ch 21
"There it is!" Hikaru shouted out, pointing out the approaching island to Calamity. The two of them had been nearly inseparable since the pirate attack two weeks ago. That had become less frequent though as she had needed to step up her training regimen. Calamity had seen where her skills needed to be improved. Her arrows had limited stopping power, so she had asked her teammates for help. Sakura had explained chakra theory to her, and suggested that if she infused her arrows with chakra, they'd pack a bigger punch.
Kakashi had helped with the testing, and discovered that Calamity was a fire type. So she had been doing some basic chakra control exercises every day, just trying to find and form chakra. Kakashi told her it would be months or even a full year before she could push that chakra down into her weapons in any practical way.
Hikaru had taken to feeding a giant tiger that the circus troop had on board. Every day he would go down to the hold and take breakfast and dinner for the tiger, and talk to it. Calamity had overhead one of his conversations with the tiger who just lay on his paws watching Hikaru curiously. He was talking about his mother, and how his father and mother were separated. Not wanting to intrude, Calamity left before he knew she was there.
Now however, they were all up on deck, watching the Land of the Moon as their ship approached it rapidly.
"It looks magnificent!" Hiroka said breathlessly. And indeed it did. Sparkling white sandy beaches, crystal clear water and lush forest. It certainly seemed like an island paradise.
"Oh I'd love to go for a swim," Sakura said, her eyes taking in the scenery.
"Yosh! This is a very youthful place!" Lee said, grinning broadly.
"We'll have time for that soon enough," Kakashi said somberly. "Something is wrong though." He peered at the docks, not a single person was out. "With the large ship coming into dock, shouldn't there be vendors waiting to greet them? A welcoming committee maybe? But no, the entire place seems deserted."
The three girls then focused on what Kakashi brought to their attention. The docks were indeed deserted. Silently Sakura wished that the last of the Naruto clones hadn't popped a few days earlier. It was nice to spend time with her old teammate, even if it was just a clone, it was still him. But now, they were facing a highly probable battle situation, and Naruto had gotten very strong and his strength would be missed.
She glanced over at her teammates. It's OK, we're strong too. And we've also got Kakashi and Lee. We'll handle this ourselves.
With her inner assurance firmly in place, she braced herself as the ship shuddered into dock.
A loud explosion echoed down to the docks. Kakashi turned to the Prince and his entourage who were coming down the ramp.
"You should stay on the ship Your Highness," he said, waving the entourage back.
"No," the Prince replied firmly, "My father will know what's going on. We will go to the Palace." The panic in his eyes was apparent though as a plume of smoke rose like a finger to the skies.
Kakashi glanced at the girls quickly. Calamity nodded and ran to the nearest building to their left. She grabbed onto a low hanging fire escape ladder and clambered up it, climbing her way swiftly to the rooftop. Once there she peered towards the source of the fire. The girls had already established between themselves that she had the sharpest eyesight, so she was the natural lookout.
"I see a battle!" she shouted down from the rooftop. "I can't make out who's fighting, but it's definitely by the gates of the palace!"
Kakashi nodded. "Stay high!" he shouted back up to her. He then turned to the Prince.
"Even if you wish to put yourself in danger, I insist you leave the Young Prince here. We're entering a battle zone."
Michiru gulped and directed one of his servants to take Hikaru back on to the ship. Kakashi watched the boy go, thinking of their next move simultaneously.
"Sakura, Hiroka. Take flanking positions on either side of the Prince's wagon. I will take lead twenty, twenty five feet in front. Lee! I want you with the Prince. Stay on that wagon." The girls nodded back at him. His lips thinned with anxiety behind his mask as he looked away towards the smoke. "Be ready," he added softly.
As the servant followed Hikaru onto the ship, he got distracted with the hustle and bustle of offloading the Crown Prince's rather extensive wardrobe. Hikaru used the commotion to slip away and back onto the dock. He snuck through the wagons as they were assembling and managed to make his way to the back of his father's wagon.
No one was going to tell HIM what to do! He was a Prince after all!
The wagon train took off at a fast speed down the cobblestone street. The place really was deserted. People were clearly locked away inside their houses, obvious because Kakashi could see a window crack open every now and then as they passed. He glanced up. Calamity was doing a good job of moving from rooftop to rooftop, considering she was using pure agility and no chakra. He looked back at the other team members.
Sakura looked calm and ready, so did Hiroka, as they raced alongside the wagon. Lee however was atop the wagon, legs apart, one in front the other, arms out for balance, grinning widely.
"As if in flight!" he whooped. "As if in flight!"
Kakashi grimaced and turned his focus back forward, determined not to let the similarities between his 'life-long rival' and his protégé get to him.
The distance melted away and before they knew it, they could hear the sounds of battle. A sharp scream pierced the sky. Calamity hung back at the last tall building before the open grounds that lead to the palace. She could offer long range support from here. She drew her large bow and notched an arrow in readiness. A bead of sweat trickled down her temple at what lay before them.
Calamity saw it first as she was the highest, but Kakashi could see it as well. Hundreds of bodies. Blood everywhere. It was a true battlefield.
He saw the remnants of the battle ongoing. It looked like Palace Guards were being attacked by Military Forces. Kakashi was also sure he saw at least two Ninja in the mix. He turned back around.
