As soon as Team Seven had replenished their strength, they immediately hurried back to Konoha. Or rather, the one hurrying, strangely enough, was the usually calm Kakashi. Naruto, on the other hand, was urging the other genin and their sensei to watch the battle of the unknown shinobi, as such an opportunity rarely arose. But Hatake cut short the blonde's instigating attempts.
— We are leaving for Konoha right now. This is not up for discussion, — Kakashi demanded.
And Team Seven was forced to obey the elder's orders, although not only Naruto was eager to observe a battle of jonin level.
However, Naruto hadn't earned the reputation of being the most unpredictable ninja for nothing. No sooner had they left the borders of the Artisan Village than Uzumaki suddenly "needed" to relieve himself, which he promptly informed his sensei and teammates. Hatake didn't sense any trickery, so Naruto excused himself to the bushes and created a couple of shadow clones there.
Only this time, these copies were of a completely different type. Uzumaki wasn't even sure if this technique still had the right to be called Kage Bunshin. Because as soon as he used the jutsu, two… rabbits appeared in the light clouds of smoke before him.
Grayish-brown in color, with short fur, about fifteen inches long each. These creatures even twitched their noses like real ones. It was no wonder that Uzumaki had sent his replicas into the Forest of Death and they had observed the local fauna. As Master Saitama had said, there is no useless knowledge. And he was right. His sensei, as always, turned out to be correct. The information about animals came in handy. He had developed the technique not so long ago, and it was a mixture of a complex Henge and Shadow Clones. There was much less chakra in these mini-clones than in the standard ones, but they could perform their reconnaissance role many times better than the originals. Their only problem was their short lifespan. While an ordinary copy could be used for an average of several hours, these mini-clones "lived" for less than two.
— Alright, — Naruto began in a whisper. — You know what I want from you, dattebayo.
The rabbits, snorting softly, briskly saluted, after which, moving to the upper paths, they hopped back towards the borders of Takumi, or rather, towards Mount Tokuzo, where the battle was soon to take place.
"Perfect spies," Naruto chuckled. Only something in this situation bothered the blonde. Something he had missed.
— Hey, Naruto, — Sakura's distant voice was heard, — hurry up, or we'll leave without you.
— I'm coming, Sakura-chan! — Uzumaki shouted.
He was just about to return to his team when it dawned on him: "What a fool I am, rabbits don't jump through trees!"
— Oh well. This will do, — he continued aloud. — No one should notice anyway…
A little over an hour passed. Takumi remained behind. The genin team continued their leisurely journey home, and Uzumaki tried his best to suppress his impatience. Soon the clones should dissipate, and information about the battle between the mercenaries and the four shinobi would arrive.
In his life, he had seen only one ninja battle. And even then, calling it a battle was a stretch. After all, back then in the night forest, Master Saitama hadn't taken his opponents seriously. But even in that case, a dozen ANBU hadn't fared too well. Naruto, recalling that night, noted some details for himself. For example, a shinobi who looked very much like Kakashi-sensei, who had received a slap from the bald master. Of course, it couldn't have been Kakashi-sensei. After all, that guy hadn't been able to do anything to his sensei at all. He had been defeated almost immediately. And Hatake carried a sword, while that ninja had been unarmed.
"I wonder, if Saitama-san and One-Eye fought, how long could the latter last?"
Naruto didn't doubt his master's victory. But Team Seven's sensei was also a tough opponent. The boy remembered their sparring match when he had tried to snatch the bells from the jonin, and calling Kakashi weak was simply out of the question…
Suddenly, Uzumaki froze like a statue. The Copy Ninja and the genin walking ahead, sensing something was wrong, also stopped and turned to the blonde.
The clones finally dissipated. Naruto tried to comprehend what the replicas had witnessed. However, with each passing moment, his face grew paler. He began to realize what had happened, and a lump rose in his throat. He barely suppressed a wave of nausea.
— Naruto, what happened? — Kakashi's voice was strained.
— I… I… — Uzumaki's hands began to tremble slightly.
— Naruto-baka, stop scaring us! — Sakura exclaimed, putting her hands on her hips in indignation.
But Naruto didn't hear her. The images of the past battle, which his clones had recently watched, stood before his eyes.
