Chapter 61

Mid-April hit me like an inpatient fat kid on a slide.

In two weeks, my squishy friends were going to arrive back in the camp and cause me anxiety with their squishiness...

So, on top of feeling like I wasn't doing enough, my main sources of anxiety were going to come back and get into danger and cause me to worry.

So, it was lots of fun all-around.

The Hokage had admonished me for using my fellow Shinobi as 'test-subjects' and wasn't satisfied when I explained to him that my 'comrades' weren't test-subjects but were instead strengthened by 'Kinjutsu' that I developed.

Now the Hokage was causing me grief.

But it was understandable grief, I probably shouldn't have touched any of Konoha's ninja during the war.

But that was in hindsight, it was too late to undo what I had done.

"Sigh..."

With Kiri retreating from Lightning Country, Kumo was now free to bother us.

Our stock of test-subjects was refilling but a good bit of my time was spent capturing said subjects instead of experimenting on them like I wanted to.

Which sucked, but was also a welcome trade-off.

I had been getting antsy...

And something new was welcome...

...

I laid in my bed, trying and failing to summon the will to live.

Kiri was out for the count, and Fugaku was being sent to our camp.

Minato and Jiraiya were in Grass, and needed help last I heard.

Minato hasn't killed half a regiment of Iwa-nin yet but still had his Yellow Flash moniker...

Tsunade was forcibly stationed in Wind Country and was healing up a storm while Konoha's cannon fodder died by the hundreds from poison.

It looked like I was going to be stationed somewhere else and it was a real piss-off...

They should have sent Fugaku...

I'm twelve...

Have some pity on me...

I just want to experiment in my comfy lab...

"Ahhhh...!" I groaned while mentally cursing Kiri and the Raikage.

If Kiri had been stronger...

Or if the Raikage had been weaker...

Bastards...

...

I felt the ground tremble slightly and raised an eyebrow.

I heard the knob on the door jiggle and turned to look at the door.

I stared dully at Orochimaru as he burst into my quarters, he was looking pretty happy...

"The Raikage is headed this way!" Orochimaru's smiled widened as he spoke.

Why was that good news?

"Hopefully Iwa isn't following him..." My voice was filled with nervousness and a bit of excitement...

I got out of bed and stared at Orochimaru who still didn't lose his smile.

"I've given the order to abandon the camp, all that we have to do now is successfully seal the Raikage!"

So Orochimaru got rid of all my meat-shields...? And what's this nonsense about a seal?

I thought he gave up on the seal?

"..." I stayed silent and stared at Orochimaru with unconcealed annoyance.

I needed the cannon fodder...

"What about Iwa?"

Orochimaru snickered.

"Kekeke... What about them..."

He wasn't worried about Iwa...

"Alright... What's the plan?" I rubbed my face with one hand.

Orochimaru rubbed his palms together and leaned forward.

"The Raikage came here for you, so you'll be the decoy while I catch him unaware!" Orochimaru looked gleeful.

Sadly, I didn't share any of his enthusiasm.

"What did I do?"

Orochimaru shrugged.

"He's probably mad about you killing his army."

That was forever ago and Orochimaru killed most of them.

"It's war what does he expect to happen...?" I said instead.

"Sigh..." I placed my arm over my eyes and sighed loudly.

"And how do we even know he's coming here?"

Orochimaru shrugged with a smile.

"I'm fighting him now, of course." The ground trembled as he spoke.

How would he catch the Raikage unaware when he was fighting him?

"Sigh..." My dermal armor formed and my mask covered my face the moment my Byakugan activated.

I was nervous.

It was something I hadn't felt in a long time.

I slowed my perception as much as I could and followed the clone out the door.

...

Orochimaru's cheerful clone and I arrived where the fight was taking place while ignoring our fleeing allies.

The Raikage was tall and dark-skinned like his son, but the features that stuck out the most were his main of hair and the weird red rope around his waist.

Orochimaru was holding his own but the fight hadn't truly started yet.

The Raikage hadn't even donned his Lightning Cloak yet.

Goddammit.

I swallowed heavily and prepared myself for possible death.

If I make a good enough showing maybe someone will resurrect me...?

I can only hope so...

...

I Shunshined beside Orochimaru and the fight paused for a moment.

I saw the Raikage's mouth open and stopped enhancing my perception so I could hear what he was saying.

"Hyuga Shiro, you've caused me some headaches." His voice was calm.

I hadn't, I'd killed some of his ninja, which was what everyone else did...

"I think your making excuses." Maybe to make himself feel better about killing a child?

The Raikage smiled? Showing me his teeth.

"Perhaps, but a child should not question their elders."

I eyed the scar on his left side, and the scene of Naruto using his own attack against him played in my head.

The last resort...

I turned my head towards Orochimaru hoping he would pipe up.

Sadly, he did not, and we descended into a tense silence.

"Well, I hope you're better at fighting then you are at talking." And with that, the Raikage became covered in Lightning Chakra.

I again slowed my perception to its maximum and readied myself for an attack.

