Sorry I'm a lil' late with this. Shoulda posted this on Saturday 
Better late than never, right? Anyways, here it is. It's quite interesting. Special thanks to Chakra Wizard for edits 
A small bird with a green plume and curved beak had perched itself upon Hajime the gardener’s broad shoulder. It chirped quietly and pecked at the man’s mangy head of hair from time to time, but he did not notice this. Beneath his thick, constricted eyebrows, his eyes were fixed unblinkingly on the looming battle between Itachi and Hoji while his chin rested atop the wooden stick which allowed him to maneuver his rake, which he was supposed to be using to gather up the dead grasses at his feet.
This same intense level of concentration had also fallen upon every single spectator present. The blazing sun overhead had no meaning, and they were oblivious to any sort of fatigue from having stood for so long to watch the ninja display, even more unmindful of any other sort of activity that required their attention. And so the usual humdrum that began like a merry song with the sunrise and ended with twilight in Aoran was completely paused, perhaps for the first time in decades, all of its citizen now watching intensively as Uchiha Itachi stood ready to do battle with Senju Hoji.
Itachi had decided to be wary of his opponent and wait for him to strike first, the reason being that Hoji was somehow different from his usual self. Since the beginning of the mission, Hoji has had a rather scared disposition, and his misgivings about their chances against Akakuma only increased as the days went by, so there was certainly a little gray cloud misting over the perpetual light of happiness that typically emitted from the medical-nin like the mid-day sun. It had certainly not deprived him completely of his characteristic glee—Itachi had come to realize that that was absolutely impossible—but there was a grimness about him these days that simply wasn’t there before. However, as the medical-nin stood there with both corners of his lips raised—showcasing his gleaming white teeth—and his eyes sparkling beneath the shadow cast by the locks of hair hanging above his brow, Itachi could definitely register a change in this recent behavior. His smile was in full brightness and seemed to reflect not only happiness, but intense desire. His ebony eyes gleamed with joy, but they also burned with anticipation. Hoji’s entire visage seemed eager, keen, and hungry for battle, like a starving lion salivating over its wounded prey. Itachi almost didn’t recognize him.
“It’s a fine day isn’t it?” said Hoji at length, with a sickeningly sweet voice.
“And a fine moment for you to make your first move.” countered Itachi.
“Hmmm…” Hoji thought for a moment, “I guess you’re right.”
And suddenly, the gentle smiling figure clapped his hands together, forming several hand seals as a surge of chakra, so small that only a dōjutsu like Itachi’s or Sato’s could register it, poured out of Hoji’s body and filled the air like a mist.
“The preparations are complete.” said Hoji, his chakra having settled into a large hemisphere with him at its center, before charging at Itachi with a kunai in hand. Itachi quickly unsheathed his ANBU sword and a thunder of metal filled the air as their weapons clashed. Itachi attempted to lock eyes with his opponent at that same moment and thus incapacitate him with a genjutsu, but the plan failed woefully as Itachi found that—to his great shock—Hoji had closed his eyes.
Their blades continued to clash and clang with the speed of lightning, sparks flying into the air, yet neither shinobi was able to even graze their opponent, and Hoji’s eyes remained firmly shut all the while. Itachi attempted a side-sweeping slash at him, but Hoji managed to dodge it perfectly by leaping into the air before retaliating with a stab at the his chest, forcing the young prodigy back a ways in order to avoid injury.
“How are you doing this?” inquired Itachi with a frown, both fighters now standing a good distance away from each other. “I'm guessing it has something to do with those hand seals you formed earlier.”
“Give the man a prize.” said Hoji with a chuckle. “It’s a barrier technique that allows me to sense any movements made within its boundaries. A medical-nin like me isn’t too taijutsu-savvy, so I supplement my fighting skills with this. Also, a good counter to your genjutsu, no?” Hoji paused for a moment to place his right hand on his waist in a relaxed pose. “Admit it, you didn’t think I’d be this good, did you?”
Itachi responded with the Great Fireball jutsu, a technique which Hoji dodged with ease. As he edged out of the path of the flames, he found himself beset by several crows which cawed loudly all around him. Cloaked in the dark shadow of the morbid birds, Itachi snuck up behind Hoji with his sword at the ready. However, when the downwards slash was implemented, it was stayed by Hoji’s kunai, their collision conjuring up a bloom of orange sparks.
“Smart, Itachi. Trying to distort my perception of your movements with these birds. However, I’m far too skilled with this technique for a trick like that to actually work.” boasted Hoji with a confident smile.
“I expected that.”
