Battle (3)

*BOOM*

A loud "boom" was heard, followed by a voluminous cloud of dust soaring to the skies, and can be seen from far away. 

Standing in the middle of the bridge was a familiar youth, Uchiha Kaede. Her ANBU mask concealed her emotion, making her seem indifferent, but out of everyone in her squad, she was the softest.

Just like the many explosions she had heard during her run, she couldn't help but feel worried, but this particular explosion was different... she gripped her chest; this time... she felt as though something bad had happened, feeling conflicted with her decision to depart.

Should she have stayed?

Following that, she felt as though she heard a painstaking scream, yet she couldn't accurately decipher it... Was it Hayato? Was it Ryohei? Was it sensei? 

However, the squad had already made up their minds. She was to exit this nation with the scroll and return to Konoha, no matter what occurs, forced to neglect the ominous sensation gripping her heart... An impending sense of doom!

Though her mind was astray, Kaede ran along, and pleaded inwardly, "Please, please be fine."

And so, she set forth. Fulfilling the mission was her key priority here.

***

Back in the battlefield:

"SENSEI!"

The duo screamed from the bottom of their lungs, a scream laced with deeply etched agony, and their complexions becoming paler by the second. 

Their sensei whom they had grown with, and whom they had grown fond of, to be even considered family, disappeared in the blink of an eye.

"Haha..." A slight laugh came from the Iwagakure Jonin responsible for the explosion, his grin extending to his cheeks.

The man was none other than Tora. 

"HAHAHAHAHA! SEE THAT? ART IS AN EXPLOSION!" Tora laughed.

The woman, Yamanaka Aiko, had been caught in a major blast, unbeknownst to Hayato and Ryohei, and they had yet to fathom... What just happened?!

"T-Tora, that crazy bastard. He used the last of his chakra to get her," Kenta wryly smiled at this convenient turnaround.

"Yeah, his kekkai genkai is on another level. If only he could hone his "Explosion Release," we could have won this battle right from the start," Raiko supported, clenching a white bug in his fist. "He may be a knucklehead, but this will be our saving grace." 

Kenta supported, "Yeah, though there are drawbacks, it is the perfect last resort."

- FLASHBACK-NO-JUTSU - 

Earlier, when the Iwagakure Jonins defended with Mud Wall, conversing on Roshi's strange behavior:

"Guys, before we go..." Tora insisted, earning the attention of everyone.

He reached into his pouch, taking some clay, covering it with both hands.

*CRACKLE* PSH*

"Hiss," Tora sucked a breath of cold air as though in pain the moment the sound of a mini explosion enveloped his hand.

Opening his palm, the formerly spherical clay had morphed; they seemed like bugs coloured in white... And even red in his blood!

His hands were stained crimson, and his skin was torn as a result of the Jutsu he had just performed.

"Ugh," Tora grumbled. He turned to face his comrades;

"I could only make 2. Who wants one?" he questioned.

"I'll take it," Raiko accepted the bug.

Handing one over, Tora clenched the other in his hand, "Alright, then I'll go after that skank." He was referring to a particular orange-haired enemy in the group, Yamanaka Aiko.

- END-OF-FLASHBACK-NO-JUTSU - 

Brandishing a kunai, Raiko commanded, "Now's our chance Kenta, let's go."

"Aye," Kenta affirmed, and both men vaulted straight for the exhausted duo.

"DAMN IT!" Hayato grit his teeth, immediately becoming a blur...

*CLANK*

"Tsk," Tora clicked his tongue. He was fatigued due to taking the full brunt of Ryohei's 64 palms earlier, but he still managed to parry Hayato's attack.

Taking a deep breath in, Tora yelled, "BOTH OF YOU GO! I'LL TAKE IT!"

Raiko and Kenta, though reluctant at first, charged toward Ryohei.

Hayato on the other hand, did not cease. The duo danced with graceful swordplay, producing sparks upon collision, and powerful shockwaves propagated outward.

*BOOM*

Dust had settled upon the field, obscuring both people, but...

"There!" Hayato mused, an elongated snake exiting his sleeve, and paced toward the silhouette of Tora at light speed.

*SHLUK*

To Hayato's surprise, he successfully impaled the man responsible for blowing up Aiko, right through the neck.

*SPLURT*

Tora coughed up blood, his life slowly seeping away from him.

Hayato also noticed something as he pierced Tora. The attack went way too easily, as though Tora had let him on purpose, and he was right.

The reason Tora didn't protect himself was because his hands had been blown to bits, replaced by dripping blood.

Right now, Hayato stared at both hands of Tora, which were missing.

"!"

And then Hayato felt something, an ominous premonition. 

Even though Hayato's snake was the one on Tora's neck, Hayato felt an akin sensation. He felt venomous fangs, ready to dig into his nape!

And that was when Hayato looked up, noticing a multitude of insects descending on him!

The insects simultaneously emitted a fiery glow, painting the canvas orange as though lava had magically emerged through the ground.

Though life was slowly seeping out of Tora, he lightly chuckled, "Haha!"

He was glad he managed to trap the youth. He had sacrificed both hands to produce around 12 insects, all of them with explosive power equivalent to what Aiko had gone through.

Hayato was surrounded!