Orochimaru launched a Wind Blade, which did little more than tickle the Raikage.

I Shunshined behind the Raikage and punched him in the spine with a Chakra Enhanced Punch.

Boom*

The ground under me shattered and the Raikage bent in a way that certainly didn't feel good and flew past Orochimaru.

He skipped across the ground a few times before flipping and landing his feet where he continued to slide.

The Raikage stopped sliding and Orochimaru sent me a surprised look.

"It would do you well if you did that again." Orochimaru turned towards the Raikage and sent a wall of Wind Blades at him.

I nodded and took a deep breath.

"Alrighty..." I Shunshined towards the Raikage who now looked serious.

Which probably wasn't good for me.

I arrived behind the Raikage and was promptly kicked away as the Raikage decided that the Wind Blades didn't matter and kicking me was much more important.

I was able to block and my dermal armor held up so I had high hopes for my survival.

The Raikage Shunshined to me and stabbed at me with his fingers.

And my hopes were dashed when his four fingers nearly sheared through the arm I used to block.

I jumped away and the Raikage stood watching me.

He had pierced through my armor but had been stopped by the layer on the other side of my arm.

"Ouch." If my face was uncovered, I would have cried crocodile tears.

The Raikage shook his head and dashed towards me.

I dashed towards him as well.

I launched a Bone spear at the Raikage but it just bounced off his cloak.

Welp...

A tendril of chakra made it's way to my forehead and unlocked my seal.

I Shunshined behind him but was met with a knife-hand, so I smashed his fingers with a Chakra Enhanced Punch.

Boom*

It worked as well as I expected it to and my fist was split down the middle.

I jumped away and the Raikage and I were once again staring at each other.

An Orochimaru clone was spectating our fight and the real Orochimaru was underground, likely preparing for some shenanigans.

"Sigh..."

I coated my now healed hand in lightning chakra and started spinning it.

I hadn't used it in a long time...

I Shunshined in front of the Raikage and drove the Lightning Drill into his stomach while he drove his fingers into my chest.

My drill did little more than touch his skin and his fingers were knuckle-deep in my ribs.

I again jumped away, while the Raikage confidently watched me.

"Well done, you touched me." I resisted the urge to groan and instead just nodded.

When I touched him, I tried to block his tenketsu but had no success from what I could see.

"Thanks for letting me heal." I send him a second nod.

The Raikage nodded back and sped towards me with three fingers extended.

I sped towards him as well.

I Shunshined behind him mid-way and Shunshined behind him once more when I saw him turning to face me.

I struck him in the spine with a Chakra Enhanced Punch that was more powerful than the first and he flew away tumbling as he went.

Boom*

The Raikage regained his footing, he looked mildly annoyed but unconcerned about the state of things.

My attack had done no damage...

I felt a breeze through the holes in my shirt, which annoyed me.

The Raikage was playing with me.

I was given time to heal and plan, while he stood and waited.

Fuck.

I sped towards him creating a Shadow Clone as I went.

The Raikage didn't move to meet me, he dramatically lowered a finger and Shunshined in front of me.

I Shunshined to the side and my Clone Shunshined behind him, my clone and I simultaneously threw a punch.

The Raikage jumped into the air avoiding our punches and causing me to blink.

I mentally thanked the Naruto-verse deities and crouched.

Boom*

My feet cratered the ground and I sprung towards the airborne Kage, fist cocked back, ready to send him to space.

He kicked towards me and I punched him with the strongest Chakra Enhanced Punch I've ever used.

Boom*

The combination of my punch and his kick sent him skyward and me groundward.

Boom*

I landed kicking up dust and creating a crater, while the Raikage continued off into the sky.

"Well done." Orochimaru's clone appeared beside me and dispelled the dust with a wave.

My clone, who was supposed to suicide on the Raikage gave me a thumbs up.

"How did your fight with him go last time?" I gave the clone a thumbs up as well.

Orochimaru's clone frowned.

"Iwa and Kiri attacked Kumogakure and the Raikage left." I nodded in understanding.

A battle with the Raikage only ended when the Raikage decided it ended.

"Should we make a run for it, or are we still going to seal him?" I turned my attention to the still flying Raikage.

The Raikage had started to arc, so he would be coming down shortly.

"My preparations have been made, you just have to lead him to me."

I nodded and looked to my clone.

"Bomb the Raikage." The clone nodded and summoned three more of itself.

Orochimaru's clone gave the group of us a nod and dispersed.

I looked towards the Raikage.

He was still making his way down...

"Sigh..." One of the clones sighed and the others gave it a dirty look.

I rolled my eyes and Shunshined to Orochimaru's Seal.

Meanwhile, the clones sped towards the falling Raikage.

...

Boom*

Boom*

I was hit with a rush of memories and a quarter of my total chakra returned, only two clones got the job done...

"Feed the circle your chakra when the Raikage is within it." I nodded distractedly.

The Raikage was barreling towards me with one finger extended at double the speed he previously used.

I wasn't fast enough to do anything should he attack me...

