Déjà Vu

"No way!" their leader recoiled in disbelief.

Jada quickly turned her attention back to Ryūgan, and as she watched, one of the dogs ripped out the boy's throat, leaving him for dead.

She had honestly wished she could get that image out of her head. But at least now, that left only Hōki to contend with.

"This ends now," Kakashi announced, edging forward.

Hōki's grip tightened around the hilt of his black fire sword, eyes darting between two Jadas and Kakashi. He was clearly cornered. With just one hand sign, Jada's clone released her technique.

"Water style: shark bomb jutsu!"

Hōki attempted to absorb the chakra with his armour, but it was a split second too late. Kakashi lunged into action, delivering a swift kick that sent Hōki up into the air. Seizing the opportunity, the real Jada soared high after him. Using her agility, she twisted and flipped him midair, positioning him awkwardly as Kakashi soared up alongside her.

The two ninjas wrapped themselves around him perfectly before spinning Hōki toward the ground with a double Primary Lotus.

Bang!

As the dust settled, Kakashi and Jada casually leapt back, impressed by their teamwork.

"Good work," he praised, lowering his headband over his eye. "That was a perfectly executed technique."

Jada deactivated her Sharingan, beaming brightly at his words. "Thanks, Kakashi-sensei! You too!"

In the aftermath, they began to search through the remains of the hideout, confiscating materials and any evidence of the Four Celestial Symbols Men's sinister plans.

Once their mission was complete, they relayed the information back to the authorities of Takumi Village, explaining the plot against Gaara. Relieved villagers swarmed them, expressing their gratitude and disbelief. They were quite troubled because this might hinder their facilitating an alliance between the Fire Country and the River Country.

"We were unaware of all this," their head villager said. "Thank you, ninjas from the Leaf, for saving our village! Please tell us this doesn't affect our growing support for one another!"

Jada smiled and assured them, "The Leaf Village values its alliances. We will always strive to protect those who need it."

All the villagers were filled with admiration. Even Kakashi voiced his thoughts after things settled.

"You carried yourself well back there," he commented. "That was a very mature thing to say. It's almost like you don't act your age at all, which is a good thing."

Jada blushed at the compliment.

As dusk came, they decided to stay in Takumi for the night. It would be some time before they would arrive back home. The villagers had even prepared a modest meal, giving them a chance to celebrate their victory and enjoy a moment of respite.

That moment, however, was short-lived when the villagers gathered outside their abode. The two couldn't help but recognize their gratitude.

It was here, in this moment of clarity, Jada understood that being a ninja was about more than just strength and skill; it was about understanding, kindness, and the strength that comes from wearing the Leaf's headband.

As night settled in, she was finally able to sleep. The comfort of her bed was nice, and she dreamt a sweet dream of her and her friends.

It's then that she blinked and found herself once more at the tree line near the entrance of Takumi Village. The sun was still up, and she had an achingly familiar feeling at the scene.

She placed a hand on her forehead in confusion. When did she wake up to depart the village? Better yet, why were they facing the village as if they were entering it again? Hadn't they just finished the mission?

Kakashi sidled up beside her with the same unreadable expression on his face as before.

"Are you alright?" he asked in concern.

"Did we…?" she began. "Did we have a good night's rest?"

There was something almost comically peculiar about the way Kakashi's eyebrows knitted together in confusion. "Yes? But we should focus on the mission."

"Focus on the mission?" she repeated, unsure of herself now. "Kakashi-sensei, I thought we already completed the mission!"

"Given that headache of yours," he lightly suggested, "we should have that looked at when we get back."

Flustered, she shook her head, trying to make sense of the improbable situation.

"Maybe I'm just daydreaming," she mumbled, feeling the urge to pinch herself. "Let's just get this over with, alright?"

He regarded her thoughtfully for a moment before he nodded. "Alright. Let's see what we can uncover."

Once again, they agreed to part ways and to secretly infiltrate the village. This time, however, Jada couldn't shake the feeling of déjà vu. This all felt eerily familiar. Yet to shake off the sensation, she focused on their shared objective.

Rather than waste time investigating like before, she decided to head straight to the warehouse. And to her surprise, as she slipped into the darkened space of the warehouse, she located Kujaku, Ryūgan, Suiko, and their leader, Hōki—just as she had before.

This time, their conversation was different; they hadn't finalized their preparations yet. This was understandable since she had arrived much earlier.

"Before we capture that girl," Hōki addressed his comrades, "we'll need to gather more intel on where she could be hiding in the Sand Village."

They were evidently still in the planning phase. As such, Jada turned on her communication device.

"Kakashi-sensei, I found them. I'm at the abandoned warehouse west of the village. Hurry…"

Once again, she felt the strange sense of déjà vu. Had she merely dreamt everything until now? Whatever the case, she at least had the leverage in dismantling their operations.

It wasn't long until Kakashi arrived beside her. "What's the situation?"

Jada gestured toward the group and said, "They're discussing their plans and seem to be preparing for something big. I think they're focused on using Matsuri to revive Seimei like we discussed."

She then paused as if expecting what Kakashi would say next: "Then we should act fast… What's the plan?"

This time, she didn't hesitate in her response.

