On the bright side, Ino’s wolfsbane kicked in and the three rogues were incapacitated. On the down side, whatever it was they were trying to do, they succeeded.
I didn’t even have time to open my mouth to give any warnings. Everybody was already thinking the same thing, and I didn’t even realize that Ino was pulling me away from the teleportation seal. Without a sound, I reached back and grabbed Sakura as well, tugging her along with us.
No matter how quickly we reacted, however, it was already too late.
For the entire day, we had always been too late.
Smoke bombs filled the surrounding area and we stopped in our tracks. There was chakra filling the smoke, making it nearly impossible to pinpoint the location of the enemy. At this rate, it was safer to stay put than to run into a trap.
“Don’t let go.” Ino ordered.
Her grip was so tight it was nearly cutting off circulation in my hand. It would have been hypocritical of me to say anything about it since I was sure I was doing the same to Sakura.
I heard movement nearby, but it was steady and cautious, so it must have been the Kumo shinobi. I breathed shallow breaths, heightening all my senses to locate any third parties around us. It only felt like the smoke thickened, and the only way I knew my eyes were open was from the stinging of the smoke.
Silence.
And then, without warning, absolute chaos.
An enormous wave of chakra suddenly crashed into me, triggering every explosive in the area. I would have screamed if the pressure wasn’t so heavy it knocked the wind right out of me. I could only think to crouch and tuck my chin in out of both fear and instinct to protect myself. It felt like my heart was about to pound its way out of my chest and I was suffocating. The ringing in my ears made it difficult to hear, but I could have sworn I hear metal clang violently against metal.
I cracked my eyes open as everything settled. The chakra and the explosion kicked up dust, but it scattered the smoke just enough for me to figure out who was around me. The sun shone in my eyes, enabling me to see only a silhouette standing before me. Its arm was raised and a trench knife caught the sunlight.
“You did good work, you three.”
“Asuma-sensei…” I breathed.
“You know, marking your target makes it easier for that target’s allies to find them, too.” A nonchalant voice drawled, which was followed by a bark.
“And I must say, the explosions helped.” A woman’s voice added.
“Kakashi-sensei, Kurenai-sensei!” Sakura gasped.
“Oh, thank Kami.” Ino sighed in relief.
Any difficulty I had breathing was suddenly gone as I absorbed the reassuring sight of the three jounin.
As I got onto my feet, I got a better look at the person Asuma-sensei was confronting. It was a man I had never seen before. His hair was long and he wore a wicked grin. Despite the jounin right in front of him, his unsettling gaze was focused on me.
“Orochimaru…” Sakura whispered, hands trembling by her sides.
I tensed, recalling everything I had heard about this man.
So this is the guy Shinrin was trying to pawn me off to…
“Riku.” My sensei spoke carefully. “You need to get away as soon as possible.”
Orochimaru wasn’t letting any killing intent be known, but just looking at him was more than enough to know that he was not somebody that should be taken lightly. His appearance was eerie and the look he gave me sent chills up my spine. A snake stretched from Orochimaru’s sleeve, its jaws snapped wide open and fangs dripping with venom. Asuma-sensei kept it at bay with his trench knife, but I was sure that it wouldn’t break a sweat for the defected Sannin to break out of the stalemate.
“What a splendid set of eyes you have, but it’s a shame they have yet to reach their full potential.” Orochimaru said in a low, raspy voice that didn’t make him seem any less friendly or less likely to kill us. “And you’ll never hope you reach it if you keep yourself surrounded by those who only tell you to run and hide, don’t you agree?”
His laugh was just as eerie and raspy, sending chills down my spine all over again.
On the other hand, it’d be kind of impossible if you took my fucking eyes.
I found myself unable to say anything out loud, like any sound that came from me would set off another round of explosives.
Aside from the presence of the infamous Sannin, there was something unsettling about the atmosphere. It would have been easy for them to break out of the stalemate and begin the attack, so what were they waiting for? It wasn’t like last time, when each side had a hostage. Anybody could start attacking whenever they wanted. I figured the jounin were waiting to see what the enemy had planned, but for the enemy themselves…
They were definitely stalling for time, and the last time they did that, it was because they were waiting for the drug they used on me to take effect.