Suddenly, some of the crows flying around them merged together to form an exact clone of Itachi, which immediately swung its blade at Hoji. Even as he struggled against the real Itachi’s sword, though, the medical-nin was able to form a hand sign and, in a puff of smoke, summon a clone of his own to the battlefield, which quickly ran down Itachi's with a kunai. Itachi's doppelganger dispersed in a flurry of crows as both Hoji and his clone leapt away to safety.
“Ho ho ho, seems you’re more cunning than I thought!” praised Hoji as his Shadow clone dispersed into thin air. Itachi's crows also vanished in several small bursts of smoke and the young Uchiha reemerged from the haze moments later.
“I guess I could say the same for you.” he countered.
“I assume it’s my turn to go on the offensive?” inquired Hoji.
The Senju immediately clasped his hands together, causing the ground beneath their feet to tremble and shake, Itachi’s eyes narrowing as he fought to maintain balance. An instant later, from the area of grass directly below him, a massive, earthen hand surfaced and closed its gigantic fingers around Itachi, who just barely leapt away before being caught in its death grip. As he landed a small distance away from the stony appendage, Hoji’s kunai sang through the air towards his chest. Itachi crouched to evade, weaving the Tiger hand seal as he did and shooting torrents of scorching flames at his opponent. Hoji made no move to dodge them, though, as the massive hand he had conjured earlier sprouted from the spot where it budded as a full-length arm, landing in front of the medical-nin and shielding him from Itachi’s technique. Once the flames had subsided, the giant arm once again lashed out at Itachi in an attempt to grab him, but the boy was much too quick on his feet, placing a good distance between himself and the earthen hand.
“Almost got you there.” said Hoji teasingly, as the stony construct began to sink back into the ground until it was no longer visible.
“What did you think of my Hand of the Titan technique?”
Itachi stood still, staring at Hoji in utter surprise. It was hard for him to believe that the medical-nin had been this strong all along, given their history together. The Uchiha quickly began to consider his options at this point. Hoji definitely had stamina on him, while his fire and water techniques would do woefully against Hoji’s earth. And on top of that, the medical-nin’s barrier had left all of his genjutsu useless. Things weren’t looking too good for him, Itachi thought. At this point, he had two priorities above all else—first, destroy the earthen arm, then second, somehow deal with Hoji and his barrier. A makeshift plan had already taken form in the young prodigy's mind on how to accomplish both, and he was prepared to enact it.
To Be Continued.
What did y'all think?
Better late than never, right? Anyways, here it is. It's quite interesting. Special thanks to Chakra Wizard for edits A small bird with a green plume and curved beak had perched itself upon Hajime the gardener’s broad shoulder. It chirped quietly and pecked at the man’s mangy head of hair from time to time, but he did not notice this. Beneath his thick, constricted eyebrows, his eyes were fixed unblinkingly on the looming battle between Itachi and Hoji while his chin rested atop the wooden stick which allowed him to maneuver his rake, which he was supposed to be using to gather up the dead grasses at his feet.
This same intense level of concentration had also fallen upon every single spectator present. The blazing sun overhead had no meaning, and they were oblivious to any sort of fatigue from having stood for so long to watch the ninja display, even more unmindful of any other sort of activity that required their attention. And so the usual humdrum that began like a merry song with the sunrise and ended with twilight in Aoran was completely paused, perhaps for the first time in decades, all of its citizen now watching intensively as Uchiha Itachi stood ready to do battle with Senju Hoji.
Itachi had decided to be wary of his opponent and wait for him to strike first, the reason being that Hoji was somehow different from his usual self. Since the beginning of the mission, Hoji has had a rather scared disposition, and his misgivings about their chances against Akakuma only increased as the days went by, so there was certainly a little gray cloud misting over the perpetual light of happiness that typically emitted from the medical-nin like the mid-day sun. It had certainly not deprived him completely of his characteristic glee—Itachi had come to realize that that was absolutely impossible—but there was a grimness about him these days that simply wasn’t there before. However, as the medical-nin stood there with both corners of his lips raised—showcasing his gleaming white teeth—and his eyes sparkling beneath the shadow cast by the locks of hair hanging above his brow, Itachi could definitely register a change in this recent behavior. His smile was in full brightness and seemed to reflect not only happiness, but intense desire. His ebony eyes gleamed with joy, but they also burned with anticipation. Hoji’s entire visage seemed eager, keen, and hungry for battle, like a starving lion salivating over its wounded prey. Itachi almost didn’t recognize him.
“It’s a fine day isn’t it?” said Hoji at length, with a sickeningly sweet voice.
“And a fine moment for you to make your first move.” countered Itachi.
“Hmmm…” Hoji thought for a moment, “I guess you’re right.”
