Lixie
01-28-2005, 06:42 AM
I put all the sections together and deleted my old posts containing them so I could clean up the topic a bit. I'm continuing the story right now and will post the next section later.
The post is long... if it's too long for you guys, tell me and I'll figure something out.
IMPORTANT NOTICE---> If you're a anime-only Naruto fan, DO NOT read the following story. There's no major spoilers or anything... but still, just to be safe. If you don't want your Naruto experience spoiled, read at your own risk.
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Disclaimer: A large number of characters of this fanfic is based on Naruto. They're not of my own making, and I credit them to the original creator of Naruto.
Prologue
The massacre was… there are no words the adolescent girl knew to describe it. Fear overcame her and the small figure shrank back into the shadows as she hid behind the wall. Her eyes turned from the bodies scattered all over the street to the teenage boy as he moved, his shadow cast from the moonlight grew smaller and smaller as he stepped further and further. He did not look much older than her, and that fact made the scene she had witnessed all the more unbelievable. There was an ease with which he carried himself… he moved so fast, and killed without thought. Was this… was this the monster she had heard tell of? Was this the monster of Konoha?
He stopped his progress suddenly and turned his head—and at that moment the fear the girl felt elevated into something much more, something horrifying, something that made up the darkest of nightmares. The boy was not looking at her, but in that brief moment, the girl wants to disappear, she wants to remove her clammy hands from the cold, concrete wall and run to the far corners of the world, where she could hide from the evil.
The boy turned away and disappeared into the darkness of the street… and still the girl did not move. She wanted to, but she could not. She was stunned. The image of the look in that boy’s eyes was forever imprinted into her mind; there was a devil behind those eyes, a hatred the girl would never forget.
She wasn’t sure what pulled her away from immobility, perhaps it was the quiet sobbing, perhaps it was the biting chill in the night air, but she snapped to attention. At first she thought the sobbing noises were her own, but as her hands came up to wipe her eyes, there were no tears. It was then that she realized that she was not alone. The sobbing was coming from the scene the fearsome boy walked away from, the scene the girl had been watching moments ago before she turned away.
Her attention was dragged back now and she saw the figure of a small boy, kneeling on the ground, his weight on his heels. His face was in his hands and his shoulders shook violently with the force of his sobs. The maternal instinct within her told her to go to this small boy who knelt among the dead and gather him up like a lost belonging. Looking at him, she tried to recall the last time she had seen such pain and she drew a blank. She stepped out from the space she hid and made to move towards him.
The sound of her footsteps must’ve alerted him because he looked up then and his hands dropped from his face and she saw his eyes as he stared. Her heart almost stopped. Those were the same eyes. This small boy was the image of the boy who hated. It was then that her mind chose to remember the dread and the fear she felt looking at the boy who had killed so mercilessly. Without a second thought, the girl ran. She spun on her heels and ran, she ran as far as her skinny legs could carry her, and all the while flashing through her frantic mind were the images of the devil’s eyes and of the small boy, staring at her with the same eyes as he knelt, the dead scattered around him… the living among the dead.
Chapter 1
Talk of the new Hokage was bustling about the village, and the general feeling was one of awe… a female Hokage! This was something new, and discussions could be heard at every table and around every corner. Old villagers sat on their benches and smoked their pipes, wondering how wise it was for the Elders to appoint a woman as the next Hokage, especially since the village was only just recovering from the recent attack. Needless to mention, the women of the village were very happy—they were confident that this new Hokage would be just as competent as any other in bringing Konoha back on its feet.
Still, the restoration wasn’t easy… the village was still receiving the same amount of requests for aid as usual, and with the number of able-nins that remain… well, needless to say, the village was struggling to heal itself.
It was in this state of recovery that Old Man Zen came upon Konoha village. Old Man Zen is a farmer who grew up on his family farm on the South-eastern border of the Fire Country and who lived a quiet and sheltered life with a small family of four.
In the past months, Old Man Zen and his eldest son had kept finding precious crops missing from the fields as they woke up each day. When it first started, Zen had credited the small amounts of missing crops each day to wild animals, but as the days passed and the problem went over-looked, the amount of missing crops grew larger. Eventually, Zen and his son woke up one working day to find half the crops missing from their fields. How was this possible? Father and son had asked themselves as they stood on the ravaged field, sharing a blank stare, in one single night! They knew this because the crops had been intact the day before.
