Shinobi

[Cyborg Ninja]

Takeda listened to Yoroi's plan with curiosity. It seemed like it would be the best thing to do without hurting her.

 

"Alright then, how can I help you in the fight against her to do this?"

 

-------

 

Specter smiled as he watched Karela jump into the air and laughed at her response.

 

"Let's hope so kid."

 

He also took into consideration exactly what he was going to do.

 

"I agree with Karela. If we take Gatoa down before he can be a real threat the rest will fall. Or at least send a small team to deal with him."

[SkywalkerRules]

"Why right now my dear, grab your blade and let's go."

 

Asuka grinned, looking up at Takai. She then grabbed her katana from the wall, and slid it in her sheath. She was pleased that her skills enhanced during her training. She was also glad that she had a teacher like Takai.

 

"I'm ready. Let's do this."

[DrPhil2501]

"I don't know about the rest of you, but Gatoa is the first on my list of targets with Zarela dead and Asuka missing. I presume that he's the main target of this mission besides the urn of course." Karela implied

 

"I agree with Karela. If we take Gatoa down before he can be a real threat the rest will fall. Or at least send a small team to deal with him." Takeda suggested.

 

"Our primary main objective is to destroy the Urn. But yes, Gatoa's elimination is vital to the mission's success - as well as any other possible candidates that follow his work. But we cant pinpoint our targets just yet, not until we map the area through Yamanaka's speciality." Shikamaru continued. "And apparently Kirigakura have planned their own scheme which will fit it nicely with our own plans. They havent briefed us about it yet, but they will as soon as we rendevous with them."

 

______________________________

 

A day has passed, and the whole platoon of Chunin and Jonin finally arrived at the bridge that connects the Land of Fire to the little isolated island labeled as The Land of Waves. The peaceful village was showing signs of recovery, as it was known to be a relatively poor, but peaceful nation.

 

Hidden Leaf's arival was expected, as the island was well informed of the situation. As they passed through the village, they were greeted warmly; especially Naruto, as he and his team helped fend off against Gatō and his crime syndicate all those many years ago.

 

The platoon soon made it to the far south end of the island, where it was already sunset. The submersibles lay on the sand of the beach, where the Kirigakura platoon awaited for the Hidden Leaf's arival. The Jonin Commander stepped forward and saluted Hokage Naruto. Naruto returned the bow.

 

"Glad to see you could make it, Hokage-sama. As you have no doubt have guessed, I am Jonin Commander Akitaka, of the Kirigakura platoon."

 

"It is a pleasure to finally meet you in person." Naruto greeted. "Now, you have already been briefed about the plan. I'm sure you are already aware of that we depart at the dead of night, so the enemy has a little chance of spotting us."

 

"That is confirmed, Hokage-sama. We have already prepared our submersibles for departure at my command. Now, if you will please, we will debrief you on our scheme."

 

He pointed towards a large circular object, housing 5 other cylindrical objects around the base. It was being heavily guarded.

 

"That is a container, housing a total of five powerful explosives. Once we get our bearings around the interior of the base, we will place all five of them in precise locations; the fifth one in the direct center of the base. A little back-up plan to insure that not only will the base be destroyed, but along with the Urn itself."

[Chevron 7 locke]

"That is a container, housing a total of five powerful explosives. Once we get our bearings around the interior of the base, we will place all five of them in precise locations; the fifth one in the direct center of the base. A little back-up plan to insure that not only will the base be destroyed, but along with the Urn itself."

 

Karela rubbed her hands together in anticipation of the fight to come and then turned and grinned at Kaneda and Tategami. "I like the way these guys think."

 

She then turned back to the hokage as a sudden thought went through her head. "Forgive me for asking...but what happens if Gatoa has somehow managed to harness the power of the ten tails?"

[Lord of Hunger]

"Alright then, how can I help you in the fight against her to do this?"

