Side Quest
I know you are wondering the same thing that I am.
Why in the hell is an incredibly muscular and shirtless guy chasing me around Konoha? To showcase his amazing six pack abs?
Honestly, I don't really think it's the ramen. It's suspicious right? Because I don't think it's possible for anyone to be much more of a fanatic when it comes to ramen than Naruto. If he were that fanatical, he would have appeared in at least a single episode.
I know it's an alternate universe but something ain't right. So, what could it be?
Well, it doesn't matter as I am currently leading the dude in a wild goose chase around Konoha's general market.
I know, I know. Markets? Are we in a James Bond movie? Why the market? Can you really lose a ninja in a market?
You shouldn't be asking that. After all, the market isn't my destination.
With the flap of my jacket, I jumped into an abandoned compound located at the edge of the market. With a roll, I springed into the house. Skidding to a stop, I looked around. Perfect.
Listen up kids. Never forget. Being a ninja was fifty percent preparation.
With a grin, I disappeared into the shadows.
The fanatic landed in front of the house. He walked calmly and entered the house. Even a civilian would've found the footsteps I left at the entrance.
The dim lighting of the spacious living room cast a tense atmosphere to the environment. With heavy curtains blocking the windows and light entering only through the slightly open door, the room looked like the scene of a horror movie.
"I know you are in here." He crowed. "Come out and face me."
Face you? Over my dead body. What do you think I am? An idiot? If I face you directly, I will be dead. I'll only face you if I can confirm my suspicions.
"You're not really mad about the ramen, are you?"
He stood stoically.
"Nobody goes for a quick meal of ramen with battle chains wrapped around their arms."
He chuckled. "I told Iruka that wouldn't work. You're smart, kid."
"Thanks for the compliment." I said. "May I have the honour of knowing the name of the man I'll be facing in battle?"
"Rejoice Yuji," he raised his arms, "you'll be facing Ichoku The Chained."
Sounds like an epithet no one other than him uses. Now that I've confirmed that he's not an actual ramen fanatic, I stepped out of the shadows.
"Welcome Yuji. Welcome to your death."
How needlessly dramatic. If anyone's dying today, it surely won't be me.
"Let's dance."
With a one-handed seal, I activated my clone seal, and four bushin clones appeared, two on each side. The clones looked indistinguishable from me. It's not the Kage Bushin and can't actually affect opponents but it works for my battle style.
"Clones?" Ichiku scoffed. "What are you hoping to achieve with an old technique no one uses anymore?"
I grinned at him. "Another man's junk is another man's treasure."
I'm sure you're wondering. Based on what you guys have seen of me so far, you might all be thinking, this guy's an idiot.
But what if all you've seen is a carefully curated identity to show the world? After all, it pays to be underestimated.
I dashed towards Ichoku with my clones mirroring me. With a smirk, he slid the chains down his arms till they were dangling and he was holding a chain in each hand. With a whisper, his chains burst into flame.
As a practitioner of formless jutsu, Ichoku chooses not to inscribe seals on himself. Just like the fourth Hokage, he doesn't need hand seals to activate his jutsu. However, even the fourth Hokage himself inscribed seals for the Hiraishin.
The two clones on either side split off and attacked from opposite sides while I faced Ichoku directly. Ignoring my bushings, he swiped hus chains at me and with a one-handed seal, I switched places with a clone on his right. I sent two clones.
Bam!
Ichoku had been caught by surprise but he was still fast enough to block my kick with his elbow.
He staggered and I switched places with a clone behind him and slapped a fuinjutsu tag on his exposed back.
Fwoosh!
Flames erupted out of his back and burnt the tag before I could activate it. With a snap of his chains, he dispersed my four clones. A jet of flames erupted from between his shoulder blades forcing me to duck as he rocketed towards the wall. He landed on the wall and stuck himself there.
"Not bad." He grinned. "Let's see more of what you can do."
Boom!
He rocketed at me, shattering the wall behind him.
'W-what strength!'
Thwap!
His chains moved so fast, my substitution saved me by a hair's breadth. With a swift hand seal, I summoned two clones to flank me just as Ichoku's chains were redirected towards me with a simple hand flick.
I dashed forward as the chains whirled, aiming to ensnare me in their fiery grasp. Just as the chains dispersed my clones and were about to encircle me, I used the almighty substitution technique to swap places with a nearby chair, leaving Ichoku to clash with nothing but furniture.
With a smirk, I launched into action and twenty clones filled the room.
With the clones mirroring my movements, we closed in on Ichoku from multiple angles. But Ichoku was no novice, swiftly manipulating his flaming chains to ward off the attacks, the fiery whips crackling through the air with deadly precision. I zipped through the chain storm with a few perfectly done substitutions.
In a second, I was in front of him. I pulled back my arm with a big smile. Ichoku leaned forward and crossed his arms.
"Hah!" With a laugh, I substituted with a clone behind him, slapped a hand onto the floor and kicked him behind the knee. He stumbled onto a knee. "Gotcha!"
Fwoosh!
Flames exploded out of his body, blowing me away. With a crack, I hit a wall, sending a spider web of cracks all over the concrete.
With a cough, I fell to my knees. Fortunately, there's no internal bleeding.
Ichoku stood up. "Clever. Unfortunately, it'll take more than that to defeat me."
"No one said anything about defeat." I grinned and pointed at his feet with two fingers that just happened to be a one handed activation seal. "You might want to look down."
Boom!
Ichoku barely had time to react as the bomb exploded, releasing a sticky, viscous substance that rapidly expanded, ensnaring Ichoku and glueing him to the floor.
"A gum bomb." He growled. Trapped and immobilized by the glue, he struggled to break free, but my laughter echoed through the room as I made his escape. "See you around," I waved cheerily as I disappeared.
Ichoku gritted his teeth and created a very hot flame around his legs which managed to burn off the glue. He was free but by then, I was long gone.
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