Having departed the Hidden Sand as soon as possible and moving as quickly as they could, the unit of Sand shinobi that had been dispatched to rescue Pakura's squad had already crossed the border into the Land of Rivers by late evening on the day they'd left. The moon had already taken its place in the cloudy skies above, but the night did not signify rest for the ninja of the Hidden Sand.
There was actually no intention of resting on the way to the Land of Water. The plan was to cross the Land of Rivers that night, and to cover as much distance as they could before morning in the Land of Fire, at which point they would move more slowly and carefully, to avoid being detected by any patrolling Hidden Leaf ninja. While they were a small force, the Hidden Leaf would likely take the Sand's presence in the Land of Fire as an act of aggression, and the last thing anyone needed was another conflict. This time of slow advance would be the only real rest the unit received, even though they would still be moving.
Once darkness settled over the land once again, they would increase their speed as much as possible, using the cover of night to cross the Land of Fire as quickly as they could manage. If everything went according to plan, the unit would arrive at the border between the Land of Fire and Water in just two days. This breakneck speed would exhaust them all, but it was better to arrive tired than not to arrive in time. Besides, everyone had brought an excess of high-potency soldier pills, both to keep them going and give them the strength they needed to fight when they arrived at the scene of battle. They would all crash from the unnatural boost later, but hopefully it would only be after they were out of danger.
Leaping through the trees of the Land of Rivers as quickly as he could manage, Ash surprisingly found himself very calm in the face of the danger before them. Of course, that may have been because the battle was still a short time away, but Ash figured he would have at least been a little nervous, considering that he could and would probably die. He had no illusions about the fight ahead: he and his siblings were going to be far outclassed by the enemy. One enemy Jonin could easily kill all three of them without batting an eye, and that would be that.
He honestly had no idea why they had been sent on a mission such as this. As the thought of being expendable further cemented itself in Ash's mind, his misgivings about his career grew even more potent.
But fatigue surprisingly helped Ash's anger subside. He was literally too tired to be angry, and this allowed the voice of reason to come through, at least to an extent. At least they were rescuing someone. He didn't want to die for them, but it was better than throwing his life away for a stretch of land or money.
As if Baki could sense the mounting discontent in Ash's mind, he shouted back at his team, who were bringing up the rear of the entire unit. "How are the three of you doing? Can you keep going?"
Distracted from his disgruntled thoughts, Ash eyed the man ahead of them with a cocked eyebrow. It was a given that kids like them would be tired right now. But even if they were, they could hardly stop. They were ninja on a mission. They couldn't hold up the entire group.
For these reasons, Ash didn't bother complaining. "I can keep going."
Kankuro was apparently too focused on breathing properly to answer verbally, so he just nodded his head. Temari seemed to be in the best shape out of all of them. "There's no point in asking that, is there? We can't afford to slow down the unit, and we have to arrive to help our comrades as soon as we can. We aren't stopping."
Baki was pleasantly surprised that his students were handling this so well, but was also a little curious that Temari appeared to be in such good shape compared to her brothers. "Temari, you don't seem to be very winded. If anything, your breathing seems almost completely regular."
While Temari didn't want to brag, she couldn't resist explaining herself now that she had been called out. "Well, it gets hard to breathe after you push yourself for a while, so I'm using my wind style to get as much air in my lungs as possible. It only takes a tiny bit of chakra, and it's really working wonders. My legs still hurt, but I feel like I could keep going for hours."
Kankuro wheezed at her from the side. "So... unfair..."
Temari couldn't resist a cheeky smile at the reactions she was getting. Irritating Kankuro was always fun, and she could see the faint smile on Ash's face, showing that he was more impressed with his sister than jealous of her. Baki, on the other hand, stared at her blankly, a number of questions running through his mind.
I can't believe this! In all of my years as a wind-style user, how could I not have thought of this?! How did a young child utilize such an obvious technique before me?! Before anyone?! Do any of the other wind-style users in the village think to do this?!
Ash smirked at the flabbergasted look on Baki's face. "You alright there, Cyclops? Something rubbing you the wrong way?"
Not falling prey to Ash's obvious attempt to provoke him, Baki faced forward once again. He was a little mad to have been shown up by Temari just now, but as he began using her technique for himself, he couldn't deny that it was pretty effective.
---
"It looks safe to me."
Pakura resisted the urge to accost the Chunin next to her for making such a foolish comment. The Subuku Cliffs that marked the border between the Land of Water and Fire looked clear, even from their position under rain-soaked bushes at the edge of a forest. As best as Pakura could see, no enemies were occupying the open ground between her squad and these cliffs, but she knew better than to make assumptions.
"It may be possible that the enemy hasn't reached this point yet, but no country leaves its border unguarded. Even if our pursuers aren't here, there are enemy patrols that have probably been informed of the situation. The chances of this being another trap are very high."
One of the Chunin cast a sideways glance at her, a little irritated with his captain. For the life of him, he couldn't stand how slowly she chose to take things all the time. "So what are we going to do then? Just sit here? We have to cross the border, you said so yourself!"
"Yes, I did, and yes, we do. But running straight towards the border across a barren field is not the way to reach safety. For all you know, the distance between us and the border could be lined with explosives, yet you want to rush straight in. Would you rather reach the Land of Fire safely or in pieces?"
Unable to dispute her words, the Sand Chunin fell silent, cursing the day he was selected for this mission. He was glad to be under a capable leader like Pakura, but he would have preferred not to be out of the Land of Wind at all.
Seeing that no one else had any objections to raise, Pakura laid out her plan. "It's clear that the enemy planned to betray us from the very beginning, so even though they wanted to destroy us back at the valley, they probably placed a backup unit at the border in case we managed to escape. If we try to cross into the Land of Fire and get intercepted by the border guard, we'll get flanked by our pursuers from behind. We won't stand a chance if we don't find a way to distract the enemies ahead of us. We need to draw their forces to a decoy, which will create an opening in the line for us to escape through. If we create clones and send them forward here, the enemy will focus on them until they discover the trick, and that may give us enough time to escape."
"But Captain, normal clones can't fight or take hits. The moment an attack passes through them, the enemy will be onto us."
"All the more reason for our clones to make doubly sure they evade any and all attacks for as long as possible. I would send a shadow clone, but we can't afford to needlessly waste energy. If this plan fails, we'll need all of the chakra we can get to fight. That said, if anyone has a clever idea, I'm open to suggestions."
When no one else spoke up, Pakura extracted herself from the bushes they were hiding under and rose to her knees, forming the necessary hand-sign for making a standard clone. "Then let's go. The longer we wait to do this, the more likely the enemy behind us will catch up. We don't have time to stand around."
Pakura's squad quickly followed its captain's example, and soon enough, four clones of the Sand shinobi stood ready to distract the enemy for their creators. Pakura spoke to all of them at once. "Wait here for ten minutes, then rush the border. If you're intercepted by enemies, do your best to avoid any and all attacks. Distract them for as long as possible. Understood?"
The four clones gave a collective nod, which was about the extent of their communicative ability. Certain that they would do as they had been told, Pakura led her squad further down the line of trees they hid in, staying parallel to the border. Hopefully, any Mist ninja in the section they were heading to would move to intercept the clones once they made their move. Any shinobi with half a brain would stay at their post in case something went wrong, but the Hidden Mist's training methods tended to produce overly bloodthirsty fighters, always itching to kill. They wouldn't want to pass up the chance to gut their hated enemies.
Once Pakura and her men had moved far enough away from the area their clones would be drawing attention to, they simply hid in the outskirts of the woods, waiting for the doppelgangers to follow their orders before making a break for it. Having spent a good part of the ten-minute waiting time just reaching their position, the four shinobi did not have to wait long, as they soon heard the blast of an explosive tag in the distant area they'd abandoned.
Taking this to mean that the clones had begun their diversion, Pakura waited another thirty seconds, waiting for any shinobi in their area to hopefully abandon their posts and investigate the disturbance. Still, if she waited too long, the trick would be discovered, so Pakura didn't waste more than a minute before motioning her squad forward.