And so Zen decided with his son that they would stand guard that night over their fields. They had had their blankets ready for a night out under the stars—when Zen’s nag of a wife decided they would do no such thing. She’d rambled on and on about the dangers the two put themselves into.
“This is something that made half our crops disappear in one night. What makes you two think you could stop this thing if it were to show up?” She’d asked.
Zen and his son had argued, and they had even pleaded with the unreasonable woman, but she refused to let them go. In the end, she broke down in tears—an act Zen was all too familiar with—and asked them what she would do now if she lost them both.
But something had to be done about their crops! And at the gates of Konoha was where Zen found himself. His wife had sent him off to Fire Country’s ninja village for help, and he made the journey with only Nariko, their farm-girl, for company. One of the men had to stay and look after the farm while he was away! His wife, hanging on the arm of their eldest son, had argued this as she watched Zen leave, Nariko trailing behind him with their provisions.
As master and servant made their way past the gate and down the road, Old Man Zen’s gaze swept over the shops and buildings. He had been here as a young man, but he didn’t remember feeling the dark atmosphere that he felt now. Some buildings were missing parts of their walls, and villagers bustled about like worker bees from one place to the next. They reached the center of the market place—or what used to be a market place, now the shops looked bleak, and shop-keepers were busy rebuilding broken signs.
Zen tried to remember the way to the main building, where the Hokage and a number of nins would gather to receive requests for aid, but the village had changed, and it was so long ago that he had last been here, that he could not remember. He stopped in the middle of the street and tried to gather his bearings. Nariko walked past him, her head high and her gaze weary as she moved. She did not seem to notice that he had stopped. Zen thought to call out to her—the silly girl would get lost in this place and Zen would have to answer to his wife for losing Nariko when he returned home alone—but at that moment she turned back to him, readjusting the pack on her shoulder as she did so.
“Zen-sama,” she addressed him, “this way,” and inclined her head in a direction to their right. “There is construction up ahead, so we will have to go around it to reach the Aid building.”
Zen nodded and began to follow. As he fell into pace with Nariko, he frowned. “Riko.”
The girl slowed and looked at him, the respect and reverence that are always present in her gaze whenever they reached him were still there. “Zen-sama?”
“You have never been to this place.”
That brought a halt to her progress. She turned away from him and Zen could see those shoulders sag under the weight of her pack as he watched her back. “Yes, I have. It is only that I’ve never told you or Airo-sama.”
There was a halting pause and around them the procession of busy villagers flowed. Some were disturbed at the two still figures among their midst and shot annoyed glances their way, but these glances were ignored.
“Zen-sama. I apologize in advance for an act of great disrespect I will commit. I have many secrets, and I do not plan to reveal them to you until you have done your business here.” She turned to him then, and Zen could see the emotions that flickered across her face: guilt, regret, and pain. “Zen-sama and Airo-sama have been good to me, and it pains me to tell you that I will part my way from yours and your family’s today. I cannot reveal more now, so Zen-sama,” she bowed, bending at the waist in deep-respect, and did not rise, “please let me guide you to the Aid building now and accept it as my last act of gratitude—however unworthy it is.”
Zen stared at the top of Riko's head, covered by a wave of lavender strands. This image reminded him of another image, one much older, one that has receded into the back halls of his memory bank until now. The image was of a wild, strange girl, her head bowed in shame after he had found her bunking with one of his cows in its stall. He'd asked her questions then, questions she could not--would not--answer. Questions about her family, where she came from and how she came to be here on his farm, all of these were asked, but not a single one was answered.
Then the girl had fainted from lack of food--she looked like she hadn't eaten in days--and Zen carried her back to the house, where Airo had taken it upon herself to see to the girl. They took care of her and as days passed, she began to help out on the farm. She was determined to repay them their kindness. The question of her identity and origin were only brought up once, and she told them her name, Nariko. That was all she could tell them without seeming on the edge of a breakdown, and that was all Airo allowed. Airo took Nariko in, and Zen understood. Ever since their son had grown too old for elaborate motherly affection, Airo had craved for another object of her attentions.
