Naruto Fan Fiction ❯ Glimpses of Fire ❯ Unexpected Rematch ( Chapter 23 )
[ Y - Young Adult: Not suitable for readers under 16 ]
By: shattered-words 
The battle that should have taken place.
Anime/Manga: Naruto Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Adventure | Type: Alternate Universe | Uploaded On: 05.12.2007 | Updated On: 05.16.2007 | Pages: 3 | Words: 4.6K | Visits: 152 | Status: Work In Progress
The battle that should have taken place.
Anime/Manga: Naruto Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Adventure | Type: Alternate Universe | Uploaded On: 05.12.2007 | Updated On: 05.16.2007 | Pages: 3 | Words: 4.6K | Visits: 152 | Status: Work In Progress
Glimpses of Fire
Author: shattered-words
Disclaimer: If I owned Naruto, it'd be called 'Gaara'. So, isn't it a shame that I don't own it?
Summary: There were many things that shaped the plans of a certain Nukenin, and one was a shinobi that was as destructive as fire. AU/Mentions of Shounen-ai/Yaoi/Yuri [Linked to 'Caught in the Rain']
AN: I was forced to cut chapter 21 into another chapter because it was too long! T.T Oh such a tragedy, but yup... -sigh- Once again, thanks to my oh so awesome beta, Shadows-upon-Sand! She rocks! n.n After this one, there are only two more chapters! How sad! Now, here is the chapter.
“Hokage-sama,” he gasped suddenly as he tried to stand up but the girl forced him to be still. He remembered that the Suna ninja had released the smoke bomb and had dulled his senses. The kunai had struck him when he'd tried to get to the Hokage and then he'd known no more.
“Don’t move, Raido-sensei, you’re hurt,” Sanako chastised and forced him to stop moving. Her face was grim and he felt dread clench his heart. Something was wrong.
“The old man is trapped inside a barrier with the Kazekage,” Anzai told him, glancing momentarily over his shoulder at his instructor. He didn't show it, but he was also relieved that the man hadn't been killed.
Haku hadn't let his gaze leave the fighting taking place once and wanted to help, but didn't want to leave his teammates and sensei by themselves. His eyes lingered on the figures in the stadium and saw that Eizan had joined the red head. It was now plainly obvious that Suna had betrayed Konoha.
As he watched, the rest of the Suna Genin left and then his former opponent removed his hitai-ate and started to attack. He was a bit shocked when he noticed that he was not distinguishing between villages. The younger boy was killing randomly.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Kakashi had sent Sakura, Naruto and Shikamaru after Sasuke. He had also sent one of his tracking dogs, Pakkun with them. Now, as he dispatched the sound ninja he fought against, he looked down and was met with quite a disturbing sight.
The Suna Genin that was known only as Ashikaga Eizan was killing left and right. While that might not have been too startling since they were fighting one another, the disturbing part was that he was killing Suna shinobi as well as Oto. There was a sickening look on his face, lips twisted up in a maniacal grin.
Also, he saw black flames marking his face and along his left arm and realized that he must have been bitten by Orochimaru. The Ten no Juin had been placed on him, just like Anko. His eyes, which he believed were ebony, now had blood red cracks forming over their surfaces and the pupils were contracted like a viper. Kakashi knew that he had to do something, seeing as the boy lifted his hand to perform another fire jutsu.
A Konoha Chunin lunged in his direction and the Copy-nin's eyes narrowed on him. Kakashi was quite shocked when the man seemed to burst into flame before he even touched the Sand-nin. The other hadn’t even turned to look in his direction and he merely continued to move forward. Even from this distance, the gray haired shinobi could feel a monstrous chakra coming from him and it felt like an inferno. He started to make seals to a technique he had seen Sandaime perform once, as he had observed it with his Sharingan and copied it.
‘Suiton: Suishoha!’ The large capacity of water appeared out of no where and he directed it at the figure below. The boy turned before it reached him, and the Jonin almost felt guilty as his eyes widened in horror.
His hands moved, quickly forming seals to try and counter it. The Gokakyu no Jutsu met his water technique but the jutsu still managed to partially hit him and Kakashi winced at the high pitched scream that tore from his mouth. When the water dissipated, he saw the other fall to his knees as he clutched his shoulder. There was blood streaming from between his fingers, but he was almost relieved when he saw that the black flames had receded.
The Suna ninja had been the one that Orochimaru had marked, but Anko had reported that it was a kunoichi... Realization dawned on him as he looked down at the young girl below. He wondered why Orochimaru was interested in her. She had an enormous chakra but he knew there had to be something more than that.
Eizan shuddered as another wave of agony gripped her body and the fingers pressing against the wound were already bloody. The Katon jutsu hadn't been strong enough to cancel the Suiton technique out but at least it had managed to change its course slightly or the damage would've been worse. Her whole body shook uncontrollably as her eyes lifted and fastened on the figure that had performed it.
