Chapter 3 - The Unfair Fight: A Leader is Born
Submitted April 2, 2008 Updated April 21, 2008 Status Complete | It is two months after the events of Flower of Fire and Akai anxiously awaits the results of his graduation exam, and he still has to pass a Jonin's test as well. What can a mysterious scroll sent to him by his old sensei be for?
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Chapter 3 - The Unfair Fight: A Leader is Born
Chapter 3 - The Unfair Fight: A Leader is Born
The other members of the pack quickly backed away as Tenma pounced, catching Akai off guard. It was all he could do just to duck and roll to his right, away from Tenma’s jaws. Not only was the alpha enormous, he was also fast. He was on Akai again before he could get to his feet, forcing him to roll again. He rolled just quickly enough to escape Tenma and throw him off balance. Now was his chance to recover.
As he rolled to his feet, Akai was already drawing his bokuto. He would need it if he was going to compete with Tenma’s teeth and fangs. He dropped into a low ready position, sword above his head, as the wolf regained his footing. He paused, glaring at Akai, as if surprised that his prey could react so quickly.
“You’re pretty quick, for a little runt,” he taunted, just before leaping at Akai again. Using a burst of chakra for added strength, Akai was able to use his blade to flip Tenma over his back, much to the wolf’s surprise. He was able to land on his feet, but only just.
“Funny, you seem rather slow for a wolf,” Akai taunted back, shifting feet into a better stance. At this Tenma just laughed, not a soft chuckle like before, but a full blown laugh.
“Do you honestly think this is my best? That I would start against a weakling like you by going full force?” He laughed again, and Akai had a feeling that he wasn’t bluffing. “You are more foolish than I thought. Let me give you a taste of my true strength.” With that he spun around quickly and with a flick of his tail, sent a blast of wind flying right into Akai, knocking him backwards and causing him to lose his grip on his bokuto. He landed about twenty feet away from it, winded by the concussive force of the blast.
“Now do you see why I call you weak, fool?” Tenma gloated as Akai slowly picked himself up off the ground. “Now you are disarmed and therefore defenseless against my next attack.” He leapt forward and charged toward Akai, who was still on his knees. Hishin, on the edge of the field, made like he was going to try and intercept him, but Waizuten blocked the younger wolf’s path.
“This is his test. Let us see what he does.”
As Tenma ran across the field toward Akai, the young shinobi made no attempt to move. Or he at least made no attempt to move out of the way. What Tenma and the others failed to notice, though, were his rapidly moving hands. As Tenma made his final leap that would land him on his target, Akai stopped his hands on the sign of tori, the bird, and thrust it forward.
“Wind Style: Desert Stream Jutsu!” As Akai thrust his hands forward, a massive blast of hot air slammed into the leaping Tenma’s chest. The alpha wolf was sent flying back to the other side of the grove, as winded as Akai had been a few moments before. Hishin was impressed.
“That was almost as powerful as Tenma’s own attack!” he said to Waizuten. The tawny wolf looked back at him and nodded.
“And he timed its use well, but it took a lot of his chakra.” He indicated with a toss of his head how Akai had now gotten to his feet but was breathing heavily. “I think this will be over soon.” Tenma had the same thought in mind, though in a different way.
“You insolent little,” the wolf started, too enraged to finish his statement. “You will pay for that.” Then he disappeared, only to reappear a moment later directly behind Akai. “Now die.”
*How did he,* thought Akai, only just realizing that Tenma was behind him. He tried to move away but Tenma quickly clamped his jaws around his left arm. The pain that ripped through his arm immobilized him even more than the grip. He screamed as Tenma bit down harder.
Once again, Hishin tried to step in and stop the fight, but Waizuten again prevented him. Hishin then tried to push past the older wolf, only to receive a paw across the face.
“If this keeps up much longer, Tenma is going to seriously hurt him!” the fire furred wolf exclaimed frantically. He again tried to push past Waizuten and again was prevented.
“As a shinobi, he must be able to take it,” the older wolf replied harshly, “you do him no favors by sheltering him from it now.” As Hishin backed down once again, watching Akai struggle with Tenma’s death grip on his arm, Waizuten also returned to observing the fight, but he did so with a worried look in his eye.
Back in the fight, Akai was doing everything he could but was unable to dislodge the giant wolf’s fangs. He was left with a single option. Reaching into his right boot with his free right hand, he removed a single small slip of paper. Focusing threw the pain that continued to shoot up his arm, he used his chakra to light it and then held it in front of Tenma’s face, in plain view. At the sight of the quickly burning, ANBU level paper bomb, he quickly released his grip on Akai’s arm and immediately flickered away leaving Akai with only a few seconds to escape the blast. His arm shattered, he managed to flicker over to his bokuto and grab it, turning his back to the bomb he had left behind just as it exploded. The shockwave sent him sprawling and all of the wolves moving further back, for their own safety.