"The battle is blocking the entrance to the Palace. It doesn't make sense trying to go through."
"Who's the enemy?" Lee asked. "Who should we help?"
"We'll see soon enough." Kakashi replied, motioning one of the Princes wagons forward. "Lee, drive this wagon, and as fast as you can, follow me!"
He took off at great speed, running towards the battle. Lee grabbed the reins from the frightened servant and snapped the reins, lurching the carriage forward.
The Prince leaned out of his wagon seeing one of his wagons careen past him. "Where are you going with my shoes!" he shouted.
Kakashi kept a sharp eye for the reaction of the battle's combatants of the arrival of the 'Prince's carriage'. He didn't have to wait long.
"It's Prince Michiru! Protect the Prince!" the Palace guards shouted. Kakashi nodded and turned his attention to the attacking Military forces. They all wore the insignia of the Crescent Moon Kingdom. So either they were infiltrators or this was a Palace Coup attempt.
Not that it mattered anymore.
His first kunai cut the throat of a spear wielding soldier. Blood spurted outwards but Kakashi was moving at the speed he had developed to use Chidori so was long gone before any blood could land on him. He cut a swath through the large group of Soldiers who were unprepared for such a skilled attack.
Lee turned and ran the wagon straight into the soldiers. He leapt off it and flipped in midair, landing feet first on someone's shoulders.
The man had to have been nearly three hundred pounds so it wasn't too surprising that he kept standing. He looked up confused at a smiling Lee who looked back down at him and winked. He hit the man in his face with a flick of his nunchaku. The man shrieked as blood exploded from his nose. He stumbled backwards and Lee kept his balance on top of him. A soldier swung at Lee with a sword, but he jumped over it, flipping upside down and cracking the man's skull with his nunchaku. He landed in a handspring on the large man's head, pushing himself back up into another flip as another sword swiped at his arms this time. He flipped over and came around with a crescent kick to the attackers head, crushing it down onto his shoulders, sending the soldier into oblivion. Lee had managed to finish his crescent kick with his left leg out in the kick, but his right leg tucked under him, still on the large soldier's head.
"Gai-sensei says we need to use the terrain to our advantage," Lee said to no one in particular as twirled the nunchuks. "I think you count as terrain." He smacked the man on the left side of his head and he stumbled left, which is where Lee wanted to go next.
Sakura and Hiroka stood ready on either side of the Prince's wagon, on edge, waiting for an inevitable attack. Calamity kept an eye on the battle. Kakashi and Lee were doing well. She could have contributed, but didn't want to give away her position just yet.
She glanced past the battle towards the castle itself. With a gasp, she peered harder. It looked like the King (it had to be with that crown) was actually in a battle with a ninja. The King was clearly trained in swordplay, but not by a ninja. He swung his broadsword swiftly, his thick arms twirling the massive blade as if it was a stick. The ninja however was having no trouble dodging the swings, and seemed to be waiting for an opening to strike.
Calamity notched her arrow quickly, seeing where this was going. It all happened in the blink of an eye. The King swung and missed the ninja, who saw his chance and lunged forward with his hand glowing. Calamity let her arrow fly. It was her strongest bow, her fullest draw. The ninja had barely touched the King's shoulder before the arrow slammed its way into his forearm. The force was such that his hand snapped back out, away from the King, and made him stumble.
The King to fell to his knees in a howl of pain, clutching his shoulder. Calamity's view was blocked then as the King's guards made it to him and carried him away. The ninja she had hit pulled the arrow out and glared in her direction. Calamity let another arrow fly at him, aimed at his head this time.
He didn't flinch, catching it in mid air mere inches from his face. He snapped the arrow between two fingers and turned to look after where the King had gone. Finding no trace of the King, he snarled and glanced back in Calamity's direction before disappearing in a flash.
"Shit!" Calamity said as she stood up. Her position was no longer safe. She looked over the edge of the building and jumped off, grasping a gutter pipe and slid down as far as she could before letting go and landing on the top of one of the Prince's carriage.
Sakura and Hiroka were keeping a very sharp eye out for trouble, watching Kakashi and Lee work their way through the soldiers. As much as they may have wanted to join the battle, their task was to guard the Prince. They both knew it. It didn't mean they had to like it.
They glanced at Calamity as she landed.
"I saw the King. He's been injured by a ninja," Calamity said. She was already in her mind memorizing the face of that ninja. His attack had barely grazed the King, but had clearly inflicted much damage. He would be a dangerous opponent.
"My father was injured?" The Prince Michiru shouted, sticking his head out of the carriage. "Where!"
Calamity nodded her head towards the Palace grounds. "Inside the grounds. He was fighting a ninja. There seems to be three ninja in total that I counted. Several hundred soldiers invading the grounds. Less than fifty palace guards protecting the King. If we hadn't shown up, they would have been overrun already."
"We will go find my father!" The Prince exclaimed. He turned to the driver of his wagon. "Go! Now!"
The nervous driver snapped the reigns and the wagon lurched forward. Calamity lost her footing and fell backwards onto her ass. Hiroka swore and ran after the wagon, Sakura following. Kakashi had told them to stay put and they were now plummeting towards a battlefield after the Prince.