A smirk found its way onto her face since she saw whom it was. ‘Of course,’ she thought. Hatake Kakashi was a skilled ninja who had no doubt been listed on many village Bingo Books. She'd been distracted and he'd taken advantage of it with his Sharingan.
The Ashikaga stiffened as a ninja appeared in front of her, ready to attack her as he raised his kunai to bring it down and end her life. She was quite shocked as another figure appeared before her, performing Kaze no Yaiba and the leaf shinobi fell under the technique.
Her gaze lifted on none other than Enoki as she frowned, but chuckled coldly after a few moments. Of course he had defended her since they needed her abilities to crush Konoha. He was just like the rest of them that wanted nothing more that to use her and then abandon her.
His hands grasped her uninjured shoulder to help her up and she pulled away once she was on her feet. “Eizan,” he spoke quietly, still watching for other enemies. “Go after Gaara.” Her eyes, which had now returned to their normal color, lifted to meet his dark brown ones. A disarming grin that was hidden under his mask crept over his features at her suspicious look. “I realized something that I should have said long ago.”
He flicked a kunai at an approaching Konoha ninja, and the sharpened edge plunged through his neck. “You were never a monster. We just looked at you as one and so you saw no choice but to become one to survive.”
She was shocked at his proclamation and he chuckled sadly before shaking his head and turning away. “Uchiha Sasuke has gone after Gaara. Go quickly.” Her eyes shot to where the raven haired boy had been and saw that he was indeed gone.
Baki was fighting the proctor, and it looked like he was losing. When she turned to look back at Enoki his gaze was fastened overhead on the Copy Ninja. She frowned but he shook his head before she could speak. “Don’t start caring about my welfare now because you’ll make me regret my decision.”
Even if she couldn't see his face she knew that he was smiling. Suddenly, she realized that during the year that he had taught them, the hate had vanished from his eyes. “You better hurry.”
She felt sorrow at not having realized things earlier. This might very well be the last time she saw the man. “Hai, Enoki-sensei,” she replied as she heard the man laugh. It had been the first time she had used his name, referring to him as a student would a teacher.
Eizan left then and her final glimpse of Kazuyoshi Enoki was as he rushed toward Hatake Kakashi who moved to meet him head on. ‘Farewell, sensei.’
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Amane watched as the red head knocked the blonde out of his way. He then turned to face his adversary, Uchiha Sasuke. Iwane was crouched on a tree branch nearby and she only turned to watch Temari hit a nearby tree trunk before returning her attention to the two figures below.
“Don’t interfere,” Gaara growled at the girls. He was clutching his head and he winced when a wave of pain swept through him.
The wind user smiled but her eyes were like ice. “We didn’t plan on it.” Iwane grinned from over head.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
“Sanako, Anzai,” Raido muttered as he coughed and took in a deep breath to calm his racing heart. He knew that he was still too weak to be able to help in the fighting but his team wasn't. It had been only a few months that he'd been working with them but he had already gauged their skills and knew they were already at the Chunin level. “You must warn the Academy. They might not know and the students could get caught in the crossfire. Go now.”
Anzai's features hardened as he nodded and he jumped away. His sister lingered only a moment to throw a worried look to the stands before she quickly followed him without a word. They understood that the children had to be protected. They were innocent and the future of Konoha.
Haku glanced at his sensei, taking his eyes off the scene of the injured Eizan. He'd been attacked by Hatake Kakashi. “Take,” he said now. The older man glanced below and was in time to see the fleeing Suna-nin. “You finish your fight and find out if he really was faking.”
The former mist shinobi was silent as he also turned to watch the Ashikaga leave the stadium and his eyes narrowed. “I have never enjoyed killing,” he said quietly. A ray of sun glinted off his Konoha hitai-ate as the fighting continued below and all around them.
“It is part of being shinobi,” Raido informed him. “A part of the path you choose so you could protect those that are important to you.”
He smiled slightly as he nodded. “Hai. To protect those that are precious to me.” His eyes hardened and knew that the Sand ninja had gone after Gaara and Sasuke had followed the red head. Naruto had more than likely gone after the Uchiha as well. “I will protect them now.” He flickered and disappeared.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
The blonde lifted the kunai with the exploding note as he leaned against the tree trunk, feeling the sharp contours biting into his flesh through the material of his clothes. He didn't feel it. All he knew was the figure of what had once been the red haired Suna-nin as he battled against his Kage Bunshin.
His breathing was almost non-existent since he didn't want the half transformed youth to know he was there and the sound of the clones being dispelled by force reverberated against his ears. 'Ten...eleven...twelve,' he silently counted every time he heard the explosion of another bunshin disappearing. 'Ten more.'
Naruto's thoughts were brought back to the short haired kunoichi from Sand and his features twisted into an expression of pain. He quickly shook his head clear of these thoughts, not wanting to be distracted by the betrayal of whom he thought was his friend.
'She is my enemy,' he told himself firmly. He shifted in place, preparing to move. However, even as he let that thought burn in his mind he couldn't help the way his heart clenched. 'She's...my enemy.' Naruto swallowed the lump of emotion that lodged in his throat and wished that it wasn't true.
