Naruto of the Salamander Ch.6

finally next chapter is up and ready, sorry about the long wait, but it probably not going to get any better in the future, sorry. but one good side the story is finaly coming along.

Ronin squeezed his eyes shut, in a last attempt to avoid his inevitable death...

...which didn't turn out to be quite as inevitable as he had first thought...

-clink-

The sound of steel clashing against steel rang through the air as Ronin held breath while counting the seconds as they passed. After twenty seconds had passed by, Ronin had still felt nothing. Not even the slightest bit of pain.

Ronin slowly opened his eyes to see the figure of an ANBU standing before him. He had jumped between Hanzo and himself and blocked Hanzo's blade with his own. It was obvious that the ANBU would not be able to hold Hanzo back for long. Their body was trembling as they fought against Hanzo's immense strength.

As this was happening, a strange thought passed through the ronin's head.

'That is a very small ANBU... '

'A child?' Hanzo thought as he looked down on the small figure of the ANBU. He had black hair tied up in a small ponytail and a weasel mask over his face. Through the holes in the mask, Hanzo could see two glowing red eyes shining back at him (note: If you figure out who it is, you get a cookie ).

'How. How did a mere child counter my attack? And how is able to put up so much resistance? And for that matter, how was he able to get so close without me senseing him? If he had attempted to kill me, he may have very well of succeeded.'

Hanzo could feel his eyebrows twitching as a great wave of self-loathing suddenly washed over him. He had had to keep himself from exploding with rage.

'When I return to Ame, I will triple my training routine! Now that I think about it I have allowed myself to become lazy and complacent in my my old age.'

Hanzo began to apply more pressure to his weapon as the ANBU began to tremble even more. Hanzo could see that they would buckle under his strength soon. Even the ANBU's sword was beginning to fail as small cracks began to appear.

Thinking the ANBU had been weakened enough Hanzo backed off and attempted to jump over him to attack Ronin. But he was once again met by the ANBU as their blades clashed once more, a piece of the ANBU's sword breaking off as Hanzo's strength once again came closer and closer to overwhelming the ANBU. As he fought back against Hanzo's immense strength, The ANBU Kicked the ronin with enough force to send him flying back several meters further away from Hanzo. As he did did this he continued to hold Hanzo back with his sword, which looked like it wouldn't be able to withstand to many more blows

After regaining his senses, Ronin was able to push himself up on to his elbows and started to move even further away from the two combatants.

Hanzo swung his blade mercilessly as the ANBU did his best to keep up. The ANBU did his best to block with the handle of his sword to spare the blade. But as their weapons clashed Hanzo used his free hand to to swing the ball and chain of his kusarigama around the ANBU and towards Ronin. The ANBU moved to block the attack but was too slow to stop it.

The chain wrapped itself around Ronin's head as the ball struck his face with a loud crack. Hanzo tightened his grip on the chain The chain struck into Ronin head with a sickly crack and twists itself around Ronin head; Hanzo tightened his grip on the chain before pulling back on it. Ronin was suddenly jerked back towards Hanzo before the chain freed itself from Ronin. As the chain unraveled from Ronin's head and was pulled back towards Hanzo, it cut and gouged at Ronin's flesh leaving wounds that would never fully heal.

Ronin gripped his face as he let out a horrific screamed that pierced the air. As he writhed in pain he watched the blood drip from his face and cover his hands. Hanzo watched the man writhe in pain. Even with Ronin's hands covering his face, Hanzo could still see that the man's face would never be the same again.

Hanzo had already pulled his chain to him and was holding it in the air for the ANBU to see. Blood covered the section that had been wrapped around the ronin's head; hair and flesh could be seen caught in the links.

"Leave now ANBU. There is nothing in this village that can prevent me from killing that pathetic excuse for a human being."

Hanzo commanded the ANBU in a booming voice.

The ANBU answered in a voice devoid of emotion.

" Hanzo-sama, I must ask you to back down. This man is a shinobi of Konoha and he will be punished, but it is not your place to do so."

Hanzo seemed to consider the ANBU's words, but Ronin's screams had not subsided and were growing louder.

"How about no."

Hanzo followed his response by swinging the chain of his weapon again and launching it at Ronin at an even greater speed than his previous attack. The ball hit Ronin square in the face, dislocating his jaw with its force. The blow was strong enough to knock him on his back and render him silent.

"Who decides who has what right? Is it that monster behind you, who thought he had the right to kill a child? Or any of the ninjas lining the roofs, watching us without getting themselves involved? Or maybe it's your beloved Hokage, who isn't even here. Perhaps it is you, who is protecting a would-be child murderer, who gets to decide. The truth is, the only rights we have, are the ones we make for ourselves."

Hanzo ended his rant by clashing blades with the ANBU once more. As both of them fought to push the other back, Hanzo grabbed the blade of the ANBU's sword with his free hand, and pushed his opponent back. The ANBU jumped back to prevent any further damage to his sword, only noticing the sizzling explosive tag after he had landed. The ANBU immediately dropped his sword and jumped back, but was too slow to avoid the explosion.