And now the two of them were here, the questions on Zen's mind about this mysterious girl that came to sleep with cows on his farm were about to be answered, but Zen did not want to know them. Not anymore. Over the years, Nariko had established her identity with the family and became one of them.
Still... Zen supposed he knew this day would come. He knew there would be a day when Riko the farm girl would return from where ever she came from. He always had a feel that Riko was meant for something greater.
Zen cleared his throat. "All we have done through out the time you have been with us is to love you as a daughter and in return you've given our family laughter. You can give nothing greater. Lead on, good farm girl."
When Riko rose, there was a smile on her face, and she gave a short nod before turning and moving on.
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Tsunade rubbed her eyes with the thumb and index finger of her right hand as she heaved a great sigh. She stretched and looked down at the clipboards on the desk she sat behind, and another sigh was issued.
"Hokage-sama?"
Tsunade waved away the inquiry. "Everything's fine. Just wondering how Sensai was ever able to manage all this." The last case presented was a man's chickens being stolen by his neighbor--it sounded ridiculous even when Tsunade tried to think of in a serious tone. "Are we ready for the next case?"
Her Aids to her left and right nodded and she called out. "Next!"
The door slid open, and in came a farmer who looked to be in his late fourties, following him was a short girl who kept herself half-hidden from view behind the farmer.
"What can we do for you?"
The farmer introduced himself as Wasono Zen of the Wasono family farm on the outskirts of Fire country, and then went into a brief summary of the reason he was here and once he was done, waited patiently as Tsunade discussed the situation with her Aids.
"So, Zen-sama, you want some of our people to go down there and investigate exactly what is taking your crops?"
Farmer Zen nodded. "And hopefully they could take care of the culprit."
"Very well, you may wait outside now. We will assign some people to you shortly and you may make your payment then."
Farmer Zen bowed and made his way out. Tsunade began to mark the case down under C-Rank missions. When next she looked up was to see the girl, who looked to be about 15, 16, standing in the center of the room, her lavender hair piled in a quick mess atop her head, with her hands on her waist and a serious expression on her face.
The child looked to be about 15, 16. The girl must've had more to say on the matter of the case. Tsunade smiled and leaned forward. "Is there something we should know regarding your father's case?"
Her face remained serious... the only change was the lowering of the brow. The tilted corner of a mouth in the beginnings of a sneer disappeared as she spoke. "I am here to assassinate a certain individual. Hatake Kakashi."
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I am here to assassinate a certain individual. Hatake Kakashi.
The words, twisted with tension, hung in the air between them. For a moment there was stillness... the girl stood still with persistence, Tsunade sat in contemplation, and the Aids were stunned to silence.
An explosion of movement.
Imaya, a chunnin Aid, now stood behind the girl. "Hmph. A mere girl..." he taunted and already his kunai was at her neck, "sneaking in here like a mouse. What kind of an assassin announces her plan?"
"One who knows she will succeed." This came from Tsunade... or Imaya thought it did. His eyes widened as he looked in the direction of their Hokage...
"Hokage-sama!"
The girl, a leering expression on her face, now stood behind Tsunade, who was seated, with her kunai at Tsunade's neck.
The clone in front of Imaya evaporated and he hastily stepped back. Fast... this girl was fast! Or clever... Either one was dangerous.
The Aids sprang into action--"Stop where you are!" and the order came from Tsunade. Everyone in the room halted, and Tsunade spoke very calmly, addressing the girl who held a kunai to her neck. "Impressive speed. You show yourself to be above the rank of a chunnin... but I'm afraid you are not skilled enough to go after Kakashi," the hand holding the kunai tightened, the knuckles white, "Na...ri...ko-chan."
Riko spat, the spittle landing on one of the clipboards on the desk. "Says you, old hag. I've improved since we last met."
The Aids were all shocked by such a degree of disrespect, but Tsunade only grinned. "I admit that was quite a while ago..." No wonder she did not recognize the girl earlier... Nariko had changed much in her outward appearance... improvements in skill would also be possible in such a long time...