He quickly glanced around the tree at the pink haired kunoichi pinned against the trunk by the sand and Sasuke, who had slipped into unconsciousness sometime during his fight. His features hardened as his grip on the kunai tightened. 'If she's my enemy, then so be it.' He wouldn't allow her or anyone to harm those precious to him.
However, Naruto couldn't get her eyes out of his mind. They had been tortured and filled with the same loneliness that he'd felt most of his life. He could tell that she must have lost everything like Sasuke had and this thing he was fighting was one of the few people left that she still cared about. 'I understand.'
That didn't change the fact that this invasion, this betrayal, made them enemies. 'I'll have to change that.' He smirked and forced his mind to concentrate. 'But first, I have to knock some sense into this baka.' He seemed to disappear, and the next second the surrounding area was filled with the sound of the exploding note as it ignited.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
‘Kuso!’ She couldn’t help but curse mentally, clutching her shoulder and staring at Hideaki Takejiro as he stood before her.
She'd left the stadium in a desperate attempt to catch up with the others, but had been intercepted half way there. Eizan knew why he was standing in front of her right now.
“Come for a rematch?” she asked with a strained smirk. He should have realized she’d given him the win during the third exam.
“You will not hold back,” he only told her as he shifted into his stance with ease born of many years of fighting.
The smirk stayed on despite the pain. “I’ll try not to disappoint you,” she replied sarcastically. Her limbs were slightly stiff as she fell into her stance, and clenched her teeth as a jolt of pain went through her.
During their previous fight it had been through pure will power that she’d been able to keep the curse seal at bay. However, she’d let it consume her during the invasion. It had been a mistake and now she was paying for it. It had taken over her mind until she knew only darkness, and if she let it, the Ten no Juin would ravage her very soul.
Eizan quickly removed some bandages and wrapped them around her shoulder wound that had already stopped bleeding, but she was sure that it would tear open during their fight. She knew it couldn’t be helped.
Their weapons met with a resounding clash before they broke away. It continued on like that for several minutes before they paused for a breather. Neither had gained the upper hand as of yet.
Haku had been able to recover most of his chakra and would be able to perform his demonic ice mirrors when the time was right. He knew that he had to wait for the right moment or the other might dodge it and he would have wasted his chakra for nothing.
This is what Eizan had wanted during the Chunin exam so she could prove her brother’s training and all her efforts had paid off. She had wanted to be able to face Take on even terms, but that had changed. Now she only wished to be rid of the older boy. Her only concern was Gaara and her teammates.
She was worried for the girls since the red head had become unstable and if he lost control then they’d be in trouble. Eizan didn’t even want to think about what might happen if that occurred.
Taking several shuriken, she threw them at her fast approaching opponent and flashed through some hand seals. He dodged them easily and threw several senbon that hit her in several places over her body.
The bunshin disappeared in smoke and her real body appeared where she’d thrown the shuriken. She caught them and quickly flung them at Haku’s slightly distracted frame.
Haku felt one of the weapons nick his arm as he jumped away, and the area caught fire. The projectiles had become super heated. He quickly suffocated the small flame with his hand and turned to face the shinobi as he finished forming hand seals. A blade of fire ripped through the ground toward him as he formed the last seal to his jutsu.
The needles of water shot straight out of the ground in the form of a protective wall. As the techniques cancelled each other out, both shinobi were moving and their weapons met with a clash.
“You seem a bit hasty,” he commented as they tried to over power one another.
She smirked and gave a slight laugh. “I’m only taking this fight more seriously,” was her reply. It was the truth since she was serious about defeating him to get going after the red head and her comrades.
Haku twisted his wrist and disengaged their weapons and lifted his foot in a kick. His opponent ducked in a crouch and immediately executed a foot sweep. He was tripped and landed on his back, and quickly rolled to his left to avoid Eizan’s foot which impacted the ground hard enough to break it.
The older ninja manipulated his body almost like a wind mill by fanning out his legs. The Ashikaga jumped back but was fairly impressed at how fast and efficient the leaf-nin moved with his kimono and zori on. She smirked and knew that any other time she might have let herself enjoy the fight.
However, for now she needed to end it as quickly as possible.
They simultaneously threw senbon and shuriken as they collided and as two of the projectiles bounced back they grasped them and met each other. A split second later they broke apart only for their weapons to meet again between the distance that separated them as the owners formed seals.
‘Jigoku no Yaiba!’
‘Sensatsu Suisho!’
The two attacks met with a ferocious impact as the ninja paused momentarily to lock gazes. It seemed they’d come to a stand still for the moment. Haku, however, lifted his hand in a single and final seal as the temperature dropped drastically.
Eizan gasped as her breath came out white and she jumped away as she quickly formed seals. The older ninja appeared in front of her and a moment later she was landing back into the middle of the mirrors. He entered the nearest one as the Ashikaga coughed and she sat up as she tried to catch her breath since he’d knocked the air out of her.
