49 Chapter 6: Strings and Swords 1/3

Hiiiiii!

Apologies that this chapter is coming later than I planned. I struggled HARD writing this. I had all these ideas in my head that I could NOT get translated to the screen in a way I wanted.

I'm NOT happy with this chapter. I'm hoping that it's just the perfectionist in me and that it's enjoyable enough for you all…. But I have a feeling this isn't going to be a memorable chapter overall. Oh well! At least it isn't as bad as my first 3 or so chapters. I re-read those and had to update my A/Ns… Why didn't anyone tell me how CRINGE AND CRAPPY they were?

Good size today.. 16k words.

HOPEFULLY you all enjoy this enough that it isn't a slog to get through.

Kenta's mancrush list is now CLOSED. Results at the end.

CHECK PROFILE WEEKLY FOR NEW HOGWARTS SORTING HAT POLLS! NEW ONE IS UP! KENTA HOUSE AT BOTTOM AS WELL!

Enjoy! I HOPE

I bounced excitedly as I leaned against the fence near the main gate to the village. It was 0700, my team would be filing in over the next half hour as the 0730 reporting time drew nearer. The news of yesterday still made me giddy every time I thought about it. S-Rank! At 17! Only a handful in our entire village had managed to achieve this rank, even a smaller number at or before my age. As soon as I left Lord Fifth's office, I flickered all over town, telling my closest friends to meet at my place for dinner.

Mom and Kono, Naruto, Fú, Ami, and Ino were the only ones that were available, but it was enough. Lord Inogi was planning a much larger celebration upon my return. With Ino being at dinner last night, I knew she had probably already managed to get herself involved. Mom was in tears for almost an hour when I told her the news. The waves of pride and happiness rolling off her after showing her my updated entry were almost suffocating. Kono was also incredibly proud. However, waves of determination were the primary emotion she was exuding. She swore right then and there that one day she would join me among the elite of the elite. That was when it was my turn to break down into manly tears and crush her in an oxygen-inhibiting hug.

Naruto and Fú were both over the moon as well. The unexpected flash of jealousy didn't escape my notice. Naruto quickly caught himself though, managing to stamp that down, his own determination not to remain behind for long quickly replacing it.

Fú was nothing but pride, happiness and love. We talked long past midnight about the future and what would happen now that I had, unintentionally I might add, put my name in the discussion for the next in line for Hokage. That is something I did NOT want to do, ever! Hokage was a fine goal, and I would do everything I could to make sure Naruto was the one to be named Lord Sixth. The only way they're getting that hat on me is if there's literally no one else worthy of it. I still had Kakashi and Cpt Genma ahead of me.

My reminiscing of last night was cut off by a presence closing into my location at a moderate pace. I looked up and smiled into the easy smile of Haku.

"Haku! How are you? It's been awhile." I greeted enthusiastically, shaking the older man's hand.

"Cpt Kenta. I am well. I recently got a promotion so I have been keeping busy with that. How are you?" Haku replied in a friendly voice.

"Promotion?! To what? Congratulations!" I exclaimed excitedly.

"Promotion? Ooooh to what, Haku?" Sakura's excited voice called out. I turned towards the young woman and sent her a small smile. "Kenta, good morning! I'm excited for our mission!"

Haku frowned slightly. "Miss Sakura. You must not forget your professionalism. Cpt Kenta is our squad leader. You must remember your customs and courtesies." Haku said in a slightly chastising voice.

Sakura's eyes widened slightly at being reprimanded and focused her attention on me. Unease and wariness quickly replaced the happiness and excitement she had just felt a moment ago.

"You're right, Lt Haku. I apologize Cpt Kenta." She said in a controlled voice.

I nodded. "I'm not a stickler for titles, but as you can see, some are. Haku's right, don't forget customs and courtesies." I said in a neutral tone.

She nodded. "Of course. I let my excitement get the best of me."

I nodded before turning back to Haku. "So, promotion?"

Sakura's excited energy returned after she realized I wasn't going to chew her out for her slip up. This time. "Yes, Lt Haku! Please, tell us!"

