Naruto Fan Fiction ❯ Shadows of Darkness ❯ Chapter Eight: Mika's Test Part 2 ( Chapter 8 )
[ X - Adult: No readers under 18. Contains Graphic Adult Themes/Extreme violence. ]
By: WolfGoddess_77 
Anime/Manga: Naruto Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Action / Romance | Type: Other | Uploaded On: 02.15.2012 | Pages: 3 | Words: 5.2K | Visits: 150 | Status: Work In Progress
Anime/Manga: Naruto Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Action / Romance | Type: Other | Uploaded On: 02.15.2012 | Pages: 3 | Words: 5.2K | Visits: 150 | Status: Work In Progress
Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any related characters. No money is made from the writing of this story.
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To say that Hidan had been surprised would be a serious understatement. He had been expecting a trap, just not something like this. This was… Jashin-sama would be very pleased with this particular offering. He hadn’t had to fight this hard in quite a while; it was a refreshing change. He only regretted that he had been forbidden to use her in his ritual. He would have loved to watch her suffer the way he was suffering now. Well, that could always come later. For now, he needed to let himself heal. Due to the extent of the damage, it would probably take at least a couple of hours to even be able to move, let alone be in good enough condition to fight.
It was a good thing Kakuzu was back at the base, and hadn’t seen the attack. He could just hear that bitchy old bag of bones now…
You’re too cocky, Hidan. I’ve told you that time after time, and look where it got you. You’re so burned up you can’t even move. That child turned you into a piece of charcoal. I’ve told you many times not to underestimate your opponent. There’s no such thing as true immortality. One day, you will be killed; it’s just a matter of time. You walked right into that trap, willingly! What’s going to happen when you’re injured too severely for your body to heal in time?
Hidan growled in annoyance – or tried to. His throat was damaged too badly for him to make more than a soft rattle. That bastard didn’t know what he was talking about. Jashin-sama wouldn’t let a faithful follower die. That had been proven before. Admittedly, this was one of the more serious injuries he’d suffered, but not the worst. This prior experience told him that, though it would take time, he would soon be fine once more.
The only problem was Mika. He knew that she wouldn’t leave the forest; it had been decided as their battleground. But would she come to him, or would he have to hunt her down again? She was under a time limit, with how many hits she scored against him proof of her skill. That led him to believe that, if enough time passed, she would come looking for him.
But he had to wonder something. When he was severely injured like this, for some time afterwards, he was defenseless. Why hadn’t she taken her opportunity to strike, when he was unable to retaliate? It was the smart thing to do – what any member of Akatsuki would have done. To hell with honor, and giving your opponent a fair chance to defend themselves. Their opponents were usually so strong that any hesitation would mean their death. They had to strike quickly, if they wanted to live. Deidara would have to train that out of her, if she was going to survive long enough to be of any use to them.
His red-violet eyes opened, and he slowly wiggled his fingers. He could still move… But he knew better than to be fooled by that. He could feel the severity of the burns on his body, and knew that he would have to be very careful. It was still very difficult to breathe; that was what worried him the most. The external wounds weren’t a problem, but his lungs…
Inch by inch, his hand crept over the ground, until he encountered the metal handle of his scythe. Not for the first time, he was grateful that it was made entirely of metal – even the cable attached to it. Even the intense flames hadn’t been enough to damage it. Drawing it closer, he used it to prop himself up, clenching his teeth as his body protested.
He managed to pull himself over to a nearby fallen tree that had survived the explosion, and leaned against it, drawing in a shuddering breath. Tilting his head back, he surveyed the sky, looking for the sun. It was still fairly high in the sky – early afternoon, then. He had time for a short nap, as long as he didn’t fall too deeply asleep.
Even though Mika had vanished into the forest, he knew that she might be somewhere nearby, waiting for him to lower his guard. He doubted it, though; why would she distance herself, only to come back a few minutes later? He was virtually helpless - the longer she waited to attack, the stronger he grew. No, he was probably safe.
But he still had to wonder something. What had happened in that attack? It had all happened so quickly… He knew for sure that the Katon jutsu hadn’t come from her; it had been beyond the both of them. At first, he’d thought it was a clone. But that couldn’t be right. Clones usually didn’t use jutsu. So…the one he’d encountered had to have been a clone. No wonder she hadn’t seemed very frightened when he’d threatened her. Any harm done to a clone’s body didn’t transfer over to the original.
So, she must have used the clone to lure him to this spot, where the original had laid the trap for him. But then there was the question of the smokescreen. It had been ignited by the explosion. Not a smokescreen, then, but a type of flammable haze. As much as he hated to admit it, it had been a clever trap – one that would have been fatal to him, had he been mortal.
But despite this, he still had his doubts. Every member of Akatsuki was incredibly powerful. Did she really have what it took? That remained to be seen. One good attack didn’t necessarily ensure a victory. She would have to try a bit harder.
Resituating himself – somewhat painfully – he closed his eyes, taking a deep breath to gauge how much damage still remained. It was getting a bit easier to breathe now…not much longer. His head lowered as he began to doze. Might as well conserve his strength. He would need it again soon.
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Mika settled into the fork of a large tree, effectively hidden by the dense leaves. Thank goodness the weather was still warm. If it had been autumn or winter, she never would have been able to conceal herself here. Still, she knew better than to just leave it at that. As she had already seen, Hidan could sneak up on her easily, and that was when she had been awake. If she was sleeping… It would be a simple matter for him to kill her.
