Shattered Heavens:.

[Cloudnine]

The girl clung on for dear life with every movement Gamabunta made. She was… unaccustomed to seeing such a massive creature, let alone stand atop its head. The warty toad skin served as a rocky cliff side to cling onto with the aid of chakra. Raz seemed less affected by this, so maybe it was just Korin's bumbling side. She gazed at the expanse of towering creatures summoned for the sole purpose of battle. Where in the world did these… monsters, if she could call them, exist? And the city that grew in the sky… it just added to her bewilderment.

Her drippy eyes looked towards Raz. A faint smile in all her lightheadedness. "Yeah.”

Let's do this.

She looked towards her comrades on all sides, found comfort dripping into her unease through a pin hole. One, two breaths. It was time to make herself useful. Everyone else already set into action- it was her role to back them up. Her plan was still unraveling in a spellbound daze when Warrusu rocketed towards the pair on the toad. "Warr-” she barely managed a greeting before he left a limp woman figure behind him, barreling away into the darkness. Korin took up the duty immediately, slinging the woman's arm around her shoulder, examining her unconscious state. Nothing extremely serious- Korin'd have to wait until she had a feel for the battle before spending chakra on her.

Shifting the woman's weight to free her hands, she performed handseals rehearsed dozens of times before. Kage bunshin- reliable clones, decent in quantity. One, two, three four. Summoned in the air, they were freefalling, catching themselves with chakra and walking on the very plane of nothingness. Korin then gingerly nipped at her thumb, going through some familiar seals and flicking her blood far, far down to the ground. Smoke, then a bellowing roar. Summoning Shiretsu. "Get the white haired woman,” Korin commanded.

The polar bear was diminutive and minor compared to the boss summons that stood about her. But of them, her savagery was distinct, unmatched, and amplified to the point of almost being ridiculous. She'd serve as protection for her clones. Her speed was faster than the larger beasts, though the mangy, yellowed fangs of hers could only nip the hocks of the great bull. Five pairs of hands moved at once, channeling a silver thread towards each image of Korin. They formed a united chakra pool, an infallible pentagram-shaped network for their task. Three of the four clones descended to the ground, leaping onto Shiretsu's back. The other ran across air towards Syaoran. Raikage had rendered his left arm useless, had he not? She bounded up the bear's spine, almost hidden in its fur as she clung on. "Syaoran,” the clone called to him, ready to make a few attempts at mending flesh when he returned.

Shiretsu was bounding across the trampled terrain, skirting the larger creatures. A clone easily hoisted the lifeless body of the Kaguya woman onto this convoy. The leader of the three clones, a Korin with an odd apron on, yanked at the scraggly fur around Shiretsu's shoulders to turn her around. Her strides were large, thundering in a minute majesty. The apron Korin urged the beast to stop before a fallen figure. She recognized Kouta as friendly from before, beckoning to the two other clones. "No time to stop, right?” A wry grin illuminated by a faint glowing of chakra. Three green beams of jutsu revived sundered skin, restoring Kouta's condition closer to… normal. Apron Korin swore she spotted another person not too far off. "Where's your friend?”

--

6o1

49oo

[Cho Hakkai]

A smell came to Hakkai. From the moment it entered his nostrils he felt as if he was going to vomit. The hairs in his nose drew themselves. Some burned while the others simply no longer wanted to exist. Hakkai placed his right hand over his mouth as he began to make glurging noises. It was a familiar scent, but all the more disgusting than he had ever experienced. His vision blurred for a split second but in the blink of his eyes came back to normal. Hakkai doubled over. His stomach hadn't settled yet. No, this smell was only for a small period of time but even so, it was painful. It smelled like raw iron, burning hair, wet dog, fresh garbage, and everything else that no one enjoyed smelling. It was truly horrifying. Any normal person would simply faint from such a punch of a smell. This was no simply slap. Think about a heavy weight champion punching an old lady with a glove made of steel and has 4 inch spikes on each knuckle. Hakkai couldn't believe what he just smelled was what he knew it was.

Blood…

Again the shedding of blood came, but this time it was as if there was acid within his lungs. The odor most likely didn't have poisons in it, but the smell of burning blood was terrible. Hakkai hadn't smelled it before, but blood, regardless of its state or what condition, still has the same basic smell.

Hakkai looked up at the Raikage noticing that he no longer had a hand. Hakkai was confused as to how he had lost it but how he went about healing himself was shocking. He cauterized it with pure lightning. It must have been so painful to do. It didn't even fend him. The smell was even worse. Again, nothing from the kage. How could this man do such things and have no sense of pain about it? Was he like the Kaguya woman? No, she lived to fight and enjoyed a battle. He was enjoying this battle, but most likely from anticipation. He knew that this battle was inevitable. Did he expect it to happen within three years of his original conquest? Did he feel pain? Was he able to numb his body from pain with the help of his lightning abilities? So many questions. No time to ask them.

‘Damn… I want to know so badly…' Hakkai thought to himself. He was amazed with what the Raikage was able to do with his lightning abilities so far. Hakkai wasn't even close to that power yet. This would mark the second time where he saw lightning power that had him in awe, the first being the Gobi completely shutting down the body of the man back in the country of grass when the country fought for it's independence only a couple days ago. Hakkai knew the power before him was stronger than anything he could imagine at the moment. Maybe one day Hakkai could achieve such greatness at using the lightning element. Maybe…

"Get up!”

"What?” Hakkai came back to reality. He was doubled over onto the top of Yaya's head. His hands were gripping the hairs on her head and they were clearly seen from between each of his fingers. His muscles, including his stomach, continued to have a small spasm. His body was still going through hell from the smell. It was ironic in a sense. A man who had tasted and smelled and been covered in blood so many times was now on his knees from a simple smell from a single person.

Hakkai looked around to see who it was who was talking to him. Of course it was Yaya. She had a bit of annoyed look on her face. He placed her hands onto her hips, like most women do when they are upset or annoyed by something. Her left eyebrow rose above the right to visably show that she was not amused by what Hakkai was doing on top of her head.

"I said get up. It's just a smell. I don't want you throwing up on my head.” She then turned her head side to side. While it looked like she only moved a couple inches, in reality she moved meters within a small time, almost knocking Hakkai off of her head. "And stop gripping onto my fur. It hurts.”

Hakkai looked at her with a blank expression. For a couple seconds he couldn't say anything at all. He was in shock. Did she care about his well being or did she just want to get back to her shows? Or did she really not want vomit on top of her head?

After his pause, Hakkai broke into a laugh. His body relaxed while no longer spazing. His laugh calmed his mind. He patted Yaya on the head and embraced her head as if he were going to give her a hug. But since Hakkai was extremely small compared to her, he couldn't do a hug. So instead he stood up and stretched his muscles.

A loud sound of relief escaped from Hakkai's mouth as he felt his muscles loosen up. The smell was done with and no longer bothered him.

Looking at the Raikage he heard his summon growl. The Raikage spoke, but with such noise going on Hakkai couldn't pinpoint and hear exactly what he had to say. But within a blink of an eye his massive bull charged at Syaoran's summon, the massive Kodiak bear. The bear put its paws out and was able to stop the bull in its tracks while Syaoran jumped on top of it. After its charge at the bear, it went for Gamabunta with Hakkai's brother on top of it. Hakkai did not worry. He trusted Raz to fend for himself.

And Raz did not disappoint. Using one of his wind justu he was able to fend off the flying debris coming his way.

‘Wait… Flying debris?' Hakkai's attention went back to the Raikage to show that he had flung debris in all directions, mostly towards the summons themselves. Yaya apparently hadn't been noticing it either. "Watch out!” Hakkai yelled pointing in front of them.

Yaya turned her head to get hit right in the face with a small piece of debris. A large bump formed on her face. Her eyes slowly narrowed towards the bump. For Hakkai, there was a moment of total silence as Yaya looked at the bump on her face. Hakkai felt a small shake. He looked around. Did the Raikage use an earthquake base justu? But the shake became more and more severe. Hakkai grabbed onto Yaya's fur for dear life. It wasn't an earthquake. It was something even more frightening.

Yaya was pissed off.

Yaya's eyes blinked. When they opened, they were bloodshot red. Veins were obvious from the outside in. Her pupils were small and filled with rage, not room for any other emotion. She opened her mouth showing her teeth. They were clenched together tighter than any vice in existence. Her breath began to grow faster and faster until her chest moved her whole body from a single breath. Saliva came out of her mouth as her anger continued to grow.

"You son of a…”

"B1TCH!”

Her anger was let out in a large roar as her face turned a small red tint from the rush of adrenaline going through her body at the moment. With her right paw, she grabbed a hold of her massive weapon, the Punisher. The massive black pan rose into the air as her eyes glared at the Raikage. With a stiff but quick motion, she began to hit the debris back at the Raikage's direction with her pan as if her pan were a baseball bat and the debris were baseballs.

"Do you have any idea how long it takes to be this beautiful? This bump will not go away for ever! You son of a bitch I'll make you pay with your balls!”

Hakkai held on with his hands with as strong a grip as he could. She wasn't going to be gentle. Hakkai feared for his life because if he fell, there was no way he could survive the fall. But alas, she continued to hit the debris with amazing accuracy. Sometimes even smashing the debris as it came into contact with her pan. Her rush had given her much more strength within her muscles. The blood in her was pumping at such a rate that one could see the outlines of her arteries and veins through her thick fur. Yea… bricks were shat.

Bing… Bang… Clank…

The noises made an echo sound as she hit the debris. It sounds like a gong one minute and the next like a trash can lid. The pan became scratched up from the stones and dented as well from the force of the incoming attacks, but it didn't seem to bother Yaya in any way, shape, or form. Smoke formed around her from the dust of the shattered debris. Saliva drooled from her mouth as he shifted left to right. Her face remained the same. Angry. Pissed off. Scary.

As soon as the debris no longer came at her, she put her pan away at her side. She still had a lot of anger not yet released. She let out her left paw. Lightning began to develop in her palm. Soon, a massive amount of pure energy was snug fit into her paw. She closed her hand over the orb of lightning. Doing so, it became a massive hammer made from nothing but electricity. The lightning could only be contained for a small amount of time. Sparks even came off of it already.

Hakkai knew this technique all too well. It was her who in fact taught it to Hakkai. He wrapped his arms and legs into her fur. He made sure that he wouldn't budge from his spot. She was in a crazy frenzy and as of right now, she didn't care about anything other than kicking the bull's ass. Something also told Hakkai that she completely forgot about the fact Hakkai was even on her head.

Yaya then jumped into the air. Hakkai closed his eyes as he feared of going to far into the air. Coming down, Yaya released the lightning energy in the top of the hammer and aimed it at the bull/Raikage team. The moment the hammer hit something, a massive surge of electricity would be sent into whatever it hit. "F-ck you!” She continued to yell the name of the justu.

Dageki Thor kanadzuchi no Justu

(Strike of Thor's Hammer Technique)

Hakkai screamed like a little girl from the g-force in his stomach changing so quickly. He wasn't used to such drastic changes in the elevation. He buried his face into her head to make sure his glasses didn't fall off for once they did, Hakkai would be handicapped in his battle. This wouldn't be good if he wanted to continue in this battle at all.

Hakkai was worried she would do this during battle. She had a short temper and was reckless when fighting. But, maybe this would help them win this battle. Or, it could destroy the team. As said before, everyone who gets in her way of destroying the person who hurt her is her enemy. Hakkai only hoped the other summonings didn't get in her way, for both of their safety.

Hakkai continued his girlish scream.

10021 words

[Eechi-go]

"…Kirin?”

The boy tilted his head quizzically, looking down at the massive toad. He'd never heard of that technique before, or at least he couldn't recall it. Something niggling doubt in his mind lead him to believe that it was familiar somehow, but he couldn't put his finger on it.

"Yes, I've only seen it preformed once in my entire life. Uchiha Sasuke created it one hundred years ago. He and Uzumaki Naruto battled for hours, and the Uchiha unleashed it upon Naruto. It's one of the more devastating jutsu I've seen a human ever unleash. Understandably so, one must be completely in tune with nature to be able to perform it. That requires a very rigorous type of training."

Raz was confused, because he had always believed himself to be completely in tune with the wind. Was he wrong? Then why did he feel so in touch with his natural element? He looked quite perplexed.

"But that doesn't make sense, I didn't have any special training, and I can manipulate wind to that kind of extent.”

Gamabunta grumbled, irritated that he'd have to now give the boy a long winded explanation for sage chakra and the ins and outs of it's application and training. He took a long, drawn out puff from his pipe, before letting a giant, grey, puffy cloud of smoke rise towards the stormy night sky. A sigh, before he cleared his throat.

"Ahem…well, not exactly. While it's true, you've specialized yourself so much in one element to where you feel as if you've become one with it, you haven't actually. One must undergo a long, painful method of training to become one with nature. This is called sage training. You know what chakra is by now, I'd hope. It's created by your physical and spiritual energies combined. With sage training, you learn to take in energy into your body from nature, creating a newer, stronger chakra. Essentially, it's the highest tier training possible, and only those who are to become Kage are given the training.”

Raz's eyes lit up, a giant grin on his face, completely forgetting where he was at the moment. This sage training, it sounded amazing. Finally he could become one with nature; perhaps it would even give him some form of epiphany. He chuckled to himself, as Gamabunta began to sweat drop. He probably shouldn't have told him this.

"So…Gamabunta-san, where does one go about learning this…?”

"The toads have a method…but for the love of Kami, kid, get your head in the game!”

The toad bellowed, his voice nearly knocking Raz clear off his head. He held on desperately, as he nodded, freaking out from the near-death experience he almost had. He hastily flicked open his equipment pouch, digging around for a few moments, as he sifted around the various kunai and bandages that lay scattered and disorganized. A minute or so later, he pulled out his chakra-sensitive goggles. He quickly snapped them on, jolting them on with a bit of chakra, before turning his attention to the sky above the palace. At first, it seemed as if all of the chakra was coming from the clouds above, but that was unfortunately not the case. His goggles began to alert him in essentially every direction, electricity was building up.

"Oh fuck…he's not only gathering lightning from the sky, he's absorbing electricity from the power lines and static within the village. This might be able to kill us all in one fell swoop…”

He began to feel himself become negative now. They couldn't die here, that'd be too sick. To be so close to their goal to fail now, it had to be a lie, right? No, this wasn't a fairy tale, bad things were still liable to happen. Suddenly, his eyes fixated on the sky now, apparently, the Raikage wanted to play with them one last time before they were charred…

As Syaoran would toss the kunai at the bull, they would quickly be deflected into two random directions. Not because of anything the bull did, merely due to the magnetic push that the creature had sprouting out from him, which kept the floating islands in the sky. Still, Syaoran's attempt to fell the Raikage wasn't completely in vain. The man had not moved an inch as the incoming golden blue chakra approached. However, just as it were about to pierce his form, the Raikage would seemingly take the form of lightning, bending at an arc, and darting up to the tip top of the palace once more. Here he was far out of anyone's range, and he'd allow his bull to fight this battle, allowing him enough time to harness possibly the strongest attack the earth had seen in one hundred years.

The bull would feel it's spine crackle under the weight of Nando, a grunt of weakness immerging from it's throat. With all it's might, it thrust it's horns up into the bear's chest, before quickly leaping backwards away from the beast before it was crushed underneath it's oversized paws. It barely had time to react as Nando began harnessing the power of wind to retaliate. The bull growled, lightning forming between it's two horns, before it cried out, lightning bursting forward from it's mouth as well, as three arcs

".:Raiton: Cheen Denkou:."

[Lightning Release; Chain Lightning]

To the bull's surprise, the bullet of wind wasn't aimed at him, rather, the islands that floated above. The lightning flowed out uncontrollably, towards Nando, the beast's rage influencing it now, creating a demon-esk appearance in the chakra. Perhaps it didn't go as planned, but he'd show that furry ball of shit a thing or two!

Between Nando and Warrusu, many of the Ageru clones were falling. This was unacceptable. By the time the boy and summon's assaults were over, about half of the clones remained, the debris from the floating rocks fell back down onto everyone below, the Raikage feeling there was no more reason to keep those specific rocks up any longer. As the purple barrier had collapsed, the man finally saw his victory in the clearing.

"Ah, so you wish to play. Very well, we shall play one last game!”

The sky began to crackle, a large amount of chakra blistering forth. An enormous amount of static, before hundreds upon thousands of lightning bolts cascaded from, the sky like a horde of arrows. They were far too close to one another to completely avoid, and they'd continue to smash into the palace grounds for at least half a minute, plenty of time to release Kirin.