***
The shinobi who called themselves the Celestial Four had indeed decided to come, only to meet their demise. Of course, they didn't know this yet. But Kakuzu had no doubt about the outcome of the battle. These small fry were too arrogant; they had acquired a few decent artifacts and considered themselves all-powerful. Such individuals usually died young.
The four appeared ostentatiously. The burly man jumped from a twenty-meter cliff and left a huge dent upon landing. The blue-haired boy also jumped, but before colliding with the surface, he drew his sword, whose blades, curving, lengthened and dug into the hard ground, allowing the boy to slow his fall. And the girl… perhaps the girl impressed Kakuzu the most. The green-haired kunoichi glided down smoothly, using some kind of wind technique for flight.
"How interesting. The only one I remember who can fly is that old geezer Onoki. And here's some worthless girl from a small village of weapon smiths. Could it all be because of her swords?"
The bounty hunter shifted his gaze to the last of the four future bags of money. He, strangely enough, was in no hurry to descend. The tall shinobi decided to stay at the top. Apparently, the idiot wanted to indulge his ego, looking down at the mercenaries. Oh well, let him indulge.
— My name is Hoki, — he began to proclaim, proudly puffing out his chest, — and I am the leader…
— Oh, shut your trap, — Hidan interrupted him, drawing his naginata. — We don't care what your names are. Get down here, or I'll be annoyed to chase after you.
— I won't have to do that, — Hoki chuckled, folding his arms behind his back. — Suiko, Ryuugan, Kujaku! The three of you will be enough to destroy these nobodies.
— Hai! — they exclaimed in unison. The girl and the boy took fighting stances with their swords, and the bearded burly man took out a folding mace with a long handle.
— You guys are out of your minds, — Hidan drawled, making a few practice swings with the weapon unfamiliar to the priest. — Don't interfere, Kakuzu. I'll deal with them myself!
The Akatsuki treasurer retreated further with a long jump so as not to interfere with his partner.
— Don't forget, Hidan, — Kakuzu reminded his partner. — I need hearts. So, if they have the right elements…
— What the heck are you whining about? — the High Priest exclaimed indignantly. — I'm walking around with one heart and not showing off. What do you even need four more for?
— Hidan… — Kakuzu growled.
Hidan had always been irritating, but at certain moments Kakuzu particularly wanted to chop the insolent foulmouth into mincemeat, and then specifically sew him up in the style of abstractionists, after which he would say that it had always been like that.
— Alright, enough messing around, — Hidan said in a mocking tone. — You'll get your hearts. Will two be enough?
Kakuzu slowly exhaled, trying to compose himself.
— Depends on the elements. Test these shinobi in battle. Then I'll tell you who you can sacrifice and who you'll leave for me.
— Well, that's just great, — the priest grumbled. — We already agreed that we'd share like brothers. You're a liar, Kakuzu.
— Shut up!..
— Boys, are we bothering you? — the kunoichi inquired, twirling her swords.
— I think they're ready to take each other out themselves, — the blue-haired kid smiled.
— Uh-huh, — the burly man rumbled.
— Enough of this farce, — Hoki's voice was heard. — They must answer for the insult! Attack!
Following their leader's command, the trio smoothly surrounded the ash-blonde mercenary. However, they didn't rush headlong, occasionally glancing warily at the Akatsuki treasurer.
"They do have some semblance of a brain after all," Kakuzu thought. "But it won't help them anyway."
The trio, apparently, expected some active actions. But the guy in the cloak with red clouds wasn't in a hurry to attack. Instead, he rolled up the sleeve of his robe and slashed himself across the forearm.
The four's eyes widened. They became wary, because long ago there was a belief in a mythical kekkei genkai that granted the ability to control blood. There was a clan whose members possessed it and had a whole arsenal of deadly techniques that could be used after awakening this genome. However, no information remained about that clan, only rumors. Apparently, all its members had been killed, and mentions in the general history of the Elemental Nations had been erased.
Kakuzu chuckled. It was all readable in the eyes of the inexperienced shinobi. Caution, distrust, fear. It was surprising that they even knew about this legend. The bounty hunter himself wasn't sure if such a clan had existed in reality.
But all this was unimportant. Because Hidan's abilities were far more mundane. And at the same time, much more unpleasant for his opponents.
