Eroninja - Chapter 89: Revenge Arc: Operation: Kill Konan Part III

Shiakamaru stepped into a large training room located inside Akatsuki’s headquarters with a large brown file folder tucked under his arm. He paused for a moment as the women gathered there were not the ones that made up the current roster of that group. But instead were the Bijuu that had stealthily infiltrated the village over the last few weeks. Sparring against them were hundreds of clones of the man that he sought. He frowned as he tried to determine which was the real Naruto, but then noticed him sitting off in a corner with his eyes closed while in a meditative pose with several clones sitting the same way. He suspected that was the real Naruto as sitting in his lap was what appeared to be a small child wearing a large plaster demon like skull on her head.

As Shikamaru began to approach them, he saw Naruto say something to the child that he knew was in actuality a Bijuu. The Bijuu appeared to think for a moment, before pointing towards one of the clones, who nodded before dispelling itself. However, rather than bursting into smoke it exploded into a large gust of wind which caused the clones near it to be blown away until they burst in a similar manner. The small Bijuu laughed in amusement, but from the frown that Naruto wore, he could tell he was disappointed by the results.

However, before the Uzumaki could create more clone’s, he noticed his approach. “Shikamaru,” he said as he had Nel stand so he could do likewise. “What brings you out here?”

“Looking for you,” the Nara said waiting until Naruto got to his feet before jokingly adding, “What, they have you on babysitter duty?”

The small Bijuu sent him an annoyed look before stating, “No, Nel is helping him train.”

Shikamaru focused on Naruto with a questioning look causing him to explain, “It’s some training I was hoping to finish before the battle. I asked Kakashi-sensei to teach me how to make a clone using my wind natured chakra like his lightning one.”

“That’s kind of pointless,” Shikamaru cut in before explaining, “Wind natured chakra is ideal for a lot of attack type jutsu. But when it comes to clones it is pretty weak. The reason a lightning clone is effective as an attack is because of the inherit nature of electricity. Same with Fire, while Earth would be effective to make more durable clones, and Water for traps.”

Naruto frowned as it appeared that he had already been told something similar which he confirmed as he stated, “Kakashi-sensei gave me the same rundown. I had messed around with it before when I created my imploding clone, by mixing my sage chakra with wind. I went to Kakashi-sensei thinking I just wasn’t adding the wind portion right.”

Shikamaru nodded in understanding, as he said, “The problem is wind is a natural enhancer which is why adding it to a blade makes it more effective. Or to your Rasengan. Unfortunately, there just isn’t much to a clone jutsu for it to improve on. Although, it might be effective at blowing people around, and could probably enhance an exploding clone something fierce.”

“Which I already tried,” Naruto stated sounding concerned at his lack of success.

The Nara was surprised at the sense of urgency he heard in Naruto’s voice, but paused as he noticed the Bijuu seemed to have retreated into her own head due to the conversation, which he imagined was going over her head. Focusing on the blond, he asked, “What’s the big deal? I doubt not having a wind clone is going to make a difference.”

“I hope that is the case,” Naruto said gravely. Noticing Shikamaru’s confusion he explained, “I guess I was just hoping to have an ace in the whole for the next time I face Sasuke.” He crossed his arms before continuing, “The last time we faced each other, Sasuke clearly underestimated me. He was still confident from our previous confrontation. If he has found a way to undo whatever damage that he suffered from my Rasenshuriken, then depending on how he went about it, I will possibly be fighting a complete unknown, while he will likely have studied my abilities extensively.”

Shikamaru was surprised by Naruto’s foresight as it became apparent that the reason the Uzumaki was looking to beef up his clone jutsu was because then he would be able to possibly hide a devastating jutsu among something that he used quite often. Even though Sasuke would likely know of his Imploding or Exploding Clones, that knowledge could potentially become a blind spot for the Uchiha as he would feel he had prepared for whatever surprises the blond would throw at him. A belief that Naruto wanted to exploit.

The Nara hated to admit it, but he was impressed and had to raise his estimate of Naruto’s ability to predict his opponents. Moreover, he also had to correct his opinion that the Uzumaki was still as reckless as he used to be, which he had thought due to his helping the two-tail jinchuriki defect from Kumo. He had believed it was stupidly reckless and an action Naruto had undertaken simply because of his feelings for the woman. However, while he still believed they were his primary motivations for acting, he couldn’t dismiss that Naruto was likely aware of the potential fallout of his actions, but was willing to face the consequences. It didn’t change his opinion that it was reckless and foolish, but Shikamaru admitted Naruto’s knowing what could happen and acting regardless of it did raise his opinion of him. Plus, he had to admit that considering his mother was bound to the blond, he was glad to know the Uzumaki wasn’t one to let the women tied to him to suffer in order to advance his goals.

Naruto let the matter drop as he said, “Any way, you probably didn’t come out here to discuss this I imagine.”

“No,” Shikamaru admitted as he handed the Uzumaki the envelope he had been carrying. “But, it is tied to your likely impending fight with Sasuke.”

Naruto opened the folder and was confused as it contained information on a blonde-haired woman that was a member of the Tsuchigumo Clan which he based off of the clan symbol near her picture. Reading her name, he frowned as he asked, “Hotaru Tsuchigumo, why does that sound like a name I should know?”

Answering him, Shikamaru said, “Several years ago Kakashi and a few other jounin were hired to protect her…”

“That’s right,” Naruto said recalling, “It was during that mission that he ran into Pain because the host of the Six-Tails was involved as well.” Focusing on the Nara, he asked, “But what does this have to do with my clashing with Sasuke.”

“The reason Kakashi and the others were called in was because someone had been targeting the jutsu sealed into this woman,” Shikamaru stated as Naruto began reading the information Yoshino had gathered and sent. “Before my agreeing to assume command of Ame’s defenses, I had a talk with my mother about Sasuke and what he intends with this attack. Towards the end, I commented that I do not believe that Sasuke needs to achieve anything with this attack, and is simply hoping to just upset the balance that has been achieved by wiping out as many players as possible. My mother took it under advisement, and sent me this dossier believing she is how he intends to do so.”

“Because she went missing recently,” Naruto said recognizing his lover’s handwriting on the file that were denoting recent inquires the Tsuchigumo were discreetly making. “Your mother seems to believe her clan has misplaced her, and are quietly making inquiries in order to locate her. “

Shikamaru nodded as he stated, “If you lost a woman who has a jutsu that can destroy a city sealed into her back, you wouldn’t want to go announcing that you can’t find her to the world.”

“Are you saying Sasuke found her?”

“In a matter of speaking,” the Nara replied, “From what my mother has dug up, there are no indications that she was kidnapped. So, it appears that she left the village of her own will.”

“But what makes you think she will turn up here, and on Sasuke’s side?” Naruto asked finding from her file that her skills appeared to be subpar. “The only threat that it would appear that she poses would be that jutsu. I can’t see someone willingly wanting to use that, especially considering how many innocent people it would harm.”

“Need I remind you that Pain was willing to wipe Konoha off the face of the earth,” Shikamaru stated with some of the anger that he had felt from the discussion he had with Ino and Fuyou the previous night carrying over.

Naruto was rather surprised by it, considering the Nara’s willingness to take charge of the Rain Village’s defense. But ignored it in favor of stating, “True, but Danzou made us a target through his collaboration with Hanzo to destroy the original Akatsuki.”

“Granted,” Shikamaru countered dismissively, “But, by that logic then she has every right to want to see Ame wiped off the map.” The Uzumaki looked like he was about to interrupt so he forcefully said, “I know you’re about to argue Konan was already working with you when Pain captured this Utakata fellow. I’m sure that you’ll also point out that she didn’t aid in the sealing as Kisame was handling it by himself at the time, and even if this Hotaru knew all that, it still wouldn’t matter. Konan did nothing to stop it either, and the people of Rain allowed Pain to operate here for years as he took his vengeance on the Shinobi World. Hell, many of them probably thought it was about time that they got to deliver some hurt to the other shinobi villages out there, so it is likely from Hotaru’s point of view that they are just a culpable.”

“Not just her I imagine,” Naruto stated pointedly causing Shikamaru to tense angrily as he expected the blond to lecture him. However, instead he asked, “Why would Sasuke bother attacking at all if he has access to this jutsu?”

Deciding not to address his own negative feelings for the people of Rain, Shikamaru replied, “While I still believe that Sasuke doesn’t care if his village wins or loses in the coming battle. I do believe he cares if he can beat you.” Naruto looked shocked so he explained, “Much as your training shows you have a healthy respect and fear of Sasuke’s abilities. I believe he is feeling a similar anxiety in facing you. With that being the case, I believe this Hotaru is meant to function as a sort of timer on your match. While this jutsu is devastating, it also has many flaws that can be exploited. For starters, it requires a considerable amount of time for the chakra to build, meaning when she powers it up even a low-quality sensor would be able to pinpoint the location. This also means she’ll need to be protected so whoever is picked for that job will be essentially throwing their lives away.”

Naruto surprised Shikamaru as he interjected, “I get it. You believe that since I know the Hiraishin, I would naturally be called on to teleport her out of the village. Which means if the fight was going against him, then Sasuke can retreat while saving face by saying I was the one that disengaged.”

“Essentially correct,” Shikamaru replied, “However, I still would tend to believe that he would prefer her to go off in Ame. I assume you have a few locations you can take her to in order to minimize the casualties.”

Naruto nodded as he replied, “Yeah, there are a few spots in the deserts of Wind Country where I have buried Hiraishin kunai. I figured it would be smart to have a place where I can take enemies without people so I can cut loose.”

Shikamaru was about to state he was impressed with Naruto’s foresight, but suddenly the small Bijuu who had appeared lost in thought excitedly said, “Nel figured it out.”

He could see that Naruto wasn’t all that sure what she was talking about either, at least until she held her hand out and began to gather chakra in it. He got the idea that she was trying to shape it, but was apparently struggling so just decided to give up in order to slam her glowing hand into her chest. It went about as well as Shikamaru expected as she was blown off her feet and flew backwards. When she came to a stop though, she sat up and as she stared at Naruto while appearing pleased with the results.

He was about to ask the Uzumaki if the Bijuu was working with a full deck, but stopped as Naruto said excitedly, “Nel, you’re brilliant. Reckless, but brilliant.” The Bijuu’s smile grew even wider as the blond picked the childlike Bijuu up, before sitting down in a cross-legged manner, he then created a dozen clones as he attempted to put the insight that he had gleamed from Nel’s display into practice.

Shikamaru turned away, figuring he’d let Naruto prepare for his battle in his own way, as he still had plenty to do himself. He was rather glad that he did, for just as he exited the building it began to shake leading him to believe the blond had a breakthrough with his jutsu in as reckless a manner as the Bijuu who had helped him.

****

Naori laid on a simple bed in a fishing shack which was located in the Land of Swamps. She moaned contently as her pussy was ravished by Jade Chan, who worked her mouth side to side as she tried to make sure her tongue ran across every nook and cranny. While she liked to believe a part of the young woman’s eagerness was due to her enjoyment of the juices that she was tasting, the Priestess suspected that it was mostly due to her lead acolyte, Hanami Hyuuga, who was kneeling beside the young woman as she worked a vibrator in her ass. Feeling her body on the verge of release, she gripped the young woman tightly by her black hair and pulled her against her cunt as she exploded. Jade happily drank down her liquid offering, and when Naori relaxed her hold on the young woman’s head. Hanami pulled the woman away from her just satisfied quim so that she could kiss the former adventurer and taste her flavor which still coated Jade’s lips. All the while, she continued to work the buzzing toy in and out of the brown eyed woman’s rectum.