"Ah... the young..." Tsunade chuckled and shook her head, the blade sliding against the flesh of her neck. "Well, you can be sure I won't stand between you and your goal. Now you may leave, Nariko; there are still more requests of aid waiting to be answered and you're holding up the line."
Riko was surprised and a little vexed at the careless tone Tsunade used on her. "You don't care if I kill Kakashi?"
"Go ahead. He's out on a mission now, but I'm sure he'll return in due time to take on another. In the mean time you can explore the village."
"Will Zen-sama still have the help he needs?"
"The old farmer doubtlessly has no idea who you are, Nariko-chan, so I won't let your actions here affect my opinion of him. Are we done here?"
There came no answer, only a light breeze at Tsunade's back. The kunai was gone, along with the girl holding it. Tsunade was ready to call for the next troubled customer when Imaya interrupted.
"Hokage-sama! How could you let loose such a dangerous individual in the village?" The other Aids nodded eagerly at this.
"Relax, Imaya. The girl is harmless."
"This 'harmless girl' just threatened two lives! Kakashi-san's and yours!"
"Forget it."
"But--"
"I said forget it, Imaya!" Tsunade shot a glance to all the Aids, "and that goes for the rest of you."
The Aids inclined their heads in her direction, acknowledging the order. Tsunade grinned inwardly as she called for the next customer... she could get used to this Hokage stuff.
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The money purse was light, and Riko chuckled to herself as she tossed it in the air and caught it again. Tsunade-sama may be Hokage now... but she was still a poor gambler. Riko strolled along the main street of the village, new plans forming in her head. She hadn't expected Konoha to be in such a weakened state... after all, it was the strongest nin village of all.
Suddenly Riko found herself in the residential area of Konoha. She stopped. She was at an intersection. She looked to her left and her heart skipped a beat. In her mind, she saw the same street, only it was in darkness, and bodies were laid everywhere... a small boy sat in the middle of the carnage, his silent weeping was heart-breaking.....
Riko ran. She ran, her legs losing all feeling and moving of their own accord, she ran through the great doors of Konoha, her mission abandoned. She ran, her lungs feeling like they were to burst. Losing all sense of time, she ran until she collapsed into a small pond.
Riko rose, water dripping from her clothes as she moved. Her fists clenched at her sides, she let out a screech. Her thoughts were racing and she could not sort them out... she lost her mind.
Riko turned away from the street and sniffed. She looked up at the sun high in the sky. It was time to find Zen-sama and bid him farewell. She looked at the purse in her hand, and made her way back towards the market street.
She found Zen-sama at a table in a small restaurant, a cup of tea in front of him. She sat down beside him. "Sorry for the trouble I caused, Zen-sama."
Zen nodded but said nothing.
"It is time for us to part our ways."
Zen said nothing.
Riko knew this was the old farmer's way of getting others to talk. He did not prod, he did not question. He merely sat and listened. Before she knew it, everything came poring out. "My name is Yamayi Nariko. I am the soul heir of Cloud's cursed clan. I set out from my village at 12 to destroy one man. Konoha was too strong for me then, and much too terrifying... it is the birth village of legendary nins and horrifying bloodline abilities. I ran away from my task then, and that is how you found me. I treasure the years I spent in the country with your family. Those years provided me with time to better myself. Now I return here to continue what I set out to do. I cannot associate myself with your family now. I am a cursed nin and I will not have your family affected by what I do here. Please understand, Zen-sama, that I hold you in the highest respect and I thank you again for the years your family provided me with comfort and love."
For a moment Riko thought Zen-sama would say nothing still, but he spoke. "I always knew, Nariko, that you are of a different sort. You're adventurous and were never meant for a quiet life in the country." He sighed. "My wife had always thought... she'd hoped eventually you would become a real daughter of ours by marriage, but I always knew this day would come." Zen held out his hand, and Riko took it. "Well met, Yamayi Nariko. I cannot stop you from your destiny and so I release you. I will say this: you are not lost to us, there will always be a place for you in our home." He let her go and stood, and two Leaf nins were waiting for him outside. "Fare well, Yamayi Nariko."