Hidan, looking at the reaction of the Takumi shinobi, smirked and began to sprinkle the ground with his blood. Then, with his foot, he quickly drew a triangle inscribed in a circle — the sign of Jashin. The guy decided to prepare the drawing in advance so that when he got what he needed from the opponent, he wouldn't waste precious time on the inscription. True, besides this, he should test the strength of these failed shinobi and wait for Kakuzu's "verdict."
— Well, you bastards, prepare to die in the name of Jashin-sama, — with these words, Hidan rushed into the attack.
The mercenary decided to take out the big guy first, as the most cumbersome one at first glance. However, the flexible azure blades of the blue-haired boy's sword flashed to intercept him.
— Suiko, I'll cover you, — he shouted.
The burly man nodded curtly and, swinging his mace, threw the weapon into the attack. Hidan blocked the huge pommel, which separated from the handle. He simply dodged the boy's flexible blades, and when they plunged into the ground, he instantly severed the main one — the longest.
— What a bunch of amateurs you are, — the priest of Jashin grinned. — Your toys won't change anything in our little game.
— We'll see about that, — the kunoichi sang. — Roaring Wind!
A powerful stream of Fuuton technique flew towards the High Priest. The guy dodged without any problems, but the trees behind him were torn to pieces.
— Blast it, that's dangerous. If it hits me — I'm done for…
— Hidan, leave the girl to me, — Kakuzu's hoarse voice was heard.
The priest of Jashin clicked his tongue in displeasure but took the information into account.
The bounty hunter rubbed his hands in anticipation.
"Excellent, the girl has an affinity for the Wind Element. And the blades aren't simple either. They can be sold on the black market…"
While Kakuzu mentally calculated the profit from killing these simpletons, Hidan found himself in a stalemate with his opponents. The missing-nin hadn't managed to injure any of his opponents yet, which incredibly angered him. The trio from Takumi, in turn, also couldn't land any attacks on the priest. Previously, Hidan had been able to fight and kill most opponents at close to medium range thanks to his scythe. However, without his usual weapon, the mercenary's combat potential had dropped significantly. Now, long-range feints with the three-bladed scythe on a rope were unavailable to him. And despite the fact that the priest's skill was noticeably higher than that of these "artisans," they, thanks to coordinated teamwork and artifacts, simply didn't give him an opportunity for a successful attack.
— You lowlifes, — Hidan hissed through his teeth. Now, apparently, the priest would go for a suicidal attack for an ordinary shinobi. — Here's to you. You will die in the name of Jashin!
A moment — and Hidan rushed straight at the blue-haired boy's azure blades, which had managed to recover. The boy stared with his mouth open at the shinobi who had run right into his weapon.
— Khe… — a trickle of blood flowed from the priest's mouth. One of the blades had grazed his lung. The guy was impaled on the sword, like shish kebab on a skewer.
— Oh, Ryuugan, — the girl said with displeasure. — I didn't think you'd be the one to kill this idiot.
— He's still alive. You have the right to make the final blow, Kujaku, — the blue-haired boy gave the kunoichi a playful bow.
But in the next moment, Hidan's naginata flashed towards the boy. He barely managed to pull his head back and jump away, but…
"It's over for the kid. Although he doesn't realize it yet," Kakuzu thought.
The blue-haired boy, however, touched the bleeding cut on his cheek and chuckled:
— That was close.
Earlier, as soon as the Jashinist's attack followed, Ryuugan's flexible sword blade retracted, becoming static again, so the mercenary was now free once more.
Hidan grinned maliciously, paying no attention to the wound in his chest. With one agile jump, he landed on the Jashin symbol and licked the blood from the naginata's blade.
— You're done for, you scum, — with these words, Hidan's skin quickly darkened until it became anthracite, then white bone-like patterns appeared on it.
He took out a skewer from behind his cloak, then, baring his torso, stabbed himself in the stomach.
— A-a-a-a-a-a!..
The boy's scream filled the surroundings. He fell to his knees, clutching a deep wound in his stomach.
— Ryuugan! — the girl cried out, shifting her gaze from the mercenary to her comrade. — What did you do to him?
— However, Hidan didn't have time to answer. A massive mace head on a chain flew towards him.
The burly man, apparently, hadn't understood what had happened to his comrade, so, seeing an opportunity, he immediately attacked the mercenary.
