After walking on the waves for quite some time, Haruto came to a halt and brought his hands up.
A quick mutter later and five clones of Haruto popped out next to him and Haruto immediately began handing out large stacks of white paper, each with identical black scribbles on it from his backpack. Without having to command them, they immediately set off and began pasting them against the many pillars that he was surrounded by and had walked past since he had split off from Ruby. They were the support beams that kept the massive, weighty bridge above his head and they numbered in soon to be hundreds. Thicker than ten men huddled together, it was a marvel that they had even built this many. But they were also spread far from each other, standing in pairs but with great distances between the current pair and the next.
Having handed out everything, Haruto set off again.
"Oh crap." Naruko muttered as the memories of her fallen clones returned to her. Her teammates and teachers' immediately snapped their eyes towards her as she growled. "They're here!"
"T-The Demon! He-He's here!"
A few men came stumbling out of the nearby makeshift house, probably having been taking naps and resting when they were awoken by their colleagues.
"Run, run, run!"
Kakashi glanced towards the end of the bridge where cries of terror sang in the early morning. The clattering of building materials and tools hitting the rough surface of the bridge echoed loudly before the men started to pour out of the fog, running as if the Shinigami was hot on their heels. The usually drunk Tazuna seemed to lose his sobriety once he realised the Demon of the Mist was here and even began to sweat profusely.
Ignoring them for now and looking back towards his own group, he regarded his colleagues.
"Kurenai!" The only female Jonin nodded her head and gestured for her team and Tazuna to follow her before they started running back down the bridge to retreat. Sakura and Shino gave worried glances to their teammates but set off after Kurenai and Tazuna, flanking his sides protectively as they ran.
"We'll take point, Gai. Everyone else, stay behind us. We are to hold them back only and to prevent them from chasing after the client. Am I understood?"
"Hai!" The students answered the silver haired Jonin, getting ready for battle in their own ways. Lee had already begun bouncing on his heels, punching the air at a rapid pace to warm his arms up while Neji's feet slid slightly apart, arms tensed and prepared to lash out at a moment's notice.
Sasuke reached into his pouch and retrieved his shuriken from between his fingers. Even without the Sharingan, Sasuke had been refining his ability to nail targets accurately with help from his big brother, whose Shurikenjutsu was highly praised by many.
Kakashi reached up to his headband and pulled it up, but kept his Sharingan closed. "The lot of you, get back." The Genin silently moved backwards and hid in the mist, patiently waiting for Zabuza to make his appearance. "Here he comes..."
The fog seemed to shift and gather, assembling at the roof of the building in a thick and dense cloud before dispersing shortly, leaving a cross-armed Zabuza behind. Zabuza stared down at Kakashi from his vantage point on the roof of the small building. The room, as it were, was more like a place for the workers to rest in, providing refreshments and a shelter from the rain when need be.
"Kakashi." Zabuza's deep, reverberating voice uttered when the man stepped into view. Contempt was clear in his voice, but it was paired with respect since he knew just how dangerous his opponent was. "This time, only one of us will be leaving here alive."
"We could both leave fine if you stopped trying to kill our client." Kakashi lazily replied. His arms hung by his sides, fingers resting next to his pouch should he need to quickly draw his kunai or shuriken.
"Sorry. But once I've accepted a job, I tend not to go back on it."
"A damn shame." Kakashi smiled, "But... my students have been itching to pay back what you did to me." From the mist, a large fireball in the shape of a massive orb tore through the white sheets, spinning rapidly in the direction of Zabuza. Even with the massive weight of the blade on his back, Zabuza managed to easily dodge the fireball by jumping out of the way, causing the Jutsu to scorch the roof of the building.
Landing after his jump, Zabuza noticed Kakashi had vanished and quickly reached for his blade, instinctively bringing it out in front of him like a shield as he blocked the slash that would've taken out one of his eyes. Using the hand that was supporting the flat side of the blade, Zabuza yelled as he shoved it forwards, pushing Kakashi back.
"HYAH!" Kakashi was shoved backwards and sent skidding on the smooth concrete floor by his sandals.
