Rain fell with abandon as Kakashi raced back to Konoha. Using Chakra to steady his footing and strengthen his muscles, he travelled through the trees. With honed senses he leaped from branch to branch at speeds a civilian would not be able to track. Leaves and branches flew by with a blur in his peripheral vision. The cacophony of water pelting every surface was making it difficult to hear the Kiri hunters chasing them relentlessly, but he could sense their Chakra. They weren't far off, maybe two minutes at their current speed. Carrying Rin on his back was tiring him faster than expected. It was allowing the Kiri ninja to close the gap between them. Rin knew that their pursuers would eventually catch them. She whispered in Kakashi's ear, pleading with him dejectedly.

"Kakashi, you have to listen to me. I can't return to the village. Kiri sealed the three-tailed beast in me. I…I can't handle its Chakra. I can't handle it and you can't outrun those ninja while carrying me. Even if we made it back to Konoha, the risk is too high. I could lose control behind Konoha's walls. It would destroy the village!"

Kakashi ignored her as he concentrated on staying ahead of Kiri. "Kakashi! Listen! Konoha's safety is paramount! Think about what you are risking by bringing me back! The village must come first!"

He faltered momentarily but caught himself. The forest broke into a large clearing forcing Kakashi to the ground for their travel. This isn't good; he thought. The area is too open, we are too vulnerable. He sensed Kiri taking advantage of his mistake; the ninja circled the clearing, surrounding them on all sides. Their pursuers stepped into the clearing, six ninja in total.

"You are surrounded. Set the girl down and surrender. We will be taking you both back to Kiri."

Kakashi swore under his breath and slowly lowered Rin to the ground. Something was off, why was Kiri standing there threatening them? They were outnumbered three to one and Rin was in no condition to fight. His mind raced as he planned.

"A smart move, " the leader of the Kiri squad started to say, "now.."

Kakashi exploded toward the closest ninja in a burst of speed. Without the weight of Rin slowing him down, his speed caught the enemy off guard. His hands raced through the seals for a Chidori with equally astonishing speed. The Tomoe in Kakashi's Sharingan spun, signifying its use as it flooded his mind with incredible clarity of perception. Lightning erupted around his outstretched hand, bringing the Chidori to life, as it was thrust toward the heart of the Kiri ninja. Time seemed to slow as his brain processed the situation at unrivaled speeds. The other five ninja were not reacting in time, they wouldn't be able to stop him. His target was the slowest of the group to react. Kakashi had gotten lucky in choosing his first target. The ninja was as good as dead.

Before Kakashi understood what his mind was interpreting, his body was already numb with fear. His Sharingan was predicting Rin's intention to move into his line of attack. What was going on? Why would she want to protect Kiri? He couldn't stop, he couldn't divert. Rin was going to be pierced with his Chidori. He was going to kill her!

Within seconds Kakashi was halfway to the Kiri ninja with his Chidori leading the way; and Rin had positioned herself to block his attack. Suddenly it felt like the air grew thick, as if they were all moving through water. A heartbeat later and everyone was on their knees, like they were pushed by a sudden force. Kakashi's Chidori slammed into the ground with an explosion of mud and rocks. The ground buckled under the strength of the invisible force, caving in to resemble a large basin. Before anyone could bat an eye the pressure disappeared and was replaced with a thunderous boom.

Everyone's hands shot to their ears in an effort to buffer the sound from causing damage to their hearing. In the same moment a streak of red and black shot from the center of the clearing between Kakashi and Rin so quickly his Sharingan could barely track it. Another explosion of sound reverberated through the air as the object struck ground and ricocheted out of view. Every ninja swung their eyes towards the center and eyebrows rose in surprise.

A girl stood at the center, no - a woman. She was easily the most beautiful woman Kakashi had ever seen. She wore a grey haori, trimmed in dark orange. The contrast of the trim demanded your attention and accentuated the curves of her body. She wore a set of black gloves on top of which the leaf of Konoha was engraved in red. Blonde hair was tied back with a single clip, allowing it to flow behind her shoulders and down to her waist. She stood straight and tall without moving a muscle. Her eyebrows had the graceful arch of a raptor's wings in flight.

He could see her Chakra with his Sharingan. She held a capacity that only could only be compared to a Kage. Even without his dojutsu, he could sense how oppressive her Chakra was in its strength; but it held a warmth that caressed his skin like sunlight. With a quick glance around he could tell that the feeling was mutual. Her presence was like a bonfire on a winter night. Some of the Kiri ninja were gaping at her in awe.

Kakashi got the strange feeling that he had always known her; but he had never seen this woman before. Her cobalt blue eyes came unafraid to his and Kakashi started to sweat a little. It was foolish to look directly into an active Sharingan. Was she ignorant, or did she know how to counter its use? When they locked eyes, her gaze grabbed ahold of him as surely as a grip of iron would. Her eyes searching his as if peering into his soul and he thought that they widened in panic. Did this woman know him? Who was she?