"Crack of bones"
— Blast it, that hurt, you wretch! — Hidan said, spitting out blood. The blow from the mace barely left the mercenary standing. — Are you completely stupid? During the ritual, my wounds are transferred to the small fry. Haven't you figured that out yet?
— Suiko, what have you done? — Kujaku whispered in a trembling voice.
The burly man, pulling the mace head back into the handle, cast a stunned glance at his younger teammate. Ryuugan lay on the ground like a broken doll. His chest was ripped open, as was the chest of the priest of Jashin. The sword had fallen from his hand. The boy was wheezing something, trying to speak. But the words were indistinguishable. Trying to move, he groaned, and tears welled up in his eyes.
— What, don't you like it, you little brat? Hurts, doesn't it? — Hidan inquired mockingly. — I would have played with you some more. But there are too many of you here.
After these words, the priest pierced his own heart.
The blue-haired boy twitched, but after a few moments, he fell silent, no longer showing any signs of life.
— Ryuugan! — the brawler roared. Tears streamed down his face, and, swinging his mace, he charged at the mercenary with a growl.
Hidan jumped aside, letting the massive weapon swing past.
— You're so slow, — the priest of Jashin said. His skin regained its usual color, and his wounds began to heal slightly. The ritual had been successful. The sacrifice had been made to his dark god, so the mercenary's body was filled with power.
He lazily dodged another swing of the mace, and then darted towards the burly man like lightning.
The Leader saved Suiko from losing his head. Hoki blocked the naginata with his blade, then kicked Hidan away.
— Blast it, where did you come from? — the mercenary lamented, getting to his feet.
— Need help? — Kakuzu inquired coldly.
— Get lost! I can handle it myself.
— You are too arrogant.
— Go to hell. I don't have time for you.
— Remember, the girl is mine, — Kakuzu croaked. — You can sacrifice the big guy too, but don't touch their leader yet. Check his element first…
— You killed Ryuugan, — the Leader of the Celestial Four said, interrupting the mercenaries' conversation. — And also, it seems you are immortal…
— Blast it, you're a genius, — Hidan smirked. — Are you all this smart in Takumi, or did you just decide to show off?
— Suiko, Kujaku, don't let him get close and don't get yourselves hurt, — Hoki concluded correctly. It was clear that he was barely containing his anger caused by his comrade's death.
Hidan visibly grimaced. The main feature of his ritual had been revealed, so there would be no element of surprise, as there had been last time.
Hoki swung his black blade, and a wave of fire flew towards the mercenary. At the same time, with a cry of "Roaring Wind!", the kunoichi sent a powerful Fuuton technique at him.
The priest moved out of the trajectory of the double jutsu in advance, but even so, scorch marks remained on his cloak, which he immediately began to extinguish.
— Hidan, the lanky one is mine too, — Kakuzu said. — Finish off the big guy.
— Thanks for letting me, daddy.
But Kakuzu paid no attention to his partner's jab. He immersed himself in his calculations and plans for a few moments.
"Fire and wind. What luck," the bounty hunter thought. "Although they are not as strong as I would like, their hearts will help me regain some of my former abilities. And forty-five million from all four of them will allow me to recoup the money for Samehada's repairs."
Returning to observing the fight, he began to realize that Hidan wouldn't cope. Perhaps if the latter had his former weapon, the result would not be long in coming, but now the situation looked unfavorable. The Jashinist, deciding to use his signature strategy of "attack despite your injuries," was advancing. True, he couldn't rush into battle completely recklessly, because the enemy was using very dangerous techniques.
The kunoichi's wind blades easily cut through trees and left deep furrows in the ground; if Hidan were to get caught by even one jutsu, Kakuzu would have painstaking work sewing the small Hidans into one, larger one. The burly man's mace constantly prevented him from getting close to the lanky one, and the latter, in turn, was perpetually annoying with fire techniques.
This situation greatly angered the mercenary. He decided to attack Kujaku. Although Kakuzu had told the priest to leave the girl to him, Hidan had no intention of killing her.
Approaching, the guy wanted to quickly disable the kunoichi, when suddenly a powerful vortex formed around her, throwing him back. At that moment, in mid-air, he caught the spiked mace head from the burly man with his face. After which, he immediately received a fire technique as a follow-up.