"Yes, Lt Yuki. You were a Special Jonin as I recall. Did you get the full promotion?" Sasuke's voice suddenly called out from behind our group.

Haku turned and smiled at the younger teen. "Lord Sasuke. Good Morning. No, not a military promotion, it was at the hospital. I have been promoted to Director of the Pediatric Wing." He said with a bright smile.

I glanced at the time keeping seal engraved into my wrist plate. 0729.

"You were almost late, Chunin. Don't make that a habit." I reprimanded the boy.

Sasuke scowled and opened his mouth to retort. I pinned him with a glare.

"No, Uchiha. No back talk. We are in mission mode. I am team Captain. What I say goes. I'm establishing that right here and now. You will do as I say, when I say it. Does everyone understand that? If I tell you to fall back, you do it immediately. If I tell you to retreat, you had better already be moving. If I tell you to leave me and escape, you had better hope I don't survive if you mouth off to me or attempt to argue. I know Kakashi drilled that 'those who abandon their comrades are worse than trash' into your heads, but I'm not Kakashi. I will personally maim you if you ignore my orders. Do I make myself clear?" I accentuated my point with a shot of bloodlust and seriousness into the air.

Haku immediately snapped a salute. "Of course, Cpt Kenta."

Sasuke stared at me as if I had grown a second head for almost a full minute. Finally he sighed. "As you say, Captain. I will follow your orders."

I nodded. "Thank you, Sasuke." I turned towards Sakura who was biting her lip nervously. "Haruno?"

"I…" She took a deep breath. "I don't think I could-"

"If you do not give me your word now, this mission is cancelled." I cut her off with a hard voice. "I have forty-four S-Rank missions under my belt. Completed, with no loss of life. I will NOT let my perfect record be tarnished because a Genin decided she knew better than me. I haven't seen your strength Sakura, and that is what this mission is for. I will save my opinion on that until I am writing up my report for Lord Fifth on your performance. What I do know, is that you have completed 28 D-Ranks, 2 C-Ranks, 1 A-Rank, and 1 long term S-Rank. You have never led a single mission. I can say with 100% confidence that in this scenario, I know more than you do. Agree, or go home. That's final."

She hesitated only for another moment before she steeled her resolve. Her determined emerald eyes met my teal ones. "You're right. I'm sorry. I can't look at you as my friend until this mission is completed. I know that every commander is different. I trust you. I will do as you say."

I smiled widely. The tense atmosphere I was exuding vanished in a flash. "Perfect! Now that that is out of the way… Haku, congratulations! That is amazing. We can talk about it on the road. Let's get checked out and be on our way!"

******************************Mission Mode Kenta ain't playin*****************************

We had been running at a steady pace for the last twelve hours. Intelligence had Kakuzu intercepting Raiga in six days, which gave us plenty of time to track and set our ambush. This wasn't going to be a walk in the park. I was highly prepared to have to jump into the fight at any given moment. Haku would definitely be putting his skills to use. Hopefully he didn't have to fix anything too serious.

"Alright team, that's enough for the day. Sun is setting in just over an hour. Let's get camp set up." I called out. Everyone nodded and dropped to the floor beneath us. We were about a four hours from the Land of River's border. Land of Rivers bordered the Land of Fires western border. We actually passed through it on our way to rescue Lord Kazekage. It's a beautiful country, but the humidity is no joke!

"Sasuke, firewood. Sakura and Haku, set up the tents. I'll run a sweep and put some seals down. Let's try and get this done in thirty minutes so we can relax a bit before first watch." I called out. Everyone agreed and went about their assigned task.

I first sat down in the middle of the clearing and stretched my senses out. Not a single soul within twenty miles of our location. I smiled to myself and began pulling out various sealing tags. They were mainly detection and early warning tags, but a few had some misdirection and shielding tags as well.

Within twenty minutes, we were all sitting around a nice sized campfire. I pulled out some cooking supplies. I began whistling a happy tune. I had no idea where I had even heard it. It didn't even sound like something that I would hear anywhere in Fire Country. Maybe I heard it on a mission in a land that was well away from the traditional culture that seemed to be similar to the surrounding lands?