“Son of a bitch got me,” she muttered and stood. She spat out a bit of blood and peered up and around as his image appeared in every surface of the mirrors.
The multiple imagines lifted their hands which all held senbon and threw them into the center. She pulled out a kunai and deflected the projectiles. It was slightly easier to block them now since she’d already been trapped in this jutsu, but knew she couldn’t risk being inside for too long.
“Same trick won’t work on me twice,” she said as she gripped her shoulder with a wince. The bandages had been soaked in red which meant that the wound had torn sometime during the fight. She hadn’t felt it before since the pain of the curse seal took dominance in her mind.
“We shall see,” he simply commented as every single image lifted both hands full of senbon. His pale, feminine face was devoid of emotion but she saw that his eyes were not cruel.
Eizan could also see that the amount of weapons would be too much for her to stop all at once. Even then she fitted a kunai in each hand as one rested beside her waist while the other was in front of her chest. She needed to keep as many from hitting her as possible.
She spun as he unleashed the senbon and blocked most of them but one impaled her left thigh, right shoulder and her back between her shoulder blades. A curse left her lips as she tried to stop the grimace of pain from crossing her face.
When the leaf-nin lifted his hands to send more needles toward her she started to form seals as she built her chakra. This was the opposite version of the jutsu she’d used on Baki and Hayate.
They’d seen what she had wanted them to see and at the same time making both men dizzy and thus vulnerable. That’s how she’d been able to knock the leaf shinobi out, bind his limbs and gag him, and put him in a chakra draining net. She’d used a bunshin to make the Suna Jonin believe she was still there as she put the other in a safe place until she could return to recover him.
The Ashikaga hadn’t wanted to kill the Tokubetsu Jonin and had kept him prisoner the past month. She knew that after the invasion she wouldn’t be able to return to set him free, so she’d left a scroll behind in Naruto’s apartment with instructions on how to find the man. However, she wondered if the blonde would trust anything she’d left there after all this.
‘Ninpou, Chi no Hi Yaiba!’ She finished the last seal and the very air rippled around her as several fiery blades crashed into the mirrors in front of her. A gasp left her mouth as several senbon impaled her back since she’d left herself open to his attack to be able to attack and weaken his mirrors.
“Do me a favor,” she muttered as she sank to her knees. “Tell Naruto-san that the scroll is not intended to hurt anyone.” She coughed but smirked moments later as she disappeared in a puff of smoke.
Haku’s eyes widened. ‘Bunshin?!’ He turned as a monstrous amount of chakra manifested behind him.
‘Katon, Hikuro no Tsukasa.’
The former mist-nin saw Eizan’s kneeling figure surrounded by a fiery chakra and a moment later, a pair of black wings made of fire appeared at his back. The trees around him were reduced to ash as they extended wide as if to lift him into flight. Haku watched as the wings came toward him in a sweeping arch and slammed into the mirrors.
Since the time he’d used this jutsu on Naruto and Sasuke, he had trained hard to make it stronger and had succeeded. Now he was amazed as the fire cut easily through each mirror. He cursed and jumped out of the one he had been in and moved back to avoid the wings as they continued to spread toward him, however, he realized that they were coming too fast toward him.
A moment before he was hit a figure appeared before him with their arms extended. It was shocking when he realized that it was Ashikaga Eizan. Even more surprising was that he made no grimace of pain as he was hit and only stumbled forward slightly at the impact.
Haku had used too much of his chakra to try and keep the mirrors from becoming damaged during the first Katon attack and now he had almost none left. He watched as his opponent formed seals and wondered how the Suna-nin still had chakra where he didn’t.
‘Ninpou, Ten no Hi Yaiba!’ He could only watch as the same blades of fire that had hit his mirrors came at him, and moments later a feeling of vertigo seized him. The former Nukenin crumpled to the ground as a powerful hit was delivered to the back of his neck.
Eizan peered down at Take as she dispelled the Genjutsu and turned her tired features toward the sky. She sighed and tried to relax but the fight had exhausted her since she’d been injured to start with.
As she turned away, she pulled her hitai-ate out of her pouch to put it on and gasped as she came to an abrupt halt. Pain coursed through her as a line of blood trailed out of the side of her mouth before she coughed and more coursed down her chin.
“Didn’t I tell you that you’d come to Orochimaru-sama?” someone asked cruelly. “You know, they abandoned you...all within Suna are traitors.” The voice was cruel but she could hear nothing false about it. Her vision was claimed by darkness and that thought continued to burn in the back of her mind. ‘They betrayed me?’
Yakushi Kabuto lifted the kunoichi’s smaller body bridal style as he looked once toward the smoke rising from Konoha. He smirked and turned in the direction that would lead him to Otogakure. His purpose in the invasion had been fulfilled.