".:Raiton: Moui no Tendou:."

[Lightning Release; Fury of Cherubs]

The bull was caught off guard, it's eyes wide as the hammer of death would come upon him. However, as the lightning bolts fell from the sky, he raised his horns to the sky, a large amount being absorbed into his body from the pointed natural weapons. Suddenly, a fantastic amount of lightning was discharged from the bull's body, and as the hammer came into contact with the beast, he didn't move a muscle, he simply took the attack, completely unscathed. It's chakra exploded, in an attempt to envelop Nando and Yaya. The Kameryuu's charge was less in vain then Yaya's approach, but was still countered, as the bull locked his horns forward, as the two rammed into one another, before the beast quickly leapt away, in order to attempt to make the dragon-turtle fall, or atleast attempt. The lightning also stretched out to the remaining Ageru clones, amplifying their survivability from the lethal rain, as well as amplifying their own power. It almost seemed to be checkmate.

"Kekekeke! You can do NOTHING!!”

Raz's attention was immediately stolen by Warrusu as he placed the glass witch atop Gamabunta's head. Why the hell would he leave her with them? Sure, Korin was a med ninja, but things were about to get lethal, and Gamabunta's skull was already being occupied by two people. Raz didn't have time to respond with his opinion before Warrusu disappeared.

Before he knew it, the barrier around them shattered, and a torrent or rain poured down upon the palace. Why in the world would he do that? For someone who specialized in water and lightning, why did the boy completely forget that water amplified electricity? This ‘strategy' could very much sentence them all to death. Did the boy need more water for his jutsu? For the love of god, he could have asked Raz, Gamabunta could have created a water bullet for him if that were so.

"What the FUCK, Warrusu-!?”

Before he could finish his scolding, the Raikage unleashed a never ending stream of lightning-like arrows that cascaded from the heavens. With no more barrier to keep the lightning out, the bolts would easily reach the ragtag group of ninja. In addition, the current rainfall made it nearly physically impossible to avoid them.

"No time! We must attack the bull now!”

Gamabunta warned, getting pelted by numerous amounts of lightning strikes. Raz was with him, his flesh being seared away each time a bolt fell onto him. The toad king leapt forward, raising his katana to the sky, before slicing down at the bull. It made contact, but at that moment the bull had released it's lethal discharge, which would knock Gamabunta backwards. However, due to the wind that surrounded the toad's blade, a small amount of the lightning aura dissipated.

"T-that's it!”

Raz cried out, his silver aura bursting outwards now. He'd attempt to fend off the amplified lightning that fell from the sky, bringing it back to it's base power when it would reach his aura. Raz studied what Gamabunta's blade managed to do with the gift of the wind god surrounding it. If he could hit the beast with a large enough wind jutsu, he could remove the aura, and then the summons could pummel him to oblivion.

".:Fuuton: Rezakiri:."

[Wind Release; Razor Edge]

Raz quickly compressed air around his hand and forearm, sharpening it like a blade. He swiftly swung it at the incoming lightning bolts, planning on leaping towards the bull with all he had, and in order to do so, he'd need to make sure that the lightning wouldn't spike him towards the ground. Gamabunta felt Raz's chakra being removed from his forehead, signaling that he had a plan to abandon his company for a bit.

"What the hell do you think you're…gah…doin', boy!?”

The toad cried out in a rage, the lightning from the sky piercing his body. He knew the boy would try something stupid, and they simply couldn't risk another mistake like that. Raz struggled to stand, the static of the sky proving to show signs of real trauma now.

"I-I'm gonna go knock that thing's lightning aura off. When I do, I need you to pin him. T-then all the other s-summons can finish him off. W-w-we can't let that thing continue to slam us around!”

And with that, Raz leapt off Gamabunta's forehead, his Rezakiri blistering around his hand. He knew this wouldn't be enough to destroy that aura, so he attempted to hastily gather more and more chakra, straining himself now; he had used far too much chakra.

".:Fuuton; Doriru Bureka:."

[Wind Release; Drill Breaker]

The boy cried out, his wind chakra swirling around his hand until it formed a large drill, which he thrust at the Bull's head. Seeing as how it was currently distracted with Hakkai and Yaya, he hadn't expected this assault. The beast let out a wail, as Raz attempted to thrust the drill right through the beast's skull. He could see the lightning beginning to dissipate, but not quickly enough. The bull began to smirk cockily as Raz struggled, blood rushing down from it's forehead.

"Just a bee sting…”

Raz could see lightning building up between it's horns. He was point blank, surely this would kill him. His body was already bloodied and beaten, even seared from the cascading lightning form the sky. He felt a tightening in his chest, like he did just before Kido had blown his chest open in Lorien. Suddenly, his heart sprang to life, beating then times quicker then it normally would. That's right, his will to live was much stronger then the wounds he had received this day. He had too many things he had to complete.

His eyes flashed to the Raikage;

"You must be defeated…”

Then Hakkai;

"I still want that fight, you know…”

Finally Korin;

"I want to see how far we can make it…together…”

As if Fuujin himself heard his prayers, a wicked amount of chakra swirled around his drill, expanding it, sharpening it, and extending it into ways he could never imagine. By the time his eyes would reopen, he would find himself above even the palace, the drill hundreds and hundreds of feet long, completely obliterating the chakra aura around the bull. He was surprised, but it felt as if he evolved in some way. He cried out the name of his jutsu, blasting the bull backwards into the nearby palace wall, it's blood splattering across the grounds.

".:Fuuton; Giga Doriru Bureka:."

[Wind Release; Giga Drill Breaker]

The kickback from the lightning and wind colliding was enough to send Raz flying backwards, but Gamabunta was already prepared, his tongue flying out at long as he could possibly stretch it, rapping the boy in it, and pulling him back to earth. The toad's eyes moved towards the bull, who still by some miracle could move, but it wouldn't be much longer. Grasping his katana, he tossed it forward, piercing straight through the beast's tail, through the palace. Now it couldn't move, and Nando could finally kill the beast.

Gamabunta brought Raz in front of his face, his eyes only half open, tolerating the lightning bolts that fell from the sky now, which seemed to be diminishing somewhat. Raz's own wounds were showing, a majority of his flesh was either burned, bruised, of bleeding.

"You're a crazy, crazy bastard.”

"Eheh…we're not done yet. Just one more mountain to climb...”

2570 Words

19,770 Total

Edited October 10, 2008 by Eechi-go

[cntrstrk14]

Syaoran's attack would find no target, his arm swiping through air as the man's form turned to lighting and flickered away, retreating to the top of the tower where the entire fight had begun. His eyes darting up, the golden hue of his eyes tracing the man's movement even in his lightning form to the place where he stopped. Syaoran's bloodline was still active, the golden blue chakra flickering around his body like a dim aura. His eyes, even in this state, were of different colors, one slightly lighter than the other. As soon as he could come to a sliding stop upon the bull, the Raikage's attack would be near completion, gathering energy at the top of the tower to unleash what seemed to be an attack that would make any other attack thus far moot in comparison. His chest burned, Syaoran could feel his enormous chakra supply dwindling, the effects of the radiation becoming apparent on his face. He did not have much time or energy left in this fight, and it was becoming more and more apparent that they would all need their full strength to get this man killed.

‘Or do we…', Syaoran thought to himself, his body was nearing its final act, he could no longer perform any of his high end jutsu. The last use had been the final time he could perform Kyuukyoku Mangkukulaman, the chakra amount necessary to create such a devastating attack was too great for him to keep up with. But even if he could not use a direct attack to cripple the man, what if with this last push of his he could ease the rest of the battle for the others that stood beside him. Letting his eyes look around, Syaoran would catch the faces of his allies as they focused on the battle at hand, looking up at the Raikage and what was to come or focusing on the beast that he stood upon. Yatako, Raz, Warrusu, Hakkai, Korin, Kouta and the younger boy Syaoran had met briefly, Haruyuki. All of these people had come to end this fight, had it been to rash of Syaoran to think that he could finish the man himself? Had he been starting at full strength it may have been an even battle, but having to go through what had transpired in the Northern Sea had put the younger man at a severe disadvantage. With this new idea though, even if Syaoran was removed from the battle by one means or another, it would be likely the rest could finish even without him.

‘Cutting off his hand seemed to have barely slowed the man at all, he's a lunatic, fighting with everything to the bitter end.', Syaoran thought to himself, the precious last seconds before the attack. There was one trump card Syaoran had left that he had not used, and he smiled to himself as the path to victory was illuminated in his head like a street lamp lighting aflame as the darkness of night neared its peak. With the Raikage atop the tower, his chakra reserves seeming to have no end, Syaoran would make a set of seals with his right hand at speeds beyond that of the normal eye. Holding his hand down and out of view from the tower, each of his fingers would light up with a purple flame, one after another as if they were lit with a candle.

‘Let's see what's faster then, Lighting or bending the fabric of space?‘, Syaoran thought to himself at the last second. The Raikage unleashed his attack, the bolts of lighting raining down towards the group. With this attack Syaoran knew he would be alone with the Raikage for at least thirty seconds to a minute, and more than likely he would be out of view of the rest of the group as well. If this attack didn't connect Syaoran would be completely vulnerable to his attacks, his chakra reserve having been near to depleted. Releasing his bloodline to conserve as much chakra as he could, Syaoran's eyes would fade back to their emerald color, his aura dissipating and the golden and blue weaves of chakra dissolving into the surrounding air. On the other hand though, if this attack did hit, Syaoran would hopefully be able to just hold his own against the Raikage long enough for the rest of the group to assist him. Just before the lightning would strike the bull, Syaoran would begin to forcefully thrust his arm in an upwards direction and then disappear from sight. Appearing directly below the Raikage just as the lightning would have hit the group, Syaoran's hand would be centimeters from the man's chest before hopefully impacting it and striking with his attack. Syaoran appearing and the attack striking for the man's chest would happen at almost the exact same time, giving the man nearly no time to use the same trick as before, or even to react.

"Goguoufuuin!!!”

(Five Part Seal)

The Raikage's biggest mistake was returning to the top of the tower, where Syaoran had laid traps at the very start of their fight. All twelve of his stakes were sitting up at various locations of the small tower top, and as statistics would figure, one had been right near where the Raikage stood. With this attack Syaoran's supplies would be exhausted, all he would have left to work with would be pure stamina and taijutsu. Given that the strength he needed for his weapons attacks came from chakra, Syaoran would barely be able to hold his own if the Raikage was an adept at Taijutsu. Of course, with the Five Part Seal attack, Syaoran was targeting the man's Ninjutsu abilities, hopefully if he could seal them he could secure the victory for the rest of the group, because even with this he would probably not be able to finish the man. Living through these thirty to sixty seconds alone with the man may even prove to be to difficult a task for the Alchem's broken body.

-----

Nando would push off of the bull as he moved away to another target, Stumbling back a few steps and gathering his stance as Syaoran ran up the enemy's back. Of course, the Raikage had disappeared at the last moment avoiding the attack, and Syaoran was left alone to stand on the bull. This was the last that Nando could pay attention to his summoner though, as the bull started its own set of attacks. The black of lighting from the bull would come towards Nando, a demonic face appearing on it as it crackled towards the bear. With a fierce roar the earth around him would open up, tearing the palace grounds apart as a gigantic interlocking wall of wood would appear between the bear and the blast, crashing and cracking into the wood, causing it to fall apart almost immediately after being formed. Shielding himself from the explosion of wood and debris by lowering his body to the ground, Nando would prepare to counter attack. Unfortunately as soon as he would, the sky would open up and down from the heavens would come a series of lightning bolts like a horde of arrows at the group. Nando, with his massive body would be unable to dodge the attacks, and instead would force his chakra outwards, causing many of the strikes to bend around him and find targets upon the ground. Unfortunately, many of the attacks that were near the center of his body would be unable to bend out of the way and would strike him on the back, each shock sending a searing pain through him, a massive roar coming as he took the pain without falling.

As the lightning would continue, Nando would barely be able to see from his position as the small speck of the young man named Raz moved towards the bull, his chakra fluxing as he unleashed an attack on the bull. It was not enough, and with barely a scratch in the skin of the bull he would continue his rampage. It was not enough, and the bull would continue its series of attacks. Just as the lightning barrage was coming to an end however, the boy would erupt with a massive amount of chakra, the drill from his last attack having expanded a great amount and with a thrust pierce through the bull's shield and send him flying backwards. With a quick movement and thought from Gamabunta, the toad would throw his signature knife towards the bull, piercing through his tail and pinning him to the wall. Raising himself up to his full strength, Nando would know what to do. The shield was broken and the enemy was open for the bear's attack. Finally, he could showcase the true strength of his tribe.

Pressing his paws into the ground, Nando would begin to draw chakra from his entire body. In fact, from the ground and earth around his feet, visible balls of chakra could be seen floating upwards and into his legs as well. The hair on his back and legs would begin to stand on end, static forming around him as he drew a massive amount of energy from the surrounding area. Everyone on the palace grounds would be able to feel a small tug within themselves as a small bit of their chakra was being drained as well. As the static rose, small bits of lightning crackling around the bear, he would lean his head towards the ground, opening his mouth wide as a small ball of chakra would form in his mouth. Swirling with a blue and white light, the ball would grow and grow, the entire field becoming lit by the energy forming in his mouth which each passing second. The ball itself started to resemble the moon, the glow so intense that it would cast deep shadows across the entire palace grounds and into the city and the lighting was now blow and white. Nando's eyes would lock on the bull and with a thrust of his mouth forward he would unleash a massive beam of pure chakra towards the enemy summon from his mouth. The beam would strike the bull less he moved, piercing straight through him and break out the opposite side of the tower, throwing stone and debris everywhere as it would stretch over and across the rest of the city to be lost on the horizon. The kickback from the attack would send a blast of sound waves across the city, rippling the ground nearby Nando and blowing all the fur on his body backwards from the pressure. This beam would last for a good five to six seconds before lessening and shrinking until it disappeared, leaving Nando standing and looking rather drained from the attack, a clear path of destruction visible from where he stood.

It had been probably about sixty seconds since the start of the hailstorm of lightning arrows, and Nando for the first time since a minute ago was thinking of what had happened to Syaoran.

‘I hope that young one hasn't killed himself yet.'

1859 Words; 11,754 Total

[Warr]

In this period of time which could shape an era, -either returning the days of old to their place of glory, or allowing the corrupt dream of the man whom many would likely call the 'Demon Lord of Lightning', to come to fruition, the strength of the assembled villages which would act as hands of fate to pluck it before it was ripe to be wiped away-, there would in a normal person's eyes, be no time to waste. No time to sit and watch in a puddle of rain and your own blood, as the world fought for it's destiny. As the storms of the present fought with the winds of change.

Warrusu was no normal person. He had given this battle his all, had prayed to the same god of the moon who had failed him in times before -the same god who had let his grandfather and his father die-, had spilled more blood than he had in any other fight. This boy who had shown no fear even in the face of a Kraken, knelt in a puddle of rain, of his own blood, his own sweat. His own dreams.

This opponent of the assembled resistance, this man whom claimed to be chosen of the god of Lightning, this man who had defied the gods, this man who had defied fate and logic, this man who had invaded every one of the great shinobi countries at once without problem, this man whom they had called nothing more than the Raikage, he had simply ignored Warrusu's maneuver. He had ignored what seemed to be a last ditch effort on the part of the Kirigakuran Jounin who had before this all began considered himself more of a fisher than a fighter. Worse still, the Raikage had moved in a way to instead utilize the boy's folly powered actions for his own benefit. The walls above fueled the Umikoi's strength, giving him enough ammunition to send a thousand water spears in the direction of the Raikage.

The Raikage beat the boy to the punch, sending bolts of lightning in the direction of Warrusu and the rest of the assembled resistance, people whom he had bled with on this battle field, people whom had like him not let anything stop them from righting the wrongs committed three years ago.

The attractive blue eyes of Warrusu were now ice, narrowed and taking in every detail of the battle above him as he knelt in the ground. The Raikage had proved that there was no one who would be able to defeat him in single handed combat using lightning. He had proved that Warrusu's lightning was not something he could use to harm the man with.

Lightning Warrusu had only mastered to prevent his own death, lightning he had only mastered to prevent his natural affinities from colliding and him being a fried fisher. Lightning he had mastered only to prevent his death could not be used to defeat someone who had mastered it to bring death to any who opposed him, a man who was to the young man's sensibilities, an embodiment of both evil, but arrogance and greed. A man who was a storm of darkness brought to plague the peaceful sea of life, to drown those who could not swim far enough and fast enough. To drown those who could not hold their own in the waters of life.

