Chapter 2: Rituals and Visions

This in not my book BUT I have asked for permission from the author but he still hasn't replied if anyone can get in touch with him let him know if he wants me to I can remove it from here

go check out the book at https://www.fanfiction.net/s/13522981/1/Reincarnation-Ok-Pal-The-Story-of-Kenta-Yamanaka-Book-2

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Hi guys and gals! Sorry for the delay, I know I said Wednesday. COVID-19 has work going crazy. We're operating on a skeleton crew now so we had to work out taking over essential duties from people. Oh and then my laptop pooped out last week and my replacement was supposed to arrive last Sunday… Long story short I had to go pick it up myself because eff USPS and I just got it yesterday.

Rescue Gaara arc, like wave, is a single chapter. I ain't about some drug out battles. We get to see glimpses of how everyone here as improved. Hopefully we aren't disappointing. I felt that the Sasori battle was fun, but it was so DBZ. How many episodes was Chiyo's old ass and Sakura fighting Sasori while Naruto just chased Deidara and Kakashi took 5 episodes to charge Kamui? Annoying.

Poll is up to vote for Kenta's Mancrush list! Each person gets FIVE VOTES! So use em all! If you have a suggestion to add let me know!

Also, Lul to everyone hating Ao.

Chapter 2 Part 2 begin!

The steady rhythm of feet striking the soft sand was the only sounds that could be heard. We had crossed into the desert just a few hours prior. Kakashi was setting a brutal pace, but not so hard that we'd be useless in a fight if it broke out at any moment. At standard Chunin pace, the travel time on foot was roughly 60 hours. We had been traveling now for a day and a half. At this pace, we should see Suna either as the sun set, or within a few hours upon waking, or to put it bluntly, in half that time.

No one was complaining though, at least out loud. I had whined in my head for the last 6 hours about the heat, but I didn't want to set anyone over the edge. The atmosphere had been tense since we left. The only conversations had been short and clipped and business related only. I was getting damn sick of this monotonous trip, time to stir the pot.

"Naruto!" I called out.

The boy had been unusually quiet since we left. I couldn't blame him, Jinchuriki we a kindred bunch, no matter where they were born or raised. Each shared a burden that only another Jinchuriki could even hope to comprehend. He turned towards me slightly and quirked an eyebrow.

"What's up, Kenta?" He asked.

"I forgot to tell you, Ami and I got promoted. We outrank you, Chunin." I smirked at the boy, mission accomplished. He stumbled for a moment before finding his footing.

"You WHAT?! When? How?" He shouted over the dull roar of the biting desert winds.

"A week before you came home. We were suspended from ANBU until the Akatsuki threat is dealt with. Ami was promoted to Special Jonin, I was promoted to Jonin. Tonight at camp, I'm going to make you do my chores and there's nothing you can do about it." I sneered.

"WHAT?! That's an abuse of power! I won't do it. You're not even Captain of this mission. You're not even co-captain! Don't try and pull that shit on me, you long haired giant!" He yelled defiantly.

The morose mood surrounding our party seemed to vanish, finally. Everyone was laughing at Naruto's outburst and smiles were once again the normal instead of worried frowns.

"Mah. Details. I still outrank you. I'll make you wash my underwear one of these days when you're put under my command." I said evilly.

"You wouldn't dare! No one is that cruel!" Naruto said in disbelief.

"Actually he would. He once made Bull wash ALL his underwear one time for embarrassing him in front of Commander Bear. Then he made him run the Hokage Mountain 100 times. Kenta is a slave driver when he's captain!" Ami called out.

Naruto's mouth opened and closed a few times, searching for the right words. "You're sick! You're nasty! If you made me do that, I'd defriend you! You'd lost best friend status, you jerk! Wait! If you're a Jonin, that means you outrank Captain Genma?!" Naruto's abrupt change of subject made me forget the retort that was on my lips.

"Nah. That old monkey forced me to train with him for a year while you were gone and I ended up having to take the full promotion." Genma supplied dully. This was news to me.

"Congrats, Cpt Genma!" Ami and I called together. He flipped us the bird.

"Got your S-Rank too, from what the birdies tell me." Kakashi's bored drawl suddenly spoke up. "How'd you manage that?"

Genma's dour mood turned downright depressing. "Apparently, taking out an entire clan with a single attack is enough to get you the title. No offense, Kenta, but S-Ranks are handed out like candy nowadays!"

I stared and my captain, gob smacked. "Ok, back it up. You took out an entire clan by yourself? With a single technique. Also, Dad already told me that. He said the best way to judge a ninja in the bingo book is by any added warnings to their entry."

Genam nodded glumly. "Old Man Third worked with me and had me develop a personal 'Fire Release Technique' that's supposedly A-Rank, maybe S-Rank in power. It was the Fuma clan. A large portion of them rebelled and became involved in the underworld as well as Orochimaru."

"The Fuma Clan?" Neji spoke up. "That's impressive, Cpt Genma. I understand that they weren't nearly as powerful as their ancestors, but they weren't pushovers either. I wonder if Father and Uncle know about this. A member of their clan was betrothed to one of the main branch elder's daughters."

"What's the name of your technique, Cpt Genma? And can you teach it to me?!" Ami's eyes blazed with awe and determination.

Genma rubbed his head sheepishly. "I can try. It's called "Fire Release: I'm not telling you what it is so too bad technque." He then thought for a moment. "You've completed and mastered the last stage of fire manipulation?"

Ami nodded enthusiastically. "I did. Two years ago."

"I'll give it a shot sometime. Be ready, it requires a lot of chakra."

"So what's it like being S-Rank?! Do you get lots of cool missions now? Are you my competition for Hokage?!" Naruto's eyes narrowed dangerously at the man with that thought.

Genma gave Naruto a flat stare. "Kid, I'll go missing ninja before I put that damn hat on. I don't even like to do my own bills. Why would I want all that extra work?"

Naruto relented a bit, but still eyes the man dubiously. "Ok. I'll accept that for now. Answer the first part."

Cpt Genma nodded, and then began to tear up. "It's AWFUL! My sweet little students, the second you become listed as S-Rank it seems that people only see you as a pay day! I've been hunted down by bounty hunters on four separate missions now!" He got serious then. "Most are complete trash and think S-Rank is just a joke title, however, I recently escaped from one of the most famous bounty hunters in the elemental nations. He's dangerous. An S-Rank missing Ninja himself. If I didn't have Aoba and Raido with me at the time, I would most likely be dead. He's the real deal."

"What's his name?" Choji finally piped in, looking nervous.

"Kakuzu of Taki. There's rumors that he's immortal, and it seems more likely to be true. He attempted to assassinate the First Hokage and failed. He went missing soon after that." Genma replied.

I stopped listening after Kakuzu. My vision swam and went black.

A tall man with green eyes and bloodshot sclera. Monstrosities breaking away from his back. Masked horrors stalking forward ominously.

A grey haired man, standing in a ritual circle. He licks the blood of his scythe and transforms into a demon. He stabs his own heart and laughs in zealous glee, offering his prayers to his god.

Asuma, light fading from his eyes as Team 10 surrounds him in tears. The last cigarette falling from his cooling lips.

Shikamaru, swearing his vengeance. The cold glint of murder in his eyes.

I gasped as my face hit the sand. I coughed and sputtered, taking the proffered canteen in thanks.

"Kenta? What happened?" Fú asked in concern. Her warm orange eyes boring into my teal eyes, hands ignited in a cool green color.

Cpt Genma gave me a look. He knew what happened. "Nothing. I zoned out for a second and then lost my footing. Nothing wrong." I lied smoothly, giving a small nod to my captain and Kakashi.