"Yes. I'll have to sew him up after all," Kakuzu thought.
And he was right. As soon as Hidan tried to get up on trembling legs, Hoki approached him. Due to the wounds all over his body, the mess where his face used to be, and the burns, he didn't manage to react properly to the artisan's attack.
A flash of the sword — and with a dull thud, Hidan's head fell onto the scorched ground, rolling towards Kakuzu.
The Takumi kunoichi laughed loudly. Hoki also couldn't help but smirk. The burly man muttered something about the revenge that had been accomplished.
— Only one left, — the Leader of the Celestial Four said.
— M-hm. Played himself, — the Akatsuki treasurer drawled with displeasure. — And I told you…
— Oh, go to hell! — the head shouted in a breaking voice. — It's all your fault!
The trio from Takumi froze like stone statues. The girl's legs buckled, but she maintained her vertical position, leaning on her swords. The men's eyes threatened to pop out of their sockets. Clearly, it wasn't every day that one encountered an immortal shinobi who was unfazed even by decapitation. Therefore, their reaction was quite natural.
Meanwhile, the mercenaries continued their conversation as if nothing had happened.
— When I offered help, you told me to shut up and get lost.
— Oh, really? — Hidan feigned surprise. — Well, sorry-sorry, I got carried away, happens to everyone.
— Hmm…
— Oh, come on. Don't pout, sweetie. Better bring my body here.
Kakuzu remained silent. He gloomily examined his partner's head.
— Hey, Kakuzu-chan. Could you bring my body here? — the priest of Jashin began to whine. — Pretty please…
The treasurer's silhouette blurred, and he instantly appeared next to his partner's head, after which he unceremoniously grabbed it by the hair.
— Hey, wait! Put it back! Damn it, Kakuzu, my body! Bring my body here.
— Why? The head is lighter.
— That's no excuse. Damn it, that hurts, you son of a…! Kakuzu, you're going to pull all my hair out!…
While the mercenaries argued with each other, the trio from Takumi remained in shock. With gestures, Hoki indicated to his team that they needed to retreat. Judging by the speed of this Kakuzu, he was on a completely different level of power. And if it was possible to defeat an immortal shinobi, although not kill him, then their chances against the masked man were practically zero. Therefore, retreat was the most sensible option in this case, at least because the mercenaries were currently occupied. The masked shinobi began to sew the head back onto the ash-blonde's body. A perfect opportunity.
Sweat covered Kujaku's forehead. Suiko clenched his teeth, glancing at the mercenaries and then at his fallen comrade. The Leader felt that it would only be a moment before the burly man would rush into battle, despite the elder's order.
— We retreat, — Hoki said quietly.
— But Ryuugan, — the brawler began, but Kujaku's hand fell on his shoulder.
— Hoki is right, we don't know the second one's abilities. And the first one is immortal anyway…
— If you're thinking about escaping, — Kakuzu's voice was heard, as he was already finishing sewing his partner's head back onto his neck. — Then forget it. None of you will leave alive. I won't miss out on forty-five million.
The shinobi from Takumi tensed up, taking fighting stances. It was unlikely that the mercenary's words were an empty threat. He was confident in his abilities, which, by the way, were unknown to the remaining members of the Celestial Four. Therefore, the artisans would have to accept the fight, giving it their all and using their artifacts to the maximum…
— That's it, — Kakuzu said, finally finishing sewing his partner's head on. Hidan immediately began to stretch his neck, checking the quality of the Akatsuki treasurer's work. — Watch the seams, they'll burst if you keep wriggling…
— You're so caring. You know, Kakuzu, go to hell…
He didn't manage to finish, as a combined fire and wind jutsu flew towards them. But the bounty hunter reacted in time, using an earth wall… which, however, didn't last longer than a couple of moments.
The mercenaries retreated, but the attack of the Takumi shinobi didn't stop there. The kunoichi began to continuously use the most powerful wind techniques. Periodically, streams of flame erupted from the lanky one's black blade, which amplified the air blades. The burly man stood nearby and was ready to take the hit himself, covering his teammates. The battlefield within a radius of a hundred meters around them turned into hell. Only stumps remained of the sparse trees, and the ground turned black.