The High Priestess of the Descendants’ of the Moon watched on with a pleased smile as Hanami pulled back and revealed Jade’s face which was contorted in pleasure. The Hyuuga acolyte brought her other hand up to begin teasing one of Jade’s nipples causing the younger woman to moan deliriously as Hanami played her body like it was an instrument. After pulling out an endless series of moans and cries, she leaned in and gently bit down on the nipple of the opposite breast she had been playing with, which caused Jade to stiffen while crying out to the Goddess. Despite Jade’s orgasm filling her with enough pleasure to cause her to black out for a moment, Naori imagined that it was almost akin to torture as she had achieved it all without having her pussy directly stimulated due to the chastity belt she was wearing.

Jade confirmed this as she weakly sat up in a kneeling position and just short of pleading asked, “Lady Naori, when will you remove this belt? I can’t take it any longer.”

Naori sat up as Hanami laid beside her and rested her head against her breast. She stroked the Hyuuga’s hair lovingly as she replied, “I understand your frustrations Jade.” She tilted Hanami’s face up and kissed her tenderly before focusing once more on the young woman, “But this time of difficultly will cause you appreciate it all the more when the belt does come off and I fully induct you into the Goddess’s service as an acolyte.” Jade didn’t look any happier about her situation, but she nodded her head in understanding, so she added, “Trust me, we understand how frustrating it can be. After all, one reason Hanami has shown you so much affection over these many months that you’ve worn it, is because she suffered through the same thing.”

“What about you Lady Naori?” Jade asked innocently causing the High Priestess to stiffen as memories of her own entry into the cult rose to the surface.

She quickly shook them off, wanting them to remain in the distant past so in an effort to change the subject pushed Hanami over so the woman was on her back. Straddling her stomach, she looked over her shoulder to Jade as she said, “I wouldn’t wish to burden you with my own trials. So, instead why don’t you show your appreciation to Hanami for the pleasure that you have received from her.”

Naori looked down at the Hyuuga beneath her, who met her gaze with a concerned one of her own due to her understanding how much she had suffered under the previous High Priestess. A tale she had only shared after years of being faithfully served by Hanami, which was one reason her suffering through the same trail Jade currently was had been even more devoid of pleasure. The Uchiha gave a soft smile to alleviate her acolyte’s concern over her past haunting her, and it grew lustful as Hanami bit her lip as Jade’s tongue began lapping at her pussy.

She began to tease the woman’s nipples into hardness, but before she could get to lost in her passions, a knock sounded against the door. Naori felt a little frustrated at being disturbed, but kept it out of her voice as she asked, “What is it?”

The female acolyte remained outside the door as she reported, “High Priestess, you’ve been summoned.”

Naori’s good eye grew wide as although there were a few sects of the Descendants of the Moon, some with leaders that rivaled her in power, as well as other groups loosely affiliated with the cult. There was only one person that would dare to summon her in any manner, and that was the man whose existence tied them all together in his efforts to bring the Goddess back. Not that all of those affiliated with him knew what the true goal he was working towards was.

Feeling excited, Naori rolled off her favored acolyte, who tried to sit up to join her. However, she pressed the Hyuuga down as she said, “Sit back and enjoy.” Focusing on the woman currently dining on Hanami’s snatch with enthusiasm she ordered, “Jade, I expect her to be an incoherent mess by the time I return.” The young woman hummed her understanding which caused Hanami to gasp, as she gripped Jade’s hair as the woman pushed her tongue further inside the Hyuuga.

Grabbing her robe, she pulled it on, and during the short walk to the door tried to straighten herself up, without making the one who had summoned her wait. Leaving what had once been an extra room of the man who the shack had belonged to, she stepped into the main living area where she knelt at a shrine that had been erected to the Moon Goddess. Raising up to one knee, she kept her head low as a crystal resting at the feet of the human size statue of a kind looking woman that was said to be the goddess and that had been erected upon her arrival began to glow. A moment later, a man that seemed to be comprised of shadow was projected from the crystal which stood before her. It focused its yellow eyes on the kneeling woman and despite the humanoid being lacking a mouth it said clearly, “I trust you weren’t indisposed by my summoning you.”

“Never by you, Favored Son,” the Priestess replied. “What need do you have for me?”

“The petulant child is about to make his move,” the being born of the Divine Goddess replied, “The time you have been awaiting shall arrive tomorrow. That is when you shall liberate our Divine Mother’s body from the tomb it has been hidden away in.”

“It shall be done,” Naori replied happy that soon she would be able to leave the Land of Swamps behind and return their Divine Mother’s vessel to its true home in the Descendants’ of the Moon’s main temple.

Despite her contentment with the Favored Son’s decree, she felt a question begin to well up within her which she had been keeping to herself. The Favored Son seemed to read her heart as he asked, “What is it my child? You should know you can ask me anything?”

“I only question why we had to delay this moment for so long, Favored One,” she asked raising her head. “With Jade’s skill in archelogy which aided us not only in finding this place, but building the tunnel we plan to breach the cavern using, and Hanami’s Byakugan to detect the traps that were left, we were ready to secure the Holy Mother months ago. We have made all the preparations to ensure that the unseen kidnappers would not be able to summon the Divine Vessel away or track its movements. Why would you wish to subject your divine self to the whims of that childish Uchiha’s selfish ambitions?”

The pupil less eyes of the Favored Son bore into her good one causing her to lower her head, rather than answering though he asked, “Why have you made your newest acolyte wear that belt?”

“So that upon its removal she will feel a greater sense of satisfaction upon having her pent-up desires sated, and will understand what it means to suffer for the world that we seek, where our Divine Mother will grant us all that our hearts hope for,” Naori answered giving the reason she had created the ceremony her acolytes underwent.

“And why have you timed the completion of Jade’s with the return of our Divine Mother’s vessel?”

“As that was the task for which The Holy Mother guided us to her,” the Priestess answered, “So it only makes sense for her trial to end upon its completion.”

“In other words, you are waiting for the opportune moment when the feelings of elation you both will have are at their highest,” the shadow like being stated.

Naori frowned as she wasn’t quite following the Divine Being’s logic, but then something connected for her as she again looked up, but in shock as she asked, “Are you saying tomorrow is the opportune moment to retrieve the Divine Vessel because of Sasuke’s attack? Are those that tried to hide the Holy Mother away somehow connected to this attack.”

The Favored Son seemed please by her coming to such a conclusion as he said, “I suspect that it is possible. When Pain moved to attack Konoha, he decided to eliminate Konan along the way. Yet, it seems that he was interrupted by a red-haired woman, he was unable to give a description as he didn’t see her face. But she teleported away with Konan, who miraculously turned up in Konoha during the attack to aid the Leaf village. As she knew the target I thought little of it, but then when Obito sought to kill her for her betrayal, she was rescued by the host of the nine-tails. When he was forced to retreat from his fight with her, our base was raided almost as soon as he reappeared, and although he failed to get a description of the attackers as it happened so fast. He did spot a woman with red-hair among them.”

“You believe Konan is aligned with these people that defiled our Divine Mother by hiding her vessel in these fetid swamps?” Naori asked with anger bleeding into her voice.

“It is a likely scenario,” the Favored Son replied, “That the woman that rescued her likely turned up during the raid of Obito’s hideout where it was taken means she likely marked him during their fight. Also, as Hanami’s Byakugan has confirmed that the Bijuu that were already returned to the vessel have been removed, it means they have the keys. At the time, I had believed Konan lent them to her unseen allies, but recently thanks in part to my alliance with Sasuke, I learned that it appears someone has awakened the Rinnegan and not the hand me downs that Pain had used.”

“I hesitate to point this out as I’m sure you have already made the connection, but the woman that Jade supplied the tablet of Hyuuga to possess red-hair,” Naori stated. “Her interests and her home being Konoha would seem to suggest that she is a possible contender for this interloper.”

“Yes,” the Favored Son said with some frustration bleeding into his voice, “Unfortunately, I have been unable to approach Konoha for years now. It appears someone has reinforced their detection barrier with one of their own. What’s more, I don’t believe the actual Barrier Defense force is even aware of this secondary one.” His tone changed to its usual measured and confident tenor as he stated, “But with all that being the case, it is likely that Sasuke’s attack will draw the attention of our unseen foes long enough to ensure you don’t encounter any issues, and if my own contributions to his plans go as I hope, we will not only have what we need to replace the missing Bijuu, but the keys to ensure the vessel remains under our control.”

“My heart’s fondest wish is that your endeavors will be fruitful then, Favored One,” Naori said reverently.

“Of course, it is,” the Divine Being replied in a tone which conveyed that if it had a mouth, it would be smiling widely before disappearing.

Naori felt invigorated as she stood, and returned to the bedroom she had been using during her stay in the Land of Swamps, a stay which appeared to be finally at an end. Listening to the cries of Hanami which were filtering through the door, she felt her pussy begin to dampen as she hoped that Jade wouldn’t be the only one that had their desires sated when the Holy Mother’s Vessel was returned to the temple.

****

Mikoto stood lined up behind Konan along with the other women that would comprise the Akatsuki under her leadership. The Blue-haired kunoichi was giving her speech to the gathered audience that consisted of various Major and Minor Elemental Country Dignitaries, their presses, and several Kage. Serving as a backdrop to Konan and her Akatsuki was the statue of Jiraiya, the unveiling of which had happened at the start of the ceremony. That suited Mikoto fine, as whenever she looked at the black flames, her vision would begin to blur as if her eyes were losing focus. A part of her wished that when Konan had asked her if she would take issue with her using the remnants of the Amaterasu jutsu that Jiraiya had used to destroy Pain’s tower as a part of the statue, she had not said yes. But only because she was worried that her strange reaction to seeing them meant that somehow the flames were set to trigger something within a Uchiha. Deciding to bring it up later, she instead focused on the attendees of the ceremony.

Her attention was first drawn to Gaara’s party, which consisted of Temari and his brother Kankuro. Which wasn’t a surprise considering their mother was now a member of the Akatsuki. She suspected that was why although both of his siblings were carrying their weapons, rather than standing in guard positions they were seated beside him, with Yukata, Matsuri, and Kashike assuming the standing position behind them. Mikoto had noticed that Gaara had greeted Naruto with a certain degree of coolness about him, which she had attributed to the rift that Naruto’s decision to help Yugito defect to Ame had opened between them. That was why she found the Kazekage’s choice of guards rather suspect. Mikoto believed the reason Gaara had chosen for his protection detail to be comprised of Naruto’s lovers was a direct result of that disagreement. Making it so that his lovers were on the frontlines of a battle, which could see the clashing blades with Kumo-nin should the Raikage prove to be there to retake Yugito. The Uchiha found it to be a particularly petty thing for the Kazekage to do, particularly as she doubted Naruto would view it in such a light as he knew his lovers to be competent kunoichi. Of course, Mikoto conceded that she might be reading more into the decision then was actually there, but believed that if she was correct, then the relationship between the two was more frayed then most had considered.

Mikoto’s gaze then switched to her lover, who was smiling proudly at his gathered lovers who were lined up before the statue of his teacher. She marveled at her lover’s ability to take each moment as it came, since although she could feel a small amount of foreboding from him, it paled in comparison to the pride he was feeling. Due to his mother being one of the women standing on the stage, Naruto was sitting beside Tsunade. While standing behind her was Tsume, her son Kiba, and who both should have been joined by Kakashi. However, the silver-haired jounin’s being missing had been attributed to his constant tardiness. Although that was a simple cover story that had been concocted to cover his not attending the ceremony.