 

"Well I'll probably need a competent Shinobi such as yourself to restrain her," Yoroi replied. "I don't think she is going to sit around while I mess with her chakra gates."

 

* * *

 

By the time that the Leaf Shinobi had reached the Great Naruto Bridge, Yoroi was a little more confident about successfully using his new chakra nature disruption jutsu. However, there was still that nagging feeling inside his head: what if he got it wrong? The thought of killing Asuka--

 

Better that I try to save her and she dies rather than live the rest of her life as another Takai...or another me.

 

He glanced at the five explosives and addressed Shikamaru and the Kirigakura Commander. "Forgive me if I'm saying something idiotic, but is destroying that base the most practical solution? Arashi might have prisoners in there. We may be condemning them to death."

[Cyborg Ninja]

Specter looked around at the small village with saddened eyes. This village was very much like his own and he didn't like what he saw. He kept his head down and quickened his pace.

 

"Forgive me if I'm saying something idiotic, but is destroying that base the most practical solution? Arashi might have prisoners in there. We may be condemning them to death."

 

"Well it is only a back up plan, besides I'd rather have a few hundred prisoners blow up instead of thousands of innocents being slaughtered any day."

 

-----

 

Takeda kept to himself and stared up at the sky again. He listened to what was going on but was not fully concentrating on it. He was trying to think of an even less risky plan for saving Asuka but was having a hard time coming up with one. Perhaps Yoroi's plan would work and she would return back to normal. He would have to hope it works, it was all he could do.

 

-----

 

Takai frowned as he walked through the woods. He wasn't frowning because he was walking when he could just teleport, no he was frowning for another reason. Instinct told him the Leaf Village wasn't planning on attacking just yet which mean he had to wait a bit.

 

"So tell me girl, do you know which targets to take out first when we attack?"

[SkywalkerRules]

Asuka followed Takai closely in the woods. She felt that she was ready to fight anyone that opposed her and her master. She looked at the ground, her yellow eyes glowing brightly.

 

"So tell me girl, do you know which targets to take out first when we attack?"

 

As if she already knew, an eerie smile crept in her face. "Takeda..." she whispered in a cold, dark voice.

 

((Uh oh. ))

[DrPhil2501]

"Forgive me for asking...but what happens if Gatoa has somehow managed to harness the power of the ten tails?" Karela queried.

 

"Then we set off the explosives; no questions asked. Nothing, and I mean nothing, will survive after the detonation sequence." the commander promised. "But its vitally important that we place them in five precise locations - so as to minimise the damage to the surrounding marine environment."

 

"Forgive me if I'm saying something idiotic, but is destroying that base the most practical solution? Arashi might have prisoners in there. We may be condemning them to death."

 

"Well it is only a back up plan, besides I'd rather have a few hundred prisoners blow up instead of thousands of innocents being slaughtered any day." Specter implied.

 

"I'm afraid he's right..." Naruto added. "Mikita witnessed the experiments they conducted on the prisoners. The main result was them being turned to mindless zombies - it was what they were hoping to achieve in the first place, so the Arashi can control them like puppets after their primary main objective is completed. Mikita is only lucky he wasnt subjected to those experiments. Our medical examinations confirmed that."

 

"If there are prisoners, would it not be best to put them to rest? Rather than live the rest of their lives as wandering shells?" The Commander implied. He crossed his arms. "Now, we all have until nightfall. You all came on a long journey, gather yourselves."

 

Naruto glanced at Specter. "I would like to speak to you, before we depart. Its regarding your village..."

[Cyborg Ninja]

"Takeda..."

 

"Good girl, and don't forget he needs to suffer after all...he did kill your uncle." Takai said with a wicked smile.

 

-------

"I would like to speak to you, before we depart. Its regarding your village..."

 

Specter quickly turned his head to look at Naruto. He walked over to him and lowered his voice so no one would hear.

 

"What about my village?" he said sadly.