Kakuzu hadn't initially felt any danger from these shinobi, but now he realized he was wrong. Their artifacts allowed them to amplify long-range techniques many times over, while using a relatively small amount of chakra.
Kakuzu went underground, leaving Hidan on the surface. Previously, he had covered both of them with an earth dome from particularly powerful jutsu, but playing defensively against such opponents was foolish.
Therefore, he should get closer to them and deliver a surprise attack. It was apparently quite hot for Hidan up there, as even through the thick layer of earth, his curses could be heard. Approaching closer, Kakuzu decided not to stand on ceremony and capture everyone at once.
Black tendrils of threads burst from under the ground, instantly binding the trio. Weapons fell from the shinobi's weakened hands. Only Suiko held on and didn't want to part with his mace. This bearded brawler had incredible physical strength, and the tendrils barely held him.
The bounty hunter emerged from the ground, surveying the Takumi shinobi trembling with anger. Suddenly, he felt a drain of chakra. Following the direction it was going, the mercenary realized that his chakra was being absorbed by the brawler's armor.
"Curious. They could pay a lot for such equipment."
— Hidan, get rid of the big guy, — Kakuzu tossed to his partner.
— You're bossing me around again, — the priest grumbled. Nothing remained of the Akatsuki cloak. No skin was visible on his body, only charred flesh. In places, blood mixed with black goo streamed from the wounds. One of his arms hung like a whip. Hidan now resembled a terrifying demon that had crawled out of the Abyss. But even in this state, while the Akatsuki treasurer held the trio with his technique, Hidan managed to draw a new Jashin symbol.
Following the bounty hunter's command, Hidan lunged at the burly man with an anticipating grin.
— You will die in the glory of Jashin, you blasted heretic!
— R-r-ra-a-a! — the tendrils couldn't withstand Suiko's strength, especially since his armor was actively absorbing chakra, so the brute broke free from Kakuzu's grip.
The man was about to attack the Akatsuki treasurer to free his teammates, but Hidan arrived just in time.
Despite his injuries, the priest moved nimbly, like a monkey, and the slow-moving burly man had no chance to defend himself.
"Whistle"
A cry of pain echoed through the поляна. The mace fell to the ground along with the large, hairy hand that held it.
— Well, baboon, — Hidan drawled mockingly. — You won't be able to stroke it anymore.
The cry turned into muffled groans, the burly man fell to his knees and cradled the bleeding stump, trying to stop the crimson liquid. But the priest didn't care, just like Kakuzu.
Hidan approached the ritual circle. Licking the blood from the naginata's blade, he began the ritual of sacrificing another idiot to his god…
While Hidan tormented the burly man, inflicting various injuries on him and reveling in his agony, Kakuzu decided to begin transplanting the shinobi's hearts into himself.
The lanky one was first in line.
The bounty hunter tore his clothes, exposing a dry, sinewy torso, after which thin tendrils with pointed tips began to make a neat incision right along the sternum. The leader of the four screamed shrilly, trying to break free, but at this time thick tendrils held the donor firmly. The artisans' artifact weapon had been thrown away by Kakuzu from the very beginning of the operation to avoid unnecessary accidents and danger.
The kunoichi sobbed quietly. Mascara ran along with tears and snot. No trace remained of the former arrogance that the girl had displayed at the beginning of the fight with Hidan. She was shaking with terror. She felt a thin stream run between her legs. She almost threw up when Kakuzu — under Hoki's screeching — began to break the cartilage and move the leader's upper ribs to the sides, exposing the beating heart. And when the wriggling ball of thin tendrils began to surgically precisely separate the heart from the aorta, and then envelop and transfer it to Kakuzu's chest, she desperately wanted to lose consciousness. But consciousness did not leave her.
She watched Hoki's convulsions, which ceased after a few breaths. His body fell at the mercenary's feet, no longer restrained by the tendrils. The leader's ripped-open chest resembled a flower oozing crimson sap. From observing this scene, lunch immediately rushed to leave her stomach. The tendrils that held her slightly loosened, allowing her to vomit onto the ground. Her legs buckled, and she fell to her knees.
Wiping her mouth with her sleeve, the girl raised a pleading gaze to the mercenary.
