Naruto Fan Fiction ❯ The Clone ❯ Chapter 7 ( Chapter 7 )

A/N

 

 

Not much of an opening note this time around. Am surprised am getting this in so early but what can I say I was motivated. At last count I have 50 alerts and 20 favorites. Please if you consider my story good enough to be on alert please review at least once tell me what you like about it what isn't good enough to make it worth you adding to your favorites I truly want to know! As for those who have it on favorite WHY is it on favorite, what are your suggestions what did you enjoy so much? These are all things I wish you would tell me in reviews. Please RxR it truly motivates an author. For those of you who DID read and review thank you this chapter is dedicated to you.

 

“Human speech”

“ Demon or summon speech”

“Human thoughts”

“Demon or summon thoughts”

Disclaimer: Jeez this is tedious; I do not own Naruto… short and sweet.

 

 

Chapter Seven:Catastrophe

 

 

He woke up at 4 o clock the next day and dressed slowly shaking the sleep from his eyes. He pulled on each article of clothing and armor slowly as he thought. Jiraiya had already left by the time he returned home after spending three hours on the Hokage monument committing the contents of the dossier to memory.

 

After dressing, checking then double-checking his equipment he made a quick two bowls of Miso Ramen to save time and left his house. His team had agreed to meet at 5.30 but it was only 4.45 so he had time to spare. He was surprised that he had managed to wake up in time for he had hardly slept the previous night, his mind had kept him awake half the night portraying various scenarios for his very first real engagement as a ninja. What had bothered him most however was the fact that he would most likely have to take a life.

 

Shutting his door behind him he headed to Mikio's adjacent garden house. As usual the insomniac man was wide-awake and working on his own small but wondrous garden. Naruto couldn't remember the first time he had woken up early and wandered out here just to see and talk to Mikio-taichou. However it had become something of a habit for him to come here when there was something bothering him (though neither of them had ever acknowledged the existence of these clandestine meetings.)

Naruto watched Mikio work for a few minutes simply admiring the gardener's efficient technique before he decided to broach the topic.

 

“I'll have to kill tomorrow”

 

“Mission?”

 

“Yeah”

 

“Well it's in the job description.”

 

“… Taking a life, cutting off someone's future as if their past deeds are worthless, I don't think I can do it.”

 

“And if it's a choice between you and them?” Mikio finally straightened up from his gardening and looked Naruto in the eye “If it's a choice between the life of a friend and that of a stranger? If taking that life can prevent the death of many more?”

 

“But… If I kill what makes me better than an animal? I mean isn't that what makes us human? The ability to transcend our baser urges, if I actually take a life tomorrow… What makes me better than, than…”

 

“Better than what Naruto?”

 

“Better than Kyuubi…” It barely came out as a whisper. Naruto expected several reactions, maybe Mikio would react in shock and horror realizing what Naruto was, or the old man may protest insincerely that he and Kyuubi were separate entities a fact Naruto already knew logically if not emotionally. He wasn't expecting what happened next, moving at a speed that Naruto wouldn't expect from the old man Mikio backhanded Naruto across the face sending him reeling back into a flower bush damaging it.

 

Mikio for once however did not seem to care about the state of his flowers, his whole body was trembling with suppressed anger. “When I agreed after 20 years of retirement to teach you tactics I did it on the condition that you proved to be worth my time. Though you're no intellectual prodigy you have a basic understanding of logic that made it a pleasure to instruct you. If you're stupid enough to truly believe you and the demon sealed in you are one and the same I have nothing further to say to you.”

 

Naruto stood up slowly wiping a small streak of blood from his cut lip “Logically I know that me and the Kyuubi are separate, but still I feel responsible for all the deaths he caused. Somehow I have to atone to this city for what that beast did.”

 

In future years Naruto would look back on what Mikio said next as one of the defining moments of his existence.