Before she allowed herself to relax, she had set up a series of tripwires in a perimeter around her resting place, both on the ground, and in the nearby trees. It cost her some of her wire, and the rest of her exploding tags, but it was a sacrifice she had to make. The wire could always be collected later, but the tags… Well, chances were, there would be supplies somewhere in the base. She could restock once her test was finished.
As always, she refused to let any negative thoughts intrude. She had survived this long, and she wasn’t about to give in now. Whenever she thought about it, it was always when she passed the test, not if. She knew that, if she gave in to doubt, she would fail. Almost a third of her time limit had elapsed already, and she’d managed to inflict a fatal blow on Hidan. Of course, it had taken quite a while, because of the precise timing required in her trap; next time, it would probably be easier. Or at least, she hoped it would be.
She still had at least one trick up her sleeve. But would it be enough? He had a long-range weapon – one that he could wield with great skill. Even though he had said that he was the slowest member of Akatsuki, he was every bit as fast as any enemy she had ever fought. Ordinarily, this would have posed a problem for her. But she had a long-range weapon, too.
Slipping her hand into the pouch at her waist, she wrapped her fingers around one of the scrolls there. It would be easy enough to summon its contents, when the time was right. Still, she had to wonder. Would it be a match against his scythe? She had seen how powerful it was, and the skill with which he used it.
But then, her weapon was a bit different from the norm. It was very possible that she could win this, even if his scythe was technically more powerful in terms of sheer destructive ability.
Removing her hand from the pouch, she laced her fingers together, placing them over her stomach as she tried to get comfortable. Sleeping in a tree wasn’t something she liked to do, but in this case, it was necessary. It offered the best protection, thanks to the dense leaves.
A smile came to her face. It had taken her many months before she learned what types of trees were best to sleep in. That had been a very painful system of trial and error… She’d lost count of how many times she had been awakened in the middle of the night to a face full of dirt when she’d accidentally rolled over in her sleep, and fallen from the branch she had chosen as her bed.
Finally, she had learned to choose a tree with a spreading crown, or, failing that, to wedge herself between two thick branches, so she couldn’t shift around while she slept.
Once she was satisfied with her position, she closed her eyes, letting her thoughts wander. Now, how to go about bringing Hidan to her, once she had rested? As she didn’t know how long she would have until he’d healed enough to come after her, she needed to make a plan that allowed for a margin for error.
The simplest thing to do was to use her second clone to lure him to her, but she doubted he would fall for the same trick twice. That left her with two options. She could either wait for him to find her on his own, and take the chance of an ambush, as well as the risk of having her time cut down as he searched for her. Or, she could hunt him down herself. If she used clones to spread out and search for him, it wouldn’t take that long. If she was lucky, he might even be in the place she’d left him. That was unlikely, though. Knowing what she did about him, he would move as soon as he possibly could, if only to finish healing himself in a more protected place.
Yes, that was what she would do. Better to expend a bit of her chakra to find him herself than waste her time waiting for him to come to her. First, though, she needed to rest a bit, so she would have the energy to fight him a second time.
With this decision made, she soon drifted off into a dreamless sleep.
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The sun was low in the sky when Mika finally awoke. She had slept longer than she intended – almost half of her time limit had elapsed. Before she even sat up, she looked around, letting her senses extend outward as she searched for any trace of a nearby chakra signature. None of her traps had detonated, but it was always possible that Hidan had found and deactivated them.
But no; she couldn’t sense any foreign chakra nearby. She was alone here. Dropping out of the tree, she stretched, yawning. Her body was a bit stiff, but that would soon fade. Now, to put her plan into action. Forming the necessary hand seals, she created four clones. These were a bit different from the shadow clones she had created when she had first begun; these were little more than insubstantial smoke. Although they weren’t able to fight, they were perfect for recon, and they used less chakra to create. Her four copies lined up in front of her, silently waiting for her instructions.
“Spread out and do a sweep of the forest. As soon as you find Hidan, release the jutsu on yourselves. That will relay the information back to me. Don’t let him see you, and do not confront him. Understand?” As they nodded their agreement, she looked around. “Move quickly, time is of the essence. Go!”
As they vanished into the forest, she retrieved the scroll from the pouch, unrolling it and spreading it open on the ground. Inside was a complex summoning pattern. She pulled out a kunai, pricking her finger. Like any other summon, this required a blood sacrifice. Drawing a thin line across the center of the pattern, she sat back as the scroll activated. There was a puff of smoke, though it soon faded to reveal a black whip coiled neatly in the center of the scroll.
It was longer than normal, and had a sharp metal tip at the end. Inside that tip was a concentrated poison, though like most of the poisons used in Sunagakure, it wasn’t immediately fatal. Unfortunately though, she hadn’t thought to bring any more of it with her.
Her eyes narrowed thoughtfully. Sasori had also been a poison-user… Surely he had left some behind. Perhaps she could convince Deidara to let her borrow a bit. She wouldn’t need much, especially if it was as strong as what Sasori had used on Kankuro.
She picked up the whip, keeping it tightly coiled, and being extremely careful not to touch the metal tip. Even she wasn’t immune to the poison’s effects. When she was first learning to use the whip, it hadn’t carried the tip at the end. That modification had come later, once she became accustomed to using the weapon in an unaltered state. But the small poison chamber hadn’t been the only change she’d made to it.