— P-please, — she sobbed, begging. — H-have mercy… I… I… w-will do anything…
Kakuzu tilted his head slightly to the side, as if he had seen some kind of curiosity. His demonic eyes narrowed, and he replied:
— No.
After the short word, the tendrils picked her up with renewed force…
Soon, the kunoichi repeated the fate of her leader. The lifeless body with a ripped-open chest fell to the ground. A crimson puddle spread across the scorched earth. The girl's empty gaze stared at the gray sky.
— Well, are you done, Kakuzu? — Hidan approached his partner. In one hand he held the severed head of the burly man by the hair. The other rested the naginata on his shoulder. His wounds began to heal before their eyes. Pale pink new skin already covered his torso, and a short hedgehog of ash-colored hair began to grow on his head, which should fully grow to its usual length in half an hour. Whatever damage the priest received — after the ritual, he recovered with terrifying speed.
The Akatsuki treasurer frowned. The transplant operations went without incident. The new hearts beat in time with his own. However, something was bothering him. It felt as if they were being watched. In the heat of battle, this was незаметно, and when he was busy with the transplant, he didn't pay attention to external irritants.
Kakuzu was generally a very mediocre sensor. He had neither чудо-глаз, nor sensory techniques, nor a super sense of smell. His bounty hunting relied primarily on excellent tracking skills, intuition, and a predator's instinct. And, of course, he had an excellent network of informants who worked for a modest reward.
Now he felt the gaze of living beings from the untouched forest to the east. Not shinobi, it seemed. But not animals either, the attention of the strangers was too intent. And animals, most likely, would have scattered, hearing the noise of the recent battle.
He was already about to rush off and find out who was so insolent… But after a couple of moments, the feeling of being watched disappeared. Completely suddenly, as if no one had been there before.
"Did I imagine it?" — Kakuzu thoughtfully rubbed his chin through his mask.
— Hey, are you spacing out there?
— Shut up! — the bounty hunter retorted. — Better cut off the others' heads and put them all in the bag.
— Oh, for crying out loud! Why always me? — the High Priest exclaimed indignantly, waving the burly man's head.
— Because you're useless? — Kakuzu suggested, shrugging. — And this way you at least bring some benefit.
— You wretch, — Hidan began to flare up. — I'll take you down!…
***
Naruto couldn't believe what he had seen. No, he had understood before: the world of shinobi was cruel, it wasn't a fairy tale. But at this moment, he realized how far his understanding of the world was from reality.
Such cruelty. Unjustified cruelty. Naruto had never seen people die before, especially four at once. And even more so, he hadn't expected to see such brutal murders. The entire Celestial Four had died in agony. Especially the last two. The mercenary named Kakuzu hadn't even spared the girl, and that was despite the fact that she was completely defenseless and begged him to spare her life.
Yes, these artisan shinobi were complete strangers to him, but did that change anything? Could Uzumaki Naruto — the future Hokage — just stand by and do nothing? Could he not help those in need? Although, what was the point, the clones had stood and watched. They were just as stunned as Naruto was now. That's why they hadn't immediately dissipated to warn the boss.
But what could he have done? After all, it was about an hour's walk to the battlefield. If he traveled the upper paths, it would be less than ten minutes.
It was too late, nothing could be changed anymore.
"But what if…"
For a moment, Naruto imagined what would have happened if his teammates had been in the place of the four from Takumi. Sasuke. Kakashi… Or, Kami forbid… Sakura.
The image of the ash-blonde performing the ritual on Sasuke or Kakashi-sensei immediately and incredibly vividly appeared in his mind.
Then, images flashed before his eyes of black tendrils tearing and ripping open Sakura's chest. She screamed just like the kunoichi from Takumi had screamed. And the mercenary, enjoying the girl's torment, tore out her beating heart and transplanted it into himself…
The images that appeared in his mind were so clear and distinct, as if it were all really happening.
Somewhere deep inside, Uzumaki felt a heat. This heat grew stronger and stronger. At first, he couldn't understand what it was. But soon it became clear that his rage was igniting.
He slowly exhaled, trying to calm down.
"No, this won't happen," he thought. "Never. I won't allow it. Sakura won't die. We'll get away from here as quickly as possible and never cross paths with those mercenaries again…"
After that, another thought crept into his head, as if it didn't belong to him: "This won't happen if you kill them. Kill the mercenaries…"
— Yes, this won't happen if I… — he said aloud, but stopped short.