“Listen Naruto” Mikio replied with a tone softened by understanding “In the real world humans kill each other you see this Naruto?” He peeled back his upper lip and showed Naruto a canine “ No matter what anyone tells you we are predators, its in our very nature to kill. The truly important thing is your motives for taking a life; if you like the Kyuubi take the life of an innocent non-combatant then yes you are a monster. However the moment a person picks up a weapon with violent intent that person is a combatant, once you became a ninja you gave up the option of a peaceful life. Sometimes Konoha can call upon you to be a monster, sometimes it CAN be your duty to kill an innocent, at times like this all that can help you retain your sanity is remembering WHY you kill, not from choice but because of DUTY. Naruto taking a life is not inherently evil in itself it's the motive behind the act that define it, after all human life naturally expires after a time, all you are doing when you kill is hastening the inevitable.”

 

Naruto stood for a moment absorbing what the man had said as Mikio returned to his gardening. He didn't fully agree with everything the gardener had said but the words still offered him some measure of comfort. As he walked away opening the gate and heading for the main gates of Konoha he resolved that HE would never become a monster. The day Konoha forced him to kill an innocent would be the day he handed in his forehead protector.

 

After a few minutes of walking the almost deserted streets of the village he came to the gates. Kakashi for once was on time as were Hinata and Sasuke. He could see that they had also changed their attire just like him. Hinata was wearing a traditional Hyuuga battle Kimono but it was a neutral gray instead of the traditional white. It also seemed to be tailored to her form perfectly, hinting at what lay underneath but revealing nothing. Sasuke on the other hand seemed to have done away with his usual high collar shirt and shorts. He was wearing full-length trousers in a neutral gray and military boots. His shirt was somewhat loose and v-necked showing a large portion of his chest, it was the same shade of gray as his pants. What caught Naruto's attention however was the weapon strapped to his left thigh it was about the half the length as a short sword and, the blade of the dagger was also much thinner than usual. It had a plain black hilt and horizontal cross guard. Naruto himself had kept the same style but in different colors he had on cargo pants in a gray and white camouflage print, with a Kunai holster strapped to each thigh. His vest was identical to his trousers and he had his leather-armored black muscle shirt on underneath his vest. All that remained the same were his black boots and hair. Kakashi true to form remained unchanged wearing his usual jonin uniform, perverted book in hand.

 

“Yo Naruto finally you join us, even later than me Ehhhh?” his single eye curved into a smile. “So we're gonna head out now, its 12 hours to wave country at standard attack speed. We should be launching an attack on Zabuza's stronghold in about 24 hours.” As he spoke the gates slowly opened up behind him

 

 

The journey to the wave was mostly uneventful; they headed towards the country at a fast pace using the trees rather than the dirt road. At the land border Kakashi called a pause to confirm that all of them had mastered the water walking exercise, when he received confirmation they ran across the water using the mist as cover. They arrived at the impoverished town slightly the worse for wear. Using henge as cover they booked a room in the only inn still in operation, Kakashi went out to contact his contact telling his young genin to get some rest. At 4 the next morning they all rose performed their morning absolutions and got kitted out. Kakashi had returned sometime during the night and was already ready by the time Naruto finished tying on his kunai holsters. They used henge again and exited the inn. Kakashi's contact had given them the location of Zabuza's hideout. In times of prosperity it had been an elaborate spa, the building located in the middle of a large lake surrounded on one side by wooded forest and on the other by a marsh that had been converted into a hot spring and had recently degenerated back into it's natural fetid existence.

 

Once they were out of sight of the town they dropped the henge and moved quickly towards the location of the hideout. When they were within range of Hinata's byakugan they stopped and waited for her to activate it and scan out the area.

 

Naruto looked at her lavender eyes as they suddenly without warning became encircled by bulging veins. He was pondering the use of the byakugan as an intimidation ability when Hinata just as suddenly shut them off and motioned for them to come closer. Using the standard sign language that Konoha Shinobi learnt in the academy and Jiraiya had taught to Naruto on their journeys she quickly outlined the situation.

 

“A guard at each of the four bridges connecting the building to the mainland everyone else in the complex, the prisoners are in the complex and there are four large chakra signatures.”