The Uchiha then directed her gaze to the delegates who were arrayed behind the Kage. While none of the Major Elemental Countries had sent high ranking members of their courts, she supposed that the fact that they sent anyone meant they understood the importance of the event taking place. Particularly, since with the support of two of the three Kage of the Alliance, and several Daimyo of Minor Countries such as Haruna, Toki, and Koyuki. The current incarnation of Akatsuki already had more official support then any of the ones previous incarnation that had existed before it. The three Daimyo women were also attending the ceremony in person to give a public display of their support, and had already pushed through legislation that would grant Akatsuki rights and privileges similar to their countries’ magistrates so the group could deal with issues that cropped up with little red tape. She knew the reason Toki in particular had high hopes for Konan’s Akatsuki, was because if it proved successful, she would then be able to springboard that success into a more encompassing Minor Country Alliance.

Mikoto had the feeling that the Bird Daimyo’s work was cut out for her since none of the other Minor Elemental Countries’ Daimyo had decided to attend in person. While a blessing in the sense that it would have created the issue of securing them should Sasuke attack as they were expecting, she suspected that lack of excitement from the other Daimyo displayed through their lack of presence meant they didn’t expect to benefit from such a peacekeeping organization. Although, some of those Minor Daimyo did send along more high-ranking members of their court then was necessary for the sake of appearing polite. Which, if the rank of the Dignitary they sent was any indication to how much they hoped Konan’s Akatsuki proved to be successful, it appeared to Mikoto that the Daimyo of the Land of Bears was extremely hopeful. Which wasn’t too surprising considering the country was being ravaged by what appeared to be civil unrest expressed through terrorist actions, but was thought to be sponsored or inspired by agitators from Iwagakure. She wondered why the Daimyo wouldn’t just ask for help, but suspected that it was partially because he had a Shinobi Village in Hoshigakure to call upon, so was hesitant to invite in the assistance from a group that he would have no control over. However, considering the Daimyo had sent one of his top ambassadors, she suspected the minor village was nearing the breaking point, which if Iwagakure was behind the various terrorist groups springing up in Bears Country, that wasn’t too surprising as it would have far more resources to expend in creating chaos then the minor village would in quelling it.

Mikoto shifted her focus and her concerns to more immediate matters as her gaze landed on the Raikage. Despite how the women of Akatsuki were cloaked so that their identities weren’t apparent to the guests, the Leader of the Lightning Village centered his glare on one figure in particular. She suspected as it was Yugito, the former host of the two-tailed cat was glaring right back, although it was impossible to say due to the sunguard and cloaks they wore. However, what was easy to see from the way he sat, was that it was taking almost all the Raikage’s willpower to remain seated as Konan’s speech continued. Yet, despite expecting the Raikage’s demeanor considering what they expected for him to attempt, what was somewhat concerning was the lack of manpower that he had brought with him. Having expected him to bring along the jinchuriki of the Eight-tails along with enough Anbu to help secure an exit once they had Yugito. Instead, the Raikage’s delegation had only consisted of him, his head of Anbu Kaname Tosen, and a person that had been introduced as the Head of their Medical Program Sosuke Aizen. What made that so concerning was that Mabui hadn’t been kept in the loop of what he had planned outside of being told his party would consist of those members. However, through several other avenues of information open to her, she had confirmed that several Anbu squads had also left the village around the same time. Although the reason given for those Anbu squads leaving had been that they were on an extended training mission, yet she had found it suspect that the Head of the Anbu Division wouldn’t be there to oversee it personally.

The Uchiha noticed that Konan’s speech was winding down, and for a moment she had the hope that they had been wrong, and Sasuke wasn’t coming, which also meant the Raikage probably had made his trip for nothing. However, she figured she should have known better as moments later an alarm began ringing out throughout the city. It died down as a Fuyou’s voice came over loud speakers spread throughout the city to announce, “Dear Citizens of Amegakure. We are detecting a large number of vessels incoming. If you are near your loved ones, please gather with them now. We will be using a new evacuation jutsu to transport you to safety. If you cannot reach them, then please remain calm upon your arrival at the temporary shelters and follow the instructions you are given.”

Mikoto wasn’t surprised many of the Delegates appeared scared and panicked, with one of them shouting out, “What about us?”

Konan moved to the base of statue, and activated a seal which caused a section of the ground to slide under it to reveal steps. Indicating them, she said, “Please take these steps to an evacuation shelter for VIP’s. You will find a contingent of our shinobi are there already in order to protect you.” Many of the guests began almost running for the stairs, with the more levelheaded ones taking their time so as not to be trampled by their less dignified counterparts. Mikoto could tell Koyuki was tempted to stay and put her training to use, but thought better of it as Fubuki pulled her towards the steps. The Pink Haired Spring-nin waited for her charge to head down the steps before following, but not before tossing a quick salute towards those who would be remaining topside to fight. When the last VIP had headed down the steps, who happened to be Haruna with her protectors Anko and Ibuki, Konan removed her hand from the seal and the entrance closed up once more.

Moving to the Three Kage, she said, “Lords and Lady Kage, I ask that you also take shelter as…”

The Raikage cut her off as he said, “Save it, I won’t be putting my men or myself under your protection. We’ll see our own way out of your village.”

“Very well,” Konan said, “But please refrain from leaving these grounds until the Teleportation Jutsu activates.”

“What jutsu,” the Raikage asked but trailed off as suddenly a large wave of energy rose up from the center of the city. When it was about to pass over the Akatsuki Headquarters, a barrier sprang up which caused the jutsu to pass over it.

“Impossible,” Tosen suddenly stated causing the Raikage to focus on him.

“What is?”

“They’ve teleported almost everyone out of the city,” the head Anbu reported.

“Fascinating,” Aizen replied as he turned his attention to the now mostly deserted city, “Unless I miss my guest, you’d need an incredible amount of chakra to power such a jutsu.” He directed his bespectacled gaze towards Naruto, who was standing near his Hokage, before postulating, “Say a jinchuriki’s worth. Yet, those all seem to be accounted for, outside of our own remaining one that is. I suppose you could use a team approach, but that would make casting it, not to mention the seal necessary, all the more complicated.”

“It doesn’t matter,” Ay said dismissively.

“I beg to differ,” Aizen replied calmly despite the glare his response earned him, “But, I suppose our primary concern at the moment should be securing our exit from the city.”

The Raikage nodded, but sent one last look towards the cloaked figure of Yugito before leaping away followed by his two fellow Kumo-nin. Konan frowned in the Kumo-nin’s direction, but with them gone focused on the other two Kage to state into the microphone attached to her collar, “Shikamaru, we’re ready to greet our guest.”

“Understood, stand by for instructions” Shikamaru said from Ame’s command center which was located on the top floor in the tallest building within Rain. He focused on a large three-dimensional model which was currently surrounded by a chakra field that was being generated by Ame’s best sensors. Within the field red dots were steadily closing in on the model, while the blue dots located within the city moved to their various defense points. He sent a look towards Karin, who was standing off to his right, and who had had actually given them an additional five minutes worth of warning as she had sensed the attackers approaching before they had hit the detection barrier. Naturally, a few of the Ame-nin had scoffed at the idea that her sensory abilities were superior to the combined effort of multiple people, but they quickly became believers as the large red dots which represented the transports Sasuke’s forces were using began to appear.

Karin inferred what his gaze was asking as she stated, “I sense a different group approaching below sea level that isn’t showing up.”

“That will likely be the Salamander Resistance,” the Nara replied before turning to Ino.

“Kiyomi is out of commission,” she replied mentally since certain aspects of the plan weren’t to be communicated openly, “Teleporting an entire city has taken her pretty close to chakra exhaustion.”

Shikamaru didn’t react outwardly as he mentally replied, “We expected as much.” He then continued the silent conversation with his former teammate as he stated, “Konan asked that Haku and Guren be sent to deal with the Salamander Resistance. Have them move to the waterways located towards the lower eastside. That is where they will most likely make landfall.”

“Why?” Ino couldn’t help questioning using her telepathy.

“That was where their headquarters that Naruko raided was located, and where they retreated after each bombing,” Shikamaru replied to his teammate’s unheard question. “They had to have a network of unseen passageways to move throughout the city without attracting attention, and so will likely try to make use of them during the chaos. It would be best to cut them off before they can make it to them. Also, inform the welcoming party that they are to raise up to meet those transports before they reach the city.”

Ino connected her mind to the women that Shikamaru was referencing to give them the go ahead. A moment later one of the sensors working the table called out, “Sir, I have several powerful chakra signatures showing up in the city.”

“Relax,” Shikamaru replied, “As I stated at today’s briefing, Konan called in a few favors with the Great Tree Shipping Company. They’ve just removed the chakra suppression seals that were hiding them from enemy sensors.” As he had spoken, four of the grey dots that had appeared within the city floated up to meet the incoming red ones. They came to a stop, and then suddenly a beam of light shot out from one of those dots and a large hole appeared in the formation of red ones.

“Holy Fuck!” one of the sensors responsible for generating the dots hovering over the city shouted. “What kind of monsters did Lady Konan recruit to defend the city.”

“Don’t let them hear you call them that,” Shikamaru replied with a sense of amusement which drained away as he watched the red dots that the approaching enemy represented began to react. However, he felt a sense of concern well up within him as rather than panicking, the dots appeared to calmly change formation, with half of their number diving for the sea while the other half continued to approach the Bijuu that had risen up to meet them. Focusing on Karin, he waved her over and when she was in earshot asked, “Is that the entirety of Sasuke’s attack force?”

Karin shook her head in the negative as she answered, “About two-thirds of the number that I can sense haven’t flown into the detection barriers range yet. They have begun circling the city just outside it. Some of those transports that have yet to appear feel off.”

“Off how?” he inquired, but before Karin could clarify his attention was pulled away.

“Shikamaru!” Fuyou shouted from down by the table, “The transports approaching those women from the Great Tree Shipping Company have begun releasing their contents!”

Focusing back on the table with the Chakra Map that the sensors were generating, he saw the red dots representing the transports begin to release dozens of smaller ones which flew towards the grey dots representing the Bijuu at a much faster speed. Unsure about what was happening, he directed his gaze towards Ino expecting the Yamanaka to fill him in on what was happening.

*****

“You just had to go and provoke them Mira,” Rangiku shouted as she floated beside her sister using some of the ash that she commanded to keep herself airborne.

Mira lowered her hands as the transports began breaking formation with some diving for the water below while the rest continued towards Urd, Tier, Rangiku and her. While in her Satan Form, she turned her gaze towards her sister to state, “How could I resist? They were flying in such a tight formation.”

Urd kept her focus on the transports that were leveling off near the sea’s surface so asked, “Should we split up and pursue those ones breaking for the city?”

“I don’t think we’ll be able to,” Tier stated as she noticed people leaping from the transports still closing with them. For a moment, she wondered if the people clad in purple were perhaps so desperate to avoid being hit by another blast that they were taking their chances that they could survive the fall. However as soon as they cleared the transports, they began to sprout bat-like wings from their back before flying towards them under their own power. In a handful of seconds, they had closed enough that Tier could see the approaching enemy weren’t dressed in purple, but that it was the color of their skin, and that they all had the same face. Pulling her blade, she informed her sisters, “I believe these beings are copies of the Purple variant of the Zetsu that Sakura reported encountering.”