From her vantage point behind the wagon, Sakura saw a head pop up, and used some language she'd never have used in front of anyone. The Prince's son was hiding in the folds of cloth behind the coach. She sped up and jumped, gaining a foothold behind the wagon and holding onto the top. Hikaru looked up at her, frightened. Sakura shook her head in frustrating. Now they had two people to protect in a battle.
Hiroka grabbed onto the side of the wagon and made herself as flat against it as she could, this was going to get ugly real fast.
The wagon horses crashed through a group of soldiers. The large wheels rocketed side to side as they rolled over them, crushing them underneath, their shrieks filling the air. Sakura squirmed as a hand grabbed onto her ankle. She kicked it off when she realized it was a dismembered hand.
The carriage broke through the ranks of the soldiers and burst into the Palace grounds. It skidded sideways and one of the wheels broke. Before it could topple, Hiroka let go of the carriage and rolled to safety. The crazed horses dragged the carriage on one wheel, tottering, threatening to fall. Calamity jumped off and landed on one knee in a crouched position. Sakura grabbed Hikaru from the folds of the back of the carriage and jumped backwards. With the extra weight her fall wasn't as clean as the others. She skidded on the grass, feeling the air knocked out of her, but maintained her hold on the frightened young prince.
The wagon finally toppled, the Prince inside letting out an exclamation of shock and pain. The horses tried dragging it further but the dead weight of the carriage broke the straps harnessing them to it, and they ran away.
Calamity ran over to check on Sakura and…was that Hikaru?
Hiroka took a quick stock of their situation, and it was not good. Kakashi and Lee were cutting down the numbers outside the gates, but a good many soldiers had already made it inside. Plus two ninja's were advancing on their position. She spied maybe ten remaining palace guards fighting as best they could to stem the tide.
Her father had long drilled basic battle tactics into her head. She knew that two ninja were an unknown entity in the battle equation. Were they stronger than her? Two on one would make life difficult. She glanced back at Calamity who was helping Sakura and the young prince. With a whistle she got Calamity's attention.
Calamity's head snapped around and she saw the ninja advancing on Hiroka and the fallen wagon with the Prince inside it who was yelling to be let out. She raced over to Hiroka, blocking the wagon. She too saw the ninja advancing.
"I'll take the girl on the left," Calamity said.
"OK, the dumb looking brute on the right is mine then." Hiroka nodded, snapping her scarf out towards the attacking ninja.
Sakura grabbed the young prince and raced towards the carriage. She skidded low and stopped just shy of the roof of the overturned wagon. She put the prince down and jumped up and onto the door. Sakura opened it and saw Michiru struggling to extricate himself from the curtains and overturned seats, but otherwise unscathed. She reached for him and pushing chakra to her legs and arms pulled him out.
He huffed and puffed, finally landing on the ground next to his son, who he stared at in shock.
"Hikaru? What are you doing here?"
Sakura interrupted them. "No time for that now. We've got to move. Let's head for the Palace." She looked over at her teammates. They had engaged two ninja and seemed to be barely holding their own. She took a deep breath and prepared to grab the Prince and his son and push them towards the palace, when an armored carriage raced around the side of the building. At least ten palace guards rode in front and beside it.
It careened to a stop right next to Sakura and the Prince. The doors swung open to reveal a palace guard and a clearly in pain King.
"Get in Your Highness!" The guard shouted at Prince Michuro. Sakura wasted no thought and pulled at the Prince and his son, shoving them into the wagon. She turned swiftly and yelled for her teammates.
"Hiroka! Calamity! We're pulling out!"
Calamity fired a few more arrows at the blur in front of her. Damn this girl was fast! She jumped backwards and flipped into a one handed hand spring. On her final flip arc she fired off a couple more bolts from her crossbows, all of which missed. But it served the purpose of stalling. She landed safely next to the wagon and in one deft move got on top, already reaching for more bolts for her mini-crossbows.
Hiroka found herself faced with a brute of a man who seemed unaffected by her attacks. The cloth scarf snapped at him, and an attack that would shatter rock was caught. He hit her across the face and she flew back into the ground.
Sakura gasped and readied herself to leap in to save Hiroka when a green blur ran up the offending ninja's chest. His head snapped back but he didn't go down. Sakura made out Lee's shape in midair having connected with that kick, and doing a flip with the nunchuks in his hands. As if in slow motion, Sakura saw it all happen. Upside down and slightly behind the man he reached out with the chain and grabbed the ninja's neck with it. Lee twisted in mid air and brought his body facing the man. He bent and let gravity take him to the ground while pulling apart with the nunchuks. The large ninja's neck proved thick, but his head collided with the stone courtyard satisfyingly.
Sakura heard the crack from where she was.
Lee got up quickly without a second glance at the man and ran over to Hiroka who was unconscious. Sakura shook her head at the brutality and finality of Lee's attack. The Lee she had known before wouldn't have been so callous. Time and war change a person, she told herself.
Lee scooped up Sakura and dodged some arrows from the invading army that had poured into the palace grounds. Despite his and Kakashi's best efforts there was just too many. Kakashi himself stood in a circle of dead bodies near the gate, killing anyone unfortunate enough to be within reach. He glanced back at his charges and shouted at them.