"Cpt Kenta, is that fish even still edible?" Sakura's inquisitive voice suddenly called out.

I stared in confusion at first and took a whiff of the filets. "Yeah. It's still cold. Have you never used a stasis seal?"

She shook her head. "Only for halting a medical emergency until we could prepare a sanitary work area."

Haku looked impressed at that. "You've done field surgeries? Wait, you know medical arts?"

Sakura nodded eagerly. "I did and I do! I learned everything I could from Orochimaru and his creepy assistant Kabuto. What they couldn't teach me, I taught myself!"

"That's amazing, Miss Sakura. Are you going to come work in the hospital? We could always use more fully qualified medics." Haku asked hopefully.

Sakura smiled. "I do want to work in the hospital, but…" She trailed off, a faint blush on her face.

"But what, Miss Sakura?" Haku asked.

"I… want to focus more on research and development." She mumbled out.

"That's wonderful! Researchers are just as, if not more important than a medic! A groundbreaking technique or improvement to current standards can potentially save many more lives than a single medic ever would." Haku enthusiastically encouraged. "What field do you have the most interest in?"

"Genetics." Sakura said hesitantly.

I frowned at that. Genetics was one of Orochimaru's biggest fields of research. Was Sakura…? No, Kenta. No jumping to conclusions. "What got you into genetics?" I asked instead.

Sakura slightly brightened at that. "I want… I want to develop new ways to read the genetic code of those with a bloodline. My hope is that I can find the specific DNA Sequence in relation to a bloodline."

"Why would you want that?" I asked, now genuinely curious. It sure didn't sound evil or nefarious.

"A few reasons, but the main two are to, hopefully, be able to fix any mutations or repair the nucleic acid sequence that would determine if a bloodline was faulty, or if it decided if a person did or did not receive the bloodline of their family. For one, in the future, I could hopefully make sure that all of Sasuke and Lord Fifth's children and grandchildren would all receive the Sharingan. Same with the Hyuga. It would also explain rare bloodlines, like Kimimaro's and yours Cpt Kenta. If I could find the correct sequence, I could hopefully activate a dormant or recessive gene for 100% inheritance to all offspring!" Her entire speech progressively picked up speed until the very end where it all came out in a breathless rush.

"That would be a huge boon to our forces. You could also possibly revive long dead bloodlines if the genetic code lay dormant. But what did you mean 'determine if the bloodline was faulty?' Isn't it you either get it or you don't?" I asked.

She bit her lip nervously. "That's what I'd like to find out…"

"Who do you think has a faulty bloodline?" Sasuke suddenly spoke up.

"Well… For one, your clan, Sasuke." Sakura said truthfully.

Sasuke looked absolutely offended. His face reddened, so I took the reins to steer this conversation before it got out of hand. "Why do you think that, Sakura?"

She shot me a grateful smile after seeing Sasuke's darkening face. "Sasuke told me about his brother's eyes. How they evolved and gained new powers. However, each use of the eyes damages them more and more. Eventually, Lord Fifth will go completely blind if he continues to use them."

I nodded, knowing full well that Lord Fifth had an advanced Sharingan. "Medical Techniques don't work on the damage?"

"No. Even Lady Tsunade is stumped." Haku piped in.

"It's the sacrifice we make to use the power granted to us witnessing the death of someone we care for deeply." Sasuke growled out.

"But what if it's not? What if the evolution is an unnatural mutation of your eyes due to the trauma of witnessing such an event? What if we could correct that mutation? Use that power willingly, whenever you want, without such drastic consequences? What if we could re-write the genetic code that all Uchiha could unlock such a power with training?" Sakura said excitedly.

"That… would be wonderful. But there is no way you can do such a thing. There is only one known way to restore the eyesight and prevent further damage." Sasuke haughtily replied.

"And what is that?" Haku asked.

"You have to take the evolved eyes of a blood relative. A close blood relative. Usually a brother."

"What if you're an only child?" I asked seriously.