They were gone, and Riko sat in solitude for a moment, the sounds of the village folk around her, before she dropped some coins on the table and left.
That evening, Tsunade found her empty purse on her window sill.
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Hatake Kakashi was exhausted. He returned to his lonely home and threw himself on his couch. The sky had darkened a while ago and now the moon was high. The last mission had been tiring... he had to accompany an ambassador of Fire to the Earth country. Ever since the Sand betrayal of Konoha, alliances between countries had to be strengthened. The other villages had had spies, and were now aware of the attack on Konoha by Orochimaru. The tension between these countries and talks of war had to be calmed and silenced... and that was the ambassador's job. The officials had suspected Orochimaru's goal was to start a war, and thus had worried the ambassador would be targeted, so Kakashi was sent to protect the man on his way.
Needless to say, their progress were slowed more than a few times by strong Sound nins, but Orochimaru had not sent anyone of importance and this worried Kakashi... he would bring this up in his report to Tsunade tomorrow. Now he needed sleep.
His eyes had only been closed for a short moment before he felt an alien presence. They flew open as he sat up. The window was open. Kakashi went to it and saw a piece of note paper stuck on his window sill by a small rock. His eyes narrowed... an explosion note? No. It was a simple paper. He removed the rock and took the paper. It was blank... but he felt some parts of the paper felt oily. He thought to hold it up to the moonlight, and on the note paper he could see a small lightening sign.
Yamayi...
Kakashi woke early the next morning to the sound of a summons at his door. It was one of Tsunade's aids. The messenger disappeared after the summons was given, and Kakashi was left to his brief morning preparations.
He sighed. Another mission was probably in store for him. No doubt things were going to be more difficult for him now that a member of the cursed Yamayi clan was within the village. The first thought that occurred to him upon seeing the lightening sign--the Yamayi signature--was to alert the Anbu. As he studied the note paper though, he realised that if the assailant had wished to cause trouble for him, he could've easily snuck into his home and assassinated him. The note paper was obviously a challenge, a warning to Kakashi of the assailant's presence in Konoha.
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"Your mission report?"
Kakashi tossed his notebook on the coffee table and waited, leaning against the wall, as Tsunade flipped through the pages. He wondered why she'd summoned him here in the common room of all places. Usual mission business was conducted in the office. Tsunade lounged lazily on the long couch parallel to the coffee table, and Kakashi thought he had never seen a more relaxed Hokage.
After a short silence, Tsunade closed the report. Kakashi waited for his next orders.
"I had an interesting visitor yesterday. A visitor after the blood of Hatake Kakashi."
His brows knitted. "I see."
"The girl came into the village as the companion of an old farmer. She stood in the center of the request room and announced that she was here to assassinate you." Tsunade paused, and when Kakashi did not reply, she continued. "The old farmer calls the girl Riko, short for Nariko. Her full name is--"
Kakashi cut her off, "Yamayi Nariko."
Tsunade nodded. "So you know." A short pause. "What will you do, Kakashi?"
Kakashi pushed himself away from the wall as he loosed his crossed arms to fall at his sides. "Find her."
Tsunade shook her head. "No. She'll find you."
He said nothing and nodded at her before departing.
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The stream ran through the rocks and down eastwards. A girl was sitting on the rocks at the edge of the stream, her bare toes wiggling in the water as her feet kicked. Her sandals lay on the rocks to her right. She'd shed her simple farm dress and traded them for a white pair of boy's pants and a red sleeveless shirt. The pants fitted around her hips, but the length was much too short and the pant legs only came up half way on her calves. They were now rolled up past her knees. The shirt, in contrast, was much too long loose and long for her frame, so she'd bought a white ribbon and tied the loose shirt tight around her waist. Her cloud village headband was opened into a kerchief that wrapped around her purple hair to end in a knot at her nape.
Suddenly the girl became aware of something, and in an instant she was gone.
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She'll find you.
Kakashi spotted her from his position atop the tree and smiled inwardly. The girl was sitting on the opposite edge of the stream, her head bowed, her attention caught by her kicking feet in the water. In the end it was he who found her. He was not the prey, she was. Kakashi decided this would be quick and easy, he didn't have time to play around with an armature. His hand reached for his kunai holder... only to find that he was immobilized. His eyes widened. "What?!"
