Chapter 36: A Lightning Strike
"This world has enough lands and food for everyone, and we all had it, until you lords and kings came and decided that the world belongs to you,"
WITH ASUMA AND RAIGA
The battle between the former Guardian Ninja and the Psychotic Swordsman went on for a while now. Asuma was trying his best to not harm the child on Raiga's back, and Raiga was smart enough to use that to his advantage.
Asuma and Raiga were proven to be evenly matched, and capable masters of their chosen weapons.
But Raiga still had the upper-hand when it comes to long-distance combat, as he often uses his swords, to shoot Natural Lightning towards the very agile Sarutobi.
Asuma couldn't launch a successful sneak attack whatsoever, since Ranmaru will always spot him with his unique Dojutsu, and warns Raiga before the attack happens.
As the battle rages on, Raiga then draws his two swords together, and raised them high into the air, while drawing lightning down upon his body.
"Ninja Art: Thunder Dragon Tornado!"
Raiga then begins to spin his body around, forming a whirling vortex of wind and electricity. The vortex then takes on the form of a Dragon's head, and it was then shot towards Asuma's direction.
The dragon got closer and closer, causing the Sarutobi to sweat a bit. He then forms a couple of hand-seals, a took a deep breath.
"Fire Style: Dragon Flame Bomb!"
Asuma spat out a powerful stream of fire towards the approaching dragon. The explosive fire collided with the sentient electrical tornado, cancelling each Jutsus out.
But all Raiga did was grin at the results. You are without a doubt an impressive foe, Asuma Sarutobi. It has been a while since someone has push me this far" Raiga said, excited that he had finally found a worthy opponent.
Asuma gave no response however, as he was already focused with his next move. He then threw a Smoke bomb beneath his feet, disappearing from Raiga's field of vision.
"YOU THINK A SMOKESCREEN CAN HIDE YOU FROM ME?! AS LONG AS I HAVE RANMARU, THERE IS NO ESCAPING ME, SARUTOBI!" Raiga yelled out with glee, but he didn't even realize that Asuma had managed to sneak past behind him.
"RAIGA! BEHIND Y...." Ranmaru tried to warn Raiga, but his warning came too late.
Asuma quickly threw both his Trench Knives towards the straps of Raiga's Bag, causing said bag to drop down to the ground.
"RANMARU!" Raiga yelled out, as he tried to reached for the fallen bag, but Asuma already made a couple of hand-seals and took a deep breath.
"Wind Style: Great Breakthrough!"
Asuma blew out a powerful gust of wind towards the Swordsman, and Raiga was sent a couple feet away from Ranmaru, separating the pair from each other.
The large bag was then opened, and a little boy with chin length purple hair came out of it, looking scared and worried.
"RAIGA!" Ranmaru yelled out, as he got out of the bag, and tried to run towards the Swordsman.
But then he felt his body completely paralyse. He didn't notice there was a long foreign Shadow beneath his feet.
"Shadow Possession Success. Anytime now Ino" Shikamaru said, in his shadow stance. Ino then made single unique hand-seal, and aimed her hands towards the immobilize boy.
"Ninja Art: Mind Transfer Jutsu!"
Ino's body fell limp on the ground, as her consciousness was shot towards Ranmaru, causing the boy to stop his movements.
"I got him Sensei!" Ino said in Ranmaru's body.
"Good. Get him out of here!" Asuma ordered.
"Right!" Ino said, as she led Ranmaru's body towards where she, Shikamaru and Tazuna were.
When Raiga saw Ranmaru was running away from him, his eyes widened in disbelief and anger.
"RANMARU! COME BACK HERE!" Raiga yelled out.
He then glares at Asuma, when he saw the Sarutobi smirking with satisfaction.
"What's wrong Raiga? Can't fight without your hostage?" Asuma asked with the smirk never leaving his face.