Mika stood up, glancing up at the sun once more and tucking the scroll back into the pouch. It was slipping towards the horizon; already, the forest was becoming shadowed. She didn’t relish the thought of fighting in the dark. Although it would make it harder for Hidan to score a hit on her, that advantage also worked against her; she would have a hard time seeing him, as well.
At least Hidan’s cloak had been mostly destroyed. The dark fabric would have helped him to blend into the shadows. If only she had been more comfortable fighting in her own cloak. She definitely could have used it now. Her own clothes weren’t very good for concealment. Even if she removed her overshirt, it wouldn’t make much of a difference. The mesh undershirt was silver; too bright, even after sunset.
It wasn’t much longer before she felt a tingle within her mind. She concentrated, and then smiled. So that was where he was. Turning towards the northeast, she set off. Through the clone’s memories, she had seen Hidan moving slowly through the trees. His breathing was still a bit uneven, and she had seen the lingering burns on his body, though they looked like they were a couple of weeks old now. They were beginning to heal, turning the raw red flesh into pink scars, which would soon disappear, leaving him completely unmarked.
Forming the hand seal that would dispel the other clones, she leapt into the trees. It would be easier to travel this way, as well as faster. As long as she was quiet, Hidan need never know she was there. Masking her chakra signature to the very minimum, she jumped from branch to branch. She wasn’t naïve enough to think that she would be able to completely sneak up on him without him noticing her, but masking her signature would allow her to get closer than she otherwise would be able to.
Following the memories the clone had transferred to her, she continued through the trees, closing the distance between herself and her target. Judging from what she had seen, he still couldn’t move too quickly; he should be close to the place where the clone had spotted him.
Sure enough, she soon caught sight of him through the trees. He had his scythe in one hand, telling her that his guard wasn’t completely lowered, though he probably wasn’t expecting an all-out attack.
She crept closer, then dropped out of the tree she had been standing in, landing lightly behind him. Holding her whip at her side, she took a step forward, wary of an attack. Unlike before, she wasn’t interested in an ambush. She wanted him to know she was there.
Slowly, Hidan turned around, not making any move to attack her. Instead, a wicked smile came to his face. “You surprised me. I wasn’t expecting you to be able to do something like that. But it’ll take more than that if you want to win your way into Akatsuki. You have to be prepared to kill, at all times. Can you do that?”
“Of course I can!” Mika snapped, annoyed. “I’ve proven that once already, and I’ll do it again.” Holding up her whip, she released part of it, letting it uncoil. Swift as a striking snake, she flicked it towards him. As she expected, he quickly lifted his scythe, blocking her attack. But to his surprise, the whip segmented into hundreds of tiny pieces, each less than a half-inch long. They curled around the blades of his scythe and driving the metal tip towards his chest. This close, he could see a glowing strand of chakra connecting the segments together.
“What the hell?” He leaned back, hoping it would bring him out of reach without needing to drop his scythe. The metal tip came closer…and stopped, a mere centimeter away from his bare chest.
Mika grinned, a smile wicked enough to rival his own. “Do you like it? It’s a variation of the Puppet Jutsu exclusive to Sunagakure. By using my chakra to link the segments together, I can control its motion, effectively bringing it to life. Even if you stop part of it, the rest can still strike you.”
Hidan clenched his teeth, rotating his scythe around so the blades were rested against the whip. Realizing what he was trying to do, Mika shook her head. “Don’t bother trying to sever the links. It won’t work. They’re reinforced with metal, as well as being strengthened by my chakra.”
She took a step forward, and the whip shifted, coiling further around his scythe. His eyes followed the movements, and he realized that she was trying to give it the extra little bit it needed to pierce his chest. Quickly, he released his hold on his weapon, leaping backwards with a hiss of annoyance. That whip didn’t look very dangerous… If she could get a good snap to it, it might open up a wound, but other than that, it shouldn’t do much damage.
The metal tip, however, worried him. If she could animate the entire length of the whip, she could easily force it through any part of his body. The tip was needle-sharp; it would be a simple matter for it to pierce through him. Of course, even having that driven through his heart wouldn’t kill him, but it could be temporarily debilitating, if it did too much damage.
Mika flicked her wrist, pulling the whip back towards her. “I’m going to win this. You might as well just give up now, while you’re still able to walk.”
This made Hidan laugh. “Like hell. You’re going to become Jashin-sama’s next sacrifice. It’s been a long time since I’ve been injured this badly. I’m not letting you escape.” Reaching down to his waist, he took out one of the pikes she had seen him use before. Instead of moving forward, however, he simply threw it at her.
She ducked to one side, snapping her whip up to knock it away. In that instant, Hidan grabbed his scythe, lunging forward and swinging it at her. Everything happened very quickly, then. There was a ripping of cloth, and blood splattered along the ground. The whip cracked sharply, and Mika and Hidan both leapt backwards away from each other.
A shallow wound had been opened up on Mika’s side, stretching horizontally across her ribcage. She still had hold of her whip, and the metal tip had been coated in blood, as well as a couple of drops of a dark violet liquid; the poison chamber within had been opened. It had been designed to unlock when its container came in full contact with the flesh of a target. That way, the poison wouldn’t be wasted if she missed. Only a direct hit would break it open.
