kinghadouken
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Chapter 15: Demonic Infection Imminent
It was a lovely morning, where there were wafts of delicious breakfast that travelled inside the Konohagakure. The birds were happily chirping as men who were working on rebuilding infrastructure began to move to their assigned posts, women have started to go outside to go to the market or do chores, and children played in the streets. It was usual morning for the village, except for an ear-splitting yell by Sora Hitomi.
“WHERE IS HE?” Hitomi was hysterical with tears already streaming down her cheeks, her hair was untidy, and her night gown ripped off her as she took a step towards the closed window. “HIBIKI! YOU BASTARD! WHERE’D YOU RUN OFF TO?!”
In an instant, Saito Hibiki was standing with his back facing Hitomi. The naginata and huge scroll were still with him. His clothes were smudged with bits of sand, dirt and debris. Some of the torn parts of his garments seemed to be cuts and wounds that dried up. His arms and legs have various bruises. He wasn’t able to recover his blindfold. Hitomi was shocked at Hibiki’s entrance. The latter turned to face Hitomi, who quickly punched him in the face in instinct.
“YOU *******!” she yelled, still teary-eyed. “WHY WOULD YOU LEAVE ME LIKE THAT?”
Hibiki caught her fist without blinking, making her tense up more, and the naginata fell with a clang. Her eyes slowly started to focus on his overall condition. Before she could comment on them however, Hibiki loosened his grip and began to fall forward. Hitomi stepped forward and caught him just in time, his face cushioned on her breasts. He apparently fainted from his previous fight with the currently-famous shinobi criminal, Momura Rouzuke.
Just as Hitomi was nursing Hibiki’s wounds, there came an urgent rapt on their door. It was Shizune, and she told Hitomi that the Fifth Hokage has received news that Hibiki went to Sunagakure to assist the Fifth Kazekage in his encounter with Momura Rouzuke. She looked over Hitomi’s shoulder and saw Hibiki still in the process of being taken care of, with linen gauze, mortar and pestle, herbs and the like scattered on the floor. Shizune seemed to have understood the situation and promised Hitomi that a medic squad will arrive in their room shortly, and then departed to report to the Hokage’s office.
Hitomi closed the door when she heard Hibiki gaining consciousness. Immediately, she dashed towards him and scooped him up in her arms, her chest nudging his face which was patched with square bandages. Her hands were already covered with blood and sweat, yet she still tended to him without fail or hesitation.
A few hours after Hitomi applied herbal medicine on Hibiki’s bruises and wounds as a first aid precaution, he proceeded to mumble. Because his eyes were still shut and covered with a fresh blindfold cloth, Hitomi thought he was just talking while dreaming.
“His presence,” he grumbled, somehow twitching in pain and fear, and alarmed Hitomi. “I can still sense his beating heart. He’s still alive. No… the war shouldn’t start… Rouzuke… Madara…”
At that moment, another knock came from the door, which Hitomi cautiously answered. Thankfully it was the medic team; the kunoichi spearheading them was Haruno Sakura. The squad entered the room, and were led by Hitomi to Hibiki’s futon. Sakura immediately inspected his body, while the other members were busy preparing for a possible emergency operation. After a few minutes, Sakura told Hitomi that the herbal medicines seemed to have done the trick and that there will be no complications. Nevertheless, the team began to heal the minor cuts and bruises, so as to quicken Hibiki’s recovery. One of the medics came across a pouch peeking out of Hibiki’s garments, and pulled it out for everyone to see.
“That’s the medicine pouch he always brought in our travels,” Hitomi stated, remembering the small brown leather pouch that held small pellets that Gaara and the Sand shinobi ate to restore their energy. “I didn’t notice that earlier.”
“These pills,” Sakura replied, apparently interested with the composition of the mentioned medicine, inspecting its minuscule shape. “What are they exactly? And who made these?”
“These things can restore one’s chakra, heal their body completely and even cure most common ailments,” Hitomi explained slowly, ignoring Sakura’s shocked and delighted expression. “I don’t know who made them, but Hibiki has always carried that ever since we started to travel across countries. I think only Hibiki here can tell you where he got them.”
