Chapter 27

"Who are you?" Kai asked blankly, showing no fear or emotion of any kind.

Naruto tilted his head slightly. "It is of no importance who I am. What's important is my plan, and the necessities I need to complete it." He said casually walking around. "You see, like these beautiful people around you, I have a certain… abhorrence.. for the hidden villages."

Kai just stared at him in confusion and slight annoyance. "Aoi, kill him." He said suddenly.

Aoi drew his sword but Naruto opened his jacket displaying the paper bombs inside and formed the hand sign ready to blow them. "ah, ah, ah." Shaking his head. "Let's not blow this out of proportion. Listen Kai, as I understand, you are a man who invites challenge."

Kai turned his way staring at him. "You wish to challenge me to take my place?" he asked him threateningly, flashing his killer intent at the redhead who was not effected in the slightest.

"Why that's a splendid idea…" he said with a smile beneath his mask. "You see, these people deserve a better leader!" he said addressing the crowd of onlookers listening to the tense conversation. "They don't need a spineless man afraid of his own demise."

Kai jumped back and off of the balcony, landing on the circular platform, ready to fight. Naruto rolled his right shoulder out and slowly walked forward, paying no mind to the seven high classed killers who looked at him as if he were a fool.

"You will die here today Kai. It is your fear of death that will be your demise." He said stepping off the ledge.

He landed on the opposite side of the platform, staring across the way at the curly haired man. "You seem so sure of yourself." Kai said with a bit of a smirk. "If you had any common sense, you'd look around and see that your confidence may be misplaced."

"It is not." Naruto said simply, rolling up his left sleeve. He pushed chakra into the marking on his forearm and a sheathed sword and strap popped up. "I am merely aware of the ending to this match. You know nothing of me, but I know everything about you." He strapped the sword to his back and unsheathed it.

Kai raised an eyebrow in confusion. "Have we met before?"

Naruto shook his head. "No, but I've met you. You're a cowardly man, hiding behind power." He said holding his sword in a reverse grip. "You are too kind for the role you play, which is why you refuse to take action. A man like you does not belong in an organization like this period, yet you lead it because no one has been able to best you."

"And you believe you can?" he asked him casually. Naruto gave him a curt nod and said nothing else. Kai nodded back cockily and walked to the edge of the arena. He held his hand out to one of the nearby men, never taking his eyes off of Naruto. "Sword." The man pulled it from its sheath and handed it to him. "Well then, let's see it."

With that, the two rushed forward. Kai went for a wild diagonal slash that Naruto blocked with his own. Spinning with the block, Kai went for an elbow to Naruto's face, but Naruto caught it and pushed it forward, spinning him back the other way.

Ducking under the next violent slash, Naruto spun on his knees with his sword out from his body, nearly cutting Kai's leg. Getting to his feet, he jumped back, avoiding the stab from above as Kai lodged his sword into the ground. Pulling it out, he jumped towards Naruto who had just landed. Naruto fell back to his back as Kai came in for a roundhouse. While his leg was above him, Naruto jab him in the spot behind his knee.

Kai landed and fell over when his leg gave out. He rolled out the way when Naruto threw his sword down where his chest would have been. The unarmed Naruto rolled forward and caught Kai's wrist before he could continue his slash. He leaned his head out of the way of the right straight and kicked him in the chest sending him tumbling backwards. Kai stood up on his unresponsive leg and scowled at the redhead. Naruto rushed him and grabbed his sword on the way.

He slid on his side, avoiding the bunch of kunai thrown by the curly haired man. Kai jumped and threw his sword down, hoping to impale the still sliding enemy, but Naruto expertly shifted his body over, missing the blade by a hair. He rolled again, barely missing the ground breaking stomp that nearly crushed his body. Kai yelled in rage and threw his sword forward, missing the blonde and instead impaling one of the watchers in the head. Naruto looked back momentarily and paid for it when he returned his gaze as Kai was already in his face, delivering a kick to his chest that made him lose grip on his blade. Before he could grab it, Kai jumped up and kicked it away.

Naruto took that distraction and grabbed onto his raised leg. He held it until Kai fell back onto his back and kicked him away. They both rolled to their feet and rushed again. Kai slid down, avoiding the flying straight kick as Naruto flew over him. Getting back to his feet, he blocked the redheads follow up spinning back kick with ease and delivered a barrage of his own punches into his momentarily exposed ribs. Naruto hopped back and cradled his chest with green chakra emitting from his hands.

He didn't have much time as barrage of kunai flew his way, he jumped out of the way and the watchers behind him deflected the blades, suspending them above the platform. Acting quickly, Naruto kicked one forward and grabbed another. The one he kicked forward was caught by Kai who was already rushing him. Naruto parried his strike with a slash of his own.