"Come on!"
Lee jumped onto the coach next to Calamity who was still firing bolts at the female ninja who couldn't seem to get close enough to do any damage. The Ninja Lee had taken down seemed to also be getting to his feet.
The carriage lurched forward and sped towards the gate. The guards riding in front of it swung their sabers left and right, cutting down the invaders like weeds. As they passed Kakashi he disappeared in a shunshin and appeared hanging onto the back of the carriage.
They raced off into the evening accompanied by the shouts of angry soldiers.
Konoha
"Subjects of Konoha!"
The booming voice of Danzo echoed over the gathered crowd. Danzo had ensured that every citizen and soldier of Konoha was present. Many Iwa ninja were there as well. Since they had been absorbed into Danzo's army, the Iwa ninja had for the most part blended into Konoha society. There were a few bad ones that seemed more in tune with Danzo's trusted ROOT soldiers. But for the most part, the citizens found that Iwa ninja were no different that Konoha ninja. Just people living their lives as best they could.
But today, they were gathered against their will to witness the execution of one of the nicest and most respected Konoha ninja that most of the citizens knew.
Danzo leered at the massive crowd. This was what he wanted. A populace in fear of him. A demonstration of his power to cement that fear. He motioned for the guards to bring out the teacher, Iruka.
There as a collective gasp from the crowd when the door to the prison beneath the Hokage's tower opened to reveal Iruka. His head was bloodied, his mouth tied with a scarf. Rumor had it that the Hokage – Emperor as he was now demanding to be called – had removed Iruka's tongue. Those with sharp eyes in the crowd could see that it was no empty threat.
It had done nothing to dampen the fire in Iruka's eyes though. He glared daggers at Danzo. One of the guards grabbed his arm and Iruka pulled it away, walking ahead to his execution with his head held high.
He stopped just shy of the post that he would be tied to, and that a fellow Konoha nin would soon impale him with a sword on. He looked over the crowd to see anger, disgust, pity, and fear. He hoped that no one tried anything, Iruka knew that Danzo would have a lot of his ROOT here as crowd control, and he wanted no one hurt on his behalf. He would die with the pride of a Konoha nin.
A minute later, he had been tied to the post and Danzo began his rhetoric.
"My subjects. This is what happens to those who choose to go against the policies that I enforce. Why do you go against me? This is for the good of Konoha! For the rise of the Leaf! The world needs the strength that Konoha has to guide it from the chaos! This…man….before you betrayed not just me, not just you, but the world itself. Humanity itself!..."
"What a load of shit!" A single voice floated up from the crowd.
Danzo spluttered. "W-who said that! Who DARES?"
A man in a cloak jumped clear of the crowd and landed in the open courtyard between the ROOT guarding the crowd and the ROOT guarding the prisoner. Iruka's eyes opened wide as he caught a flash of the face in the cloak.
The man stood there, hidden beneath his cloak and shouted again.
"Konoha has always been strong! The old man would tell us of the Will of Fire that is inside all of us! I don't know what your problem is, but just shut the hell up about it!"
Danzo furiously pointed at the man. "Kill him!"
The figure bent over a little bit and flung the cloak off. The crowd gasped, some even screamed at the blonde haired figure in white.
"Holy shit! It's the Fourth Hokage!" a Konoha nin exclaimed.
"The Yellow Flash!" several Iwa nin shouted out fearfully.
"No! That's Naruto!" The recognition was instant. The time away from Konoha had allowed Naruto to age and become tougher, bigger. His hair was also wilder. He was the splitting image of the Fourth Hokage. And dressed all in white like he was, some were half convinced that he was the Fourth, returned as an avenging angel.
Naruto glared at Danzo, death in his eyes. "In the name of my Father, the Fourth Hokage, and in honor of the old man Sarutobi the Third, I Naruto Uzumaki will kill you Danzo, the worm."
Naruto leapt into the air and made his sign for the shadow clone jutsu. A deafening roar and clouds of smoke filled the sky. A thousand Naruto clones fell to the ground like raindrops. The open courtyard vanished under a sea of white. The ROOT soldiers fell back under the assault of the sudden appearance of the army. Moving as one cohesive unit, the new 'Narutos' pushed the ROOT soldiers back, their sheer numbers overwhelming the guards.
In the background, the assembled masses panicked, all the civilians and 'neutral' ninja running and trying to escape the courtyard. Amidst all that, there were the few trying to escape the crowds to help the guards and attack the army of white, most planted ROOT ninja, but a few Iwa and Konoha ninja angry for blood. It wouldn't be long before Naruto's clones were attacked from all sides, but there was too much chaos and confusion to make it organized, giving the young hero a few extra minutes.
A squad of fifty Naruto's ran up the Hokage tower towards Danzo. With a curse Danzo fell back into the Hokage's office and motioned for his elite root guard to protect him, while he unlocked a covering on his hidden arm.
Meanwhile the real Naruto knocked out the one guard between him and Iruka sensei. He cut the ropes binding him with a shuriken and grinned at his former teacher. Iruka stared at Naruto in disbelief. He hadn't seen his protégé in so long, he had changed so much. The entire plaza was a sea of white Naruto clones. Iruka hadn't seen an attack of this magnitude since Naruto had saved him from Mizuki. It was an odd twist of fate that took them full circle.