Warrusu's teeth gritted as the lightning came down, as the rain came. He would not let his friends be harmed by the technique which the Raikage had used for his own benefit. He would not let that arrogant bastard not be proverbially slapped with his own glove. The Raikage may have been the chosen of the Lightning god, but Warrusu trumped him in one field without a doubt.

His chakras unleashed themselves, his brain felt the energetic pulse of the boy's chakra's engulfing a synapse for a moment, supercharging it. Making it do what it had done in countless people of Warrusu's lineage before. It activated Mizushin, the heart of water, the thing which Warrusu refused to allow dormant in this deciding moment. The final form of his clan's kekkei genkei shot forward, the boy's hands coming together and his chakras moving quickly.

The supercharged rain from the Raikage's lightning bolts flew in the opposite direction, defying gravity as the Umikoi boy's hair did even now, and shot back at the man who had brought so much pain on the world. The rain flew upwards, moved in a motion which would keep them from their target, a motion which would make them hit the lightning and either be stopped in a static eruption between the rain and the lightning, or continue upwards in a spear like formation which if it hit would surely harm the Raikage.

Even if it didn't hit the man, it would keep his friend's from harm. Water was the boy's spear and his shield.. He thumbed his fingers together hoping for a good outcome, ready for a bad one. The technique would arrive soon after Syaoran's maneuver, if the fates were on their side.

There was a thump as the battle between the boss summons rolled. The bull had expected his dragon turtle elder to simply play in the same way he did. The bull expected him to simply be thrown away by the force of the attack. To simply be hit and fly backwards. The creature which had struck fear in men of the sea for centuries, defied by such a movement.

The dragon-turtle would spit at such a thought, and as his body came down from the pouncing body slam of the patron summon of the Umikoi. As the bull's horn's came up, the dragonturtle's momentum shifted, and with a crack in his shell, he was barely sent a distance to the beasts which would seem like inches. Blood dripped from the crack in the shell, but the dragonturtle simply smiled maliciously, throwing itself forward in a spin as it landed wobbly on it's back legs, coming down on all it's shell and nothing else, and then shooting it's legs and it's mouth forward, going to grab the beast's leg, not afraid of the lightning.

Burning turtle could be smelt in a slight bit from his action as he gripped the bull, and the dragonturtle held the bull still even after the the attack of Nando sent the Bull Summon boss skidding backwards. The turtle accompanied it for a couple dozen yards, before biting down. With luck it would severe the foot of the beast, in case it tried to get up.

The turtle landed upon the ground below the courtyard with a grunt, blood dripping from his lip.

"Crazy ass humans, summoning me out of the water, into a battle like this. If there weren't so many other boss summons around I'd have a complaint to give that kid, even if I'm the one that revealed our contract.”

Then the beast leaped back upon the palace, landing with a rumble, sending Warrusu splashing into the puddle he had sat in, right out of the puddle and the path of a lightning bolt that fell from the skies moments from then.

[1210 Words]

[17341 Total Words.]

[Azure]

His steps hardened in to the mist of dust spewed up from the engulfing flame, the raging earth mutilated beneath his feet mutated the even pathway laid out on the ground. His eyes did not wince at the unmistakable sight of the puppet growing in to a pillar of fire; a trap Yatako figured that would be rigged inside of the puppet. The whole ordeal seemed a bit too easy for a guardian of the Raikage, judging off of the gasoline complex; explosion would be triggered relentlessly regardless, however, Yatako decided to be the person to catch the flame on the dangerous liquid. The Hyuuga only hoped his counterpart saw the impending trap as he did and would react in order to save his life. Catching the scope of the mysterious figure's chakra pattern leaving illuminating light, nearly translucent to the mixture of smoke and dust; Yatako decided that further pursuit of the chakra reading would be pointless, were he to become victim to the surge of fire erupting behind him. If there was one explosive traps, there were bound to be more.

Halting his pace, Yatako's brain sent a message to his entire tenketsu system to export his chakra in to the ground around him and also to form in the palm of his hand in order to surmise a defensive tactic against the hurling flame. As his feet skid on the uneven ground, his fist smashed in to the ground, releasing the chakra, along with a spray of dirt and dust in to the air. His feet slid deeper into the ground, while the airborne earth rained down on him. Sucking in an adequate amount of chakra in to his lungs, he prepared for a momentary quarantine from the outer world to preserve his life. The earth hardened in to an encasing shell, as the explosions triggered from the wash of fire spread outward, setting off the explosion across the field. Yatako's hearing was muffled, but he could feel the vibrations of the earth being shaken up violently by the obscure tremors released from the explosions.

After the tremors ceased their cries, Yatako dismantled his makeshift armor, springing up from the ground to catch the sight of the attacker. His voice wheezed in to the palm of his gloves, spewing out debris of destruction. The Hyuuga's milky eyes viewed the spectacle of the revealed soldier. Glasses, reflecting the broken light of the moon, pitched on his smudged face topped off by violet hair. His face was hung like a sage, elderly with mystic wisdom. As he spoke, Yatako attributed this man with great wisdom and endearment for the NCIA. He appeared to have deep loyalness to the Raikage, speaking of him only with a twinge of annoyance at his rushed plans. His lips foreshadowed the apocalyptical end of Kouta and Yatako, preaching about his immortal traps that will end the lives of all shinobi present. He even spoke of suicide, as an inevitable subject.

Yatako perceived this moment as something of great caution. Not a soul could tell what was about to happen, as time seemed to mock their ignorance. His body was ensnared by the fissured trap previously functional. His requiem was bitter sweet; even to his dying action he seemed to have the clever smite in his tongue and a taste of charm. A slice of paper dropped from his cloak, Yatako registered the paper to resemble an explosive tag. As it fell in to the hefty air blanket, Yatako felt a premonition of decay creep over him. The way he spoke earlier hinted towards more traps. This piece of paper has to have some significance, one deadly enough to seize our lives. I won't be able to stop it in time, especially with the foolproof conviction he displayed. I hope Kouta is smart in defending against this. The Hyuuga took sudden action, pushing a small gust of wind to intercept the tag, suspending it for only a few more seconds, but dire enough time to muster up the elements key to ensure survival. Yatako leaked his chakra in to the ground, picking up particles of dust and dirt, riding on air gusts surrounding him. He would need to utilize all of the elements he had under his control to survive the attack. Yatako was fully aware that the more oxygen present, the greater amount of energy the fire would have. Crackling vibrations would come from his body; he could feel the massive wave of chakra being pushed through his body; his hands gleaming like small lights in the darkness. The slip of paper had fallen to intercept the ground, laying there momentarily, biding its cynical time. The maniacal smile refused to smudge from the face of the puppet master.

A flare storm shot upward in to the heavens almighty; raining its debris lit aflame in to the atmosphere, cascading and flooding the area with a demonic fire wash. The radiating heat extended its grasp to intercept any struggle produced by the surrounding living organisms. All were to be left to ash. As the cataclysm unfolded, Yatako's body released a torrent of white chakra would of his body that was set in to motion. He twirled; chakra excelling out of his tenketsu at a larger and faster rate than what he had even been able to accomplish before.

Hakkehsou: Kaiten

(Divine Cyclone)

He wasn't sure if this were a safe maneuver to expend the quantity of chakra he was currently, but he hadn't a choice. In the face of death, he wiggled his way to attempt survival. The dust previously kicked up by the now absent wind caught the astounding pull by the spinning Hyuuga to provide an additional shield. From within the sphere of chakra, his robes protected him even further from the pounding embers and temperatures. His spatial orientation senses were shaken out of control and the Hyuuga felt a dizzy state amounting in his brain, but by force of will, he suspended it momentarily. As the heat died down and the flames expunged, the shield of Yatako began to be swept away from vision by ash and debris.

Time past and the pushed wind fell back in to the world; creating soot filled airwaves. From one of the sound waves dusted by dirt, "Right here.” Answered a call beckoned towards his person. He stood, dusty and liming, some burn marks were evident, with some skin turned dark; however the burns did not amount to much in comparison to what could be. His body slumped a bit, recovering from the expulsion of chakra he used to survive the blast of the attack. His milky eyes drifted to Kouta, his smile reflected his emotions to see his comrade living. Yatako recognized the amounted reddish hue scorn on Kouta's skin from the release of the celestial gates. His Byakugan saw the effects the gates had on his body and Yatako was impressed a Kouta's ability to maintain them. "I'm glad to see you've survived Kouta. The man seemed to know you and yet he seemed a bit too easily swayed to give up his life. Something feels a bit off…” Yatako's voice trailed off as his eyes gazed at the spectacle of the large summons roaming the field. He could see patched of the transdimensional break repairing itself only to ripped open again soon enough. A stray thought popped in to his mind, what if enough summons were summoned at once that the rip was permanent? Could our worlds collide?

Peering at the epidemic existing with battling the Raikage, something stuck out remarkably at Yatako. "Kouta, Syaoran seems to be faltering slightly, but that'snot such a surprise given the Raikage. However, there doesn't seem to be any order to our warriors, they seem like they're not in communication and striking as they see fit. Once we recover, we need to join them, only with the two of us; we'll remain together and plan tactics. Agreed?”

[1329 words]

[9181 total]

[Cho Hakkai]

Hakkai listened as Gamabunta spoke about the Sage Chakra. Such an interesting idea. Using the energy from the surround area, from nature itself, to use a technique? This method must have been quite difficult to achieve.

‘Just imagine the possibilities one can achieve with such awesome power. Nature has the capabilities to destroy everything and give life at the same time. But…'

Hakkai looked up at the Raikage. The power he was developing was this type of chakra. How he was able to learn such a way is still beyond Hakkai since he had just learned of this type of chakra only recently. He had only been doing a small amount of work, allowing his massive bull do most of the damage while he made the team's life even more difficult. The lightning he had developed was unbelievable.

Hakkai was scared. He wasn't done building up chakra but even now if he were to send the power he had collected he would do major damage to the team. No wonder he was the Raikage. His power in Lightning was superior to anything Hakkai has and most likely will ever see. Hakkai stood there, dumbfounded and in awe. What attack is this Kirin? How can it be defeated?

In truth Hakkai had no idea of how to work with such overwhelming power. Hakkai needed to find out how the Raikage was able to master and hone his skills to this extent. Hakkai knew that this technique would eventually be aimed towards him. Since he hadn't attacked the Raikage and was only support as of right now, he might as well work on how he should go about this attack. A good offence is a strategy. Hakkai made several hand seals and around him a rather strong magnetic field began to develop. Hakkai may not be as powerful as the Raikage in terms of using lightning, but he's only used the thunder aspect of the element, rather than electricity. Maybe he wasn't as powerful in it… Maybe…

Hakkai took a step back as he moved his hands in a circular motion. Hakkai began to condense the electric field into a form of lightning, an orb shape. Though it had shape, the field would only grow a small amount to fit around the Raikage. Hakkai threw this orb at the side of the bull, a little bit of a distance from where the Raikage was. It would seem like Hakkai just attempted to hit the bull with an attack that proved unsuccessful since the Bull and the Raikage were busy with Syaoran and his bear.

Yaya was not amused by what Hakkai had just done and also not amused that her hammer had done little to no damage. She was getting angrier and angrier. Veins were bulding out of her fur in several areas, most notably seen in her neck. She jumped back, again making Hakkai scream like a little girl from the sudden shift in altitude and his stomach churning from the g-force. When she set on the ground she looked up at Hakkai and poked him, which hurt since her strength was greater than Hakkai's, and said, "Get the fun up! We aren't done.”

Hakkai, again on his knees, stood up slowly. He shook his head. The bull was rampaging the hell out of life.

Drip… Drip… Drip drip… drip drip drip drip

Hakkai felt the water get heavier on his body. His eyes opened up wide. He heard Raz yell at a man named Warrusu. Apparently he was the one who had summoned the massive rain to the area. Hakkai had a cold shiver run down his spine. There was little hope now. The lightning would send all the damage to everyone. Whoever this Warrusu person was couldn't have been thinking both sides of the fight. If water was intention, then he should have waited or asked for help from another being. His method was unorthodox and quite brash.

Hakkai's hair let down on his face but he nonetheless couldn't let go of the reason he came here. He wasn't going to get showed up by the Raikage and proved to be weak. Hakkai yelled down below him to Yaya.

"Yaya!” Hakkai said in a hurried voice. "Quick, stomp on the ground.” Yaya looked at him with a questioned look, but Hakkai more or less knew a strategy when he saw one. Hakkai nodded. The heavy rain had just begun. The topsoil was the only thing wet for the moment. Yaya raised her leg and slammed it down onto the ground. Chunks of broken rock rose into the air as well as a small amount of dust.

The moment the debris rose into the air, Hakkai made several hand seals and created for him armor made from said item. It was a variation of the armor of sand, but it became heavy with the addition of water being absorbed into it. Hakkai was fine with this. He would need as much protection as he could get from this idea he had.

Yaya yelled up at him, "What the hell? That was the only reason you made me do that? Are you fucking retarded?” Yaya was speaking out of her rage of course. Hakkai didn't bother with asking her to calm down because it would be useless. Hakkai shrugged at his massive panda. "Yaya, you'll see. Just trust me and get ready.”

Yaya shook her head. She wasn't going to stand idly by while the fucking bear did all of the work. She readied her pan and raised it in the air. Hakkai closed his eyes and winced as he fell to his knees and held onto Yaya's fur as tightly as possibly.

The raised pan made a roll of thunder. How, don't ask me. I'm only a narrator. She turned the pan so that it was vertical. Then, running at the bull she slammed the edge of her pan at the bulls testicular region…

"Pan Panpan!” Yelled Yaya.

Gamabunta was slammed with a bolt of lightning. Hakkai was worried for the old toad boss. His body was covered in a mucus and water. The electricity must have been painful dollar spent. He couldn't imagine what was going through everyone's head as this battle continued on. Syaoran had already gotten into close combat with the Raikage. Hakkai would soon enough, though not without a price. Raz was fighting his hardest, though it didn't seem like it was going to work very well. Hakkai took his sword out of its sheath. This battle didn't seem like it was in their favor, but Hakkai always better while playing with a handicap.

For god's sake he was set on fire.

11137

[Eechi-go]

"Yes….yes…it's almost complete!”

The man cackled to himself, feeling the emissary of Raijin feeding on the electric currents within several miles. Just a little longer, perhaps thirty more seconds, before this whole game of tag could end. His wrist throbbed, but it was nowhere near as bad as earlier, before he had burnt out the nerves. However, the unthinkable happened; Syaoran was but meters in front of him, swinging his palm towards the man's chest.

"Impossible…!”

He had completely forgotten about the trap Syaoran had lay down not too long ago. He believed them to be mere toys that had been flung from the boy's body in the heat of battle. Far too concentrated in his efforts to bring Kirin down from the skies, the man had no time to avoid the assault from the broken alchemy, his glowing fingers that burned a deep violet, baring the elemental kanji that would seal the man's chakra. The ageru clones would dissipate, as he was no longer capable of holding them on top of his chakra pool. Also, in turn, Kirin's scale would diminish. The fury of the Raikage grew, tossing his arm out, grasping Syaoran's throat, about ready to cave it in.

"You know not what you do you fool!!”

At this point, both Hakkai, Warrusu, Sy's summons let lose on the demonic bull that distracted them for so long. It was literally an overkill, as the beast's entrails burst into the sky, tinting the falling rain in a shade of red. This force was enough to level the palace, causing it to topple backwards, causing the Raikage to lose his footing, dropping Syaoran as he did so.

Through this, them an lost control of his storm, after a good few minutes of it pounding into the ninja below, allowing Warrusu to finally manipulate the electric charged rain to his will, piecing through the lightning shadow's body. It fluttered like a rag doll in the air, before finally catching his bearings as he fell, his arm raised towards the sky.

"INSOLENCE! YOUR ACTIONS SHALL DESTROY MANKIND! THIS ENDS NOW-!!!”

With all his might, the man swung his hand forward, and out from the clouds, the magnificent beast of lightning burst forward, letting out a tremendous shriek as it galloped across the sky. The earth shook from the pressure of this jutsu, quivering in fear of the beast. Though it was not as earth shatteringly powerful; it could still kill each and everyone of them if it had come into contact.

".:Raiton: Kirin:."