“Then this should be easy,” Rangiku stated as she sent her ash flying towards the incoming Purple Zetsu, imagining they weren’t much of an improvement over the white variety that she had encountered when raiding Tobi’s main headquarters. Her attack hit the first one square in the head causing it to practically disappear. However, as it moved on to attack a second, that Purple Zetsu pulled back as it held its hands out before it, and suddenly an energy shield of lightning appeared which the ash smashed into harmlessly. Once her attack had burnt itself out, the Zetsu pulled its arms out to the side as it gathered chakra to its forearms. The Lightning Chakra that coated them extended out into blades, before the Zetsu then launched itself at Rangiku like a kunai as it raced ahead of the approaching Purple horde. The One-Tail Bijuu raised her hands before her creating a barrier of ash which the Zetsu’s electric chakra blades smashed into. Her eyes widened as they managed to penetrate her defensive jutsu, but not far enough to harm her although they slowly began to inch further and further towards her.

However, Tier sudden appeared behind the Purple Zetsu and with a swing of her sword beheaded it. She then spun to face several Zetsu that had raced after their counterpart. Holding out her hand, she fired off several Water Shark Bomb jutsu. The sharks swam through the air causing the Zetsu to stop as they threw up barriers similar to the first, however Tier’s jutsu shorted them out allowing Rangiku’s ash which had been following in their wake to easily slice through the Zetsu.

Urd floated backwards as a Purple Zetsu reached her, and tried to remove her head with an Electric Chakra Blade. It just missed her neck and so she raised her hand towards the Zetsu’s face summoning a fireball which blew through the purple being’s skull and hit another Zetsu that had been approaching from behind it. The fireball engulfed that Zetsu in flame causing it to scream in pain, before it dived down to the sea to put the flames out. As it did so, it hit several of its fellows causing them to be engulfed in flames as well, a pattern which repeated several times. However, while the flame engulfed Zetsu raced to the water below, most burned up before breaking the water’s surface. While those that succeeded, never resurfaced. Spinning in the air to confront an attack from the rear, she held out a hand causing a Lighting barrier to appear as a Zetsu tried to cleave her down the middle. The Electric Blade smashed into her barrier, which began to absorb the energy from the Zetsu’s blade. Just as it began to fade away, Urd raised her other hand to return the energy in the form of a powerful electric blast that electrocuted the Zetsu causing its corpse to begin falling to the sea below.

Several more began to close with her, but before they reached her, a ball of Black Energy floated into their midst which expanded outwards in a huge blast that vaporized the Zetsu it came in contact with. A moment later Mira flew through the area the Zetsu had just occupied, with several more on her tail, which Urd blasted away with several fireballs. This allowed Mira to bank towards another group which was closing on Tier and Rangiku, who were fighting close together due to the Busty One-tailed Bijuu’s jutsu being relatively weak against the Lightning attacks of the Zetsu as it was primarily a result of Earth and Fire chakra. Bringing her hands together, she charged another Darkness Bomb which she tossed into their midst before banking upwards to get a clear view of their situation.

However, it proved to be unnecessary as Ino telepathically connected with her and she assumed her sisters to state, “Ladies, it’s time to bring it in.”

“What?!” Rangiku called out mentally, “We’re owning these chumps. Why let them make it into the city?”

Mira wanted to agree with her sister, but thought better of it as Ino replied, “Shikamaru says this is just the first wave. Karin is picking up a lot more transports circling Ame just outside the detection barrier’s range. They’re probably waiting until we commit most of our forces before coming in, which could leave you guys exposed on an island if they have more of those Purple Zetsu and they release them inside the city.”

“Understood,” Tier said as she began moving back to the city while still stopping long enough to cut down any Zetsu that approached.

****

“Yugito, head towards the waterfront north of your current position. The majority of the enemy transports are landing there.”

“Roger,” Yugito replied into her microphone to acknowledge Shikamaru’s order.

“Ame squads Alpha thru Gamma, I want you to establish a defensive zone around the area. Don’t let them through, but Yugito will be the one to engage,” the Nara’s voice added upon receiving her acknowledgement.

“Sir,” a voice of one of the squad leaders Shikamaru had just ordered cut in, “We’re ready to defend our home a well. Why have us just set up a defensive perimeter?”

Yugito knew it was because they expected the Raikage to make his move on her, and they didn’t want innocent Ame-nin to get caught in the crossfire. The idea being that so long as the Raikage only harmed Sasuke’s forces in the attempt, it would give the Alliance a small chance to survive since Yugito wouldn’t demand justice. But that chance became infinitely smaller if the Raikage left a trail of dead Rain-nin in his wake. However, Shikamaru simply answered diplomatically, “I don’t want to commit our forces to the battle so soon. It looks like these guys are just the tip of the spear, and I want to leave you back so we have the flexibility to deploy additional forces where needed.”

Shikamaru’s reply did the trick as the squad leader gave a simple reply to convey he accepted the Nara’s reasoning. Yugito landed on the side of a building and reaching the end moved to jump to the next one. She was about to telepathically ask Karin is she could sense where the Raikage was, but received an urgent mental, “Watch out!” from the red head as she leapt into the air.

She was about to question the Uzumaki as to what she was referring to, but then heard the sound of glass and cement being smashed. She looked in the direction of the noise in time to see a wall of a building break apart as the Raikage flew towards her while coated in his Lightning Shroud. Yugito managed to block the powerful punch he delivered, but his blow caused her to fly into another building hard enough to carry her through the wall. Finding herself in someone’s living room, she got to her hands and knees while still seeing stars, but was aware enough to spin in the direction and block a kick the Raikage followed up with. This time the blow launched her through the window that Ay had been aiming for. While airborne, she recovered enough to get her feet beneath her before she smashed into the building that she had been launched towards. She then leapt up and over Ay as he smashed his fist into the spot, where she had landed. She landed in the hole the Raikage had made as he had followed after her from the previous building as his momentum carried him into the one that he had just hit.

Still dressed in her cloak and sunguard, she knew Ay couldn’t see the glare that she was directing towards him, but she had no problem seeing the burning anger his face contained. Addressing Shikamaru, she stated, “This is Yugito. I’m not going to make it. It seems my dance card has been punched by someone else.”

She received an acknowledgement from Shikamaru who promptly ordered Karura and Fu to divert to meet Sasuke’s forces in her stead. She shut off her radio as she Focused on the Raikage as she said, “Are you really sure you want to do this?”

“You’ve left me no choice,” Ay replied angrily, “You’ve made off with Kumo’s property.”

“Funny,” Yugito countered dismissively, “I wonder if you’d accept such a reply from Kiri. You know the place you stole me from.”

“Get over it,” The Raikage shouted, “You’re just a container for real power. The only reason Kiri would have any interest in you now is because of what is locked inside you.”

Yugito’s anger exploded as she burst into blue flames which burned away her clothes. The Raikage held up one of his hands to block the light she was giving off. She noticed his eyes had grown wide at the power rolling off of her, before a covetous glint appeared in them. “What power is this?”

“Mine,” Yugito shouted before leaping the distance between them faster than his eyes could track, so that she almost seemed to appear in the air before him. He managed to get his Lightning Shroud in place just before her fist smashed into his jaw with enough force that it smashed him down through several floors of the building before appearing out of the side.

The Raikage managed to get to his feet as Yugito appeared from the hole that he had just made. She dropped to the ground, and almost appeared to float as the flames covering her seemed to carry her down. He tried to take advantage of her slow decent by launching himself at her, but she used the flames to fly out of his way and appear behind him where she curled up into a ball before smashing her feet into the small of his back. The pain of the blow was bad enough but coupled with the burst of flames that followed, he was launched straight through the ground floor of the building. The wall of the next building over stopped his flight, but he hit hard enough to crater it. Falling to the ground, he got to his knees as Yugito slowly approached him through the path he had made. She almost appeared to be walking towards him seductively as she swayed her hips as she walked.

Ay felt the slow sensual manner in which she approached him was a deliberate commentary on his lust for power, as she likely knew she appeared all the more desirous to him. A part of Ay was disgusted by the fact that she was right, as she had never been more so by him. However, mixed in with that feeling was a sense of fear, as he suspected that if she had wanted to, her last attack would have turned him into ash even with his shroud protecting him. He wondered how she had become so powerful as only when the Eight-Tails had broken free of its host, had he ever been confronted by such raw power. The feeling fueled his anger as he shouted, “How long have you had this power?”

“Years,” Yugito answered as she stepped into the alley that separated the buildings, “I used it to save your brother when Sasuke nabbed him.”

“Why didn’t you say anything?”

Yugito shrugged as she replied, “I had my reasons. Now, are you ready to give up?”

She smiled as rather than attacking her, the Raikage took off down the alley. A part of her was tempted to let him go, but feared doing so might result in him crossing paths with some of Ame’s defenders. As such she decided to pursue him, but first launched a fire jutsu that sent dozens of blue fireballs that looked like mice after him. He cleared the alley as the first one caught up and exploded, but he leapt up the side of a nearby building as the rest angled to pursue. Despite appearances, Yugito suspected the Raikage wasn’t retreating so much as tempting her to follow. Havomg already decided on following him, she guessed that she’d to play along so leapt straight up allowing the flames covering her to lift her up to the top of the building. As a result, the Raikage made his way to the roof of the building he had been running along while also avoiding the flame mice that exploded as they got close. However, even though it looked like he was retreating from her, he didn’t actually try to lose her as he made sure to stay in her line of sight. Confident that he was attempting to lead her into a trap, she smiled feeling a bit like a cat that was toying with a mouse as she leapt from the roof in pursuit.

****

Mubi pulled himself from the water as he and the rest of the Salamander Resistance prepared to split up to take their hidden paths in order to spread out from the center of the city. He was a little surprised at how empty the city sounded as he would have expected the civilians would be rather panicked as they ran to the various civilian shelters spread throughout the city. However, instead all they heard were the muted sounds of battle which seemed to be coming from where the Darkness Village was supposed to land the bulk of their forces during the first phase. However, even that didn’t seem to be as loud as it should be as if the vast majority of fighting was taking place near the water’s edge which meant they were far from where they should have been at this point of the operation.

He pulled his crossbow from his back, and approached one of the men that was unpacking the radio pack he and others would be wearing during the assault. Addressing the radio operator that would be a part of his squad, he said, “Focus on getting us in contact with the assault force. Something feels off.”

The man nodded, and stopped helping the others with unpacking the gear from the waterproof bags they had used to protect the sensitive equipment. Turning on his radio, the man cycled through the various frequencies before finding the one dedicated to the assault force, “Beachhead, this is Salamander One. What is your status?”

“We’re facing heavy resistance,” the panicked reply of a woman operating the radio at the main landing site came back.

“Roger,” the radioman from Mubi’s squad replied, “What is the estimated number of the force you are facing?”

“Two,” the woman shouted back.

“Can you repeat that please,” the radioman asked not quite believing what had been reported.

“I said two dammit,” the woman yelled, “We’re getting our asses handed to us by two people. Those purple freaks that were supposed to give us air superiority are getting cut to ribbons, and the Ame forces have just set up a perimeter keeping us pinned down while these two Akatsuki bitches slaughter us wholesale.”

Mubi felt a chill spread through his fellow resistance members at the grim news, he was just about to attempt to steady his followers’ nerves, when the radio cracked to life but rather than the woman’s voice a shinobi that was standing nearby shouted, “Watch out, that Sand user’s jutsu cut into the transports chakra transformer it’s going to…”

A large explosion followed which carried both through the radio and to them through the air, resulting in the transmission turning to static. The Radioman tried to reestablish contact as he said, “Come in Beachhead. Beachhead please respond.”