“Are you a medical kunoichi?” Sakura inquired, now interested in Hitomi as well as her bust. Even the other medical team members looked at Hitomi with interest. “You seem to know so much about herbal medicine and their effectiveness in these kinds of wounds and bruises. You might as well know how to use medicine in combat, yes?”
Hitomi blushed at the compliment and more because the attention was on her already. She was about to reply when Hibiki jerked awake without warning, surprising everyone in the room. Hitomi rushed over to Hibiki, who was groping the ground for something. Sakura realized that he was looking for his pouch, and gave it back to him. Hibiki muttered words of gratitude and proceeded to take four pills from the pouch. He was about to eat it when Hitomi grabbed his wrist.
“Hibiki, no,” she wailed, somehow nervous and scared for some reason, her eyes darting from Sakura to the other medics. “You don’t need the pills for your condition. You just need to rest.”
Hibiki made a serious frown and yanked his hand free and popped the pills into his mouth. The room was silent, except for the crunching noise and a large gulp. Hibiki rose up in the room, black smoky chakra started to emanate around him. The atmosphere suddenly changed, the air became warm and prickly, and it seemed to have affected Hitomi and the medical squad as well.
“What’s this tingling feeling?” one of the squad members said, worried about some unseen danger. “It’s like my chakra is being sucked out of me!”
The other members agreed, but instantly keeled over as if they were knocked out by some invisible force. Sakura’s eyes were already drooping, yet she still stood her ground. She looked at Hibiki with suspicion, and then turned to Hitomi for answers, though there was none. Hibiki’s left arm lifted, and the black chakra infused linen gauze shot towards his naginata. Upon contact with the chakra, the blade of the spear changed into a Baphomet head adorned with three rings each and was returned to his hand, with the linen floating eerily from his arms. He proceeded to lunge the weapon to an unsuspecting Hitomi, who was pushed aside by Sakura.
Sakura managed to avoid the blade by crouching forward and aimed a powerful blow to Hibiki’s stomach. The punch seemed to connect, yet he wasn’t damaged. She looked up to see Hibiki’s stoic face with horror. It appeared that Sakura gave the last punch her all and fell forward as well. Black tomoe-shaped markings crept all over Hibiki’s body from the tiny lines that used to be the cuts he sustained from his battle with Rouzuke. The sight overwhelmed Hitomi, making her go into a frightened fit and faint with the others. Hibiki pocketed the medicine pouch and picked up his scroll, which he tied to his waist. Before her eyes totally closed and began to well out tears, she saw a glimpse of Hibiki’s face covered in the black marks.
“I’m sorry about that, Hitomi,” Hibiki whispered, as he turned away from her. “I swear I will make things right. Thank you for your help and support. I will cherish it.”
Just as Hitomi slammed on the floor with a thud and the landlady and some neighbors busted into the room, apparently concerned with the commotion, Hibiki was nowhere to be seen.
Meanwhile, in an unknown dimension, a sleeping Momura Rouzuke was sitting in a monk’s cross-legged position on top of one of the large pillars scattered and floating in the scenery. He didn’t know what just transpired from his previous encounter with the Kazekage and Saito Hibiki in the outskirts of Sunagakure, yet he knew that someone stopped him from pulverizing those two. A hooded masked man appeared from behind, yet didn’t pose any threat whatsoever for Rouzuke, who woke up from the presence.
“So you’ve already woke up,” the man commented, maintaining a distance from the sitting danger. “Your name is Momura Rouzuke, isn’t it?”
“What do you want from me?” Rouzuke retorted, his eyes still shut, thinking that he’s in a genjutsu. “Where am I? Who the **** are you?”
“I am Uchiha Madara,” the man declared, making Rouzuke twitch to the name. “You’re in my dimension, an alternate dimension. I can coop you inside this world if I will it, or I can set you free for a bargain.”