And suddenly, the gentle smiling figure clapped his hands together, forming several hand seals as a surge of chakra, so small that only a dōjutsu like Itachi’s or Sato’s could register it, poured out of Hoji’s body and filled the air like a mist.
“The preparations are complete.” said Hoji, his chakra having settled into a large hemisphere with him at its center, before charging at Itachi with a kunai in hand. Itachi quickly unsheathed his ANBU sword and a thunder of metal filled the air as their weapons clashed. Itachi attempted to lock eyes with his opponent at that same moment and thus incapacitate him with a genjutsu, but the plan failed woefully as Itachi found that—to his great shock—Hoji had closed his eyes.
Their blades continued to clash and clang with the speed of lightning, sparks flying into the air, yet neither shinobi was able to even graze their opponent, and Hoji’s eyes remained firmly shut all the while. Itachi attempted a side-sweeping slash at him, but Hoji managed to dodge it perfectly by leaping into the air before retaliating with a stab at the his chest, forcing the young prodigy back a ways in order to avoid injury.
“How are you doing this?” inquired Itachi with a frown, both fighters now standing a good distance away from each other. “I'm guessing it has something to do with those hand seals you formed earlier.”
“Give the man a prize.” said Hoji with a chuckle. “It’s a barrier technique that allows me to sense any movements made within its boundaries. A medical-nin like me isn’t too taijutsu-savvy, so I supplement my fighting skills with this. Also, a good counter to your genjutsu, no?” Hoji paused for a moment to place his right hand on his waist in a relaxed pose. “Admit it, you didn’t think I’d be this good, did you?”
Itachi responded with the Great Fireball jutsu, a technique which Hoji dodged with ease. As he edged out of the path of the flames, he found himself beset by several crows which cawed loudly all around him. Cloaked in the dark shadow of the morbid birds, Itachi snuck up behind Hoji with his sword at the ready. However, when the downwards slash was implemented, it was stayed by Hoji’s kunai, their collision conjuring up a bloom of orange sparks.
“Smart, Itachi. Trying to distort my perception of your movements with these birds. However, I’m far too skilled with this technique for a trick like that to actually work.” boasted Hoji with a confident smile.
“I expected that.”
Suddenly, some of the crows flying around them merged together to form an exact clone of Itachi, which immediately swung its blade at Hoji. Even as he struggled against the real Itachi’s sword, though, the medical-nin was able to form a hand sign and, in a puff of smoke, summon a clone of his own to the battlefield, which quickly ran down Itachi's with a kunai. Itachi's doppelganger dispersed in a flurry of crows as both Hoji and his clone leapt away to safety.
“Ho ho ho, seems you’re more cunning than I thought!” praised Hoji as his Shadow clone dispersed into thin air. Itachi's crows also vanished in several small bursts of smoke and the young Uchiha reemerged from the haze moments later.
“I guess I could say the same for you.” he countered.
“I assume it’s my turn to go on the offensive?” inquired Hoji.
The Senju immediately clasped his hands together, causing the ground beneath their feet to tremble and shake, Itachi’s eyes narrowing as he fought to maintain balance. An instant later, from the area of grass directly below him, a massive, earthen hand surfaced and closed its gigantic fingers around Itachi, who just barely leapt away before being caught in its death grip. As he landed a small distance away from the stony appendage, Hoji’s kunai sang through the air towards his chest. Itachi crouched to evade, weaving the Tiger hand seal as he did and shooting torrents of scorching flames at his opponent. Hoji made no move to dodge them, though, as the massive hand he had conjured earlier sprouted from the spot where it budded as a full-length arm, landing in front of the medical-nin and shielding him from Itachi’s technique. Once the flames had subsided, the giant arm once again lashed out at Itachi in an attempt to grab him, but the boy was much too quick on his feet, placing a good distance between himself and the earthen hand.
“Almost got you there.” said Hoji teasingly, as the stony construct began to sink back into the ground until it was no longer visible.
“What did you think of my Hand of the Titan technique?”
Itachi stood still, staring at Hoji in utter surprise. It was hard for him to believe that the medical-nin had been this strong all along, given their history together. The Uchiha quickly began to consider his options at this point. Hoji definitely had stamina on him, while his fire and water techniques would do woefully against Hoji’s earth. And on top of that, the medical-nin’s barrier had left all of his genjutsu useless. Things weren’t looking too good for him, Itachi thought. At this point, he had two priorities above all else—first, destroy the earthen arm, then second, somehow deal with Hoji and his barrier. A makeshift plan had already taken form in the young prodigy's mind on how to accomplish both, and he was prepared to enact it.
To Be Continued.
What did y'all think?
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