Everyone continued to stare at me in concern. I pushed myself up and brushed my pants off. Fú pulling her hands away, not finding anything wrong with me. Of course not, I was healthy as an Ox!

"Come on, we don't have time to dawdle," I said as I began the trek to Suna. Everyone quickly falling back into step.

The cloud of apprehension was hanging over our group once more. This wouldn't do.

"AMI AND SHINO ARE DATING!" I screamed out and increased my speed, laughing at the waves of bloodlust being directed at me.

"WHAT?!" Naruto screamed out even louder.

************************************KY***********************************************

We ended up reaching the passageway to Suna an hour before the sun completely set. We approached the narrow passageway that had been carved out between the two mountains. My analytical mind noticing how defensive this position would be to hold against an invading army. We had to walk two by two, some of the smaller members could squeeze in 3 to a row. Well placed earthen walls and barriers would filter the victims even further. Whatever Cpt Genma's new technique did, I could see an army being led falsely into a narrow passage like this, and then unleashing fiery hell upon the invaders. I shivered at the thought.

We hadn't made it within 20m of the entrance when two fully geared out Shinobi landed in front of us.

"Halt! Unless you have reason to be here, Suna is not allowing any travelers into the village. Even allied shinobi." The older Shinobi on our left stated in a confident tone. I stretched my senses. Near 50 invisible bodies had us surrounded. Not bad, Suna. That new training program we sent them seemed to be paying off.

Kakashi stepped forward, hands slowly reaching into his pouch and slowly removing all the documents inside them.

"We are the team your council requested in regards to Lord Kazekage. One of our brightest medics and two of our most leading experts of poisons are with us to help with the treatment of Lord Kankuro. We're also an elite group dedicated to the tracking and elimination of Akatsuki. We will help with Lord Kankuro and then leave at first light." Kakashi reported in a loud, clear voice. His usual lackadaisical demeanor gone.

The guard on our left nodded and motioned for his companion to check the documents. His eyes quickly scanned the documents including our mission scroll, signed by Lord Fifth as well as the Suna Council. He handed them back to his superior, verifying their authenticity. Both mean relaxed immediately and the 50 signatures returned to their original post. Sneaky sand monkeys they were.

"Forgive my rude behavior, but times are strained here as you can imagine. Pakan will escort your medics and poison experts to the hospital. Kakashi Hatake and Genma Shiranui will follow me to the administration building. The rest may wait either at the hospital or outside the meeting hall." With that he turned on his heels and marched the two senior Jonin into the village at a brisk pace. The rest of us stayed behind with Pakan.

The young mind smiled at us. "As Cpt Doron said, my name is Pakan. Please, follow me to the hospital. I'm sure the medics will be most grateful for any help that they can get. Lord Kazekage is kidnapped, and Lord Kankuro is severely injured. Losing one is tragic, losing both could cripple our morale. Come, please." His slightly high pitched voice instructed. We did as asked and made our way quickly to the hospital. I barely had time to look around, but it didn't matter. The sun was nearly set and the city mostly dark.

**************************Go, Go Team Poison! Sasori aint' sheet***************************

"What are we working with here?" Fú demanded as she stormed into the room Kankuro was being kept in. The long, flowing hair she had been growing out was pulled up into a high ponytail, reminiscent of the traditional style of my clan.

"Who the hell are you? You can't just barge in here and demand answers. Lord Kankuro is in a precarious position." An elderly looking medic scolded.

Fú pinned her with a glare. "My name is Fú, apprentice to Shizune Kato, apprentice for over two decades to Tsunade Senju. I'm here to help. Clearly none of you can neutralize this poison and prevent the brother of your leader from dying a slow and agonizing death." Her own clipped reply came.

The older women was rendered speechless, but a young man stepped forward and took over. "Welcome, Lady Fú. Any assistance you can over is appreciated. The poison, we cannot isolate it. It's attacking his red blood cells, killing them one by one. If we don't neutralize it then-"

"He'll go into full body shutdown. His heart will begin to work harder to make up for the lack of red blood cells. Eventually the organs will begin to shut down due to lack of oxygen until finally he dies from any number of critical organ failures. Liver, Kidneys, Heart, Brain, yeah, I get it. Get me a sample of his blood, stat. You!" She pointed at the still speechless old woman. "Make yourself useful and fetch me a dozen buckets of pure, completely sterile water. MOVE PEOPLE! HE'S DYING EVERY SECOND WE SPEND SITTING AROUND GAWKING!"

I had a dopey smile on my face. Nothing was sexier than watching Fú take charge of a situation. Naruto nudged me.

"You thinking dirty thoughts, Kenta?" Naruto snickered.

I simply smiled. "No. Not dirty. I just find the sight of Fú taking command incredibly sexy."

"So dirty thoughts." Ami supplied.

I shrugged. "Sure, if that's what you want to think. Just seeing her in this environment… It makes me fall for her all over again. She's amazing."

Ami 'aww-ed' while Naruto gagged. I loved them and their conflicting responses.

"KENTA!" Fú's voice cut through my haze of desire. "You and Naruto come hold Kankuro down. I'm about to put him in a lot more pain."

Naruto and I jumped to our feet and did as instructed. I held the boy's arms and shoulders, Nauto got the feet.

"Why don't you just tie him down?" Naruto asked, not an entirely dumb idea.

"I need my bugs to be able to move freely. Straps will impede their progress." Fú replied offhandedly.

She made small incisions on both biceps as well as his thighs. She then withdrew a tiny little vial with tiny white specs in it.

"What is that?" I asked curiously. It may have been my imagination, but it looked as if the contents were moving.

"Microscopic Hirudo leeches." Fú said, wiping the incision marks clean.

"What are they for?" Naruto asked.

Fú clicked her tongue in annoyance. "Shut up and watch will you?"

We obeyed. Fú was so sexy when she was in charge, but she could nowadays give Tsunade a run for her money in terms of intimidation when she was angry.

Fú began to shake out patches of the white specs onto the small incisions they made. I gasped as the tiny specs were indeed moving and very much alive. They immediately came to life and burrowed their way into the small cuts in Kankuro's arms and legs.

"Hirudo leeches are known for their medicinal properties. They're mainly used to increase blood flow in patients, especially those who have had a recently severed appendage reattached. Their saliva contains a mild anesthetic as well as an anti-coagulant. Two things we need to keep Kankuro's blood flowing. This particular breed though was bred for an additional purpose. They can ingest and break down any and all naturally occurring toxins in the wild. Right now taking some of the pressure off Kankuro's heart by aiding in blood flow. They're also doing initial scouting on this toxin. Now we wait. You two keep hold of him, as the leeches ingest the poison and blood they will grow. He will soon feel them making their way in his blood stream. It isn't going to be pleasant. I have to analyze this blood sample."

And with that, Fú walked out of the room, through a door labeled "Lab."

Naruto and I didn't have to wait particularly long. Kankuro's body began to twitch, the twitches soon became agonizing screams and he attempted to launch himself out of the bed. Naruto and I held him down to the best of our ability. After 30 minutes, Kankuro's thrashing began to ease as much large white creatures began to push their way back out their entry points. Fú came back into the room just in time.

"Ah, they're done. Now Kankuro should be able to rest a little easier for a couple hours since his heart doesn't have to work as hard for a bit. We're still in a race against the clock. Time to analyze these… little… guys."

My eyes followed hers and noticed that the small leeches were all thrashing wildly on Kankuro's skin. One by one, their movements stopped and didn't resume.

"Shit." Fú cursed under her breath.

"What does that mean?" Naruto asked.

