Hello folks. I am posting this chapter because, I want to tell you, that... "I'm back"... Hm.. This was much easier to write when I was in the flow... I never forget to write this story, I just lacked a lot of creativity lately and I don't want to publish half-heartidly. I kept this one short, just to state, that I'm still there and this story will go on. I want this to go somewhere, and I still have events for the story, I already plotted, when I started writing. Sorry in advance, I write this on the spot and it may be a little confused ^^'. (Not the story tho, just my yapping here)
Still, I hope this will serve you and I can already tell, that this'll be the last chapter for this year... but I'm very sure the next one will come early next year, and it'll have the full lenght - my target is to reach 5000 words on average per chapter. Have a good time, merry christmas and happy new year in advance. Peace!
Yato had needed a few more days to recover. The ANBU attack and his rush after Tayuya had not exactly helped his healing process. Tayuya was absent that morning. She hadn't told him where she was going. Yato climbed up to his favorite spot on the roof to smoke a cigarette.
The air feels different... he noted. While he couldn't pinpoint why, he could sense that something was odd that day. Even though it was midweek, the streets were empty. Strange… he thought. He hadn't seen any Jōnin wandering the village either. With each passing second, his unease grew, as if something was deeply wrong. The young Ganan crawled back into his attic room, threw on his coat, and decided to visit the Hokage.
xXx
All teams were in turmoil. News of Akatsuki's attack on Sunagakure had sown fear amongst the leaf village, and Konoha dispatched numerous teams to combat Akatsuki. But Sunagakure wasn't the only target. Unnoticed by many, two Akatsuki members had attacked Kumogakure, overwhelming the Jinchūriki of the Two-Tails. The same pair had reportedly attacked the Fire Temple to collect the bounty on the head monk.
At a secret hideout disguised as a public restroom, Asuma, Shikamaru, Izumo, and Kotetsu confronted two Akatsuki members. What they didn't know was that they had been followed. After a brief exchange of words, one Akatsuki member decided to fight alone while the other stood by. Following a bitter battle, Asuma managed to decapitate his opponent:
"Would you stop standing around like an idiot and do something?!" barked the severed head of the Akatsuki member, as the Konoha team momentarily celebrated a victory.
"You told me to stay out of it. Didn't I warn you to be careful, Hidan?" the other member said in a calm but firm tone.
Hidan's head grumbled. "What are you all staring at? Never seen a severed head before?!" The team froze in shock. "Kakuzu, would you be so kind as to bring me my body?"
"Fine…" Kakuzu replied irritably. In a flash, he disappeared and reappeared right next to the weakened Asuma. "See ya!" With full force, he kicked Asuma onto his injured leg and struck him with his steel briefcase. Asuma collapsed, coughing up blood as Kakuzu followed up with a knee strike to the Jōnin's back. Shikamaru, panicking, tried to help his sensei but was too weak from the fight and collapsed. Izumo and Kotetsu joined the fray, attacking Kakuzu as the now-reassembled Hidan turned back to Asuma.
He pulled a telescopic spear from his cloak and lunged at Asuma. However, Asuma wasn't finished yet; he stood up and countered Hidan's attack unexpectedly, causing Hidan to throw the spear. It grazed Asuma's shoulder. The spools under Hidan's robe activated, pulling his scythe from a distance. Asuma dodged it at the last moment, relieving his team temporarily. However, they didn't notice that Hidan had stepped back into his curse circle. The scythe missed Asuma but pierced his abdomen, causing him to bleed. The pain left Asuma immobilized as Hidan readied another spear.
"It's over," his partner declared.
"NO!" Shikamaru screamed, powerless to intervene. Hidan raised the spear to strike at his own heart. Shikamaru, unwilling to lose his sensei, watched helplessly as defeat loomed.
xXx
"You did WHAT?!" Yato exclaimed, horrified.
"I had no choice. We needed to respond to the actions on Sunagakure." Tsunade explained.
"And you left me out of the planning?!", Yato fumed.
"Given your illness and unnecessary detour, I had to account for your condition.", the Fifth Hokage argued.
"You could have at least consulted me! Sending Tayuya out alone and putting other teams at risk is reckless!", Yato snapped, turning toward the door.
"You're being controlling with your girlfriend…", Tsunade interrupted. "Tayuya insisted on going alone."