There was a rather large expanse of open ground between them and the cliffs on the opposite side of the forest, but they had no choice but to simply cross it as quickly as possible and reduce how long they were exposed. Sprinting at top speed allowed the four ninja to pass the open area in under a minute, but even though she should have counted it as luck, Pakura was immediately suspicious of how smoothly things were going. The plan had been to divert the border guard to another area, but Pakura didn't think it would actually work this well.
Upon reaching the foot of the cliffs that separated the Lands of Fire and Water, Pakura brought her men to a halt, much to their own chagrin. Salvation seemed so close, and yet, their captain was preventing them from reaching it.
"Captain, why are we stopping?! The enemy has probably already seen through our diversion; we have to move!"
"Yeah, the border is right up there. What are we standing around for?"
Pakura refused to answer these questions as she tried to determine what was making her feel uneasy. Something wasn't right here, but she couldn't quite tell what it was. There was something in the air, something that was making the hair on her arms stand on end...
As a loud blast of thunder echoed throughout the rainy skies, Pakura suddenly realized what felt amiss in the air. "Everyone, dodge!"
Taking her own words to heart, Pakura was halfway through a backwards leap before anyone in her squad was thinking of doing the same. They all followed her lead, leaping away from their position as soon as they processed Pakura's warning, but one of them was just a second too slow, and a bolt of lightning struck him from the cliffs above.
The attack was so powerful that the unfortunate victim was killed instantly by the heat, not even allowing him enough time to scream as his body slumped to the ground in a charred, sizzling heap.
Skidding to a stop, Pakura glared up at the cliff where the bolt had originated from, laying eyes on the person she had expected: Raiga Kurosuki, one of his blades still smoking with residual heat. He was also not alone; Pakura spotted two squads of Mist ninja flanking Raiga on both sides. Based on their uniforms, a few of them appeared to be Jonin, much to Pakura's dismay.
Though his expression was hidden behind his ANBU mask, Raiga's contempt for the foreign shinobi below him was obvious in his voice. "Did you really think a cheap trick would throw me off? Is your opinion of Mist shinobi truly so low? I'm almost insulted to think that you would disregard me as your enemy so easily."
The two surviving members of Pakura's squad looked up at the enemy in fear. They were outnumbered and outclassed, and they had just watched one of their comrades die right before their eyes. To say they were scared was a bit of an understatement.
Seeing this, Pakura was quick to rally them, as best as her abilities could manage. "Don't freak out just yet, you two. If you don't stay calm, you're guaranteed to die. If you focus, there's at least a chance that you'll get out of this alive. I'll do what I can to get us out of this, but I need you to do your part as well."
While her words were not completely assuring, the two men with her steeled themselves as well as they could, facing the enemy above them with whatever courage they could muster.
This act of resistance seemed to disgust Raiga even further. "Little fish like you standing up to a shark like me... does no one know their place anymore? Heh... allow me to fix that." Raiga turned his gaze onto Pakura. "Bow before me and beg for your life, and I may let you live: I've never seen how a desert bitch like you grovels."
The accosted kunoichi smirked up at the large man who looked down on her, seemingly unbothered by his bravado or his insults. "I really don't think that's going to happen."
"Oh? Are you so foolish as to resist me with your paltry numbers? Do you really think you can escape us?"
Pakura formed a sphere of her crimson Scorch style chakra in her right hand. "I do. Trust me, I don't pick fights I can't win."
Her reply earned a spurt of malicious laughter from the only Mist Swordsman present. "Is that so? I will admit, you vermin certainly are amusing. Well then, if you are so eager to entertain me, so be it! Show me the extent of your petty resistance!"
With that, Raiga raised his twin blades, preparing to launch another lightning-style attack. Pakura charged her own jutsu to meet it, speaking to her surviving squadmates as she did so, while also making a communication hand-sign with her free hand. "The moment these attacks collide, we break east, got it!?"
With a simultaneous nod from her men, Pakura unleashed her Scorch-style attack as Raiga cast another bolt of lightning at her. The collision of these jutsu created a blast that covered the area in smoke, and the threatened Sand shinobi were on the retreat immediately, sprinting to the west under the smoke's cover, just as Pakura had said they would with her silent communication a few moments ago.
Misdirecting the enemy with her words probably wouldn't buy much time, but at this point, Pakura was willing to try anything to survive this accursed situation. She hoped their reinforcements understood just how urgent this shitshow really was.
---
When the sun rose to greet the world for a new day, Ash and the shinobi with him were met with a clear view of the forests and grasslands of the Land of Fire. They'd sprinted through the entire night, using only their own stamina and all of their chakra to keep them going. By the time they stopped in a forest clearing far from the Hidden Leaf to replenish their energy, everyone was struggling to breathe.
Even the unfairly advantaged Temari and Baki took labored breaths. Everyone else was in much worse shape, especially Ash and Kankuro, who both collapsed to the forest floor the moment they were told to stop.
When he managed to catch his own breath, the unit's captain spoke to his exhausted comrades. "We...we can't stay here long. We'll move out in five minutes if everyone is ready by then. At the most, we'll take ten, but no more, so do whatever you have to do to recover some of your stamina."
Most of the Sand ninja in the clearing drew soldier pills from the pouches at their waists. They were meant to restore chakra and strength to hard-pressed combatants on the field, but there was no reason they couldn't be used to keep fatigued shinobi going over long distances. The boost of a high-strength soldier pill could make them all feel as if they had not been running for hours at all, though they'd all crash later. Hopefully, this mission would be a success by then, and everyone could pass out in some safe camp in the Land of Fire, with Pakura and her team among them.
Still, Ash couldn't stomach even a small soldier pill at the moment. He felt sick and nauseous; right now, the only thing he could focus on was his breathing.
Recovering much more quickly than anyone else, thanks to her little wind-style trick, Temari moved next to her brothers so she could help them do the same. "Alright, you two, put your hands on top of your heads, and don't scrunch up your torso. The more you can expand your chest cavity, the more quickly you'll catch your breath."
Kankuro grumbled something, but Ash followed his sister's advice, certain she knew what she was talking about. Five minutes passed quickly, but the captain didn't usher everyone back to their feet. Apparently, he felt they needed a little more rest.
With a little more time to calm himself, Ash steadied his breathing enough to consume a soldier pill he desperately needed to keep him going for the next leg of this journey. He also drank about half a canteen of water, but left the rest of it untouched; there would be no time for bathroom breaks on the way to the Land of Water.
Once he was able to manage it, Ash spoke to his sister. "Temari... can I ask you something?"
"Sure. What is it?"
"Are you worried?"
Temari folded her arms. "Do I look worried?"
"No, but I feel like you should be. I am."
"Of course I'm a little nervous, Ash. Who wouldn't be? But we'll be fine: just look at how many experienced ninja are with us. And we're no pushovers, either! I'll definitely keep you and Kankuro safe."
Ash furrowed his brow. "That's... not really what I'm worried about. I mean, it is, but there's also something else."
Ash glanced up at Temari's probing expression, knowing her silent question. There had been plenty of time to think during the trip so far. Initially, Ash's concern had primarily been for himself and his family, but something else had been gnawing at him once he realized it as well. This doubt was what he needed to articulate to his sister now.
"I just realized that... this will be our first real mission fighting against other ninja. I know a lot of them probably chose their career, but I can't help but wonder if there might be some people like me on the enemy's side, too. You know, people who had no choice and don't really want to be there. People who probably just want to keep their family safe... it's... I don't know, kind of hard to accept killing someone like that, you know?"
Temari frowned deeply. Why did Ash always have to hit her with such complicated problems? She liked being the person he came to when he was struggling with doubts, but would it have killed him to have doubts that fit his age? He never had a problem that was easy to address.
The older blonde contemplated an answer for a few moments. She hadn't actually considered this before. Subconsciously, she'd known they'd probably have to kill people on this mission. But she'd only been thinking about them as 'the enemy.' Frankly, she was content with leaving it at that. She had her own people to look out for. She wasn't going to waste emotional or mental effort worrying about strangers.