Rouzuke had already activated his Susano’o and used his Swift Release to get behind Madara, who just stood his ground. Rouzuke grabbed his Dragon Sword and swung at his foe. The weapon made contact to Madara’s clothes, yet passed through without hitting anything. At that precise moment, Madara turned to Rouzuke and performed a roundhouse kick on the Susano’o armor, the force sending the latter flying and crashing to a nearby pillar. Madara disappeared from his spot and reappeared in front of Rouzuke.
“I admire your courage from the unknown,” Madara complimented, still looking at Rouzuke’s face. “Although, I fear that being courageous is just a minuscule factor when fighting someone like me.”
Rouzuke opened his eyes and saw the mask with horror etched on his face. He noticed that the man’s eyes were different. The right eye was a Sharingan, and the left was a Rinnegan. Despite the fearsome opponent however, he lunged forward, knowing that he won’t hit anything.
“You can’t be Uchiha Madara! He died a long time ago!”
He passed through, and then decided to activate his Cursed Seal of Hell. He was instantly flying in the air, confident that Madara won’t be able to follow. He noticed that his opponent just stretched out an arm and yelled: ALMIGHTY PUSH!
Rouzuke was pushed back by an invisible force, and realized that the technique was one of the powers of the Rinnegan. He regained altitude and searched for his foe who was already above him with hands over the head, and hammered him onto one of the pillars with a deafening explosion.
Rouzuke managed to block the assault and the crash with his Susano’o armor. He leapt away from the spot, seeing that Madara was about to follow up with a falling kick. The pillar started to crack and crumble with the inhumane force, even Rouzuke was surprised.
“You’re not even using actual techniques,” he piqued, apparently dumbfounded with his opponent’s strength. “Yet your power is already comparable to a Senju.”
Madara’s eyes glinted with the comment, apparently enraged and spurred by the name. He dashed to Rouzuke, who was fleeing from the former, still dazed and fatigued from the previous battle. He watched as Madara raise his open palm towards him and yelled: UNIVERSAL PULL!
Rouzuke was forcibly pulled towards Madara, who already had his fists clenched, and unleashed a flurry of blows on the former’s Susano’o armor. The projection started to give in to the irresistible power, finally shattering.
“SHIT!” Rouzuke exclaimed. He used his Byaringan to pinpoint his opponent’s chakra points and dodged one of the speeding straights. He struck a pose similar to Hyuga Neji’s, though his hands were balled into fists. “EAT THIS! MOMURA STYLE: SIXTY-FOUR CHAKRA POINT SEALING!”
The attack seemed to have failed, passing through Madara’s body completely. That moment was actually a dud, for Rouzuke charged up enough Nature chakra to transform into Sage Mode while still in his Cursed Form. This time, his left arm didn’t budge or create pain, making him invulnerable from the enemy attacks. But Madara was quick enough to push him back with the Almighty Push.
Rouzuke was smirking, even though he was pushed back to another pillar. He bit his left thumb, smeared blood on his right arm and wove seals for a Summoning Technique. Madara wasn’t quick enough, just starting to warp when Rouzuke slammed his hands on the pillar floor which was already obscured by black smoke.
The smoke barely cleared when Madara warped to Rouzuke who just reactivated his Susano’o, readying a fatal blow to the latter, was intercepted by a large monstrous claw. Madara passed through the surprise attack, but as soon as he rematerialized he was bashed to the floor by one of the Susano’o knuckles.
The crash blew the rest of the smoke away, revealing a half-demon-looking Hibiki, his right side completely dominated by the Cursed Seal, while his left clutched his transformed naginata. His eyes revealed his Mangekyo Sharingan, and his mind and character seemed to be sealed away as implied by his stoic expression. Rouzuke walked towards Hibiki’s right, still smirking with malice. Hibiki tossed one of the black pills to Rouzuke, who caught and ate it with satisfaction.
“Impossible,” muttered Madara as he stood up, apparently puzzled at this new development. “How can you summon a human in a space-time distortion?”
“So, how do you like my new puppet?!” Rouzuke yelled with triumph, his chakra and wounds recovering at an amazing rate and starting to leak black, blue and red chakra. “I’ve seen how the real Uchiha Madara fought before, and I’m positive he didn’t have a Rinnegan. So, my bargain would be: would you rather we kill you here now, or will you let us out of here?”