[DrPhil2501]

"What about my village?"

 

Naruto guided Specter away from the platoon, to where he can speak with him in private. He ensured nobody else could eavesdrop.

 

"Tell me as precisely as you can. Exactly how long ago was your village destroyed by the supposed "Nine-Tailed Beast"?"

 

___________________________________________-

 

Kaneda wandered around the beach, where all the men were preparing for the assault. The bomb sat innocently on the beach sand, heavily guarded; meanwhile some other group of Jonin sat next to the bomb, keeping themselves occupied by writing on the parchment of scrolls that sat infront of them. It was assumed they were preparing Summoning Scrolls so as make easy transport when delivering the explosives into the Hideout.

 

Kaneda rubbed his head, as it was aching. It was caused from all this commotion running through the atmosphere... for him literally. He could hear everybodies thoughts and emotions from their chakra and bodily fluid movement. It as if he was tuned into everybody nerve system - it was overwhelming for him to sense everybodies fear and doubts about the mission. But just then, for a tiny second, he thought he could sense the presence of something dark and evil.

 

"You must control yourself, Kaneda." Tategami appeared behind him, placing a hand on his shoulder. "Relax, take a deep breath, and think about something else for a change."

 

"Sensei... For a split second... I thought I could-"

 

"I can sense it too..." Tategami finished. "The Lifeforce of some two familiars, one who has strayed from us, are here."

 

"Do you know who it is?" Kaneda queried. Tategami sighed.

 

"Its best you find out for yourself. Its best everybody finds out for themselves. It would cause too much commotion and distraction amongst our primary objective. Try to focus on that instead." Tategami walked away. "They will reveal themselves in due time. Be ready for the unexpected."

[Cyborg Ninja]

"Tell me as precisely as you can. Exactly how long ago was your village destroyed by the supposed "Nine-Tailed Beast"?"

 

Specter had to take a few seconds to think about it. He scratched his head and tried to remember exactly when his village was destroyed.

 

"When you're hell bent on revenge you kinda lose track of time...I can't remember how long its been but what I do know is that Pein was still around when my village was destroyed."

[SkywalkerRules]

"Good girl, and don't forget he needs to suffer after all...he did kill your uncle."

 

Asuka's eyes were angrier than ever. A look that could kill. She desired to have revenge on those she thought were her friends. For the one responsible for her Uncle's death. Her main focus was on Takeda.

 

"Yes. I will have my revenge. And no one shall stop me..."

[DrPhil2501]

"When you're hell bent on revenge you kinda lose track of time...I can't remember how long its been but what I do know is that Pein was still around when my village was destroyed."

 

"Then this may confirm my theory..." Naruto muttered. "I thought I may as well share my knowledge with you before we embark on the mission. Incase any of us dont make it out alive, I want you to know so you can be at peace."

 

"I'd like to tell you a story, about a wicked man. You are familiar with Madara Uchiha - the founder of the Akatuki Organisation. Before its birth, he challanged Hashirama - the first Hokage of Konohagakura. It was during that battle that he gathered the will to summon the Nine Tailed Beast - which he tamed using the power of the Mangekyu Sharingan. After he lost the battle, the beast fled. Many years later, at a random occurance, the beast attacked Konoha out of nature before it had been implanted into me."

 

He allowed Specter to absorb the information. "I want you to understand. After the beast fled from Madara's control, before it was implanted within me, it continued its rampage across the world - your village becoming one of its victims. Even though technically some of the blame goes towards Madara himself, revenge is out of the question. You suvived the attack brought onto your village - it is time to put a new meaning to your life. Fight the Arashi alongside with us, for your family and friends. Let their belief in you become your greatest weapon!"

 

Tategami watched from a distance, and smiled to himself. "I remember many years ago, when Naruto was an arrogant, loud-mouthed brat. Now look at him and his growth since then; he's become powerful and intelligent."