But Ash wasn't that kind of person. She had to give him something deeper than that. Hell, sometimes her baby brother made her feel shallow in comparison.
"Look, Ash... you love me and Kankuro, don't you?"
Ash raised an eyebrow. "Of course."
"OK, do you think that love is selfish or selfless?
"Well... both, I guess. It depends, doesn't it?"
Temari nodded, placing a gentle hand on Ash's shoulder. "Exactly. Loving someone means doing a lot of selfless things for them. You give them your time and effort, make sacrifices for them, sometimes you do things you really don't care about just to make them happy... that's all a very important part of love. But there's a selfish side to love, too. Sometimes, you might have to hurt someone else to protect the people you love, and it's not about justice or morality or anything else. It's just about protecting the people who matter to you, even if it means hurting someone else."
The older girl leveled a serious look at her brother. "We all have to fight for the things that matter to us. The people on the other side have friends and family, but none of that matters. The point is, they're going to try to kill you and your family to protect what matters to them. I know it sounds cruel, but it really is just about us versus them. Ninja fight. We can't always control when or why it happens. But we do control whether or not our loved ones get hurt. Don't think about the enemy's circumstances. Just focus on yours. They're a threat to you and the people you care about, so you have to stop them. That's all."
Ash was silent for several moments as he processed Temari's insight. Frankly, it amounted to little more than selfishly choosing yourself over strangers, but she had a point. Politics and kages pit ninja against each other. Ash had no control over that. It wasn't his fault that he would face Mist ninja soon. It probably wasn't their fault, either. They were all just cogs in a great, violent machine that spent their blood.
It sucked, but if a fight was inevitable and Ash had the strength to choose between the lives of his siblings or the life of an unlucky stranger... he'd kill the stranger in a heartbeat. Even if they weren't his enemies. Even if they didn't deserve it. If he thought of his future battles as a choice between his family and people he didn't know, then he had no doubts.
Even so, Ash shook his head, a forlorn smile on his face. "Life sure is cruel, isn't it?"
"Ash..."
Ash rose to his feet, knowing that the unit's short break was almost over. "Don't worry, Sis. I get it. If I have to kill someone to protect you or Kankuro, I will. No matter who it is."
Temari ruffled her little brother's long hair, a relieved smile on her face. "Hey, you have to protect yourself, too. Losing you would hurt us way more than getting my arm chopped off or something."
Ash gently pushed Temari's hand from his head. "Please don't say stuff like that, Temari. I don't even want to think about either of you getting hurt like that."
"As long as you take care of yourself. That was the point."
Before Ash could offer a reply, the captain ordered everyone to move again—the ten minutes were up. Every second they were not moving was a second Pakura and her comrades were fighting for their lives.
Giving Temari a reassuring smile, Ash leaped into the trees once more, now content that there were no obstacles to prevent him from performing to the best of his abilities in battle. He wasn't happy with the way things were, but he could accept reality for what it was.
He would never pick anybody over the lives of his family. For them, he could kill anyone without remorse.
---
Pakura cursed as she back-flipped over a windmill shuriken. She couldn't even throw any weapons as return fire when she landed: after several hours of battle, she only had a few projectiles left, and she was saving them for the worst-case scenario.
She and her team had never managed to escape from Raiga and his men and had been embattled with them along the cliffs of the border for several hours. Another member of her team had been slain already, falling victim to the overwhelming strength of the enemy, and that left only Pakura and her communications officer to resist the Mist ninja around them.
Raiga had split off from his unit during the chase, leaving Pakura tense and worried. She had no idea when the man would show himself, but she fully expected him to strike when he saw an opportunity.
Pakura's musings were cut short when an enemy jonin moved against her, drawing a short sword from a sheath on his back. With no kunai to defend herself with, Pakura had no choice but to dodge the incoming attacks. Her opponent was a skilled swordsman, and every swipe of his blade came dreadfully close to Pakura's body, but she managed to evade every attack thrown at her, with the exception of her orange-dyed bangs when the blade nicked some of her hair.
Unfortunately, the Jonin's comrades soon added to the onslaught. Every time Pakura dodged the blade, there was a projectile rushing to meet her at the place she dodged to, forcing her into less graceful, stumbling dodges. The last remaining member of her team tried to intercept as many of the weapons as he could, but his aim was not nearly peerless enough to block them all.
Pakura tried to keep the swordsman's body between her and the other Mist shinobi whenever she could, using it as a shield. But this meant she couldn't dodge in certain directions, so Pakura had to resort to carefully blocking the keen edge of her enemy's blade with well-timed taijutsu.
Her enemy's sword was single-edged, so Pakura could strike the flat of the blade to steer the attacks away from her without injuring herself. This left openings in her opponent's defense, but after nearly half a day of hard-pressed combat, Pakura was far too tired to take advantage of them. Raiga had cornered her squad in the early hours of the morning, and it was nearly noon, though it was difficult to tell in the pouring rain. The only reason she and her last squadmate were able to continue at all was because of the handful of soldier pills they'd brought with them.
But Pakura only had one of those left, and she'd already used three. She was using her chakra conservatively, but even so, she would probably only be able to keep fighting for another hour or two. After that, she would take her last remaining soldier pill, giving her a few more hours of strength at best. If Pakura didn't get medical attention shortly thereafter, she'd probably just die from overdose. She'd only make it if those reinforcements arrived in time to give her some medical attention. But it wasn't like she had a choice: without the pills, she was dead for sure anyway.
Exchanging blows with her sword-wielding enemy for too long was a waste of energy. So Pakura mustered the strength she needed to take advantage of the next opening she could find. Unfortunately for her adversary, she found one when Pakura was forced to duck under a horizontal swing of his blade, leaving a very vulnerable place open to attack. A swift uppercut found its way into the unprepared ninja's groin, doubling him over as he fell to his knees in agony.
In too much pain to defend himself, the man was helpless before Pakura's next attack, another blast of her Scorch style that sent the victim's charred body flying back towards his comrades.
"Son of a bitch! She got Sukoma!"
"Stay calm, she's getting tired; If we gang up on her, she won't stand a chance!"
Pakura actually agreed with that assessment, so she prepared to make a hasty retreat with one of her few remaining smoke bombs. She turned to face her last comrade to make sure he was ready to move, but was only met with a terrible sight. Raiga's imposing figure stood behind him, the keen edge of his swords lodged through the Sand Chunin's heart. Pakura's last ally was already dead, and she hadn't even noticed.
"Dammit, when did you...?"
Raiga chuckled as he dropped the now lifeless corpse in his arms, his expression hidden behind his ANBU mask. "You should have known that I never left. I was just waiting for a chance to get you alone..."
Pakura narrowed her gaze. "Mission accomplished, then. Are you just going to gang up on me with your pals, now?"
"Actually, I'm kind of growing fond of you. You've impressed me with your tenacity thus far... so much that I think killing you would be a waste. Besides, you're quite the exotic beauty; surrender yourself to me, and I may let you live as my slave. The Mizukage would have no qualms with letting me take you as spoils after you've been interrogated."
"I'd rather kill myself here than wallow under a pig like you for the rest of my life. There won't be any surrendering: you kill me, or I kill you. My money is on the latter."
Raiga shrugged, not at all dismayed. "Well, it's a shame to waste a woman of your caliber, but if you have a death wish, who am I to refuse you? The rest of you stay back; I want to savor this one myself."
Pakura watched as all of the Mist ninja around her relaxed and lowered their weapons. Clearly, they didn't think Pakura had a chance of winning against their leader. Any of the Mist shinobi who had been close to Pakura when Raiga appeared backed away from her, forming a ring of bodies around the two high-level Jonin.
Knowing Raiga would be tougher than any of the other opponents she had fought so far, Pakura consumed her last extra-strength soldier pill before facing him. She would need to wield her full power to defeat one of the legendary Seven Swordsmen of the Mist. "If you're ready to fight me, come on. I don't have all day to play with you."