“I’m…” Ino whispered, staggering forward. “I don’t feel so…good…”
“Ino?” I caught her as she stumbled forward, flinching at the ice-cold temperature of her skin.
Her eyes were glazed and her skin was starting to pale. She tried to say something, but the only thing that came out was garbled sounds, as if she was on anesthetics. I tried to get her to look at me, but her eyes wouldn’t focus. I realized then that there was blood dripping from her wrist, and after remembering the snake Asuma-sensei was currently defending himself against, it all became clear.
“She was bit!” Sakura exclaimed worriedly.
Realization hit me, and I knew that these symptoms looked familiar. I had plenty of experience with the snakes they were bitten with during my five years of travelling. It wasn’t something you wanted to get bitten by in the middle of battle, but at least it wasn’t anything lethal.
“Oi, Ganjou!” Tsura’s voice suddenly shouted. “What the hell is wrong with you? Get up!”
I looked over and sure enough, the kenjutsu specialist was limp in Tsura’s arms. His state resembled Ino’s – glazed eyes, pasty skin, and the inability to speak despite still being conscious. The only response he gave was a weak groan.
“What the hell did you fucking do, you snake bastard?!” Kibishii snapped.
“Don’t move him so much!” I shouted when Tsura tried to pull his teammate onto his feet. “It isn’t lethal, but you still don’t want to make it spread any faster. Move him off to the side!”
This is probably what they were waiting for. Whether that was all, however, I couldn’t say. It seemed like they had ace after ace of their sleeve, like they were always at least three steps ahead at all times.
“They did a better job at avoiding my snakes than I thought.” Orochimaru laughed shortly before speaking to Asuma-sensei. “I wonder if you can do the same.”
Everybody moved at once. Snakes shot out from the Sannin’s sleeves and several of their heads immediately hit the ground once Asuma-sensei cut them down.
“Sakura! Have you learned to treat venoms?” Kakashi-sensei asked as he knocked one of the snakes aside.
“No—Well, yes, but I’m not really—” Sakura bit her lip and glanced at Ino. Resolve replaced her hesitation and instead, she nodded firmly. “Leave it to me, Sensei!”
For a split second, I caught his one-eyed smile before we took off. I kept Ino steady on my back while trying my best not to stir her as we ran to the earth walls that surrounded us and away from the combat. I trusted them enough to keep the enemy at bay, but kept my guard up nevertheless because the more I thought about it, the more I just knew that there was still one more person lurking about.
“Shit, shit, shit! Ganjou, can you still hear me?” Kibishii asked while gripping tightly onto his hand.
“It’s not going to kill him.” I reminded them again once we neared them. “It’ll pass in a couple of hours, but getting hit with that kind of venom is hell.”
“How can you be so sure?” Tsura demanded.
I set Ino down next to Ganjou and Sakura immediately got to work. To help make sure we wouldn’t get ambushed, I created a wall of flames with my shinjutsu. So long as my chakra was being forced out, I might as well put it to use.
“Five years surviving on my own and you don’t think I’ve gotten my fair share of snake bites?” I asked rhetorically. “Had a lot of fun with this kind in particular.” I rolled my eyes. “It leaves you feeling like you’re burning from the inside out, but your skin will be freezing cold.”
“You think you can get the venom out of their systems?” Kibishii asked, more focused on what Sakura was doing.
The pink-haired kunoichi was checking their pulses and their eyes. They blinked in response to her words, so at least they weren’t in any vegetative state, but their eyes still lacked focus. Part of the symptoms included blurred vision, so that was likely the case.
“At most, I can bleed them out a little and null the symptoms, but there isn’t anything I can do about the paralysis right now. There isn’t time, and I don’t have the right materials for it.” Sakura explained regretfully. “Sorry, I wish I could do more—”
“Shut up and just get to it already!” Tsura snapped impatiently. “It’s better than nothing, isn’t it?”