[Cyborg Ninja]

"I thought I may as well share my knowledge with you before we embark on the mission. Incase any of us dont make it out alive, I want you to know so you can be at peace."

 

Specter nodded in agreement.

"I'd like to tell you a story, about a wicked man. You are familiar with Madara Uchiha - the founder of the Akatuki Organisation. Before its birth, he challanged Hashirama - the first Hokage of Konohagakura. It was during that battle that he gathered the will to summon the Nine Tailed Beast - which he tamed using the power of the Mangekyu Sharingan. After he lost the battle, the beast fled. Many years later, at a random occurance, the beast attacked Konoha out of nature before it had been implanted into me."

 

Specter's eyes widened at the story. He could tell where the story was going and how he could truly never avenge his family.

 

"I want you to understand. After the beast fled from Madara's control, before it was implanted within me, it continued its rampage across the world - your village becoming one of its victims. Even though technically some of the blame goes towards Madara himself, revenge is out of the question. You suvived the attack brought onto your village - it is time to put a new meaning to your life. Fight the Arashi alongside with us, for your family and friends. Let their belief in you become your greatest weapon!"

 

The Hokage's words seemed to be the exact ones he needed. He felt as though his soul had finally been lifted. He had spent years searching for what was responsible for the destruction of his village and now that he knew that it would never happen again he felt some relief.

 

"Naruto...thank you. You and your village have shown me great kindness and have treated me like family. For this I will not only be honored to fight along side you all but I will do all I can to make sure you all make it out alive."

[Lord of Hunger]

"Well it is only a back up plan, besides I'd rather have a few hundred prisoners blow up instead of thousands of innocents being slaughtered any day." Specter implied.

 

"I'm afraid he's right..." Naruto added. "Mikita witnessed the experiments they conducted on the prisoners. The main result was them being turned to mindless zombies - it was what they were hoping to achieve in the first place, so the Arashi can control them like puppets after their primary main objective is completed. Mikita is only lucky he wasnt subjected to those experiments. Our medical examinations confirmed that."

 

"I see," Yoroi replied with a head nod. "Thanks for the clarification."

 

* * *

 

Immediately afterwards, Yoroi continued developing his new jutsu by practicing adding a shape transformation to a water jutsu. It was a sphere of water in his hand, and with the principles he had observed from Tategami's Rasengan he attempted to compress and spin it at the same time. He was hoping for the jutsu not to be successful or explode but simply fall apart.

 

A little more, just a little more....

 

Suddenly the sphere collapsed, leaving a small puddle before him.

 

"Yes!" Yoroi exclaimed, then called out to Takeda, "It's nearly finished! I just have to apply it to an internal chakra source!"

[DrPhil2501]

"Naruto...thank you. You and your village have shown me great kindness and have treated me like family. For this I will not only be honored to fight along side you all but I will do all I can to make sure you all make it out alive."

 

"We will all do our part." Naruto beamed. "But thank you for listening. Not everyone can understand what kind of burden I carry - most people dont like the idea of a Jinchuuriki leading as Hokage. I hate this thing inside me, just as much as you do for all the terror it has created." he turned and started walking away. "Now gather yourself. We have a few hours till sundown."

 

____________________________________

 

In the Moonlight

 

The soldiers began to prepare themselves for the departure. The background was filled with engine noises coming from the different kinds of submersibles. Some people were asked to remain behind, as there werent enough submersibles to supply to hold that many people. Plus they required some backup, incase the enemy made it to the surface.

 

Kaneda stepped into the Stingray class submersible, with Tategami in the front passenger seat next to the assigned Kirigakura Pilot. The Stingray could hold a total of six people, so three more were required in theirs. Otherwise, the rest could hop into other submersibles. Selected Jonin, including Tategami, were given an ear piece for communication - as people were being split up into groups.

 

Tategami's group consisted of six other members; Kaneda, Karela, Takeda, Dai, Yoroi and Specter. It was now a matter of time for the rest of the team to hop into the Stingray or find another one.