Her provocations were not wholly effective in making Raiga lose his cool, but Pakura could tell that her bravado was making the Mist ANBU a little irritated at least. He was used to a lot more respect than this.
"You really are in such a hurry to die... if that's your wish, I won't disappoint you."
Finished with words, Raiga charged Pakura, aiming to just slice her in two outright.
With the majority of her stamina restored through man-made means, Pakura had no problem dodging the x-shaped strike Raiga directed at her, though Raiga was too quick for her to counterattack. His twin blades were optimized for swift, lethal blows, a design Raiga did not waste in his attacks.
His flurry of swings from two directions was difficult for Pakura to dodge at all, so even though she managed to keep her head on her shoulders, she was not fast enough to take advantage of any openings she saw in Raiga's defenses. There was no question that he was faster than her, but wielding two blades made it even harder for Pakura to go on the offensive.
She also had no kunai to block with, having used most of them as projectiles against other foes earlier in the engagement. She still had a few shuriken, but she doubted they would be enough to protect her.
This left Pakura with dodging as her only means of defense as she tried to think of a way to counter Raiga's melee assault. If she tried to strike back without throwing the man off his balance, she was basically guaranteed to lose a limb. She had to find a way to block Raiga's attacks if she were going to fight him up close.
A crazy idea occurred to Pakura as she spotted a fist-sized rock in her peripheral vision. She didn't know how well a piece of stone would block a blade, but if used carefully...
Using her foot to kick the piece of earth into the air before her, Pakura grabbed it before gravity could pull it out of her reach. Being sure to keep her fingers out of the way, the innovative shinobi used the only tool she had available to bat away Raiga's next attack, being sure to target the flat of his blades instead of trying to actually block the edges with a mere stone.
Much to both her and Raiga's surprise, this tactic was actually quite effective, and Raiga was caught off guard when the trajectory of his blades was suddenly changed against his will. This left an opening for Pakura, and she blasted Raiga's exposed torso with her Scorch style. Unfortunately, when the smoke from her attack cleared, there was no corpse: just the shattered pieces of a boulder Raiga had substituted himself with.
Kicking up another rock into her free hand, Pakura carefully watched her surroundings, ready for whatever direction Raiga was going to come at her from. This direction ended up being from below, as Raiga crashed out of the ground blades first, trying to separate Pakura's legs from her body. But she was quick enough to leap above the arc of his swing, and Pakura deflected his following attacks with careful use of the rocks in her hands. As long as she managed to avoid making direct contact with the edge of those blades, her makeshift shields would hold, much to Raiga's chagrin.
The two shinobi leaped away from each other as they landed on the ground once more. Pakura prepared to defend herself once again, which irritated Raiga even further than he had already been. "You... you dare fight me with rocks?!"
Despite her critical situation, Pakura smirked. "That's right. All of your experience, all of your training, and all of the power behind your famed swords... thwarted by two rocks. The Mist's Swordsmen have really let themselves go."
Raiga rushed Pakura again, this time charging his blades with lightning. Pakura didn't know if mere stones would be able to block chakra-laced swords, especially if that chakra was of the lightning element, so she quickly went back to pure evasion to preserve her life.
Raiga's anger made his blows even faster than before, leaving Pakura hard-pressed to dodge them all, but it also made Raiga's moves less precise. His stance was wider than it should be, and the arcs of his swings were too large. Still, the lightning that coated his blades extended their range by a few centimeters, and Pakura was unable to avoid some shallow cuts on her cheek, arms, and torso, the heat of the lightning cauterizing the wounds immediately.
Unwilling to continue this lethal melee for too long, Pakura took advantage of one especially large swing from her opponent, chucking one of the rocks in her hands at Raiga's masked face. The man was quick enough to dodge the projectile, but it grazed his mask with enough force to remove it from his face, revealing coal eyes burning with rage, and large lips twisted into a snarl.
Not one to let up an assault, Pakura pushed the advantage she had, sweeping Raiga's legs out from under him while he was unstable. He landed on his back with a thud, but rolled backwards in time to avoid a Scorch-charged fist from Pakura, impacting nothing but stone.
With her arm buried elbow deep in rock, Pakura was unable to escape as Raiga got back to his feet and swung at her neck with his blade, though his haste to kill her kept him from taking the time to enhance his attack with lightning chakra.
Thinking fast, Pakura snatched Raiga's fallen ANBU mask from the ground, using it as a shield. It wasn't the best defense, but the thing was still made of sturdy stuff, and it managed to stop the edge of Raiga's sword about three-fourths of the way through the mask.
Raiga yanked the blade away from Pakura, taking his now ruined mask with it, and swung his other sword instead. Pakura fell flat to her stomach to avoid this one, and used her one free hand to draw the last three shuriken she had from her holster. In another second or so, Raiga would try to impale her, and that would be much harder to dodge while she was stuck in one place.
Pakura launched the trio of projectiles in her hand at Raiga's face, forcing him to back step away from her. Though it was only a few seconds of reprieve, Raiga's evasion gave Pakura enough time to free her entrapped arm from the ground. But Raiga was on her again in an instant, and Pakura wasn't yet ready to survive another melee.
She managed to dodge the first few strikes, but by now, Raiga was growing accustomed to Pakura's style of movement, and as she tried to twist around one of his quick thrusts with one blade, the Sand Jonin noticed too late that Raiga's second lightning-charged sword was coming at her exposed back, with enough speed, force, and proximity to cleave her in two.
Thinking fast, Pakura reached for the last projectile she had left; the needle that held up her hair bun. She threw it at Raiga's right eye, allowing her dark green hair to cascade down her back as its support was used as a last resort weapon.
At the close range they were in, there was not enough time for Raiga to dodge the attack, even as his eyes widened in surprise when he saw it coming. His mind could work fast enough to realize what was happening, but his body's reaction time could not do the same. With a sickly squelch, Raiga's right eye was impaled by the needle. He screamed in anguish as he flinched backwards just enough to save Pakura's life.
But Raiga was an elite. He didn't cease his lethal swing even as he suffered a grievous wound. His recoiling body put the blade off its mark, but not enough for Pakura to completely escape injury, the metal slicing open her exposed back. With a pained cry of her own, Pakura fell face down on the soaked ground, reeling in shock as she tried to suppress the pain of her fair skin being split in two. Hopefully, Raiga's lightning had cauterized that wound just like the others.
Even if it had, Pakura was unable to get back to her feet immediately. She'd been through worse, but no one got back up from such a serious wound without squirming a bit first.
Luckily, Raiga was likewise struggling as he flailed around in anger and pain, Pakura's needle still embedded in his eye. The other Mist shinobi who'd been watching the battle were too stunned to see their leader wounded to actually react to his medical needs or Pakura's impending escape.
Fighting through the pain that raced across her back, Pakura reached for a rock next to her. There was only one way she could think of to get away from this ring of enemy ninja.
She chucked the rock over the heads of her enemies, all of whom were too surprised to do anything besides wonder why she had tossed a rock at them, and missed besides. Taking advantage of this opening, Pakura made the necessary hand sign to substitute herself with the rock while it was midair, switching places with it and removing herself from the ring of enemies in a puff of smoke.
Finally realizing that they were standing around like idiots, the group of Mist shinobi who'd let Pakura escape their circle split off into two groups. Three of them went to Raiga to attend to his wounds, while the rest chased after their escaped quarry. With no smoke bombs available, Pakura did the next best thing to create cover for herself, using a blast of her Scorch style to kick up enough dust and debris to hide her from sight long enough to flicker away from the field.
Once hidden in a crevice among the cliffside, Pakura watched from her hiding place as Raiga raged over her escape, especially after she had dealt him such a blow. "Find her! Find her and subdue her, but leave her alive! I am going to eviscerate that bitch!"
As the Mist ninja in the area scattered in an attempt to find their last remaining foe, Pakura breathed a quiet sigh of relief. She was wounded and tired, but for now, she was still alive. Now it was just a matter of surviving until she could be rescued.
---
"We're close. Everyone, get ready!"
