just saw Sasuke abandon the village," I said, "He knocked out Sakura and left. I was on my way to tell you."
A look of irrational anger crossed Senshi's face. "That little shit! The two of us are going to get him right now!"
"Isn't that a bad idea?" I questioned. "You're a shinobi, and I'm not. We could both get in serious trouble, especially if we fail."
"Don't worry," Senshi replied confidently. "We'll get Sasuke and be back before anyone notices we're gone."
Just then, we heard the voice of Kaen as he emerged from a nearby alleyway.
"Where do the two of you think you're going?" Kaen asked, his voice laced with anger. "I already think it's suspicious that you've been working so closely with Senshi. Now I find you two in the middle of the night, talking about leaving and returning before anyone notices. I want answers now."
Kaen's suspicion was no surprise. Senshi had been taking me for private sessions, and Kaen had been vocal about his concerns.
"We were talking about going after Sasuke," Senshi explained. "He just abandoned the village to join Orochimaru. He's probably meeting up with some strong Sound Shinobi. After what happened when Itachi showed up, we shouldn't be surprised. Damn it, I knew I shouldn't have left Sasuke alone. Do you honestly think anyone but us could bring him back? And if Tsunade sends you and me instead of me and him, by the time we inform her and she confirms it, who knows how far Sasuke will have gotten."
Senshi laid out a solid argument, making it clear that there wasn't much time to waste.
"Alright, fine," Kaen said. "But I'm coming with you. The three of us will bring Sasuke back much easier than the two of you alone. If this turns out to be some kind of lie, I can drag the two of you back myself."
Kaen's response calmed my nerves, and I let out a sigh of relief. We wasted no time and rushed out of the village, following Sasuke's trail. We moved through the trees, jumping from branch to branch with incredible speed. Senshi led the way, Kaen followed closely behind him, and I trailed just behind both of them. Kaen glanced over his shoulder and saw the smile on my face.
"What are you so happy about back there?" Kaen asked, almost having to shout over the rush of air as we sped through the treetops.
"You guys always gave me crap for not making it above Genin," I replied, "But now, here we are, racing through the forest to bring back not only a shinobi but also Senshi's nephew. It just feels like we're on our first official mission together, like we always talked about when we were kids. That puts a smile on my face."
As we continued through the trees, I thought back to a specific night a few days ago, during one of Senshi's late-night training sessions with me.
"I'm telling you, Senshi, I have absolutely no idea how this thing works. And why do you keep calling it the 'Jikugan'?" I had asked, slightly annoyed.
"Well, we have to call it something," Senshi replied. "Besides, 'space-time eye' sounds pretty accurate. We just need to figure out how to activate it on command. Start explaining what it feels like."
I sighed as I recalled the few times it had happened. "It's hard to explain. Each time it happened, I was in a really intense moment. adrenaline and chakra were flooding through my body. I was hyper-focused on someone or something, and then I just felt this surge of power in my eyes, and it happened."
As I explained, I could see the gears turning in Senshi's head as he pieced things together.
"So, you need to be focused on a target or a specific space. Then, with enough chakra and concentration through your eyes, you can activate your Jikugan. Initially, it seems to form a time-space bubble around the focused area or individual, inside of which time is slowed significantly for everyone caught inside. Alright, let's test this theory out."
As my memory of that conversation ended, I felt the presence of five significant chakra signatures ahead of us. After several minutes of jumping from tree to tree, we dropped into a large clearing. Standing there were the Sound Four, along with Kimimaro.
"Well, this is quite the unexpected turn of events," Kimimaro said. "You four deal with them while I ensure Sasuke reaches Lord Orochimaru."
Kimimaro picked up the barrel containing Sasuke and leaped off into the trees with incredible speed.
"Alright, how do we handle this?" Kaen asked, cracking his neck.
"Thankfully, it's a nearly even matchup," Senshi said calmly as he sized up the four Sound Shinobi. "Four of them, three of us. A simple plan of attack should do."
"The plan is, you two go after Sasuke while I handle these four," I said authoritatively, stepping forward. "Don't even try to argue. You saw how fast Kimimaro was moving. In the few minutes it'll take us to deal with these guys, who knows how far he'll get with Sasuke. You two go on ahead, and I'll watch your backs."
Kaen looked to Senshi, a shocked and worried expression on his face. "Do you really think he can take these guys?" he asked.
"If he thinks he can handle it, I say let him have at it," Senshi replied with a shrug.
Kaen looked back at me, concern still written on his face. "Just don't get yourself killed, okay?"
With that, both Kaen and Senshi leaped back into the treetops to pursue Kimimaro. The moment they left, the Sound Four moved to intercept them, but all four of them were almost instantly caught in a large purple sphere, inside of which time was slowed tremendously.
[Well, damn. Senshi was right. I haven't been speeding up my perception of time. I've been slowing time in a controlled area around what I'm focused on.]
As these thoughts ran through my head, I approached the Sound Four, laughing as I reached into the pouch on my hip.
"Don't bother holding your breath waiting for an explanation," I said, "because, truth be told, I'm still figuring this out myself."
I moved around the time bubble, throwing kunai at strategic points. Once I was sure Senshi and Kaen were far enough away, I drew my sword and released the time bubble. All twenty-five kunai shot forward at lightning speed, sinking into the Sound Four members. The frantic movements of the Sound Four, coupled with the kunai sinking into the ground, kicked up a small dust cloud. As it cleared, I saw that the Sound Four only had minor cuts and scratches.
"I guess I shouldn't be surprised," I muttered. "Honestly, I'd be disappointed if you four went down that easily."
I charged forward, noting who posed the biggest threat. But I stopped dead in my tracks, leaping back to avoid a spider web that was spat in front of me. Rolling to the right, I narrowly avoided three more webs. I turned my attention toward Kidomaru, knowing I would have to deal with him first. Before I could advance, I heard the words, "Earth Style: Earth Prison Jutsu!"
The ground began to shake, and a dome of earth rose around me, trapping me inside. I felt my chakra draining rapidly, and I knew I had to escape. Rushing toward the front wall, I took up a special stance. With my feet planted, I brought my blade behind my back and shouted, "Secret Sword Style: Slashing Barrage!"
I unleashed a flurry of slashes that grew faster and stronger until the wall shattered. But as it collapsed, I heard a strange melody, one that would have dire consequences. As the wall fell, I stood face-to-face with three massive rage ogres.