"It means, this toxin isn't natural. It's synthetic." Fú frowned. She collected all the small bodies into an empty vial and disappeared once more into the lab.

Naruto and I sat back down in a couple of the chairs that were scattered about. Ami had run off to talk with some of the hospital workers. Neji and Choji were nowhere to be seen.

An hour later, Fú came back out with a smile on her face. She handed me a vile with an oily black substance.

"Is this the poison?" I asked, swirling the vial, noticing the contents were very thick.

"It is. Based on what I could gather, it's a metal based toxin that breaks down and dissolves the hemoglobin of the red blood cells. No hemoglobin, no-"

"Oxygen." I finished out loud, mind already going ten different directions. "How's the lab?"

Fú shrugged. "Outdated and nowhere near as good as Konoha's, but it should do. Do you need Ami?"

I nodded. Already I could tell we were dealing with a true master of poison crafting. "Send her into the lab, I'm going to start deconstructing this."

*****************************Go, Go Team Poison!***************************************

Five hours later, Ami and I walked out of the lab with triumphant grins. It had taken every scrap of knowledge our combined minds had, but we were finally able to create an antidote. The main culprit was a synthetic genotoxic compound specifically designed to target the DNA structure of Hemoglobin. Normally, this wouldn't be an issue. However, due to its resilient nature, it proved immune to normal anti-toxins one would find in nature. Ami and I were able to create our own compound that neutralized this scientific genius of chemical engineering. After that, the other toxins were easily combated. Results? 100% success rate and elimination of the toxin.

I walked over to Fú and gave her tired head a quick kiss. She smiled tiredly at me.

"I was able to extract a majority of the toxin, but the trace amounts are too small to completely expel from his body. If it sits there, it will begin to reproduce and we're back at square one. Please, tell me you have an antidote." She asked in a hopeful tone.

I bent down and gave her a longer kiss for a job well done. She leaned in further, before remembering where she was. She pulled back with a blush and a strong jab to my diaphragm. I let out a wheezing laugh and handed her my own vial.

"It will 100% neutralize the poison. He will be poison free by morning. Of course, the smaller toxins in his the poison wrecked their own havoc on his body. He'll need a few weeks of bedrest even with healing chakra." Ami said in quiet voice, trying not to wake our comrades that had fallen asleep in the spare beds in the wing.

Fú smiled brightly and took the vial from my hand. She filled an injection needle with the required amount and inserted the needle intravenously to hasten the effects.

"We're going after the mastermind behind this vile concoction. Please tell me we have more than just this vile?" Fú asked, a pleased smile on her face as you could already noticed a difference in Kankuro's breathing.

"We gave the recipe to a few of the medics. They're working overnight to develop more than enough for us to get their Kage back." I said softly into Fú's ear. "Come, let's try and get some sleep before we have to go hunting. Dawn is a few short hours away." I indicated an open bed by Naruto for Ami to crash in. She nodded and quickly made her way over.

"I have to let a medic know about Kankuro." Fú said with a yawn. I swept her off her feet, at tiny gasp escaping her lips. I gave her one more kiss and laid her down on the only other open bed.

"I'll tell them. You're exhausted. I know that extraction technique takes a lot of control and focus. Sleep, Princess. You've earned it." I said softly, smiling down at the petite girl.

She nodded and rolled onto her side. "Love you, Big Idiot." She mumbled tiredly.

I leaned down until my hair formed a curtain to hide her face. It had grown a bit and was longer than what I usually liked. My headband was the only thing keeping it from obscuring my vision of the most perfect woman in the world. However, Fú said she liked it at this length. Whatever my woman wants, she gets.

"Love you too, Fú Bear. Sleep well." I whispered. Her small smile letting me know she heard me.

I stood up and marched out of the room, intent on finding that medic then grabbing myself a few hours of sleep

*********************************Cutest Couple Award***********************************

"Summoning Technique!" Kakashi's strong voice rang out in the open desert. After a few hours of sleep, we were roused by Kakashi and Genma. Kankuro had woken up long enough to hand a tiny scrap of cloth to the man. Saying it belonged to one of our targets. Kakashi was now on the trail. They had a good head start, but we wouldn't lose them.

"Yo" A small pug greeted. "What do you got for me, Kashi?"

"Pakkun, can you get a scent from this and find the trail?" Kakashi asked his summoned dog.

The dog I now recognized as the one who was sent to call for backup for the wave mission all those years ago took a few whiffs of the scrap. He then sniffed the air and walked back and forth for a few moments.

"A few hours and the trail would be dead. I have the scent, but just barely. Let's go before it's gone." Pakkun said and took off into the sandy dunes, our group hot on his heels.

*****************************Pakkun has softest Paws feel dem****************************

We ran for hours on end, our pace brutal in the desert heat. Naruto's genius showed time and again. His body temperature regulator seal kept us from overheating in the scorching climate, allowing us to continue to run without pause, making sure we stayed hydrated along the way.

As we ran, the landscape began to slowly change. The endless sand dunes soon gave wave to a flat, arid desert.

On and on we ran, ever hour the climate changing little by little. Soon, the sand was completely gone, replaced by a hardy and tough grass and dirt.

Hours passed, our muscles were aching, but we didn't relent. We continued. Hardy vegetation began to make way for lusher and greener flora. My heart cried out in jubilation. Taking a Yamanaka away from his flora was akin to depriving an Uzumaki of their ramen. I nearly left the world of the living when I found out that ramen addiction was a CLAN TRAIT. All 7 of the Uzumaki cousins loved the stuff. Teuchi could sell his stand and be a personal chef to the Uzumaki clan. He'd most likely make more. I shook myself out of my waking nightmare and noticed the slight sound of running water.

"We'll break when we find this stream. Fill your canteens, remember your survival skills. Iodine tablet for minimum thirty minutes, longer if you can." Kakashi called out.

We came to a stop once we reached the bank of the narrow and tiny creek. My muscles sang their praise at finally being able to relax, even if it was for a short time.

"One hour, people. Make sure you don't sit for too long, and if you do keep stretching, don't let those muscles cool and tense." Genma instructed this time. Kakashi and Genma had their game faces on. We were closing in on our prey.

The hour seemed to pass in a heartbeat and we were back on the trail. We ran, and we ran, and we ran. No jokes this time, no idle conversation. We were about to face off with two S-Rank opponents. Real S-Rank opponents. We learned that only a single member of the duo was responsible for single handedly taking on a Kage and won. There was no margin for error. Opponents of this skill only needed the smallest opening to send you to the pure lands.

"We're here." Pakkun's voice suddenly called out, startling most of the group. I looked up, noticing we were facing a mammoth sized boulder. A large seal sat dead center, script flowing from the center, wrapping the boulder in black ink. I turned as I felt someone near me stir. Naruto was already gazing up at the seal, a small frown on his face.

No one said anything for a few moments, letting the expert make his observations. A flash of crimson and a puff of smoke later and Naruto was now 10 feet in the air, a medium sized toad being used as his step-stool. His frown deepened as he was able to study the seal in greater detail.

"What's the verdict, Naruto?" Kakashi's deep voice quietly asked.

He glanced at Kakashi before his attention returned to the seal. "Getting through won't be an issue. This is a standard 'Five Seal Barrier' technique. However..."

"What is it Naruto? If you're worried about the boulder, I can easily break through that." Choji said helpfully.

Naruto shook his head. "It isn't that. This is the Uzumaki variant. An Uzumaki was the one to write this."

That wasn't what we expected to hear. I frowned in thought.

"You mean one of our cousins is working with this group to track down their own family members?!" Fú's angry voice growled from my right.

Naruto nodded. "Either creating this seal for them or being one of the members. Yes." Naruto agreed sadly.