"YOU.....YOU WILL PAY FOR THAT ASUMA SARUTOBI! YOU AND YOUR BRATS! I WILL GIVE YOU ALL THE MOST UGLIEST FUNERAL EVER!" Raiga yelled out in anger, as he held out his two swords up in the air.
"Ninja Art: Thunder Armour!"
Raiga channelled a large amount of his Lightning chakra, and surrounds himself with electricity in the form of a lighting armour.
Raiga dashed towards Asuma in an incredible display of speed, and slammed the Sarutobi away in a powerful explosion of electricity.
Asuma was sent crashing on the ground a few feet away, while coughing up a little blood from his mouth. He lifted his head up and saw Raiga smirking at him, as his Thunder Armour was still pulsing with pure energy from his body.
"ASUMA SENSEI!" Ino yelled out in her own body, worried for her Sensei's chances of survival.
She was able to return to her own body when she undid her Mind Transfer on Ranmaru. Leaving the unconscious boy in Tazuna's arms. Shikamaru was still suffering from chakra exhaustion, so it was up to her to help.
Ino then ran forward and made a couple of hand-seals, and slammed both her hands on the ground.
"Fire Style: Running Fire!"
A stream of fire was sent racing through the ground, forming a large circle around Raiga, trapping him in a literal Ring of Fire.
Ino than ran towards the injured Asuma, but that Fire Jutsu she used earlier, was extremely taxing on her reserves. She was now completely exhausted, but managed to will her way to help her Sensei.
"Sensei are you ok?" Ino asked, while panting.
"Y-Yeah, thanks Ino." Asuma thanked his female student.
She then quickly went to examine any injuries on Asuma, and was relieved that he had no fatal wounds. She then performed First-Aid on his left bleeding shoulder, as fast as she could.
But Raiga wasn't done yet, as he managed to overpower Ino's Ring of Fire, with his Thunder Armor, and then shot a bolt of lightning towards the leaf shinobis.
Out of instinct, Asuma quickly grabbed Ino, and jumped out of the way before the bolt could hit them.
Raiga was still grinning like crazy, as he slowly approached the pair with an insane level of bloodthirst in his eyes.
"What's wrong Sarutobi? Can't handle a little shock?" Raiga said with a sinister grin.
Asuma managed to stand back on his feet, and glared at the swordsman with pure focused eyes.
"You took my kid from me, and now...I'll take yours!" Raiga said, as he was now focusing his bloodthirst gaze towards the exhausted Yamanaka girl, that was standing behind the Sarutobi, with a bit of fear in her eyes.
Asuma never liked threats, especially from someone as dangerous as Raiga Kurosuki.
But if ANYONE, no matter who they are, threatens his Team, especially with that crazy look in their eyes, Asuma won't hesitate to kill them, in the most bloodiest way imaginable.
"You stay away from her, you son of a bitch. Trust me, if I don't kill you here, her boyfriend will." Asuma said with a bit of anger in his eyes.
But this made the Swordsman grin even wider.
"Hahaha there's only ONE way this ends, Asuma Sarutobi. Either you die, or I do." Raiga said with a sinister laugh.
".....Then you die" Asuma said with a serious face.
Asuma then takes a unique stance, with his left hand making a half-ram, while extending his right hand down, with his palm parallel to the ground.
Once the stance is taken, A Spirit of the Thousand-Armed Kannon suddenly appeared behind him.
Raiga was feeling even more excited when he saw mysterious spirit. He then channelled more chakra into his Thunder Armor, and charged towards Asuma with all his might, hoping to finish the Sarutobi off for good.
But that was a very fatal mistake...for the Swordsman.
"Welcoming Approach: A Thousand-Armed Murder!"
The Kannon Spirit then unleashed a barrage of 1000 spirit first towards Raiga, pummelling him like a ragdoll, until he was sent crashing down violently towards the ground.
Raiga's body was completely broken. Despite the defence of his Thunder Armour, he was no match against Asuma's ultimate attack.