The blast shattered the blade and sent shrapnel flying into the ANBU. The force was enough to send him flying towards a wall, only to be saved by another ANBU teleporting behind him with a shunshin, and catching him. He seemed to be only a little older, and had black curled hair.

Two older ANBU jumped down from the roof and shielded them from Hanzo. Several kunai embedded the ground in front of Hanzo, forcing him to jump back to avoid being skewered. He landed back in the protective circle of his body guards, who were still surrounding Danzo, Naruto and the two medic-nins. More ANBU continued to appear on the rooftops as they began to surround Hanzo and his men.

Meanwhile Danzo had become confused. He wasn't sure what he should do and none of his numerous plans could be used in this situation. He was at the mercy of what was happening around him. Hanzo had landed next to him in the ring of bodyguards, and struck the ground with his palm sending thousands of explosive tags hidden in the ground towards the ANBU encircling them.

Many of the ANBU attempted to jump away, but were pulled back down by steel wire that rose from the ground and wove itself around their legs. At the same time, a volley of kunai´s was launched at the ANBU who were standing on the roofs. All of them struck the area in front of the ANBU, momentarily confusing them as to how Hanzo could have missed, until they noticed the explosive tags attached to every kunai. The explosions that soon followed immobilized nearly 40 of Konoha ANBU.

Hanzo had shown extreme efficiency in neutralizing them. Danzo meanwhile, for the first time in twenty years, was having a difficult time maintaining a straight face.

'That paranoid old bastard, when did he have the time to plant all those explosive tags!'

Danzo glanced down the road that Hanzo had traveled through the village on, suddenly getting a bad feeling about what else Hanzo may have planted in the ground, and made a mental not to have a Hyuga check all the places Hanzo had been in the village for anymore traps.

Four of Hanzo's men turned around, unraveling summoning scrolls as they did, and unsealing the items within them. After the smoke of the unsealing cleared, four cylindrical containers could be seen standing upright on the ground. Each of the four men stood ready to open the containers and release their contents.

Danzo's eyes widened with recognition. He knew exactly what they were.

'Sarin gas'

Danzo swallowed as memories of the previous wars came to him. Sarin gas is one of the most feared weapons ever seen on a battle field. It was developed in Ame. It's inventor was killed by it in an event that also saw the gas wipe out a small town.

It is both colorless and odorless and it evaporates very easily. It is very difficult to detect and, when coupled with its mortality rate, is the standard poisonous gas used by Ame forces.

Although Ame only directly participated in the Second Ninja War, the gas was stilled used during the third war. Both Suna and Kiri imported the gas from Ame and used it with great efficiency.

They showed that the gas's effectiveness during the second war wasn't merely a fluke..

'Is he planning on using the gas in Konoha? If he does release it here, it will be considered a declaration of war.'

Danzo looked around and spotted a few members of the ANBU that could stop or at least contain the gas. He himself should be able to push the gas into the air, high enough into that Konoha would be out of danger, with a wind technique. Their chances were slim though.

Hanzo' men had effectively taken an entire district of Konoha hostage. Danzo looked at a fifth member of Hanzo's guard, who stepped into the circle and started performing hand signs. Danzo vaguely recognized it as some type of signaling jutsu. After performing all of the hand seals, the fith man raised his right arm into the air as his fingers began to emit a red glow.

5 km west of Konoha

Chunin patrol # 18 Konoha Defense Patrol

Mission Rank: C - B

Mission Details: Investigation of loud noises, suspicious behavior of wildlife, missing trees, and the theft of food, alcohol, and other goods from local villages.

Mission Objective: Confront and stop the problem if possible. If hostile enemy ninja forces are involved, avoid direct confrontation...

"Hey, what does it say?"

The question was asked by the man to the right of the one reading the letter. He was wearing the standard Chunin uniform and had brown hair. His Konoha forehead protector was tied around his forehead.

"If you would let me read the letter, I might know what it says!"

The angry response came from a woman with green hair and overwhelming red eyes. Her attire was green and purple and seemed to be a combination of a fine dress and a bodysuit.

"Tch, why should I listen to some flat-chested slut like you. Just give me the damn letter already." He replied back in irritation.

"WHO THE HELL ARE YOU CALLING FLAT CHESTED, YOU PERVERTED FOOL." she shouted back.

Before he could respond with an even ruder remark, he was interrupted by the third and final member of their team. He was a tall and dark-haired man dressed in a trench coat with a pair of round sunglasses covering his eyes. It was clear that he is member of the Aburame clan.

"Would you both please keep quiet. If you behave like children, my insects will start to fidget."

He said this with an emotionless voice while he stroked the messenger hawk that had delivered the message and was now sitting on his arm. The other two cursed under their breath, but quieted none the less. The hawk took off from the Aburame's arm and flew off towards Konoha.

As the hawk took off, two people suddenly entered the clearing the the Konoha ninjas were in. They paused as soon as they saw the Konoha shinobi. The two who had entered the clearing had rice hats that seemed to be reinforced with steel. Their faces were covered with respirators and they were wearing samurai-like armor. The design of their hats as well as their uniforms gave away who they were.