"We can worry about that later. Can you deactivate it?" Kakashi asked.

Naruto nodded, still staring at the seal. He broke out some sealing supplies, while four clones simultaneously appeared from thin air. No smoke, no hand sign.

"Holy shit! Naruto, you can use seal-less clones now?" Ami's disbelieving question mirroring my own thoughts.

"Huh? Oh. Yeah. First thing I learned to do. Kaka-Bully is a slave driver when he wants to be!" Naruto's irritated reply came, his mind focused mainly the seal before him. He turned to Neji. "Oh. Can you use your freaky eyes and check the cardinal points withinn 500m of this location? There should be a tag in each direction." Naruto asked Neji offhandedly.

Neji bristled but a hand on his shoulder cut him off. "He didn't mean to insult you. You can lecture him later. Just do as he asked, time is short." This was from Cpt Genma who had an understanding smile in place. Neji nodded and activated his Byakugan.

"173m North. 192m East. 208m South. 147m West." Neji called out. A clone apiece took off with each rattled off direction.

Naruto finished whatever he was doing with a flourish and stowed his supplies away. "There. Now to wait on my clones." He said with a happy smile for his handiwork.

"Care to explain to us lesser skilled in Sealing Arts what's going on, Naruto? We need a plan." I drawled off.

Naruto chuckled sheepishly. "Right. This," He indicated the seal. "Is Five Point Barrier seal. Normally very easy to break. You simply need to pull all five tags simultaneously and voila. Broken. The Uzumaki variant has a nasty surprise though. The tags at the cardinal points will release a trap. Whoever pulls the tag will create a doppelganger of themselves, which has all their abilities and strengths. Not particularly dangerous, but can eat away a lot of time if not taken out immediately."

We all nodded. Since Naruto isn't particularly booksmart, his explanations were usually pretty simple to follow along.

"So, what are you and your clones doing?" Cpt Genma asked.

"Clones are cutting off the feed from the four tags. They're just making the changes to nullify the tags. Once I get the feedback back, we just have to remove this last one and we can smash our way in." Naruto explained.

"Good. Choji, you can smash this you said?" Kakashi asked.

He nodded but Ami caught everyone's attention.

"Since Neji can't see into the cave, we have no idea how big or small the space is or where Lord Kazekage might be. Smashing the boulder may send shrapnal into the cave, potentailly harming Lord Gaara." Ami reasoned.

Kakashi nodded slowly. "Do you have an alternative?"

Ami smiled. "I do. I've gotten pretty skilled with my Earth Release. I know just the technique for the job. I will need Choji still."

Choji gave his affirmation while Ami explained what he had to do. "Easy! This is a much better plan." Choji declared happily and Ami nodded.

"Alright. Let's make a quick plan. Once Naruto's clones finish, we engage." Kakashi announced and we all gathered around.

*********************************FIGHT FIGHT!*****************************************

"It's done." Naruto annoucned, Fingers gripping the couner of the seal.

Kakashi nodded. "Do it."

Naruto yanked the seal away, the sript covering the boulder evaporating into nothingness.

Ami, handsigns completed slammed her palms to the Boulder.

"Earth Release: Light-Weight Rock Technique!" She called.

"Akimichi Clan Technique: Partial Expansion!" came Choji's voice right after. His arms expanded to gigantic sized proportions. His hands gripped either side of the boulder and lifted it as if he were tossing a piece of paper. He heaved and the stone landed 50m behind us. We immediately rushed into the cave and took stock of everything around us.

Eight ghostly figures and two corporeal ones stood atop ten, raised fingerlike platforms. I took in all 10 faces as best I could, but the eight that were ethereal were mere shadows, the only thing distinguishable were their eyes. The two who were here in person looked startled that we had just barged our way in. Clearly, they were hoping for more time.

That was when I noticed Gaara. He was floating eerily above the ground, a stream of corrosive chakra being forcefully extracted from his body. Every orifice was leaking the demonic chakra. Fú was beside me, an anilmalistic growl tearing from her throat.

"I won't let you hurt my cousin anymore!" Fú yelled. Her rainbow wings erupted from her back, and from each wing a strand of silky thread raced towards Gaara. The threads quickly wrapped themselves around the boy and began to encase him in a protective cocoon. After a single layer had covered his body, the flow of Chakra being extracted was quickly cut off.

Angry muttering came from the ten figures as Fú used her threads to pull Gaara to her side. A deep voice spoke up, seeming to echo across the entire expansive cavern.

"It does not matter. We have extracted nearly all of the beast's chakra. We have what we need." It said. "Sasori, Deidara, do what you need to do to get out of there alive. You still have one mission left. Do not fail me."

With that, the eight astral figures vanished, leaving the eight of us alone with the two Akatsuki members.

Fú's hands were glowing green. She let out a shuddering gasp. "His chakra network, it's like ground beef. I… I don't know if I can fix this." She said as tears began to form in her eyes.

I knelt down next to her and placed a hand on her should. Her orange eyes seemed to glow within the cavern, the dampness showing me how scared she was for Gaara. "Do what you can, Fú. No one is expecting you to perform a miracle. You've trained hard. Do what you can, we can do more once he's in a hospital and you have the needed equipment." I said softly, smiling at my woman.

She nodded and gave me a watery smile. "You're right. I'll do what I can." She nicked her finger and placed a hand to the ground.

"Summoning Technique." She said in a subdued voice. From the smoke a large slug appeared. "Lady Katsuya. I have my threads around Lord Kazekage. Please, infuse it with medical chakra. We will be extracting him and moving him to Konoha hospital. Naruto's clones will take you. We have some animals to put down first though." Her sentence finished in an angry growl. I smiled warmly at the fearsome kunoichi.

My smile turned to a look of horror. I missed it. I didn't feel the chakra, and now Fú was going to die because of my mistake. I was stupid. I was foolish. I let my guard down around two S-Rank opponents and now Fú was going to pay the price. I wouldn't go down swinging. I pumped the chakra to my legs, not knowing how I was going to intercept the giant scorpion tail-like appendage that was mere feet from the love of my life. Just as I went to move, a choked sobbing laugh escaped my lips.

Cpt Genma hadn't let his guard down. And now he was in front of Fú, easily blocking the tail with his sword. Gone was the normal machete he once favored. In its place was the one and only Kubikiribōchō once wielded by the first high ranking ninja my team ever encountered, Zabuza Momochi.

"Ehhh. Attacking a medic is classless, even for a group of traitors. Here, I'll return this thing to you, with a gift of my own." Genma's bored voice drawled.

In a scene of complete déjà vu, Cpt Genma assumed a stance I had only seen him take once before. His new sword came tearing skyward, and fire erupted from the blade. Nearly 4 years ago Cpt Genma had unleashed a wave of fire tall and wide enough to catch an elite Jonin in its path. Now, looking back, I either overestimated how big Captains attack was in the heat of the moment, or this new technique dwarfed his old by a mile. As tall as the cavern was and nearly 20ft wide, the absolute curtain of flames roared towards the two Akatsuki members. However, proving their title wasn't for show, both men dodged the technique with ease.

Though they couldn't completely escape the heat from Captain's technique. Both men's cloaks caught fire simply being so close to the raging inferno. They quickly discarded them revealing what was underneath. The blonde man, no more than a few years older than I was seemed ordinary enough. I noticed his rather weak looking frame and quickly deduced he was a long range fighter of some kind. The other man, I have no idea what the hell he was. I assumed it was some type of puppet, considering Intel identified the man as Sasori of the Red Sand.

"Oi, Master Sasori! We might be in for a challenge with these kids, ya?" The blonde teen called out in excitement.