Hidan stood a short distance away. His scythe was held up in front of him; it also had blood smeared along the tip of the first blade. At first glance, he seemed to be unharmed. This made Mika frown. That couldn’t be right. There was blood on her whip, and she was almost certain that it didn’t belong to her. So… Then, she saw it. There was a small puncture wound in his lower abdomen, just above the top of his pants.
From this distance, she couldn’t tell how deep it was, but it shouldn’t make any difference. She could see that it had drawn blood; that meant the poison could get into his body, and work its magic. Idly, she had to wonder… If Hidan was immortal, did that mean that a normally fatal poison would be nullified completely, or would he still feel its effects, minus the eventual death? Probably the latter, she decided. Being immortal didn’t make him immune to pain.
As she watched, Hidan raised the scythe, and, to her horror, he licked her blood off the tip of the blade. “It’s really a damn shame that I can’t use you in the ceremony yet. But that just means we get to play a bit longer.” He looked down at himself, noticing the small wound she had inflicted on him. An amused smile came to his face. “That’s it? All those brave words about being able to kill, and this was all you could do to me? Pathetic.”
Mika’s eyes narrowed slightly. So, he didn’t realize that he had been poisoned… She was sure that it had entered his body, and that there was enough there for him to feel it. Perhaps it just took him a bit longer. Still, she decided to pretend that nothing was wrong. She didn’t want him to know about the poison just yet.
“I still have some time left. This isn’t over just yet. But I’ll give you one last chance to give up. Spare yourself a lot of pain.”
“I’m not afraid of pain. If inflicted the right way, it can be glorious. Soon, I’ll be able to show you exactly what I mean. We’ll be able to experience the wonderful agony together, during the ceremony.” He lowered his scythe, taking a step forward.
Automatically, Mika raised her whip, not wanting to let him get too close. Now, she was beginning to worry. Surely the poison should have taken effect by now! Maybe the container hadn’t completely broken, or she had been wrong about it working on him.
He took another step closer, then suddenly lunged forward. Mika gasped, jerking her wrist to bring her whip up, intending to flick it towards him. But nothing happened. Her arm raised, as did the whip, but she couldn’t snap it towards him. Following the length of the whip downward, she saw why. He was standing on the tip.
Hidan gave a short bark of laughter. “Nice try. I remembered what you said about trying to stop that fucking whip. You were wrong about it being unstoppable, though. There’s one obvious weakness that even your chakra can’t overcome. All I have to do is step on the end, and you’re helpless, aren’t you?”
Again, he raised his scythe high above his head. Mika’s eyes widened, and she released the handle of the whip, leaping backwards, just as his scythe began to descend. But halfway through, he suddenly stopped, his arms trembling. “What…?”
Mika continued to back away as Hidan fell to his knees, shuddering. Had the poison finally begun to work? It looked like it. Severe pain was one of the effects of this particular poison. She came to a stop just out of his reach, watching him carefully.
Placing his hand over his chest, he looked up at her. “What the hell did you do?” he hissed. “That little wound couldn’t possibly be enough to do this to me.” He gasped softly, trying to take a deep breath. It was getting difficult to breathe…
“You can feel it now, can’t you? That tightness in your chest. The paralysis from the poison is spreading. That’s the second effect. Pain is the first.” She moved further away, picking up the pike he had first thrown at her. “But don’t worry. The paralysis isn’t too bad. It won’t stop your breathing completely. But it can make it feel like you’re suffocating.”
She moved back over to him, the pike in her left hand. When she was just in front of him, she reached out, pulling his scythe away. By now, the paralysis had spread to his arms, and she was easily able to take it from him. “It would be so ironic, wouldn’t it, if you could die? I would be able to kill you with your own weapons. Still, I suppose dealing what would be a fatal blow would be just as good.”
Hidan looked up at her, his vision slightly blurry. This was absolutely unbelievable. This little bitch had managed to get him into a deadly situation not once, but twice, in less than twenty-four hours? But still, he wasn’t panicking. Let her do all the damage she wanted to him. It wouldn’t matter; he was immortal. Granted, it would take a while for him to heal, but there wasn’t much time left in her test. But, as much as he hated to admit it, it was beginning to look like she was going to win.
Mika angled herself slightly, holding up the pike. In one smooth move, she drove it forward, piercing through his chest. Without giving him a chance to react, she gripped his scythe in both hands, swinging it towards him. Like the pike, it entered his flesh easily, the triple blades embedding themselves horizontally into his body, just below the pike.
A gush of blood erupted from his mouth, and he coughed. But to her surprise, he stayed upright, his eyes fixed on her.
“I’m not quite finished yet.” She pushed him backwards just enough so that her whip was free. Picking it up, she ran her chakra through the segments, animating it. It coiled tightly around him, binding his arms tightly to his sides. Keeping hold of the end of it, she backed up, sitting down a short distance away.
Despite her nap, she was tired. This battle had been both physically and emotionally draining. This had taken the last of her energy. She had never attacked a helpless enemy before. It had been harder than she could have imagined.
“We’ll wait here until dawn. The others will find us, I’m sure.” At least this way, no one could say that she hadn’t done any damage. The proof was right there. It would take a while for the poison to clear his body, but even then, with the amount of blood he had lost, combined with her whip acting as a rope to bind him, Hidan wouldn’t be able to escape.
Keeping a firm hand on the handle of the whip, she sat back, watching him. Despite the fact that he had to be weakened, he was still glaring at her, though she thought she could see a hint of something that hadn’t been there before: respect.