[Lightning Release; Kirin]

The chakra beast cackled madly, flying down like a lightning bolt directly at Syaoran, before curving around the palace area, attempting to engulf each ninja within, not stopping for a moment. The walls around the palace were torn down like they were nothing, as the beast exploded large amounts of electricity outwards, numbing all who were close enough, before finally blowing them to kingdom come. The beast would dance through fang, leaving a trail of death and destruction, piercing through all three walls that kept the city so perfectly guarded. The range of the attack would of course branch out to the entire village, due to it conducting along the rain, so almost everyone was in danger of being harmed, but no one outside the palace would be walls would be in enough danger to die from the jutsu, merely wounded, perhaps severely burned.

Had any survived this assault, now would be the time to end it once and for all, while the Raikage could move no longer.

As Raz remained wrapped in Gamabunta's tongue, he'd begin to shudder now. His body had reached it's limit; his chakra was all but near depletion, his flesh was burned and bruised, and his mind was weary and unfocused. It didn't help that he was getting a chill from the pouring rain and numbingly cold wings that bit at his seared flesh. Of course, this could because Korin was brandishing his coat, which he was not used to living without. His eyes trailed up towards the Raikage, who he snarled at a bit, until before his very eyes, it appeared as if Syaoran might have just ended the battle once and for all. The jutsu he utilized seemed familiar, though he'd never seen it in combat, he was sure he read about it back in the academy. For such a dense moron sometimes, the kid loved reading history books and biographies. Perhaps it was because it gave him the chance to look at the world through another's less colorful eyes.

The sheer might of Nando, Yaya, and Kameryuu bewildered Raz, and yet on the inside, he wasn't very surprised that they held such powers locked within themselves. Over the course of his shin obi career, Raz came into contact with numerous amounts of ninja animals, and in some way, he learned something from each one. It may have been small, but it ranged to enormous amounts of knowledge, such as learning of sage chakra, and even unlocking his own inner element.

The palace tumbled backwards, slamming into the earth, crushing dozens of buildings that dare attempt to stand in it's way. That and the fact that the Raikage had finally relinquished control over the storms, for now, allowed Warrusu to somewhat stop the incoming rain from harming them anymore. This seemed to be checkmate for the Raikage; they had won-

He thought this far too soon, as Raikou howled in anger, Kirin burst through the clouds, lighting up the sky with it's eerie glow, the crackles of the jutsu hurting the boy's ears. Both Gamabunta and Raz knew it was only a matter of time before it collided with them, so the toad released his tongue from Raz, before beginning to speak.

"Go get that girl, now! You'll have to hide in my mouth! I don't know how much good it'll do, but I might be able to hop over it-!!”

That was highly possible, considering he was a toad after all, and they were most known for their leaping ability. Raz nodded, tossing himself onto Gamabunta's nostrils, using all the strength he had left to get atop the ninja toad. There he saw Korin, which as always made him crack a tiny smile, even if he did look significantly worse then he had a minute or so ago.

"Korin, come on! We gotta get away from this thing!”

He cried out, and before he'd even wait for her to reply, he grasped her hand, tugging her body towards his own. He could hear the crying of the heavens approach them, and with one leap of fate, he held her tight, saying softly.

"Just hold your breath…”

He jumped backwards off Gamabunta's head, trusting the toad to release his tongue when the moment was right. He hoped the girl had enough trust in him to not freak out either, though, that could have gone either which way. As if the boss summon could read his mind, he extended his pierced tongue, catching the two on the rather damp, fleshy thing, before quickly retracting them into his mouth. There, it would seem as everything went dark, obviously. The smell of smoke lingered in the toad's mouth from it's pipe, and the warmth from his body heat caressed their skin, which would feel nice if they could suspend the thought of what was warming them in the first place. Raz held her tight, incase anything might befall them, in hopes he'd be the one to suffer, rather then her.

As Gamabunta watched the Kirin come his way after terrorizing everyone else, he grumbled to himself, his legs tense, awaiting the right moment to leap. One…two…three! The toad launched himself into the air, atleast twice as high as the palace once stood tall. However, this wasn't completely successful. The jutsu's numbing properties transferred itself through the rain, numbing Gamabunta, causing him to crash to earth, his body not cooperating. A groan, before Raz knew what happened.

"This is…our last chance. Now everyone's going to attack the Raikage while he's immobilized. Korin…I can't do this on my own, my chakra's almost all out, so I need you. Create a small ball of fire for me in your hand, and I'll create a tiny whirlwind. Just trust in me, and lets finish this together…okay?”

He smiled, his hands grasping her own for a moment, before pulling his palm back only slightly, beginning to stir his wind chakra in one of his hands. There was no going it alone; together they'd stand.

1,609 Words

21,379 Total

[Warr]

The Heavens roar with their disapproval of this situation.

This situation where the Shadow of Lightning, this man of beastly power.

This man who the sight of brings forward an instance memory of the God of Seas and Storms.

This man who uses the storm itself as if was an extension of his being, who fights with the strength of a tailed beast, or the strength of the gods.

This man who brought about a storm of strife and change on this world, this man who claims to be the chosen of a god of thunder.

Has taken our world in a stranglehold of fear and hate, of his will and of power, of nothing else. Like the unrelenting seas, like Susanoo.

Those words floated through the mind of the Umikoi heir-prince as he watched the scene unfold around him as it did, as he watched the rain of blood from the Bull Summon as the bear, panda, and dragon-turtle he and his allies had brought forth attacked the Bull at the same time. His breath was steady as he watched it, his mind feeling the tugging push of the immaterial extension of his body that was the static charged rain above, his kekkei genkei running at near top performance to keep it up, the boy's breath quick and quicker with every moment, as he watched this scene of mayhem he had only read about in books on history and mythology when he was younger.

Mythology which referred to Susanoo as a great hero, on top of being a god. A figure whom ruled over the seas and storms, a figure whom slayed a eight headed snake simply to save a maiden. A hero who used wit, over strength.

As this battle continued, the sounds all around him making it easy to imagine the heaven's themselves muttering their disapproval of the scene, of the Raikage not going down even after his summon fell, -the Raikage simply gripping the throat of the Iwagakuran Jounin whom had lead them all to this point. Alchem Syaoran, the last of his clan, a man who Warrusu did not know a lot about, but already felt the beginnings of a connection, a mutual respect for.- Warrusu's mind could not hold under the pressure, and the normally focused young man's mind began to focus on the tangent of Susanoo, the God of Seas and Storms, brother of Amaterasu and Tsukiyomi, the sun and the moon. A God who was the ruler of all the seas, a god who was full of rage, but who would not have done things like the Raikage did, not with the pretenses he did.

The boy continued to think on Susanoo, his concentration going over the fable, going over the challenge of Susanoo to his sister and his rage and eventual exile from heaven, descending to the the mundane land and going out of his way, for even earthbound, he was a god, to help an elderly couple who begged for help to save their eighth daughter, from a beast known as Yamata-no-Orochi, the eight-headed snake, whom had ate them. Without qualms, the god of the seas and storms used his mind to defeat the beast, tricking it with Sake, before severing it's heads. He was a man who would not use power for powers sake, not a man who would force his will as if it was the whole of heavens. The young man clenched his fist unconsciously as he thought of noble Susanoo, and this shadow of lightning, the 'Raikage', who claimed to be the chosen of the Lightning God Raijin, Inabikari Raikou looking so much like him, and trying to flaunt such power over storms.

Blood trickled from his lip as his dwelled in his mind, biting down on his lip subconsciously as he held back a simple, rebel yell, something his being wanted to send out without qualm. If this situation was not as desperate as it was, as quick as it was, the boy would have likely stayed within his mind, his body, and mind wanting to do something drastic, but his will unable to as the Raikage stood strong even after the fisher-nin's last ditch effort to defeat him.

The crackling sound of electricity sparked something within the young man, something he was not sure was there. His eyes opened, to feel something that was not yet there, and without a thought, the boy reacted. He ran up the back of the Frog, and grabbed the Glass Princess, rolling off the beast and landing with a thud and a grunt, his leg muscles pulled slightly from the crazy move, but his mind assured. He saw the attack, this beastly lightning attack, in the sky, he felt it coming, he felt the imposing strength it held, and he reacted. His strength was not strength alone. That was why he had made things this way, he had been using his brain, but not using it as his primary weapon, as his teachers so many times before had tried to teach him. With a grunt, the boy used his brain in both senses of the word. His chakra poured into his mind, to the place where his kekkei genkei's abilities originated, and he moved. The water from upon him and upon the Glass Witch moved, and a puddle from nearby moved as well. They did not move away, to stop the static shock, instead, they moved like a barrier, they moved exactly as Warrusu ordered them to, his mind felt the water move, he felt the water move, and with a jerk of his mind, they moved like arms to protect from a punch.

They moved, and the water around held strong, the boy not damp, the glass princess not damp, a shield of water to insulate them from the blast, the water some fifteen feet away from them at every side, and covering them in a half dome, no water even upon the ground, the boy making sure of that, his breath getting quicker and quicker as he watched this go on, as he fought against the sting which he felt metaphysically in his mind, the lightning chakra hurting the water, and making him feel the hurt as well. His breath got quicker, and quicker, and then it was over, the storm of lightning had passed, he was standing in the eye of the storm, the origin point. The place where one was most safe, the place which could only be gained by enduring.

His eyes lost their shimmering maelstrom, as his brain cut off his kekkei genkei, water dropping all around him, landing in puddles and creating splashes nearby him, that sizzled into steam. The Glass Princess let out a moan which was so soft the exact tone's meaning was lost to the boy. He placed her upon the ground, looking at her for only a millisecond, before looking at the battle scene, looking at the wreckage around him, looking at the fact that he was standing on one of the few ramparts still there after the combined force of the Bull being decimated, and the technique used by the Raikage. Another hurried breath escaped him, as he noticed the Kameryuu in the distance.

The dragon-turtle had used a method much like Warrusu's to escape the blast, and could be seen leaving the method now, stretching its arms out of it's shell even now, it's snout erect as it looked at that demon of storms that stood in the clothes of men. A rumble like waves hitting the shore fiercely could be heard as the beast looked at him, withdrawing it's arms from the shell, and looking from the beast to Warrusu, knowing he was there and still leaving, because the Kameryuu had not returned to the realm it originated from. It saw the boy, and gave him a smile of confidence in the child's skill, seeing him there mostly unharmed, though noticing the slight limp the boy stood with.

It smiled, and one could tell from it's eyes it felt it had chosen the right moment in time to show itself and it felt it had chosen the right boy to reveal the contract to. A boy of it's own style.

Warrusu looked away from the beast after a moment, a moment that seemed like an eternity, the necessary time to explain his thanks to the beast for its assistance thus far. The Fisher-Prince limped from his perch, seeing the fallen stones around himself, and he simply closed his eyes, activating his kekkei genkei, and using the same moat which stood at the edge of this rampart, almost falling into a beautiful waterfall, to be his bridge, and to carry the Glass Princess outside of the Palace, to a place of safety on the grounds, where the stones would not collapse upon her body. He landed with a thud, focusing more on the girl than himself as he moved, but his hurling of himself by the water sent him not far from Gamabunta's collapsed form which the boy marveled at. He had read the stories of the great Toad Boss' adventures with the likes of Jiraiya of Konohagakure and Uzumaki Naruto of Konohagakure, and he knew the beast had immense strength. It surprised him that the attack effected the Toad to the point it knocked him over, but it did not take his mind into thoughts of pity or distract him in that way. He knew the Toad Boss was stronger than this.

"Raz, Korin! Come on now, we've got to do this quickly, before he can regain his strength, and we've got to do this together, as any one of us attacking him won't do a thing, it'll take us all! Hurry, because..." the boy's shout paused, and his eyes looked at the Raikage, Raikou, with killing intent, his kekkei genkei still active. "This is the End." He roared forward, channeling his wind and lightning chakras along his throat to amplify his words towards the Raikage, and giving his words the slight sound of cackling lightning, as the boy was no expert in the use of Sound Ninjutsu, yet.

I don't want to hear your cries anymore, I don't want to hear your anger. I just want to hold you in my arms, and enjoy this moment in time, reveling in the possibilities of the future. So quiet your fears and hate, enjoy the moments of life, let me be the sword arm to protect you, let me be the one who'll see you in the end of night. Anything to stand in our way will see a fight, life or death, dark or light.

Thoughts, sincere whispers to fate and life, to his dreams, to his homeland, to his people. He truly believed this the end of everything he had been fighting against, if they moved quick enough. The smell of the instantly grilled flesh of the Bull Boss Summon smelled of Grilled Steak, the Smells of Victory were already inviting them to the future, they just had to finish the job.

The Smell of Steak was wonderful, and the beast apparently tasted wonderful too, as the Kameryuu bit down into it's flesh and let out a moan of happy tasting, a mocking move to the Raikage to further distract him.

In prediction of his own words, the young Kirigakuran Jounin slapped his hands together, forming a shape resembling the 'rock' in rock paper scissors, and closed his eyes. He activated Mizushin once more, and felt a tingle in his lobes as he did, feeling the water around him even now, feeling the rain nearby, and deciding that he would not use lightning for this technique, this movement.

He would make sure it was the end for the Raikage, and if he waited for the others it might not be true, he moved gathering the waters to create a water manipulation; Power Spear, as many of his techniques utilized, but instead of topping it off, he simply threw his fire chakra in, making it a swirling missle of water and steam, a technique he viewed as enough to finish off the Raikage, but not tinged with the element the Raikage seemed to be all but apart of.

"It ends!”

His missile was fired off as the last syllable was uttered.

[2067 Words]

[19408 Total Words.]

Edited October 28, 2008 by Warr

[Cloudnine]

Korin couldn't help but gape at the misty red plume scaling the dark heights of the night. She tried to make out the figures veiled in the carnage: that of Raikage and Syaoran. Her eyes scouted the poor light to no avail, the scene only illuminated by the volatile blinding light of the strange teetering, degenerating city above. A shockwave followed and brought in the sounds of collapsing. She felt her shared chakra pool dwindling, a sure sign that the bull summon's defeat quickly wiped the clones she'd stationed as extra healing hands.

She found the Raikage again. Well, the sound of his enraged bellows found her ears first. Eyes turned to the source of the irrepressible power, Korin found his arms raised towards the skies in ominous signal of… dread. From the bleak skies, a colossal creature descended in blood curdling wails. Its rampage trailed a morbid wake, Shiretsu bellowed in the distance. Apron-Korin not present to restrain the bear's minute frenzy, the beast was subdued by the lighting-crafted creature- the electricity flayed the shaggy hide from the she-bear's shoulders and face, sent the two unconscious NCIA passengers on Shiretsu's back past an uncertain Limbo. Her tongue lolled as she tried to charge, tried to engage with the deadly monstrosity so many times her size. Yet every time she struggled to run, hamstrung joints weighed her to the ground, half propped up on a good paw. She wailed, hoping the end would come soon; nothing could be more shameful than this kind of sidelined defeat.

Her daze was interrupted by Raz's hasty grab for her hand. Cold and clammy, her fingers automatically responded. Legs set into action soon after, following his strides and… bounding off the toad after him. Just a moment airborne before Gamabunta caught them. Her body went rigid as the toad's mouth sealed, the two of them in tow. It was damp, dark… odd. All was still before the great beast prepped and sprung, the force sending the now almost empty contents of Korin's stomach to line the bottom of her stomach. They reached the top of the leap, and the free fall reversed the disorder in her gut. Grandly dazed now, Korin remained petrified for the journey down.

She reached to touch his palm for a moment, finding strength through the queasiness of this ordeal. "Yeah,” a taut smile. The girl put her hands together and spun a spool of silver thread again, linking her chakra pool to Raz's. From her cupped palms she then conjured a dose of chakra to ignite into flames. It singed lightly and dimly illumined the dank cavern they had sheltered in. A breath and she began to set aside a large quantity of chakra in preparation for her own contribution to the final step of liberation.

--

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[Kouta]

Kouta originally nodded, accepting Yakato’s strategy as he watched a battle he couldn’t participate in. The summons were monstrous creatures, all assaulting the bull summon from every angle, crushing the beast in a single, solitary assault that more than defined the word overkill. The attack shook his foundation, and Kouta found himself leaping from side to side as the palace began to collapse under his feet. ”No problem!” Kouta said, looking down at his hands, now blood red with the circulation of oxygen that had increased his body’s ability to fight. He smiled a devious one as the bull died, returning to whatever ethereal plane it had come from. In spite, however, the Raikage loosed a mighty bolt of lightning, the fantastic thunder kitten Kirin, who blazed around the palace, attempting a final, killing blow to all of the ninja in the fight.