To be continued...
It was a lovely morning, where there were wafts of delicious breakfast that travelled inside the Konohagakure. The birds were happily chirping as men who were working on rebuilding infrastructure began to move to their assigned posts, women have started to go outside to go to the market or do chores, and children played in the streets. It was usual morning for the village, except for an ear-splitting yell by Sora Hitomi.
“WHERE IS HE?” Hitomi was hysterical with tears already streaming down her cheeks, her hair was untidy, and her night gown ripped off her as she took a step towards the closed window. “HIBIKI! YOU BASTARD! WHERE’D YOU RUN OFF TO?!”
In an instant, Saito Hibiki was standing with his back facing Hitomi. The naginata and huge scroll were still with him. His clothes were smudged with bits of sand, dirt and debris. Some of the torn parts of his garments seemed to be cuts and wounds that dried up. His arms and legs have various bruises. He wasn’t able to recover his blindfold. Hitomi was shocked at Hibiki’s entrance. The latter turned to face Hitomi, who quickly punched him in the face in instinct.
“YOU *******!” she yelled, still teary-eyed. “WHY WOULD YOU LEAVE ME LIKE THAT?”
Hibiki caught her fist without blinking, making her tense up more, and the naginata fell with a clang. Her eyes slowly started to focus on his overall condition. Before she could comment on them however, Hibiki loosened his grip and began to fall forward. Hitomi stepped forward and caught him just in time, his face cushioned on her breasts. He apparently fainted from his previous fight with the currently-famous shinobi criminal, Momura Rouzuke.
Just as Hitomi was nursing Hibiki’s wounds, there came an urgent rapt on their door. It was Shizune, and she told Hitomi that the Fifth Hokage has received news that Hibiki went to Sunagakure to assist the Fifth Kazekage in his encounter with Momura Rouzuke. She looked over Hitomi’s shoulder and saw Hibiki still in the process of being taken care of, with linen gauze, mortar and pestle, herbs and the like scattered on the floor. Shizune seemed to have understood the situation and promised Hitomi that a medic squad will arrive in their room shortly, and then departed to report to the Hokage’s office.
Hitomi closed the door when she heard Hibiki gaining consciousness. Immediately, she dashed towards him and scooped him up in her arms, her chest nudging his face which was patched with square bandages. Her hands were already covered with blood and sweat, yet she still tended to him without fail or hesitation.
A few hours after Hitomi applied herbal medicine on Hibiki’s bruises and wounds as a first aid precaution, he proceeded to mumble. Because his eyes were still shut and covered with a fresh blindfold cloth, Hitomi thought he was just talking while dreaming.
“His presence,” he grumbled, somehow twitching in pain and fear, and alarmed Hitomi. “I can still sense his beating heart. He’s still alive. No… the war shouldn’t start… Rouzuke… Madara…”
At that moment, another knock came from the door, which Hitomi cautiously answered. Thankfully it was the medic team; the kunoichi spearheading them was Haruno Sakura. The squad entered the room, and were led by Hitomi to Hibiki’s futon. Sakura immediately inspected his body, while the other members were busy preparing for a possible emergency operation. After a few minutes, Sakura told Hitomi that the herbal medicines seemed to have done the trick and that there will be no complications. Nevertheless, the team began to heal the minor cuts and bruises, so as to quicken Hibiki’s recovery. One of the medics came across a pouch peeking out of Hibiki’s garments, and pulled it out for everyone to see.
“That’s the medicine pouch he always brought in our travels,” Hitomi stated, remembering the small brown leather pouch that held small pellets that Gaara and the Sand shinobi ate to restore their energy. “I didn’t notice that earlier.”
“These pills,” Sakura replied, apparently interested with the composition of the mentioned medicine, inspecting its minuscule shape. “What are they exactly? And who made these?”
“These things can restore one’s chakra, heal their body completely and even cure most common ailments,” Hitomi explained slowly, ignoring Sakura’s shocked and delighted expression. “I don’t know who made them, but Hibiki has always carried that ever since we started to travel across countries. I think only Hibiki here can tell you where he got them.”