However, rather than the woman that they had been communicating with, a new voice cut into the static, “This is Command to all forces. We are proceeding to stage two ahead of schedule. ETA ten minutes.”

Mubi calmed as the transmission ended and the radio began to broadcast static again. He felt secure in the knowledge that the larger assault force and hidden surprises that were a part of phase two would turn the tide in their favor. Addressing his followers, he said, “Alright, nothing has changed. Salamander Squads two thru six, make your way to Beachhead’s location, and try to punch through the perimeter our foes have established. The rest of you spread throughout the city and wait for Phase two to begin, commence hit and run attacks on enemy defensive positions that you encounter in order to aid our assault forces. Keep your eyes open for the false angel they are fighting for, she is our goal, so long as she falls this will all be worth it.”

His sole eye focused on Suiren who nodded happily in reply. However, he turned his gaze away to the top of one of the walls that rose up on either side of the waterway as a voice called down to them, “If that is the case, then I’m afraid that you’ve made a wasted trip.”

Almost immediately, every member of the Salamander Resistance attacked the Akatsuki member who had called down to them. Firing off a variety of jutsu and kunai, the area erupted into a cloud of smoke, which began to disburse once Mubi called for them to stop firing. However, although he hadn’t expected to see a corpse, as he imagined it would have been blasted to shreds. His blood ran cold as the cloaked figure remained perfectly fine even as the area surrounding her had been devastated. He couldn’t believe that to be the case, until he realigned his crossbow at her to fire, and a glint of sunlight appeared in front of her that blinded him. After his vision adjusted, he realized that she was standing behind a wall of crystal which had appeared between her and their attacks.

A gentle voice called down to them, this time from the opposite wall, “Please surrender. We do not wish to harm you.”

“Speak for yourself, Haku” the first woman stated, “You weren’t on the receiving end of a full-on broadside.”

Mubi allowed his gaze to switch to the new speaker, and he could see a large sword was strapped to her back. However, a moment later she also disappeared in dust and smoke as his fellow resistance members tried to eliminate her in a similar manner as they had her partner. He felt a surge of elation, when the attacks came to an end and the smoke cleared to reveal the woman was no longer there. However, it quickly disappeared as the woman’s voice spoke from behind him on the opposite bank of the waterway, “Lady Konan wishes for you to surrender peacefully. Please put down your arms, and come with us.”

“Make for the water,” Suiren shouted, “Use the waterways to regroup in your designated areas.”

Those closest to the water tried to obey the order, however the kunoichi that had been identified as Haku removed her sword and dipped it into the water. Those closest to the water’s edge leapt in only to find the entire waterway had been frozen solid. With most of the Salamander Resistance gathered at the water’s edge, Guren held out her hand and the crystal wall she had erected shattered with the pieces reshaping themselves into senbon which then shot forth towards the members of the Salamander Resistance. Those that were struck by them began to become encased in crystal which would keep them in stasis until the jutsu was released.

As Mubi was about to be struck by several, Suiren appeared in front of him with one of her umbrellas open. The chakra infused material blocked the senbon causing them to fall harmlessly to the ground. The kunoichi then pulled a handful of smoke pellets which she threw causing the area around them to become covered in smoke. She then grabbed Mubi as she pulled him towards one of the hidden entrances of passages that the loyalists to Hanzou had built as they had bided their time while waiting for a moment to take back the city. Pushing him inside, she closed it behind them prompting him to ask, “What about the others?”

“It’s too late for them,” Suiren stated coldly, “You said it yourself, our job is to kill Konan. Nothing else matters.”

Mubi nodded numbly as he began to follow Suiren after she pushed past him to lead them through the tunnel. Although, they had been his words, he couldn’t shake the feeling that for the kunoichi, they had been a mantra for much longer.

*****

Kiba followed after his mother as they ran along a walkway at full speed, not for the first time the Chunin was questioning his sanity as he had actually requested being a part of the mission. His primary reason had been because he had figured that being part of such a mission would look good on his record since he intended to apply to become a jounin figuring it to be the next step in becoming a man worthy of his two mates. Especially, as then he felt he would be better able to support them by getting a home of his own. However, a part of him was truly regretting the decision. He couldn’t exactly say why, since it wasn’t as if it was his first large scale conflict he had been in as he had taken part in Konoha’s defense when Pain had attacked them. However, he chalked up his current uneasy as being due to his essentially fighting such a battle not to defend his home, but a place that he had relatively no stakes in. Granted, he knew the place was important to Naruto and even his mother due to their connection to Konan. But, he didn’t necessarily know if that was enough of a reason for him to risk his life to protect a place where most of the shinobi probably wouldn’t have lifted a finger if his own home was in a similar predicament.

However, guessing such thoughts had no place in the moment as the die had already been cast, he perked up as one of transports that had succeeded in making it out of the landing area Karura and Fu were at passed overhead. His mother shouted back towards him, “Get down!” as the engine revved suddenly so it could bank hard to bring its side toward them.

Kiba and his partner Akamaru followed his mother’s example as she dropped down near the railing closest to the transport. It proved to be a wise decision as a door located on the transport’s side slid open to reveal a shinobi who was wearing a village symbol he didn’t recognize. And although he also didn’t recognize the contraption the shinobi was standing in front of, he knew it was bad news, which proved to be accurate as the shinobi began cranking a handle on the side and kunai after kunai was launched at them. As the kunai hit their concrete barrier with enough force to bury themselves to the hilt, not to mention everything else nearby, he heard the sound of another transport flying below them. He cursed as he imagined it was positioning itself to raise up so it could hit them while the other transport kept the pinned down. He watched his mother pet her nin-dog’s head as she sent a worried look back towards him, and he suspected the look was because she was about to tell him to make a break for it.

However, as the hum of the second transports engines changed to indicate they had shifted position to allow it to move up vertically. The first transport began firing wildly, confused Kiba popped his head over the railing to see Tsunade standing on the transport’s nose holding someone by the throat. Due to the transport spinning wildly as if nobody was behind the wheel, he assumed the person Tsunade was holding had been the pilot. She tossed the man aside as she leapt from the spiraling out of control transport and landed on the railing a few inches from his head as it smashed into building. Losing its wings in the process, it began falling to the earth with all the grace of a rock which it resembled as it hit the sea beneath them.

Tsunade’s back was facing towards the second transport as its door slid open and the kunoichi manning the kunai launcher took aim at her. However, in her zest to be the one that killed the Hokage, she neglected to account for Tsume, who launched herself at the transport in a Fang over Fang. Her attack hit just below the barrel of the launcher carrying her through the stand it rested on and into the kunoichi’s midsection. It lifted the woman off her feet, until she and his mother smashed into the opposite side of the transport. Tsume then ended the jutsu as she placed a tag besides the likely dead woman’s head before gathering her feet beneath her to leap free of the transport. His mother hit the walkway just as the transport exploded due to the tag she had left behind.

His mother paid the havoc behind her no mind as she approached her son to state, “You can get up now.”

Kiba quickly shot to his feet feeling a little self-conscious at being so overawed by his mother and the Hokage that he hadn’t done anything but watch. Although he did notice his mother sent Tsunade a grateful nod as she dropped from the railing to the walkway. Hoping to prove himself, he asked, “Where’s Naruto?”

“He’s helping Squad Kappa, they were being redeployed to one of the areas the incoming wave of transports appears to be coming in at,” Tsunade stated. “Unfortunately, they also encountered a bunch of those Purple Zetsu and weren’t doing very well.”

“I’ll go help them,” Kiba shouted planning to take off, but stopped as Tsunade grabbed him by the jacket.

“No, he’ll be fine,” Tsunade stated knowing it was as close to truth as one could get in a chaotic battlefield. “Continue with the mission that you were assigned. Haku and Guren have captured most of the Salamander Resistance members, but a few managed to slip away, including their leader Mubi. I want you two to track him down. It is unlikely, but if we can get our hands on him, it may give us the leverage we need to end this battle.”

Tsume appeared skeptical as she stated, “Even if he was inclined to call Sasuke off, I doubt the bastard would stop.”

“Agreed,” Tsunade said as she could see some of the transports of the next wave in the distance. “But, if we can get Mubi to do so, and Sasuke doesn’t listen. It may go a long way to persuading whatever Daimyo allowed him to set up shop in their lands that Sasuke is only interested in pursuing his own agenda and is only using him.”

“Thereby cutting him off from an important ally that he expects to shield him from our reprisal,” Kiba finished seeing where the Hokage was going with her statement.

“Not bad pup,” Tsume said proudly.

Tsunade nodded in agreement, before stating, “Be careful you two. Something about this next wave feels off according to Karin.”

“Off?” Tsume repeated sounding confused.

Tsunade nodded as she relayed some of what Shikamaru had told her over the command frequency. “Some of the transports in this next wave don’t appear to be fully loaded. It’s possible that they are meant to confuse us so that we’ll commit more resources to a landing zone then is required. But, as there appears to be a third wave waiting outside the detection barrier, he feels it might be something more devious.”

“Okay, but why would Karin say it feels off?” Kiba asked glad that he wasn’t in the Nara’s shoes.

“She can’t really specify,” Tsunade answered, “She says some of the underloaded or empty ones approaching feel fuzzy. Like there is something there, but empty at the same time. I would assume it might be a byproduct of the transports flying without people inside them except for the crews, but she says that isn’t the case since the ones that have been unloaded already don’t feel the same. The other sensors are not picking up anything weird however. Still, it seems Shikamaru is going with Karin on this, he’s ordered some of Ame’s reserve squads to box in the landing sites that these transports are heading towards. Their jobs will be to set up a perimeter so that should they have some hidden surprises, they can hold out until help arrives.” The two Inuzuka nodded at her explanation prompting the Hokage to say, “Now get going. You two have your orders.”

“Right,” Kiba replied as he took off with his mother as they headed towards the location where Haku and Guren were standing guard over the Salmander Resistance members that they had captured. Still feeling a little unsure about whether or not he had jumped into the thick of it too early. He squashed the feeling down as he came to believe the only way his mates would speak of his ability with the same sureness that he had heard in Tsunade’s voice in regards to Naruto was by proving that he was someone they could count on. Resolving not to let the Hokage down, he pushed himself harder and began to pull ahead of his mother.

****

“I’m telling you they are empty,” Fuyou said angrily as she focused her ire on Karin.

“And I’m telling you there is something off about them,” the Uzumaki shot back.

Despite how Karin had proved that her sensory abilities extended well outside the range of Ame’s detection barrier, which was the collaboration of almost a half dozen of Ame’s best sensors, Fuyou wasn’t willing to concede the red-head could sense something that her own abilities weren’t conveying to her. Especially since the red-head was telling them that they needed to commit more of Ame’s forces to the landing zones where the suspected empty transports were heading. Making her case to Shikamaru, she said, “We can’t send more resources to what is likely just a ploy to get us to split our forces. Even if they are using chakra suppression seals to hide the fact that those transports are filled, the forces we sent to the landing zones these suspect transports are heading to, are in line with the number of forces that they will engage with.” Fuyou pointed towards the largest number of red dots which were approaching the city as she added, “What these phantom transports are meant to do is to distract us from their main landing force. Of the five transport groups approaching the city, only two of the convoys are filled based on what we are sensing. The first is heading to the original primary landing zone to provide reinforcements. The second is going to deposit the forces they carry on the opposite side of the city, while the other three are empty to get us to bleed off much needed recourses from the other two or to drop off forces to disrupt our defenses from behind. Even if they are filled, we have moved in enough shinobi to keep them contained until we can properly assess these new forces.”