 

“Ok here's the plan, Naruto I want you to sneak in through the marsh, Sasuke go with him and eliminate the guard there as quietly as possible” Sasuke and Naruto nodded. “After Naruto slips through get rid of the body and rejoin Hinata and I. All three of us will attack directly via the northern bridgehead. We'll stop concealing our chakra so Zabuza and his flunkies rush out to confront us leaving Naruto to get out the hostages. Naruto once the hostages are gone I want you to rendezvous with us at the bridge and help take out Zabuza and his ninja. Zabuza himself is a tough opponent so am gonna have to trust in you two to hold off the other two until either I finish Zabuza or Naruto returns to tip the scales in our favor, understood?”

 

They all nodded their understanding before Naruto and Sasuke circled around to the location of the swamp. Sasuke waded knee deep into the fetid water while Sasuke across from him maneuvered onto a tree directly overlooking the bridge and the hapless guard who was dozing lightly.

 

Sasuke looked down at his target and tried to pounce but found his legs wouldn't move, this was his first kill, he could feel the bile rise in his throat as he imagined cutting this man's throat. Suddenly he remembered THAT night; Itachi standing there calmly while his parents' blood glistened on his sword. If his brother could take the life of his own parents Sasuke could definitely take the life of an unknown stranger. Drawing his stiletto in one smooth motion he leapt down silently his legs landing astride the bigger man's neck, he yanked the man's head aside before he could utter a cry and plunged the deadly dagger into his carotid artery. The Man slid forward unto his knees with a small thump and Sasuke proceeded to drag him further into the swamp.

 

Taking this as his queue Naruto slipped completely into the rancid water swimming towards the building and trying to keep from vomiting violently. After a while the dirty waters of the swamp gave way to the cleaner waters of the lake itself. Naruto swam until he was at the foot of the spa complex and then waited. After what seemed like an eternity but was in reality only 10 minutes he felt Kakashi, Hinata and Sasuke flare their chakra. The four ninja in the building immediately came alert and he felt them rush out to intercept their attackers. Naruto hauled himself out of the water and created 15-batsu bunshin, it had begun.

 

Kakashi felt Zabuza's approach as he and his genin stood on the bridgehead next to the body of the slain guard. The demon twins arrived first heading straight for Kakashi, as he was obviously the main threat. They were wrong to underestimate Hinata though she leapt in front of them stepping with both legs on their connecting chain and driving them to halt, They turned on her and she leapt back off of the bridge unto the water, they followed one of them striking out at her with his gauntlet while the other circled to her right. Kakashi's first impulse was to go and help her but he had bigger fish to fry. Zabuza and his apprentice appeared simultaneously Zabuza immediately striking out at Kakashi with the humongous sword he had on his back. Kakashi blocked with a chakra-reinforced kunai and for a few seconds they simply pushed against each other. Sasuke on the other hand had leapt back from a senbon attack by Haku throwing a kunai at the boy with a hunter-nin mask. The two young prodigies engaged exchanging blows; Sasuke was as fast as Haku dodging a stab at his gut with a senbon needle and responding with a right hook that tore Haku's mask off and sent the boy flying off the bridge to the opposite side of Hinata's battle, Sasuke quickly leapt after Haku leaving Zabuza and Kakashi on the bridge.

 

“Copy-cat Kakashi, I will enjoy killing you and your students.” The man grinned before pushing Kakashi back with his monstrous strength leaping forward blade whistling in a downward arc.

 

Meanwhile Naruto had deployed his clones around the spa building. Taking a deep breath to calm his frantically beating heart he leapt forward breaking through a glass window. Inside was chaos as his clones also broke in, sleeping figures leapt to their feet some trying to grab weapons others crazily striking out at their own comrades in confusion. Naruto threw two smoke bombs on the ground adding to the confusion while he headed to the basement. A mountain of a man stepped into his path but he barely hesitated throwing a kunai into the man's throat and wincing slightly at the man's gurgled scream as it penetrated. Then he remembered Mikio's words and steeled himself, they were combatants opposing his duty; all he could do for them was make their death as painless as possible.

A/N

 

Sorry but that's all I have time for this time around, next update will probably be pretty soon however, on a side note I can't believe Kishimoto killed him!! He was one of my favorite characters!! Ohh well that's life I guess this chapter is dedicated to you *****-sensei. You were a true king.