"Tayuya is incredibly strong and destructive... but she tends to overestimate herself.", Yato concluded, heading for the exit.
"You're the one who overestimates yourself. You couldn't even beat her during the Chūnin Exams!", Tsunade shot back. Yato paused but said nothing, leaving the Hokage Tower.
xXx
In the nick of time, a red-haired fury intervened, gripping Hidan's spear. "Think again!" she said coolly.
"What the...?", Hidan grunted.
"Tayuya?!" Shikamaru said in surprise. On one hand, he was glad to see her since she had just saved his sensei, and he was well aware of her immense strength and determination. However, the tension between them from their shared battle had not yet subsided, and he hated that she was here. And the fact that another woman had to come to their rescue irritated him even more.
"Looks like you're my guardian angel, Tayuya, huh?", Asuma said with a faint smile.
"Asuma...?", she began.
"Yes?" he replied.
"This is going to hurt for a second. Sorry in advance.", she said cheekily, kicking Hidan in the chest and yanking the spear from his hands. With Hidan outside the curse circle, Asuma was safe.
"You guys have some nerve!", Hidan growled. The battle escalates further. Shikamaru was too weak to fight, Izumo and Kotetsu were being strangled by Kakuzu's threads, and Asuma was critically injured. Tayuya assessed the dire situation.
That guy I just kicked looks pretty battered. I should be able to defeat him without using too much chakra. The guy in the back doesn't seem to have fought much yet, she analyzed. "Hey, manbun!" she called out to Shikamaru. "What can you tell me about these guys' abilities?"
Annoyed by her tone, Shikamaru explained, "The one in front of you is immortal. He can't fight without his head, but if he drinks your blood and enters the circle, injuries to him will transfer to you. As for the masked guy, I only know he can reattach his partner's limbs."
"Hidan, be careful!", Kakuzu warned.
"Yeah, yeah, stop lecturing me! That's annoying!", Hidan snapped. He pulled his scythe from his abdomen and charged towards Tayuya. She knew she had to act quickly with Hidan, as Izumo and Kotetsu likely wouldn't last much longer without air. Additionally, Asuma needed medical attention, as he was losing a lot of blood despite fighting hard to stay conscious. All things considered, the conditions for a battle were far from ideal. She pulled out a kunai and deflected Hidan's scythe attack.
"Shikamaru! You have to give Asuma first aid before he loses more blood and his condition becomes critical!" she commanded the strategist while parrying Hidan's attacks. This isn't getting us anywhere… I need to come up with something quickly! she thought. She leapt back and performed the hand signs for her next jutsu mid-air: "Lava Release: Magma Erosion!" She slammed her palm to the ground, creating a fissure filled with molten lava near Hidan. He noticed it just in time and stopped, teetering dangerously close to a fall. But it was already too late for him. Tayuya glanced quickly at the ground to ensure Hidan's curse was deactivated and leapt over the small chasm she had created, severing Hidan's head from his body again. This time, it was a permanent solution as his head fell into the lava.
"AAAAARGH! That hurts, you bastards! Just wait till I get my hands on you!", Hidan roared in agony. But Tayuya paid him no mind and rushed directly toward Kakuzu. Meanwhile, Shikamaru had managed to limp to his sensei and bandaged his thigh and waist.
Shikamaru, meanwhile, bandaged Asuma's wounds. "Thank you, Shikamaru… She's got some fire, huh?" Asuma said weakly.
"More like terrifying," Shikamaru muttered. "I'm just glad I don't have to fight her again. That was exhausting enough back then, and if Temari hadn't come to my aid, it would've ended very badly for me." Kakuzu, now irritated, turned his skin black.
Huh…? Tayuya noticed the change in his skin tone before she struck. She grinned mischievously and activated the same technique on her right hand. "Take this!", she yelled, punching Kakuzu with full force. Unprepared, he was flung several meters away. Still mid-air, he let go of Izumo and Kotetsu to catch himself with his arms and land precisely on his feet.
"Very good! So you possess the same ability as I do… Bravo! But it won't do you any good!" the masked man announced confidently.
I'm not sure what the best course of action here would be. From what I can judge by just observing, he seems to have a fairly large attack radius with his threads. That makes it a problem, as it becomes harder for me to restrict his actions against my teammates. I wonder if a retreat would be the right move to minimize damage in this situation? she contemplated thoroughly. What should I do next…?