He couldn't say such a thing. Not him, who believed in the best in people, who didn't hate people, even when they despised and ignored him.
But the fire of rage took hold of him. For the first time in a long time, he felt such anger and hatred, which he had never experienced before.
Images of the mutilated corpses of his teammates and Kakashi-sensei appeared before his eyes.
"Come on, run to them. Kill them," a voice sounded in his head.
Naruto barely managed to contain the rage tearing out of him. Intellectually, he understood that he wasn't ready to face such opponents yet, despite all the training. However, some animalistic feeling relentlessly drove him back, towards the Artisan Village. To deal with these shinobi the way they had dealt with the Celestial Four. To tear apart, kill, trample the vile humans…
"I can't. I'm still too weak…" — Naruto thought. And he was right. Maybe compared to the rest of the genin and many chunin, he was strong, but to face such monsters — one of whom was вообще immortal — colossal power was needed.
"I will give you strength," echoed the inner voice. Uzumaki felt a heat flow through his body… And this heat gave him unprecedented power. "Come on. What are you waiting for? Run to them. Tear them apart. Kill the humans. Those like them don't deserve to live…"
A bestial growl escaped Naruto's chest. His teammates were genuinely frightened, especially Sakura. The subsequent bloodlust also didn't add courage to the genin. Uchiha held his ground, but the girl fell straight onto the grass, trembling with terror.
— N-Naruto… — Haruno whispered.
Kakashi was the only one who remained calm, at least outwardly. The man composed himself.
— Naruto, what happened? — he inquired as peacefully as possible.
— R-r-r-r… — Uzumaki looked up at his sensei.
Kakashi cursed softly. Naruto's eyes were red, with a narrow vertical pupil. Fangs began to protrude from under his lip, and claws grew from his fingers.
The jonin raised his hands in appeasement.
— Calm down, Naruto. It's me, Kakashi-sensei. What happened?
— I want to kill them… — the blonde croaked.
Hatake swallowed. He had a fuin scroll with a seal that blocked the Nine-Tails' chakra, but he still needed to get it out. Uzumaki was already at the level of a strong chunin in terms of speed and strength, and with the Kyuubi's chakra, the blonde could turn into a killing machine and easily take out the genin.
— Who is "them"? — Kakashi decided to clarify, lowering his hand to his pouch.
— The mercenaries…
Hatake suppressed his surprise. And at the same time, he mentally exhaled. The fact that the boy wasn't going to kill his team was already a plus. Running through the recent events in his head, the Copy Ninja realized that the genin had apparently secretly sent clones to watch the shinobi battle. And what the replicas had seen had enraged Naruto, awakening the demon.
— Calm down, Naruto. Breathe slowly and deeply. Try to clear your mind of negative emotions. This is all the Nine-Tails. Don't give in to his anger. You can control this.
Uzumaki stared at his sensei with unblinking eyes for a while, but soon calmed his breathing and closed his eyes.
Hatake carefully opened his pouch just in case and began searching for the necessary scroll, while keeping a tense gaze on the jinchuriki. But the fuin scroll, as luck would have it, was nowhere to be found.
The jonin decided to try to calm Naruto with words. As a last resort, he had his Sharingan.
— That's it. Good. Think about something pleasant. Think about… — Kakashi pondered. He knew that Uzumaki had tender feelings for his teammate, so he decided to suggest the obvious option. — Well, for example, think about Sakura…
Naruto's eyes snapped open, and an even greater wave of malice flooded the surroundings.
A drawn-out growl or moan escaped the blonde's chest. And his body began to be covered by a layer of crimson chakra, and one tail formed. After a couple of moments, another appeared.
— Retreat, now! — Kakashi commanded. However, the genin didn't even budge. The trembling Sakura was still sitting on the ground, and Uchiha looked at the blonde with bewilderment and horror.
The jonin began to frantically rummage through his pouch, keeping an eye on Uzumaki out of the corner of his eye.
— Stop me… Kakashi-sensei… — Naruto said in a growling voice. And in the next moment, the ground where the blonde was standing exploded with fragments, forming a small crater — the jinchuriki sped back towards the Artisan Village with incredible speed.
Kakashi, cursing, rushed after him…