"I… A parent might work, but… It doesn't matter, the Mangekyo Sharingan has only been awakened in only a handful of members in our entire history."

"That doesn't make sense. The Uchiha Clan has been fighting since the Warring States Era! I'm sure many your ancestors saw multiple people they cared for die right in front of them!" I yelled out abruptly.

"That's true, but only real trauma can-"

"I'd say watching your best friend, mentor, family member… Basically anyone you care about would cause severe trauma. Especially for a clan with eyes that capture everything they see in painstaking detail." Sakura said aloud, hand resting in her chin with a look of concentration.

"I'm sure they have but-"

"I agree. I think there are a lot of holes in your story. Also, why would taking a close family members eyes magically make them like new? I'm assuming since you said the procured eyes had to also be evolved, they are damaged as well? Like, if you took Itachi's eyes right now, you'd be almost blind, wouldn't you?" I said staring at Sasuke, eyebrow raised in challenge.

"Well I'm not sure, but what I-"

"Exactly! This can all be solved if we take a look down at the DNA level, I'm sure. Sasuke! Do you think Lord Fifth would donate his eyes to science if he ever went blind?" Sakura asked, eyes alight with excitement.

"ENOUGH! You all have no idea what you're talking about! Stop making such insensitive and baseless comments about my dead ancestors!" Sasuke shouted, jumping to his feet.

"Woah, chill, Uchiha. We're just hypothesizing. Wouldn't it be nice if Sakura could crack the code?" I said in a placating manner.

"Well, sure, but how would she even figure it out?" Sasuke asked, sitting back down. His face was still flushed, but his temper had died down as quickly as he ignited.

"I apologize, Sasuke. I didn't mean to make insensitive remarks. But all I would need would be blood samples from you and your brother, maybe some from other's that you knew had also awakened their eyes. Compare them to those we know for sure hadn't evolved their eyes. See if there is any difference." Sakura said with a kind smile.

"I… suppose that wouldn't hurt anyone. But I will be involved in the process from step one. There is no bartering on this. The offer stands, as is. And Itachi would have to agree as well, since he is technically also Uchiha Clan Head." Sasuke said, eyes softening seeing Sakura's eagerness.

"Yes! That's one down! If I could see any major differences between the two, that would give me a starting point knowing which sequence to look at for others!" Sakura cheered loudly.

"Which other Bloodline did you want to compare to?" Haku asked with a smile on his face. I could feel his excitement at the prospect of "healing" something even Lady Tsunade was stumped on.

"Oh… Um… A friend of mine." Sakura mumbled out with a blush. Her chakra was all over the place.

"A friend? Or a friend?" I asked with a playful smirk on my face.

"W-what? What kind of question is that, Kenta? He's just a friend!" Sakura's embarrassment skyrocketed.

'Oh my. This is a development. Let's poke the wasp nest.' I internally snickered to myself.

"So? Who is he? Is he hot? Hotter than Prince Broody? Does he actually have a personality? Where did you meet? How did you meet? Does Sasuke know him? Are they friends? OH! Am I going to get a drama filled buffet with a side of love-triangle?!" I was now crouched in front of Sakura, bouncing excitedly.

If Sakura could, she would first liquefy me with one of her super punches, then melt into the floor herself. I grinned cheekily at her.

"I… I am not answering any of your questions, Cpt Kenta. What goes on in my personal life is none of your business." She answered smoothly.

I pouted. "You're no fun, Sakura."

"Wait, do you actually like him?" Sasuke suddenly spoke up, looking at Sakura in confusion.

"No… I mean… Can we have this conversation some other time?" Sakura asked slightly panicked.

Sasuke's eyes narrowed. "No, let's have it now."

I flickered back to my seat, eyes wide and darting back and forth between the confused lovers. This was already so much better than what I had envisioned.

"Fine. But don't say I didn't try to spare your feelings, Lord Uchiha." Sakura spat. "As a matter of fact, YES, I do like him! I'm sorry if that bruises your ego Lord Uchiha, but you never showed any interest in me past being friends. So, I moved on." Sakura crossed her arms over her chest, and narrowed her own eyes dangerously at the Uchiha, daring him to say something.