Trapped.
Her leering voice came from behind him. "I found you."
What was this... ninjutsu? Damn! Kakashi cursed himself for not having the foresight to use the Sharingan. It's too late for that now, since he's been caught. "How..." This time her soft laughter came from every direction. "You underestimated me, Hatake Kakashi." She... no, an apparition of her... appeared in front of him. "I carry the name of Yamayi, do not forget that. You find yourself the victim of one of Yamayi's family jutsus."
Kakashi sneered. "One of the cursed jutsus."
She grinned. "I see you have your Sharingan safely tucked away. I suppose there is no harm in telling you. I have been practicing this jutsu for years. This jutsu lets me pull the threads of the magnetic field all around us and create a net with it."
His eyes widened. "The Yamayi clan has only been known to have the power of lightening. How can you control what is in the earth...?"
Her laughter came again. "What controls lightening, Kakashi?"
"Are you telling me that you could control the magnetic fields...? But I fought--"
"You fought and killed my brothers, but you have never known that the Yamayi clan could control the magnetic fields." She finished for him. Her tone was angry and impatient now. "That is because one of the conditions of the deal was that only one in the Yamayi clan in every generation can be one with the magnetic fields. In this generation, the power came to me."
Kakashi managed a chuckle. "The deal? So that is what you call it. Face the truth, Yamayi Nariko, it is a SACRAFICE! You are His underling, not His equal," suddenly he was short of breath... the magnetic net was tightening around him... good, she was angry, "and you know it."
She was behind him now and this time he knew she was real because of her hot breath on his neck. "I was wondering," she began, "whether I should loosen you to fight you equally or," she continued, "leave you here." Her voice was heavy with viciousness. "The magnetic pulse attracts lightening you know... and right now, Hatake Kakashi, you are bound in a high concentration of magnetic pulse."
The invisible net loosened around him, and Kakashi found that he could breathe again. Did her anger subside so quickly?
She came around to face him. "As much as I would like you to fry to death, I have to do what I set out to do." Her jutsu was released and Kakashi was so surprised that he fell from the tree. He managed to land on his legs. He looked up, but she was too fast for his eye to follow. "Six years ago I left my village with one destination and one goal on my mind." Her voice vibrated around the area. "To fight and kill the man who fought and killed my brothers."
Kakashi stood and nodded. He understood. He pulled his headband up and unmasked his left eye. "Come!"
Riko took out her kunai and faced her opponent. He opened his eyes, and she saw the sharingan. After six years, seeing that thing was still a shock to her system, but Riko managed to remain calm.
I am the one who inherited the clan's power. I am different from my brothers. Better. That is why I will not die here today.
With her kunai raised in front of her face, Riko charged. Kakashi did not move as she came towards him and at the last possible moment, Riko steered herself to the left. As she maneuvered herself around him, she sent her kunai his way.
Kakashi raised a fist and the kunai bounced off his glove. "Such juven--" he began to tell her that her childish attacks were useless against him, then a shock of pain went up his arm from his hand and he had to grit his teeth.
She lengthened the distance between them. "My kunai are charged with lightening--natural electricity. The metal guard on your glove is a natural conductor of electricity. Metal guards are useless against my kunai." As if to demonstrate, she took out another kunai and held it in front of her.
Kakashi could see that it was a jutsu she used to charge her weapons, but he hadn't seen her doing hand seals... impossible; every jutsu needed a hand seal to be complete.
As if she could read his mind, she answered him. "Don't bother trying to figure out how to read and copy this particular jutsu. Usually I don't charge up my weapons beforehand, since it takes up chakra to maintain the charges, but this time I made an exception, because it is against you, the man who has copied over a thousand jutsus."
Even as she was speaking, Kakashi was running through possibilities in his head. He took in the surroundings and realised that he needed to draw her away from the stream at her back. Water conducts electricity also, and he had no doubt she would use that to her advantage as well once she noticed. If he lured her deeper into the trees, there would be nothing around them except wood and leaves. Kakashi knew the girl would not risk using the magnetic net jutsu again, since a jutsu of such a large scale must cost quite a large amount of chakra. With that in mind, Kakashi disappeared in the opposite direction, deeper into the trees.