Naruto passed Iruka to three Naruto clones who nodded and held onto him tight. In a flash they disappeared. An observant ROOT nin saw them reappear behind the crowds then disappear again in a flash.
"The prisoner is escaping!" he shouted.
The Konoha nin loyal to Danzo and the Iwa nin had recovered from the initial shock and were pushing back against the massive crowd of 'Naruto's'. Naruto had been through a lot of training in the time he had been away though, enough for his clones to be tougher than all but the most skilled jounin of both Iwa and Konoha camps.
The fifty Naruto's that had gone after Danzo burst into the Hokage's office like locusts. Danzo watched as his most trusted ROOT elite decimated them. Code names Centipede and Lizard were a blur as hands and legs destroyed each bunshin with a touch. Both of these ROOT soldiers had been personally trained by him, having shown exceptional skill in combat and a talent for chakra disruption techniques. His own personal bodyguards against the Jinchurriki's of the world.
Within a minute the room had been cleared. Danzo hadn't gotten to where he was without having fought many battles. This attack on his office was halfhearted at best, it was clearly a diversion. He raced back to the balcony and saw the melee in the courtyard. Hundreds of Naruto clones holding the Konoha nin at bay. Danzo signaled to Centipede, who leapt from the balcony.
In midair he formed several hand signs and came screaming down to the earth. He landed with a thump on one knee and punching the ground. A massive chakra disruption wave spread outwards from his landing point. The courtyard was a sea of thunderous pops and smoke as the Kage Bunshins were destroyed. Centipede immediately passed out unconscious from the exertion. It was a near suicide technique that Danzo only commanded he use in extreme circumstances. Anything for his leader.
Danzo scanned the carnage. The prisoner was gone! He spied several ROOT chasing something down one of the streets.
"There! That must be them! Lizard I want them dead!" he commanded his other elite ROOT soldier.
The assassin in question leapt from the balcony in a blur, landed in the courtyard below and raced after the other ROOT. Danzo knew that his orders would be carried out to the letter. His elite four did not fail, ever. He surveyed the damage. The area was mostly intact, most of the populace had run, some had stayed. It was unfortunate that brat Naruto had claimed his heritage. It would give the Konoha nin someone to rally behind, even if he was dead, he would be martyred and Danzo would have to deal with the stupidity of many ninja.
He swore, he would deal with it however he needed to. His sharp eyes caught movement from the left, and dodged just in time to avoid something being thrown at him. His instincts kept him dodging. Senbon! His senses were shrieking out at him, but he couldn't see them. They must be wind senbon, he reasoned. Three more Naruto clones appeared running along the side of the building. One made an open fist and a Rasengen formed as they ran full tilt at Danzo.
His eyes glared at the lead Naruto. So this was the real one. Foolish, he should have left with the others. This was not the first time Danzo had seen the Rasengen, but it was the first time it was directed at him. He had to admit, it was a terrifying jutsu. But Naruto was still far away, he had lots of time to counter. He prepared to do just that when Naruto disappeared in a flash and appeared inches away from Danzo, slamming the Rasengan into his chest. Danzo saw and felt that final thrust in slow motion. Was that a Hiraishin!
Naruto felt the Rasengan connect. Felt the flesh start to tear, but then Danzo seemed to…dematerialize. Danzo appeared to Naruto's left and lashed out with his sword, catching Naruto off guard, slicing his shoulder.
Naruto tucked and rolled away, flashing back to the building wall, clinging to it with chakra on his feet. He clutched his shoulder and jumped away from the building. His two clones leapt with him. As one they shifted in mid-flight so that the real Naruto was facing the tower, while one clone was beneath him facing down, the other with his back to him, facing the other direction.
This was the part of the plan that was hardest to convince Naruto to do. The Hokage's tower had long been the symbol of power within Konoha. Its significance long predated Danzo. But Shikamaru had made a valid point. It's just stone. It could be rebuilt. But pride, power. Those would take longer to recover. If Naruto's attack on Danzo failed, then this was the only option.
Naruto gathered as much chakra as he could manage and pushed out in his wind attack, as hard, as much as he could. Simultaneously, the two clones did the same attack, using all the chakra they had at their disposal. It would not be nearly the amount as the original Naruto used, but enough for the purpose.
Naruto's wind blast hit the Hokage's tower like a tidal wave, atomizing the stone structure into pebbles and dust where it hit. The tower had many seals on it to prevent against damage, against chakra attacks. But Naruto poured so much power into it that nothing could prevent it. It was a force of nature itself.
As he did that though he was in midair with nothing to bolster him, so he should have been flung back equally. His clone behind him negated some of that backwards movement with his own wind thrust, and the one beneath him propelled Naruto upwards. The end effect was Naruto WAS flung backwards, but in a smoother, rising arc away from and out of Konoha, towards the general area of the meeting point.