“You…would have made a wonderful sacrifice. I’ll still be…looking for my chance. Don’t let your guard down.”
Mika nodded. “I’ll remember that. Now shut up. It has to hurt, talking like that.”
A flicker of a smile was Hidan’s only answer as they fell silent, waiting for dawn to break.
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To say that Hidan had been surprised would be a serious understatement. He had been expecting a trap, just not something like this. This was… Jashin-sama would be very pleased with this particular offering. He hadn’t had to fight this hard in quite a while; it was a refreshing change. He only regretted that he had been forbidden to use her in his ritual. He would have loved to watch her suffer the way he was suffering now. Well, that could always come later. For now, he needed to let himself heal. Due to the extent of the damage, it would probably take at least a couple of hours to even be able to move, let alone be in good enough condition to fight.
It was a good thing Kakuzu was back at the base, and hadn’t seen the attack. He could just hear that bitchy old bag of bones now…
You’re too cocky, Hidan. I’ve told you that time after time, and look where it got you. You’re so burned up you can’t even move. That child turned you into a piece of charcoal. I’ve told you many times not to underestimate your opponent. There’s no such thing as true immortality. One day, you will be killed; it’s just a matter of time. You walked right into that trap, willingly! What’s going to happen when you’re injured too severely for your body to heal in time?
Hidan growled in annoyance – or tried to. His throat was damaged too badly for him to make more than a soft rattle. That bastard didn’t know what he was talking about. Jashin-sama wouldn’t let a faithful follower die. That had been proven before. Admittedly, this was one of the more serious injuries he’d suffered, but not the worst. This prior experience told him that, though it would take time, he would soon be fine once more.
The only problem was Mika. He knew that she wouldn’t leave the forest; it had been decided as their battleground. But would she come to him, or would he have to hunt her down again? She was under a time limit, with how many hits she scored against him proof of her skill. That led him to believe that, if enough time passed, she would come looking for him.
But he had to wonder something. When he was severely injured like this, for some time afterwards, he was defenseless. Why hadn’t she taken her opportunity to strike, when he was unable to retaliate? It was the smart thing to do – what any member of Akatsuki would have done. To hell with honor, and giving your opponent a fair chance to defend themselves. Their opponents were usually so strong that any hesitation would mean their death. They had to strike quickly, if they wanted to live. Deidara would have to train that out of her, if she was going to survive long enough to be of any use to them.
His red-violet eyes opened, and he slowly wiggled his fingers. He could still move… But he knew better than to be fooled by that. He could feel the severity of the burns on his body, and knew that he would have to be very careful. It was still very difficult to breathe; that was what worried him the most. The external wounds weren’t a problem, but his lungs…
Inch by inch, his hand crept over the ground, until he encountered the metal handle of his scythe. Not for the first time, he was grateful that it was made entirely of metal – even the cable attached to it. Even the intense flames hadn’t been enough to damage it. Drawing it closer, he used it to prop himself up, clenching his teeth as his body protested.
He managed to pull himself over to a nearby fallen tree that had survived the explosion, and leaned against it, drawing in a shuddering breath. Tilting his head back, he surveyed the sky, looking for the sun. It was still fairly high in the sky – early afternoon, then. He had time for a short nap, as long as he didn’t fall too deeply asleep.
Even though Mika had vanished into the forest, he knew that she might be somewhere nearby, waiting for him to lower his guard. He doubted it, though; why would she distance herself, only to come back a few minutes later? He was virtually helpless - the longer she waited to attack, the stronger he grew. No, he was probably safe.
But he still had to wonder something. What had happened in that attack? It had all happened so quickly… He knew for sure that the Katon jutsu hadn’t come from her; it had been beyond the both of them. At first, he’d thought it was a clone. But that couldn’t be right. Clones usually didn’t use jutsu. So…the one he’d encountered had to have been a clone. No wonder she hadn’t seemed very frightened when he’d threatened her. Any harm done to a clone’s body didn’t transfer over to the original.
So, she must have used the clone to lure him to this spot, where the original had laid the trap for him. But then there was the question of the smokescreen. It had been ignited by the explosion. Not a smokescreen, then, but a type of flammable haze. As much as he hated to admit it, it had been a clever trap – one that would have been fatal to him, had he been mortal.
But despite this, he still had his doubts. Every member of Akatsuki was incredibly powerful. Did she really have what it took? That remained to be seen. One good attack didn’t necessarily ensure a victory. She would have to try a bit harder.
Resituating himself – somewhat painfully – he closed his eyes, taking a deep breath to gauge how much damage still remained. It was getting a bit easier to breathe now…not much longer. His head lowered as he began to doze. Might as well conserve his strength. He would need it again soon.
---
Mika settled into the fork of a large tree, effectively hidden by the dense leaves. Thank goodness the weather was still warm. If it had been autumn or winter, she never would have been able to conceal herself here. Still, she knew better than to just leave it at that. As she had already seen, Hidan could sneak up on her easily, and that was when she had been awake. If she was sleeping… It would be a simple matter for him to kill her.
Before she allowed herself to relax, she had set up a series of tripwires in a perimeter around her resting place, both on the ground, and in the nearby trees. It cost her some of her wire, and the rest of her exploding tags, but it was a sacrifice she had to make. The wire could always be collected later, but the tags… Well, chances were, there would be supplies somewhere in the base. She could restock once her test was finished.