The Oto spy disappeared into the trees that surrounded the battle torn area. Eizan’s blood splattered hitai-ate had fallen where she had been standing only moments before.-
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Translations:
1. Ninpou, Chi no Hi Yaiba: lit. “Fire Blades of Earth”.
2. Katon, Hikuro no Tsukasa: lit. “Wings of Black Fire”
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
End Chapter Twenty-two
Once again, please press that little button at the bottom of the page for a review! Please and thank you.
Author: shattered-words
Disclaimer: If I owned Naruto, it'd be called 'Gaara'. So, isn't it a shame that I don't own it?
Summary: There were many things that shaped the plans of a certain Nukenin, and one was a shinobi that was as destructive as fire. AU/Mentions of Shounen-ai/Yaoi/Yuri [Linked to 'Caught in the Rain']
AN: I was forced to cut chapter 21 into another chapter because it was too long! T.T Oh such a tragedy, but yup... -sigh- Once again, thanks to my oh so awesome beta, Shadows-upon-Sand! She rocks! n.n After this one, there are only two more chapters! How sad! Now, here is the chapter.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~Chapter Twenty-two: Unexpected Rematch~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
“Raido-sensei!” he heard someone call him. His eyes fluttered open and he was met with the sight of the kunoichi of his Genin team leaning over him. He groaned as he moved his limbs experimentally and sat up with the help of the younger female. “Oh, thank Kami,” she muttered as she hastily wiped her eyes.“Hokage-sama,” he gasped suddenly as he tried to stand up but the girl forced him to be still. He remembered that the Suna ninja had released the smoke bomb and had dulled his senses. The kunai had struck him when he'd tried to get to the Hokage and then he'd known no more.
“Don’t move, Raido-sensei, you’re hurt,” Sanako chastised and forced him to stop moving. Her face was grim and he felt dread clench his heart. Something was wrong.
“The old man is trapped inside a barrier with the Kazekage,” Anzai told him, glancing momentarily over his shoulder at his instructor. He didn't show it, but he was also relieved that the man hadn't been killed.
Haku hadn't let his gaze leave the fighting taking place once and wanted to help, but didn't want to leave his teammates and sensei by themselves. His eyes lingered on the figures in the stadium and saw that Eizan had joined the red head. It was now plainly obvious that Suna had betrayed Konoha.
As he watched, the rest of the Suna Genin left and then his former opponent removed his hitai-ate and started to attack. He was a bit shocked when he noticed that he was not distinguishing between villages. The younger boy was killing randomly.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Kakashi had sent Sakura, Naruto and Shikamaru after Sasuke. He had also sent one of his tracking dogs, Pakkun with them. Now, as he dispatched the sound ninja he fought against, he looked down and was met with quite a disturbing sight.
The Suna Genin that was known only as Ashikaga Eizan was killing left and right. While that might not have been too startling since they were fighting one another, the disturbing part was that he was killing Suna shinobi as well as Oto. There was a sickening look on his face, lips twisted up in a maniacal grin.
Also, he saw black flames marking his face and along his left arm and realized that he must have been bitten by Orochimaru. The Ten no Juin had been placed on him, just like Anko. His eyes, which he believed were ebony, now had blood red cracks forming over their surfaces and the pupils were contracted like a viper. Kakashi knew that he had to do something, seeing as the boy lifted his hand to perform another fire jutsu.
A Konoha Chunin lunged in his direction and the Copy-nin's eyes narrowed on him. Kakashi was quite shocked when the man seemed to burst into flame before he even touched the Sand-nin. The other hadn’t even turned to look in his direction and he merely continued to move forward. Even from this distance, the gray haired shinobi could feel a monstrous chakra coming from him and it felt like an inferno. He started to make seals to a technique he had seen Sandaime perform once, as he had observed it with his Sharingan and copied it.
‘Suiton: Suishoha!’ The large capacity of water appeared out of no where and he directed it at the figure below. The boy turned before it reached him, and the Jonin almost felt guilty as his eyes widened in horror.
His hands moved, quickly forming seals to try and counter it. The Gokakyu no Jutsu met his water technique but the jutsu still managed to partially hit him and Kakashi winced at the high pitched scream that tore from his mouth. When the water dissipated, he saw the other fall to his knees as he clutched his shoulder. There was blood streaming from between his fingers, but he was almost relieved when he saw that the black flames had receded.
The Suna ninja had been the one that Orochimaru had marked, but Anko had reported that it was a kunoichi... Realization dawned on him as he looked down at the young girl below. He wondered why Orochimaru was interested in her. She had an enormous chakra but he knew there had to be something more than that.
Eizan shuddered as another wave of agony gripped her body and the fingers pressing against the wound were already bloody. The Katon jutsu hadn't been strong enough to cancel the Suiton technique out but at least it had managed to change its course slightly or the damage would've been worse. Her whole body shook uncontrollably as her eyes lifted and fastened on the figure that had performed it.
A smirk found its way onto her face since she saw whom it was. ‘Of course,’ she thought. Hatake Kakashi was a skilled ninja who had no doubt been listed on many village Bingo Books. She'd been distracted and he'd taken advantage of it with his Sharingan.
