Naruto's POV
*Slip*
"Eeek!" Takao shrieked quietly as he felt his foot slip, all of his weight falling into the dark sea of lush greenery. Naruto quickly lashed out and grabbed his right arm before steadying him on a branch and returning to their pace. Some Oharo threw weird looks at them but they didn't even bother themselves with that matter. No matter what Ryoko had claimed before them, suspicion was still hanging heavily in the cold evening air.
The Oharo had pretty much figured that the Mukami would be attacking from the shadows, when they'd supposedly be sleeping so once they had reached the canyon, the only thing left to do would be to wait.
"Focus." The Jinchuriki whispered in the other's ear with a stern voice which made a mental note inside Takao's head. The Oharo nodded weakly as his sad gaze moved onto something in front of them.
"He won't be able to fight like this." Naruto sighed inwardly.
"And you're concerned because you don't want him to die." Kurama's reply had him hesitant for a second. But the giant fox knew him better than anyone else so the blond didn't even try to hide it from him.
"Yeah. I don't. I've gotten attached to someone in less than four days. Hn, I must be getting soft." He rubbed his temples in the Tailed Beast psyche.
"No, you aren't. You're just human, kit." Kurama sniffed the top of his head affectionately, to which Naruto closed his eyes and let the fox's warm breath surround him in a comfortable silence.
"If he can't get his mind off of Aoi then he'll most likely get injured." Naruto sighed again. "That bastard's planning something. And I have a feeling he's been using Takao for it."
The Oharo had been unfocused ever since Aoi had snapped at him. Naruto wasn't really trying to pry into their conversation or anything, but he did end up sneaking in front of Takao's room and pressing his ear against the door. And it wasn't necessary anyway. Anyone could have easily heard their yells even from the Hidden Stone.
"I agree. But we don't know what he's up to and nor do we have the time to find out. This whole Oharo thing is gonna end today." Kurama nudged him gently, brushing his muzzle against the blond's torso. Naruto petted his head before returning to the real world. Takao's eyes were still fixed on Aoi's slowly fading back. And unexpectedly, Naruto was starting to feel bad for him. Thinking about it, he could understand him perfectly. Their situation was no different from Sasuke's and his. The Uchiha chasing constantly after his best friend only to see him delve deeper into his own shadows. Maybe the feelings involved were a bit different, but there was one thought Naruto was sure that he and Takao shared. Everything that was going on between Sasuke and him, Takao and Aoi.. It hurt.
Naruto glanced in the Oharo's direction once more before he let the storm in his mind calm down. He had to focus and complete the mission. Otherwise, everything he, Kou and Nawaki had fought for would only be in vain. And that was the last thing the Jinchuriki would allow to happen. Of course, after Sasuke getting hurt, that is.
"We're here. From here on out, we'll proceed quietly and cautiously. The Mukami are due to launch an ambush but we must appear to have been unaware, understood?" Ryoko's raspy voice was barely audible with all of the wind raging in the shinobi's ears.
Low murmurs of 'yes, sir' and 'of course' were heard and the mighty Oharo couldn't help himself but show a satisfied smirk. One that couldn't bring anything good.
There. Naruto's eyes narrowed slightly as he observed Aoi's reaction throughly. The grey-eyed man seemed more than displeased when he had to force out an 'yeah' through gritted teeth. He despises Ryoko. Interesting.
"Team Beta, move out. Make sure to surround the very edges of the canyon and stay undetected. Attack on my signal." Ryoko smiled viciously as a half of the Oharo Clan shinobi dissipated into the trees. "The Mukami Clan won't even know what hit them."
If you truly want to think so, then be my guest. Naruto almost let out a small chuckle but stopped himself just in time. The Oharo were completely wrapped around his finger. "Team Alpha, let's get this show started." The shinobi suddenly got some more speed as they jumped from branch to branch, their blood pumping with excitement. A sick kind of one.
Five minutes later, Naruto was scanning the surroundings while Takao was still sulking around him, clearly trying to avoid Aoi. The blond hadn't actually seen the place of the battle which was due to occur, only the geological map so he would know which were the best hiding spots and thus, he could predict Team Beta's movement. He was indeed a genius, after all. He let his gaze wonder upon the giant, dusty walls of earth protecting the path from any strong winds. The rocks that might have fallen off the cliffs could have been a huge problem, though. The next step was to set camp into a cave and wait for nightfall, when all the fun would commence.
~~~Five Hours Later~~~
"Takao." Naruto placed his gloved hand on the Oharo's shoulder, keeping him from walking away. Takao gritted his teeth before he turned around to face him. "You'll have plenty of time to settle things with Aoi after this battle. Don't let it affect you and get you injured." The Jinchuriki's advice seemed more like an order which Takao was actually going to listen to.
"Yeah," He sighed heavily. "Fine."
Naruto's gaze softened slightly upon seeing him like that. For a second, he tightened his grip of his shoulder to comfort him but soon pulled his hood back up and left the dim light of the cave with Takao following his steps.