I had the feeling he was trying to be helpful, but his aggressive tone made it hard to tell.
“R…Right!” Sakura nodded, and soon, her hands were glowing with the light green shade of healing chakra.
“Tch. Meanwhile, let’s see if we can get the fuck out of here.” Tsura muttered, glaring up at the wall.
“For some reason, I get the feeling we can’t just run up to freedom.” I said.
To test this theory, I tossed a pebble high into the air and watched as was on its way to flying over the wall. Instead, a transparent screen got in its way, immediately disintegrating it into dust.
“Figures.”
Glyphs flashed with chakra across the sky on impact, making it clear that this barrier extended all the way around the clearing. They seemed to lead back into the seal in the center, which led me to believe that part of the seal was creating that barrier.
At least Asuma-sensei and the others managed to get in before it was put up, apparently.
“Then the only option left is to bust this thing down. Move outta the way, Shurikane!”
Without giving me time to actually move, Tsura was already preparing a ninjutsu to bust down the earth wall. A powerful burst of chakra shot from his hands and blades of wind sliced at the wall, but they hardly left a scratch. The older genin tried again, only to be met with the same failure.
“What the fuck is with these walls?!”
“Let me try.”
I was already making hand seals. After focusing chakra to my hands, I pressed them against the wall and focused. It was an idea I had never tried before, but theoretically speaking, so long as I applied the same techniques I did when performing any other genjutsu or shinjutsu, it should work.
Sure enough, as my let my chakra flow, a hole began to open up in the wall. Along the walls of it were the triangle-like shapes from my Youkugan pattern all around it, confirming that it was a shinjutsu.
Tsura shot me an annoyed look, but now wasn’t the time to respond to it.
“Sakura, Kibishii!” I shouted. “Get Ino and Ganjou outside!”
Not needing to be told twice, I maintained the shinjutsu – which was easy because of my forced use of chakra – while the two of them, along with Tsura’s help, carefully transported the two paralyzed shinobi outside. It wasn’t long before it was my turn to get moving, but the moment I was about to go through, a sudden pressure of chakra fought against my shinjutsu.
“Crap, I can’t keep it open!” I cried, forcing more chakra into the shinjutsu in attempt to keep the hole a reality.
“Riku, what’s wrong?” Sakura asked, voice ridden with panic.
“Something’s fighting against my shinjutsu, I can’t maintain the hole’s existence!”
“Just get hurry up and get through! You too, Tsura!” Kibishii shouted, extending her hand to us.
I shot Tsura a look before he even thought to take a step. It was a mix of apology and insistence, silently urging him to stay put.
“…We can’t.” I sighed, facing the others again. “If we make a break for it now, chances are I’ll lose my hold on the shinjutsu and the wall will encase us, and we’ll end up crushed inside.”
“But—!”
“Just take care of Ganjou!” Tsura interrupted. “And you, Pinky! You’d better take care of that asshole!”
“Likewise, asshole! ” Sakura snapped back with just as much aggression. “You’d better stay alive, Riku!”
There was no more time to exchange any more words. I simply nodded confidently before I was forced to release the shinjutsu. The wall reformed itself within the second and a sudden presence behind us clarified who was responsible for the sudden resistance against my jutsu.
“I can see why those eyes would be pretty handy.” Shinrin smiled maliciously. “All the more reason to take them from you!”
“Didn’t you get beat your face in?” I glowered.
I didn’t expect to see him so soon, especially not after facing against Kurenai-sensei and Asuma-sensei. He definitely looked worse for wear, but whatever happened, he managed to get out of it alive.
“Not until I make you understand the pain you genjutsu users bring upon others.” His voice dropped to its previous threatening tone in such a way that made the air around us turn thin and cold.
“Do you collect enemies or something?” Tsura questioned, irritated.
“Just help me fight him, you ass.” I snapped back before facing the enemy again. “If you hate genjutsu so much, then I’ll gladly kick your ass with ninjutsu!”
Shinrin’s feet shifted to attack the second I brought my hands to form hand seals.