The Ashikaga stiffened as a ninja appeared in front of her, ready to attack her as he raised his kunai to bring it down and end her life. She was quite shocked as another figure appeared before her, performing Kaze no Yaiba and the leaf shinobi fell under the technique.
Her gaze lifted on none other than Enoki as she frowned, but chuckled coldly after a few moments. Of course he had defended her since they needed her abilities to crush Konoha. He was just like the rest of them that wanted nothing more that to use her and then abandon her.
His hands grasped her uninjured shoulder to help her up and she pulled away once she was on her feet. “Eizan,” he spoke quietly, still watching for other enemies. “Go after Gaara.” Her eyes, which had now returned to their normal color, lifted to meet his dark brown ones. A disarming grin that was hidden under his mask crept over his features at her suspicious look. “I realized something that I should have said long ago.”
He flicked a kunai at an approaching Konoha ninja, and the sharpened edge plunged through his neck. “You were never a monster. We just looked at you as one and so you saw no choice but to become one to survive.”
She was shocked at his proclamation and he chuckled sadly before shaking his head and turning away. “Uchiha Sasuke has gone after Gaara. Go quickly.” Her eyes shot to where the raven haired boy had been and saw that he was indeed gone.
Baki was fighting the proctor, and it looked like he was losing. When she turned to look back at Enoki his gaze was fastened overhead on the Copy Ninja. She frowned but he shook his head before she could speak. “Don’t start caring about my welfare now because you’ll make me regret my decision.”
Even if she couldn't see his face she knew that he was smiling. Suddenly, she realized that during the year that he had taught them, the hate had vanished from his eyes. “You better hurry.”
She felt sorrow at not having realized things earlier. This might very well be the last time she saw the man. “Hai, Enoki-sensei,” she replied as she heard the man laugh. It had been the first time she had used his name, referring to him as a student would a teacher.
Eizan left then and her final glimpse of Kazuyoshi Enoki was as he rushed toward Hatake Kakashi who moved to meet him head on. ‘Farewell, sensei.’
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Amane watched as the red head knocked the blonde out of his way. He then turned to face his adversary, Uchiha Sasuke. Iwane was crouched on a tree branch nearby and she only turned to watch Temari hit a nearby tree trunk before returning her attention to the two figures below.
“Don’t interfere,” Gaara growled at the girls. He was clutching his head and he winced when a wave of pain swept through him.
The wind user smiled but her eyes were like ice. “We didn’t plan on it.” Iwane grinned from over head.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
“Sanako, Anzai,” Raido muttered as he coughed and took in a deep breath to calm his racing heart. He knew that he was still too weak to be able to help in the fighting but his team wasn't. It had been only a few months that he'd been working with them but he had already gauged their skills and knew they were already at the Chunin level. “You must warn the Academy. They might not know and the students could get caught in the crossfire. Go now.”
Anzai's features hardened as he nodded and he jumped away. His sister lingered only a moment to throw a worried look to the stands before she quickly followed him without a word. They understood that the children had to be protected. They were innocent and the future of Konoha.
Haku glanced at his sensei, taking his eyes off the scene of the injured Eizan. He'd been attacked by Hatake Kakashi. “Take,” he said now. The older man glanced below and was in time to see the fleeing Suna-nin. “You finish your fight and find out if he really was faking.”
The former mist shinobi was silent as he also turned to watch the Ashikaga leave the stadium and his eyes narrowed. “I have never enjoyed killing,” he said quietly. A ray of sun glinted off his Konoha hitai-ate as the fighting continued below and all around them.
“It is part of being shinobi,” Raido informed him. “A part of the path you choose so you could protect those that are important to you.”
He smiled slightly as he nodded. “Hai. To protect those that are precious to me.” His eyes hardened and knew that the Sand ninja had gone after Gaara and Sasuke had followed the red head. Naruto had more than likely gone after the Uchiha as well. “I will protect them now.” He flickered and disappeared.
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The blonde lifted the kunai with the exploding note as he leaned against the tree trunk, feeling the sharp contours biting into his flesh through the material of his clothes. He didn't feel it. All he knew was the figure of what had once been the red haired Suna-nin as he battled against his Kage Bunshin.
His breathing was almost non-existent since he didn't want the half transformed youth to know he was there and the sound of the clones being dispelled by force reverberated against his ears. 'Ten...eleven...twelve,' he silently counted every time he heard the explosion of another bunshin disappearing. 'Ten more.'
Naruto's thoughts were brought back to the short haired kunoichi from Sand and his features twisted into an expression of pain. He quickly shook his head clear of these thoughts, not wanting to be distracted by the betrayal of whom he thought was his friend.
'She is my enemy,' he told himself firmly. He shifted in place, preparing to move. However, even as he let that thought burn in his mind he couldn't help the way his heart clenched. 'She's...my enemy.' Naruto swallowed the lump of emotion that lodged in his throat and wished that it wasn't true.