"Crap!" He cursed.

He spaced himself away from the impending explosion as much as possible.

Meanwhile, Tora was having his monologue, reminiscing about his family; a youth around 3 years of age, with short blonde hair, and narrow, slightly slanted blue eyes, just like his.

The world around Tora radiated a fiery glow, as all the bugs slowly started to ignite.

Finally, his silhouette burned to a crisp, his skin slowly tearing up from the brunt of the explosion, and he continued in thought; 'I guess I'll be joining you, Ayumi.'

Once again, an image of a female with blonde hair and black eyes formed in his mind donned in a verdant tunic. She was his wife, with a warm smile gracing her already beautiful features. 

He mused to himself, "I wanted to teach you more, you're only 3, but you have a promising future... I hope you'll protect our home my child... Forgive me, Deidara."

*BOOOOOM*

.***

They knew their ally had perished, yet they didn't persist. 

Raiko and Kenta didn't cease and continued their assault against the Hyuga.

"Tsk," Ryohei smacked his lips, finding himself pushed back into a corner. His visual acuity enabled him to process the incoming attacks, but he was nearing his limit. 

Battling one on one in itself, even at full strength, would be draining, but 2 on 1 was not going to bode well.

The battle resumed as a clash of symphonies purely around Taijutsu, ranging from punches, kicks, grapples, and so on.

Ryohei's attacks were elegant, strategically deflecting his opponent's maneuver, while his opponents were wild and relentless, and that very resilience is what enabled them to press forth!

"Ugh," Ryohei groaned, as Raiko's palm struck his torso...

Ryohei's eyes widened, and he immediately leaped back. A mini, white 6-legged bug lay sprawled on his chest, emitting an orange glow.

The glow reflected in Ryohei's eyes, a glow that marked the beginning of an explosion!

"Crap," Ryohei cursed...

***

Meanwhile...

Amidst the large dust serving as a curtain for the terrain, a familiar silhouette can be seen; it was Hayato, who had a look of dismay. His mask had been blown to bits.

"W-What? How did I survive that? How?!" Hayato whispered. 

The fact he survived wasn't the issue here. To be precise, he had created distance, so under normal circumstances, he should be severely injured, and could've lived, and that would've seemed reasonable, but... He was unscathed!

That's right, not a single scratch from the final jutsu of Tora!

He was certain he would be extremely injured, but surprisingly, he was still alive. He stared at his body, and wondered, 'Did I do something? Yeah, I feel something weird, but I don't know what...'

Hayato suddenly knelt on the ground, panting, 'My chakra has gotten low... Which means I did something! What did I do?!'

And then a thought struck him, raising him back on his feet, and he muttered, "I don't have time, I gotta help Ryo!"

***

"Crap," Ryohei cursed, glancing at the 6 legged bug crawling up his torso. Regardless, he snapped the bug into 2 at light speed, but...

"Gotcha," Raiko whispered.

The fiery glow of the ignition glowed in Ryohei's eyes, before...

*BOOM*

And this time, Ryohei was the next to fall victim to this mysterious kekkai genkai!

"RYO!" Hayato yelled.

He reached out his hand, running slowly to Ryohei, before kneeling to the ground in resignation. His eyes widened, and his deep blue eyes reflected his deep sadness. 

First his teacher, and now his friend, who was also his rival.

"Ryo," he whispered in a broken tone. He could fight no longer. Both his mind and body had given up.

Noticing Hayato's weakened state, Raiko rushed straight to the somber youth, but...

*WHOOSH*

A kunai came slinging in his vision, which appeared to be attached to a paper bomb!

Raiko's eyes widened...

*BOOM*

"Tsk," he smacked his lips, locating the trajectory of the Kunai. Both Raiko and Kenta were astonished, as the person they had deemed dead, was actually still alive... just barely!

The orange haired female leaned her back against the tree with a wry smile plastered across her blood-stained face, and an extremely pale complexion, as though the life was being sucked out of her.

"S-Sensei," Hayato stammered, momentarily tripping as he ran, until he finally made it to Aiko, only to be dismayed by her pitiful state.

Aiko turned her gaze to Hayato, and spoke, "Hey, don't look like that kiddo."

Hayato's mouth twitched, focused on the left leg of his sensei, which was not even there; instead, it was replaced by a protruding mass of wriggling flesh.

Her leg was gone! She was losing blood by the second, yet... She smiled, a bitter smile exuding motherly warmth.

"Ha, thank goodness. Sensei, you're still alive," another voice uttered, yet it sounded like an echo in Hayato's ears, an echo that symbolised hope in his currently dark world.

Locating the source, Hayato met the gaze of a white-grey eyed, pupilless individual. The individual's obsidian hair swayed to the left in response to the serene breeze, with burn marks scorched onto his abdomen. His complexion grew paler, as though he were dying.

The person was none other than Ryohei, and he was still alive! His mask too, had been disintegrated, but not entirely. He removed the bothersome mask and hurled it to the ground.

Hayato's eyes unfurled, and his lips parted into a delicate smile at the seemingly dead youth. His former distress had completely subsided. Aiko was alive, just barely, and so was his friend. His formerly distraught eyes sharpened, regaining vitality, and a determination to complete the mission.