“Lighting Release—ngk! ”
The same suffocating feeling suddenly rushed through me again, forcing me to stop molding my chakra into lightning. Shinrin took this second to take the offensive, and if Tsura wasn’t there, things might have ended much more quickly than I thought.
“Now isn’t the time to choke!” The Kumo genin snapped while fending off Shinrin’s katana with a kunai. “Don’t tell me you’re scared, Shurikane!”
“Shut up!” I growled, recovering from the internal block. “Something isn’t right with my chakra!”
Not wanting to try another ninjutsu, I opted for the next best thing. Just like during my match against Kiba, I instead affected everybody else’s senses with my chakra to make it seem as though lightning was crackling from my hands. With the help of my Youkugan, I brought it to the next level.
As Tsura deflected another one of Shinrin’s swings, I came up from behind to claw at his arm. The swordsman was slower, but he was pushing through with anger and strong will, which possibly made him even more terrifying of an opponent than usual. I missed the first strike, but managed to claw my hands across his right arm with the follow-up.
“Shinjutsu Edition; Lightning Veins!”
I pushed another wave of chakra through my hand to send currents of lightning into Shinrin’s arm. He screamed and pulled his arm back, swinging around to drive his left arm into the side of my head. I ducked at the last second and shifted back to stay out of his range. Still keeping up with his momentum, Shinrin changed trajectories and went back to attacking Tsura. He grabbed his katana with his left hand, catching Tsura off guard with an unexpected lunge.
The painful squelch of flesh being torn sounded, and when Shinrin removed his katana from Tsura’s waist, a spurt of blood and an agonized scream followed with it.
“Tsura!”
“Hng, fuck…!” He cracked, gripping his bleeding wound tightly. “Why am I so weak…?!”
It sounded like he was simply scolding himself, but there was something about his behaviour that made me reconsider. It was unexpected that Shinrin would be able to attack too smoothly after I hit him with my technique, but I knew Tsura was faster than that. My attention went back to the seal on the ground that was continuously glowing a faint blue.
Exactly what is this thing…?
“What a thorn to the side.” Shinrin murmured as his katana dripped of the genin’s blood. “Well, now that this little pest is out of the way, how about another round of your favourite game?”
“Lay a finger on me and I’ll tear it off and choke you with it.” I growled, taking cautious steps away from him.
“How about I give you a bit of a chance? Since you’re not giving up as it is, you must have some sort of pointless grasp on hope.” He smiled cruelly and sheathed his sword. “Orochimaru-sama is busy playing with your jounin, so let’s have fun, too!”
He began a series of hand seals and I braced for his attack.
“Earth Release: Earth and Stone Dragon!”
The ground rumbled and grew, extending into the shape of a large dragon. With no time to dodge, I threw my arms up and braced myself for impact. The dragon charged, tearing up the earth with it, but the only thing that hit me was a spray of dirt and pebbles.
I looked up see the back of a jounin vest and the faint glowing of chakra covered a pair of trench blades like armour.
“You’ve attacked my student far too many times already, don’t you think?” Asuma-sensei glowered.
“Oh? I didn’t expect you leave your comrades to fight Orochimaru-sama on their own.”
“I hope you didn’t expect me to let my student die by your hands, either.” He answered in a leveled voice. “Riku, you must not have noticed because of the drug, but this seal on the ground is absorbing chakra.”
“What?” I breathed, but quickly recalled Tsura’s unusually slow reaction time.
“Those three rogues used up a lot of chakra to get Orochimaru here. I’ll bet you anything they didn’t plan on stopping there, but Ino’s wolfsbane took a toll, so the Earth Wall technique was modified into some sort of variation of the Earth Dome Prison technique.” Asuma-sensei’s breath was shallower than usual.
I didn’t like where this was going.
“They’re sapping everybody’s chakra to use the teleportation seal again.” I concluded, putting two and two together.
Asuma-sensei nodded. It didn’t feel like it was for very long, but now that I was looking for it, I noticed the way his chakra blades wavered just slightly every now and then.