Kouta had to say, he was dumstruck. The beast swirled, striking down at syaoran like a monstrous behemoth, crashing to the ground and taking off again around the palace, destroying what was left of the grounds, and flinging itself at Kouta’s general direction. For the first time in a long while, his wit failed him. Kouta was going to die. He stood, rooted to the spot, closing his eyes and beginning to pray.

”May I be watched in heaven. May my soul be spared. May my merciless killings be regarded as necessary to life. May all those whom I’ve wronged give forgiveness, on this, my death bed. May my body’s life feed the desert, and restore to life is barren wastelands.” he began to pray, an archaic prayer of soldiers from his clan, wishing, as they believe long ago, that their body and spirit would govern over the desert as sandstorms, rain, and good fortune. He didn’t attempt to move, but instead prepared himself for his final sacrificial action.

”NO! I WON’T DIE HERE!” Gishou’s words screamed through his head, and Kouta had no say in matter as Gishou assumed his limbs, echoing the same cry his high pitched squeal. His eyes washed purple immediately, and his body hunched into Gishou’s signature position, a complete 360 from his original posture and personality. ”You want to die! Well I don’t! Now, let me show you how to live, you incompetent fool!” Gishou was hysterical, and Kouta was in a mental strangehold, unable to do anything as Gishou took every fiber of his body over, leaving no room to compromise. With no effort, as if he had been able to do it for centuries, Gishou found the fourth celestial gate…and demolished it, metaphorically. In seconds, a large wave of chakra expanded, and Kouta simply had to watch as his body streaked to the right, a bolt of lightning missing. He continued moving, dodging the lightning, and every branching, arching blast that branches from the dangerous lances that glanced off of the great thunder beast. It was unable to touch him in his enhanced form, his body moving faster than the chakra-heavy lightning could. Were it true lightning, uninfluenced, this might have been harder, but the chakra made it slower than normal, and the beast was destined to miss as Gishou contorted Kouta’s body, dashing and dodging like a circus performer to avoid every last inch of lightning. Finally, the beast passed, and Kouta was safe, his breathing ragged from the use, but Gishou eager for more. AH HAHAHAHAHAHAHA! I’m tired of waiting, Kouta! Let me show you what you can really do!” Gishou exclaimed wrapping Benihime around Kouta’s waist and dashing forward with a speed inhuman, boosted by the power of Kouta’s gate.

He leapt into the air, his demonic arm transforming back into Zangetsu, the giant, two handed sword that Kouta had salvaged from Suna’s underground betrayal, a literal clan war that took months to piece back into a resistance. Now Kouta had the fabulous weapon as barrier to hold off Gishou, however well that worked. Gishou didn’t care, and as he arched in a mad-dash towards the immobile Raikage, Gishou had only death on the brain.

With a mighty swing, Gishou howled, his sword erupting in a white hot burst of energy. As if eager, the energy tried to surge forward, but Gishou held it, dumping even more of Kouta’s chakra directly into the assault. ”Go! Scar! Use your mighty instinct! Just KILL HIM!” Gishou howled in glee, swinging the sword, letting the attack finally fly from the blade, the crescent shaped attack of pure chakra aiming to rend the Raikage immediately in half. ”GETSUGA TENSHOU!” The clown-like version of Kouta roared, then reversing the angle of the blade, letting his jump end in a downward arc immediately behind the blade of chakra, his sword poised to ram right through the immobile Raikage. With Five of the Eight Celestial Gates pumping power through his body, and Gishou’s immortal, insanely powerful form controlling him, Kouta had become what his potential deemed: an efficient killing machine.

[827 Words]

[5,295 Words Total]

Edited October 28, 2008 by Kouta

[Cho Hakkai]

Thunder… Lightning… Death… Oh my.

Hakkai watched as Syaoran's attack was successful against the Raikage. This had in fact been an interesting fight to watch. Such interesting things happened. What happened not many people would assume could be real. But alas, it was. All these people that were here knew it. Each country's representative would know the full on story of what happened here. Hakkai hoped, for a second of course, that scholars would only be able to take the full on grasp of this battle into word. Then again, words can only go so far.

Feelings are hard to express through words. The majority of romantic novels are the same when you get down to it. They express the same emotion, just through different words. But never can they truly grasp what one person is feeling. The same goes with battles. No one can show what the members of the winning side feel, they can only say. When it comes to situations that are not every day, it's quite difficult to put yourself in those shoes.

Yaya's attack was successful as well. Her attack at the bull's groin area, in combination with the other summonings attacks, ended the bull completely. Hakkai wondered why it didn't just poof away like the majority of summonings do, but then again there have been a lot of things that happened through this battle that Hakkai could not explain. Their side was winning. Huzzah hurray! We are winning today!

However the Raikage did not seem pleased about what had been going on. First Syaoran had chopped off a hand of his and now his chakra was completely sealed. To have such a disadvantage at this point of the fight was not good. The odds were against him. But regardless, he still had his attack that he had been saving up energy for. Kirin as Gamabunta had called it. It was now just an entity existing in the sky. A massive amount of energy with no longer any form of restraint. Let us thank any form of higher being that because he no longer had control over it that it had lost power.

That however, did not make it a threat. Hakkai knew that no matter what happened that this technique would do massive damage. It took its own form, like that of a dragon. It laughed, as if it had gained life. Hakkai was worried for this beast had no sense of right or wrong, just destruction. That which does not have a conscious is one of the most dangerous things in the world. Something that would be more dangerous would be a volcano. Or a meteor. Both are pretty deadly.

The rain that surrounded the battlefield allowed this technique to attack everyone. Hakkai knew that everyone who was this close to the attack would get severely harmed should they get hit. Hakkai worried about Syaoran and Raz. They were doing the most damage against the Raikage and thus the closest. Hakkai couldn't let them get harmed. And thus, his plan had come to.

Hakkai stood up and began to run as quickly as he could across Yaya's head. With a mighty thrust of his legs, he jumped off. As he fell quickly, he yelled, "Yaya! Catch me!”

Yaya, scared that Hakkai had gone mad out of nowhere did in fact catch him in her free paw. His legs absorbed most of the damage that would have come from such a fall. Hakkai stood up as if nothing had hurt him. He looked up at Yaya and smile while giving a thumbs up. "Don't worry,” he said in a reassuring voice. "I have an idea of what I'm doing. Just trust me.” Yaya, now her anger gone due to the fact that the mutha fucka of a bull is dead, looked at him with worried eye but nodded.

"Now Yaya, throw me towards the Raikage and Kirin!” Yaya did so, throwing him to seem like he was a speeding. Hakkai turned his body so that his legs were in front of him and his sword between his legs.

Hakkai concentrated on what was before him. He needed to absorb as much of Kirin as he could to help out his comrades. Hakkai began to send electricity into his sword to attempt to make it into a conductor. And it worked. The power of Kirin began to absorb into Hakkai. This of course wouldn't come without a cost. Hakkai, still flying through the air, began to tense up. His muscles hurt as he began to glow brightly from the sheer amount of energy he was taking in. His body was getting hurt. His armor began to crack and dry out despite the amount of water in and around Hakkai's armor.

The lightning began to dissolve his armor. A good amount of the Kirin attack had been taken. It became smaller and the ferocity of it dimmed. Hakkai moved through the air, now closer and closer to the Raikage. Syaoran could not face the lightning beast on his own so Hakkai needed to help. Continuing to glow brightly from the amount of electricity in his body that was not that of his own, Hakkai soared through the air. His monocle cracked from the pressure around him. His muscles burned from the amount of energy stored in them. The moment he landed he would have to release all this energy else he would simply cave in and most likely die from the absurd amount of force he currently had.

Again, Hakkai placed his legs in front of him, ready to hit the ground. Hakkai raised his sword high over his head. The energy in him began to move and grow stronger. Hakkai's radiance that surrounded him grew. Hakkai was putting his own energy into this attack.

And he began to swing his sword. A massive bolt of lightning form from Hakkai's blade gaining a green like tint to it. His muscles bulged as he attempted to move the force. More and more energy was being put into it until Hakkai hit the ground, not that far away from the Raikage himself. Hakkai was not afraid anymore of what could happen. He had a chance to help end this and god damn it; he was going to use it.

A clack was made as Hakkai hit the ground. With a strong force Hakkai slammed his sword of energy down at the Raikage. The blade of lightning had gained a majestic look to it. The ground beneath Hakkai's feet cracked. Hakkai then yelled, to both release the pain he had been carrying and to also finish his attack,

Celestial World Strike!

(Tenjoukai Higyou)

(1114 words)

12,251 word total

Edited October 25, 2008 by Cho Hakkai

[Azure]

• • •

Haruyuki stood among the mentally ill, brought about by the negative consequence of direct and indirect substances of war. Throughout his life, he had been faced with several sociological and psychological contradictions, which were suppressed in his mental subconscious. In the developmental stages in his culturally defined childhood, his mind and body had to compensate with the extra specimen living inside of his body; which in turn affected nearly every aspect of the boy. Years in to his adolescence, the figure responsible for his careful metamorphosis had been swept away from him, leaving his brain and personality to require itself, piece by piece. Such actions ripped open the threshold between consciousness and sub consciousness. The wound had been small and at first, miniscule differences were obvious, as he struggled to find his own identity. As was true for most children his age, but the definition of children was changing, the humans with the ability he had were not typical attributed with his age. As such, his society treated him differently and he was brought in to a separate culture. In order to keep the struggle under wraps, his conscious brain often shut itself down momentarily, leaving Haruyuki stunned and struck in awe, out of focus in the physical realm. As was his current situation. There were always strange occurrences with his life, his brain developed the adaptation to be linked with Shougo's and in turn, allowed for unnatural processing and changing. This was his life, the conflicting Hisame, until a grand rack pierced through the sky; skewering the battlefield with abnormalities. Ashes to ashes, dust to dust; the shattering sound was the catalyst for his subconscious to break through completely. He had always been haunted by fear, negativity and weakness. To which he always seemed to shy away; but subconscious he didn't. His brain suppressed the terrible thoughts produced in its thought processing. And as the states of consciousness shifted and altered; Haruyuki took another turn in his life. One of clarity, one of reason; marking him as an individual. All along, he had fought the very natural element he utilized without realizing it. That fighting had stopped, just in time for when it counted.

The Heavens strung a cry across sky, bellowing the entrance of unclean substances. The cool drops of rain fell on to his cool skin once again, allowing extra stimuli to awaken the Hisame from his enduring trance. The glaze affixed across his eyes was wiped away and the world bore angered feelings of twisted action. Battle, blood and destruction ran rampant across the field, but Haruyuki's icy eyes did not move from their perch on his face, staring through the unyielding rain than ran down the atmosphere and replayed the memory of multiple figures of the same origin danced across the previous force field. His brain replayed the moment in his mind's eye generously for him, explaining to him why he now felt the eerie rain once again. Visions of a familiar spear broke through the barrier raised by the Iwagakure force to ensure safety of not only the Resistance warriors, but society outside of the protective walls. As thunder and lighting cracked in the distance, providing a new light, burning in the lids of his eyes, he saw one figure, to which he affixed the entire calamity that occurred.

That barrier had protected us from the conduction of the thunderstorm from the outside of the force field. It protected those outside of the barrier from the range and power of our attacks. It contained us all in this barrier for protection and concentration, now all entities are free to roam as they please. That was a foolish move. Granted, the rains redirection had proved positive, however, it was not without a secondary maneuver. I fear that was a grave mistake Warrusu, something that could cost us not this battle, but far worse. The airways to electricity are barred open, only by luck's hand may we survive this catastrophe.

Despite the amounting impatience and annoyance, reborn towards the Umikoi, Haruyuki did not anger. He did not succumb to the emotion, nor dwell on its nature, regardless of how negatively or strongly he felt of his assumed comrade's performance. It was in this moment that his maturity soured higher than ever before, along with his self concept. He no longer cared without a shadow of a doubt of how people perceived of hi in the world. Of all the conflicting sociological and psychological elements that studded his integration in to society, he disowned it all. There were no longer any bonds to hold him. The initiation in to a true Hisame had finally come to a close, Haruyuki had developed a full identity to which he would call himself.

The Hisame ignored all other incoming information and focused solely on the Raikage. Even the crimson hued rain did not disturb his focus on the monarch. He held his tongue, for speaking would only impair the thought process and distract any who listened. The battle had switched in to a second by second ambition for survival. The encroaching roar the Raikage let out was succeeded by the quake of the planet itself. Beneath his feet, rattled the soil of the planet, preparing to ground the greatest concentration of lighting apparent in many, many years.

This was the epitome of the phasing ‘do or die', for if nothing was done, they were dead. The Raikage used his last efforts to muster up the behemoth storm to ravage whatever came in its pathways. There really was no escaping this storm, for it held the entire dream of the empire within its grizzly cackle. Knowing full well of electricity's preference with metallic beings, Haruyuki felt around his entire stock he wore and discarded all metallic objects in his possession. Feeling the rain cascade around him, his brain registered the logic that anything touched by the rain had a higher chance of being singed by the storm than those dry; but the likeliness of full avoidance was extremely slim. Gathering the water particles around him, Haruyuki mustered up his chakra while forming a classic string of seals.

·:: Makyō Hyō Shō ::·

(Demonic Mirror Ice Crystals)

He was only in the need of one ice mirror, but the focus of the single mirror had the augmentation of twenty other mirrors. Its placement was beneath his feet, with durability and thickness, along with near perfect shine and luster. The Hisame sank in to the depths of the mirror, avoiding the roaring lightning, tearing up its terrorism throughout Fang. As the electric demon passed by Haruyuki, the water in the mirror, as well as around him had caught the flare of the storm, releasing a magnitude of strength, tearing at the ice mirror. Its base began to become inflicted with small cracks and chinks, but the mirror in which held Haruyuki was intact. The outer shell was pulverized, but Haruyuki remained unscathed, but he felt the shock of lingering static as he passed through the threshold in to the true world once again. His eyes darted around, until he found Raz, Korin and Warrusu. Haruyuki joined up to the three, preparing to throw his contribution in to the mix of the Raikage's cocktail of demise.

As he watched Korin and Raz spin their chakra, his own hands began to twirl. He mustered up a great deal of his remaining chakra to create a few of his newest deadly weapons, fit for demolishing the atrocious ruler. His right hand formed seals all their own, creating what seemed like magic.

·:: Hari-Yuki: Hyouga Kurisutaru Shuriken ::·

(Crystal Snow Type: Boreal Crystal Shuriken)

Calling together droplets of water, harvesting the liquid from all available sources, five small slated grew in front of him. He pleaded his hands upon them, as certain parts fell away to show the remains of five crystal shuriken that reflected the moonlight above, with sinisterly sharp points, about to eat in to the Raikage. When the forces of Raz, Korin and Warrusu would be released, so would his strike.

[1343 words]

[5797 total]

·::--::·

The daunting threat of the Raikage seemed to break the fabric of both space and time, tearing the seams and ushering in a new measurement in history. His puppeteer control over the electric storm gathered the forces of static from many miles away, hours even; but his immense strength allowed him to bid the weapon as his servant. The earth began to shake and shiver; cracking and wailing, the earth began to fear the interception of the greatest magnitude. However, Yatako watched as Syaoran lifted a trap, catching the man in a five part seal of his chakra. It was a great tactical maneuver on his part, with his concentration broken,. The clones scattered about the field turned in to nothingness and the summoning of the grand lighting army was halted in certain respects. But certain things were impossible to stop; this grand assault being one of them. The great steed of the Raikage was the next to fall victim of the onslaught of Resistance fighters, dying and forcing the Raikage to let loose his grip on the Alchem. Then a second assault flew in, mangling and ravaging his body to near threads, gravity then chimed in, shoving the shadow's body to the earthen ground. His arm rose in defiance of defeat, shouting words of corrupt terror in to the night.

The heavens bellowed about the birth of the electric embryo from the high sky to the middle realm of the moral humans, bringing forth the ambiance of fear and desolation with its cry. From one explosive being to another; Yatako wasn't sure how long he could withhold withstanding these catastrophes and retain the ability to retaliate. This did seem like the ending of all moments, but hope arose once the Hyuuga foresaw the crippled form of Kirin fall from the sky as opposed to legends, myths and the overburdening images he saw in the sky. In a flash of a second, the beast dove down, in to striking range of Syaoran, before bending and obliterating the palace walls as the Kirin attempted to swallow all living beings. This was not hopeless; he determined there was a way to defy his fate from this technique. It was what made legendary heroes true; their ability to defy the fate most humans could succumb too. Hero or not; he still had things he had to do before he would be able to willingly leave this world. For the sake of the world; he would use every neuron impulse his brain set off to ensure the success of this mission.