Asuma slowly approached Raiga, and was now standing before his broken form.
"You lost Raiga" Asuma said with a cold tone.
"H-Hehe, I guess I did. N-Not bad, Asuma S-Sarutobi" Raiga said, as he coughed up a little bit of blood from his mouth.
"...I hope you are not dead yet. Because I want to ask you something" Asuma said, as he kneeled down beside Raiga.
"I g-guess, you earn....the right to ask"
"Why do you keep that boy, Ranmaru, on your back?"
"Hehe because....that boy has very special eyes. His dōjutsu grants him many abilities. That includes the ability to see clearly through an obstruction, and from long distances similar to the Hyuga's Byakugan. *cough, cough* At the same time, his kekkei genkai has the ability to counter other dōjutsu's visual prowess, as it blocked the ability to see chakra, and even fool the vision of the "all-seeing" Byakugan."
"So you only kept him for his power?" Asuma asked with narrowed eyes.
"It is the life....of a Shinobi. We use every asset we find....to destroy our enemies...But...I always enjoy Ranmaru's company. He is so.....RIDICULOUSLY KIND. He was the only one.....who would willingly stand by my side. Hahaha....In case you haven't notice...I'm not the most....stable man in the world"
"You don't say." Asuma said sarcastically.
"Hehehe now....my I request something of you....Asuma Sarutobi?"
"What is it?"
"Will you....will you make sure Ranmaru is taken care of. I don't....want him to be alone again."
"That....is surprisingly noble of you."
"Hehehe I...I'm not that predictable. S-So....will you grant me this request?"
"...I will do it, for the boy"
"That.....is all I ask for. Also...here"
Raiga then handed Asuma his Kiba Blades.
"Take them....you....have earned them. Hehehe and now...its time....for my own.....funeral" Raiga said with a smile, as he took his final breath, before falling into death's cold embrace.
Asuma then gave a moment of silence, to respectfully mourn his fallen foe.
"...You were a worthy adversary. I will remember you....Raiga Kurosuki" Asuma said, as he stood up, holding the Kiba Blades in his hands, and walked away from the dead swordsman.
He then went to check on Ino, who was now standing with Shikamaru and Tazuna, with a still unconscious Ranmaru in his arms.
"Are you guys alright?" Asuma asked his team.
"We'll live" Shikamaru answered, still slightly tired.
"Yeah, you were amazing Asuma Sensei" Ino said with a proud smile.
"Hahaha nice to be noticed. How are you holding up Tazuna-san?" Asuma asked the bridge builder.
"Aside from shitting my pants, I'm good." Tazuna said, with a very uncomfortable look on his face.
"Okay Ewww" Ino said with a disgusted look.
Suddenly they heard the sounds of a Thousand Birds Chirping from a distance, and noticed the Mist was starting to lift. As their sight returns, Shikamaru's eyes widened, when he saw Team 7, lying unconscious on the ground.
"GUYS!" Shikamaru yelled out, as he ran towards the unconscious Genins.
"Oh no" Ino said with a worried tone under her breath, as she follows behind the Nara.
Shikamaru ran towards Choji, while Ino ran towards Sasuke and Sakura. They then went to check on their pulses, and sighed in relief that they are still alive.
"Sasuke and Sakura are alright. How's Choji?" Ino asked.
"He's fine. But the real question is, where is Haku?" Shikamaru asked, slightly worried.
His answer was given, when they say Haku being tied up by...Naruto? From a few distance away.
"Naruto-kun? Naruto-kun!" Ino yelled out with a big smile, happy to see her whiskers again.
"That son of a bitch. How much you want to bet, that he defeated Haku all by himself?" Shikamaru asked with a tired smile.
"Well, judging from all this destruction around us, I say all your money" Ino said with the smile never leaving her face.
As the Mist continues to fade, they then saw Kakashi from a further distance away, as he charges towards a completely immobilize Zabuza, with a Raikiri in his hand.