“Oh, congratulations! You figured it out.” Shinrin announced with a taunting smile. “It’s too bad you’ve been dancing in the palm of our hands all day, though. Did you really think Orochimaru-sama would let you get away so easily if he was being serious?”
“So it was all just a distraction.” Asuma-sensei murmured.
“Apparently, that’s all everything ever was.” I seethed.
They did an annoyingly good job at making us go along with their plan, too. We couldn’t take the chance that they weren’t going to be serious. I couldn’t risk running off on my own due to being marked and because of the drug. It was always a struggle between two options, and they knew that we would always be forced to pick the one that required staying around to fight. We didn’t even know if they were attacking us with their full strength, but if we wanted to live, we had to take them seriously no matter what.
It was hardly surprising that it all let up to the seal flashing brightly with chakra yet again.
“Riku, stay close!”
“We’re finally at the final round!” Shinrin exclaimed as he grinned wickedly. “So don’t even think about getting in the way. I’ve waited too long for this moment!”
It was impossible to ignore the large concentration of chakra being focused into the center of the seal. Just like that time, the pressure built and expanded all at once, leaving me breathless from the sheer pressure of it all.
A lone figure remained in the center of the seal. Dust settled around us and the lights faded. Finally, that person was here – the person I felt was missing, and I knew was going to show up eventually. My eyes caught the gaze of his darkened ones, and I took in the small cracks in his skin. It was like he was an old, porcelain doll in need of repair. They marked him as the Edo Tensei that he was.
Even with these physical alterations, he was definitely the man from my memories.
Through squinted eyes, I saw Kakashi-sensei and Kurenai-sensei rush to make their way over, but Orochimaru intercepted them by summoning a large snake that blocked their path and kept them cornered.
“It’d be rude to interfere with an overdue reunion.”
“Riku!”
I reached for Asuma-sensei’s hand, but a black katana appeared, swinging dangerously close to my hand.
“There’s nowhere left to run, little mouse.”
“It’s what I’ve been doing all day, I think I can manage.” I answered while creating another wall of fire with my shinjutsu.
Despite the situation, I still had to try to get myself out of it, but it seemed like no matter what I tried to do, they always had a way to counter it.
“She’s livelier than I thought she would be at this point.”
It took me a moment to realize that it was the voice of the Edo Tensei. His voice was low and regal, as if he were some sort of royalty. There was a sort of charismatic aura about him. It was no wonder he had so many people following him. Whatever wish fulfillment he promised, he was incredibly convincing.
I sprinted to the wall and slammed my hands against it, desperately forcing another hole to open. I was only met with the same resistance, however, and this time, it was stronger than ever.
“Don’t waste your chakra. I need you to keep your Youkugan activated.”
“And what if I keep depleting it myself?” I shouted, pushing another large burst of chakra into my shinjutsu.
It wasn’t going to help me create and sustain a hole big enough for me to get out, but it was better than nothing.
“Then I will have to make haste.”
The seal glowed again, and suddenly, I couldn’t move. From my peripheral vision, I saw the Edo Tensei pressing his hands against the seal. It appeared as though Asuma-sensei and the others were stuck as well, and panic began to rise within me. The Edo Tensei made another hand sign and suddenly, everybody was pulled straight towards the earth walls.
I coughed on impact. It felt like I was nothing but a rag doll being tossed around for his amusement. For all I knew, that’s exactly what he situation was.
“There’s nothing left to do but watch as I claim my victory.”
And it was true. Asuma-sensei, Kakashi-sensei, and Kurenai-sensei were all pinned to the earth walls. Chakra was running through everything, keeping the seal active and our movements inactive. I could only watch as the Edo Tensei began to walk towards me slowly, like he was savoring each step towards his prize.
Fuck! Come on, Son Gokuu; help me out here!
There’s nothing I can do if you can’t move your own body.
“Don’t you dare lay a finger on that girl!” Kurenai-sensei shouted.