What happened next shook me to my core.

"I'm glad." Sasuke smiled warmly at Sakura.

Jaw, meet ground. Oh, wave to Sakura's jaw while you're down there!

She actually recovered before me!

"You… You're glad?" Sakura asked doubtfully.

"I am. I never pursued you romantically, because even though I admire you greatly, I never felt anything more than platonic love for you Sakura. I… would have married you, if it had made you happy. You're my teammate, and you've helped me in more ways than one. But, I knew I could never make you as happy as someone else could. The fact that you moved on from your early feelings of me… It makes me happy for you." Sasuke replied, that uncharacteristic smile still in place.

"I… I don't know what to say. You're not upset? I was so worried to tell you. I always thought I was somehow leading you on, or making you feel obligated to return my feelings."

Sasuke shook his head. "I'm not upset, at all. As I said, I'm happy for you. I hope that he can be the man for you that I know I couldn't be."

Sakura smiled wryly. "That… was the lamest thing I've ever heard you say. Stop trying to be all noble, Sasuke."

Sasuke chuckled. "Sorry. I'm still trying to figure out this whole "feelings" thing."

The two shared a moment.

Unacceptable.

"So, who's the mystery man that replaced Lord Uchiha in your heart, Sakura?" I asked innocently.

"Oh!" She shook herself out of her little cute moment with Sasuke. "His name is Jugo. He's the one whose bloodline makes up part of our seal."

"HIM!? Sakura, you can't! He's too dangerous! He can snap at literally any minute. I watched him kill one hundred men in less than five minutes!" Sasuke had risen to his feet in his panic and bounded over to Sakura, looking down on her with concerned eyes.

Sakura stared back, completely unimpressed by his unexpected showing of chivalry. "I'll have you know, Sasuke, that Jugo is the gentlest person I've ever met. You can't demonize him for something he can't control! That's the same thing we did, however unknowingly, to Naruto!"

"This isn't the same. Naruto doesn't go berserk and murder people for fun!"

"Neither does Jugo! He can't help it! Besides, I can control him when he's with me. I spent a year with him."

"You- what?! You can control him?"

Sakura nodded. "When he begins to berserk around me, I'm strong enough to beat him back to his senses. I'm the only one he trusts, Sasuke! Did you know he hadn't been out of his cell since before Kimimaro fell ill! He sat in isolation for almost three years! No one should be locked up like that. Especially since it was a self-induced isolation. He's so afraid of hurting anyone. He has all these dreams to see the world and just be normal and I'm the only one who can help him!"

"And how are you going to help him? You can't spend every waking minute with him. What happens when he goes berserk and you're not around? How many die?"

"You bumbling oaf! Did I not just spend an hour talking about genetic research and DNA manipulation?! I have blood and tissue samples. I have all of my notes, as well as Kabuto and Orochimaru's on his bloodline. I'm close to a breakthrough for a serum he can take if he starts to feel an episode come on. Even if I can't cure him, I can still make sure he can live his life!" Sakura had risen to her own feet. She only came up to Sasuke's chin, but at this moment she looked as if she towered over Sasuke.

"I, well, oh… That's good then, I guess." Sasuke mumbled lamely.

"Yes, it is good. Now, do you have anything else you can say to make yourself look like a total ass?" Sakura said with a dangerous tone. I prayed I had helped Sasuke enough in his social graces to not take that bait.

I breathed a sigh of relief.

"No, Sakura. I shouldn't have doubted you. You're not an idiot. I should trust you more. I know you wouldn't let such a dangerous man out around innocent people." Sasuke said looking down at the irate teenager.

She huffed. "Thank you for saying that. You're right. Until I develop and test this serum thoroughly, I wouldn't allow him out of my sight."

"You're talking like he's waiting for you back in Konoha. He's still with Orochimaru." Sasuke said with a frown.

"I know that. One day, though, I'll bring him home." Her eyes glowed with a fierce determination. She was completely confident she would make that happen.