"It doesn't matter. We will dispose of them and return to base, as we were ordered. I don't want to keep Leader waiting." Sasori's gravelly voice intoned.

"Well then, it's a good thing MY art is perfect for disposing of pests in a flash! Detonate!" Blondie called out as the small birds he released previously exploded amongst our group. "HA! Now THAT was true art, wouldn't you agree Master Sasori, ya?"

"We can continue to discuss how my art is better once you actually manage to kill these brats. Do not underestimate them. Both the Seven and Nine tailed Jinchuriki are among their ranks. Now pay attention Deidara." Sasori said in annoyance.

It was true. Just as the explosions went off, Naruto erected a quick barrier around us. As the smoke cleared he lowered it, showing eight perfectly healthy Konoha ninja. Minus one Kazekage.

"Where's the Kazekage?" Sasorsi said irritably.

"Gone." I cheekily replied. "Long gone actually. Halfway to Konoha now."

"Hm. Master, my art can't shine in this dingy cave. I'm taking off. Don't die!" Deidara called out cheerily. He threw a tiny white bird to the ground and with a single sign it grew to summoned animal proportions. He hopped onto it's back and took off out of the cave mouth.

"Genma, Neji, Ami, Choji, you four take care of Sasori as planned. We're going after the other one." Kakashi called out.

Our group gave its affirmation and now it was finally my turn. I glanced at Fú who simply nodded, her wings once more erupting from her back.

"Summing Technique: The Anemoi!" I called out. A large cloud of smoke quickly disappated revealing the four cardinal wind brothers.

"My Lords, I am sorry to disrespect you like this but pleasantries must wait. We have need of you, our opponent is an S-Rank terrorist that has taken to the skies. Will you aid me and my companions?" I asked in a rush.

The eldest, Boreas took charge. "Yes, Young Master. We understand."

I nodded. "Lord Boreas, please fly with us and use your frigid winds to slow our opponent. I and my companions will be flying with your brothers. Naruto, you're with Eurus, Cpt Kakashi you're with Notus." I called out, each owl raising a wing in acknowledgement as I called their name. Zephyrus hopped up to my side.

"Shall we, Young Master?" Zephyrus' quiet voice asked. I nodded and hopped onto his back.

The chase had begun.

********************Hittin Ya with that Ancient Greek Mythology yooooo**********************

"This is really annoying." Naruto growled out. I had to agree. Deidara had been harassing us with tiny bombs the entire time. None strong enough to do more than minor damage, but enough to keep us from closing the distance.

I beckoned for Fú to join us and turned to Kakshi. "What's the plan, Captain?"

He shook his head. "That's up to you three. This is your kids' test. I'm just here to make sure you get home alive. Lord Fifth wants a report."

I nodded, not at all surprised. We couldn't always rely on our superiors.

"Fú, can you get ahead of him and force him downward?" I asked.

She nodded. "Count on me."

I smiled at the dark skinned beauty and turned to my summons. "Lord Boreas, Lord Eunus, can you perform that technique once we have him vertical?"

The two brothers gave me affirmations.

"Ok, once we have the brother's technique going, I will use a technique that I can control and attempt to take him out. If I miss, it's up to you, Naruto. You have something you can use?" I asked my best friend.

He smiled mischievously. "I have about six things I can use. Count on me, Jonin Kenta." He cheekily replied.

"Then let's get this plan in motion. Go!" I commanded. Fú shot off like a bullet and Boreas dove to the ground.

We waited, still dodging the small bombs Deidara kept launching our way. I noticed Lord Eunus and Naruto were slowly ascending while Kakashi and I stayed behind the Mad Bomber.

Suddenly Fú appeared directly in front of Deidara.

"Water Release: Water Dragon Technique!" Fú cried out. The Dragon quickly formed and rushed Deidara, he dodged, but the trajectory of the dragon changed and charged him from above, Deidara dove.

I smirked. "Checkmate, Bitch." I muttered.

"Hooooooo! Wind Release: Ascending Northern Winds!" Lord Boreas trilled.

The arctic blast of wind barreled into Deidara like a wall, halting him in his tracks. Small shards of ice began to form on his weird flying monstrosity. He attempted to right himself and escape the attack. But he was too late.

"Wind Release: Descending Southern Winds!" The shriek from Lord Eurus sounded high above the fight. The warm summer winds from Lord Eunus' attack smashed into Deidara from the top. The cool winds from below met warm winds from above.

"Wind Release Collaboration Technique: Towering Tornado!" The two brothers called out as a Tornado instantly formed where the opposing winds began to mix.

Deidara screamed in agony as his flying mount exploded violently. He was sent careening towards the ground, the large explosion enough to end the collaboration technique. His hands were digging in his pouch, but I wasn't going to let him get his mobility back.

"Storm Release: Laser Circus!" I said. Halos of light formed around my wrist, ones much larger than when I used 'Flourishing Cascade.' I thrust my hands forward and 10 beams of light jolted forward toward my target. Mere feet from their target, Deidara was able to mount a second exploding bird. He dodged the first wave, but this technique was different.

Up, down, side to side. Deidara was now on the defensive as my technique hounded him. No time for those annoying bombs, only time to dodge or die.

I smiled savagely in victory as one of my lasers cut straight through a wing and the bird began to plummet. Deidara's look of panic clued me into his techniques weakness. A second laser tour through his shoulder, and a third one through his groin. Deidara hopped off his mount and created a second one, attempting to flee the onslaught. We weren't going to let that happen.

"Hidden Technique: Hiding in Scale Powder!" Fú yelled directly in Deidara's face. He screamed once again as he was blinded point blank by Fú's technique. Eurus then appeared, Naruto's face morphed into one of extreme concentration. Fú noticed him and got out of the way. Naruto withdrew a kunai, a kunai I noticed that was slightly different in shape than a standard one. A kunai that a three prongs on the cross guard. He threw the weapon, it quickly closed the distance.

Deidara, proving his S-Rank was not just for show, seemed to sense the approaching danger and barely dodged out of the way in time. Naruto just smiled, the blue orb in his hand spinning violently.

A flash of yellow.

He was gone.

My heart stopped.

"RASENGAN!"

Deidara's blood curdling scream cut the air. Naruto's technique drilled into the back of his opponent. His smirk of victory quickly turned to a look of pure horror. "Deidara" had begun to glow an ominous white.

A flash of yellow and Naruto was gone.

Deidara erupted in a fountain of fire and heat. Fú was the closest and was sent rocketing back by the impact. I urged Zephyrus forward, but Lord Boreas wasn't idle. He let out a grunt as he caught my beautiful woman on his back. He plummeted a few feet before his strong wings righted himself. Fú was already healing the burns she received, a bright smile on her face as she thanked the summons over and over.

I stretched my senses and cursed. Deidara was already at the edge of my distance. At that range, we wouldn't be able to catch him. We had failed, and Deidara escaped.

*******************************Slippery Bastard Got Away!********************************

"Alright you three, this fight is yours. I'm here to save you if you need it, but don't make me do that. I don't feel like fighting right now." Captain Genma told the remaining members of Team Kakashi.

Ami was about to snark back when she noticed the old woman standing at the mouth of the cave. All eyes followed hers.

"Lady Chiyo?" Genma asked in confusion. "What are you doing here?"

She panted a few moments, attempting to catch her breath. "You no-good disrespectful brats left me all alone in Suna! I had to chase you this entire way by myself. You will need my help to defeat my grandson. It is my duty to have him answer for his crimes." She rattled off a mile a minute.

Cpt Genma waved her away. "Your offer is appreciated, but my team is more than enough to handle him. If you'd like, my student sent clones ahead with Lady Katusya healing the Kazekage. They are taking him to Konoha. His chakra network is badly damaged."