Landing on his mangled left arm, Akai screamed again in pain, if only for a moment. Then realizing that he was still in a fight, he pushed himself onto his knees using his uninjured right hand. He was almost to his feet again when a fresh wave of pain started at the bite and worked its way up his entire left arm. He collapsed to his knees, but this time managed to stifle his scream. This pain was different.
“How do you like my parting gift?” asked Tenma as he slowly walked up to Akai, laughing. Akai thought he detected a hint of mania in the silver wolf’s voice, but the thought was driven from his mind by a fresh wave of pain in his arm. “I think it likes you,” he added, seeing the look of anguish on Akai’s face. This strange comment prompted Akai to look at his mangled and broken arm. To his shock and fear, he realized that a number of small, black, fang-like marks had traveled from his wound up to his shoulder, each of them appearing to pulsate with his own rapid heart beat.
*A curse mark!?*
“Now die,” said the now obviously crazed wolf as he lowered his head to take a bite out of Akai’s throat.
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Suddenly, a combined blast of fire and lightning comes out of nowhere and strikes Tenma’s flank, launching him threw the air once again. Akai looks up to see four shapes leap between himself and Tenma. Four of the other wolves. Akai watched as Hishin, Waizuten, and another wolf, this one blue-grey in color and slightly larger than Hishin, moved to surround Tenma, while the fourth, the white colored female he had seen with two of the pups earlier, came over to inspect his wounded arm. After a single look and sniff, she immediately turned toward Tenma and started to growl. Akai doubled over with another wave of pain.
“Kazeshin, what is it?” called Hishin, without taking his eyes off of Tenma.
“You were right. It’s a forbidden art,” the white wolf responded, also without taking her eyes off of the silver wolf, “the Cursed Fang of Hunger. He’s feeding on the boy’s chakra.”
“I thought as much,” Hishin said upon hearing this, and he then turned to the tawny wolf. “Waizuten, go help Kazeshin try and heal him. Mizubuke and I will handle this scoundrel.” He turned to the blue-grey wolf beside him, “Ready, brother?”
“You know I am, little brother,” the blue wolf replied. With that said, Hishin then turned his attention to Tenma, who was now rising to his feet, chakra swirling around the rapidly healing burn on his side. As Akai felt another wave of pain, the chakra around the silver wolf’s wound flashed, leaving no doubt whose chakra he was using to heal. Hishin and Tenma locked eyes once more before Hishin spoke.
“Tenma, by the authority granted to me as Beta, due to your dishonorable action of only a moment ago and numerous lesser offenses in the past, I declare you unfit to be Alpha. I hereby vow to remove you from leadership, by force!”
As he rolled to his feet, Akai was already drawing his bokuto. He would need it if he was going to compete with Tenma’s teeth and fangs. He dropped into a low ready position, sword above his head, as the wolf regained his footing. He paused, glaring at Akai, as if surprised that his prey could react so quickly.
“You’re pretty quick, for a little runt,” he taunted, just before leaping at Akai again. Using a burst of chakra for added strength, Akai was able to use his blade to flip Tenma over his back, much to the wolf’s surprise. He was able to land on his feet, but only just.
“Funny, you seem rather slow for a wolf,” Akai taunted back, shifting feet into a better stance. At this Tenma just laughed, not a soft chuckle like before, but a full blown laugh.
“Do you honestly think this is my best? That I would start against a weakling like you by going full force?” He laughed again, and Akai had a feeling that he wasn’t bluffing. “You are more foolish than I thought. Let me give you a taste of my true strength.” With that he spun around quickly and with a flick of his tail, sent a blast of wind flying right into Akai, knocking him backwards and causing him to lose his grip on his bokuto. He landed about twenty feet away from it, winded by the concussive force of the blast.
“Now do you see why I call you weak, fool?” Tenma gloated as Akai slowly picked himself up off the ground. “Now you are disarmed and therefore defenseless against my next attack.” He leapt forward and charged toward Akai, who was still on his knees. Hishin, on the edge of the field, made like he was going to try and intercept him, but Waizuten blocked the younger wolf’s path.
“This is his test. Let us see what he does.”
As Tenma ran across the field toward Akai, the young shinobi made no attempt to move. Or he at least made no attempt to move out of the way. What Tenma and the others failed to notice, though, were his rapidly moving hands. As Tenma made his final leap that would land him on his target, Akai stopped his hands on the sign of tori, the bird, and thrust it forward.
“Wind Style: Desert Stream Jutsu!” As Akai thrust his hands forward, a massive blast of hot air slammed into the leaping Tenma’s chest. The alpha wolf was sent flying back to the other side of the grove, as winded as Akai had been a few moments before. Hishin was impressed.