"So… You spent a year with him, eh? What drew you to him?" I asked trying to re-diffuse the tension. Damn teens and their hormones.

She turned a shy smile on me. "He's… sweet. And gentle. He loves nature. We would just go take a walk in the woods and talk. Literally about anything and everything. Conversation with him was so easy. We had a picnic one time. You know how animals have a better sense of character than humans? We were surrounded by every type of animal you could imagine. At one point, this little red fox had crawled into my lap and took a nap for almost an hour. Jugo… he has a way with animals. They see his kindness and gentleness. They also know long before an episode starts so it's a great early warning detection. I would get him a dog, so he would always know when to take his serum."

I nodded with a smile. "I can't wait to meet him."

She beamed brightly at me. "Now, enough about all this. A little blonde birdie told me you have some news to share with the class of your own." Her beaming smile turned into a mischievous smirk.

"About…?" I asked in confusion.

She glanced at Sasuke and the smirk turned down right evil.

Oh shit. Cue inferiority complex pout session.

"Oooooooh just that you managed to get that 'S-Rank' you've been dreaming about since we were kids, finally."

"You, WHAT?!" Sasuke shouted in outrage.

I had no idea what to say or do to diffuse this situation.

I did the only thing I knew would work.

"Yup" I said as I disappeared in a swirl of dead leaves.

"Yamanaka! Get back here and fight me this instant! I'll prove to you who's the strongest once and for all!" Sasuke yelled into the night.

**************************Damn you SAKURA! You set Kenta back!**************************

"Target just activated one of my detection seals. You two ready?" I asked the duo.

Sasuke nodded but Sakura answered first. "So, five hearts. Have to destroy them all or he will survive. Can use all five elements. Detaches arms to attack from long range. Body is filled with those threads, so damage to any organ that would normally be a fatal won't work on him. Sound about right?"

I nodded. "Yes, that was all the information that Fú was able to get from Taki. I'll be on standby if you two need me. Remember. This man is a century old. He didn't survive that long on luck. He's skilled. Do NOT underestimate him."

Sakura joined Sasuke in nodding this time.

"Alright. I'm falling back with Haku. We'll be within striking distance at all times. Fight your hardest, show me everything you've got. Remember, I'm reporting to Lord Fifth on your performance. That includes individual strength, as well as how well you can work with others."

Both teens snapped salutes my way before disappearing in bursts of speed. I turned to my fellow feminine looking male.

"Ready?" I asked.

He smiled. "Yes, Captain. I'll be prepared to render any type of healing required."

"Then let's go find the best seats in the house!" I cheered excitedly.

Soon, we were perched in a tall tree overlooking the wide road Kakuzu was traveling down. We'd have a clear line of sight to the entire battle. I began placing a dozen different Naruto grade seals that would make us virtually invisible unless you somehow walked right on top of us. I couldn't see neither Sakura nor Sasuke, and I could only feel their chakra because I had become very familiar with it over the last week. Had I not, I might have mistaken them for a large woodland animal or a pair of civilians out hunting in the woods. They were good at masking their chakra signatures.

On the edge of my senses I felt him approaching at a steady, but quick pace. Closer and closer I felt his signature approach. Ten miles. Five miles. Two miles. One mile. 4000 feet. 2000 feet. 1000 feet.

"Where the hell is h-" I grabbed Haku and flickered away just as the tree we were perched in exploded in a cascade of blistering heat.

We landed in the middle of the dirt road. I pushed Haku behind me and took in my surroundings. We were surrounded by five signatures.

"Shit. Where- What the hell?!" The five separate signatures were now on top of each other. If I could describe it, they seemed to merge without becoming one. Each signature was still a unique identifier. But they were all so close they'd have to be hugging it out!

Kakuzu appeared.

"How the hell did you sense us? I had a dozen different seals surrounding us that should have rendered us invisible. Even the Byakugan can't pierce that veil." I asked in suspicion.

"Ah. The dangerous Yamanaka boy. I am a chakra sensor, but my methods are unorthodox." Kakuzu drawled.

"I don't suppose you'd like to share with the class?" I asked hopefully.

