Naruto: Tango with Death

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[Hideto's POV]

After we dealt that critical strike on Kiri by killing their Mizukage, I thought I would finally be able to take some rest.

I never really was someone who liked to put in a lot of efforts, some may call me lazy, but I've always done what I had to. Wouldn't have ever reached this point otherwise.

But still, I liked to have my own rhythm, something that was broken for an entire.

Sukaina Sumichi, also known as the Owl, or as I recently learned the Flower Princess, although that's a fact only few know, was a complicated figure.

First time I saw her was on Iwa's battlefield, in the command tent, she had just barged in, but there was no way for me to underestimate her because of how young she looked.

Instead, she gave me quite the fright. I hadn't spotted her myself directly, and instead followed the many gazes to finally be able to see her. And even then, it seemed like she had been standing there for a few seconds already.

That was my first encounter with her, and I already started believing the rumours about her were true.

But what followed was even crazier. Iwa launched a full on assault, sending all of their troops in different areas, something I did not believe we could effectively deal with.

And technically, we shouldn't have. There were too many enemies. But then, a crazy idea was thrown out. Send the Owl and the Bloody Sword to stop the Five Tails and the Explosion Corps.

That was mental. Just one Jinchuriki needed both me and another Jonin to take care of, alongside a whole army, and they wanted to send only two people against an even more frightening foe.

I had fought alongside the Bloody Sword, and while the Uchiha woman was strong, she wasn't any stronger than the other Jonins. Yet every Jonin seemed very confident, so it had to stem from the Owl.

Hence, while I held reservations towards this plan, I didn't say anything.

And as it turned out, I was wrong. Not only had the two won like the rest of us, the Owl went even further and annihilated Iwa's strongest unit by herself, drastically lowering their threat level.

She then went on to accomplish more and more absurd, like killing a dragon, and as some rumours would say, summon it. I later learned from her that she only killed it, but it was mental enough.

I mean, it's a dragon, a stuff of legends. I didn't even know it existed, yet she killed it.

This, convinced me of her individual prowess.

But then, I was assigned a new mission, on a new battlefront. Against Kiri. And this time, I would be under the direct orders of the Owl. No, I would be her advisor.

At first, I thought I would be dealing with everything, after all to get this strong this young, she must have spent her life training, and mustn't have studied the arts of war much.

But yet again, I was proven wrong. Facing an army several times her own, she led her troops with excellence, while training all ten of us. Eleven, if you count Kurenai who came in after a few months.

And with her training, not only did we get stronger, but we also learned to trust each other, and I am proud to say that all the other officers became my friends, Shinobi, Bender, Samurai and Blade Dancer alike.

Additionally, I also got a glimpse of her terrifying talent, and strength. I knew her feats until then, but as we trained we her, and saw how easily she outclassed us, I started understanding that she may have reached a whole other level.

Even scarier was, in those areas where she started weaker than us, she took less than a year to catch up on us.

And finally, after one year, we finally got to witness her true strength.

All by herself, she shrouded an entire Hidden Village, and not just any of them, Kirigakure, the Bloody Mist, into a mist.

Quite ironical, but also very fearsome. But even scarier was what she did inside that mist, as she managed to kill the Mizukage all by herself. And that, again, was terrifying on multiple levels.

Just the act of killing a Kage was fearsome enough, but she had done so after casting that large scale Jutsu. Hence, she either killed him with close to no chakra left, or she has such large reserves that she could still kill him after that.

No matter the answer, she was scary. But she was my commander, and I was proud to have learned under her. It was tough, yes, but I was proud.

Still, no matter how proud, I am still someone who likes his rest, so I took a leave after the battle was over, thinking I would get some rest.

Alas, barely a week into my rest, I hear about a new person who had arrived in Sendai, becoming the new Shogun. Not much was known about the position itself, but the one filling it was more than enough to tell me how much trouble they would make.

And sure enough, only a day after her arrival, the Commander crippled the Council, destroyed it officially, and imprisoned the strongest noble in the Land of Fire, outside of the Daimyo's family.

So I wanted my rest, but I couldn't just lay back and hide while she faced the capital on her own, fighting against the rebellion. That's why I did not hesitate to go see her, and accepted her job, after satisfying some of my curiosity.

And as any task given by her, I did not lure myself into thinking this would be a trouble free job. Still, I didn't expect for said trouble to come less than 24 hours after getting said job, nor that it would be a Mokuton user!

My opponent, a middle aged man dressed in a dark robe with red clouds, while sending wooden constructs at me, said, "You were not supposed to be here."

Grabbing my swords tighter, I frantically slashed at the relentless attacks and replied, "Neither were you."

He snorted softly and stomped his foot on the ground, causing a tree to erupt from the shattered wall nearby. On top of the tree was Hirahisa, who was shaking in fear at the sight of the battle.

Gritting my teeth, I fuelled my lightning with even more chakra as two boots made of lightning started manifesting around my feet. However, they were unsteady, and wouldn't last long.

But they would last long enough for what I needed.

With a leap, I instantly travelled the distance between me and Hirahisa, and cut down the tree with another motion.

I wanted to catch Hirahisa, but I did not get to as I suddenly like I was getting crushed. From the corner of my eye, I could see the robed man walking my way, with an absurd amount of chakra pouring out of him, and freezing me.

So he wasn't just a Mokuton user, but he also had beast like Chakra reserves? Fuck it, I've had enough.

Circulating all of my chakra to move, I suddenly clapped my hands, both of them filled with lightning chakra. The result was a loud thunderclap that was heard throughout Sendai.

I saw the robed man freeze for an instant, before a frown etched itself onto his face. Still overpowering me with his chakra, he no longer walked, but used the Body Flicker to appear before me, his fist coming down on me.

But before the fist could crush my head open like a watermelon, the robed man was suddenly sent flying backwards, all the pressure disappearing in an instant, while a smaller figure had appeared in front of me.

Her hair was defying gravity, not standing straight up though as Guy's would when he used the technique, but instead floated behind her, as if unaffected by the world. Her pupils had shrunk extremely, leaving two small beads, and her skin had turned reddish.

"You did a good job."

Who else could it be than the Commander, Sukaina?