(Discontinued until further notice) Naruto: The Truth Beneath the Surface

Chapter 11: Calm in the Face of Danger

"Y-You're..." Zabuza seemed to stutter over his words as he looked at Yuki with wide eyes, "Y-you can't exist! Y-you..."

"My my," Yuki stepped forward and licked his lips, eyes dancing with hunger. "Your fear... smells delicious."

Zabuza took a deep breath and forced himself to calm down, "I'm not afraid of you!"

Yuki said nothing for a moment, preferring to look at the missing nin in amusement, "Tsk. Tsk. Denial is a fickle thing, Zabu-chan."

"I'm not in denial!" Zabuza bristled for a moment before turning towards Kakashi, "I came here to fight the Copycat Ninja."

Kakashi nodded slightly, moving his headband up to reveal a Sharigan, "I'll be your opponent."

"The Sharigan already? I'm honored," Zabuza smirked under his mask.

Yuki pouted, fingerings the ends of his hair where the sword cut, "Mou, stop stealing my prey, Kaka-chan!"

Everyone's reactions were different.

Sasuke and Sakura's faces were in shock. The man just started acting childish, as if this was all a game to him.

Tazuna was trying to hold in his snickers despite the situation he was in. What a girly nickname...

Kakashi's face was bright red, thankfully hidden under his mask. Why did Yuki have to embarrass him every chance he got, especially in front of enemy ninja?

Zabuza was shaking in fear when he heard those words. Prey... It was clear from the start no matter how Zabuza acted.

Cerulean eyes gleamed in the dim light.

Yuki was the predator and Zabuza was the prey.

There was a moment of silence, the tension thick, before the raven-blonde gave a put-upon sigh, "Whatever. Just make it quick."

Kakashi rolled his eyes. Why did his partner have to be so dramatic? Although, Kakashi did have to admire the way Yuki had a missing nin shaking in his sandals with just a few choice words. He should join T&I... Kakashi thought before shivering. He didn't want to know what would happen if Anko and Yuki met one day.

"How long do I have?" The silver haired jounin asked, glancing at him.

"Mm," Yuki hummed to himself for a moment, tapping his chin in thought. "I say about... thirty minutes max."

"Why thirty?"

Yuki gave him a secret smile, "Who knows?" He shrugged, "You could get... trapped."

Kakashi blinked before nodding and turning back to Zabuza, "Okay."

"Good," Yuki nodded, sitting on the ground crisscrossed. He patted the spot next to him and glanced at Tazuna, "Sit down. Relax." He pulled out a bottle of sake and a saucer, pouring some in. He took a small sip, completely ignoring the mist entering the area.

"How can you be so calm?" Tazuna asked, looking at the fight going on. Kakashi and Zabuza were mere blurs to his students and Tazuna couldn't even see them. All that could be heard was the clanging of metal against metal, "Aren't you worried... if he fails, we're all dead?"

Yuki gave him a look, as if what he said amused him greatly, and simply took another drink, "I try not to think about those things." He refilled the cup, "Besides, I have faith in Kakashi."

As those words were said, Kakashi was caught in a water prison. Yuki's jaw dropped and he nearly spilled his sake. "WHAT THE HELL, KAKASHI?!" Yuki shouted, pointing at the jounin, "You're making me look bad! I just told this guy not to worry because you were fighting and you go and get yourself caught!"

Kakashi sweat dropped and hung his head muttering, "Sorry."

Zabuza just laughed at that. The Demon of the Mist formed a few one handed seals, something that shocked the genin (minus Yuki who looked to be almost sleeping), and a water clone formed. It began walking towards the children, sword raised.

When it came upon land, the genins took action. Sasuke tried one of his famous fireballs, only for the clone to dodge it effortlessly. Sakura attempted to through her kunai, all which were deflected by the large sword.

Yuki's hand was propping up his cheek, soft snores come from his mouth. He seemed to have no care in the world if falling asleep in a battle field meant anything.

Seeing that, Zabuza growled, and sliced through Sasuke's stomach. Due to the Uchiha's reaction time, he managed to avoid serious injuries. Zabuza began running towards the raven-blonde at high speeds. He swung his sword, hoping to slice off the sleeping man's head before he woke. When his weapon froze, he tried moving it only for it to stay in place. He felt an unreal amount of killing intent and looked down. The sight nearly made him scream like a little girl.

Raven-blonde hair shadowed Yuki's face, though his eyes were still visible. Once lazy cerulean turned into an icy blue, murderous intent shining. They were eyes of someone who had killed countless hundreds and could swat him like a fly. The unreal killer intent came from those two orbs and Zabuza knew he would die.

Zabuza's body began to tremble with fear. Him, the Demon of the Mist, shaking in terror because of a mere genin. He was sweating, eyes shaking, and he was coming very close to throwing up. His hands shook even more when he realized why he couldn't move his sword.

Yuki's left hand was holding the blade, just enough where it didn't cut his skin. His posture was still slumped, face propped up on his other hand, as he drawled lazily, "You have injured Sasuke. Zabuza Mimochi, Demon of the Mist, are you prepared to fight a real demon?"

Cerulean turned into blood red.