Danzo dematerialized again and reappeared seconds later on the ground as the wind finished ripping through his tower. He pulled the sleeves on his shirt up to reveal rows and rows of Sharingan eyes. Two were now permanently closed. This technique had saved his life twice today, but cost him two Sharingan eyes, and those were no longer possible to replace. He swore viciously. Naruto had not managed to kill him, but he had cost Danzo dearly today.
The three Naruto clones with Iruka kept the Hiraishin going until they were close to the meeting point, then one stayed behind while the other two kept going. They were being followed and the first part of the escape plan needed to be put into effect.
Five ROOT members burst into view, racing to catch up. Naruto's Hiraishin was able to keep them very far ahead, but the ROOT were skilled enough to not be too far behind. The clone pulled out a handful of exploding tags and stuck them all over his body with a grin, whistling as he did so. A minute later the ROOT ninja saw 'Naruto' standing in the middle of the path. He waved at them then raced towards them. They kept heading for him, drawing weapons while doing so. Only when he was a mere twenty feet away did one of them notice the exploding tags.
"It's a trap!" ROOT member Akbar shouted, unable to change his forward motion in time, he shielded his face.
Too late though as Naruto crashed into them at full speed, igniting his tags. A deafening explosion rocketed the noon sky.
Lizard leapt over the carnage, continuing to chase after the prisoner. He had seen the trap unfold and didn't even blink an eye at the destroyed bodies of his fellow ROOT. Danzo trained all such weak emotions out of them a long time ago.
The two Naruto clones and Iruka popped into existence at the rendezvous point. The clones paused for a breather. They could Hiraishin a good bit longer, and would have to. The other's appeared next to them. Chouji handed the clones some solider pills to help their strength. Two more Naruto clones appeared with a stretcher between them. Anko lay on it, unconscious.
Shikamaru nodded in approval. "OK now you get out of here. We will head in that direction, hopefully leading away any more following ninja."
Senjii and Nagi looked at the teacher that Naruto had saved. Nagi looked away uncomfortably. Iruka's tongue had been cut out, and not gently. Senjii looked to the sky to see if the real Naruto was anywhere in sight.
As if on cue, the real Naruto 'flew' overhead. His arc would take him a few hundred yards east of their position, which was fine, that was the direction they were heading in.
Senjii nodded at Nagi and they raced over to where Naruto would fall. The two clones grabbed Iruka again and raced off, the clones with Anko between them keeping pace.
"Shikamaru," Shino said suddenly. "We have company. Strong chakra signature. Seconds away."
Shikamaru had thought this was a possibility, so he put his contingency plan number twelve into place. He dove off into the bushes, while Shino did the same in the other direction. Chouji stood in the middle of the clearing waiting on the approaching ninja.
Lizard landed in the clearing, noticing the fat Akamachi clan member, and glanced around quickly looking for the escapees. He felt chakra all around him and realized he had fallen into a trap. He leapt forward in a blur. Logic dictated he remove the threat in front of him first, then the threat surrounding him. He felt a movement under his feet and leapt into the air in time to avoid Shikamaru's shadow hold. The clearing was covered in leaf shadows, it would be all too easy for him to fall prey to such a Jutsu here. That means the shadow clan user was here too. The report Danzo had on his desk claimed that there were two others as well.
Lizard jumped and landed only on spots without shadow, racing towards Chouji who stood glaring at him. A second later his foot was arcing for Chouji's face. It collided with a satisfying thump, but instead of falling over, Chouji seemed to disintegrate before him. The figure of a man before him became a writhing mass of bugs. They latched onto his leg and he screamed as they ate into it. He simultaneously felt physical damage as well as massive chakra depletion. As he fell back, he felt his hands reach over to cover his mouth, muffling him. He realized he was held in the shadow bind jutsu. Falling to the earth as he stared straight up, he saw the dog clan user above him, spiraling downwards. The last sound he ever heard was Kiba shouting.
"Gatsuga!"
Naruto twisted before he hit the ground and managed a weak wind blast. Enough to slow his fall so he wasn't liquefied on impact. He still made a rather large 'whoomp' sound and a decent size crater. As he lay in the ground, pondering the steps he took in life to end up here, two heads peaked over into the hole.
"Hey Naruto, come on stop lazing around, we've gotta go." Senjii said.
"You look comfy down there Naruto. Should we send in a pillow?" Nagi said tongue in cheek.
"I'll put both of you in a hole and we'll see who's comfortable after," Naruto responded, clambering to his feet. He bent his knees and leapt out of the crater.
Naruto looked at Iruka who smiled at him gratefully, yet exhaustedly. Naruto walked over and threaded his arm under Iruka's, propping him up, motioning for the clone to let him go.
"I've got you, sensei. We're taking you to Wave Country. I sent a message with the Toads for Tsunade to meet us there. Anko needs urgent help or she'll die, and it's the fastest, safest point we can get Tsunade to meet us. Maybe she can do something about your injuries too."
Iruka nodded, glancing at Anko. She looked almost dead already.
Her injuries had been cleaned and bandaged by the Suna Medic to the best of his abilities. He had left before their attack on Konoha, not wanting to chance Suna being tied to it in any fashion. His instructions were to keep Anko flat as much as possible, no sudden movements. Naruto's flashing Hiraishin movement was the perfect method for moving in such a case as no actual steps needed to be taken.