Lady Chiyo gaped. "Lord Fifth is alive? That is wonderful news, but I have to decline. Your students may be strong, but they cannot stand up to Sasori!" Her voice rose in desperation.

"Lady Chiyo. My students have been training specifically for this moment. They are an elite group dedicated to tracking down and eradicating Akatsuki. The older generation needs to let go of the wheel and let the new generation command the ship. Trust me. If the battle goes south, you and I will both jump in. I'm an S-Rank myself." Genma said patiently. Lady Chiyo might be a bit senile in her age, but she deserved respect all the same. Cpt Genma walked over to her and took her arm. The two began to argue quietly.

"Let Captain deal with her. We have and S-Rank criminal to kill." Ami said, the bloodthirst in her eye becoming more noticeable by the second.

"I agree. What's the plan. You two are Jonin, I'm still Chunin. Shikamaru was always the planner of our squad. I'll do what you guys need me to do!" Choji said confidently.

"Neji, can you use your 'Byakugan and check him out. I think he's inside whatever that thing is." Ami asked.

"Thank you for not calling it "My freaky eyes." Yes I will check. 'Byakugan.' Neji said.

"I apologize for Naruto. He's less conscious of what comes out of his mouth when he's focusing on seals. Plus, he's been away from me for 3.5 years with only Kakashi and Lord Jiraiya. I will have to give him a remedial lesson in manners when we return." Ami said dully, not at all pleased by her barbaric teammate's regression. "I'll include those two in my lessons as well, as they seem to have just as bad of manners as Naruto.

"You are correct, Miss Ami. There is a figure inside that machine. His chakra network though…" Neji said with a frown.

"What's wrong, Neji?" Choji asked.

"It all seems to be located centrally where the heart would be. I think… I think that whatever is inside is definteily controlling that thing, but whatever it is isn't human."

The three teens looked uncomfortable at that, but they shook themselves out of it. No time to second guess, only time to fight.

"Ok, first thing we have to do is smash that four-legged freak. Like a walnut, crack the shell to get to the vulnerable center. Choji, I'm counting on you for that part." Ami ordered.

Choji nodded. "Got it." He slammed his palm to the ground and a plume of smoke erupted.

"Does everyone here besides me have a summon? What the hell? I must discuss this with father. The Hyuga clan needs to get with the times. The Gentle Fist is the strongest hand to hand style in the world, but the versatility I'm seeing being with a team that isn't focused on close distance fighting is making me question our traditions." Neji grumbled.

"Prince Deku, it is an honor to see you again. Are you ready for our first big battle? Our opponent is S-Rank missing ninja Sasori of the Red Sand." Choji respectfully asked the dissipating cloud.

"Jeez Cho, no need to be so formal. I ain't ma pops. We's partners. I'm your personal summon. Deku is fine." A small gorilla said from the ground. He was about the size of a final year academy student. Though he was covered head to toe in armor and his muscles were certainly larger than any child Ami had ever seen.

"Sorry, Deku. You know how Master is though about formalities." Choji laughed.

Deku nodded. "So, an S-Rank, eh? We's about to go wild, eh? Dad is gunna lose it when I tells em!" Deku cackled like a child who knew their parent wouldn't approve.

Choji smiled indulgently. "Let's get into formation. Transform!"

Deku complied, transforming into a near perfect replica of his father's famous form, The Adamantine Staff. Though where his dad's form was bulkier and stout, Deku's was long and thin.

Choji grabbed the transformed summon and twirled the staff expertly, landing in his stance. "Let's go. Back me up, you two! I'll have that thing smashed in no time!"

Choji charged forward, Ami and Neji only a beat behind him. Sasori's puppet tensed, it's tail waving ominiously behind him.

"You children are foolish. I will enjoy turning your corpses into art!" Sasori shouted. His tail lashed out like the scorpion it was designed after.

Neji jumped in front and began to spin. "Either Trigrams Palms: Revolving Heaven!" The blue dome of chakra, the ultimate defense of the hyuga sprung into being, much larger than when Ami had last seen it at the Chunin exams. The tail stroke the dome, attempting to pierce it. Instead, it bounced off as if it had hit solid steel, it's momentum momentarily frozen. Just as Kenta, AKA Jaguar had beaten into her over the last two years, jump on the opportunity the moment it presents itself.

"Hidden Shadow Snake Hands!" Ami called, the snakes wrapping around the tail like lightning. She yanked, pulling the tail to the ground, momentarily taking it out of battle.

Sasori didn't let that phase him. His puppet opened its mouth, firing off hundreds of poison coated senbon, Neji once again providing the defense for the quickly closing Akimichi heir.

"Take this!" Choji yelled, jumping into the air. He swung the staff downwards, even though his opponent was still 10ft away. "EXTEND!" He called, and Deku obeyed. The staff extended mid downswing. It connected with the middle of the puppet's back. The puppet was smashed into the hard stone floor, the strength of Choji's swing shattering the puppet into dozens of pieces. A shadowy blur shot out of the wreckage, the three teens regrouped having defeated the first obstacle.

"Most impressive. It has been some time since anyone was strong enough to make me choose to leave Hiruko." Sasori said, his voice much higher out of the armored pupper. He looked young too, too young to be narutal.

Ami snorted derisively. "That was pathetic. I know an 11 year old girl who bluff better than you. We forced you out, as much as you want to deny it."

"Sasori, what have you done to yourself?!" Lady Chiyo's terrified voice called from the cave entrance.

"This? I have achieved the pinnacle of my art. Art is eternal, as am I. I have discarded my mortal flesh to create a body that never ages, never decays. It will always remain. Eternal. Like true art." He said in a monotone voice.

"You're an abomination is what you are. You go against natural order, the same as Orochimaru." Neji spat.

"Do not compare me to that snake. He has a bastardized version of immortality. It is crude and ugly, just like him." Sasori said in disgust.

"Either way, you die today." Ami smirked.

"For your efforts, I will end your lives with my favorite and strongest puppet. It took all my skill to kill this man, but it was worth it."

He withdrew a scroll and pushed some chakra into it. A humanoid looking puppet appeared from within, floating above the ground connected to Sasori with chakra screens.

"Sasori! How could you! You were the one who kidnapped Lord Third?!" Chiyo's distraught voice asked.

"Yes. The effort it took to kidnap and kill the man makes this puppet my absolute favorite. He was a difficult opponent, but he had already been injected with my poison when our battle begun."

"So you had to rely on underhanded tactics to defeat him. Your own power wasn't enough. You are a man with no honor, Sasori of the Red Sand." Choji said, face in a frown.

"Honor? We are shinobi. If you wish for honor, become a samurai." Sasori scoffed.

Choji shook his head. "Of course we are shinobi. Holding to your convictions though allows one to retain who they are in this world of shadows we dive into. If we lose those convictions, we become monsters. This was your fate, and the fate of many. We must always strive to be our best selves so that we may serve our village to the fullest. You must be defeated here. A man with no honor or convictions is a stain on this world and one who threatens the Will of Fire!"

"Enough talk. We fights!" Sasori yelled and commanded his human puppet forward. The Third opened his mouth, and black sand began to quickly exit the puppet. "Behold! The Iron Sand. The technique that made the Third so feared. By creating my puppets from human corpses, I can utilize their techniques long after they join my collection of art."

Everyone grimaced, the technique to turn a corpse into a puppet turning even Captain Genma's stomach. The sand began to swirl around the puppet, quickly taking shape. It became a large cylinder, the end ending in a wickedly sharp point.