Yatako's brain immediately began to sift through strategies to compensate with the sever strength against him. His mind worked quickly for he had a very limited time limit to decide on his final actions that he could take, he already determined that the first idea that could possibly work would be the correct one. He would make it correct. His hands dropped in to the pockets of his robes, pulling out two metallic kunai, as he could feel them conduct stray particles of electricity from the onslaught Kirin. His solution followed shortly afterwards, bringing about an old face that had aided him in being in the spot he was currently. Someone for who he carried dreams and ambitions; one of the three brotherhood members of Konohagakure, Nepan Shin, the blacksmith. Shin, one thing you've taught me is to utilize the flame of Konoha to bid elements to my will. Thank you, those lessons meant so much to me. Now your legacy lives on through me. Grasping hold of the kunai, he channeled chakra in to his hands, morphing in to a flame hot enough to melt down the metal kunai. He repeated the process with other disposable weapons he had handy, letting the grey goo dribble to the ground. Slamming his hands to the ground, he shoved his chakra in to the ground, creating a dome encasing over his body in which was fortified with the metallic substance, aiming to ground the storm in the outer shell of the dome, allowing the static to travel down the metal on the sides in to the ground. As this process occurred, Yatako could feel the weight of the force on the dome; holding steady, the Hyuuga began to grunt in agony, releasing verbal energy to encourage his survival. After the wave passed by, he receded the cracked and now fragile dome, for his Byakugan to catch glimpse of Hakkai absorbing the brunt of Kirin in his sword. The others appeared to have survived and prepared a counter attack. Something grave struck his mind, as tactical ammunition seemed to run thin. As not everyone here specialized in Ninjutsu, there was a destructive force in the path of everyone abstaining from Ninjutsu.

"We'll never be able to attack him all at once if our forces are different! For those of us that are superior to Taijutsu rather than Ninjutsu, follow my lead. We're going to precede the Ninjutsu strike, for that's the only way we will successfully finish this and buy them more time!” The Hyuuga yelled as he broke out from stillness to movement, with chakra pumping around his circulatory system and his muscles to allow him quicker travel at a reduced draining rate. He had no room to reconsider his actions or words, if the Ninjutsu strike failed, the future would remain a mystery, but if he could direct the strikes to happen in succession, perhaps the ending would be ensured.

Time acknowledged this moment's significance, as it appeared to let Yatako take in as much as he needed. He arrived directly where the Raikage lay; his arm shot down to grapple his tattered faded robe and raised the emperor in his left hand. Yatako starred in to his unique skin complexion and gazed upon the lighting scar torn through his face. Yatako was finally face to face with the individual that shaped the last three years of his life and sculpted Yatako's entire life to come. This was the man that killed everyone he held dear; but he was also the man that guided his discovery of self. Yatako never imagined he would be in this position, but knew that he was and what needed to be done. He did not spit, he did not frown, he only said but a few words, "From your actions, we were molded and despite your corruptness, you helped us along. For that, may your end be as painless as it can be.” Yatako's voice was a near whisper, falling quieter as he ended the sentence. Meanwhile, his right hand contained the bulk of chakra he had conjured since the sprint to the Raikage.

"Keigoku no Airo”

(Punishment of the Defiled)

Yatako's right fist slammed in to the Raikage's stomach, releasing the tantalizing chakra in to his body. The chakra was meant to swim through his system networks, finding its way to several nerve endings located across his body, until his entire body began to feels weighted; he would become bruised from the internal aspect of his body before a general numbness entwined his body. His nerves would begin to shut off and whither, under the combination of pain and stress. Would the strike successful, Yatako would not be surprised to find splattered blood on his fist. In the next second, his eyes picked up the approaching Hakkai and Kouta, were he to remain near, he would be engulfed in the penalty. On foot, he would not be able to escape successfully. A white gleam swooped down and took him from his place in a speedy direction. He had told Anon previously to remain near, but it was a miracle she survived the Kirin. He was rushed in to the air, still alight with static coursing through clouds lighting the sky, revealing the scar crafted from the divine lightning. Azumi, your hand had been guided in to this battle,. It was by your guidance was I able to deliver that strike and hold my mindset so strongly. May you fin ally find rest and peace. Yatako commanded the invisible reigns of Anon to swing her body to the location of Syaoran. Yatako had been worried about him for quite some time, only after his incident with the Raikage had his worry strengthened. This would be the opportune moment to join up with him, in the final moments before time would reveal its ending to this story.

[1408 words]

[10589 total]

[cntrstrk14]

The strike had hit, and the Raikage's chest would flash with the purple light as the seal revealed itself upon his chest. The Raikage would howl, his plan had been ruined, or at least Syaoran had thought. Grabbing the Alchem's throat, he would easily lift Syaoran off the ground and hold him in midair. Grasping at the much stronger man's hands with his one good one, Syaoran would try and break a passage for air. Looking back at the Raikage, the fury burning in his eyes, Syaoran would let out a small smile. It was over now, the man had been crippled twice now by the Alchem, the rest was up to the group. Syaoran did not need the air that the man was keeping from his single lung, but the feeling of demise was still strong. At any moment the man could simply snap his neck, ending his life. Was this all it had come down too, was this the end of his life? He had no regrets; he knew that as long as he took this man with him that the people of the village and the rest of the continent would be safe from the grasp of the empire. The night sky was alit, a pale white and blue glow was growing around them and Syaoran would turn his eye to the side.

‘What is this glow?', he thought, his eyes searching below and spotting Nando at the edge of his sight. Letting out a smile he was able to choke out a few words as the Raikage held him.

"Sorry… Mankind isn't that… weak…”, he said from the clutches of the man. With a violent eruption Nando would unleash his attack, the tower on which the two stood would shake violently. The ground would slant and the structure would crack and tilt. The two men would begin to fall, Syaoran being released from the man's grip, would find himself disoriented as the rubble fell around him. His chakra was all but depleted, and with a burst he tried to fire off his dial boots. A small burst of chakra would send him flying further out, away from the majority of the rubble, but not far enough. The Raikage to his side as they fell, Syaoran would watch as his clothing flapped in the wind, his strong body now broken.

‘Well shit, this isn't good.', Syaoran thought as his vision began to blur. He was on the edge of consciousness, he had been fighting all day and now it was nearing the end. He was in no condition to continue on, much less even save himself from falling. His clothing pulled tight around his form and flapping behind him in the wind, he looked down at the fast approaching ground with a sense of urgency. Unfortunately, above him as well the form of Kirin came crashing after him. Talk about being stuck between a rock and a hard place. Bringking his arms above his head, Syaoran would thrust forward and flip his body around, placing his back towards the ground. With almost no time left and no options, Syaoran would make a last ditch effort, his last ridiculous idea. Taking the vest he had been wearing, Syaoran would wrap it around himself and with a flash of golden and blue chakra the vest would transform its shape, turning into a gigantic red ball of rubber and encasing the boy within it. In hindsight the idea was absolutely ridiculous, it had been the last of his chakra and with that moment he would pass out within the darkness of the ball.

The powerful lightning attack from Kirin, dampened by the self sacrifice of Hakkai, would strike the rubber ball and flicker over it with near to no effect. The rubber would stand some small burn marks, but it was nothing to be concerned about. Unfortunately, the blast would send the ball beyond falling velocities towards the ground, falling it into a luckily flat piece of rubble before launching back into their air nearly half the original height of the tower. The ball would strike, bounce, strike again and bounce before coming to a landing. As it finally stopped, the rubber would break and disappear, dissolving in a façade of blue and golden light.

Syaoran would not take part in the final moments of the fight, having used the last of his strength to bring the man to his knees before his allies, Syaoran now laid on the ground unconscious, beaten, but still alive. Unfortunately, without himself conscious and with no chakra reserves left, his body had begun to bleed from the severe damage to his chest and the hole which had pierced his lung. His super human body had reverted to that of a normal person. A normal person who needed so very urgent medical attention.

808 Words; 12,562 Total

[Azure]

Once Yatako's dive eyes had brought the image of the broken Alchem in to his perceived image of the world, a sting of horror ripped through his emotions. He could feel he was on the verge of a panic attack, a natural reaction that had occurred before; when he no longer saw the faces of his dear friends who were now deceased. The ones he fought with in Konohagakure and the ones who fell along the way. However, the Hyuuga had finally been able to come to terms with the inner struggle easing his body to react wildly. As the white dove rushed closer to the bleeding Syaoran, Yatako was able to keep calm, suppressing his emotions and thinking rationally. He knew Syaoran needed medical attention quickly, his means would be quickest by flight and now that the barrier had fallen; their path was clear. "Anon! We need to land, take Syaoran to the medical wing, please!” The dove cooed in response, by nearly taking a direct dive to the Alchem. Yatako held on tightly to her feathers as gravity launched the duet to the scarred ground. Anon was a veteran healer, but even her graceful powers could not heal the wound he had quickly enough to ensure life. Even before she landed, Yatako lifted off of her, only falling a few feet and recovering with enough balance to sprint towards Syaoran.

"Don't say a word yet, breathing and talking doesn't work well with a hole through you. Anon will do all the talking, just get better.” Even if he were unconscious, the Hyuuga had to find some light in the situation, if just for his own sanity. Yatako lifted the limp Syaoran on to the great bird summon, with careful ease not to cause him any more pain than what was required for the labor. He laid Syaoran on her back, his blood briefly staining her beautiful feathers, but none seemed to care in retrospect. The dove began to excrete a small force of healing chakra in to Syaoran, keeping his vitals steady and providing him with extra chakra that would not be expended. "Among everything else, be sure that they give him some sort of chakra restoration pill and fly safely.” Anon chirped, without saying so much as a human word, she took off, steady enough to keep the unrestrained Syaoran safe on her back. Yatako peered back to the battlefield. I can't leave this place just yet, you did ask me to be your second in command, I'll see this through for you.

[426 words]

[11015 total]

[Eechi-go]

Everybody stand up! Today's the best time to get up!

Before my eyes you still don't stop, speed hunter

Everyone is a victim to that attraction, Yeah! (Come on!)

Everybody Hands up! It's the highly anticipated Hero's Come Back!

Hold up your fingers and count down

Let's go, 3-2-1 make some noise!

The tiny, raging tornado that spiraled around in his palm engulfed the ball of flame, increasing it's width two-fold, before forming an sphere in-between their hands. Typically, this move would be released on impact of the two elements for the full effect, but Raz had something different in mind. He slowly got to his feet, slow enough for Korin to follow him. They couldn't break the jutsu, or they'd fry Gamabunta from the inside out. As the chakra began to well within the sphere, the spiral pendant that hung around the boy's neck began to fill with a dodger blue glow, filling the pendant by swirling in the design, until it reached it's peak, before the glow burst out, a tremendous gust of wind fluttering around the two of them.

"Gamabunta-san~! Are you okay!?”

A low grumble came from the back of the toad's throat. It was exhausted and sketchy, obviously worn down from the lightning rain and kirin's numbing effect. However, he still breathed normally, which was a good sign to the boy, he might just be able to assist them after all.

"Aside from being half paralyzed and succumbing to old age…what do you need?”

"Think you could give us a little oil to work with…?”

"What in the world would you need that…oh, I understand…I'll see what I can do, kids.”

From the inside of his mouth, Raz could see Gamabunta's lips forming a smile. Indeed, they both had the samething in mind. Raz looked over to Korin, and nodded to her, assuming she knew to stay with him at all times, or else this just wouldn't work. The boy chuckled, before smiling back, and simply saying;

"Countin' on you, Boss Toad.”

After a few more moments, the sounds of attacks being launched at the Raikage could be heard, even from within the toad king's mouth. This was now their time to join them. Gamabunta realized this as well, as his mouth slowly opened, the light from Kirin dissipating, and the glow of the jutsu that were en route to their target filled the toad's mouth. This was it.

"Alright-!!”

Raz cried out, dashing forwards, and leaping out of Gamabunta's mouth, assuming Korin was close, if not next to him as he did so. The torrent of flame between their hands was about ready to burst and set anything in their path aflame. Of course, this could severely cripple both of them, so just a little longer…just a little longer…

".:Hikigaeruatemi:."

[Toad Oil Spray]

Gamabunta reared his body back, chakra flowing through his body, directly towards his stomach. Raz wasn't quite sure how the oil was produced, especially how it was made to be flammable, and quite honestly, he didn't really -want- to know why either. The toad's cheeks began to swell with gallons upon gallons of oil, until he felt as if he were about to burst. Then, he tossed his head back, before throwing himself forward a bit, blasting an insanely large cannonball of oil towards the Raikage, enough to where he'd be completely saturated, unable to escape his fate, which was ticking towards it's end.

Now was their chance, with all his might and chakra, the boy forced as much wind chakra as he could muster into the sphere that the two held steady, before thrusting it forwards towards the cannonball of oil, the ball of flame and wind twisting and exploding outwards into a giant pillar of flame.

".:Hisui Fuusha; Hibashira :."

[Jade Pinwheel Type; Blazing Column]

".:Gamayo Emudan:."

[Toad Oil Flame Cannon]

Assuming Korin acted in the same manner Raz did, the pillar would blast towards the ball of oil, catching it in midair, and lighting it aflame, which would most likely burn the flesh completely off any mortal that would stand so much as a few feet from the burst of sparks and color. With this, it would end, Raz hoped. The two would touch down on the ground below them, Raz immediately tipping onto Korin, breathing heavily, truly reaching his limit, not even having enough energy to stand on his own.

Atleast he knew he always had someone by his side.

"B-borro…”

The Raikage muttered under his breath, as he now found himself on his knees, several of his bones shattered now, and surrounded by the sickening smell of his summon, as well as various body parts that lay scattered across the palace. His eyes went dead as he realized what these rebels had done to his bull. He stood, distracted, the entrails of his near-childhood companion splattered on his biceps, as well as across the palace and it's walls, glistening in the moonlit sky.

Like a mallet to his stomach, Yatako's blow would hit him first, which was appropriate, as it would seal the man's fate, immobilizing him for the rest of the incoming attacks. Chakra was forced into his tenketsu and nerves, killing the nerve endings on impact, causing extreme internal bleeding, tinting his body a small shade of purple from the bruising. Raikou's body quivered, a torrent of bloodied vomit forcefully ejected itself, causing him to double over in anguish. His eyes widened, as he stared at the crabgrass that stood erect below him, now stained in his life essence.

Next, Warrusu's spear extended across the battlefield, loping the Raikage's arm all the way up to his bicep clean off. He had used his already injured hand in an attempt to shield himself, having no more jutsu to defend himself with. A gasp, as blood poured out from the wound, which was soon cauterized by the sickeningly hot steam. The man's arm had been torn to the bone, his shoulder quite visible. It was a sickening sight to anyone who was squeamish, but considering those who were present, it wasn't very likely.

The man tossed himself to his feet, stumbling backwards for a moment or two, before Kouta's incoming blade of chakra sliced straight into his body, leaving a steaming scar that went down the entirety of the left part of his body. This scar sliced down his eye, through his torso, splitting it clean open, his ribs visible to all. Blood sprayed across the lawn like a fountain, causing the man to feel the world spin like a never-ending marry-go-round. This time, he let not a whimper out, he just continued to push himself forward; the man's drive to win was admirable at best.

At the speed of light, five, crystal forged shuriken were tossed at the Raikage, slicing into the man's skin like a hot knife through butter, yet entirely the opposite. The stinging pain caused a strained sound to come from the man's throat, as the shuriken managed to pierce his wrist, the open wound in his torso, his knee, his cheek, as well as one missing, but practically slitting his throat on the way by, causing blood to drizzle down his chest. The shot to his knee brought him down onto his healthy leg, the shuriken shattering as he pressed the knee against the ground. Bits and pieces of ice tore through his tendons, making him unable to move from his spot.

Hakkai's jade tinted lightning strike was quick indeed, but of course, the harnessing of Kirin's magnificent energies caused it to penetrate Raikou rather late. Like a deadeye, Hakkai's blade would extend the lightning through his sword, straight through the Raikage's chest cavity, narrowly missing the man's heart, rending his arteries, and sending him into convulsions. A roar burst from the man's mouth, as he felt a heart attack approaching. His last arm flew to his chest, clutching it, his eyes widening as the pain had only increased each moment he'd kneel, his mouth agape.