As always, she refused to let any negative thoughts intrude. She had survived this long, and she wasn’t about to give in now. Whenever she thought about it, it was always when she passed the test, not if. She knew that, if she gave in to doubt, she would fail. Almost a third of her time limit had elapsed already, and she’d managed to inflict a fatal blow on Hidan. Of course, it had taken quite a while, because of the precise timing required in her trap; next time, it would probably be easier. Or at least, she hoped it would be.
She still had at least one trick up her sleeve. But would it be enough? He had a long-range weapon – one that he could wield with great skill. Even though he had said that he was the slowest member of Akatsuki, he was every bit as fast as any enemy she had ever fought. Ordinarily, this would have posed a problem for her. But she had a long-range weapon, too.
Slipping her hand into the pouch at her waist, she wrapped her fingers around one of the scrolls there. It would be easy enough to summon its contents, when the time was right. Still, she had to wonder. Would it be a match against his scythe? She had seen how powerful it was, and the skill with which he used it.
But then, her weapon was a bit different from the norm. It was very possible that she could win this, even if his scythe was technically more powerful in terms of sheer destructive ability.
Removing her hand from the pouch, she laced her fingers together, placing them over her stomach as she tried to get comfortable. Sleeping in a tree wasn’t something she liked to do, but in this case, it was necessary. It offered the best protection, thanks to the dense leaves.
A smile came to her face. It had taken her many months before she learned what types of trees were best to sleep in. That had been a very painful system of trial and error… She’d lost count of how many times she had been awakened in the middle of the night to a face full of dirt when she’d accidentally rolled over in her sleep, and fallen from the branch she had chosen as her bed.
Finally, she had learned to choose a tree with a spreading crown, or, failing that, to wedge herself between two thick branches, so she couldn’t shift around while she slept.
Once she was satisfied with her position, she closed her eyes, letting her thoughts wander. Now, how to go about bringing Hidan to her, once she had rested? As she didn’t know how long she would have until he’d healed enough to come after her, she needed to make a plan that allowed for a margin for error.
The simplest thing to do was to use her second clone to lure him to her, but she doubted he would fall for the same trick twice. That left her with two options. She could either wait for him to find her on his own, and take the chance of an ambush, as well as the risk of having her time cut down as he searched for her. Or, she could hunt him down herself. If she used clones to spread out and search for him, it wouldn’t take that long. If she was lucky, he might even be in the place she’d left him. That was unlikely, though. Knowing what she did about him, he would move as soon as he possibly could, if only to finish healing himself in a more protected place.
Yes, that was what she would do. Better to expend a bit of her chakra to find him herself than waste her time waiting for him to come to her. First, though, she needed to rest a bit, so she would have the energy to fight him a second time.
With this decision made, she soon drifted off into a dreamless sleep.
---
The sun was low in the sky when Mika finally awoke. She had slept longer than she intended – almost half of her time limit had elapsed. Before she even sat up, she looked around, letting her senses extend outward as she searched for any trace of a nearby chakra signature. None of her traps had detonated, but it was always possible that Hidan had found and deactivated them.
But no; she couldn’t sense any foreign chakra nearby. She was alone here. Dropping out of the tree, she stretched, yawning. Her body was a bit stiff, but that would soon fade. Now, to put her plan into action. Forming the necessary hand seals, she created four clones. These were a bit different from the shadow clones she had created when she had first begun; these were little more than insubstantial smoke. Although they weren’t able to fight, they were perfect for recon, and they used less chakra to create. Her four copies lined up in front of her, silently waiting for her instructions.
“Spread out and do a sweep of the forest. As soon as you find Hidan, release the jutsu on yourselves. That will relay the information back to me. Don’t let him see you, and do not confront him. Understand?” As they nodded their agreement, she looked around. “Move quickly, time is of the essence. Go!”
As they vanished into the forest, she retrieved the scroll from the pouch, unrolling it and spreading it open on the ground. Inside was a complex summoning pattern. She pulled out a kunai, pricking her finger. Like any other summon, this required a blood sacrifice. Drawing a thin line across the center of the pattern, she sat back as the scroll activated. There was a puff of smoke, though it soon faded to reveal a black whip coiled neatly in the center of the scroll.
It was longer than normal, and had a sharp metal tip at the end. Inside that tip was a concentrated poison, though like most of the poisons used in Sunagakure, it wasn’t immediately fatal. Unfortunately though, she hadn’t thought to bring any more of it with her.
Her eyes narrowed thoughtfully. Sasori had also been a poison-user… Surely he had left some behind. Perhaps she could convince Deidara to let her borrow a bit. She wouldn’t need much, especially if it was as strong as what Sasori had used on Kankuro.
She picked up the whip, keeping it tightly coiled, and being extremely careful not to touch the metal tip. Even she wasn’t immune to the poison’s effects. When she was first learning to use the whip, it hadn’t carried the tip at the end. That modification had come later, once she became accustomed to using the weapon in an unaltered state. But the small poison chamber hadn’t been the only change she’d made to it.
Mika stood up, glancing up at the sun once more and tucking the scroll back into the pouch. It was slipping towards the horizon; already, the forest was becoming shadowed. She didn’t relish the thought of fighting in the dark. Although it would make it harder for Hidan to score a hit on her, that advantage also worked against her; she would have a hard time seeing him, as well.