"Now, die!" Sasori scream, ushering the sand construct forward. Neji jumped in front.

"No, Neji! I don't think your 'Revolving Heaven' can stop that thing!" Ami called out.

Neji ignored her, the instrument of death quickly approaching. Mere feet from bisecting the Hyuga Prodigy, he thrust his palm forward.

"Eight Trigrams Palms: Disruptive Chakra Wave!" he yelled out. A distortion in the air barreled towards the sand and the two techniques impacted.

The black sand fell to the ground, unmoving and back to individual grains, no longer a single construct. Everyone in the room gaped, Neji smirked.

"What did you do, boy?" Sasori growled out, his fingers moving desperately, but the sand laid lifeless on the ground.

"A technique I invented. My clan is a clan of close range fighters. We are limited at medium ranged, and even worse off at long range. Enemies have claimed the lives of too many of my clansmen from afar while they couldn't defend. 'Revolving Heavens' is a main branch only technique, and one that involves a large amount of chakra to use each time. This technique is my answer for the branch family. It disrupts the chakra of a technique that same as our Gentle Fist disrupts the chakra of our opponents." He explained, voice heavy with pride. No one could blame him though, it was a work of sheer genius.

"You're wide open." Ami whispered seductively in Sasori's ear, the illusory clone shimmering out of existence where she left it. "I'd have so much fun with you, if only you were a real boy. You're very cute."

Sasori jumped away quickly, eyes wide, cursing himself for letting a mere child get so close to him. Ami's deranged smile followed him all the way to the other side of the cave.

"So you were not bluffing. Your body is fake. Pity. Goguru was sad she couldn't give you a parting gift before you leave to the pure lands." Ami said in mock sadness, the small midnight black snake hissed it's annoyance from around her wrist. "Oh well, we'll just have to feed her the cute blonde teammate of yours."

Sasori's annoyed looked was followed by the twitch of his fingers, summoning the puppet back to him. He looked around in confusion, his puppet hadn't returned to it's side. It was gone, nowhere to be found.

"Where is my masterpiece?" He growled in a low voice. His rage was close to boiling over. His emotional control was being put to the test by a bunch of god DAMN KIDS!

"This?" Neji smirked as he held up a generic storage scroll. "I figured that Suna would appreciate being able to finally bury their lost Kage. Don't take your eyes off the battle. A hyuga can easily cut those pesky chakra strings."

Sasori dropped his gaze and closed his eyes. His puppet hands clenching tightly in anger. "You three. I am going to enjoy watching you writhe in agony. I'm going to turn you all into my newest puppets, and watch you dance for my entertainment. I WILL KILL YOU ALL!" He screamed in rage, the compartment on his chest opened as the scroll he withdrew released a plume of smoke.

"Red Secret Technique: Performance of One Hundred Puppets!" He bellowed. Dozens upon dozens of puppets begane to drift towards the ceiling of the cavern. The three teenagers eyes widened in fear at the potential of facing off against so many opponents.

"Mah. No need for the dramatics. It's too bothersome getting all worked up over a battle. You three sit back for a second and catch your breath. I'll take care of this part." Cpt Genma's bored drawl said behind the three.

Ami turned. "Cpt, are you sure? We can help if-"

"Nope. Go stand next to our resident senior and keep her from rushing in." Cpt Genma cut her off. The three complied quickly and retreated to the entrance.

"You? You're barely worth your rank. The Fuma clan was a shadow of its former strength. Don't get cocky, BOY!" Sasori's eyes were wide in rage.

Genma snorted. "Boy? You're a couple years older than me. I'm a veteran of the third war, same as you. How about you stop underestimating your opponents because you have a few criminal achievements under your belt."

"DIE!" Sasori screamed, his puppet army rushed Cpt Genma.

Cpt Genma sighed, hands flashed quickly through the seals.

"Well kiddos, prepare to see your first S-Rank technique in person. Hope you enjoy." Cpt Genma drawled, though his eyes were hardened in a glare.

"Secret Fire Technique: Ifrit's Demonic Flames of Hell!" Genma's strong voice called out. He took a deep breath, and unleashed pure chaos.

A stream of fire capable of overtaking an entire city rushed from Genma's lips. The flames were a brilliant white with specs of black and violet in them. He held the technique for all of three seconds and then cut it off. He wiped his browed and smiled tiredly.

"There, that outta even the odds once again." He said in a friendly tone.

He was right. Not a single puppet remained. Every one of them had been burned to ashes. Sasori stared around dumb founded. The boulder he had hidden behind was half melted.

"What kind of monster are you?" His weak question came?

Genma snorted. "Monster? Me? You're the freak turning human into puppets. I just simply had to endure two years of hellish training from Lord Hiruzen until I perfect that technique. It's a one shot deal though, so don't worry. It costs about 2/3 of my total chakra. Now kids, finish him off so we can go home."

Ami, Choji and Neji sprung forward once more, ready to do as their captain commanded. Sasori seemed to shake himself out of his stupor and focused in on the three 'children' that had pushed him so far.

"Neji, Choji. I will engage him. You two back me up if you see an opening." Ami said. The boys began to protest but Ami cut them off.

"He's a human puppet himself. Which means all his weapons are still coated in that dangerous poison." Ami said firmly.

"We have the antidote you and Kenta made, we'll be fine. We take him together." Choji said firmly.

Ami shook her head. "Neither of you has the amount of immunities to toxins that I do, which means one cut will affect you. I am only not-immune to the synthesized inorganic compound in his poisons. All the organic compounds though I am immune to. The antidote will save your life, but one of the key components of his poison is derived from a chakratoxic toxin. It will still affect you, and you will find molding your chakra difficult. Stay out of range, let me handle this."

The boys began to protest once more but Ami silenced them with a glare. "I will personally make you immune to every toxin in my library, involuntarily, if you do not listen to me. Am I clear?"

Neji and Choji finally relented, neither wanting that kind of torture.

Ami nodded, and then rushed her opponent. Sasori lashed out a smaller stinger than the one previously used in his Hiruko pupper. Ami tilted her head slightly, letting the stinger pass. She heard the whistling of wind and ducked the stinger as Sasori quickly withdrew the weapon. Two, 5-bladed propellers ejected out of Sasori's back and began to spin rapidly. He rushed Ami, a crazed look in his dead puppet eyes.

Within feet, Ami began to weave handsigns. "Fire Release: Dragon Flame Bomb!" her technique blitzed her opponent, Sasori's propeller blades created a shield that easily dissipated the fire, but Ami had used the cover to disappear from his view. He searched quickly for her, only barely noticing in time the hands reaching for his legs to drag him into the cavern floor. He escaped quickly and Ami breached the surface. Her crazed smile matching Sasori's.

"Come play with me, cutie. We'll have some fun." Ami's sultry voice called out as she crooked her finger.

"Your flirtations do nothing for me, little girl." Sasori sneered.

Ami pouted. "Well then if my seductions do nothing, how about this?" She smiled crazily once more as she held up a very familiar hand sign. "Detonate!" The explosive tag she had slipped onto the puppet's back erupted, sending the immortal man forward with the momentum from the explosion. Ami was already weaving more hand signs.

"Earth Release: Coagulating Mud Bomb!" she spat out a large glob of mud that barreled forward. It hit Sasori, and knocked him to the floor.

He stood up, his puppet body undamaged in the slightest. "You'll have to do better than that, girl. This body is the made from the strongest materials in existence."

Ami shrugged. "It did what it was meant to do. Look there." She pointed at his propellers. The mud had adhered to the blades, forcing them to slow down considerably as they were jammed with gunk. Sasori snarled, and two small pipes appeared on his palms. He instantly launched jets of flames at Ami, the heat from the fire melting stone.

