XII

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Arc XII Chapter 6

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Naruto shouted, far from pleased. He was unhappy, and he made them know. “Ehhhh? What? Another one of these stupid missions? No, thanks, Tsunade Granny. Not with me. I will only take real missions. Real missions for real ninja.”

“...” Tsunade fumed from behind the mission desk, surrounded by a mountain of paperwork, her hand supporting her chin propped on her arm. Her annoyance was noticeable, yet Naruto failed to read the mood. “Eh? And what type of answer is that supposed to be, Naruto? You will take the mission, or leave. That is how things work here.”

Naruto crossed his arms in protest. “No, I won't. Even if it's you, Tsunade Granny.”

“...” Kakashi was sweating beside him, his face pale. He was pretending to have suddenly turned mute and voiceless as usual.

“...” Tsunade grumbled, displeased by his behaviour. “I always knew that you were stubborn as a mule, Naruto, but I never thought that you are stupid like one, too.”

Naruto dismissed her complaints. “Hmpf, as if I care. You know what, Tsunade Granny, the old geezer, the Third, was far more sensible, ya know!”

“What?” Tsunade's mood worsened drastically, her eyebrow twitching. Her eyes narrowed. “What did you just say, Naruto?”

Naruto didn't back down, not in the slightest. “You heard me damn right, Granny. The Third was ...”

The door crashed wide open, and a kunoichi barged in, utter panic written all across her face. This was an emergency. “Hokage-sama ... It is urgent! We have just received a message directly from Sunagakure ... The Kazekage ... He has been captured and by Akatsuki! A group attacked the village and took him!”

...

...

...

Silence reigned. A new mission had arrived.

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Team 7 stood at the gates, ready to depart. The sun cast its first rays on the village of Sunagakure, a village built of clay and brick. A restful night had passed. Their stamina had recovered. Their strength returned. The journey from Konoha to Sunagakure was a long one, pushing them to the very limit of their endurance. They had travelled day and night, covering the entire distance between Suna and Konoha in less than three days. The halt in Sunagakure was a welcome one, providing them with some much needed rest.

Now they were ready. Ready to commence the pursuit. Kankuro had managed to retrieve a scrap of clothing. It nearly cost him his life, but his efforts would not be in vain. The piece of clothing was their only hope. The scent would allow them to track down the enemy. They wouldn't fail. They would succeed where Kankuro had failed. They would rescue Gaara.

Naruto clenched his fist, his eyes blazing. “Let's go!!! Time to save Gaara. He is waiting for us, ya know!”

“...” Kakashi merely nodded, ever the taciturn ninja.

Sakura cracked her knuckles, smirking. “Yes, let's go.”

“Yes, we have no time to lose”, Temari concurred, her iconic black lacquered war fan strapped to her back ...

“Not so fast, young ones! I will come with you! Can't let you go alone!” a voice interrupted them. Standing above them, there was Chiyo, her arms crossed, her lips armed with the confident grin of a woman prepared to go to war. “Make no mistake, you will need any strength you can get. These Akatsuki people ... They are strong. They are four in total, according to Kankuro. Three men. One girl. You cannot hope to take them on all alone. You are going to need help.”

Nobody disagreed. The old woman was right. The enemy was strong. They would need every help they could get.

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The boulder moved and the cave opened. Together they entered, the Kazekage still unconscious amidst the talons of Deidara's clay bird. Eight days they had travelled. Eight nights they had rested. Yet progress was slow. Sasori might be a gifted a ninja on his own with talents aplenty, but he was certainly not the fastest ninja beneath the sun. His puppet armour provided him with a strong defence, but Sasori slowed them all down to a crawl, constantly lagging behind despite how much he hated to make others wait. It was annoying, yet there was little that could be done.

The puppet master was the one officially in command. He had been serving the organisation already for years. He was their senior. Meanwhile, Deidara, Tobi, and she were just freshmen without major standing. So, it was, his missions, his rules.

Eventually, however, they finally crossed the border and reached the nearest hideout. They had been informed that the preparations for the ritual had already been completed. Now only their most important guest was missing. They were of course willing to oblige, yet their efforts were met with irritation.

Pain's flickering shadow greeted them, a sliver of annoyance in his voice. Their glorious leader was displeased. Not that he was ever otherwise. “You are late.”

Sasori took the word, his voice lowered. “Our apologies, the jinchuuriki proved more troublesome than expected. Not to mention, we were forced to cover our tracks.”

“... ... ...” Pain ignored his words. “I see, not that it matters.” His hands formed a seal, and a gigantic statute emerged, two chained arms rising from the ground. The vile creation was a monstrosity she was already familiar with. Her eyes had seen the demonic statue before, with its true purpose now about to be revealed.

“Assemble”, Pain ordered, his words unquestioned. The other Akatsuki members answered his call, their incorporeal silhouettes materialising from far and wide.

“Now, take your positions.”

Pain commanded, and they followed. Asami and her colleagues took their assigned spots. Each of them occupied one of the ten fingers of the two hands, all of them waiting for the ritual to commence.

Left thumb. Lavender. Sphere. Sasori.

Left index finger. Pink. Three. Hidan.

Left middle finger. Grey. North. Kakuzu.

Left ring finger. Gold. South. Kisame.

Left pinky finger. Purple. Heaven. Her.

Right thumb. Azure. Zero. Pain.

Right index finger. Emerald. Green. Deidara.

Right middle finger. White. White. Konan.

Right ring finger. Red. Scarlet. Itachi.

Right pinky finger. Yellow. Boar. Zetsu.

They were now complete. The ritual was about to start.

Pain channelled his chakra to take the lead. “It will take three days and night to seal the One Tail. Focus and concentration will be imperative. No misstep will be tolerated. Any inattention will be punished. Do you understand?”

They all nodded. They all understood, much to her annoyance.

“...” Asami clicked her tongue., her dissatisfaction thinly veiled. But she was a good girl, and good girls obeyed. Pain was ... insufferable. His hubris ... His arrogance ... They were unbearable. He was ordering them around like some mere lackeys. Yet it would be unwise to displease his self proclaimed divinity. Not when the time was still premature.

“Good.” Pain formed a hand seal. “Let's begin. Fuinjutsu: Nine Phantom Dragon Seal!”

Nine voracious dragons shot forth, heading straight for the unconscious Kazekage. They engulfed his lifeless body only to consume, to devour the chakra stored inside him. The essence of the One Tail was ripped from, taken from him.

It was a brutish method, but so was hers, admittedly.

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