One of them was carrying a large piece of ham under his arm and the other had several recently slaughtered chickens slung over his shoulder.

Both groups stared at each other without moving, before the two newcomers dashed to to the right. The three Konoha shinobi wasted no time in following them.

"HEY. STOP. COME BACK HERE!"

The Konoha kunoichi's scream echoed through the woods as the she and her team mates followed after the two.

The two fugitives stayed on the ground as they weaved between the trees, trying to avoid being seen as much as possible. The three from Konoha had taken to trees in their pursuit of the two. It wasn't long before the one they were chasing disappeared from sight. Even with the Konoha shinobis speed, they would have lost their targets had it not been for the Aburame's insects.

Thanks to the bugs, they still knew where the two were. The Aburame led the way as they made their way towards them. They could tell they were getting closer and closer as they went on.

"Prepare yourselves, they've stopped just up ahead. We'll reach them in just a moment."

The Aburame's voice rang out as emotionless as ever. Both of his team mates nodded in reply as the got ready. The Aburame however, had become temporarily distracted while informing his team mates, and had missed the attack that came at them from the side, it was an ambush.

The Aburame regained his sense of awareness long enough to notice the giant log flying straight at him. Time seemed to slow for him, and for a brief moment his life flashed before his eyes, right before the log struck him with enough force to tear him in half. The log continued on until it struck the ground, burying itself and half of the Aburame's body half a meter into it. The rest of the Konoha-nin's body was scattered along the forest floor.

"Excellent hit hr. General." an all too happy voice rang out. "Now the rest of you watch and have fun."

Several more logs were launched towards to remaining Konoha-nin at high speed.

After stopping do to the shock of what had just happened, the only kunoichi present race through a series of hand seals and with a shout of "Eat fire" and a recital of the jutsu name...

"Katon: Keshi Makuga Hara" (Fire Release : Exploding Flame Crater )

...a gigantic sea of flame shot out in front of her and headed towards the area where the voices had come from. The fire ignited everything it touched, and the sea of flames continued forward uninterrupted in a huge wave. Only three logs managed to burst through the flames and continued to spread the fire as it flew through the forest. The wave of flames momentum didn't last long, and came to a halt fairly fast. Despite this, it continues to burn with intensity.

The woman who had cast the jutsu fell to her knees from exhaustion and took a deep breath. She had used most of her chakra in that attack. She could only look on as the last of the now burning logs came flying at her. At the last moment before she was struck, her remaining team mate grabbed her jumped away from the tree she was on.

"Why do you always have to be so bold."

He admonished her lightly as he smiled down at her. She couldn't help but smile back.

"WHAT THE HELL DID YOU DO NOW! DID YOU SET THE FOREST ON FIRE? "

The voice of someone new could be heard echoing through the forest.

"Calm down. They were the ones who started the fire." came the reply of the voice from before.

"I didn't..."

"LOOK OUT!"

The scream of the remaining male member of the Konoha team rand in his team mate's ears as a short burst of laughter and an enthusiastic shout of "I got him" rang out from from the darkness. The two were forced to suddenly dodge another attack.

"How many forests have you destroyed now?"

"I've only destroyed one." answered the first voice. "What about the Kokuro accident and the fact that you can't see a tree without pulling it out of the ground, hm?" he asked back.

" Err ... yeah .. hehehe " the sound of embarrassing false laughter answered back.

"For kami's sake, and Hanzo-sama wonders why we cannot get any vegetation to grow again... idiots."

-Back to the Konoha Shinobi-

"We need to get away from these lunatics, otherwise I don't think we're gonna survive this "

"Yea..." the kunoichi replied a bit unsure. She looked up at her remain team mate, before she reached up to caress his face and kiss him gently on the lips.

"Let's get out of here, handsome.". As the words left her mouth, a red hue adorned her face which she quickly tried to hide.

He began to leap from tree to tree as a goofy grin adorned his face.

"Alright, alright. You stop the fire and I'll take care of the remaing Konoha ninjas. Understood?" the voice came from the darkness and belonged to the one referred to as the 'General'.

The two fugitives never answered, and went to work putting out the flames. The General attacked them from behind, forcing the remaing make to let go of his female comrade in order to meet the oncoming opponent attack.

He never got a chance. His opponent was to fast and he was launched into the ground before he even saw his killer.

"NOOOOOOOOOOO!" screamed furiously as she drew a Kumai and tried to stand up. Tears began to stream down her face. "You killed them. You MURDERED them you bastard!" she shouted as tears started to overwhelm her.

Her knife fell from her hand as her spirit broke. "You monster. How could you? How could you do that?" she asked in a whisper. A new thought struck her as she mourned her comrades. 'I'm going to die. I don't want to die.'

"I WILL NOT DIE!"

"I WANT TO LIVE! DO YOU HEAR ME? I WILL NOT DIE! I AM NOT EVEN TWENTY YET, I AM NOT GOING TO DIE HERE! I WANT TO LIVE!"

Her hysterical cries echoed throughout the forest as she continued to sob. She looked up at the giant figure that overshadowed her, and saw raise his fist to strike her, before everything went dark...

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