Senjii took point, "OK we have one day to get to Wave Country. Let's go!"
Crescent Moon Kingdom
The cave they were in was damp and dark, but it was apparently the safest place they could regroup. Kakashi was talking to the head guard who had rescued the King and subsequently the Princes as well. Apparently the King had known about the pending coup d'état, and that was the reason he had sent the Princes away. Even so they had moved months ahead of when their spies had told them it would happen. They had been taken completely off guard. The inclusion of three enemy ninja in the attack had also taken them by surprise.
Sakura was doing her best with the King's injuries, but the ninja had done some serious damage and Sakura still had much to learn from Tsunade. His arm had petrified to stone, and it was creeping higher and higher. All Sakura could do was her best to slow it down.
"I, I don't know what to do here," she stuttered. The King looked at her kindly. "We could probably slow it down enough to get you to a proper healer on the mainland. But we'd need to leave immediately."
"You tried young one. I must thank you for returning my son and grandson to me safely," he said, "but I will not abandon my people."
The prince looked at his father worriedly. "Forget them Dad. We need to see about you."
Calamity looked at Hiroka and back to Sakura. "It's like a poisonous snake bite right, keeps spreading?"
Sakura nodded.
Hiroka caught on to what Calamity was saying. "Ah. Well in the badlands, if you get bit, and have no antidote nearby, you cut off the limb. Better to be shy a hand or a leg than dead."
Sakura stared at them wide eyed. Such, finality, was not what she was used to. The King grabbed her hand.
"They're right. Guard! Bring my Sword."
Prince Michiru stared at them, dumbfound. "What? No! You won't cut off my father's arm!"
"Michiru!" the King barked. The Prince stood rooted to the spot, staring at his father.
"You're right, they will not cut off my arm. YOU will!" the King said, shedding the blankets and sitting up.
"What?" There was unanimous shock around the cave.
"My son, you need to learn a lesson. A lesson that I never taught you. That you must suffer for the greater good. Every hero you've ever heard a story about, every great leader, every king, must at some point sacrifice."
"But, we can leave father. We can take our wealth and live elsewhere. We can find you better medical treatment."
"No! This is our land Michiru! Our kingdom! We will not abandon it to the likes of Shabadaba. The people of our kingdom is our real wealth."
The head guard placed the king's sword into the coals of their fire while this conversation was taking place. After a minute, he withdrew it, red hot, sterilized, and handed it to Prince Michiru who looked at it in shock.
"You are not making any sense father."
"Hikaru's mother. Would you let Shabadaba enslave her?"
"Never!"
"What length would you go through to stop that?"
"I'd, I'd do anything."
"That's what it means to be King." The king placed his stone arm on a slab table. The petrification had reached his bicep. "It means that everyone, every citizen is someone we love. And we will suffer for them."
He fixed Michiru in a steely gaze and commanded him. "Now cut my arm off. So that I may live, and that we may fight."
Michiru cried, but his grip on the sword did not weaken. He held it tightly, the seconds counting down, the silence in the room deafening. Sakura readied her cauterization jutsu, watching the steam rise off the blade of the sword.
He swung, the sound of metal cutting then striking stone echoing through the chamber. The king did not so much as whimper.
"This is what it means to be a man, my son. To be a King." Sakura hurriedly cauterized the wound, blood initially spurting over the stone table. The flesh sizzled as the wound healed under Sakura's jutsu.
Michiru ran to the wall and threw up.
The King turned to Kakashi and the head guard who stared at him, with shock, awe and respect. "I'm sorry, my son needs some lessons on royalty still. He's a good man, just a bit naïve and sheltered. I had hoped that a year long trip through the world would open his eyes a bit. Now then, what shall we do about this intruder in my palace?"
Shabadaba swore violently. The King was missing, the Prince had returned early forcing him to spring his attack sooner than planned. Their losses had been heavy too. Those damn ninja the Prince had brought back were a pain in the ass. And not the good kind, he thought, glancing at his consort.
He looked pointedly at the three ninja before him, and the head of his small army.
"We must find them! They will cause us no end of trouble alive still. I want this island and I will have it without interference!"
The ninja nodded, smiling wryly. They had each seen a ninja they could kill, and that would eliminate the threat. The money for this job would be VERY worth it.
As they said that, a commotion was heard out in the courtyard. Before they could investigate, four blurs came in through the open balcony and landed softly on the marble floor.
Shabadaba stared in disbelief. There appeared three beautiful ninja girls and one ninja boy with an odd bowl haircut, who seemed to have the King on his back. The King got off, and unsheathed his sword. The intruders spread out, each walking towards a specific ninja.
"Shabadaba. I trusted you, and you betrayed me and my people. Time to die," the King said quietly.
According to the strategy they had worked out, an immediate counter attack would be unexpected. Also the fighters could be paired up to their advantage.
Sakura would fight the ninja who was super strong, Kongou. Strength for strength.
Lee would fight the girl who was fast, Karenbana. Speed for speed. From the last battle, Sakura had determined she used a mix of genjutsu and a poison attack to slow down her opponent to make herself seem even faster. The genjutsu would have a minimal effect on Lee due to his under-developed chakra coils, and speed wise he could likely dodge any poison attacks.