A small sense of relief came over the Uzumaki right from the moment he felt a pulsing chakra signature he had identified as being Sasuke's. His gaze wondered over the greenish edges of the canyon where he could faintly see minuscule light, probably coming from Nawaki's signaling torch. Unbeknownst to the Oharo, the Mukami had another row of shinobi surrounding Team Beta, which would secure the latter's chances of winning the battle. Naruto was the one who had been giving orders to the Mukami all along. He amplified his hearing to hear Kou's calm voice.
"Everyone's ready, Naruto. Can you hear me?" Naruto hummed lowly in response, his eyes fixed on the shine of a blade raised cautiously in the air. "Then let's get this started." The Jinchuriki could almost feel the satisfied and dark smirk on Kou's lips. That's because they both had it. Just as the battle was about to begin, Ryoko's voice resonated throughout the canyon.
Naruto's curiosity grew. As far as he had been informed, there was no 'motivating speech' bound to be held. He turned his head to see the Oharo leader stand on a flattish boulder as the others gathered around him.
"There appears to be a small leakage in our clan, my fellow ninja." He had his eyes narrowed as if he was scanning the crowd. Naruto's widened slightly for a few seconds when he felt a malicious intent coming from someone hidden in the shadows. And that was when he realized what was about to happen. All of his questions had suddenly been answered.
Before Ryoko could say more, a blade was pressed against his throat as a figure appeared behind him with hate in his eyes. There was no sound. Only a deadly silence that no one dared to break.
"A-Aoi?" Takao managed to choke out. "What are you doing?" His voice was weak and seemed somewhat dead. Ryoko could only gape with his eyes open wide, his hands constantly gripping Aoi's arm that was holding the blade.
"I'm taking the life of one of my brother's criminals." Aoi growled.
"You could have warned us too, you know?" Kurama puffed his cheek indignantly.
"It would have spared you of the fun." Naruto smirked slightly.
"What do you mean?" Takao was now ready to jump into action, his fists clenched in distress.
"That day when our clan was attacked by those two traitors, this bastard ordered some of our own to go and hold them back while the rest if us evacuated the hideout. But he knew that the Shadow was much more powerful than all of us in one place and he still sent them anyway! They all died, including my brother that had his throat sliced open!" The grey-eyed man spat with hurt and disgust. Takao's eyes widened. He had no idea of what his best friend had been going through all that time.
But Naruto didn't feel a thing. Especially not guilt.
"This clan has been dead to me ever since. I only want to see you all dead. And not only did 'our leader' do that, but he's also allowed that traitor to enter the quarters and bring our doom!" Aoi now yelled, his gaze fixated on Naruto's, who in return couldn't hold it anymore. He had to let out an amused chuckle. Everyone's eyes moved onto him, including Takao's.
"I must say, good job recognizing me even with the Henge." It was pointless to hide any longer. He formed a hand sign before a puff of white smoke engulfed him, revealing the blue-eyed blond. Takao's face showed nothing but hurt and betrayal. But none of that mattered to Naruto. The other Oharo gasped in fear and potentially hate. They all knew what he was capable of. Even while being threatened by a sharp blade, Ryoko still spoke.
"You were the Deadly Shadow all along?! You dared act like one of our own again and fool us into thinking you could actually relate with our clan?!" He raged.
"Do you really need me confirm that?" Naruto's voice remained emotionless. "Can't you just kill him and get this started?" He rolled his eyes as he grabbed his katana and pulled it out of the sheath strapped around his back, smirking darkly.
"With pleasure." Aoi hissed.
*Slice*
Blood spurted out of Ryoko's now damaged throat as his lifeless body collapsed to the ground with a loud thud. The Oharo around them fell silent. They could only stare at their former leader's hateful dead eyes. And that was when hell broke loose. Mukami jumped down from the cliffs and onto the ninja before them, their kunai and blades ready to pierce through anything, be it flesh or bone. Finally!
"It took you a while." Naruto looked at Kou with the corner of his left eye.
"It's not my fault the lunatic had planned to get his revenge." The brown-haired man rolled his eyes.
Sasuke jumped at Naruto's right side before glancing at him. The blond did the same as they exchanged thoughts only by looking at each other. Their bond allowed them to.
Kakashi and Sakura positioned themselves around the three while Nawaki unsheathed his kunai.
"Can we skip the sweet part and get to the killing?" The spy smirked.
"I don't see why not." Naruto closed his eyes before giving his katana a good swing. "Let's go."
That was when it begun. They all split up as Mukami fought Oharo and rogue fought criminal. Naruto ducked a punch as he plunged his blade into the Oharo's stomach. He let him fall down and he then jumped in the air while swinging his feet to knock out three more right before slicing their throats.
"Three!" Kou yelled while Nawaki snorted with exasperation as he deflected some blows.
"Six!" Naruto yelled back once he had put down three other. They did enjoy competing over who got to kill more. The blond felt Sasuke activate his Sharingan while Kakashi did the same. They were indeed fighting a lot if enemies.
"Take this!" Sakura plunged her fist into the ground as it split open and swallowed up some Oharo.
Brute force, just like Lady Tsunade's.
