Also not editing this bc i'm a fucking tool
Third person pov
Horrifying was one way to put it.
The sand ninja, Gaara, was wrapped in sand and radiating an oppressive chakra that made it hard to breathe. It felt like there were several pounds of pressure being weighed down on them. Shikamaru's grip on Arron's hand tightened, his teeth grinding together like stones as he tried to retain his focus through the sheer bloodlust in the air. Trexx carefully set them down on the tree branch he'd perched on, his shadowy body beginning to blend with the darkness cast by the canopy above. He was growling, so lowly Shikamaru almost couldn't hear.
Arron gazed at the One Tailed Beast with narrowed eyes, head tilting slowly as she took the sight in and tried to figure out exactly what she was looking like. It looked like a very fat... something. Arron supposed it didn't matter all that much. All she could tell for absolute certain was that it was angry. Being here was dangerous, but Shikamaru had wanted to come for his friends. Surely they couldn't leave until their safety, and the safety of the village, was ensured.
"...Ew." Arron's nose crinkled, her final judgement of Gaara's demon seeming to wrap things up quite nicely. Shikamaru snorted out a laugh before he could even realize what he was doing. He blinked a few times, surprised he was able to find any ounce of amusement through the stifling fear. "It is ugly."
"I-- yeah. Yeah, it is." Shikamaru coughed the words out, shaking his head and grinning wryly. He took a deep breath, trying to center himself. He had to keep calm. Arron didn't seem afraid. Cautious and on edge, but there was no bone-shattering fear present in her expression. Shikamaru would know better than anyone if there were. "I... think that's a tailed beast. All the hidden villages have one. It's supposed to be for balance's sake, or something. It's all a drag."
Arron nodded in wide agreement. She vaguely recalled the tailed beasts, though not well. Tales of them were told across the elemental nations, so she'd grown up hearing about them just as any other kid might, captive or not. This one was rather obviously the One Tailed Beast. Characteristic of Suna, it seemed to be made of sand. Clouds of it were pluming off the thing as it grew and grew in size, stretching above the trees it was so gargantuan. It was actually rather horrifying, to be entirely honest with you.
Arron swallowed hard and told herself she was not going to panic, because she does not do that anymore. They are here to get Shikamaru's friends and... protect the village? Arron's not sure how they can possibly do that when their opponent is so large, and so powerful. Arron happens to be rather puny, and Shikamaru is as well put up next to that odd looking rat. Or perhaps it is a bear? No, it has pointy ears. It must be a cat of some kind. Or a dog. It has a very wide face, however, so Arron cannot be sure. She is not well-versed in many varieties of animal.
Her eyes climbed across the scene, watching the creature clutch its head and shriek. She grimaced as the trees shook, leaves falling and spiraling to the ground around them. Shikamaru drew her in closer, looking incredibly grim. Perhaps they could shoot water out of it? It was made out of dirt, and when dirt got wet--
Wait. It was made out of dirt.
"Trexx." Arron realized, eyes growing wide. She whirled around to peer up at him. He was staring at the sun, but a light bat to his knee brought his attention back to her begrudgingly. "You eat dirt."
"Kill sun." Trexx rumbled. Arron was only somewhat sure it was an agreement. Trexx eats many things he isn't supposed to, and dirt is one of those things. This is a very good thing in Arron's opinion. Can Trexx grow big enough to eat the weird cat, however? Arron's really not sure. She supposes they will find out. "Eat sun?"
"No. Eat dirt cat." Arron thrust a finger in the direction of the thing. Trexx's beady white eyes narrowed contemplatively. He didn't look very inspired. Arron did not care. He was going to eat it or they were going to die. It is math, very simple. "Get big. Eat it."
Trexx looked extremely, extremely skeptical. Arron cannot blame him, as it is very suspicious and will likely not work. Arron does not see many other choices. The blue one with the fan on his back is out, and the yellow one has been screaming for three minutes about things she does not bother to listen to. Shikamaru needs better friends, in Arron's opinion, but she is not here to judge. Shikamaru is a very good judge of the people's insides. Their... yes. That. The person part.
Shikamaru squinted at Trexx unsurely. He'd seen Trexx eat rocks. Hell, he'd seen Trexx eat just about everything in all honesty. His shadowy mass seemed able to absorb just about anything you tossed into it. That was great! However, Shukaku was about as tall as Hokage mountain at the moment, which is less than ideal. He's also an ancient chakra beast, and Trexx is just about the stupidest thing Shikamaru has ever met in his entire life. That's not to rag on him in any way, but he does constantly talk about eating the literal sun. That puts no balls in his court.
"Arron, are sure that's a good idea? Watching him attach his face to the ground and suck the mud off the floors is different than eating a tailed beast. I'm not even sure it's possible, if the thing really is made of chakra." Shikamaru observed as Trexx's shadowy body flexed in contemplation. It was actually pretty weird to watch him warp around, his form rippling. This was probably the most critical thinking he'd ever done. Thinking realistically about how long Trexx had been alive, his existing knowledge honestly wasn't bad.