“That was almost as powerful as Tenma’s own attack!” he said to Waizuten. The tawny wolf looked back at him and nodded.
“And he timed its use well, but it took a lot of his chakra.” He indicated with a toss of his head how Akai had now gotten to his feet but was breathing heavily. “I think this will be over soon.” Tenma had the same thought in mind, though in a different way.
“You insolent little,” the wolf started, too enraged to finish his statement. “You will pay for that.” Then he disappeared, only to reappear a moment later directly behind Akai. “Now die.”
*How did he,* thought Akai, only just realizing that Tenma was behind him. He tried to move away but Tenma quickly clamped his jaws around his left arm. The pain that ripped through his arm immobilized him even more than the grip. He screamed as Tenma bit down harder.
Once again, Hishin tried to step in and stop the fight, but Waizuten again prevented him. Hishin then tried to push past the older wolf, only to receive a paw across the face.
“If this keeps up much longer, Tenma is going to seriously hurt him!” the fire furred wolf exclaimed frantically. He again tried to push past Waizuten and again was prevented.
“As a shinobi, he must be able to take it,” the older wolf replied harshly, “you do him no favors by sheltering him from it now.” As Hishin backed down once again, watching Akai struggle with Tenma’s death grip on his arm, Waizuten also returned to observing the fight, but he did so with a worried look in his eye.
Back in the fight, Akai was doing everything he could but was unable to dislodge the giant wolf’s fangs. He was left with a single option. Reaching into his right boot with his free right hand, he removed a single small slip of paper. Focusing threw the pain that continued to shoot up his arm, he used his chakra to light it and then held it in front of Tenma’s face, in plain view. At the sight of the quickly burning, ANBU level paper bomb, he quickly released his grip on Akai’s arm and immediately flickered away leaving Akai with only a few seconds to escape the blast. His arm shattered, he managed to flicker over to his bokuto and grab it, turning his back to the bomb he had left behind just as it exploded. The shockwave sent him sprawling and all of the wolves moving further back, for their own safety.
Landing on his mangled left arm, Akai screamed again in pain, if only for a moment. Then realizing that he was still in a fight, he pushed himself onto his knees using his uninjured right hand. He was almost to his feet again when a fresh wave of pain started at the bite and worked its way up his entire left arm. He collapsed to his knees, but this time managed to stifle his scream. This pain was different.
“How do you like my parting gift?” asked Tenma as he slowly walked up to Akai, laughing. Akai thought he detected a hint of mania in the silver wolf’s voice, but the thought was driven from his mind by a fresh wave of pain in his arm. “I think it likes you,” he added, seeing the look of anguish on Akai’s face. This strange comment prompted Akai to look at his mangled and broken arm. To his shock and fear, he realized that a number of small, black, fang-like marks had traveled from his wound up to his shoulder, each of them appearing to pulsate with his own rapid heart beat.
*A curse mark!?*
“Now die,” said the now obviously crazed wolf as he lowered his head to take a bite out of Akai’s throat.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Suddenly, a combined blast of fire and lightning comes out of nowhere and strikes Tenma’s flank, launching him threw the air once again. Akai looks up to see four shapes leap between himself and Tenma. Four of the other wolves. Akai watched as Hishin, Waizuten, and another wolf, this one blue-grey in color and slightly larger than Hishin, moved to surround Tenma, while the fourth, the white colored female he had seen with two of the pups earlier, came over to inspect his wounded arm. After a single look and sniff, she immediately turned toward Tenma and started to growl. Akai doubled over with another wave of pain.
“Kazeshin, what is it?” called Hishin, without taking his eyes off of Tenma.
“You were right. It’s a forbidden art,” the white wolf responded, also without taking her eyes off of the silver wolf, “the Cursed Fang of Hunger. He’s feeding on the boy’s chakra.”
“I thought as much,” Hishin said upon hearing this, and he then turned to the tawny wolf. “Waizuten, go help Kazeshin try and heal him. Mizubuke and I will handle this scoundrel.” He turned to the blue-grey wolf beside him, “Ready, brother?”
“You know I am, little brother,” the blue wolf replied. With that said, Hishin then turned his attention to Tenma, who was now rising to his feet, chakra swirling around the rapidly healing burn on his side. As Akai felt another wave of pain, the chakra around the silver wolf’s wound flashed, leaving no doubt whose chakra he was using to heal. Hishin and Tenma locked eyes once more before Hishin spoke.
“Tenma, by the authority granted to me as Beta, due to your dishonorable action of only a moment ago and numerous lesser offenses in the past, I declare you unfit to be Alpha. I hereby vow to remove you from leadership, by force!”
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