These orders came from the front of the squad of Sand ninja that was nearing the border between the Lands of Fire and Water, and it was enough to make even the most exhausted of them focus once more. Finally, after nearly two days of non-stop, high-speed running, they were nearing their destination, and everyone knew that a fight was almost guaranteed.
The most nervous of them was the only Genin in the group; the Kazekage's children had never engaged in a real combat mission, and with the exception of Baki's clone from the oasis months ago, none of them had ever fought a real battle. Even Temari, usually calm and collected, looked anxious, though her worry was most likely for her brothers.
Ash actually felt weirdly calm. He could not explain why: even though he knew he was charging into a life-or-death situation, it didn't feel real. He knew it was coming, but until it got here, how could he feel fear? Ash had to admit that he was probably weird. Most people, when they knew they would have to face something scary, were afraid long before they actually confronted the thing. But Ash rarely felt anything at all until it was actually upon him, even if it was something good. He rarely even got excited over something good until it was actually happening, excluding the first C-rank mission he'd gone on. Maybe it was just because he hadn't been subjected to too many life-or-death situations before. If he were more experienced with them, anxiety would probably grip his heart earlier than it was now.
On the bright side, being devoid of worry before a battle allowed Ash to think clearly. Even now, he was going over the tools and skills he had available to fight with, and how he could use them to fight and kill the enemy. He was no master strategist, but when it came to quick thinking and clever tactics, Ash believed he was proficient. Then again, it wasn't like he had much battlefield experience to prove it...
"Ash? Are you listening to me?"
Drawn out of his musings by Baki's gravely voice, Ash turned his attention to the man. "No, sorry. What is it?"
Worried about her brother zoning out, Temari looked back at Ash and spoke to him before Baki could say anything. "Ash, are you alright? I understand that you're nervous, but-"
"I'm not nervous. I was lost in thought, planning for the fight ahead. That's all. I'm not worried about me."
While he thought his words would have assured her, Ash was surprised to see his sister scowl at him. "You should be! Bravery is one thing, but if you don't worry about yourself, you're going to die for sure!"
"I think I should be more worried about keeping you two safe instead."
Kankuro chimed in. "Do both, Ash. Look out for yourself and us, and we'll do the same. If you really care about your family, then you've gotta make sure you don't hurt them by going off and getting killed, right? Just imagine how you'd feel if that happened to me or Temari."
Numerous images of his siblings dead or dying on the ground flashed through Ash's mind, but he swiftly dispelled them for his own comfort. He saw their point.
"Alright, I get what you guys are saying. I'll do my best to get everyone out of this alive... including myself."
Satisfied with his answer, everyone turned their attention back to Baki, who'd waited patiently for them to finish. "Alright, you three, we have less than an hour until we reach a hostile combat zone. I want to remind you that you are not here to fight; you are support units, or, as a last resort, backup for a hard-pressed comrade. All three of you are suited for long-range fighting, so stay away from the center of battle and launch attacks from afar. Watch your backs, though, and keep moving. If the enemy realizes where you are, they will send someone after you. Stay alert and have a plan to escape from the enemy if they jump you. You must all be prepared."
This earned a unanimous nod from the three children, who exchanged glances with each other before Ash spoke up. "Well, the first step to making a plan is knowing what we have to work with..."
Having packed their bags together, there was no need to go over the tools each child had. They had all come equipped with gear above what normal Genin were allowed, including paper bombs, tripwire traps, and of course, the extra-strength soldier pills.
With tools mentally accounted for, Kankuro elaborated on the newest additions his puppet had received under Sasori's tutelage. "Along with the senbon launchers and poison smoke bombs from before, my Vulture has shuriken launchers in its wings, and a core wrapped in explosive tags as a last resort attack. I finally added those blades to him, too, so he can be used in direct combat if necessary."
Temari cocked an eyebrow at the young puppeteer. "You gave that thing a name?"
"Well, I can't just keep calling it 'my puppet,' can I? Even Sasori's creations have names."
"Fair enough. Anyway, Baki taught me a new wind jutsu about a week ago. I don't have it down perfectly, but I can create small wind blades with my fans now. It could be useful, but I don't think they'll manage to cut through a flak jacket..."
Ash furrowed his brow, calculating the updated arsenal of his siblings into his tactics. "You can aim them at the exposed limbs of the enemy instead of their body. Even if you can't cut something off, making them bleed a lot is good for us. Kankuro's puppet will also be able to cover the rest of the squad without giving our position away as easily. As for me, well... green fire will probably be hard to hide, so I might have to hold back unless things get really bad."
Ash was about to further elaborate on what role he could play, but the unit came to a stop as the captain ordered it to halt with a hand sign. He spoke as soon as everyone paused. "We're just a few minutes away from the combat zone. Everyone, take a soldier pill now, and prepare yourselves for the enemy. Remember, we are to rescue any allied shinobi we find alive, but Pakura is our top priority. Find her and protect her no matter what. Are we clear?"
A unanimous nod from every ninja in the unit was enough to cement things. Now that they were close to the mission area, and everyone was preparing to fight, the gravity of the situation set in. Suddenly, Ash found that he wasn't quite as calm as he was before.
With no more words to share, the unit followed its captain through the forest for just a few more minutes, until they reached a long barrier of cliffs that marked the border where dark clouds dominated the skies, though they had yet to unleash their torrents of rain.
"Alright, split up into squads, and search for our comrades. Don't fight unless you have to, and call for backup if you need it. If you find Raiga of the Seven Swordsmen, do not engage him without support! If we're all clear, move out!"
The fourteen ninja of the assembled unit scattered in all directions, with one Jonin going with each lower-ranked squad. Baki led his own team across the sheer cliffs, careful to keep a lookout for enemies, though they probably did not know any reinforcements were coming, or at the very least, they didn't expect them to arrive so quickly.
For several minutes, nothing of note was spotted or encountered, though it did start to rain pretty heavily. The four of them eventually found signs of fighting among the cliff's inner passages, but there was no sign of anyone alive in these barren, rocky areas, friend or foe.
While conversation would have been normal under any other circumstances, the tense atmosphere of being in enemy territory kept everyone silent as they searched. This pervasive silence was the reason everyone, including Baki, jumped when a sudden voice came over their short-range radios.
"Attention all squads, we've engaged a large contingent of enemy ninja. They easily outnumber us three to one; we're going to need help over here."
Being the Jonin leader of his team, only Baki answered the call. "We'll need you to relay your location."
As Baki communicated with the endangered squad, Ash glanced around the landscape, the cold rain plastering his long hair to his face. He made sure to slick it to the side so that he could see out of both eyes. It wouldn't do to have his hair blocking half of his field of vision or impairing his depth perception. Peripheral vision was very important to a ninja's survival.
This was one of the only situations where Ash would do this. He didn't like revealing the eye that could seemingly reduce a person to psychotic insanity. He wasn't sure how it really worked, and he was afraid that if he made eye contact with his sister or brother, they would somehow suffer the same fate as that merchant all those years ago. Ash still didn't know what that man's fate had been. Had he ever recovered? Or was he mentally ruined for life?
Either way, Ash was careful to avoid the gaze of his sister, who was surprised to see him revealing his right eye. Despite being as close as real family for years now, Temari had never seen Ash without his hair covering that side of his face.
Baki spoke up before she could ask about it. "Listen up, you three. One of the other squads needs support, but you aren't coming with me. The size of the enemy force is too dangerous for you. I want the three of you to continue searching for Pakura, but do so very, very carefully. Do not reveal yourselves for any reason! I will return when the battle there is finished."
Already anticipating the dissent of his three students, Baki flickered away before any of them could voice an objection. This left them all without much to say; after all, nothing had changed but the risk factor of their search. Encountering an enemy without Baki would be far more dangerous.
But since there was little choice, the trio of siblings continued their search, acting as though nothing about the mission parameters had changed. Fortunately, they did not encounter anyone for the better part of an hour. Unfortunately, when they did finally find another living person, it was both the best and worst thing they could ask for.