The Raikage approached and I felt sweat trickle down my face.

My mask was getting gross.

The Raikage slowed his approach and stopped just outside of the circle.

"Not running brat?" I shrugged.

Even with my cloak, I didn't have much hope.

"No point, I'm not fast enough." Which was sadly true.

I spent a lot of time improving my body and this monster in human form was still faster.

And it was the body he was born with...

"Well, it's time I pay you back for butchering my men!" He started walking towards me.

I crouched and put my hands up.

"Be gentle with me, it's my first time." The Raikage paused with a look of disgust on his face.

And I slammed my hands down activating the seal.

The Raikage was surrounded by a sickly purple barrier and Orochimaru rose from the earth looking smug.

"Kekeke... you've fallen for my trap!" Orochimaru's smile split his face.

The Raikage still looked unperturbed and slammed a single finger into the barrier.

"One Finger Assault!"

The finger and barrier clashed, and my chakra started draining at a slower rate.

I raised an eyebrow at Orochimaru who's smugness had increased.

"Kekeke..." Orochimaru smirked but didn't speak.

"One Finger Assault!" The Raikage struck the barrier again.

And the drain on my chakra diminished more.

I blew out a relieved breath.

It's a good thing I didn't jump away when he struck the barrier in front of me.

Sometimes a little faith goes a long way.

The Raikage struck the barrier again, this time with his fist.

"Lightning Straight!" The drain on my reserves trickled down to nothing, and I finally clued in on what the barrier did.

It drained chakra and used it to power the barrier...

"I can't hold it for much longer!" I felt like an idiot for not realizing it sooner...

The Raikage smirked and Orochimaru made an excellent show of jumping to reinforce the barrier.

The Raikage rapidly punched the barrier, Orochimaru and I both fed more chakra into the barrier while the Raikage unknowingly helped.

"Hold on a little longer Shiro!" Orochimaru was smirking as the Raikage back was to him.

The Raikage continued pounding at the barrier, sealing his fate.

"I'm trying sensei!" I put as much desperation in my voice as I could.

The barrier slowly turned a deep purple.

The Raikage suddenly stopped punching.

Orochimaru stood with a smile on his face, and I joined him.

"Kekeke..." Orochimaru cackled and started walking around the barrier.

I took a few steps back and started scanning the area for any nuisances.

Seeing none I stepped towards the barrier and knelt to continue feeding it chakra.

I wanted this thing kept inside.

"So, what now?"

Orochimaru who was still smirking smugly shrugged.

"We call everyone back and have them take turns feeding the barrier." I nodded.

That was a good plan.

"My village will come to me." The Raikage decided that threats were the way to go.

Orochimaru looked unaffected.

"Let them." He lost his smile and started towards the camp.

I continued feeding the barrier, I'd rather keep the Raikage snow globe.

I didn't need him escaping any time soon...

...

The Raikage was sat cross-legged and completely still.

He decided not to waste energy, and was now meditating.

I let him be and left.

I didn't want to antagonize him further.

I instead decided to bother Orochimaru.

"So, why didn't the Raikage bring soldiers with him?" Orochimaru shrugged and ignored me.

Alrighty...

"Well, see ya." It's shower time.

A post-battle shower was the best.

...

...

Interlude.

"You're not happy about capturing the Raikage?" Shiro spoke, breaking the silence that had fallen between him and Orochimaru.

"No, I am not." Orochimaru spoke in a slow monotone. "I have no interest in participating in this war. My capture of the Raikage may force me to become more involved then I would have liked."

"Hmm..." Shiro hummed. "It shouldn't be a problem, or at least not as much of a problem as you think it will be." Shiro gestured in the Raikage's direction. "The Hokage will probably use that thing to barter for peace."

Shiro ran a hand through his hair.

"It's far more likely that we'll be moved away from the fighting." Shiro smiled, and the air in the room felt heavy. "Can't let our notoriety grow too much after all."

"Kekeke..." Orochimaru threw his head back and cackled. "Indeed, they can't allow those that don't play by the rules to become too powerful."

Shiro nodded.

"Be it politically, personally, or in terms of influence." Shiro's smile faded. "It's a shame Konoha has been allowed to fester to such an extent."

Orochimaru nodded and turned towards me.

"This talk could be considered treasonous." The air turned heavier. "Are you sure this one can be trusted?"

Shiro turned and stared into my eyes causing my breath to hitch.

"I like her." I swallowed nervously.

He liked me, but he didn't trust me.

"Have it your way." Orochimaru stalked past my frozen form. The breeze he kicked up causing goosebumps to form on my arms.

Orochimaru left and it became easier to breathe.

I don't have Shiro's trust.

That needed to change.

I couldn't do anything he might deem untrustworthy.

"Well let's go." Shiro started towards the door. "I need to write a report."

I nodded and trailed after him.

I needed to be careful. I was an ant compared to Shiro and Orochimaru. If I annoyed them I might get stepped on.

I needed to be useful and trustworthy.

At least until they could no longer step on me.

...