Finally the Raikage's torment would come to an end. Though their strike took a good deal of time to forge, it's scale was a bit larger then the rest. The giant pillar of oil burst forward like floodgates had been broken, completely engulfing Raikou in it's fury before he even had a chance to truly realize what was coming. From head to toe, his flesh had been seared, even the bones that were once visible were now charred to the core. His clothing was simply ash that was hanging off his body, all his wounds had been sealed into one giant mesh of blood and flesh. His skin was still aflame as he weakly cried out in anguish, his eyes dried out, one practically melting at this point.

With all the strength the man could possibly muster, he raised his palm to the sky, his leathery skin tearing, gushing blood onto the palace grounds. His voice immerged, battered, broken, strained, and desperate.

"R-raijin-!! Decend upon these mortals!! Show them everlasting suffering!! Defend your champion-!!”

It looked as if the man had reverted into pure lunacy now, screaming up to the sky, searching for some kind of god to save him. It was futile, wasn't it? Such beings couldn't possibly exist, could they?”

Or how wrong you are.

The earth shook, titanic tremors beginning to render the village asunder. The sky flashed with hundreds of bolts of lightning, crying out to it's one and only master. The clouds began to part, very slowly at first, sparks flying out from the linings of each. An inhuman shriek could be heard from the heavens, as if one was tearing through space and time into the realm of humans. A hand the size of fang could be seen, pulling the clouds apart, breaking them into pieces, and tossing them aside like they were nothing. If all would look up, they'd see a figure of overwhelming stature, hundreds upon hundreds of times larger than any summon that had ever touched the earth. The clouds framed it's torso, and the darkness of the night combined with the glow of the moon caused it's body to be nothing more then a silhouette to the shinobi below. This was not to say that one could not make out the finer details of it's celestial figure. A ring with five different hexagons seemed to sprout from it's shoulders, each with unreadable kanji that looked quite obviously ancient. It's hair spiked back, curved, jagged, lethally sharp. It bore no top, and wielded a simply impossibly fit figure. Electricity sparked from it's body, giving it a heavenly glow, as if it's rule was ironclad.

The Raikage's facial expression twisted into joy, cracking his lips open due to the stress he put on the leather-like shell that surrounded his body. However, it quickly amounted to horror as the being would speak with a voice that echoed across all of the shinobi world.

"No, you are not my champion. I give you my blade, my companions, my kingdom, and my harbinger, yet you fail against mere mortals? You are not worthy to be my champion. I see now who among your world are more fit to become such. Suffer like the worthless maggot you are.”

And with that, a million lightning bolts shot across the sky, and in an instant, the figure disappeared, leaving Raikou in absolute horror, staring up at the heavens above him. No, this was not possible. Was he not the Champion of Raijin? Did he not traverse the world, battle demons, in order to become the emissary of Raijin? Was he lied to? He was supposed to be the prophecy, he who would demolish the possibility of the divine purge?

He saw clearly now, the real truth had hit him like a ton of bricks.

"I should have known…I played right into his hands…Rakurai…Akila…Kaizen…Kari…my people of Kumokgakure…I‘ve failed you all…I‘ve doomed you and the rest of this world…”

.: Flashback :.

"Raikou…Raikou! Get your head out of the clouds, boy!!”

The younger boy was knocked out of his fantasy world, going careening across the woodlands, into a tree, causing the bark to snap and bend into the shape of his body. The boy cried out weakly, falling onto his knees. He shuddered, falling into a coughing fit, his scruffy black hair filled with various pieces of bark from the tree he had collided into. Raikou was only about twelve here, and it showed. He had only been recently accepted into the academy, his headband still fresh and shiny, his body unscarred, as well as scrawny and weak.

"Yeah, dumbass, you're lucky you're even on my team. We don't need anchors on my team.”

There, a boy no older then thirteen, stood above Raikou, spikey silver hair glittered in the sunlight. He was a bit more built then Raikou, as well as a bit more battle scarred as well. But of course, this boy was heir to the Raikage's title.

"Kaizen~! Don't be too mean…we all need to be friendly one another now that we're a team now, right?”

A petite, tan-skinned girl poked her head out from behind Kaizen, with locks colored that of the night sky. She had been the female member of their team added in order to balance the cells. A typical maneuver by the Kumogakure council, or rather, all of the shinobi world. While Raikou saw beauty and skill in this girl, Kaizen saw nothing but weakness and exploitability in her.

"Shut up, Kari! You're far too trusting! Ninja are masters of deceit and secrecy! Yet you spill your guts all over everyone! Have some restraint will you?”

The girl looked as if she were about to cry, especially since she idolized him. Quickly their jounin elite appeared before them, our from a cloud that erupt from the ground. The man must have had the longest mustache in existence, trailing down all the way to his ankles, braided at the ends, fluttering in the wind. His head, however, was completely bald, infact, the sun reflected off of it. Rather then wearing the typical jounin garb, he wore a rather blinding green and yellow tinted kimono.

"Children, children, lend me your ears. Raikou, you must learn to stay on the task at hand, far too often I see you about a second away from falling into your own little dream world. You'll never get stronger if you don't work at it. Kari, I know you have talent in there somewhere, but you need to stop focusing entirely on whether or not your comrades learn social lessons or not. Yes, you must work at a team, and you will, like it or not, do so naturally. You cannot live or die based on if they change or not, you must simply work towards your own future. Finally, Kaizen, you are indeed the son of Lord Raikage-sama, but that does not make you stronger then your comrades. If you put more time into training then you did criticizing Raikou, you might actually be able to make it into the Chuunin Exams this year. Keep flapping your gums, and you'll find that -you- are the anchor in this squad. I assume I am understood? Now, it's time we departed, report tomorrow at this very spot for more endurance training.”

In another cloud of smoke, the jounnin disappeared, leaving the three of them with rather disgruntled expressions, with the exception of Raikou, who had gotten slightly giddy over his master's words.

"Could I really surpass Kaizen someday…?”

.: Four Years Later :.

Drip, Drip, Drip,

Rain cascaded from the angry heavens above on this day, drowning those who stood under it's wrath. Today, a funeral was being held in the center of the city. Over the casket, Raikou and Kari stood, their heads hung over, the rain forming tears down their faces, as well as all who attended the event. Hitofushi Kaizen, age seventeen, KIA during a standard supply run to Kirigakure no Sato. He had died out at sea, killed before they had even reached the shore of Mizu no Kuni. They never discovered who did it, or why, but it was assumed that he simply had a high bounty on his head, due to him being the son of the Raikage.

By Raikou's side, stood a young boy, only about ten years in age. He was an orphan they had picked up in Nami no Kuni on their way home. His charm and thoughtlessness won Raikou and Kari over in their time of need. Momochi Rakurai.

"I'll do it…I'll become the next Raikage, just for you Kaizen, I'll fulfill your dreams…”

Kari had begun to cry hysterically, and Raikou couldn't blame her. As much as he deeply cared for the girl, he knew she loved Kaizen. He knew they were a thing for a couple years now, and out of respect, he didn't admit his own feelings to her. He was torn each and every day watching them touch, kiss, and coo to one another to the point where it had gotten him sick.

He wrapped his arm around her, and he tried to comfort her the same way Kaizen did, and tried to be the man he needed to be for her, no matter how much it hurt him to do so.

He realized the next day that he could never be what she needed, when her body was found bleeding in her bathroom the next morning, her throat slit by her own hand. Another day, another funeral…

.: Twenty Years Later :.

Raikou stood atop the Raikage's tower, the ruined village below continued to burn, the screams filling his ears, their pleas attempting to reach the Raikage, call him to their aid. A foolish, mischievous, missing ninja of Kumo had torn the Hachibi from it's Jinchuuriki, in an attempt to control the beast's power, and redirect it at the village so he could claim uncontested control. His plans failed, however, when the beast killed him instantly with one, fatal squeeze of a tentacle around the man's poor, twiggy skeleton.

For three days, Raikou, the Raikage, and a now thirty year old Rakurai combat the demon, but neither side was willing to budge. It was obvious that there was no options left for them; they'd have to perform a sealing.

Raikou and Rakurai were called into the Raikage's chambers, who had already begun the ceremony. Various seals were engraved into the floor, surrounding a small infant that was freshly cut from the umbilical cord. It's shrieks filled the tower, as Raikou quickly cried out to the Raikage.

"No! I'll perform the sealing! Your village needs you, Raikage-sama!”

The elderly man turned to Raikou as he finished creating the last seal on the floor out of his blood, his old, wrinkled skin drooping as he smiled at Raikou and Rakurai. His head shook slightly, before he merely replied in a weak, raspy voice.

"No, my time is through, Raikou. For fifty years I have served as Raikage, and my time is up. Once more, my country is threatened, and I must do what I can in order to protect this village. You, Raikou, will become my successor. You've served Kumo for nearly thirty years now, and you are looked upon as a savior by the young. You've fought many wars, won many battles, and lost all who are dear to you. I know your dream was to become Raikage in order to fulfill my son's dream, and for that, you have my blessings, and my thanks.”

The old man warily walked over to Raikou, who had begun to tear slightly, and bowed his head, muttering these words softly.

"Raikage-sama.”

Raikou would have broken into tears if he wasn't so intent on holding them back. He wanted to become the Raikage so badly, but not under these circumstances, not after losing the village to a demon, and certainly not after watching his people suffer so horribly.

"Rakurai…in my daughter, I will seal the Hachibi, in order to turn her into a Jinchuuriki. She will inevitably be considered an outcast among our people, and you are the only one who knows loneliness so well. I implore you, treat her as if she were your own flesh and blood. Her name is Akila”

Rakurai was shaking slightly at this point, as he walked to the small girl who sat in the middle of the seals. He kneeled down, and gently stroked her forehead with a rather muscular finger, attempting to halt her cries and jerks. In time, her tears died down, and she gently cooed in her sleep.

"Well now…it appears I've left Kumogakure in good hands. Goodbye, my children…”

And with that, Raikou's idol walked out the doors of the tower, going face to face with the beast, and saving Kumogakure as they knew it, leaving behind all he knew and love. Raikou would only hope that he could die in such an honorable manner.

.: Eight Years Later :.

Eight years since the Hachibi roamed through Kumogakure as if it were his playground, and still the village suffered from debt. The country had no natural exports in which they could do business with, due to a majority of the land being rather mountainous. Repairs looked as if they would be impossible to completely afford, and yet, the village still looked up to Raikou during their time of need. He did manual labor with the rest of the village each and every day. He even powered the city for days on end using just his chakra, standing in place, and letting the generators absorb his electricity. They looked upon their Raikage as a hero, and for good reason.

One day, a rather shady visitor appeared at Raikou's office. He was hooded, so his face could not be totally seen. He spoke in a polite, charismatic tone of voice, which allowed Raikou to ease up a bit as they spoke.

"Inabikari Raikou…I've seen you in my dreams. You are the one who is destined to stop the holy prophecy from coming to fruition.”

"Prophecy? Fruition? Speak clearly, good man, or I will be forced to ask you to leave.”

"I shall explain. You know of the five basic elements, do you not? Lightning, Wind, Water, Fire, and Earth? They are the very basic components of our existence. Life cannot exist without them. Such powers cannot remain unchecked, or they'd clash, causing the ‘end of reality as we know it'. As such, each element is ruled by it's respective god, or kami, if you will. These gods cannot interact with humans without a form of medium, otherwise known as, a human. However, only one who is truly one with their element, and holds the demeanor of it can truly become the emissary of a kami. These mediums are known as ‘Champions', and only five exist every generation. These kami have been long sealed in their respective temples, but I fear that one day, ninja may begin to discover them, and if they are all released, they would cause chaos and disorder across the land like no demon has ever achieved before. This is why I come to you, Raikou. I believe you are the one. I believe you are the Champion of Raijin.”

Raikou stared blankly at the mysterious figure, his mouth slightly agape. This was quite a lot of information to take in. Kami? They didn't truly exist did they? Of course, he'd seen demons before, so would a kami truly be that much more of a stretch? The world had been created somehow, after all.

"Why do you believe I am the Champion?”

"You have the strength of an ox, and the wisdom of a sage. You are completely in tune with lightning, and your fit the demeanor quite accurately. You have what it takes to make decisions others can't. This is why I entrust this information to you , and this is why I will make you an offer. I will show you where Raijin's temple lay hidden, and I will allow you to become one with your god, but you must do something for me. You must demolish the shin obi nations around the globe. So long as ninja are allowed to do as they like, and practice ninjutsu, they will always be a risk to the world as we know it. They can never discover the other temples, and if you snuff out all remaining ninja villages, you will be the savior of the earth. I know you dislike war, any vet does. I know you'll make the right decision.”

Raikou was silent for a good ten minutes, considering this man's proposal. If he said no, would that mean the world's end would be his doing? He could not let such a terrible thing happen. He would be looked upon in disgust by other villages, his name slandered, and his reputation naught. Was this worth it?

"For Kaizen…for Kari…I shall do anything to save Kumogakure no Sato…anything to save the world. I accept…”

And so, the man signed his contract with the devil, and did what he believed was truly right.

.: End :.

"I see…what you used me for…you wanted to find these Champions…didn't you? I am such a fool…”

His eyes fell to the ninja before him, the raindrops beating on his seared, wounded body. In a raspy voice, the man called out to those who had defeated him so badly. He had made the mistake of dooming the earth, now he could only hope that these young men and women could carry out what he believed was right, and jam the cogs of destruction before things got out of hand.

"Elites of the Resistance…I admit defeat, you've won this day. Please, heed my words. What I'm about to tell you…is too important….to ignore…”

He began to cough up blood, his body ready to give way, finally rest that peaceful rest. No, he couldn't go, not yet. There was just one more thing to tell them all.

" On our…zero hour, five Gods will emerge…bearing a message of…peace. Five Champions will…shine their light across the world. Five…Countries will go to war. W-when the…Shadows fall, and the oceans t-turn to red…the Gods will fade with our light. A-and on that final night…we'll venture through the darkness I-into…the Jashin's w-waiting arms. The Dark God is coming. He loves you so much…”

Cryptic words, but his duty was done, and he'd pass the torch to this new generation, in hopes that somehow, some way, they could stop the inevitable from approaching. With one final breath, the man could have sworn he saw every person he ever loved lifting his spirit from his body, and together, bringing him to the great beyond, wherever that may be. Rakurai, Kaizen, Kari...Perhaps he wouldn't leave this world a monster, and atleast in heaven, he was truly loved.

The clouds finally broke, the darkness uplifted, and in the horizon, the sun slowly arose.

Dawn had come.

4827 Words

26,206 Total

[Cloudnine]

She'd followed Raz as he leapt from Gamabunta's mouth. He hadn't told her his tactic, but with the mention of oil, the girl could derive a decent conclusion. This is it… Korin chased after the ball of oil for a moment, letting her share of the flames lick the substance. Her mastery of the fire element was mediocre at best and her chakra had little natural attunement to the blazes. Mishaps in her aggravated chakra coils leaked rogue flames that also leapt into the fray in a heartbeat. The lack of control grew rampant, creating a backwards tail between the massive fire and Korin until small blazes danced up her cotton sleeves. With a yelp, the girl was frantically closed off the chakra flow with a final burst of fire and peeled the disfiguring metal armguards from her arms. Her bare hands were trembling, blistered and blackened.

She hit the ground with Raz soon after, staggering from shouldering the weight of his fall. Lowering onto her knees, she managed to sort out the swaying and the rush of panic as the callusing areas of her arms were slowly losing sensation. Korin kept Raz in her arms, laying him across her lap.

Grimly, she set her eyes on the last chapter of liberation. It pained her to see the end- the worst side of humanity and the suffering imposed on those that… maybe even deserved it. As she gazed upon the final product of their warfare, Korin knew the Raikage was simply a dead man walking… there was no way to reach him, to redeem him. And that alone will be passed from the hands of mortals? Leave it to heaven's net to judge him.

Considering his words, Korin could only quietly reply, "We will be prepared.” Prepared for what will come- armed with flashlights, love, and faith- there was nowhere else to go but to plunge, to plunge. A new silence fell over the battleground. A new dawn. Korin hesitantly transfixed upon the faint eye of the rising sun hanging below the stark horizon, shuddered, and wept. "For the price of what?” she rasped, a smile creeping into the trembling outline of her lips. And there she was, one eye laughing, one eye crying, taking the bittersweet aftermath with a grain of salt.

[Warr]

[OOC; You can call the theme of this post,

You'll also see a few lines in this post, as it's very fitting, I feel.]

What you see is what you get.

Don't you know.

Fishing for the answer with a line and sinker.