In that whole mess of shinobi, Naruto saw Nawaki approaching Takao who still seemed to be in shock. Damn! He used the Body Flicker to reach them and to stop the spy just as he was about to cut his head off by clashing their blades together with a sharp sound. Nawaki eyed him with confusion but he had listened to the blond's conversations with Takao and he had a guess about it. Takao, in return, was more than surprised to see Naruto protecting him. Again.
"Don't kill him."
"Why?" The rogue rasped out.
"Because I said so." Naruto growled before he sheathed his katana and disappeared from their sight only to form a few hand signs and crash his palms onto the ground. In the following seconds, large yellow chakra tails spurted from the earth and grabbed more than half of the fighting Oharo, squeezing the life out of their bodies before throwing them away from the battlefield. Suddenly, the shinobi of Team Beta slid down the canyon's walls and headed for Naruto alone. The blond saw them so he rose up and formed a Rasengan in his right hand, using his other one to signal the second Mukami row to stay back because their aid wouldn't be needed. Afterwards, he used his left hand once more to add Wind Nature to it and form the Rasenshuriken which slowly got bigger than him.
Dread was visible on his enemies' faces as he smirked mischievously. He used the chakra tails again to get all of the remaining Oharo into one place and then threw the Rasenshuriken with one of the tails.
"Wind Style: Rasenshuriken!" He signaled Kou and Nawaki to get the others out of the area before he appeared behind Sasuke and Sakura, who were both panting from the intense fighting.
"What-!" Naruto cut him off as he grabbed both of their shoulders and teleported them next to Kou and the others. Explode!
In the blink of an eye, the Rasenshuriken burst into a loud sound and waves of wind that pierced through anything, or more like, anyone, around them. Naruto's chakra tails formed a protective wall between them and the explosion as debris fell everywhere.
A few seconds later, the smoke began to clear away as the tails retracted into the ground and then to Naruto, who was panting slightly. He had used up a pretty big amount of chakra. Sasuke eyed him with concern and amazement at the same time while Kakashi stood there gaping. Sakura was in shock but Kou and Nawaki brushed the dust off of their clothes as if nothing important had happened.
"You've managed to improve your father's jutsu? By adding Wind Nature?" The Copy Ninja had his left eye widened.
"Yeah. The only downside is that I can get my arm broken if I don't use Sage Mode or chakra tails to deploy it." Naruto ran his fingers through his blonde locks. "Dad might have made it better." A pang made its presence known in his chest.
Before Kakashi could reply, Aoi's growl was heard coming from a few meters away. As soon as his vision cleared entirely, Naruto assessed the damage of his jutsu. There were only two Oharo left standing around a huge crater: Aoi and Takao.
"How.." Takao's hurt voice trailed off. Aoi sighed as a sign for him to continue. "How could you? I get your hate for the clan.. But what about me? What have I ever done to you?" At that moment, Naruto and Sasuke glanced unconsciously at each other. The Uchiha's eyes were filled with sadness and regret. And that's when Naruto actually felt guilty. He closed his eyes to cut off their visual contact as Kou tensed up behind him, ready to attack.
"Nothing in particular. I have no interest to be your friend whatsoever. I never did. You're, or you were a part of that clan. You've always been nothing more than an enemy to me." Aoi spoke, his face pale and emotionless. Takao's eyes widened with hurt while his hand trembled visibly.
"All of those times, the things we did together.. Did they really mean nothing to you?" The Oharo's voice broke. Naruto was starting to feel even worse for him. And for Sasuke. He may have never said those things to him, but the blond had basically thrown away their relationship the moment he walked out of the Hidden Leaf Village. Naruto's gaze moved onto the ground as that torturous pang returned.
"Yes. Do you need me to spell it out for you?" Aoi rolled his eyes, clenching his fists.
"I.. I don't believe you!" Takao snapped at him, his face contorting with anger. "I'll beat some sense into you even if I have to break every single bone in your body!" That line had Naruto and Sasuke looking at each other immediately as a gust of wind passed, ruffling their hair. They gazed at each other, their eyes wide with regret and pain as if there was no one else around them and they were lost inside their own world, just the two of them.
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"I'll bring you back to the village even if I have to break every single bone in your body!"
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Kou was ready to jump and kill Aoi in one strike but Naruto, having turned his emotionless eyes away from the Uchiha's, spread out his hand to stop him.
"It's their fight." His tone was cold, like the first time Kou had talked to him after the incident. And that worried the Oharo. Takao tilted his head to a side to look at the blond. His gaze said 'thank you'. Naruto eyed him softly, fully aware of what was inevitably bound to happen and nodded his head gently as he took a step backwards, letting him know that he was free to do whatever had to be done.
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Heya! I must say guys, I've never written a chapter this big in my whole damn life. Jeez, over 3000 words (3128 for those who are interested). Well, you can take it as a bonus from me. I'll make sure to update twice next week even though I'll be leaving on Friday. Sorry guys, don't be mad at me for leaving again. You still love me right? Btw, what do you guys think of my new book cover? When I made the first one, I was like 'meh, it works' and I wasn't entirely satisfied. But now I am!
Next time, on Naruto Shippuden: 'The Calm After The Storm'
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~Bella~
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