"Did you see the update I gave you to your bounty?" He asked in his gravelly monotone, changing the subject completely in an attempt to divert my curiosity.

It worked.

"You? You're the one who had my bingo book entry updated? To S-Rank? I love you! You made my dream come true! Thank you, Mr. Kakuzu." I gushed in my excitement.

He tilted his head in confusion. "You are welcome? Most people aren't too excited to receive such a large bounty. They know the collectors will hound them. I was going after a missing Kiri Nin, but his bounty is pocket change compared to yours."

I blinked. I didn't even notice I had a bounty. I tunnel visioned on the rank, if I was being honest. "How much am I worth?"

"200 Million." Was his reply.

My jaw fell open. 200 million?! That… That's how much Konoha was offering for a dead Danzo!

"Why is it so high? Are all S-Ranks that high?" Haku asked from behind me. I could feel his chakra simmering below the surface, ready to lash out at a moment's notice.

Kakuzu shook his head. "No. It seems Kumo doesn't like someone not under their command with their village's bloodline."

I snorted. "That's rich, coming from a village that attempts to steal other village's bloodlines."

Kakuzu shrugged. "I do not care for the petty differences and squabbles amongst the villages. I care only for money. Today, I'll be getting a nice pay day." His chakra spiked.

I held up my hands. "Well, as much as I want to test myself against an S-Rank shinobi of your caliber one on one, I'm afraid I must decline. You see, I'm only here to observe."

"I do not care if you are here to draw my self-portrait. I will kill you, add your heart to my collection, and collect the hefty reward on your head." He said with narrowed eyes.

"As I said, I'm not here to fight. I'm not your opponent today." I said rolling my eyes at his audacity.

"Then who is?" He growled in annoyance.

"I am" Sasuke whispered in the man's ear, his lightning coated hand bursting from his chest.

I grinned happily. "My minions are your opponents today! They spent four years training under Orochimaru. This is their evaluation. Enjoy!" And with that, I grabbed Haku and retreated a safe distance away.

"H-how? I didn't even sense you?" Kakuzu groaned out, slumping forward.

"We trained for four years with a snake. They are creatures of opportunity. They hide for as long as they need, unnoticed." Sasuke drawled as he withdrew his hand. Kakuzu fell to the ground. I felt his chakra spike, happy with the ambush by Sasuke. One heart down, four to go.

"W-what do you mean, we?" I heard Kakuzu whisper in a fake death throe.

"ME! Shhhaannooorrrrooo!" Sakura's war cry having not changed since our younger days. She came plummeting from the sky, her fist crashing heavily into the back of Kazuzu. He screamed in rage and pain. Flying to his feet and retreating away.

"How did you know?" He snarled. "How did you know I couldn't be killed by one strike alone?"

"Like we'd tell you, idiot." Sasuke sneered.

Kakuzu's face morphed into a look of pure rage. He grabbed his robe and discarded it in a single sweeping motion. At once, three creatures burst from his back, a fourth falling limply to the ground. The white porcelain mask shattered into a dozen pieces.

"I'm going to replace the heart you destroyed with yours, Uchiha. It will make a suitable substitute until I can find a stronger lightning heart. Like your team captains, for instance." Kakuzu yelled in rage.

'Ah. So that's how he sensed us. It isn't every day you meet someone who can instantly tell the strongest elemental affinity you possess. It must be an ability granted to him by his Earth Grudge Fear.' I thought to myself with a wry smile. The sneaky old miser.

Sasuke scoffed. "Please. You won't even live long enough to even attempt to collect his bounty."

"Enough!" Kakuzu weaved a string of hand seals at blinding speed. Sasuke's Sharingan spun, copying the man's moves.

"Fire Release: Searing Migraine!" Two voices called out simultaneously.

Sasuke released his own small ball of flame, a second launched from one of the creatures to Kakuzu's side. The balls of flame rushed forward and collided. The inferno created by the two powerful flame techniques was stifling.

"You damn Uchiha and your monkey-see, monkey-do tactics! You're nothing without those eyes. Let's see you copy this!"