"Earth Release: Multiple Earth-Style Wall!" Ami said as her palms touched the ground. She urged her chakra to instantly raise the earth between herself and the jets of flames quickly encroaching her.

"Choji, now!" Ami called.

"Extend!" Choji yelled, swinging his staff. The staff connected solidly with the side of Sasori, the propeller on that side being completely destroyed.

Ami's eyes widened as the stinger from earlier easily pierced through he now susceptible defense, just narrowly missing skewering her. She ended her technique just as Sasori crashed through the final wall, his eyes alight with madness. Ami grabbed the cord the stinger was attached to, uncaring that it dug deep into her hands. She spun out of the way of Sasori's hidden bladed melee attack and brought the cord with her. She wrapped it tightly around the puppet man, locking him into place.

"Neji! The core on his chest! Finish it!" Ami called, using all her strength to hold the mechanic man in place. He was much stronger than her, but the cord pinning his arms was helping her cause. Neji didn't waste a second.

"Gentle Fist Art: Palm Bottom!" Neji snarled, Chakra enhanced palm strike connecting solidly with the core that was pulsing in Sasori's chest.

The man froze. Their battle was over.

******************************Ami aint fuckin around no moe!*****************************

Kenta Yamanaka

We arrived back at the cave entrance. I noticed all three of my classmates were standing near the edge, along with a little old lady I soon recognized as Lady Chiyo. One of the two great elders of Suna.

"Hey guys, already done?" I called out just as a flaming torrent erupted from the cave. I gaped in disbelief. I could feel remnants of the heat from here! "Guess not!" I amended quickly.

We quickly joined up with our comrades just as the flames died down. Cpt Genma stood a few feet away, sweating either from exertion or the heat, probably both.

"What the hell was that?" Naruto called out to no one in particular, mouth gaping such as I'm sure mine was as well.

Cpt Genma soon called the three back into the fray and the rest of us stood back and watched the absolute massacre delivered via Ami with help from Choji and Neji. I smiled in pride. Ami sure was something else. Her mastery of fire and earth was near the top in the village. Two of her greatest strengths were negated by her opponents and she was still holding her own.

Neji delivered a final hit to a weird looking thing inside their opponent's chest. Sasori stopping moving the second Neji struck. The fight was over. We all rushed to Ami and Neji's side. Sasori gazed around almost as if he were drunk.

"I never thought I would see the end of my life at the hands of some brats." He said slowly. His voice sounded forced out. "For your victory, a prize. In Ten days, at Tenchi Bridge in Grass Country, I was to meet a subordinate. He was a sleeper agent in the ranks of Orochimaru. One of his lieutenants. Go there, and you… will… have… answers…" Sasori's eyes closed, and he spoke no more. The thing in his chest crumbled into an unformed lump of ground meat.

No one spoke for a time. Finally, Kakashi broke the silence. "Well, at least this mission wasn't a total failure. Our opponent got away after the team severely injured him. We have one less Akatsuki member as well as a potential spy to gain information from about Orochimaru and what he's been up to the last few years."

"It could be a trap. Or it could lead us right to those two scumbags that nearly killed Naruto." I growled out. Ami nodding alongside me. Fú was healing her bloodied hands and administering an antidote just in case.

Kakashi nodded hesitantly. "We will debrief Lord Fifth and he will decide. Is anyone else injured besides Ami's hands?"

We all shook our heads.

"Well then team, I consider this mission an overall success. One Akatsuki down, one severely injured and invaluable information on his techniques gained. Lord Fifth will be pleased. I'm pleased. Let's go home and celebrate a job well done."

We all cheered and departed the cave. None of us taking notice of the strange creature that seemed to appear out of the ground where we just left. I thought I had felt something for just a moment. But when I turned around and peered inside, there was nothing but Sasori's broken body lying in the cave. I shrugged and joined my team. A nice long dip in the hot springs sure sounded good to me!

And that's it! Time-Skip is going to start rolling along now! Next chapter, are we going to see Sasuke and Sakura?! Guess you'll have to find out ;0

I thought about making these battles like… Hard? But then I thought… Nah. This shows just how strong everyone got, plus Sasori (as much as I love him) and Deidara (As much as he makes me laugh) were by far the weakest pairing. The battles will get harder from here on out. Plus we have to worry about Orochi-Douche as well (He's probably one of the craftiest opponents in the NaruVerse) as well as Danzo's bitch ass (He's coming soon-ish!) so don't worry. Kenta won't be walking away from these fights unscathed anymore.

OH! And the technique Fú used to halt the extraction was 100% canon (If you aren't one of those people and think only manga is canon… Especially in the only few scenes we have of FU BAE!) She actually used it on Gaara in the show. Poor guy is the only one that had his tailed beast extracted twice!

PeachMagi – I'm so sad you didn't have an account I could reply back to. Get on that! I'm really, really glad you're enjoying the story! The fact that my story makes you feel anything is SUCH A BIG WIN for me! I've been working on creating this story that has a bit of everything, so that fact that I'm succeeding is the greatest compliment I could get. I try and do read throughs and corrections before I post.. But some of those chapters (like ch8) are so long I miss things. So glad it isn't too bad. One day my story will be 100% edited!

FYI – Unless you want shitty stick figures drawn to represent the characters… Well if you can recommend an artist I'd love to commission something of Team 11! I. CANNOT. DRAW XD

Also, I'm glad yet sad that just having two characters in my main story that aren't white is so exciting for you. I will be honest, I am a pasty white dude myself, and so I'm not even going to attempt to understand how frustrating the lack of representation in your favorite stories is. I will continue to write Kenta and Fú and one day they will have beautiful caramel skinned babies that will destroy their opponents. Imagine a tiny and petite ChoCho playing mind games and sicking bugs on people! XD

Didn't Give Up - I'm glad you didn't give up either and you enjoyed the story so far. Yes, Chapter 8 is a doozy. It's still my favorite written chapter though to this date. Glad your mixed feelings made you read that next one and pushed you towards the dark side! Kenta is a fun character to write. I'm excited for his future battles and that struggle. I hope everyone else is too! Also yes, Kenta and Fú are best couple :D

To all my guest reviewers! Please take the time to make an account and shoot your reviews this way. I love, love, love replying to each and every person. I want y'all to know my appreciation to you, and sometimes I forget to add in y'all in these A/Ns. (Already had to update chapter and it was released 20 mins ago for Didn't Give Up XD)

But yes, please feel free is you so choose to make an account, to message me and give me suggestions on best ways to incorporate that type of inclusion without it being painfully obvious it was from a pasty white guy doing it horribly!

So APPARENTLY (After some drama on a certain website that ended up with me getting banned and then "fans" of some popular "Authors" sending me threats on throwaway account, including death threats) I must inform you all of something. I am… 100% OPEN to all your comments, review, critiques, and constructive criticism. APPARENTLY, according to some pretentious authors it's in "poor taste" for you, as readers, to offer constructive criticism without the Author's express approval. (You can message me for the tirade I think on that, BOLLOCKS) but alas. Just know that I appreciate and love all my readers, as some of these "Fanfiction Famous Authors" seem to forget that WE are NOTHING without all of YOU.

Also, if you happen to see anyone trash talking me on any of those popular sites people use for FanFic… whatever the kids use nowadays (Tumblr, Twitter, whatever) let me know so I can go square up with them. That was apparently what some of those throwaway accounts were saying they were going to do.

To end though, thank you so much to everyone for your support. Remember, my PM box is open to anyone for any reason… Not just to talk about the story! If you just need an unbiased venting buddy, I'm your guy.

Till next time, Kenta Fans!