At least Hidan’s cloak had been mostly destroyed. The dark fabric would have helped him to blend into the shadows. If only she had been more comfortable fighting in her own cloak. She definitely could have used it now. Her own clothes weren’t very good for concealment. Even if she removed her overshirt, it wouldn’t make much of a difference. The mesh undershirt was silver; too bright, even after sunset.
It wasn’t much longer before she felt a tingle within her mind. She concentrated, and then smiled. So that was where he was. Turning towards the northeast, she set off. Through the clone’s memories, she had seen Hidan moving slowly through the trees. His breathing was still a bit uneven, and she had seen the lingering burns on his body, though they looked like they were a couple of weeks old now. They were beginning to heal, turning the raw red flesh into pink scars, which would soon disappear, leaving him completely unmarked.
Forming the hand seal that would dispel the other clones, she leapt into the trees. It would be easier to travel this way, as well as faster. As long as she was quiet, Hidan need never know she was there. Masking her chakra signature to the very minimum, she jumped from branch to branch. She wasn’t naïve enough to think that she would be able to completely sneak up on him without him noticing her, but masking her signature would allow her to get closer than she otherwise would be able to.
Following the memories the clone had transferred to her, she continued through the trees, closing the distance between herself and her target. Judging from what she had seen, he still couldn’t move too quickly; he should be close to the place where the clone had spotted him.
Sure enough, she soon caught sight of him through the trees. He had his scythe in one hand, telling her that his guard wasn’t completely lowered, though he probably wasn’t expecting an all-out attack.
She crept closer, then dropped out of the tree she had been standing in, landing lightly behind him. Holding her whip at her side, she took a step forward, wary of an attack. Unlike before, she wasn’t interested in an ambush. She wanted him to know she was there.
Slowly, Hidan turned around, not making any move to attack her. Instead, a wicked smile came to his face. “You surprised me. I wasn’t expecting you to be able to do something like that. But it’ll take more than that if you want to win your way into Akatsuki. You have to be prepared to kill, at all times. Can you do that?”
“Of course I can!” Mika snapped, annoyed. “I’ve proven that once already, and I’ll do it again.” Holding up her whip, she released part of it, letting it uncoil. Swift as a striking snake, she flicked it towards him. As she expected, he quickly lifted his scythe, blocking her attack. But to his surprise, the whip segmented into hundreds of tiny pieces, each less than a half-inch long. They curled around the blades of his scythe and driving the metal tip towards his chest. This close, he could see a glowing strand of chakra connecting the segments together.
“What the hell?” He leaned back, hoping it would bring him out of reach without needing to drop his scythe. The metal tip came closer…and stopped, a mere centimeter away from his bare chest.
Mika grinned, a smile wicked enough to rival his own. “Do you like it? It’s a variation of the Puppet Jutsu exclusive to Sunagakure. By using my chakra to link the segments together, I can control its motion, effectively bringing it to life. Even if you stop part of it, the rest can still strike you.”
Hidan clenched his teeth, rotating his scythe around so the blades were rested against the whip. Realizing what he was trying to do, Mika shook her head. “Don’t bother trying to sever the links. It won’t work. They’re reinforced with metal, as well as being strengthened by my chakra.”
She took a step forward, and the whip shifted, coiling further around his scythe. His eyes followed the movements, and he realized that she was trying to give it the extra little bit it needed to pierce his chest. Quickly, he released his hold on his weapon, leaping backwards with a hiss of annoyance. That whip didn’t look very dangerous… If she could get a good snap to it, it might open up a wound, but other than that, it shouldn’t do much damage.
The metal tip, however, worried him. If she could animate the entire length of the whip, she could easily force it through any part of his body. The tip was needle-sharp; it would be a simple matter for it to pierce through him. Of course, even having that driven through his heart wouldn’t kill him, but it could be temporarily debilitating, if it did too much damage.
Mika flicked her wrist, pulling the whip back towards her. “I’m going to win this. You might as well just give up now, while you’re still able to walk.”
This made Hidan laugh. “Like hell. You’re going to become Jashin-sama’s next sacrifice. It’s been a long time since I’ve been injured this badly. I’m not letting you escape.” Reaching down to his waist, he took out one of the pikes she had seen him use before. Instead of moving forward, however, he simply threw it at her.
She ducked to one side, snapping her whip up to knock it away. In that instant, Hidan grabbed his scythe, lunging forward and swinging it at her. Everything happened very quickly, then. There was a ripping of cloth, and blood splattered along the ground. The whip cracked sharply, and Mika and Hidan both leapt backwards away from each other.
A shallow wound had been opened up on Mika’s side, stretching horizontally across her ribcage. She still had hold of her whip, and the metal tip had been coated in blood, as well as a couple of drops of a dark violet liquid; the poison chamber within had been opened. It had been designed to unlock when its container came in full contact with the flesh of a target. That way, the poison wouldn’t be wasted if she missed. Only a direct hit would break it open.
Hidan stood a short distance away. His scythe was held up in front of him; it also had blood smeared along the tip of the first blade. At first glance, he seemed to be unharmed. This made Mika frown. That couldn’t be right. There was blood on her whip, and she was almost certain that it didn’t belong to her. So… Then, she saw it. There was a small puncture wound in his lower abdomen, just above the top of his pants.