"We should focus on disabling those with chakra armour first. If we hit them hard and fast, they won't have time to drain our chakra or use their weapons effectively. Also, your ninja dogs can distract them… Oh, and one more thing: when you reach that big guy named Suiko, take him out with your Lightning Blade first."

Kakashi regarded her for a moment, clearly impressed. "I was planning on testing the waters first, but let's go with your plan."

Then he summoned the dogs. Amid the familiar whirl of smoke, the dogs materialized, Pakkun appearing just as before. Instead of calling him by name so as not to get that off response, Jada decided on a different approach.

She knelt slightly, scratching behind Pakkun's ears affectionately, and cheerfully said, "You look ready!"

Pakkun wagged his tail, showing pleasure at her compliment. With an endearing grunt, he replied, "I already like this one!"

Once the preparations were made, they sprang into action. As they rushed forward, Ryūgan yawned lazily, clearly unbothered by the impending doom surrounding him.

"I'm getting hungry," he said, taking a few steps away from the group. "I'll be right back."

No sooner had he begun his walk toward the door than a giant bulldog erupted from the ground, latching onto him and pinning him in place.

"What the heck?!" the boy screamed.

"Ryūgan!" Kujaku cried out as the others immediately took action.

Jada recognized the moment as her chance, stepping forward just as Kujaku prepared to help her teammate with her Double-Edged Swords. "Hi there!"

"Who the heck are you?" Kujaku demanded, eyes narrowing at Jada's sudden appearance.

"Let's just say we're here to stop your plans," she responded confidently.

"We're?!" Hōki repeated in disbelief.

Just then, Kakashi appeared behind Suiko with the Lightning Blade already in hand. With one swift motion, he struck at the shinobi, decapitating him before the group could even react.

"That's right," Jada said as she charged forward.

Once again, Kujaku swung her blades toward her and unleashed the "Tempest Wind," trying to blow her away. Yet this time, Jada had the upper hand; without needing to activate her Sharingan, she evaded the gusts of wind and closed the distance.

Knowing what Kujaku would likely do next, Jada successfully disarmed her, prompting her clone to appear behind the two.

"Fire style: fire ball jutsu!"

The real Jada leapt out of the way as the clone unleashed a fiery attack that engulfed Kujaku whole.

Ryūgan was still struggling beneath the enormous bulldog, thrashing wildly as more dogs devoured him. "Get off me, you mangy mutts!"

"Sorry, kid, but you lost this one," Pakkun said.

"This is some serious déjà vu," Jada commented to herself.

With finality, the dogs clamped down harder, inevitably ripping Ryūgan's throat out and killing him in the process.

"No way!" Hōki recoiled in disbelief. Having witnessed the swift downfall of his companions was quite shocking. "How did this happen?!"

"This ends now," Kakashi asserted, moving forward.

The villain placed a hand on the hilt of his black fire sword. But before he could act, Jada's clone darted in, grabbing his wrist with a firm grip.

"Water style: shark bomb jutsu!"

Ferocious water surged. And as anticipated, he attempted to absorb the jutsu with his armour. Yet the moment of defense was short-lived when Kakashi capitalized on the distraction, launching himself up toward Hōki in a kick that propelled him into the air.

Jada soared high, twisting gracefully to meet Hōki. With teamwork, they executed the Double Primary Lotus together, crashing him back down to the ground.

The dust soon cleared, revealing Hōki defeated.

Kakashi lowered his headband and turned toward Jada with a smile and praised, "You executed that technique perfectly with me."

Jada returned the compliment. "Thank you, Kakashi-sensei! I couldn't have done it without you."

She blushed, unsure of how to return such a compliment.

As the adrenaline of combat settled, they began confiscating materials and evidence, satisfied with their results. They would later contact the village authorities to inform them of the situation, allowing the grateful villagers to celebrate their victory alongside the Leaf ninjas.

"We were unaware of all this," their head villager said. "Thank you, ninjas from the Leaf, for saving our village! Please tell us this doesn't affect our growing support for one another!"

Jada offered a knowing smile and said, "The Leaf Village values its alliances. We will always strive to protect those who need it."

All the villagers were filled with admiration. Even Kakashi, just like before, voiced his thoughts after things settled.

Later, they settled in for a restful night in the village.

As they sat together, she tried to share how today was like living a dream she had. Kakashi could only reciprocate in that the dream had paid off tremendously. Yet that did little to appease her doubts.

That night, as she drifted into slumber, she found herself thinking about the recurring cycle and the waves of déjà vu. What was all that? Perhaps a glitch in the system? Or maybe something else.

Whatever the case, she was happy to have experienced things over again.

The next morning.

Once again, Jada awoke to find herself near the entrance to Takumi Village. The moment she placed her hand on her head, she felt the further twinges of confusion poking at her consciousness.

This was becoming a routine. No, a bizarre and torturous loop that felt familiar beyond belief. Beside her, Kakashi voiced the same conversation as before.

"Are you alright?" he asked with concern.

"Umm… Kakashi-sensei, do you remember what happened last night?"

"Uh, yes?" Kakashi replied in confusion. "But what does that have to do with today's mission?"

"But Kakashi-sensei, we already completed this mission!"

Those words had slipped out without meaning to. Kakashi was already assessing her health with lingering doubt as he said, "Given that headache of yours… we really should have that looked at when we get back."

Her heart sank.