He quickly glanced around the tree at the pink haired kunoichi pinned against the trunk by the sand and Sasuke, who had slipped into unconsciousness sometime during his fight. His features hardened as his grip on the kunai tightened. 'If she's my enemy, then so be it.' He wouldn't allow her or anyone to harm those precious to him.
However, Naruto couldn't get her eyes out of his mind. They had been tortured and filled with the same loneliness that he'd felt most of his life. He could tell that she must have lost everything like Sasuke had and this thing he was fighting was one of the few people left that she still cared about. 'I understand.'
That didn't change the fact that this invasion, this betrayal, made them enemies. 'I'll have to change that.' He smirked and forced his mind to concentrate. 'But first, I have to knock some sense into this baka.' He seemed to disappear, and the next second the surrounding area was filled with the sound of the exploding note as it ignited.
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‘Kuso!’ She couldn’t help but curse mentally, clutching her shoulder and staring at Hideaki Takejiro as he stood before her.
She'd left the stadium in a desperate attempt to catch up with the others, but had been intercepted half way there. Eizan knew why he was standing in front of her right now.
“Come for a rematch?” she asked with a strained smirk. He should have realized she’d given him the win during the third exam.
“You will not hold back,” he only told her as he shifted into his stance with ease born of many years of fighting.
The smirk stayed on despite the pain. “I’ll try not to disappoint you,” she replied sarcastically. Her limbs were slightly stiff as she fell into her stance, and clenched her teeth as a jolt of pain went through her.
During their previous fight it had been through pure will power that she’d been able to keep the curse seal at bay. However, she’d let it consume her during the invasion. It had been a mistake and now she was paying for it. It had taken over her mind until she knew only darkness, and if she let it, the Ten no Juin would ravage her very soul.
Eizan quickly removed some bandages and wrapped them around her shoulder wound that had already stopped bleeding, but she was sure that it would tear open during their fight. She knew it couldn’t be helped.
Their weapons met with a resounding clash before they broke away. It continued on like that for several minutes before they paused for a breather. Neither had gained the upper hand as of yet.
Haku had been able to recover most of his chakra and would be able to perform his demonic ice mirrors when the time was right. He knew that he had to wait for the right moment or the other might dodge it and he would have wasted his chakra for nothing.
This is what Eizan had wanted during the Chunin exam so she could prove her brother’s training and all her efforts had paid off. She had wanted to be able to face Take on even terms, but that had changed. Now she only wished to be rid of the older boy. Her only concern was Gaara and her teammates.
She was worried for the girls since the red head had become unstable and if he lost control then they’d be in trouble. Eizan didn’t even want to think about what might happen if that occurred.
Taking several shuriken, she threw them at her fast approaching opponent and flashed through some hand seals. He dodged them easily and threw several senbon that hit her in several places over her body.
The bunshin disappeared in smoke and her real body appeared where she’d thrown the shuriken. She caught them and quickly flung them at Haku’s slightly distracted frame.
Haku felt one of the weapons nick his arm as he jumped away, and the area caught fire. The projectiles had become super heated. He quickly suffocated the small flame with his hand and turned to face the shinobi as he finished forming hand seals. A blade of fire ripped through the ground toward him as he formed the last seal to his jutsu.
The needles of water shot straight out of the ground in the form of a protective wall. As the techniques cancelled each other out, both shinobi were moving and their weapons met with a clash.
“You seem a bit hasty,” he commented as they tried to over power one another.
She smirked and gave a slight laugh. “I’m only taking this fight more seriously,” was her reply. It was the truth since she was serious about defeating him to get going after the red head and her comrades.
Haku twisted his wrist and disengaged their weapons and lifted his foot in a kick. His opponent ducked in a crouch and immediately executed a foot sweep. He was tripped and landed on his back, and quickly rolled to his left to avoid Eizan’s foot which impacted the ground hard enough to break it.
The older ninja manipulated his body almost like a wind mill by fanning out his legs. The Ashikaga jumped back but was fairly impressed at how fast and efficient the leaf-nin moved with his kimono and zori on. She smirked and knew that any other time she might have let herself enjoy the fight.
However, for now she needed to end it as quickly as possible.
They simultaneously threw senbon and shuriken as they collided and as two of the projectiles bounced back they grasped them and met each other. A split second later they broke apart only for their weapons to meet again between the distance that separated them as the owners formed seals.
‘Jigoku no Yaiba!’
‘Sensatsu Suisho!’
The two attacks met with a ferocious impact as the ninja paused momentarily to lock gazes. It seemed they’d come to a stand still for the moment. Haku, however, lifted his hand in a single and final seal as the temperature dropped drastically.
Eizan gasped as her breath came out white and she jumped away as she quickly formed seals. The older ninja appeared in front of her and a moment later she was landing back into the middle of the mirrors. He entered the nearest one as the Ashikaga coughed and she sat up as she tried to catch her breath since he’d knocked the air out of her.
“Son of a bitch got me,” she muttered and stood. She spat out a bit of blood and peered up and around as his image appeared in every surface of the mirrors.