Look at me and don't forget.

Don't you know.

Hard to get a grip with all these broken fingers.

For Umikoi Warrusu, Heir-prince of the Umikoi Clan and Seventh son of his heritage to bear that name, time seemed to slow down. As the assault he and his comrades launched upon the Raikage, Inabikari Raikou, landed, time slowed to a millisecond crawl. He could see every detail as the techniques hit, the elemental fury which they sent forward landing upon the man who had been considered by some as a god, this man who's body was broken by the sons of the resistance, by the sons of his own actions.

The boy even winced when the elder shinobi-nin was hit by his dragon's breath spear, a technique he had hoped would hit the man head on and end his pain quickly. A technique he had hoped would bring the man to death peacefully, but which severed the man's arm brutally. Something inside of him crinkled, there was an internal roar of pain, a resonance, 'this is war', 'war is not kind', 'war is not loving', 'war stains death in blood.' Something inside of the boy lurched as he saw the attacks land, as a spray of blood landed on his cheek.

Today, I don't feel pretty.

The thing within him crinkled as that blood dripped down from his side. A roar internally, a call that the ninja of Kiri did not show pity, they did not give patience, they did not forgive. There was no room for change in the old ways, but this was not the old era. A force consisting of ninja from nearly every village had assaulted a force which had taken the world in its grasp, and they defeated it. It was a time of change, and Warrusu would make sure his homeland changed with the world, keeping it's traditions, but showing the other side of its patron element, becoming more peaceful and loving.

I'm tired of trying to fit in.

Even as he saw the husk of a man before him, even as he saw the happening in above as he saw the being above, that being who's power seemed so much more than his, that giant amongst giants, made of lightning in itself from the looks of it, he did not waver, he saw the scene and he saw the man below him. As the thunderous words from the god came forward, the young man could but help cringing ever so slightly, not enough to be visible from afar, but a slight twitch in his left arm, a slight twitch of his lip, as he heard those words and as the words from earlier in this battle echoed through his ears, words which made the boy's internal being want to tremble with passionate, fiery, emotion. His mind came to the thought of how this power had turned against the Raikage, as it lead to his final fall.

Don't think you're so great;

Because being great must suck.

Other men may have seen this as a great victory, as if there was no downside to it all. An eye had been taken for an eye, the world had been restored to the freedom and relative peace that had ruled it before. But as the young man heard those words of regret, those words of warning, Warrusu could not help but clench his fist. Even as the dawn came, the young man did not smile, he clenched his fists, his body tingling with adrenaline even now, he saw the pain he had caused, his action, though diverting the Raikage's technique in the immediate area, could have caused more death than he wished to allow.

He had envisioned this day since the faithful day of invasion, the day when the world had turned upside down. He had imagined a sweet smile on his lips, he had imagined there being no bad portions, he had imagined his pain over his loss those days magically dissipating at this all.

We don't always look on the bright side.

We all need a little Ego Suicide.

You hung my id today.

The tingling stopped, and the young man moved without a word, he walked past his comrades, ignoring his limp even as he moved, and he continued to walk onwards, intent on a thing which might be misunderstood by the others if understood at all. His hand came up to the tying mark where his Kirigakuran Hitai-ate was, as his mind envisioned what these forces could do to the world, five hateful deities like he had just seen. His nostrils flared up, but he continued to walk.

He remembered his loss, and he remembered words his grandfather had spoken to him as a child when he was hurt. "Carry on."

But I have licked my wounds and carried on.

The youth moved to the side of the fallen Raikage, this man who had tried his best to do what a Kage was supposed to do in a situation like, this man who had passed on after imparting one last gift to the world. This man whom the boy both hated and somewhere deep inside, loved.

As he landed beside the devastated corpse of the Raikage, he gently moved to close the man's eyes, and he untied his own hitai-ate, placing it upon the man's chest. His Mizushin had deactivated as this all went on, but it was now reactivated, and gently, placed the arm of the Raikage next to the boy, who placed it beside the man.

Everybody needs some Sympathy.

"Sleep well, and know that I will try to prevent something like this happening again. Sleep well, Inabikari Raikou, Hachidaime Raikage of Kumogakure no Sato, a good life to you in heaven, and don't worry about Kumogakure no Sato, either. I'll watch over it in addition to Kirigakure no Sato, the world owes you at least that..."

Despite the fact he had no heart to voice it on this field, the young man knew that Raikou was not a villain, in the end, he was simply misguided, as anyone could be. He was simply human, of immense power, but not yet ascended to Kami like wisdom.

Goodbye, Raikou, goodbye, my enemy, goodbye, my friend.

[Cho Hakkai]

Hakkai's attack was swift. He saw the agony that was in the Raikage's face. He had been stripped of everything he had. It was a sad sight for the Raikage had nothing left in this battle. His chakra was sealed. His summoning had been killed. He lost his hand. His heart was failing. He lost chuncks of his body. Blood? It was everywhere but inside of his body.

Hakkai felt sorry. He did. It wasn't a pretty sight to see a man literally stripped of everything that he had to survive. But when the Raikage raised his hands to the sky, Hakkai feared. Looking up, he saw the Raijin. A massive being that could destory a lot with just the flick of his mighty fingers. Hakkai trembled. The Raikage spoke about how he was a champion, but a champion of what? Whatever it was, the Raijin didn't care and as soon as he came he left. Did the Raijin give so much power to the Raikage? Hakkai listened to the final words of the Raikage.

" On our…zero hour, five Gods will emerge…bearing a message of…peace. Five Champions will…shine their light across the world. Five…Countries will go to war. W-when the…Shadows fall, and the oceans t-turn to red…the Gods will fade with our light. A-and on that final night…we'll venture through the darkness I-into…the Jashin's w-waiting arms. The Dark God is coming. He loves you so much…”

A prophecy? Another war? 5 countries? Does he mean the 5 great countries? And if the five great countries will come bringing peace, why would the Dark God come? So many questions. This was truely cryptic. Hakkai couldn't even begin to think about the meaning of this.

And thus the Raikage died.

The sun rose.

Hakkai smiled. He helped finish this war. Hakkai felt a hand on his shoulder and looked to his left to see Jinsei. A smile came across the young Kaguya's face. Hakkai, covered in blood, cuts, broken glass, shirtless, and looking like crap, began to cry. Jinsei began to dissapear, giving a thumbs up. Hakkai didn't move even though he didn't want Jinsei to leave his side. 'But he will be with me forever,' Hakkai thought gripping his sword in his right hand.

With Jinsei gone, he felt another hand on his right shoulder. Looking he saw the late Kyoukage. More tears came from Hakkai's eyes along with a big smile. He looked straight into her eyes and said, in a choked up voice, "Thank you." He said something else, but it wasn't understandable. Taking a deep breath to calm himself he said, "We won." The kyoukage nodded and also dissapeared.

Hakkai wiped away his tears and fell onto the ground backwards. With his elbows, he was able to sit up. His sword laid in front of him. His muscles ached from the acid and massive amount of energy he had absorbed. The fights he had were the toughest he had ever fought. He was going to be sore for a while.

[Kouta]

Gishou smirked a grin stretching from ear to ear, watching the pure pandemonium that was the destruction of the Raikage. The poor sap was hit with everything that the ninja around him could muster, and was summarily obliterated. Gishou couldn’t help but watch with great detail all of the ninja who were striking against him. Some, like Syaoran, were nearly dead. Kouta’s body was breaking down due to his excessive use of the Celestial Gates. Hakkai had probably caused some serious internal damage with that lightning build-up. Raz had taken a real beating when he fought the Kaguya woman. Nearly all of them had hurt themselves, some worse than others. Gishou reveled in the pure chaos of the moment. He felt the shudders as the rest of the palace continued to tumble, and as large chunks hit the ground with much clamor. It didn’t matter now, though. The Raikage was dying. The fight was over.

”See, Kouta. You wanted to die. Like a bitch. You should really open up more! Your body can take so much more than you ever see. You are too dependent on these swords. They guide your fighting, and you wish to throw up a shield at every opportunity! Harness the body’s NATURAL force, and you would be so much more as a ninja…” Gishou’s voice cackled in its high pitch whine, probably offending the ears of many of the ninja who now had the time to hear his rantings. He turned his back on the dying Raikage, walking off to leave the site entirely, when a rumbling captured his attention, sending the tortured soul’s gaze heavenward, where the skies split for a brief second, and a monstrous form descended. It seemed to respond to the Raikage’s deranged commands. A final jutsu, perhaps?

No. This was something more.

This being existed fully of and embodied the very principals of lightning. Its very form was corporeal, and it seemed to echo the ages. Centureis of age seemed heaped upon his form. This was no ninjutsu creation. It seemed more akin to a summon, only, this summon, this Raijin, rebuked the Raikage as a failure. It would not obey him, and was not bound to his will by any contract. Gishou was intrigued. He was more than intrigued. He fascinated. He wanted to know more.

And oh, did the Raikage answer.

“On our…zero hour, five Gods will emerge…bearing a message of…peace. Five Champions will…shine their light across the world. Five…Countries will go to war. W-when the…Shadows fall, and the oceans t-turn to red…the Gods will fade with our light. A-and on that final night…we’ll venture through the darkness I-into…the Jashin’s w-waiting arms. The Dark God is coming. He loves you so much…”

His words were prophetic, and foretold the end of the world. It also spoke of champions, of power, of glory. He spoke exactly what Gishou needed to hear to be interested. The vengeful, power-hungry ghost was more than eager to ask for more, but the Raikage’s tongue was silenced with his last breath. Sighing, a bit depressed, he strode forward, kicking the ruined corpse with a booted foot. ”Yep. Dead. Damn. He finally starting saying something worth listening to.” Gishou snapped a finger in mock disappointment, wheeling around and willing Zangetsu into its more convenient form. The sword blade seemed to melt, flowing like liquid metal up Kouta’s arm, not taking a demonic form this time, but merely a black coating on top of Kouta’s skin. The moment it finished flowing, however, the metal squeezed, causing a gasp and a pained stare at the right arm it had taken. ”You bitch! You’re gonna squeeze the fucking arm off! Let go!” Gishou yelled, not noticing Benihime inch around his waist, the coiled blade leaping out and snagging the left arm, clinching in the same fashion. ”You bastards! What are you doing! Who do you think you are-Agh! Ugh!”

Violently, Gishou began to convulse, as if throwing up, only nothing came from his mouth. With a forceful struggle, the purple began to drain from Kouta’s eyes, familiar golden color filling the void once more. As soon as the purple vanished, both swords relaxed. Kouta dropped onto all fours, panting with the effort it took to expel Gishou from his body this time. His arms burned, and his lungs were on fire, but he had wrested Gishou back into the recesses of his mind, hopefully for good, or until he could more properly deal with him. ”I may depend on them, Gishou…but we are still stronger than you!” Kouta said, standing up and dusting off his pants. ”Zangetsu, Benihime, rest now. You’ve earned it.” Kouta said, and Zangetsu obeyed, slithering down Kouta’s body until it formed into a pouch at his side, with a drawstring that had a minature replica of the sword hanging from it. Into the black pouch did Benihime’s segments float, before Kouta’s tightened the bag and nodded, his heart no longer set on fighting.

”He’s getting stronger, Kouta. He almost didn’t let go this time.” Benihime’s words echoed in his head.

”Don’t worry, Benihime. I’ll simply have to make him stronger, to make him understand exactly how to banish Gishou from control. Still, I can’t say we don’t owe him our thanks. He can be a valuable ally, if he can be controlled. He did save Kouta’s life.” Zangetsu said, Kouta having to agree with the blade’s wisdom. Still, the idea of partnering up with Gishou was…deplorable.

”I’d rather not deal with that concept just yet, Zangetsu.” Kouta said, reaching inside of himself and jamming the gates that had been forcibly opened during the fight. He felt his legs growing weak, and knew there was muscle damage below the skin. Still, at the moment, he was focus on everyone’s well-being, and ensuring that Kumo’s fall was as peaceful as possible, now that the fighting had ended. "Only one action left to take." Kouta said, and the Armor of Sand around his body began to crack, sand being pulled from his body, coated in blood and the gore of battle. "Deluded, maybe. Evil? From our point of view. But he died with honor, warning us for what he knew was coming. That gives him the right to a proper burial." Kouta said, the sand forming around the dead body, encasing it in a rounded coffin, that bore on its face (it had no lid, being a seamless creation) "Ashes to Ashes, Dust to Dust, Rest in Peace, Great Visionary, Shadow of Thunder."

"Honorably done." Benihime remarked.

"He deserved no less." He said, kneeling before the coffin, touching a hand to his forehead, and then to the coffin, as if paying homage to a lost friend.

[983 Words]

[6,278 Words Total]

Edited October 29, 2008 by Kouta

[Eechi-go]

The boy was only half conscious once the jutsu was released, and Korin had been just the person he needed at the moment. His mind went white, and he was incapable of thought. His head rest upon the girl's lap, her warmth radiating off onto his body. His slumber was halted by the shrieks and cried of the Hachidaime Raikage. His eyes gazed warily at the tortured man, watched as he suffered each and every strike, his body nearly melting by the end of it. It was truly horrible, worse then Raz had ever suffered, and the boy had gotten his torso blown clean off.

"We're not so different…you and I…”

The boy thought, finally capable of such things. He had seen his people cheer for him, call him a hero, even give their lives up for his cause. This man did anything he could for his people, that was apparent to Raz the moment the man had touched down on the palace with Raijin's wings. If he ever got the chance, he'd love to endulge himself on the man's life, learn his every motive, his every idol, his every dream. Did he have a love? Did he have children? What was it like to have the weight of the world on one's shoulders?

Raz wanted to become the Kyoukage someday, and in taking up that torch, he'd have to dedicate himself to not only Otogakure no Sato, but the rest of the world. His actions, from here on out, left foot prints in the sand that were far larger in scale then he realized. From this day forth, he'd be one of the eight men and women who broke the grasp on the ninja world held so tightly by the Raikage. He could no longer act like a little kid anymore, he'd have to set an example for those younger then himself.

The boy blanked out far before Raijin had appeared in the sky, his body unable to keep him going any longer. His eyes turned towards Korin, looking up, half lidded, as he simply said.

"It's over…I want that…kiss…now…”

And like that, he fell into a deep slumber. The weight of a month's insomnia weighing down his body, soon to be lifted by the graceful process of sleep. The light of dawn would shine upon all eight warriors, and in his sleep, Raz too could see the light, and within that light was his future.

(( After three years, it's finally over. Congrats guys, you earned this;

Alchem Syaoran: 4641 EXP

Umikoi Warrusu: 6352 EXP

Haramatsu Korin: 2847 EXP

Hisame Haruyuki 2950 EXP

Hyuuga Yatako: 4254 EXP

Cho Hakkai: 4563 EXP

Akasabure Kouta: 3070 EXP )

[Warr]

As the still light of dawn came about, there was silence, the pitter patter of storm which had dominated this landscape was gone, and there was silence in this brilliant daylight after such darkness. It seemed that the world had escaped the hell it had come close to being, at least for the moment.

There was an internal sigh from the boy, his lips almost parted, as he watched the form of his previous enemy, and he moved to turn for a moment when the sand began to swallow the Raikage, only that, before he realized what the sand was there for, and what the coffin had been made into. With less than a word, the boy looked at Kouta, and instantly gained respect for the Suna-nin, the young man who showed the Raikage as much honor as he did, as much honor as any proper ninja should do. There was a sigh from the boy, and without a word, he picked up the coffin of the Raikage, or part of it. He looked to Kouta as if asking for help with totting it, as if he wished for the man to be a pail barrier along side him.

"The world is free from the danger it was before, but peace has not returned to it yet, and will not unless we right the wrongs which were caused. We cannot be like spiteful children, we must show ally and enemy honor, both. We must return the body of the Hachidaime Raikage to his people, it would be an affront to them and to him if we did not do so."

He looked at the devastation of this former imperial city, Nigiyakashufu, and he nodded. "I will return him to his people, as soon as we do something very important... this war needs a central memorial, it needs an warning to the world on what this sort of action causes, a way of honoring all our lost brothers, sisters, fathers, sons, mothers, daughters..." He paused. "Grandfathers..."

He looked towards the sky and smiled, if killing the man who had caused this all was not enough to give his grandfather and father honor in death, the boy would simply have to live as honorably as he could.

((OOC; Indeed, it was a long run, but it was also enjoyable.

Eechi-go's Kinsen Rasen gains 6414 EXP.))

[cntrstrk14]

ooc: Go here for the final thread.