[Cyborg Ninja]

Takeda slowly made his way into the Stingray after Kaneda. Surprisingly as he stepped inside he found himself somewhat impressed at the submersible. He took a look at his surroundings for a few seconds before approaching Tategami and Kaneda.

 

"I'd just like to say its been an honor to fight alongside you both, and I hope to continue doing so."

 

He bowed to them both before taking a seat. He was also waiting on Yoroi to see what the next step was.

 

---------

 

Specter gave one last look outside before stepping into another Stingray. He now knew what to fight for and wasn't going to go down that easy.

 

---------

 

Takai smiled as he watched the group from high up. He looked over to Asuka and smiled.

 

"It seems our dear friends are getting ready for their assault. So would you like to do the honors of teleporting us there or should I?"

[SkywalkerRules]

((Hey, guys? I won't be here this Friday and Saturday. But I will post this Sunday when I get back. Going out of town. Don't worry. I'll be back. ))

[SkywalkerRules]

((Sorry for the double post.))

 

"It seems our dear friends are getting ready for their assault. So would you like to do the honors of teleporting us there or should I?"

 

Asuka wondered what her master meant.

 

"When you say 'there', Takai-san... do you mean where the group are at?" Hopefully, that's probably what he meant. But she just wanted to be sure so that she wouldn't disappoint Takai.

[DrPhil2501]

((Thats ok ^-^ I kind of dosed off away from this place, but now I'm back ))

 

"I'd just like to say its been an honor to fight alongside you both, and I hope to continue doing so."

 

"I dont want to hear that." Kaneda added. "We must not fail!"

 

As soon as everybody else stepped into their allocated Stingray Submersibles, it was time to embark on their mission.

 

The pilot closed the cockpit, sealed shut and made sure no cracks were visible incase water leaked through them. The Stingray moved, creeping along the shore until the water blanketted over the glass. They crawled deeper and deeper, at a suprisingly fast pace. But it was a quite dark along the ocean floor - it was nearly impossible to spot anything.

 

"How can anybody see through this darkness?" Kaneda commented. The pilot smirked.

 

"Not to worry; we have that covered." he flicked a switch and a large, widescreen monitor sprouted from the dashboard of the cockpit. It displayed a terrain layout with a glowing green tint.

 

"Our submersibles are equiped with a nightvision system, so we can navigate through the darkness of the ocean floor."

 

"Highly conveniant." Tategami complimented.

 

Tens upon tens of minutes have passed - Kaneda lost track of time. Eventually something ahead came into view on the Nightvision Monitor. It appeared to be something organic and spread for kilometers. "A coral reef?"

 

"If these coordinated we were given are precise, the base should be located somewhere around here. It may be inside of the reef itself!"

[Chevron 7 locke]

"If these coordinated we were given are precise, the base should be located somewhere around here. It may be inside of the reef itself!"

 

Karela nodded in agreement. "Knowing how fanatical the Arashi are about nature I'd say that it's a pretty safe bet the base is inside the reef to minimize damage to the enviorment. The only problem I see if finding the entrance to the base.

 

She looked at the screen again and shook her head slowly. "That reef is huge...it might take us quite a while to find the entrance if the base is inside the reef."

[Cyborg Ninja]

"When you say 'there', Takai-san... do you mean where the group are at?"

 

Takai looked over to his pupil and shook his head but smiled at her none the less.

 

"While I'm sure it would give them a good scare, I don't think it would end that well for us. No my dear, I mean to the Arashi base where the group is headed. It'll give us a chance to find a good spot to watch the fight."

 

------------------

 

"That reef is huge...it might take us quite a while to find the entrance if the base is inside the reef."

 

Takeda looked over to Karela after staring at the large reef.

 

"Forgive me for bringing it up Karela but do you remember ever visiting the base while you were brainwashed by them?"