"TOUSAN!"
They heard Haku screamed her lungs out, with her voice filled with despair. But then 'something unexpected' happened, that caused both Ino and Shikamaru's eyes to widened in shock.
WITH KAKASHI AND ZABUZA - A COUPLE OF MINUTES EARLIER
Kakashi took out a small scroll from his Jonin vest, and swiped the open paper with his Blood. When he closed back the scroll, he made a couple of hand-seals, and slammed the scroll into the ground.
"Ninja Art Summoning: Earth Style: Fanged Pursuit Jutsu!
A long string of Sealing Formula began to flow through the ground, where the scroll was buried in.
"I don't know why you bother. What use is your Jutsu, if you can't find me? But I can find you....who is now blindly falling into my trap. You disappoint me, Kakashi. And I think you're right earlier....it's time to finally put an end to this fight." Zabuza said with a confident tone, as he gripped the sword handle on his back.
But suddenly, the ground beneath the Swordsman began to shake, and a pack of Ninja Hounds emerges from the ground, biting his limbs, and pinning him where he stood.
Kakashi then stood up from where he was kneeling, with a satisfied look on his face.
"I realized that if I couldn't see you, I'd have to smell you out. Those Hounds are my Summoning. They can track a scent ANYWHERE. When you attacked me, I let you get past my guard. I wanted you to cut me. You see, it's the smell of my blood on your oversized blade, that led them to you. Surprised?"
Zabuza was now gritting his teeth in anger and frustration.
"Looks like I wasn't the only one who was blind. Falling into MY trap. You disappoint me, Zabuza. And look at that, the Mist is finally clearing. And you know what I see? Your Death." Kakashi said victoriously.
"Talk, talk, talk. Do you mean to talk to me to death?" Zabuza replied jokingly.
"In a way, yes. Right now, my hounds are just playing with you. But one word from me, and they'll tear you apart.....Poor Zabuza.....See where your ambitions got you? You were always pushing things too far. Like that failed Mizukage assassination, and your attempted coup d'état. You were forced to flee, with the few followers you had. Your country's Hunter Ninjas are always hot on your heels. You became a Rogue Ninja, whose name was quickly known, even in Konoha."
"...You're an asshole Kakashi, you know that?" Zabuza said with narrowed eyes, didn't like to be reminded of his failures.
"Oh I know. And now you're crazy enough to want to go back, and try it again.....But for that, you need money. And to get it, you stooped so low as to be a hired thug for a swine like Gato."
But this only made the Swordsman narrowed his eyes even more at him.
"....You ignorant Asshole. I want to go back, not because I want to try again....but because I made a promise...I have someone who is relying on me back home. And I'm not returning empty handed."
"Well, whoever this 'someone' is, it seems that you are about to break that promise with them."
Zabuza wanted to glare at Kakashi for what he said, but all he could do was look down in disappointment. Was he really going to break his promise to...?
"All right, Zabuza. Enough Talk. Time to finish it. But it won't be with my Sharingan. It would be a disgrace to kill you with an imitation of some other Ninja's tricks. No, it's time I introduced you to.....MY OWN JUTSU!" Kakashi said, as he formed a hand-seal.
He then made a couple more hand-seals, and channelled a concentrated amount of Lightning Chakra on the palm of his hand. The chaotic sound of the crackling electricity was so intense, it almost sounded like the 'Chirping of a Thousand Birds.'
"Raikiri!"
'Shit! The power of that Jutsu will kill me for sure.....and I can't move!' came the worried thoughts of Zabuza.
Without saying anymore words, Kakashi charges towards the immobilize Zabuza with the Lighting Blade in his hand. Zabuza tried his best to free himself, but the Ninja Hounds were firmly holding him down.
As Kakashi got closer and closer, Zabuza's life began to literally flashed through his eyes.