Peeking over the edge of the flat cliff they currently occupied, Ash and his siblings spied two figures far below them. One was a woman dressed in garb that didn't fit a Mist shinobi. She was slumped against a pile of earth at the end of a shallow trench, one that had apparently been plowed out of the ground by her own body. Advancing towards this woman was a tall, imposing figure with long dark hair and twin swords. He was saying something to the defeated woman before him, but he was too far away to be overheard.
Ash narrowed his eyes at the scene below him. "That's got to be Pakura. And that other guy... well, he definitely looks like a swordsman to me."
Kankuro scowled as he took in the situation. "Damn, of all the people to run into. If it were some random mook, then maybe, but this...? We should just stay here and hide while calling for backup, right?"
Ash shrugged. "Officially, I think we're supposed to go down and rescue her."
Temari immediately countered. "No way! We don't stand a chance against someone that strong!"
Ash dug around in his backpack as he answered. "Not in a straight fight, sure. But even a skilled warrior can be killed by a weakling if he's caught off guard. One kunai that he isn't prepared for could kill Raiga right now."
As he withdrew a kunai and an explosive tag from his pack, Ash found himself stopped by Temari's firm grasp on his wrist. "Ash, no! We can't!"
Ash glanced at the fearful eyes of his sister, before turning to look down at Pakura once again. She was far away, but he could still see her expression clearly enough. She was exhausted, drained, and afraid. Jonin or not, Ash didn't believe anyone was truly ready to die, and that included the woman down there on her last legs. Among these emotions, Ash could also see hope; hope that the reinforcements she had called so many hours ago would somehow, someway, show up and save her, as she just didn't have the strength left to defend herself.
It'd be awfully tragic if people who could have saved her sat back and did nothing. But it was a lot safer, too. Ash couldn't deny that. "I won't do it if you guys don't want to. Honestly, I'm fine staying up here and alive. But..." Ash nudged his chin toward Raiga, who was running his finger along the edge of his sword. "She's definitely going to die if we don't do something. I don't think anyone will come to help us before Raiga kills her. If you're fine with that, I am, too."
Temari chewed on her lip. Kankuro sighed quietly, his eyes affixed to their fallen comrade far below. "That would be the smart thing to do, right? Just can't help but feel crappy about it. I mean, if the shoe were on the other foot, I'd want someone to try to save me."
Ash nodded, his expression grim. "And if one of you guys was in this situation, I'd be pretty mad at someone if I found out they could have helped but chose not to."
Temari's worried frown contorted as she listened to her brothers. They were right... if one of them was in a bad situation like this, she'd never forgive someone who just sat back and let them die. And in the future, there could be missions where they needed someone else to save them. Temari could hardly expect anyone to put their lives on the line for her and her siblings if they wouldn't do the same for them. She really, really wanted to be selfish and do the thing that would keep her family out of harm's way. But in this line of work, Temari fully believed that such actions were paid back to you in full, someday. The least they could do was try to save Pakura, albeit in the safest, most sensible manner they could try.
She glanced at the explosive-laced kunai in Ash's hand. If they could just get a lucky shot in on an unsuspecting enemy... "Alright, we have to do something... but if there's no chance of us winning at all, we have to worry about ourselves, alright? If there's nothing we can do, there's nothing we can do."
Ash noted the resolve on his sister's face. Truthfully, he believed it was more sensible to avoid a dangerous fight. But he wasn't an unfeeling psychopath, either. He understood the drive to help, and in some way, there was a practical benefit to doing so: Ash and his siblings were Hidden Sand ninja. Their future would be filled with missions alongside other Sand ninja. If they established a reputation of cowardice and selfishness, their comrades could easily forsake them at a dire moment. Ash didn't like the fact that he'd been forced into the Hidden Sand's ranks, but he was here now, and being a reliable comrade within the organization had its perks.
Still, he wasn't looking forward to the mess they were about to get themselves into. "Well, someone should still call for backup. If this Raiga guy talks long enough, maybe we won't have to do anything at all."
---
Pakura was beaten. After hours of running, hiding, and fighting, she was completely spent, and now, with Raiga's imposing figure slowly advancing towards her, Pakura could see no way out.
Even after successfully escaping Raiga and his men the first time, Pakura had been unable to cross the border safely. Every time she tried to sneak into the Land of Fire, someone managed to intercept her, and Raiga was always quick to arrive on the scene. At this point, Pakura had fought the man directly four times, earning both of them several wounds, though Pakura's were far worse than her foe's.
Their latest clash had been solely one-on-one, as Raiga had sent all of the other Mist ninja in the area away, confident that his prey would not escape him this time. Unfortunately for Pakura, he had been right, as she lacked the stamina to escape Raiga again. But moments ago, a painful kick to the stomach had put her in the dirt.
Covered in gashes, bruises, and grime, there was nothing Pakura could do as Raiga advanced towards her menacingly. His useless right eye had been bandaged—the feel of cloth on his face was a constant reminder of his loss. "You... you've made a fool out of me for the last time, woman! Finally, I have a chance to kill you slowly... I'm going to cut you into pieces, starting with your hands and feet, or maybe even your fingers. I'll take it as slowly as necessary to get you back for maiming me!"
While she hated to admit it, Pakura knew she was scared. Like any seasoned Jonin, she had stared death in the face many times, but never had a situation appeared so hopeless. She wasn't ready to die yet; there were so many things left to do. A student whose full potential had yet to be seen, falling in love with someone, developing a new school of taijutsu, growing old on a nice beach somewhere... in the face of death, a lot of sentimental wishes came to Pakura's mind. But the only words she spoke to Raiga were bravado.
"Go ahead and kill me then, Raiga. It's rude to keep people waiting."
Raiga smirked cruelly. "Trust me, you'll be waiting a long time for death. I've no intention of—!"
The whizzing sound of metal slicing through the air cut Raiga off, but he couldn't tell where this noise was coming from until it was too late to do anything about it. A kunai flew past Raiga, dangerously close to his head, and buried itself in the ground behind him.
The wounded Mist ANBU followed the trajectory of the projectile with his remaining eye, but could see no one on the edge of the cliff from which the attack had undoubtedly originated. He was about to call out to the new enemy, mocking them for their poor aim, when a sizzling sound from behind him finally reached his ears; the pounding rain had blotted out the noise of what he immediately knew was an explosive tag.
The next moment, Raiga was engulfed in the modest explosion of a paper bomb, and even though she herself didn't believe he would be killed so easily, Pakura couldn't help but feel a surge of joy at the sight of it.
Finally! Finally, those reinforcements are here...
When they had seen that their explosive attack had been successful, Ash and his siblings leaped down from their hiding place on the cliff above Pakura's position, landing too far behind her for the Jonin to get a look at her backup. Ash was dismayed with the fact that he had missed his target, as burying a kunai in his face would have killed Raiga for sure, but the blonde could only accept his mistake and decide to practice later, if he managed to survive at all.
None of the three kids was foolish enough to assume Raiga was dead, but if he was incapacitated for just a few moments, they could take Pakura and escape. If the man was still fit for battle, then the three Genin had to come down from the cliff anyway, as it was too far away from Raiga to attack him with anything other than kunai. All three of them were too inexperienced to fight from that distance; Kankuro couldn't control his puppets from that far away yet, and his two siblings did not have the power to launch a jutsu that far either. They had to get closer to fight, and being kids, it would take more than one of them to drag an adult like Pakura to safety. They had no choice but to break concealment and come down here.
Still, the first plan was to evacuate Pakura and make themselves scarce, avoiding conflict with Raiga if at all possible. Unfortunately, as he dashed towards Pakura's prone form, Ash realized this wasn't going to work.
The smoke from the explosion a few moments ago was clearing, and within it was a still standing, still very much alive Raiga Kurosuki. Seeing this, Ash leaped directly over the pile of dirt Pakura was leaning against, instead using this moment to launch a green fireball at the Mist shinobi in front of him. The attack was easily dispersed by one of Raiga's lightning-charged swords, which did very little to boost Ash's confidence. He had put as much power behind that attack as he could muster.
