Dying cells?

In the middle of the night Ryuu went to visit Orochimaru, he left a wood clone in his bed and it would tell him when they were waking up.

He teleported back to Konoha In Orochimaru's lab.

"Orochimaru, I was hoping you could help me do some research on this."

Orochimaru didn't respond.

'Usually, when he would experiment, he would respond after learning it's me, but this time he did not.

Is something wrong?'

Ryuu observed Orochimaru, he wasn't moving but looked like he was doing something; he wasn't breathing and looked extremely focused.

"A puppet." Ryuu opened his Mangekyou Sharingan.

But Ryuu was more impressed than scared, so he took his sword out and cut its finger off, and what happened shocked him more.

"It's bleeding?!"

"Isn't it brilliant? My new experiment, a perfect puppet, and it's all thanks to you."

Orochimaru said as he walked behind Ryuu, he had a proud grin on his face.

"That body you brought to me a few years ago, I've been experimenting with it and I found a special chakra inside it. Come and look."

Ryuu followed Orochimaru to the basement of the lab.

He gave Ryuu a scroll.

"This is the special chakra, see it for yourself."

Ryuu nodded.

He opened the scroll and used his Mangekyou Sharingan to observe it.

It had nothing special except for a sudden color change, it would shift to green and go back.

"Coat your body in this chakra and envision a chakra you're familiar with."

Ryuu envisioned Kakashi's chakra.

Ryuu's body started glowing and shaping itself into Kakashi's body. He imagined Kakashi's body and was surprised to see himself turning into him.

"Now try using ninjutsu." Ryuu formed a Chidori on his right hand.

And it changed shapes to that like Kakashi's uncontrollable Chidori.

"I can already feel the downside, this isn't lasting as long as yours, why is that?"

Ryuu asked, his body started reversing to his default look.

"The White corpse that you gave me contained a lot of cells from the 1st Hokage, I felt that their strong vitality kept this chakra from being consumed.

I've made the puppet outside relying on both the cells and this chakra.

Ryuu, this corpse has even more special things." Orochimaru said.

"What kinds of things?" Ryuu curiously asked.

That corpse has no brain and does not contain a soul and a consciousness too."

Ryuu's eyes widened.

"But it can also attack, right?" He nodded.

"If you think about it, your shadow clones can do the same too, they can use ninjutsu, genjutsu, and flee."

Ryuu nodded.

"So that means… they're all controlled by one body?" He nodded.

"However, I do not have evidence, this is all speculation."

Orochimaru said.

"Orochimaru, is it possible that you could replicate this for me?" He nodded.

Ryuu helped Orochimaru extract the White Zetsu's special chakra and after 2 hours it was done, he put it in a small tube and Ryuu sealed it away.

"That's good enough for a few hours, might I ask what you need this for?"

Orochimaru asked.

Ryuu didn't respond.

He had blood falling from his nose.

"Ryuu?" He shook him and Ryuu snapped back.

"That was strange." Ryuu rubbed his head.

"You're developing some sort of sickness, aren't you?"

Ryuu shook his head.

"No, I'm fine, I'm just tired, that's all."

Orochimaru shook his head.

He walked away to grab a syringe.

"Give me your hand."

Ryuu did as followed.

"You don't have to worry, I'm feeling fine." Orochimaru took a sample of Ryuu's blood and inspected it.

After nearly an hour, he was done and came back to Ryuu with two blood samples.

"My guess about your condition is that you've been suffering from this for a while, isn't that right?" Ryuu tilted his head.

"What condition?"

"That's also what I'm trying to figure out, I've seen nothing like this."

He handed the blood samples to Ryuu.

"Your blood is changing, I don't know how or why, but it's getting weaker and these are not symptoms of any disease that I know of, all I know is that you can't go back into the battlefield like this.

You'll get killed or worse, your mission will fail and your comrades will die."

Ryuu's eyes widened.

'The timing for such a problem couldn't be worse, I know what happens in this mission and I don't like it.'

Ryuu clenched his fist.

"You're still planning on going on your mission, even after what I told you?"

Ryuu nodded.

"I have to, my comrades and my village need me, if I don't go, they'll die."

Orochimaru frowned.

"There's a chance they'll die even if you go." Ryuu nodded.

"You're not only going because you want to save your friends, you're also going because you know the pain you'll go through if you don't try.