"Not chakra. Dirt." Arron looked at him like he was an idiot, waving a vague hand in the direction of the tailed beast. As if on cue, it let out a burst of sand in Naruto's direction. Shikamaru made a face. Fair. He should just shut up and listen to Arron. She probably has a better chance at fixing this than he does. All he wants to do is curl up in a ball with her and take a nap. "Trexx can eat."
"Eat." Trexx agreed, and then he melted into the shadow of their tree as though he were never there at all. Shikamaru blinked a few times, head whipping back towards the sand demon in search of Arron's shadowy companion. But there was nothing there. Just the One Tails, as angry as it was the last time he examined it. It would eventually break its way over here and kill them, and then it would trample the village.
Arron gave his hand another squeeze, drawing his gaze over to her. She looked sure of herself. Shikamaru took a deep breath and tried not to think too hard about how his survival was now riding on the shoulders of an entity that thought eating cast iron pans was the peak of living.
~~~~~~~
Hiruzen's still in a box. That hasn't changed.
Honestly, he'd thought he was going to die when Orochimaru raised the barriers for them to face off. The snake sannin, trained by himself, was strong. Where Hiruzen was old and weary, Orochimaru remained spry and sharp. Hiruzen should've stepped down years ago. His retirement was long since due, but with no one to come take his mantle, he'd held onto it tight to keep it from Danzo's grasp.
That's not to say he was entirely incapable in a fight. Achy as his bones were, he could still force himself to move. It just took more effort, drained his energy faster than it might've a decade or two ago. Hiruzen had rose to the battle intending to drag Orochimaru down with him if need be. If he had to go, he would at the very least take a threat to his beloved village down with him.
That was wholly unnecessary now, apparently. Because though Hiruzen was still in the box, Orochimaru most certainly wasn't. Or was he, technically? It was hard to say. The angry rolling thing that had bowled him over had begun to suck him into its body legs first. As much as his former student thrashed and hissed, it had done little to help. He'd commanded the two undead kage as best he could, but it was for naught. The creature still swallowed him, unperturbed by his violent struggles.
The second Hokage had also been toppled and was currently being... Hiruzen was not sure what was happening. The little shriek-y one was bouncing on the back of his skull like a basketball, slamming his face down into the concrete of the roof over and over again. Hiruzen had no idea why. Tobirama wouldn't be getting up anytime soon. In fact, Hiruzen would put real money on him being dead. Well, he'd been dead before. He was just... dead again. Now. It probably should've made him sadder than it did.
Hashirama still stood, watching the scene with more bewilderment than Hiruzen could bring himself to express. His brows were at his hairline, poor man. Hiruzen was too resigned to the absurdity of the entire situation to quite care anymore. Arron had been making continuous ripples in the village since her coming here, and this was simply another one he hadn't seen coming from a mile away. He was thankful for it all the same. Maybe now he'd get to see his grandson grow up.
"I no longer feel compelled to follow his orders to fight you. Does that mean that thing... killed him?" Hashirama asked slowly, disbelief clear in his expression. He looked disoriented. Probably because he'd been dead for the past however-long-it's-been and is now standing on some random building having been forced to fight. Had to be hell on his joints.
"One would hope." Hiruzen grimaced. He had no sympathy for Orochimaru. A part of him would always care for him, but that morose affection was reserved almost solely for the man he had been. He'd become too crazed and too cruel for Hiruzen to stand by. It was a relief to see him go. "Asuma has told me these creatures are prone to spitting things they consume out in random intervals. He may be back."
Hashirama looked very disturbed by his statement, and also confused. He looked down at himself, inspecting his armor with a frown. Hiruzen also cocked a brow. By all means, he probably should've dropped back dead again. Orochimaru had been the one in charge of the jutsu. If he were dead, surely it would've broken, right? Hiruzen eyed the angry rolling creature unsurely. It stared at him furiously.
"...Right." Hashirama sniffed a bit. The rolling one burped. The little one stopped its attempts to cave Tobirama's skull in, instead turning to stare at Hiruzen. The Third felt a shiver travel down his spine. He felt pinned by its unseeing stare. Those eyes, so full of malice, yet lacking the substance most living creatures had. How did the Nara family cope with such horrifying house guests? He regrets not listening to Asuma's regaling tales about these... things sooner.
Somehow, this felt more intimidating than staring down Orochimaru. Hiruzen risked looking away, glancing around at the box around him with a grimace. He needed to get out of here. He could feel a great disturbance of chakra nearby, but knew the barriers would not release him as he wished. He could only hope the capable members of Konoha would raise to the challenge of subduing what was almost certainly a tailed beast rampaging. Just the thought along was enough to make his stomach turn. They still recovered from the Kyuubi to this day. Could they truly take another bout of such devastation?
Before he could move to try and knock against the barrier again, the tiny one moved. It was so fast it was a blur. Hiruzen let out a strangled shout as it shrieked and flew at him, shoving himself backwards as it bounced off the ground at an angle that sent it hurtling at him again. It was like a wad of rubber. Hiruzen ducked, heart thundering.
"Noot?" The rolling one grunted. The little one shrieked, and Hashirama's paleness seemed to get worse when the creature turned on him. Its angry eyes narrowed even more. The first kage gulped. "NOOT!"
Hashirama screamed in terror as it charged. Hiruzen ducked again and silently wished he were fighting Orochimaru instead.