He stopped in front of me and stared right into the eyes this entire battle was for. I squeezed my eyes shut, cursing the chakra that was forcing the Youkugan to remain active. It was the only form of defense I had at this point.
“What kind of seal is this?” I heard Kakashi-sensei grit through clenched teeth. “I can’t move at all…!”
The Edo Tensei brought one hand up and forced my right eye open. It stung, but I was sure that it couldn’t even compare to what was to come.
Son Gokuu, please!
Are you so foolish to believe that if there were something I could do, I wouldn’t have done it already? This isn’t like on Island Turtle, hoo haa! There was something different about that island, but here, I can’t simply take over on a whim!
“Riku…! Shit, this seal is too strong…!” Asuma-sensei cursed.
A strangled cry tore from his throat and I watched through blurring vision as he tried to pull himself free. Nothing worked. All they could do was stay put as the Edo Tensei began to press his hand into my eye.
There has to be some way! Please, Son Gokuu!
“I’m scared…!”
I barely even realized I spoke the words out loud. The pain ripped through my head in a blaze of agony and the horrific rip of flesh and muscle was overpowered by my anguished scream.
“Riku! ”
The voice was desperate and raw, but it sounded too far to be real.
Warm, thick liquid dripped down my right cheek. My vision was black, but when he continued to force my left eye open, I no longer had to imagine how red everything truly was.
“Your sacrifice will not be in vain.” He whispered.
“S…St…op…!” I gasped through between pained breathing. “It h… It hu--!”
A wet rip echoed in my head and suddenly, I knew exactly who this man was.
Images flashed through my head one after another. Glyphs, symbols, and seals were all mixed with memories of him.
“I’m sorry, Riku.”
It was like an entire library of information was flooding my mind, like something was unlocked.
“I hope that one day, you’ll be able to forgive me.”
Energy flowed through me in a rush, tearing through my mind and body all at once. I couldn’t make sense of it, not when it felt like a kunai was being repeatedly stabbed in my eyes.
There was so much pain. Pain, pain, and so much blood staining my face, dyeing the tears that streamed with it. I couldn’t be sure, but it felt like pools of blood had replaced my eyes, but I could only see black. Everything was black, and in that moment, I wished so desperately that I could see the red. It would have been better than being shrouded in this agonizing darkness.
The strain on my throat was my only way of knowing that I was still screaming. The pain didn’t cease, overpowering each and every one of my senses with nothing but suffering.
He caused me suffering.
I’ll make him suffer.
I felt anger rising within me, replacing the anguish I was subjected to. Something inside me began to well up. It was a foreign sensation, but it was all-too familiar.
…I see. So that’s how it is.
I didn’t have a chance to ask for clarification. All I felt was a final surge of chakra overtake my body.
“No! This wasn’t—!”
“It hurts…” I sobbed. “Do you have any idea how much this fucking hurts?! ”
I could see nothing, but I felt the earth beneath my feet. I felt the pressure of chakra swirling around me, and I could feel his presence before me. Everything felt warm, almost like it was burning, but it was comforting. It was like armour, protecting me from any further harm. It was there to keep me safe, but it was also there to bring destruction.
So this is what it felt like to use my red chakra.
“Foolish human. ” A loud voice bellowed, and it sounded so close yet so distance, similar to what happened during the Chuunin Exams.
This time, however, it was stronger. It felt more real, and the foreign chakra within me was there to match.
Your chakra… It’s comforting, Son Gokuu.
“Those eyes belong not to you, and by daring to claim them, you will pay the price! Hoo haa! ”
I let the anger replace the searing pain in my eyes. I opened my mouth to scream again, but instead, a deafening roar shook the trees. I felt lightheaded and my thoughts were clouded, but I knew that my thoughts and Son Gokuu’s were the same.
Make that foolish human suffer.
The walls cracked and the barrier faded. Whether it was because the Edo Tensei released the techniques or because of Riku’s chakra was unclear. The effects of the seal were long gone, but none of the jounin could find the energy in them to move. It wasn’t only due to long hours of constant battle or from having their chakra sapped, nor was it only from witnessing the torture of one of their own.