Karin shook her head as she replied, “That’s ridiculous. If they are empty, then Sasuke would have to figure that we would know this, and respond in such a manor. The only way this ploy makes sense is if those phantom transports are carrying something that can overpower the forces we have waiting for them.”

The Uzumaki directed her gaze towards Shikamaru, who was inclined to agree with her, but what held him back was the same logic Fuyou used as she countered, “Or, Sasuke is hoping to get in our heads by making us expect some clever trap, while his main thrust comes from opposite ends in the city, which overpower the defenders there, leaving us unable to provide assistance because we sent our reserves to these phantom landing zones. All we have to go on is you feel something is off, is that really enough to gamble on?”

Shikamaru was about to side with Fuyou, although something in his gut was telling him that he was missing something. However, feeling that he had put enough troops to cover the suspected phantom landing zones in place, he was inclined to believe it was too much of a gamble to make on one sensor’s abilities. Yet, before he could issue the orders, one of the shinobi handling the communication with the various squads spoke up, “Sir, we are receiving a call from Squad Delta at battle zone one. They say a Leaf kunoichi is asking to speak with you.”

Shikamaru frowned as he said, “The only person that could fit that description is Fu. He should be aware of that.”

“Yes sir, the commander is aware of that,” the radio communicator replied, “However, as he tried to apprehend her, the woman took his men hostage and is demanding to speak with you.”

The Nara frowned as he suddenly had an idea of who was wanting to speak with him, so said, “Anko, you are supposed to be with your charge in the VIP shelter.”

“I got bored,” Anko replied, “Besides, she still has Ibuki, not to mention all the other bodyguards down there.”

Shikamaru sighed as he asked with a hint of annoyance, “What do you want that was so important reveal yourself and make a mess of things?”

“These idiots attacked me, even though I made sure they could see me approach,” Anko retorted.

“Anko! What do you want?”

“Outside of Fu and Karura, it appears that you’ve pulled the other people with abilities to meet the transports and zetsu in the air into the city. You need to get them here now,” Anko stated with a sense of urgency.

“They’re busy hunting down the transports and purple zetsu that have made it into the city,” Shikamaru replied. “I’m also keeping them there in case the five incoming transport convoys are carrying more.”

“That’s just it,” Anko said, “I’m willing to bet the only one that does is the one coming here.”

“Great,” Fuyou said sarcastically, “Another one wanting to upset our strategy to follow one of their hunches.”

Anko heard the snide remark so said, “Listen bitch, I just finished interrogating one of these fuckers that I found in the guts of one of these transports. He confirmed for me something that I suspected upon seeing the lack of uniformity among the corpses here. They’re all mercenaries, and considering that I’m not seeing any big names among them. I doubt many would be considered anything higher than B-class.”

Shikamaru’s eyes grew wide as he asked, “Anko, how sure are you he was being truthful?”

“Oh, pretty sure,” Anko said with what the Nara pictured was an amused smile, “He had a wound with a lot of sand in it curtesy of Karura. I found it kind of works like salt.”

Focusing on the other radio operators, Shikamaru began barking orders, “Tell all long-range jutsu squads to move to Battle Zone One.” Focusing on Ino, he added, “Pass that order to the women that the G.T.S.C. lent us.” Ino nodded and Shikamaru noticed the dots which represented Mira, Tier, Urd, and Rangiku began moving from among the towers of the city to intercept the transports heading to the original landing zone. He then returned his focus to the radio operators as he said, “Also, send reinforcements to the three phantom landing zones.”

Fuyou stepped in shouting, “Hold off on that order!” Directing her gaze to Shikamaru, she said, “What you are doing is a mistake? You’re overcommitting our forces to what is in all likelihood a misdirection play.”

“I disagree,” the Nara stated calmly as he began to see what was about to unfold, “I trust Anko’s reading of the relative strength of the shinobi Fu and Karura have engaged with the other Ame squads there.”

“So what? It doesn’t change…”

“It changes everything,” Shikamaru cut in, “We overcommitted in the opening rounds of this conflict, and Sasuke’s about to make us pay for it.”

“What do you mean?” the Ame kunoichi asked still appearing skeptical.

Hoping to get his point across quickly, he stated, “Think of it as a card game called Hold’em. We believed that since we had suspicions that an attack would take place that we had the upper hand. Therefore, when it turned out that we were right, we responded aggressively to what is an apparent strong show of force all the while believing our hand is stronger. This is the next round, and he opens it with, if we consider his forces to be his chips, would be a relatively weak bet making us believe that he is bluffing.”

“You’re losing me,” Fuyou said with a frown, “If he is bluffing then we shouldn’t overcommit our forces.”

“But you’re not considering the first round,” Shikamaru countered, “The first round was where both sides were feeling each other out. The reason that I referenced Hold’em specifically is because he paid the initial ante, which we countered with a stronger one of our own. Now, in Hold’em when two players are left, the person that posted the initial bet is the person the turn ends with.” Shikamary pointed towards the incoming transports as he exclaimed, “Right now, he is showing us a weakness through making another bet that appears much weaker than before, making us believe that our position is still the stronger, and thus hopes that we call in order to move onto the next round without spending too much.”

Ino having played cards against Tsunade, generally in the strip poker variety where the winner removed their clothes so that the first one to get completely naked would get first crack at Naruto, suddenly realized where her former teammate was going so said, “But, if we do call that would be where he goes all in revealing that he is sitting on a pair of aces.”

“Exactly,” Shikamaru replied with a nod.

However, Fuyou still wasn’t convinced so replied, “So you decided to go all in first. What does that gain us?”

Shikamaru ignored her question to instead order, “Relay my instructions to our forces.” The Radio operators looked towards Fuyou first who gave a small nod before they did as he instructed and, was why he had felt the need to explain himself. As the operators relayed his instructions, he moved beside her to explain, “By going all in, it forces us into a showdown where both sides flip over their hole cards. Now we just have to hope that we have the stronger hand at the end.”

As the blue dots began moving in accordance with his instructions, one of the sensors sitting at the map table and was responsible for projecting the red representing the incoming transports reported, “Sir, all the incoming transports are increasing their speed. I don’t think our reserves heading to the phantom landing zones will reach them in time.”

Fuyou’s face grew concerned as she realized that the transports speeding up meant that the enemy likely had sensors of their own who had detected the Ame-nin forces moving as Shikamaru had instructed, and were hoping to reach their landing zones before they arrived. Which informed her that it was also likely that the enemy had hidden forces inside the transports that she had read as being empty, and that they were confident those forces would be sufficient to handle the current defenders waiting to greet them. Willing to concede that she was wrong, she ordered, “Tell the defenders waiting at Zones Three, Four, and Five to expect stronger than anticipated enemy forces. They need to hold out until the reinforcements arrive.”

Shikamaru nodded towards the Ame-nin glad to see that she was on board. Looking towards Ino pointedly he thought, “Tell Kukaku that she is up. She should be nearest one of the suspected landing zones.”

Ino nodded and a moment later another grey dot appeared on the map before beginning to head towards the closest landing zone. He was about to direct his attention to the group of red dots approaching Battlefield One since if his theory was right, then they would be releasing more Putple Zetsu rather soon since they were nearing where the previous transports had been when they had released their passengers. However, one of the sensors at the table called out, “Sir!”

“Relax, I told you…”

“I know what the newest chakra signature is supposed to be,” the sensor said quickly, “However, one of the transports heading to Zone Five has suddenly broken off and is heading towards Zone Four.”

Shikamaru frowned as he focused on the map, and felt the situation wasn’t quite as the Ame-nin had described it since the transport wasn’t heading to Zone Four so much as heading straight towards the Bijuu that had revealed herself and was currently heading there. Not sure what that meant, he moved towards Karin to ask, “Is that transport one of the ones that feels off to you?” Receiving a nod, he directed his thoughts towards Ino, “Tell Kukaku to be careful. Whatever is on boards seems to have a grudge. Which shouldn’t be possible.”

Ino nodded but then frowned as she mentally relayed, “She says let them come.”

Shikamaru felt a spike of concern at the Bijuu’s response, but figured if anything on the planet deserved to have a sense of confidence in their abilities, it would be a Bijuu. However, before he could think more on the matter a sensor shouted, “Sir, the transports heading towards Battlefield One are releasing their contents in the air.”

“How many?” The Nara asked confident of the answer that he would receive.

“All of them,” the man replied.

Seeing the first part of the theory that he had formed materializing, he watched the dots approaching the other zones with the grim anticipation of a Hold’em player who had gone all in with his bet and having flipped his cards over found his opponent had the slightly stronger hand after the first three community cards had been played. Yet with a few cards left to appear, he had hope that when the dust settled it would turn out that they were the ones with the stronger hand. However, he began to have doubts that was the case as Karin approached him to state, “I’m feeling a new group of transports heading towards the city. It is much smaller than the others, but they are coming in hot.” Shikamaru nodded grimly, and supposed that it stood to reason that Sasuke would also have confidence that as the other cards appeared he would be the one walking away with the prize.

*****

Hanabi stood next to her father, and in many ways, she felt his shadow, as she and the other Hyuuga watched over the civilians that had appeared in one of the temporary shelters while they get processed. They were located on the mainland and from Ame in the direction of Konoha. The temporary shelter was comprised of a dozen large auditorium style wooden buildings which had been made by an Anbu with the Wood Release Kekkei Genkai. These buildings, which were hidden by a genjutsu, were attached to hidden tunnels that led down to a large underground central cavern where the civilians, once cleared by the Ame-nin stationed with the Hyuuga inside the buildings, would be sent. According to her father, the reason it had been decided not to just teleport the civilians directly to the cavern below was to limit the danger they would face if the enemy had slipped shinobi in among the populace.

Still, it had been the Hyuuga who had found themselves in danger when the civilians had first appeared as they had nearly rioted. Despite there being several Ame-nin stationed in each building to greet and calm the crowd, the Chunin that had been trying to explain the situation to the justifiably scared civilians had not been able project a reassuring presence. Hanabi noticed her father and the fellow Main Branch members assuming a defensive stance to quell the civilians with force. However, all eyes shifted to Hinata as she clapped her hands which had produced an ear rending bang due to the chakra she had encased them with.

Dressed in a kimono and standing on the center of the large teller desk which the many Ame-nin would be sitting behind to process the civilians, she had called out loudly, but serenely, “Ladies and gentlemen, I urge you to remain calm. We understand that you are scared, but panicking will only result in unnecessary harm to befall you.” Hanabi watched as many of the civilians began to relax, which allowed her sister to further explain, “You have been teleported here for your protection. Please approach the Ame-nin sitting behind me to be processed and once you have been, you will be escorted to the actual shelter.”

One of the civilians had then shouted out, “Why are the Hyuuga here anyway?”

Hinata had been about to respond, but Hiashi stepped forward not willing to let his daughter take the lead, “We have been asked by your Lady Konan to act as a protection detail. There is a possibility that the Salamander Resistance has slipped some of their members into the village when the teleportation jutsu activated.” A nervous murmur rose through the crowd, which he ignored as he stated, “With that fact in mind, if you are carrying any weapons it would be in your best interest to declare so now. We will not ask again, and will subdue those carrying any with extreme haste and prejudice.”

