Chapter V: Kimimaro, the Strongest
Sasuke pants heavily as he stares at the wounded Kaguya clan member. Kimimaro glares back at Sasuke, his green eyes locked onto the black-haired male.
This guy... to still be standing after a Chidori right through the heart. He's insane, Sasuke thinks.
"Since you want to save Orochimaru so badly, I'll have to kill you first," he says to the white-haired male. Kimimaro closes his eyes as the wind picks up his hair again. It takes a few moments for him to steady his breathing. Once rapid, loud breaths change into calm, barely audible ones.
"I no longer fight through physical means," Kimimaro starts. He places a hand on his badly damaged chest, coating his entire palm with his own, tiny pieces of bone twist together near his exposed heart, protecting the vital organ from any potential attacks.
"Therefore... bodily wounds like this won't be enough to put me down. My ability to continue fighting stems from Lord Orochimaru's spirit itself!" he yells. A single drop of blood lands on the ground.
Well said, boy, Orochimaru thinks. Behind the large wall of bones, the Sannin converts back to his human form. Once he finishes doing so, he jumps high in the air, landing at Kimimaro's side. The snakelike man crosses his arms, eyeing his subordinate with piqued interest. Kimimaro looks at his master with a gentle smile, bowing his head respectfully.
"I will finish him off, my lord," he tells Orochimaru. Sasuke takes a step forward, tightly clutching a kunai.
"You've got a foot in the grave already. If you continue this battle, you'll die," the Uchiha declares. Kimimaro opens an eye.
I will not perish until Lord Orochimaru's goals are met. I made that promise a long time ago.
"Then just try and kill me, you weakling," the Sound ninja replies. Like before, numerous black markings slowly spread all over his chest. A dangerously sharp bone starts to pop out of his left shoulder. He raises an arm to grab the bone by the end, then yanks it out of his shoulder with a loud crack. He tightens his grip around the makeshift sword and points it at Sasuke, his emerald eyes staying fixed on his Anbu enemy.
After letting out a scoff, Sasuke dashes toward Kimimaro, flicking his hand to the right. Kimimaro matches the Uchiha's speed perfectly, swiftly swinging the bone to the left to deflect the incoming kunai. Sasuke continues to chuck several of the knives at Kimimaro, who swings the bone left and right repeatedly, effortlessly swatting each kunai away. A fierce sound was made as their weapons continue to strike each other.
Sasuke jumps back before rushing forward at an even greater speed than before, throwing another kunai. Kimimaro gasps at the Uchiha's sudden increase in speed, squinting as he hits the kunai away. The knife lands on the ground nearby, sticking right through the concrete. Sasuke then suddenly appears in front of Kimimaro, successfully landing a heavy kick to his chest. Kimimaro grunts in pain before spinning his body around, directing a sharp kick of his own to Sasuke's abdomen. Sasuke flies back from the harsh impact, extending his arm to the side to skillfully grab the kunai from earlier mid-air. He lands on the ground, gritting his teeth as he rushes forward again.
The two shinobi continue to clash, their weapons loudly clanging against one another. Sasuke jumps back once more, his breaths now light pants. Kimimaro also pants, pointing the sturdy bone at Sasuke again.
He's good, thinks the Kaguya clan member. Or at least, better than his partner. His green eyes briefly look over to the wounded Anbu member in question before darting back to Sasuke. The black-haired ninja rests a hand on his hip, smirking. His free hand points at the hole in Kimimaro's chest.
"Your movements are getting slower with each exchange. How much longer can your body hold out?" he asks. Kimimaro doesn't respond. Instead, the black markings on his skin briefly glow scarlet, then spread further across his skin. In a few seconds, he was covered head to toe in the distinctive markings. Sasuke crosses his arms at the sight, unable to hold back a light chuckle.
Kimimaro then suddenly appears directly in front of Sasuke, swinging the bone quicker than ever before. Sasuke's eyes widen as he manages to quickly duck his head. The weapon had sliced Sasuke's cheek, drawing a line of blood that ran down his face. Kimimaro smirks, the marks on his skin now glowing a bright orange as they spread even more, covering the entirety of his skin. It appeared that he was beginning to enter the second stage of his Curse Mark again.
"You lowlife. Let's see you-"
The white-haired male suddenly gasps as his breathing picks up again. He clutches his chest as he stumbles backwards, coughing up an immense of blood, his eyes once again growing bloodshot. The marks on his skin stop glowing, instead quickly retracting back to the symbol on his chest.
No! What's happening to me?!
Seizing the opportunity, Sasuke bolts ahead and stabs the kunai through Kimimaro's chest.
Clang!
The sharp blade comes into contact with the small shield of bone protecting his opponent's exposed heart. After moving his hand back a short distance, Sasuke slams the knife forward again, easily shattering the bones into little fragments that fall to the ground. In the same motion, the kunai pierces Kimimaro's heart. Blood lands on Sasuke's face. He stands up slowly as Kimimaro's limp body slumps against his shoulder. The large bones behind Orochimaru shatter apart immediately afterwards.
"So, he's really dead now," mutters the Sannin. He then begins to give a light chuckle, which soon grew into a maniacal cackle. Sasuke clenches his fists as he turns to his former teacher.
"I wouldn't take it so easy if I were you. You're next!" he says.
"It will be an eye for an eye. Let me reunite you with your dear, beloved brother!" Orochimaru says with a grin.
"What?!" Sasuke gasps out.
Don't tell me... he's going to use that technique again!
Orochimaru smirks crazily as he performs multiple hand signs, ending with him crouching then roughly slamming both hands down on the ground.
"Summoning Jutsu... REANIMATION!" he yells.
Several wooden boxes with seals embedded on them begin to rise from the ground. An eerie creaking noise fills the area. The seals on the boxes turn red as the cases slam down to the ground.
Sasuke looks on in utter horror as he watches Itachi Uchiha, Hiruzen Sarutobi, Hashirama Senju, Haku of the Hidden Mist, and Deidara of the Hidden Cloud emerge from the boxes, all of them donning red cloaks.