Red chakra spun violently around Riku, though it hardly matched the thick shade of the blood that oozed from her eyes. It engulfed her completely, taking the form of a miniature Yonbi, but the pressure of the chakra only grew from there. It darkened into fibers of chakra and wrapped itself tightly around her small figure, coating her until she resembled the demon more than herself.
Nothing had to be said to know that they couldn’t simply calm her down at this point, to revert her back to normal. Whatever the removal of her eyes triggered, the only option now was to—
“Run!” Asuma shouted to his two comrades as he finally regained the senses to move.
“Even with Naruto, I’ve never seen this before…” Kakashi murmured as he pulled himself together. “She likely won’t be telling apart friend from foe at this rate. Take the injured and evacuate!”
There was no need to say again. Without complaint, Asuma-sensei hauled Ino along with him while Kakashi grabbed Ganjou and Kurenai took care of Tsura.
“What happened to Riku?!” Sakura demanded the second the jounin arrived. “Her eyes…!”
“There’s no time to explain.” Kakashi answered her student stiffly. “Get to a safe distance.”
Another loud growl bellowed across the clearing, shaking the very ground they stood on. The pressure in the air changed again and the mass of chakra that held Riku at its center grew larger and larger. Like armour, parts of her back began to solidify into rocks. It spread down her arms and over her head.
With a loud slam, she brought her fists into the ground, effortlessly forming a crater where the Edo Tensei once stood and destroying the seal. She was a red blur, chasing after him without rest and effortlessly thrashing her way past Orochimaru’s summon as if it were a fly.
“Sazukeru-sama…!” Tohma’s strained voice called out to the Edo Tensei. “This way! Hurry…!”
The wolfsbane had affected the three of them significantly. The point of insertion was swollen and they looked sickly – far worse than Ganjou and Ino – but they pulled through enough to create another teleportation seal nevertheless.
“I can’t let you do that.” Orochimaru said. “I was right to trust you with retrieving the eyes for me.”
As he said this, dozens of snakes shot out of the ground and latched onto Sazukeru. Two of them snapped their jaws around the jaws of liquid that held one of Riku’s eyes each, engulfing them to be returned to their master.
Shinrin was quick to react, however, and cut through the snakes with two slices of his katana.
“Maybe I ought to just take these as my own trophy after all.” He mused as he grabbed the two jars for himself.
“So, this alliance was never genuine after all.” Sazukeru murmured. “That’s a shame. Everything would have gone much more smoothly if we all worked towards a common goal.”
In a blink of an eye, the Edo Tensei disappeared and reappeared behind the swordsman. The sudden change in location caught Shinrin off guard, and it didn’t even break a sweat for Sazukeru to reclaim the eyes.
“I’m afraid it’s too late. I assure you, after our plan succeeds, all wishes will come true, including yours.”
“Those eyes are not yours to take! ” Son Gokuu’s voice roared, interrupting their confrontations.
Riku, whose appearance resembled the Yonbi more than ever, charged between them. Between the cracks of the earth armour around her was magma oozing, dripping to the ground and leaving a trail of burnt footsteps behind her.
“That’s Riku…?” Sakura asked, eyes wide in shock as she watched the figure that was supposed to be her friend tearing the clearing apart.
Riku intercepted Sazukeru’s escape route. She slammed her fists into the ground and tore up the earth and roared as her volcanic appearance stabilized itself further. Red chakra was unleashed around her, spinning violently into the air and thickening. The sheer amount of chakra was more than enough to alert every shinobi in and around the village, and for those who remembered that day, they would realize that the air was starting to feel a lot like when the Kyuubi attacked.
What followed was a roar louder than ever before, and the shinobi in the clearing were suddenly face to face with the four-tailed demon ape.
“Now!”
The familiar authoritative voice of the Godaime Hokage boomed across the clearing, ordering the team ANBU who were on standby to get into position. It was obvious that Riku’s chakra would not go unnoticed, but the jounin realized they were incredibly on edge if they didn’t notice the shinobi stationed by the clearing for who knows how long.