Hanabi kept her vision on the crowd since she was aware her father’s motive for being so blunt had been to smoke out any hidden agents. Naturally, many of the civilians had looked around as they wondered if there were enemies among them, but Hanabi had little trouble detecting several whose gazes had shifted without the aimless wonder. Particularly as they had all landed on one man, recognizing that he was likely the leader, and his subordinates were searching for orders. The man she had marked as a leader though didn’t give himself away although as he moved his hand to his face as if to rub his stubble, she noticed that his fingers shifted about to display different numbers. At which point several of the shinobi she had marked suddenly raised their hands to declare they were carrying weapons.

The civilians quickly gave the revealed shinobi some distance as they approached with their hands raised. Hanabi was somewhat surprised by their behavior, so as several Branch members moved to detain them in order to take them to a holding area outside, she activated her Byakugan and noticed that her father had as well. Focusing on the men that her clan members were searching, it was easy to see they had been carrying weapons hidden beneath their clothes. Which they explained away as their being Ame-nin that had taken the day off to enjoy the celebration. It was an obvious lie, but one which would explain their giving up without a fight. Which as she shifted her focus to the one she had marked as the leader she saw that at first glance he appeared unarmed, but upon adjusting her vision she saw his body was covered in seals. Passing her gaze over the crowd, she detected another dozen who were similar coated in seals. Noticing that they appeared older and more experienced then the shinobi that had surrendered, she suspected that the Salamander Resistance members were of the opinion that the Byakugan would only spot the unsealed weapons.

“Father,” Hanabi had said as she was about query why they didn’t move against the shinobi whose weapons were sealed on them.

But, her father interrupted her as he had stated, “Thank you for your cooperation. Now please move forward in an orderly fashion to be processed”

Hanabi frowned at first, but quickly realized that both sides were hoping for some of the civilians to be cleared out before moving against one another. This became rather self-evident for her as the Salamander Resistance members still among them had then moved to the back of the room. To her surprise, Hinata hadn’t appeared to mind their father interjecting himself into her moment, since she simply smiled softly as the civilians moved towards the desk that she stood on, and so dropped back down to the floor, where she began walking through the crowd as she continued to calm the civilians.

Hanabi refocused herself on the present as most of the civilians in their building had already been processed, which meant that soon the enemy shinobi would need to make their move. She suspected the reason they had waited so long was to make it easier to secure the civilians located below as hostages, since if they managed to overpower the defenders handling the processing, and make it to the tunnel they would then effectively have most of the civilians as opposed to only a single buildings worth. It would also potentially mean that only one group would need to succeed, since it stood to reason the central gathering area was lightly guarded considering the precautions they had taken to weed out Hidden Shinobi.

Still, as the number of civilians remaining to be processed had dwindled down to nothing, the leader of the infiltration squad had tried to sneak one of his shinobi into the central area. However, although the Ame-nin had processed him and allowed the man in. He had been followed into the hall leading to the tunnel by Ko Hyuuga, who had returned several minutes later. Since, it had been the first time a Hyuuga had stepped into the tunnel with someone who had been processed, the enemy leader likely had realized that they knew exactly who still had weapons on them.

Hanabi had expected the Leader to drop the charade and order his forces to attack, but she figured what gave him pause was Hinata, who almost appeared ignorant of the danger as she continued to comfort the civilians. As her sister moved to a group of civilians, who were standing in the center of a formation of disguised shinobi, Hanabi wanted to shout out a warning. Especially as the leader locked his gaze on her, and seemed to make the decision to take her hostage in a bid to force the Hyuuga to back down.

Hinata seemed unaware as she said to the group of Ame citizens, “Please, make your way to the front. There’s an opening at one of the windows.”

She received a nod from the group who walked away towards one of the Ame-nin who had just finished processing a small family. As soon as they cleared the enemy Shinobi, the leader of the Infiltration squad gave a signal and the remaining members all activated their seals. Hanabi lost sight of her sister in the smoke as the shinobi around her armed themselves, however before she could activate her Byakugan to rectify the matter. The men and smoke surrounding Hinata were all blown away as she used rotation.

Ending the jutsu, Hinata charged the next closest opponent and hit him several times in the arms causing the swords that he had armed himself with to slip from his now useless hands. She then spun around behind him as he tried to kick at her, and where she delivered a vacuum palm to the man’s back sending him flying into a kunoichi that had been moving to attack her from behind.

Hanabi got over her shock at her sister’s taking the fight to the enemy along with the other Hyuuga and surged forward alongside her father. But, soon broke off to attack one of the men that Hinata had sent flying with her initial Rotation. The large man was armed with an Axe that he wielded with one hand, which he tried to bury in her skull. However, she managed to side step the blow. Yet, as she tried to move in to strike at his arm upon his missing, she was forced to bend backwards as he adjusted his grip on his weapon and tried to hit her with a backhanded blow. She bent backwards to avoid having the axe buried in her chest, and when it passed over her, righted herself as she tried to again move in. However, her opponent raised his knee and slammed it into her chin. She staggered backwards, and as she recovered her bearing, she could sense her opponent bringing his axe down on her again. Before it reached her, she spun and a dome of chakra surrounded her which as the axe made contact with it caused sparks to fly before knocking it free of his hand. Ending her jutsu, Hanabi dropped into a low stance before surging forward to hit the man’s chakra points in his chest and stomach. He staggered back as she came to a stop, before sinking to his knees and falling flat on his face.

Although the man was still alive, Hanabi was confident that he would remain out of the fight for the foreseeable future as she searched for another opponent. However, it proved to not be necessary as her clan had demonstrated why it was considered to be the strongest within Konoha. However, she felt rather disappointed by her performance, especially as she noticed a trail of unconscious bodies in her sister’s wake indicating to her that Hinata had dispatched them. Their father had likewise dispatched several members of the Salamander Resistance before taking out the leader as well.

Hanabi moved to join her father as the other Branch and Main Family members began to collect their disabled prisoners. Her sister meanwhile began moving back to the remaining civilians with the intention to calm them. Yet, Hanabi’s attention was suddenly pulled away as one of the Resistance members shouted, “Get your hands off me!” as he backhanded Ko, who appeared to have been in the process of binding the man, knocking him away. To Hanabi’s surprise, the man turned out to be the one that she had fought, and who she felt should have still been unable to move. However, this proved not to be the case as he charged towards Hinata, snatching up his axe as he did so.

Her sister’s eyes grew wide as the sudden threat caught her off-guard, but she quickly recovered to drop into her stance as the man raised his hand to bury his axe into her. However, before he could test Hinata’s defenses, he was suddenly blown away, and sent careening into a wall. His body slammed into the heavy wooden planks hard enough for him to be imbed in them. But more impressively, the crater that had appeared around his corpse was in the shape of a hand.

Hanabi focused on her father, who had fired the jutsu, and was still in his stance with his hand outstretched. She noticed that some of the Main House members appeared surprised by his defending Hinata, but he paid them no mind as he deactivated his Byakugan, and began moving to the front of the building once more. As he passed by her, Hanabi expected him to rebuke her due to it appearing that she hadn’t properly dealt with her opponent, but he just silently walked past her. Yet, she found his silence more unnerving since she imagined the only reason he hadn’t was so he could critique her in private so as to not weaken her position in regards to becoming Clan Head.

She sighed as she anticipated the training that she would be subjected to as a result, but figured that she deserved it due to her poor performance. She was about to move to Ko to apologize since she felt the entire incident was her fault and because the Branch Family member had often guarded her in her youth. But, found Hinata had already approached him. Yet, as Hinata helped him stand, she was surprised to find that while he initially appeared apologetic, after her sister had told him not to worry and begun moving back towards the civilians a quick look of disappointment flashed across his face. However, it was gone in an instant leaving her to wonder if she had imagined it. Something she found easy to believe since as Hinata began to comfort the remaining civilians, it was easy to see that the Branch Family members who were present took an exuberant amount of pride in her sister, leaving her rather jealous since it was apparent to Hanabi that those who were backing her bid to become Clan Head did so either out of respect for her father, or were expecting to benefit upon her assuming the position.

Turning to follow after her father, Hanabi wondered what it was that Hinata had which she lacked that made the Branch Family so willing to follow her. Since, while it was easy to believe they were doing so because they felt backing Hinata’s becoming the Clan Head would be the most beneficial for them, to her it was easy to see that they were genuinely taken with her sister. Which as she noticed how the civilians began calming from her sister’s mere presence, she felt it highlighted that there was something that Hinata had gained in the past few years that she wouldn’t be able to learn from her father’s lessons. And unless she gained it for herself, it was likely that even if she eventually began to run the Hyuuga Clan, she would probably never truly lead it.

******

Kukaku had easily arrived at Landing Zone Four before the enemy transports, but as they closed she began to feel a familiar sensation coming from them. She tried to figure out where she had sensed it before, but figured it didn’t matter as whatever the enemy had up their sleeve, she would simply deal with it. As she waited for the transports to get in range, she felt her impatience flaring which she attributed to how libidinous she felt, which she attributed to how she had yet to hear back from Sannomiya the last few times she had sent him requests to get together. Granted, she knew she could have called up any of her previous partners, or even found a new one, which she had been tempted to do during the few days she had been in Amegakure having been the last Bijuu to arrive. But, what had stopped her was that while her lust might have been sated by such an encounter, she imagined the emptiness she would have felt would have remained.

She couldn’t exactly explain what the empty feeling that she would experience after sex was, although it had seemed to grow more and more pronounced after each encounter. Which she supposed was why she had been so dead set on Sannomiya being the one to quell the fire burning inside her, since it was usually after sex with him where she felt the empty feeling was closest to being filled. She wasn’t sure she would exactly describe it as love, but she suspected there was something about the man which she wanted to possess and in turn, hoped to be possessed by him as well. She felt that desire was probably the closest she had come to understanding what had compelled her sibling to give themselves to Naruto.

Kukaku gritted her teeth as she pictured the Blond man, as she still was angry with him for the dressing down that he had delivered after she had nearly killed an Aburame during Furofuki’s attack on Konoha. Still, she was willing to concede that he at least had guts, as when it had been decided that the Bijuu would aid Amegakure, he had asked her personally to assist. However, she had nearly refused when she had snarkily asked if he wouldn’t be concerned that she would harm the people they were seeking to protect. Particularly as Nel, had let out a childish laugh as he countered that he would, but considering the people they were facing were most definitely enemies, she wouldn’t need to hold herself back. Naturally, his reply had enraged her, but her pride hadn’t been willing to let her admit as much, which if she had refused to help, she felt would be tantamount to her admitting that he had gotten the better of her in the exchange.

“I’ll show that bastard why he should get down on his knees and beg me to join his little band of lovers,” Kukaku thought to herself as she held her hand out to the side and began to generate a ball of magma. However, realizing what her thoughts had implied, she quickly corrected herself, “Not that I ever would accept. All I want is for him to do is acknowledged that he’d be lucky to have me…” Kukaku frowned as her thoughts again would seem to imply there was something that she did desire from the Uzumaki, but she pushed it aside as she instead focused on the closest transport and decided to put her mind at ease by engaging in some violence.