When she released his gaze, Kakashi was astonished. He was so spellbound that he hadn't noticed her condition. She was haggard. A wound on her leg bled profusely and had soaked her black leggings with blood. Cuts and abrasions marred every inch of her skin that could be seen through the tears in her haori. How was she even standing? How did she have such a commanding presence despite her condition?

Kakashi was yanked out of his musing with an explosion of Chakra. The Chakra was so thick and vile it made Kakashi feel ill. The source was whatever had been jettisoned out of the clearing. When he turned to look, that red and black object shot back toward the woman. As Kakashi followed its trajectory the woman had already formed a guard with two swords. He hadn't noticed the weapons on her; did they come from a storage seal? Wind Chakra roared to life coating the weapons. They were both butterfly swords, an unusual weapon for a ninja. Hieroglyphics and other symbols were etched into the blades indicating fuinjutsu. The red and black blur was actually a man in crimson armor. A gunbai sheathed in that vile chakra led his charge into the clearing. When he reached the woman a downward swing with the gunbai was blocked in a pincer between her swords. The clash of the two weapons caused another explosion of force, knocking everyone off balance.

The two combatants fell into battle with a mix of kenjutsu and taijutsu that was so immaculate it had everyone gaping. These two were clearly masters of their art. They were battling at a level of skill that was beyond Kakashi. The only person he had witnessed in combat at this level was his sensei, Minato.

Each attack made with one weapon was met by a parry from the opponent. Each kick and elbow was met by a flawless guard. Neither ninja left exploitable openings in their movements. Every blow was enhanced with so much Chakra that it reverberated through the area like an explosion. When they broke apart, the man in armor held a murderous scowl.

"How did you follow me?! How are you here?!"

Her voice held the same beauty of her Chakra, "How else? I anchored to you with Fuinjutsu. Where is here, Madara? Where have you done?"

Kakashi's eyes bulged. Madara? As in Uchiha Madara? What was going on here? Madara smirked, "you used a seal to follow me into an unknown? You are more ignorant than I thought. I grew tired of your constant interference. Now I don't have to deal with you, anymore; I can just deal with your father."

The woman went so white that Kakashi thought she would faint. "Those eyes are not yours, Madara." Kakashi flicked a glance at Madara's eyes to see a ripple pattern with a purple sclera. Was that the Rinnegan?! "Your methods are despicable and you are a monster amongst demons. The Sage of Six Paths had failsafes in place should his power fall into the wrong hands. I'll make sure my father is ready to destroy you and I will be there to help him do it." Madara barked a quick laugh as Kakashi's Sharingan detected the instantaneous build-up of Chakra in him. The man was preparing to release a jutsu, and he had turned to look right at Kakashi with intent. The blonde woman appeared in front of Kakashi with a shunshin, slapping her hand onto the ground. A seal sprang to life under her palm, webbing out under himself and Rin. Madara smirked again, "until next time, Naruko. You should be thankful I have given you the chance to finally meet your parents! Shinra Tensei!".

A visible force of pressure rippled out from Madara. The landscape was torn up in reaction the the blast. The woman's seal sprang to life, encasing the three of them in a translucent yellow dome. Her face contorted in a wince of concentration as she started to sweat with effort. Kakashi watched her channel an enormous amount of Chakra into the seal; so much that it dwarfed the Chakra of everyone in the adea. It was clearly some sort of shield, and the strength of it depended on the Chakra input. Moments later the pressure died down as uprooted trees and other debris fell to the ground. When the shield fell and the dust cleared, 'Madara' and the Kiri ninja could no longer be sensed.

Kakashi stood from his place on the ground just as the woman collapsed. Minato arrived with a squad of Jounin seconds later. He eyed the destruction with a critical eye before turning to Kakashi. "We felt the Chakra being thrown around here from miles away. What happened?" His eyes fell on Rin first and his face showed every trace of the elation that he felt. The girl was in his arms faster than anyone could blink "Thank the Gods! We were so worried Rin!"

Then he noticed blonde woman and the residue of the seal webbing out from under her. As he traced the glyphs and formulae his eyebrows rose in astonishment. With Rin still in his arms, Minato turned back toward Kakashi. "Who is the woman? Why is she wearing the Leaf Symbol? Did she make this seal? This is…. This is incredible. It's…. I've never seen such a shield! It was a shield, right?"

Apparently even Rin's return couldn't ebb Minato's obsession with Fuuinjutsu. "Minato-Sensei!" his voice sounded like the crack of a whip. "Kiri put a volatile seal on Rin. She said that they sealed the Three-Tailed Beast into her with it. It's demonic Chakra is burning up her Chakra coils! Please tell me you can save her!"