Seeing now that a fight was inevitable, Temari and Kankuro spread out to the left or right of their youngest brother. They would both be more useful at a distance than in direct combat.
Before anyone could speak to each other, Ash heard Pakura's voice speaking out in disbelief behind him. "W-what the hell? You're just a bunch of kids! What are you doing here?!"
Ash turned back to look at the bloodied, dirty woman. "We're part of the unit that came to rescue you. I know we don't look like much, but real Jonin are on their way right now, so don't worry."
With a titanic effort, Pakura pushed herself up on one arm. The idea of these kids fighting Raiga was too much for her to accept. She wasn't going to let them die fighting a pointless battle for her sake. "Forget about me! Kids like you don't stand a chance here!"
Realizing that he had taken his eyes off the enemy for too long, Ash looked back at Raiga, who was sauntering out of the residual smoke of the paper bomb explosion with a mixture of malice and pain on his face.
"Don't worry about it. We've got him outnumbered, and he's already hurt and tired. We only have to hold him back for a few minutes..."
Seeing that her 'rescuers' were absolutely determined to fight, and knowing that she barely had the strength to stand, Pakura could do nothing but watch as the new arrivals to the scene squared off with Raiga. "Damn...alright, look, I took out one of his eyes earlier, you know what that means, right?"
Ash didn't answer, though he acknowledged Pakura's advice. Raiga was down an eye. He'd have a blind spot and issues with depth perception. It was a small advantage for Ash and his siblings, but it was something.
Whether he had overheard their brief conversation or not, Raiga definitely had something to say at this point. "First Pakura, and now a bunch of brats... why does the Hidden Sand produce such insufferable pests?"
Despite his condescending tone, Raiga clutched his side with obvious pressure, and Ash could see that a piece of sharp stone was protruding from just under his rib cage. The blast from earlier had done some damage, at least.
Part of Ash acknowledged that it was a gamble to provoke someone this strong. A really angry Jonin could probably slaughter him. But then, a Jonin who was completely in control and focused would do that with even less difficulty. Raiga was hurt, and he was irritated. Anything else Ash could do to throw the man off his A-game was worth it. Even if it was just talking shit.
"Insufferable? Must be how easy we make you bleed. Kinda sad, isn't it?"
His bravado earned a glare from Raiga. "I grow very tired of desert rats... I'm going to kill all of you now."
With those words spoken, Raiga charged the short blonde boy in front of him, murderous intent clear. Kankuro was on him in an instant, though, launching senbon and shuriken from his puppet to deter the enemy. Too injured to block the volley, Raiga dodged instead, side-stepping right into another attack from Temari's side, in the form of tiny wind blades.
Her jutsu was not powerful enough to kill Raiga on the spot, nor did it pierce his flak jacket, but Raiga's exposed limbs and even his face were sliced in several places, resulting in profuse bleeding from the afflicted areas. Filled with even more rage than before, Raiga eyed the girl who had wounded him further, clearly desiring to maim her in return. The Mist ANBU completely changed targets to go after Temari, but Ash was prepared to intercept him.
Ash's intuition was right: Raiga was undoubtedly much stronger and more skilled than a bunch of Genin. But he was letting his emotions get the better of him, anger and pain blinding him to reason and good strategy. If he fought like a rabid dog, even a skilled warrior like Raiga could potentially be managed.
With Raiga's bandaged eye blocking Ash from view, the Mist ANBU didn't see Ash's fiery attack, nor was he able to feel the heat of the incoming flames through his soaked clothing until his arm took the brunt of the fiery blast. With a roar of rage moreso than agony, Raiga completely ignored the green flames that danced across his body, instead flickering out of Ash's sight.
Ash's eyes darted in every direction, searching for the enemy. But he wasn't good enough to catch sight of the man. Only a warning from Pakura saved his life. "Duck, kid!"
Despite not knowing who exactly she was speaking to, Ash immediately obeyed the Jonin's command, crouching down just in time to feel several strands of his long hair being cut from his head, the sound of something swishing by echoing. Had he more time to think, Ash might have been troubled by such a close brush with death. But he didn't have that kind of time, so he instead rolled forward, away from the dangerous swordsman now behind him.
Returning to his feet as quickly as possible, Ash turned to face his foe again, but only in time to see a bolt of lightning being charged on Raiga's swords. If he had more experience, more battle instinct, Ash might have been able to dodge the attack before it left Raiga's blades, but that wasn't the first thing that came to a rookie's mind. Ash froze, fearing the kill shot instead of thinking of some way to avoid it.
Just as Raiga pointed his swords at Ash to direct his lightning, a gust of wind from Temari smacked into Ash from the side. Her quick thinking barely outpaced Raiga's own movements, knocking Ash out of death's way with her wind. The arc of lightning passed so close to her brother that she could see it singe the edge of his sleeve.
Enraged by the interference, Raiga once again turned his hate-filled gaze towards Temari, completely ignoring his previous target as Ash crashed to the ground several feet away from where he'd been pushed.
With Ash currently scrambling back to his feet and Temari lacking the time she needed to cast another jutsu against Raiga, Kankuro took it upon himself to distract the enemy. Aligning his avian puppet for a pass, Kankuro pulled the necessary strings to strafe Raiga from his blind side, once again catching the Jonin off guard. The same arm that had been burned by Ash earlier was now riddled with senbon as well, and Kankuro had to admit he was far from impressed by this ANBU from the Hidden Mist. Sure, he was tired from his battles with Pakura, and wounded from the same, but Raiga had still been injured by three Genin three separate times. Even tired, he should have been far above that...
With a maddened snarl, Raiga launched another lightning attack, this time aiming to knock Kankuro's puppet out of the sky. Surprisingly, the young puppeteer didn't even have to avoid the attack, as Raiga's blast missed completely. The man clearly wasn't used to doing that with one eye missing.
With yet another opening thanks to Raiga's poor aim, Kankuro accelerated Vulture's flight, spreading the sharp blades on its wings and aiming for one of his enemy's exposed limbs. If he could take an arm, or better yet, Raiga's head, Kankuro could end this fight right now...
Unfortunately, whatever state of immense rage Raiga was in, it was not enough to blind the Jonin to danger completely. Instead of doing anything terribly foolish, Raiga swiped at Vulture with his blades as it neared him, the lack of depth perception with one eye doing nothing to throw off his aim at such a short distance. The sharp edge of his swords cleaved a wing clean off of the puppet's frame and knocked it away from Raiga besides, completely avoiding damage to his person.
Fortunately, the avian automaton didn't actually need wings to fly. After all, Kankuro was the one giving the puppet the power of flight using his own chakra strings. He managed to withdraw his creation from Raiga's reach before it could take any more damage.
Still trying to end the fight himself before either of his siblings could be hurt or killed, Kankuro flew his puppet over Raiga this time, dropping the small poison smoke bombs held within the bay on Vulture's belly. Like last time, they were small, but numerous, and Raiga was quickly engulfed in purple gas that would suffocate him in under a minute if he breathed it in.
Not stupid enough to think Raiga would simply stay in the cloud of gas and die, Kankuro used the cover he'd created to rush Raiga's position again, spreading Vulture's one remaining wing as wide as possible in hopes of cutting down the enemy. For good measure, Kankuro also launched as many senbon and shuriken as he could into the cloud of noxious poison.
Whether or not any of these blindly fired weapons made contact was left unknown, as there were no cries of pain or death as they entered the purple cloud, all the way up until Vulture flew into the gas itself, aiming to mutilate its foe. Initially, it felt like Vulture didn't hit anything, leading Kankuro to believe that he had simply missed entirely. When he suddenly felt the puppet's movement stop dead in its tracks by a force stronger than Kankuro's chakra strings, he realized the truth.
That bastard had caught it. But maybe that wasn't such a bad thing.