All the memories he had experienced, came rushing through his head like a flood. All the way, from his time in the Shinobi Academy, where he needed to eliminate all of his classmates, just to Graduate and became a Genin.
All the missions and good times he spent with his Genin Team. How he became the next wielder of the Kubikiribocho.
How his best friend and teammate betrayed him, by siding with Yagura. And how he made the sincere promise to his second teammate, before he left Kirigakure, while she stayed behind.
Eventually, he remembered the time when he met Haku.
The small gentle girl who he found one day, and decided to take under his wing. He told her and himself, that he only wanted her to be his weapon, which she accepted willingly.
But over the years, the very sweet and loyal girl began to grew on the so called 'cold-blooded Demon'. He remembered the time when she lost her pet bunny, and how he would immediately bring it back, just to make her smile.
How he trained her, and taught her what it means to be a true Shinobi. How he would take care of her when she was not feeling well, and how she would do the same for him.
When Zabuza turned his head, and saw a tied-up Haku, who was crying out for him, he finally realized a simple truth that he had long denied. Haku was truly.....the daughter he never had.
When he saw the sadness in her eyes, his heart immediately breaks for her. His biggest regret...was not telling the two people, who meant the world to him, how he truly felt about them.
He couldn't help but let a single tear fell from his eye. Realizing it was too late for him.
"I'm sorry Haku.....looks like I can't keep my promise after all." Zabuza said sadly under his breath, but smiled non the less, as Kakashi was now inches away from him, and thrusted his Raikiri forward.
"TOUSAN!"
He heard Haku screamed out, and his heart broke even more for his little girl. He was truly happy, to hear her call him that. He then closed his eyes, waiting for his inevitable doom.
But apparently, nothing happened. Zabuza opened his eyes, and saw someone firmly holding Kakashi's Lighting coated arm, that was now inches away from the Swordsman's chest.
It was the same Blonde Boy that was with Haku earlier. But how the hell did he get there so fast?
"N-Naruto?! How did you...." Kakashi asked in disbelief, at what he thought he saw.
"Let's just say, I left a mark on you. But no time to explain. Turn off your Raikiri" Naruto ordered.
"What?! But Zabuza...."
"Niisan....trust me" Naruto said with a firm yet reassuring tone.
Kakashi was hesitant at first, but the look in Naruto's violet eyes, told him that he should trust his surrogate little brother.
Kakashi then turns off his Raikiri, and backed away, allowing Naruto to let go of his arm. The Blonde Uzumaki then turns his attention towards the still immobilize Swordsman.
"It is nice to finally meet you, Zabuza Momochi" Naruto greeted with small smile.
"....Who are you, kid?" Zabuza asked, curious about the young man who saved his life.
"I am Naruto Uzumaki. But I'm afraid, we have no time for any more pleasantries. Because as of now, we all have a common enemy." Naruto said with a grim tone.
"What do you mean, Naruto?" Kakashi asked, wondering what he meant.
".....THAT'S what I mean" Naruto said, as he pointed his finger towards the Large Army of Thugs, that are now at the far end of the Bridge.
In front of them, was a small man in a suit. It was Gato, with his large sinister grin on his face.
"Well, well. Looks like the Konoha Shinobis did quite a job on you, didn't they Zabuza? You look like yesterday's sashimi. I must say, I'm disappointed" Gato said in a mocking tone, towards the Demon of the Hidden Mist.
He then set his eyes towards the still tied up Haku, and his evil grin grew even wider.
"Looks like my Birthday came early boys, because I see my pretty little present over there. All wrapped up with a bow on top, just the way I like it. Hehehe I can already taste her skin already" Gato said while licking his lips, as he stares hungrily at the helpless Yuki girl.
But his words were loud enough for both Naruto and Zabuza to hear, which they both release a large amount of their killing intent towards the slimy little man.
'You are so fucking dead' came the thoughts of both Zabuza and Naruto.
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone