Naruto: The Last Fuinjutsu Master

46: The Will of Fire Burns

Chapter 46: The Will of Fire Burns.
Arc: Konoha Crush

Disclaimer:
I do NOT own Naruto. Naruto is the work of Masashi Kishimoto, please support the original work.

Watching Jiraiya's nose turn bigger and gain warts, his eyes becoming toad-like, white teeth turning sharp like a handsaw, the red markings on his face slowly spreading out, a goatee growing on his chin as he hunched, assuming a toad-like posture, Itachi narrowed his eyes, the three tomoe in each of his red pupils spinning wildly as they reflected the reddening sun on the horizon.

'Such potent chakra, it reminds me of Pain,' Itachi thought, an orange-haired figure of a man bearing purple eyes with rippling patterns flashing in his mind in a moment of distraction. 'Not good, I can't let Kisame die here.'

"Kisame, it's Sage Mode," Itachi said, slowly closing his eyes as the red-dyed world around him, Danzo, and the ROOT ninjas shatter into little pieces like shards of glass bouncing off a window struck by a baseball bat.

"The mission is a failure—" FLAP-FLAP-FLAP—CAW! CAW! CAW! "We'll retreat."

"CAPTURE HIM!"

Even as the S-rank Uchiha criminal turned into a murder of crows and flew to separate directions, Danzo gritted his teeth, his face green with shame as if he had planted his head on the ground, thinking that he would gain eternal life when all he got was worms and ant bites.

"Tsk-tsk, silly old man. Wait for me, Itachi-san—" BANG!

Kisame grinned, waving the Samehada to deflect Tsunade before running to follow Itachi's crows. "Water Style: Wall of Sharks Jutsu—" SHAAA... SHRKK! SHRKK!

Seeing as two more ROOT ninjas die in the hands of Itachi and Kisame, Danzo's rage bubbled like magma anxious to turn into lava, bringing forth disaster unto the land above the depths of earth.

"Damned rogues," Danzo cursed, spitting out all his anger in one go as he cleared his mind. One of the perks of being the ROOT commander is that he can instantly reign over his emotions and change them as he needs to.

"Naruto Uzumaki," just as Danzo was counting the dead bodies of ROOT ninjas on the floor, an arrogant voice full of superiority and grace likened to that of a king echoed in their ears, "We failed to seize the Nine Tails today, but Akatsuki will capture you the next time our paths cross," the voice ended abruptly as if it was just a hallucination.

Tsunade and Jiraiya flickered next to each other as they watch Kisame flee with a murder of crows above his head, running toward the setting sun as if wanting to catch it before it sank below the ground. "Akatsuki, huh?" Jiraiya muttered.

"What is it?" Tsunade asked, looking at her teammate with a hint of doubt.

"Nothing, I just thought it was ironic," Jiraiya laughed. "Akatsuki, meaning dawn, yet they are fleeing as dusk settles in. Will they return tomorrow at dawn?"

"Stupid," Tsunade bonked his teammate's head with a silly grin on her face.

Seeing the two make light of the situation, Danzo narrowed his eyes as he finished counting his losses. '100 plus ROOT ninjas dead or severely traumatized in one battle,' Danzo pondered as he recalled the nasty Genjutsu he didn't even know he was caught in.

'That bastard, he was targeting my ROOT ninjas!'

After coming to a realization, Danzo was left confused. 'But why didn't he target me instead?' He thought as he looked over to Hiruzen and his students.