The two were deadlocked in a struggle of strength. Hand and hand, kunai and kunai. Kai peered into the black eye holes faintly seeing the cold, lifeless blues staring back at him. Loosening his wrist, Naruto allowed Kai's kunai to sore towards himself, stabbing him in the shoulder, as he plunged one into his thigh.

"Argh!" Kai yelled kicking him back with his other leg. Naruto rolled with the hit and stood back to his feet, now fresh out of weapons. Kai was now limping as he struggled to stay on his feet. Naruto rushed him, ignoring the injury to his shoulder. He engaged him throwing a feint right hook that Kai leaned back to avoid. When he did, Naruto jabbed him in his injured thigh. "Argh!" he yelled again, dropping down to his knee.

Naruto stood over him as if he already won. His breathing was steady and he didn't seem as though he even fought yet, other than the blood leaking from the hole in his shoulder. Kai's eyes were traveling around the room, looking at the people who were looking at the spectacle in shock. No one said a word, they just watched on in disbelief.

"This is the peak performance of your so called unstoppable leader?" He asked in a condescending way. "Not bad, but I have definitely had better battles."

Kai chuckled and stood back to his feet. "Oh, believe me, I've got a lot more." He said as he started to walk back into the tunnel. Naruto raised his eyebrow, wondering if he had given up. "Close combat is not my forte… if you'd really like a battle, we should take it outside."

Naruto watched him for a second before following. "…Hn…"

-break-

The hefty group of people now circled around the field outside of their hidden base. Everyone trying to cram around to see the fight. It had been so long since they witnessed their leader go all out and it would seem he would have to if he wanted to win this fight. When everyone settled in, the field was completely quiet aside from Ino who was sharpening Naruto's discarded blade off to the side with the seven higher ups.

Naruto stood calmly on the other side of the field waiting for Kai to do whatever it is he believed would win him this fight. Kai was still trying to get used to the pain in his leg by bouncing on the balls of his feet a few times. With a sigh, he stopped. He pulled his shirt off, revealing a body riddled with tattoos all kinds. He looked over at Naruto who was as unintimidated as he had been the whole time.

"I am finished with this game of cat and mouse." He said with conviction in his voice. "You wish to lead my people, I will not make it easy for you."

Naruto said nothing. He took off running across the field intent on continuing their battle. A few feet away from him, he jumped to his left, dodging the ball of flames headed his way. Immediately being forced to move again as another one came soaring towards him. Using his limited knowledge of earth jutsu, he slammed his hands into the ground and a wall shot up in front of him, barely standing up against the ball of flames that collided with it.

Kai watched the smoke clear away for a brief second before jumping up and away from the hands that popped out trying to snag his feet. Naruto jumped out of the ground and began rushing him again, performing a string of hand signs along the way. Kai blew another fireball his way which Naruto jumped over. Seeing this, Kai blew another one, but Naruto had finished his hand signs and blew a ball of water bigger than Kai expected, dousing his flame and coating the field in a thick mist.

Kai jumped from the mist, not wanting to be caught in a trap. He stared into the cloud of white, awaiting some kind of movement. A shot of an air bullet tore through the mist too quickly for Kai to avoid completely so he leaned out the way slightly causing the bullet to shoot through his arm. Grimacing at the pain, he jumped out of the way of the next two, avoiding them narrowly.

Naruto went through even more hand signs and blew a ball of flames at the curly haired man. When Kai jumped away to avoid it, Naruto smirked beneath his mask, pulling at the thin ninja wire in his hands. Kai noticed the wire just in time and contorted his body clear of being tangled in it. In doing so, he didn't notice the redhead come in with a brutal knee to his rib cage, sending him tumbling back down to the ground. He held his ribs and looked up at the two redheads who began walking towards him.

He looked around at the people that were giving him the same look they were before. The look that told him he was losing. In truth, this was all he had. This man before him was too powerful. The people feared his almighty strength because he was able to easily beat Sasori, but in truth, he had help in doing so. It would seem he needed that help here as well.

He stood up with a very intense look in his eyes. He took a few steadying breathes before he rolled his shoulders out. With a somewhat painful expression, a tattoo on the back of his neck began to glow an orange almost red color and began to… expand. Like markings of flames, it began expanding across his body rapidly, stopping just past his nose, almost reaching his other eye. The orange faded to black and the markings looked like regular tattoos. He felt… amazing.

Naruto watched him in interest. "…I knew you were a snake." He said lowly, crouching down lower into his fighting stance. Kai's eyes lit up in excitement. The power within him was overbearing but incredible. With a crazy look in his eyes, he took off.