Kukaku cooled the outer layer of the magma ball that she had created so that a layer of rock formed on the outside. She then tossed it once to gain an idea of the weight, before then catching it and throwing it at the closest transport as it began to land. Her magma grenade smashed through the windshield where due to the gases the still liquid hot magma core were creating, the outer shell exploded sending shrapnel flying everywhere. She smirked as the remaining windshield was peppered with flying bits of rock, which she imagined had torn through the pilot. The transport began to spin out of control before crashing to the ground. She was about to focus on another of the approaching transports as the Ame-nin around her began firing off jutsu at them, since although she had felt something off about the one she had taken down, she assumed that whatever had been inside was most certainly dead. However, above the sound of the downed transports engines tearing themselves apart, the area was filled with the sound of metal being torn through. A moment later, a large serpent-like form burst out of the top of the transport, which as it angled its Noh mask towards her caused Kukaku to flashback to a mission over fifteen years earlier where she had faced numerous such creatures. Aware of the danger that they posed she mentally shouted, “Hey Yamanaka, you need to get every heavy hitter you can to the landing site where that sensor of yours is telling you things feel off.”

“We’re already sending reinforcements to those areas now,” Ino replied calmly.

“Not these Ame chumps, but real fire power,” Kukaku shouted back as she watched the Zero-tails pull itself free of the wreckage, and create several arms which shot out to snag several Ame-nin that had moved to engage it. The arms managed to grab two of the shinobi which struggled to pull free, but then suddenly went slack as their chakra was drained from them. The beast turned its attention back to her, which was when Kukaku raised her hand and a bolt of light shot forth which hit the creature dead center in the mask. The mask shattered from the blast, causing the rest of the creature to begin fading away.

Directing her gaze skyward, she watched as several more Zero-tails began to drop from their transports before they even began to land. The creatures upon hitting the ground, surged forward into the unprepared Ame-nin as they snatched screaming shinobi up to begin draining them of chakra. “Concentrate on the masks,” she shouted to the Ame-nin nearby as she charged towards one of the closest creatures. It immediately focused on her, and she imagined it began to salivate at the meal she represented for it. From its body, dozens of hands shot towards her, but she easily slipped through them until she came fast to face with it. Whereupon she pulled the swords strapped to the small of her back and sliced it through the mask. The creature cried out as it tried to pull away from her, but she leapt over it and pointed her hand down at its head where she fired another powerful blast of light that destroyed the front half of the creature. Which began to fade away as she landed.

She focused on the Ame-nin and noticed several gaps in their lines, which she suspected had been the handiwork of Zero-tails which had headed into the city, and were likely in search of the defenders located there. Primarily the numerous large chakra signatures. A new voice appeared in her mind which said, “Lady Kukaku, this is Shikamaru Nara. I’ve had Ino link our minds as she says it sounds like you’ve faced these creatures before.”

“Yeah, it was when I was sealed inside the last jinchuriki to hold me,” Kukaku replied, “He was sent on a mission to a town in the Land of Iron that we suspected was working with a missing-nin we were ordered to eliminate. It turned out that practically the entire town was working for him, and when we raided the lab, we found dozens of these things which proceeded to attack us.”

Another voice that she recognized as Naruto piped in as he stated, “Shikamaru, I’ve just run into a bunch of those zero-tail things that bastard Shinno sealed into Amaru.”

“Stand by Naruto,” the Nara replied, “Kukaku has some experience with them as well. Please continue.”

“Look, to make a long story short,” the Four-Tailed Bijuu said quickly, “You need to destroy the masks. But, it will become harder the more chakra they steal. I managed to destroy all the ones that I encountered back then…”

“Except one I take it,” Shikamaru said.

Which caused the Bijuu to frown as she asked, “How do you know that?”

“Because, as stated earlier it appears one of the transports is making straight for you, and if my guess is right, that means you’re about to be reunited with that survivor. Be careful.”

Shikamaru’s presence faded from the link, and suddenly the commander of the Ame-nin closest to her began shouting, “Pull back. We’re being ordered to regroup within the city. If you’re pursued by any of these creatures, concentrate all your efforts on destroying the masks.”

As all the Ame-nin began leaping away, making it clear that it was a standing order for the entire defensive force. Kukaku’s attention was pulled towards a transport which appeared to be flying straight towards her. She prepared to fire a jutsu to destroy it, however decided against it as it crashed of its own accord. Yet, due to the angle it had come in at the transport continued to skid along the ground towards her. Still, she felt it wasn’t much of a threat as it began to slow, and she suspected would stop before reaching her. Which turned out to be the case, yet before it came to a complete halt, she noticed something charging at the windshield from the inside.

Yet, rather than the scarred surviving Zero-tails from her previous encounter with the creatures, what smashed through the windshield was a pink-headed woman who was missing an arm, and stared at her with murderous eyes as she sailed through the air at her. Kukaku raised her blade, to batter the woman’s own, who landed gracefully behind her. Kukaku met the almost crazed gaze of the woman’s sole eye as she noticed the scar running through her left one.

Kukaku heard the sound of slithering behind her, and assumed the Zero-tails was appearing through the windshield as well. But she felt it would be an error to take her eyes off the woman, as she could feel the murderous intent boiling off her. The woman’s gaze didn’t shift from her either, although she asked, “Is this the one you sensed?”

“Four tails,” the creature stated as if answering the woman although it was likely confirming Kukaku’s identity for itself as well.

Kukaku frowned at her chakra being recognized, since she knew it had change somewhat upon her taking her current form. Although she suspected the Zero-tails might be drawing the conclusion that it would have changed due to her previous host dying, and assuming she might just be a new jinchuriki. However, Kukaku wasn’t able to ponder the matter any further than that as the woman took the creature’s words as confirmation and launched herself at her with a murderous glee in her eyes.

*****

Kisame fired a shark bomb jutsu towards a group of retreating Ame-nin from within the transport that he had ridden in and marveled at how good it felt to be able to use chakra again as he had needed to wear a chakra suppression seal since he and the other mercenary forces of the second wave had been ordered to mask their chakra signatures. Stepping down from the ramp of the transport, he felt a surge of disappointment at how easily the Zero-Tails had broken through the defensive positions that the Ame-nin had tried to establish. However, he shrugged as he guessed that just meant he could abandon the other missing-nin now surging into the city in favor of completing his true mission. He was glad for it, as Tobi had informed him that rather than aiding the Village of Darkness’s forces, he was to prioritize capturing the jinchuriki that were aiding in the Amegakure’s defense.

Although not much of a sensor, he closed his eyes and linked himself with his living sword Samehada and felt his senses expand. Although not in the way of a typical sensor, but akin to an animal sniffing the air in search of its next meal. He could detect several powerful chakra signatures located within Ame, but as they were close together, he suspected that if there were any jinchuriki among them it would become too chaotic a conflict for him to succeed in extracting one. However, he then began to sense one nearby, and recognized it as belonging to the host of the two-tails from when they had crossed paths after he and Sasuke had abducted the host of the eight-tails. From the way her chakra was flaring, it appeared that she was in combat, and he could tell her opponent was no slouch in the power department either. Although eager for a rematch, he considered bypassing her in favor of moving against what he assumed was the host of the Seven Tails who was battling at the first landing zone. Particularly since according the briefing he had been given, it was likely the two-tail jinchuriki was fighting the Raikage, who would not exactly be willing to hand her over. However, sensing another familiar chakra approaching the two combatants from the sea, he decided to head in that direction after all figuring that if the Raikage wasn’t willing to make a deal, perhaps a fellow missing-nin would.

*******

Aizen watched from the roof of a nearby warehouse as Kisame left the battlefield, and began heading to where he and Kaname should have been aiding the Raikage against Yugitp. A fact which Tosen reminded him of as the blind man stated, “The Raikage is not going to be pleased that we deviated from his instructions. From what I can sense he is struggling against Yugito.”

“No matter,” he replied dismissively. He then looked back to the Zero-Tails behind him which was currently trapped in a genjutsu as he added, “If he dies, then there isn’t anything to be concerned about, and if he survives, but loses the two-tails, then I’ll be able to calm him by explaining how necessary it was for us to get our hands on one of these creatures.”

Kaname turned his sightless gaze towards the creature Aizen had easily subdued as he says, “May I inquire as to why? It doesn’t feel all that powerful, in fact the only reason I noticed them as the transports approached was because they feel empty.”

Aizen didn’t bother looking towards Kaname as he replied, “That is because in a sense they are. An empty vessel that both exists and doesn’t at the same time, which if properly harnessed will bring me one step closer to shedding my limitations. A goal that has been too long delayed due to those Kiri and Iwa-nin that stole the scroll which contained the secret of creating these creatures.”

Kaname while understanding what the man he truly was loyal to meant, nevertheless stated, “Still, unless you can demonstrate how you plane to weaponize it for Kumo. I doubt Ay is going to allow you to indulge in your own experiments.”

Chuckling dismissively for a moment, Aizen replied, “Now that I have my hands on this one, it will make the achievements that I made with the Persona Project seem small in comparison. After all, my real aim with those subjects was to create a creature similar to this one. Based on what we learned from the one that had appeared during that Sky Country incident with Konoha, I had assumed it required an incubation period in a host. Yet, that appears to not be the case, and would explain why I consider those subjects to be failures. Instead, it would seem these Zeros were placed in hosts fully formed in order to strengthen them. As otherwise, they appear to be like this one, there, but not there. Hollow as it were. A will which consumes chakra to bring itself more fully into being.”

Kaname remained stoic, but could see why Aizen wasn’t afraid to incur the Raikage’s wrath since Kumo’s leader had been overjoyed with the results of the Persona Project, and even planned to use them during the upcoming Chunin Exams. If Aizen could deliver something that he felt was even a step above that, then he imagined the Raikage would forgive the man no matter the transgression. However, aware that there was another issue that needed to be addressed he said, “With Kisame heading towards the Raikage and Yugito, it may prove difficult to make it to the boat that is supposed to arrive there. Not to mention, it may prove easier to earn the Raikage’s forgiveness if we leave Ame on our own, and claim we ran into trouble.”

“I concur,” Aizen stated before adding, “Plus, since the Anbu and crew aren’t aware of what truly happens within the vault. Not needing to explain myself to the Raikage in front of them will mean that we will not need to take drastic steps to silence them. The Raikage can be so protective of his men at times, it almost overrides his lust for power. Now how about you go ask one of those pilots down there if they’ll be so kind as to give us a lift home?”

Tosen inclined his head before disappearing to do exactly that, leaving Aizen to his thoughts. Feeling elated that after so long he would finally be able to take the next step in his journey to godhood, he decided to join Tosen in securing one of the transports, since he so rarely got to cut loose and in the future such tasks would be easily accomplished with a snap of his fingers. Appearing behind one of the mercenaries that had been tasked with guarding the emptied air machines and their crews, he buried his sword in that man’s back causing his victim to groan which alerted his companions. Preparing to defend himself, he smirked as he thought of how far he had come since defecting from the Land of Iron, which seemed like a lifetime ago and due to his appearance not reflecting his actual age was rather close to being the case. Yet, he knew there was still much more for him to do, so after easily dispatching the guards protecting the transport that he had decided on commandeering, he prepared to defend it from the other mercenaries as they came to realize that they were being attacked. But, in his zeal to get his prize home, he ended up charging them as he figured the best and fastest defense would be an all-out offensive.

Author’s note: Hello everyone. Let me begin by thanking those that take the time to leave a review. With that said, I’m sure some people are going to be disappointed upon finding themselves facing a cliffhanger, but with a lot left to write before finishing the battle, and it not looking like I’ll be able to work on it in the coming week or weekend. I figured it would be best to split the chapter up. I hope that isn’t too disappointing, as I really had hoped to finish the whole thing up with this chapter, but as you can probably tell there is a lot that I still want to cover with this battle so do not want to rush it. In any case, I do hope you find the chapter was worth the wait. So until next time, Take Care! Sincerely, The Lemon Sage.