Recalling the time he and Ash had mixed his poison gas with explosives to get the drop on Baki's clone, Kankuro activated the switch that would activate Vulture's self-destruct with a twitch of his finger. Really, it was just a cask of explosive powder wrapped in paper bombs within the frame, but combined with the flammable gases of his poison, there was no way Raiga should survive.
Within moments of its activation, the puppet's self-destruct occurred in a brief flash of light, followed immediately by an enormous explosion fed by the purple gas around the source. A pillar of flame arced far above the surrounding cliffs, alerting practically everyone in the area, and the massive shockwave blew everyone back except Pakura, who was already braced against the mound of dirt she had been kicked into.
When the smoke and debris from the blast finally cleared enough for everyone to see, all that was left of the spot Vulture had exploded was a smoking crater, with no sign of Raiga at all.
Rising to their feet, every one of the Sand siblings, and even Pakura, looked on the scene with awe. For everything to be over at this point almost seemed too good to be true. Ash was the first one to express this sentiment.
"Don't relax yet. Last time we used this trick, it didn't actually work. If we'd really gotten Raiga, there'd definitely be something left of him."
Before anyone could voice their assent, the most unwanted voice of Raiga Kurosuki called down to them from the cliffs above. "That's it... that's it! I will not be humiliated by some low-class scum from a village on its last legs! Literal bugs scraping by on the dregs of a daimyo's pity! Every single one of you is going to suffer for crossing me!"
The Sand shinobi below Raiga looked up to find him standing in the same place Baki's team had been when they first entered the fray. Half of the man's flak jacket was completely burned away, as were the bandages around his head, and a large part of Raiga's face was now scarred with burnt flesh. For obvious reasons, he looked absolutely furious.
With yet another roar of rage, the Mist ANBU was covered in a cloak of lightning, causing Pakura's eyes to widen in alarm. "Look out! He's about to be much fast-"
Before the final word could even leave Pakura's lips, Raiga was suddenly behind Kankuro, his rage primarily directed at the black-clad boy for scarring his face. No one even had time to warn the puppeteer before Raiga's arm crashed into the side of his head with incredible speed. The blow whipped Kankuro's head to a near ninety-degree angle, causing the boy's neck to emit a ghastly snapping sound as his body was launched away.
Ash only managed to take half a step towards his brother's fallen body when Raiga seemingly materialized out of thin air behind him as well; only Pakura's well-trained eyes were able to follow the man's movements at all, making it seem as though Raiga was simply teleporting to the Genin who couldn't follow his movements.
Filled with rage at the sight of Kankuro's fallen body, Ash turned to face Raiga so he could blast him in the face with his flames, but he was far too slow. Before he could even turn halfway to face his opponent, any air Ash had in his lungs was forcefully evicted thanks to a monstrous fist crashing into his stomach.
Immediately collapsing to the ground as his body was wracked with agony, Ash couldn't see the enraged visage of his sister as she moved faster than she'd ever managed before, anger driving her steps. This man had just mortally, maybe even fatally wounded both of her brothers in a matter of seconds: Temari had never felt such an incredible drive to absolutely annihilate another human being before.
Closing in on Raiga before he could finish off her youngest brother, Temari drew a kunai to fight with. She was done with the shallow cuts of her low-level wind blades: they were running out of time, and just injuring Raiga wasn't enough at this point. She needed to kill him, and that meant getting close enough to strike a vital organ.
Still, regardless of her rage-enhanced abilities, Temari was still not as fast nor as strong as Raiga, and he was easily able to catch his attacker's wrist before she could hurt him. But even in rage, Temari was clever: she noticed that the piece of stone embedded in Raiga's side was still there. Swinging her free fist in a short left hook, Temari was quick enough this time to land her blow exactly where she wanted to, driving the chunk of sharp stone even further into Raiga's vulnerable side, though it cut into her knuckles and possibly even broke one at the same time.
Even though blood spurted from the wound, Raiga ignored his first reaction to flinch. Instead, he grabbed Temari's smaller form by her hair, before yanking the girl forward and kneeing her in the stomach so hard that she was unable to emit any sounds of pain at all. A small crack spoke of ribs in dire straits.
Falling to her knees immediately, Temari doubled over as the powerful blow to her abdomen caused her to puke. She couldn't even breathe as her diaphragm cramped in unbearable pain. She was unable to even make a sound.
Giving the girl no time to recover, Raiga kicked Temari in the face, sending her careening towards the spot Pakura had been incapacitated for the duration of this fight. Had the man not been consumed by his own bloodlust, he might have realized that she was nowhere to be seen.
Turning back to Ash, Raiga grabbed the downed Sand Genin by the ankle, lifting him up into the air to face him. Viewing Raiga from upside down did nothing to improve the frightening visage of his mauled face, but Ash was in too much pain to really care at the moment. He was still struggling to get any air in his lungs as pain forced his body to cramp up.
"You... even more than that puppet boy, you anger me the most! You have eyes just like that bitch Pakura! Eyes full of regal contempt and disdain for me! Even when you are beaten, you look at me like some inferior being! I'll... I'll rip you apart with my bare hands! One limb at a time! And when I'm done with you, I'll do the same to that wretched girl who tried to save you! I'll crush every bone, cut every tendon, rip apart every little piece of her body!"
If anything had been holding Ash back, the idea of this man torturing his sister was enough to bring some strength back to his limbs. The mere thought of Temari being hurt even further by this bastard filled Ash with rage and hatred. These were the kind of feelings he was usually trying to avoid fueling his powers with. But in this instance, he had no qualms releasing those ill-driven blue flames.
Still hanging upside down, Ash gathered that feeling of burning ice in the palms of his hands. For some reason, the enraged Genin had an epiphany at this moment, before he unleashed his attack.
Blue was a good color for killing people.
Ash said nothing to defy Raiga's words. He just gritted his teeth as he aimed the palms of his hands at Raiga's ugly, sneering face. Having expected the blond in his grasp to be at his mercy, and barely coherent at this point with all the pain and unbridled rage besides, Raiga was completely unprepared to dodge the miniature, azure inferno that erupted from Ash's hands. With no time to yell or scream or even set his face in an expression of surprise, Raiga was blasted straight in the maw by the cold yet scathing fires carrying rage that may have even dwarfed his own.
Immediately releasing the boy he held and stumbling backwards, Raiga screamed in agony as he clutched his burning face. The searing flames seemed to infiltrate every spot they could, scorching his eyes, his nostrils, and his throat. It felt like he had straight-up swallowed burning magma, because, despite how quickly this had all transpired, Raiga's mouth had been slightly ajar in surprise, allowing Ash's flames to race down his throat.
From his uncomfortable position on the ground, Ash watched Raiga squirm and writhe in agony until the man finally drew his hands from his face, revealing what little was left of it. Almost all of his skin had been burned off, but the one eye he had left still worked, and Raiga leveled the exposed organ at his assaulter with all of the hatred of hell and beyond. Miraculously, the man's voice still worked, though it sounded like the voice of a walking corpse now.
"You...! You fucking-!"
Raiga's rant was cut short when a sudden, more familiar burning sensation erupted from his chest: the feeling of Pakura's Scorch style. Looking down, Raiga saw a flame-covered fist protruding from his chest. In all of his blind rage, he'd forgotten about Pakura, dismissing her as a threat. He'd forgotten one of the most basic rules of the shinobi; never dismiss an opponent until they were dead, and sometimes, not even then. For forgetting that, Raiga almost felt that he deserved to die. It was the last thing that crossed his mind before falling face-first into the muddy ground, leaving a heaving Pakura in his place.
"Well... looks like... I didn't let the kids show me up after all..."
Had he the energy to do it, Ash may have said something snarky in return, but there was no way he could manage that at this time. He could already feel his awareness of the world slipping away from him.
Closing his eyes, Ash heard Pakura's shuffling footsteps towards him, the woman seemingly taking it upon herself to deal with his wounds until Baki and the others finally arrived. Slipping into unconsciousness, and looking back on the battle, the shock Ash was experiencing from his injury brought forth a wayward thought as opposed to the logical concern for his siblings.
Man... Kurotsuchi isn't going to believe any of this.