[DrPhil2501]

"That reef is huge...it might take us quite a while to find the entrance if the base is inside the reef."

 

With all the colourfull marine biology grown all over the organic formation, it was quite difficult to determine how one could set up a base underground.

 

Tategami placed his finger over his ear, listening in on the communication between the teams.

 

"Shadow Squadron, the diversion appears to be a success. You can see the catastrophe occuring above you."

 

Kaneda stared up at the window ceiling, and watched the battle commence. The Cuttlefish Subs soared down through the ocean like missiles - which were appropriately coutnered with missiles from the inconspicuous reef.

 

"If the Arashi wanted to maintain secrecy for their hidden base, why are they attacking straight away?"

 

"There are two possibilities." Tategami began. "Either one of the distractions has incidently uncovered the hidden entrance and they are ensuring nobody penetrates through. Or, the Arashi can see the whole army of Cuttlefish Subs and view them as an immediate threat."

 

"The first option could be possible." the pilot claimed. He flicked a button for the console of the Night-Vision monitor. The view changed into a layout Birds-eye view of the reef, most likely made using the sonar system. The pilot pointed over to a section on the map, where it was covered by moving dots.

 

"See these dots? Thats our distraction. Notice how all of them are being lead to this one particular spot."

 

Kaneda was still staring out of the window, watching the battle commence. He kept squinting at the Countering "Missles" being launched from reef. They were more like large needles made from light, and they were being fired at a very fast pace. Not only that, but there was a seemingly entire swarm consisting of these needles. But they still did catastrophic damage to the Cuttlefish, quite devastating actually.

 

Before the Stingray moved in close to the wall of the reef, Kaneda thought he caught a glimpse of where the needles where coming from. He shook his head, wondering if his eyes deceived him when he thought he saw a man standing on the reef itself.

[Chevron 7 locke]

"Forgive me for bringing it up Karela but do you remember ever visiting the base while you were brainwashed by them?"

 

Karela shook her head and then turned to look at the battle going on outside. "I may have but I don't remember being here. Most of the memories of my time among the Arashi are gone and I don't miss them at all."

 

She looked over at Kaneda and noticed that he was staring out the window, most likely watching the battle going on outside. She walked behind him and stared out the window towards the reef. Her eyes caught a glimpse of what looked like a figure standing on the reef.

 

"It may be just me, but is anybody else seeing a figure standing on the reef itself?."

[DrPhil2501]

"It may be just me, but is anybody else seeing a figure standing on the reef itself?."

 

"Looks like the Arashi own very resourceful people." Kaneda added. "I'm wondering how that guy is able to survive with that amount of pressure of water."

 

"You can worry about that later." the pilot remarked. "Found a passage that goes though into the reef towards the supposed entrance."

 

The Stingray crawled along the wall of the reef until it met a decent sized gap. They entered it, and ventured through the canyons of the reef. The pilot studied the sonar map carefully to ensure they were heading in the right direction. A few minutes later, the stingray came into an open clearing walled with the rock and marine biology.

 

Wreckage of the cuttlefish was spread all over the large terrain. Looking up ahead, the figure of a man was still present ontop of a tall cliff of reef. All his attention was focused on the cuttlefish - he didn't catch a glimpse of the approaching stingray, thanks to its camoflaging abilities.

 

But directly beneath him of the cliff face appeared to be an entrance to a cavern, covered with growths of seaweed and plants.

 

"I think we found the entrance." the pilot transmitted over his intercomm. "Stingray team follow these coordinates. Be very careful, hostile in contact."

 

The stingray silently crept along towards the cavern entrance, brushing past the marine vegetation. Though the underwater cavern was very dark, there was a faint orange light within the long distance of the narrow passage.

 

"We cant mainstain a steady path along the rough terrain of the cavern. We'll have to switch to Explorer Mode for now." he flicked a switch and the Stingray departed from the ground below and soared through the cavern.