“Tsunade-sama, we need to get Riku’s eyes back!” Sakura pleaded.
“That’s no longer our priority. Right now, our mission is to prevent the Yonbi from attacking the village.”
“But they’ll escape at this rate!”
“Once everybody is recovered and back to full strength, we’ll work on retrieving her eyes with the proper precautions. It’s too risky right now, and like hell I’m going to let this rampaging demon do as it pleases!”
There wasn’t much Sakura could do to argue that reasoning. At times like these, they had to handle issues one at a time, and right now, making sure Riku didn’t flatten the village was their priority. Even if she didn’t agree, there wasn’t anything she could do about it. She couldn’t try to Riku’s eyes back herself, and she would get more than just a scolding if she were to disobey orders now of all times.
“…Understood, Hokage-sama.”
“Good. Now get yourself to safety.”
“Right!”
Sakura left with Ino in her arms. Kibishii and another Kumo reinforcement left with Ganjou and Tsura, bringing them far away enough for Tsura to receive emergency treatment on his wound. With them out of the way, the ANBU were free to begin stopping the loose bijuu in its tracks before it got too close to the village.
“It looks like I’ll have to collect my prize another time.” Orochimaru murmured as he called upon a snake to teleport him away.
Shinrin, knowing that sticking around was likely to get him killed, evacuated as well.
With the last of their strength, Tohma, Amaki, and Renui used the teleportation seal to escape along with Sazukeru and Riku’s eyes. Asuma watched as they did so and cursed himself inwardly for failing to protect his student. There was no time for self-pity, however. Not when Riku was still suffering.
While four of the ANBU prepared the sealing, the remaining shinobi used what was left of their chakra to try and keep the Yonbi from leaving the clearing. The ground shook with every step it took and it continuously slammed its enormous fists into the ground, but soon, the seal was ready.
“Four-Corner Sealing Barrier!”
A light above the four ANBU, who each had one hand in the tiger seal while the other was raised into the air. It didn’t take long for the barrier to locate the target, and as soon as it did, it stretched out so it could surround the bijuu entirely.
The Yonbi roared loudly and thrashed its arms, beating at the barrier around it. This was expected behaviour and the shinobi were ready to handle it. What they didn’t expect, however, was for the barrier to shatter upon impact.
“Impossible!” Tsunade hissed as the Yonbi broke out of the barrier. “Everybody, fall back!”
“What in the world…?” One of the ANBU, none other than Mayuri, whispered to herself.
Before Tsunade ordered her ANBU to try again, however, glyphs began to crawl across its arms and legs like chains. The chakra pressure lessened significantly. The Yonbi continued to thrash and roar, fighting against the restrictions the glyphs seemed to be causing it.
They danced across its back and neck and settled. Then, as if they were being tightened, they pressed into the Yonbi’s flesh and fur. The glyphs moved like they had a life of their own, tightening and moving across its body until it collapsed. Finally, the Yonbi began to shrink, reverting first to its smaller volcanic form. The red chakra thinned and scattered, spinning around Riku as it faded bit by bit, disappearing into the seal on her back.
Not a soul moved until the glyphs returned to the seal as well, spinning around until they reformed the spiral that was once a mystery to the one it marked and those who examined it.
Without waiting another second, Asuma rushed towards his fallen student and carefully rested his hand on her shoulder.
Her face was stained in blood and her eyes were squeezed shut in pain. Her breaths came frequently and heavily, possibly due to exhaustion, or from the lingering pain, or from both. Somewhere between her breathing, she was trying to say something, but her voice was strained and raw.
“My…ther…”
“Shh… You’re okay now, Riku.”
Asuma spoke in the softest voice he could. She didn’t seem to hear him and instead pressed her palms against her eyes, most likely in attempt to ease the agony coming from them.
Only then did he hear what she was murmuring to herself.
“He was…my father…”
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Chapter notes: totally didn't put off uploading because putting in the HTML is a pain in the tushywushy. One more chapter to go!
Chapter end notes: Thanks for reading ~