From this distance, she couldn’t tell how deep it was, but it shouldn’t make any difference. She could see that it had drawn blood; that meant the poison could get into his body, and work its magic. Idly, she had to wonder… If Hidan was immortal, did that mean that a normally fatal poison would be nullified completely, or would he still feel its effects, minus the eventual death? Probably the latter, she decided. Being immortal didn’t make him immune to pain.
As she watched, Hidan raised the scythe, and, to her horror, he licked her blood off the tip of the blade. “It’s really a damn shame that I can’t use you in the ceremony yet. But that just means we get to play a bit longer.” He looked down at himself, noticing the small wound she had inflicted on him. An amused smile came to his face. “That’s it? All those brave words about being able to kill, and this was all you could do to me? Pathetic.”
Mika’s eyes narrowed slightly. So, he didn’t realize that he had been poisoned… She was sure that it had entered his body, and that there was enough there for him to feel it. Perhaps it just took him a bit longer. Still, she decided to pretend that nothing was wrong. She didn’t want him to know about the poison just yet.
“I still have some time left. This isn’t over just yet. But I’ll give you one last chance to give up. Spare yourself a lot of pain.”
“I’m not afraid of pain. If inflicted the right way, it can be glorious. Soon, I’ll be able to show you exactly what I mean. We’ll be able to experience the wonderful agony together, during the ceremony.” He lowered his scythe, taking a step forward.
Automatically, Mika raised her whip, not wanting to let him get too close. Now, she was beginning to worry. Surely the poison should have taken effect by now! Maybe the container hadn’t completely broken, or she had been wrong about it working on him.
He took another step closer, then suddenly lunged forward. Mika gasped, jerking her wrist to bring her whip up, intending to flick it towards him. But nothing happened. Her arm raised, as did the whip, but she couldn’t snap it towards him. Following the length of the whip downward, she saw why. He was standing on the tip.
Hidan gave a short bark of laughter. “Nice try. I remembered what you said about trying to stop that fucking whip. You were wrong about it being unstoppable, though. There’s one obvious weakness that even your chakra can’t overcome. All I have to do is step on the end, and you’re helpless, aren’t you?”
Again, he raised his scythe high above his head. Mika’s eyes widened, and she released the handle of the whip, leaping backwards, just as his scythe began to descend. But halfway through, he suddenly stopped, his arms trembling. “What…?”
Mika continued to back away as Hidan fell to his knees, shuddering. Had the poison finally begun to work? It looked like it. Severe pain was one of the effects of this particular poison. She came to a stop just out of his reach, watching him carefully.
Placing his hand over his chest, he looked up at her. “What the hell did you do?” he hissed. “That little wound couldn’t possibly be enough to do this to me.” He gasped softly, trying to take a deep breath. It was getting difficult to breathe…
“You can feel it now, can’t you? That tightness in your chest. The paralysis from the poison is spreading. That’s the second effect. Pain is the first.” She moved further away, picking up the pike he had first thrown at her. “But don’t worry. The paralysis isn’t too bad. It won’t stop your breathing completely. But it can make it feel like you’re suffocating.”
She moved back over to him, the pike in her left hand. When she was just in front of him, she reached out, pulling his scythe away. By now, the paralysis had spread to his arms, and she was easily able to take it from him. “It would be so ironic, wouldn’t it, if you could die? I would be able to kill you with your own weapons. Still, I suppose dealing what would be a fatal blow would be just as good.”
Hidan looked up at her, his vision slightly blurry. This was absolutely unbelievable. This little bitch had managed to get him into a deadly situation not once, but twice, in less than twenty-four hours? But still, he wasn’t panicking. Let her do all the damage she wanted to him. It wouldn’t matter; he was immortal. Granted, it would take a while for him to heal, but there wasn’t much time left in her test. But, as much as he hated to admit it, it was beginning to look like she was going to win.
Mika angled herself slightly, holding up the pike. In one smooth move, she drove it forward, piercing through his chest. Without giving him a chance to react, she gripped his scythe in both hands, swinging it towards him. Like the pike, it entered his flesh easily, the triple blades embedding themselves horizontally into his body, just below the pike.
A gush of blood erupted from his mouth, and he coughed. But to her surprise, he stayed upright, his eyes fixed on her.
“I’m not quite finished yet.” She pushed him backwards just enough so that her whip was free. Picking it up, she ran her chakra through the segments, animating it. It coiled tightly around him, binding his arms tightly to his sides. Keeping hold of the end of it, she backed up, sitting down a short distance away.
Despite her nap, she was tired. This battle had been both physically and emotionally draining. This had taken the last of her energy. She had never attacked a helpless enemy before. It had been harder than she could have imagined.
“We’ll wait here until dawn. The others will find us, I’m sure.” At least this way, no one could say that she hadn’t done any damage. The proof was right there. It would take a while for the poison to clear his body, but even then, with the amount of blood he had lost, combined with her whip acting as a rope to bind him, Hidan wouldn’t be able to escape.
Keeping a firm hand on the handle of the whip, she sat back, watching him. Despite the fact that he had to be weakened, he was still glaring at her, though she thought she could see a hint of something that hadn’t been there before: respect.
“You…would have made a wonderful sacrifice. I’ll still be…looking for my chance. Don’t let your guard down.”
Mika nodded. “I’ll remember that. Now shut up. It has to hurt, talking like that.”
A flicker of a smile was Hidan’s only answer as they fell silent, waiting for dawn to break.
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