“Are you a medical kunoichi?” Sakura inquired, now interested in Hitomi as well as her bust. Even the other medical team members looked at Hitomi with interest. “You seem to know so much about herbal medicine and their effectiveness in these kinds of wounds and bruises. You might as well know how to use medicine in combat, yes?”
Hitomi blushed at the compliment and more because the attention was on her already. She was about to reply when Hibiki jerked awake without warning, surprising everyone in the room. Hitomi rushed over to Hibiki, who was groping the ground for something. Sakura realized that he was looking for his pouch, and gave it back to him. Hibiki muttered words of gratitude and proceeded to take four pills from the pouch. He was about to eat it when Hitomi grabbed his wrist.
“Hibiki, no,” she wailed, somehow nervous and scared for some reason, her eyes darting from Sakura to the other medics. “You don’t need the pills for your condition. You just need to rest.”
Hibiki made a serious frown and yanked his hand free and popped the pills into his mouth. The room was silent, except for the crunching noise and a large gulp. Hibiki rose up in the room, black smoky chakra started to emanate around him. The atmosphere suddenly changed, the air became warm and prickly, and it seemed to have affected Hitomi and the medical squad as well.
“What’s this tingling feeling?” one of the squad members said, worried about some unseen danger. “It’s like my chakra is being sucked out of me!”
The other members agreed, but instantly keeled over as if they were knocked out by some invisible force. Sakura’s eyes were already drooping, yet she still stood her ground. She looked at Hibiki with suspicion, and then turned to Hitomi for answers, though there was none. Hibiki’s left arm lifted, and the black chakra infused linen gauze shot towards his naginata. Upon contact with the chakra, the blade of the spear changed into a Baphomet head adorned with three rings each and was returned to his hand, with the linen floating eerily from his arms. He proceeded to lunge the weapon to an unsuspecting Hitomi, who was pushed aside by Sakura.
Sakura managed to avoid the blade by crouching forward and aimed a powerful blow to Hibiki’s stomach. The punch seemed to connect, yet he wasn’t damaged. She looked up to see Hibiki’s stoic face with horror. It appeared that Sakura gave the last punch her all and fell forward as well. Black tomoe-shaped markings crept all over Hibiki’s body from the tiny lines that used to be the cuts he sustained from his battle with Rouzuke. The sight overwhelmed Hitomi, making her go into a frightened fit and faint with the others. Hibiki pocketed the medicine pouch and picked up his scroll, which he tied to his waist. Before her eyes totally closed and began to well out tears, she saw a glimpse of Hibiki’s face covered in the black marks.
“I’m sorry about that, Hitomi,” Hibiki whispered, as he turned away from her. “I swear I will make things right. Thank you for your help and support. I will cherish it.”
Just as Hitomi slammed on the floor with a thud and the landlady and some neighbors busted into the room, apparently concerned with the commotion, Hibiki was nowhere to be seen.
~ ~ ~
Meanwhile, in an unknown dimension, a sleeping Momura Rouzuke was sitting in a monk’s cross-legged position on top of one of the large pillars scattered and floating in the scenery. He didn’t know what just transpired from his previous encounter with the Kazekage and Saito Hibiki in the outskirts of Sunagakure, yet he knew that someone stopped him from pulverizing those two. A hooded masked man appeared from behind, yet didn’t pose any threat whatsoever for Rouzuke, who woke up from the presence.
“So you’ve already woke up,” the man commented, maintaining a distance from the sitting danger. “Your name is Momura Rouzuke, isn’t it?”
“What do you want from me?” Rouzuke retorted, his eyes still shut, thinking that he’s in a genjutsu. “Where am I? Who the **** are you?”
“I am Uchiha Madara,” the man declared, making Rouzuke twitch to the name. “You’re in my dimension, an alternate dimension. I can coop you inside this world if I will it, or I can set you free for a bargain.”
Rouzuke had already activated his Susano’o and used his Swift Release to get behind Madara, who just stood his ground. Rouzuke grabbed his Dragon Sword and swung at his foe. The weapon made contact to Madara’s clothes, yet passed through without hitting anything. At that precise moment, Madara turned to Rouzuke and performed a roundhouse kick on the Susano’o armor, the force sending the latter flying and crashing to a nearby pillar. Madara disappeared from his spot and reappeared in front of Rouzuke.
