Naruto:Blast to the Past

Chapter 48: Konoha's Ultimate Duo

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto
"Hmm…."- Bijuu

Chapter 48:
Konoha's Ultimate Duo

It wasn't everyday that one got to say that he was walking towards a battle to the death. Then again, Naruto knew that, in his life, nothing was close to being normal. The blond didn't know if he had been cursed at birth or what. But such was his life. An exciting life.

Next to him, Sasuke wasn't sharing his thoughts as he stared at the barren valley below them. They were both still wearing their black cloaks in order to shield themselves from the rain. But the never ending wet weather wasn't their concern. No. The two genin had more pressing matters to attend to than to worry about the rain.

And those matters were already standing on the other side of the valley with one man standing in front of them. If anything, Naruto was surprised that the man had even agreed to meet them. The blond had thought that they would have needed to do something flashy in order to get the man's attention. Then again, if Sasuke's theory was right, then the blond already knew why this was.

Hanzo didn't say anything as he watched the two boys walking closer towards him and his men. He had brought an entire battalion with him. They were his personal men whom he brought along in situations like this one. But Hanzo wasn't buying any of this. There was no way that the two brats in front of him were responsible for the small Konoha unit that had trespassed into his country. If anything, Hanzo had been expecting the Sandaime Hokage's student to show up after he had his men present themselves to them. After about an entire of week of keeping taps on them, of course. That was the sort of man Hanzo was. Careful. Crafty. And a planner. He hadn't gotten to where he was today by being reckless. At the very least, the masked man's information had been truthful. But Hanzo wasn't about to believe that he could trust him either. If anything, he was still trying to understand what the masked man would accomplish out of this. But for now, he would have to take care of this issue in front of him.

"You seem surprised," Naruto said, speaking first as he and Sasuke stopped in front of Hanzo several feet away.

Hanzo grunted. "That's because I don't appreciate being taken for a fool."

Naruto and Sasuke glanced at one another before turning their attention back to Hanzo. "What makes you think that?" Naruto asked with a small smile.

Hanzo grunted again as he pointed at them. "I don't want to escalate things any further. But if your superior doesn't show himself, then Konoha will find itself with two dead genin here."

It was a bluff, of course. Hanzo wasn't stupid enough to cause a ruckus with Konoha. At least, not yet. He had no idea how the other nations would react if a war did break out between his village and Konoha. Iwa might join them, but then Suna would most surely join Konoha's side. And from what he had last heard, both Kumo and Kiri were in no mood to take part in another war. Their losses had been that great from the last war. But somewhere in the back of his mind, Hanzo found it amusing that not long ago he would be greeting Konoha with open arms instead of thinking of the many ways that he could send them running back and out of his land. Then again, that had been when he was still a young naive man with a different outlook in life. Having lived through the last past two wars and other smaller conflicts with the surrounding smaller nations had changed that. But now wasn't the time to dwell on the past.

"Ah, you must be talking about Ero-sennin then," Naruto said as he scratched his cheek. "While it's true that he holds a higher rank than us for now, he's not exactly our superior either. We're here now because of us two. That's why we're here to talk to you."

Hanzo raised an eyebrow. "Are you telling me that you came to this country in order to meet me?"

"Not entirely," Naruto replied. "But it was a major reason too. Although we never would have thought that you would catch word of us before we did anything. It's a bit embarrassing really."