Calamity and Hiroka would take care of the ninja who could turn things to stone, Ishidate. Distance attacks versus a close combat expert.
The King wanted Shabadaba and any guards for himself. Kakashi and the other loyal guards would ensure they would fight alone, tackling the small army downstairs.
The Prince and his son were in a building across from the Palace room, commanded by the King to watch everything.
The fight began with fury and shouts. The King impaled the head of Shabadaba's army on his sword. Despite only having one arm, the King was still a master swordsman.
Shabadaba screamed in fear and anger, drawing his saber and charging the King with a flurry of wild swings.
The fast girl came at Lee, using her normal mix of genjutsu and speed. But it had no effect on Lee who followed her every movement and he too disappeared in a blur of speed.
"You're not that fast," Lee said casually, catching her with a fist to her temple that glanced off. The girl crashed to the ground, but got up quickly, drawing her daggers. Lee pulled out his nunchuku, ready for her.
Sakura braced herself as the large brute of a ninja rushed her. She had already made up her mind on how this fight should go. As he swung, she ducked under then pushed as much chakra into her fist as she could. With a step she was next to and behind her opponent. She swung as hard as she could, connecting with him, pushing the chakra through, and using her double-tap punch, the Futae-no-kiwami. The results were explosive. The ninja's stomach exploded, and his spine shattered. The outcome was horrific, and it would have a psychological effect on the other combatants she had calculated.
She was right.
The girl ninja had seen that mid attack on Lee and was terrified. She threw her daggers at Lee and tried to escape, leaping for the windows. She fell back an instant later, a large arrow embedded in her chest.
Michiru exhaled, lowering his bow. The bow and arrow was the preferred weapon of both himself and his son. From this vantage point, they could pick off anyone trying to escape his father's assault, and he would NOT let down his father. Not after what he sacrificed to do this.
Hiroka and Calamity were tag teaming Ishidate. Calamity was using her mini-crossbows to good effect, keeping him at distance. Hiroka's scarf attacks were snapping and vicious, and didn't come in straight lines, making it almost impossible to dodge. Several long gashes already adorned his body.
With an angry yell he rushed them, taking a few crossbow bolts to his legs, but still coming. He made it close enough to back hand Calamity but before he could connect Hiroka's scarf wrapped around his hand and he found himself being raised up in the air. He began to petrify her scarf, but it wrapped itself around his neck as well. He lost focus for a split second, to reach for the scarf around his neck, he did not see the arrows that riddles his chest and neck.
Hiroka dropped him like a rock, letting his body roll out of her scarf. She rolled and snapped the scarf back to her, shortening it and wrapping it around herself.
Calamity grabbed a quick refill of her bows and looked around the room for other enemies.
The King advanced on Shabadaba, who was also good with a saber. He was no match for the King though who parried a wild thrust, and deftly removed Shabadaba's hand. The pompous man wailed and shrieked, grasping onto the stump where his hand had been.
The King looked at him in disgust. "How could a worm like you ever hope to lead a country?"
"Mercy your majesty. Please, Mercy!" Shabadaba cried.
The King swung his sword, lopping his head off. It rolled across the room, a look of horror frozen on its face. "Mercy granted."
The sounds of fighting in the courtyard grew less and less. Kakashi and the palace guards had indeed taken them completely by surprise. It was a slaughter.
The King looked grimly around the room. "Not a shining day in my nation's history, but we are victorious!"
Two days later, the King sat on his throne, with the Prince and his son to his left. Hikaru's new tiger friend sat next to him, purring like a kitten. The King had taken a liking to that friendship, saying it showed strength in its purest form.
Michiru smiled brightly at Sakura and the others, but his eyes had a hardness that wasn't there before. Michiru had been forced to grow up, and saw the world differently now. He hoped he was indeed a good a person as his father said he was.
Kakashi had been unable to attend, laying in a bed exhausted from overuse of the Sharingan.
"You saved my life, and my son's life. And my Kingdom. We owe you a life debt that could never be repaid," the King said, his voice booming over the gathered audience. Those members of his court who had been imprisoned for not siding with Shabadaba had been released and now cheered Sakura, and the girl team from Tengoku. Murmurs of the Celestial Beauties of Heaven echoed throughout the hall. Lee stood there as well, blushing brightly.
"The Crescent Moon Kingdom recognizes Tengoku as a friend, and as a protector of our Kingdom." Such a declaration was a major coup for Naruto's fledgling village. The Crescent Moon Kingdom was rich and influential. Many other smaller nations would follow their example.
The King turned to Lee. "It is my understanding that Shabadaba used Konoha ninja to try to kill my son. I realize that I owe you personally a life debt, but I hereby cut ties with your village. No member will be welcome here, nor will we send any business to Konoha. I suggest you examine your loyalties young one, for they are with the wrong side at the moment.
Lee looked down ashamedly. He had been thinking the same as well.
"I thank you all. You are welcome to stay for as long as you like. We would be glad to host and celebrate you!" the King smiled magnanimously.
Sakura sighed, a vacation! Hiroka and Calamity grinned widely, images of that white sandy beach running through their heads.
État de l’alimentation hebdomadaire
-- Classement
Power Stone 
-- Power
stone