“I admire your courage from the unknown,” Madara complimented, still looking at Rouzuke’s face. “Although, I fear that being courageous is just a minuscule factor when fighting someone like me.”
Rouzuke opened his eyes and saw the mask with horror etched on his face. He noticed that the man’s eyes were different. The right eye was a Sharingan, and the left was a Rinnegan. Despite the fearsome opponent however, he lunged forward, knowing that he won’t hit anything.
“You can’t be Uchiha Madara! He died a long time ago!”
He passed through, and then decided to activate his Cursed Seal of Hell. He was instantly flying in the air, confident that Madara won’t be able to follow. He noticed that his opponent just stretched out an arm and yelled: ALMIGHTY PUSH!
Rouzuke was pushed back by an invisible force, and realized that the technique was one of the powers of the Rinnegan. He regained altitude and searched for his foe who was already above him with hands over the head, and hammered him onto one of the pillars with a deafening explosion.
Rouzuke managed to block the assault and the crash with his Susano’o armor. He leapt away from the spot, seeing that Madara was about to follow up with a falling kick. The pillar started to crack and crumble with the inhumane force, even Rouzuke was surprised.
“You’re not even using actual techniques,” he piqued, apparently dumbfounded with his opponent’s strength. “Yet your power is already comparable to a Senju.”
Madara’s eyes glinted with the comment, apparently enraged and spurred by the name. He dashed to Rouzuke, who was fleeing from the former, still dazed and fatigued from the previous battle. He watched as Madara raise his open palm towards him and yelled: UNIVERSAL PULL!
Rouzuke was forcibly pulled towards Madara, who already had his fists clenched, and unleashed a flurry of blows on the former’s Susano’o armor. The projection started to give in to the irresistible power, finally shattering.
“SHIT!” Rouzuke exclaimed. He used his Byaringan to pinpoint his opponent’s chakra points and dodged one of the speeding straights. He struck a pose similar to Hyuga Neji’s, though his hands were balled into fists. “EAT THIS! MOMURA STYLE: SIXTY-FOUR CHAKRA POINT SEALING!”
The attack seemed to have failed, passing through Madara’s body completely. That moment was actually a dud, for Rouzuke charged up enough Nature chakra to transform into Sage Mode while still in his Cursed Form. This time, his left arm didn’t budge or create pain, making him invulnerable from the enemy attacks. But Madara was quick enough to push him back with the Almighty Push.
Rouzuke was smirking, even though he was pushed back to another pillar. He bit his left thumb, smeared blood on his right arm and wove seals for a Summoning Technique. Madara wasn’t quick enough, just starting to warp when Rouzuke slammed his hands on the pillar floor which was already obscured by black smoke.
The smoke barely cleared when Madara warped to Rouzuke who just reactivated his Susano’o, readying a fatal blow to the latter, was intercepted by a large monstrous claw. Madara passed through the surprise attack, but as soon as he rematerialized he was bashed to the floor by one of the Susano’o knuckles.
The crash blew the rest of the smoke away, revealing a half-demon-looking Hibiki, his right side completely dominated by the Cursed Seal, while his left clutched his transformed naginata. His eyes revealed his Mangekyo Sharingan, and his mind and character seemed to be sealed away as implied by his stoic expression. Rouzuke walked towards Hibiki’s right, still smirking with malice. Hibiki tossed one of the black pills to Rouzuke, who caught and ate it with satisfaction.
“Impossible,” muttered Madara as he stood up, apparently puzzled at this new development. “How can you summon a human in a space-time distortion?”
“So, how do you like my new puppet?!” Rouzuke yelled with triumph, his chakra and wounds recovering at an amazing rate and starting to leak black, blue and red chakra. “I’ve seen how the real Uchiha Madara fought before, and I’m positive he didn’t have a Rinnegan. So, my bargain would be: would you rather we kill you here now, or will you let us out of here?”
To be continued...