The multiple imagines lifted their hands which all held senbon and threw them into the center. She pulled out a kunai and deflected the projectiles. It was slightly easier to block them now since she’d already been trapped in this jutsu, but knew she couldn’t risk being inside for too long.
“Same trick won’t work on me twice,” she said as she gripped her shoulder with a wince. The bandages had been soaked in red which meant that the wound had torn sometime during the fight. She hadn’t felt it before since the pain of the curse seal took dominance in her mind.
“We shall see,” he simply commented as every single image lifted both hands full of senbon. His pale, feminine face was devoid of emotion but she saw that his eyes were not cruel.
Eizan could also see that the amount of weapons would be too much for her to stop all at once. Even then she fitted a kunai in each hand as one rested beside her waist while the other was in front of her chest. She needed to keep as many from hitting her as possible.
She spun as he unleashed the senbon and blocked most of them but one impaled her left thigh, right shoulder and her back between her shoulder blades. A curse left her lips as she tried to stop the grimace of pain from crossing her face.
When the leaf-nin lifted his hands to send more needles toward her she started to form seals as she built her chakra. This was the opposite version of the jutsu she’d used on Baki and Hayate.
They’d seen what she had wanted them to see and at the same time making both men dizzy and thus vulnerable. That’s how she’d been able to knock the leaf shinobi out, bind his limbs and gag him, and put him in a chakra draining net. She’d used a bunshin to make the Suna Jonin believe she was still there as she put the other in a safe place until she could return to recover him.
The Ashikaga hadn’t wanted to kill the Tokubetsu Jonin and had kept him prisoner the past month. She knew that after the invasion she wouldn’t be able to return to set him free, so she’d left a scroll behind in Naruto’s apartment with instructions on how to find the man. However, she wondered if the blonde would trust anything she’d left there after all this.
‘Ninpou, Chi no Hi Yaiba!’ She finished the last seal and the very air rippled around her as several fiery blades crashed into the mirrors in front of her. A gasp left her mouth as several senbon impaled her back since she’d left herself open to his attack to be able to attack and weaken his mirrors.
“Do me a favor,” she muttered as she sank to her knees. “Tell Naruto-san that the scroll is not intended to hurt anyone.” She coughed but smirked moments later as she disappeared in a puff of smoke.
Haku’s eyes widened. ‘Bunshin?!’ He turned as a monstrous amount of chakra manifested behind him.
‘Katon, Hikuro no Tsukasa.’
The former mist-nin saw Eizan’s kneeling figure surrounded by a fiery chakra and a moment later, a pair of black wings made of fire appeared at his back. The trees around him were reduced to ash as they extended wide as if to lift him into flight. Haku watched as the wings came toward him in a sweeping arch and slammed into the mirrors.
Since the time he’d used this jutsu on Naruto and Sasuke, he had trained hard to make it stronger and had succeeded. Now he was amazed as the fire cut easily through each mirror. He cursed and jumped out of the one he had been in and moved back to avoid the wings as they continued to spread toward him, however, he realized that they were coming too fast toward him.
A moment before he was hit a figure appeared before him with their arms extended. It was shocking when he realized that it was Ashikaga Eizan. Even more surprising was that he made no grimace of pain as he was hit and only stumbled forward slightly at the impact.
Haku had used too much of his chakra to try and keep the mirrors from becoming damaged during the first Katon attack and now he had almost none left. He watched as his opponent formed seals and wondered how the Suna-nin still had chakra where he didn’t.
‘Ninpou, Ten no Hi Yaiba!’ He could only watch as the same blades of fire that had hit his mirrors came at him, and moments later a feeling of vertigo seized him. The former Nukenin crumpled to the ground as a powerful hit was delivered to the back of his neck.
Eizan peered down at Take as she dispelled the Genjutsu and turned her tired features toward the sky. She sighed and tried to relax but the fight had exhausted her since she’d been injured to start with.
As she turned away, she pulled her hitai-ate out of her pouch to put it on and gasped as she came to an abrupt halt. Pain coursed through her as a line of blood trailed out of the side of her mouth before she coughed and more coursed down her chin.
“Didn’t I tell you that you’d come to Orochimaru-sama?” someone asked cruelly. “You know, they abandoned you...all within Suna are traitors.” The voice was cruel but she could hear nothing false about it. Her vision was claimed by darkness and that thought continued to burn in the back of her mind. ‘They betrayed me?’
Yakushi Kabuto lifted the kunoichi’s smaller body bridal style as he looked once toward the smoke rising from Konoha. He smirked and turned in the direction that would lead him to Otogakure. His purpose in the invasion had been fulfilled.
The Oto spy disappeared into the trees that surrounded the battle torn area. Eizan’s blood splattered hitai-ate had fallen where she had been standing only moments before.-
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Translations:
1. Ninpou, Chi no Hi Yaiba: lit. “Fire Blades of Earth”.
2. Katon, Hikuro no Tsukasa: lit. “Wings of Black Fire”
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End Chapter Twenty-two
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