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Riko frowned and reflexively threw her charged kunai towards Kakashi as he disappeared into the trees. For an instant she thought to use her net jutsu, but then decided against it--her chakra amount was now too much depleted for that. Did Kakashi know that? Was that why he escaped into the trees?
She hesitated but for a moment, because she saw in her mind the defeat on her father's face as the corpses of her brothers were brought home one by one. One the day Hatake Kakashi had defeated the last son of the Yamayi clan, the greatest clan of Cloud village, the Yamayi's were dealt a great blow of shame. The defeat of Yamayi by Konoha's Hatake Yamayi is only one of many that added to Konoha's prestige, Konoha's fame as the strongest nin village of them all.
Riko decided she would definitely kill him today, and the world would know that Yamayi Nariko, the last of the Yamayi children, defeated Copy Ninja, Sharingan Kakashi. With killer intent, Riko went after the man.
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Kakashi wished he had a plan. Delving deeper into the trees was an option better than staying by the water, but in afterthought, Kakashi hasn't really seen many of this girl's jutsus. Who knows what else she had up her sleeve? If she could've managed to catch him, this girl was of high chunnin level at least, if not jounin... why was she not on the list of dangerous missing-nins? Kakashi was lucky that she wasn't on a true mission, or else she would've just killed--something she has now proved capable of--him the first chance she got. Now, instead, she wanted to fight him, for what? To redeem the honour of her family. The Yamayi is a proud clan indeed.
A kunai flew by him and implanted its charged tip into a large tree branch with a thunk. Good, she was following him. He had to lure her to grounds that were advantageous to him. This was a very dangerous situation. Kakashi has encountered many nins who've fought for a one-minded purpose before, and from his experience with them he knew that their purpose often fueled their determination. Yamayi Naruto means to kill him, and he in turn would have to kill her to stop her.
Of course, he could just tell her the truth, but what guarantee is there that she would believe him?
A pair of kunai came this time, and they also missed him. They hit the two tree trunks on either side of him and Kakashi realised too late what they were... he ran into a thick line of electricity and his body instinctively shrank away from the burning line. He began to fall and as he hit the ground his body burst into cloud. A log lay where his body would've been.
From his perch atop a tree with a thickened mass of leaves, Kakashi could see the girl walking slowly towards the log. Her sandaled footsteps made no sound.
"Kawarimi." She spoke aloud, as if she knew that he watched. It was a foolish to leave herself so open to attack... a child is still a child. Kakashi reached for a kunai and released it towards her. He watched as she looked up in his direction at the sound of the kunai... yet she didn't move. Kakashi saw the kunai pass through the girl.
Genjutsu?!
Damn! He just gave away his position. Sure enough, another pair of kunai came for him and he moved just in time. Kakashi scolded himself for not being able to see through her genjutsu, though she must be an advanced genjutsu user if he couldn't even see through it.
Just as Kakashi was pondering what in this genjutsu surrounding was real or not, the scenery changed. A man in his late twenties with bronze skin and a very pale and beautiful woman, an out-cold Nariko under her arm, walked out into the clearing from a thick patch of trees off to his left. They were now looking up at a surprised Kakashi.
A cigarette hung from the bronze-skinned man's mouth. "Hokage-sama thought you were taking much too long, Kakashi. She'd like to remind you that there are still urgent missions to attend to."
Kakashi nodded at Asuma after he overcame his initial surprise and he looked at the now unmoving Nariko under the woman's arm. Kurenai grinned at him. "Shame, Kakashi senpai... letting a child's genjutsu fool you."
Kakashi opened his mouth to explain, but Kurenai held up her free hand and waved it away. "Merely joking. Hokage-sama told us this girl was advanced in genjutsu, and that's why she sent me along with Asuma."
The man she mentioned was now walking back towards town, his back to them. "If you two are done chit-chatting, Hokage-sama would like to see the girl and you, Kakashi." Asuma turned to look at them, the cigarette littering ash as he toyed with it with his teeth. "It seems that this Yamayi Nariko has proved herself useful, that is, if she could be brought around."
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