You're afraid."

"I'll save my friends, even if it kills me."

Orochimaru frowned.

"The cells that were protecting you from injury and getting burned by your flames are killing each other from within yourself, and you still want to continue fighting?"

Ryuu nodded.

"I'll do anything to save my friends."

Ryuu stated.

Orochimaru nodded.

"Very well then, but remember, whatever happens next, you'll carry on the guilt for the rest of your life." Ryuu nodded.

Ryuu and Orochimaru spent the next few hours trying to figure out a way to slow down Ryuu's illness.

"Look at what's happening to the cells after they kill each other."

Ryuu went to check what was happening.

"Normally, blood cells make and destroy themselves at a normal rate, but with your blood cells they aren't making more, they aren't even repairing like they used to."

"Instead, only some are surviving," Ryuu whispered.

Ryuu snapped his fingers as he noticed what was happening.

"Orochimaru, I know what's happening here." Ryuu used Phoenix Flame on his arm.

"The same thing that happens to a Phoenix." He flexed his hand, and it made a cocoon-like cast, then shattered.

"I'm dying.

But only for a temporary moment, I'm not sure when I'll be back, but I believe that once I'm back, I'll be stronger than ever, just like a Phoenix.

I just hope I don't die at the wrong time."

Orochimaru nodded.

"Orochimaru, we shall continue this later, I'm needed right now, if I delay this longer I'll waste too much time, this mission is important and I'll save my friends and village with the remaining power I have."

Ryuu teleported back to his room.

Minato had woken up.

He went to Ryuu's room only to find him stretching.

"I see you're already awake."

Ryuu nodded.

"I couldn't sleep, I need to fight for everyone." Minato nodded.

"Let's hope Kakashi and Obito get along, their teamwork is key to the success of this mission."

"They will," Ryuu said.

"I'm guessing you spoke to them."

Ryuu nodded.

"I spoke to Obito, I'm sure he'll cooperate now." Minato nodded.

"I hope so, anyway, I think it's time we wake them up, right?"

Ryuu nodded.

After the team woke up, they traveled to the borders.

'I have to use the remaining power, I have to save all of them.

I don't care how long I'm out and I don't care what happens to me, but they're my friends and I'll save them no matter what.'

Ryuu clenched his fist, and his fist started heating up.

Kakashi noticed Ryuu's odd behavior.

"Hey, you okay?" Ryuu snapped out of it and smiled.

"I'm alright, don't worry about me."

Kakashi looked at him for a while and then sped up.

They stopped running in the middle of the forest.

"This is where we go our separate ways, do your best, all of you.

Listen, the enemy that we encountered yesterday was merely a lone scout, but now we should expect to fight in teams."

Minato said.

"Let's get going then, Captain," Obito said.

Everyone looked at him, shocked he called Kakashi Captain.

But his face said it all, even though he didn't want to, he put his feelings towards Kakashi away and finally acknowledged him.

Minato and Ryuu smiled seeing that.

"Alright, let's go," Minato said.

"Scatter."

They all separated.

While Ryuu traveled with Minato, Team 7 was on their way to Kannabi bridge.

They were being watched by shinobi from Iwagakure.

"Hey, Ahiru went on a scouting run, he hasn't come back yet. You don't think those three little brats took him down, do you?"

One of them said as he observed them.

"Let's go ask, come on." The other said.

"Camouflage jutsu."

He disappeared into thin air.

Kakashi noticed something different and halted them.

They looked around and saw nothing.

Obito looked above and saw piles of trees falling on them.

"Fire style: Fireball jutsu!"

Obito shot out a Fireball, which burned the tree.

They fell above the water.

"Whoosh!" An enemy appeared above and tried attacking them, but Kakashi jumped and fought him in the air, attacking him with his Kunai.

They clashed mid-air with their Kunai, Kakashi was winning the fight and had the other shinobi defending, his natural speed was overwhelming his defense.

"Purple lightning!" Kakashi used the water that was surrounding them to conduct his puppetry lightning toward the enemy clones.

"No!" Rin screamed, which alerted both Kakashi and Obito, who halted their fighting.

"Sharingan!" Obito's two tomoe appeared.

"Those eyes! Don't look into his eyes!"

The other one said.

*Poof!* they disappeared into a cloud of smoke.

Obito was quick to run after them.

"Obito, wait!"