Admitting that he was rather out of shape was not something Kakashi wanted to do, but it was rather true. While he had improved somewhat from his previous slump of visiting Obito and Rin's and all his fallen comrade's graves on a daily basis, an act that ate up all his time and prevented him from training, he still had yet to give up on his smut reading. His indulgence in erotic writing written by the one and only Jiraiya, his teacher's teacher, was simply something he couldn't give up. Had he been in his ANBU days, he probably would've been able to prevent himself from being pushed back this much, but with years of wear and tear on him, Kakashi did get slightly weaker.
"This is all you've got?" The Kiri shinobi remarked casually, "Seems to me you only got lucky that day."
"Huh?" Kakashi tilted his head to the side, "You mean the set up?"
"Set up?"
"Gai!" Zabuza widened his eyes when he realised that Kakashi was merely stalling for time. But it was too late.
"Dynamic Entry!"
Or maybe it wasn't. With the knowledge of where the attacker was coming from, Zabuza changed the position of Kubikiribocho, holding it in the same fashion as before, but this time on his right.
A harsh and loud clang filled the ears of all those nearby as Gai's foot struck the flat side of Zabuza's blade. The impact from the leg drop had been so great that the blade shifted inwards, bashing Zabuza's shoulder with his own makeshift shield. Even the blunt force exerted onto it had been so strong that Zabuza's hand stung painfully for a few moments. The partially masked man growled and repeated his actions, pushing the broad, flat side of the blade and sending Gai away, who landed perfectly after a flip and unharmed.
Had it been anyone else, their foot would've been more than likely cracked, fractured or even broken. But Gai was no ordinary shinobi and got off scot-free, with not even a bruise or limp on his foot. Years of training had hardened his skin and bones to the point where it could take more punishment than the average person.
"Ho! That was a fantastic block!" Gai sent a thumbs up to a confused Zabuza's way, "I would compliment you more, however we are on opposing sides!"
Naruko, Sasuke, Kiba, Lee and Neji appeared behind their sensei's, two out of the five impressed at the fact that Gai was still standing after dealing such a powerful blow to the dense cleaver sword. Naruko had seen the shit Gai had done as training before and knew enough about the man from Kakashi to tell that he was more than fine.
Kakashi sighed as he felt a droplet of sweat roll down the side of his face, "Gai, for as long as I've known you, I've told you this. Hit first, then shout all you want. Not the other way around."
"My eternal rival, that would be very dishonourable!" The green-clad man protested, "Dishonourable acts cause the everlasting fires of Youth to dim and die!"
"We're shinobi, Gai." Kakashi groaned, "Honour means nothing when we're dead."
"I beg to differ, Kakashi! Taking honour with us to the grave–+"
"Look, can we discuss this later? Like, after we're done beating the crap out of him?" Naruko piped up from behind the two, "Today isn't a good day to die." The rest of the Genin nodded, hoping that their teachers would drop the subject of honour and return to dealing with the threat before them.
"Tsk." He scoffed, "I see you brought even more backup. A wise decision."
"Yes, well I am a little rusty," Kakashi admitted shamelessly with a chuckle, "And I'm not one to turn down help when I can get it. Speaking of backup, where's yours?"
"He's here." Raiga walked out from the mist behind Zabuza. His twin blades that were held loosely in his hands looked rather menacing with their jutted prongs. It reminded Naruko greatly of her father's infamous three pronged kunai which had earned him much infamy during the Third Shinobi World War.
"Gai... You have beef with him don't you?"
"Yes." Gai's usual fire seemed to fall to a simmer. His eyes grew quite cold at the sight of Raiga, who gave him a look of scrutiny, observing Gai from head to toe. The look of deep thought on his face showed that Raiga was trying hard to remember Gai. "You were one of the men that my father fought to the death."
"I remember now..." Raiga smiled eerily, "You're the kid of that crazy guy? Hahahaha! You look just like him! Like father, like son I suppose!" Bringing the twin swords up, Raiga's eyes darkened considerably. His tongue darted out of his mouth, licking his lips hungrily. "I'll be sure to cut you up like I did your old man."
Gai's fists tightened, but not out of anger. His father's death had been an honourable sacrifice. Sacrificing his life to ensure the safety of his only child and his friends was one of the things only few fathers would admit they would do without a second thought.
There was no need to soil his death with feelings of hatred or vengeance.
What he felt now was the resolution to protect his students and friends, just like his father had.
"Then come!" Gai's feet slid apart as he entered his Goken stance, face stone cold with determination. "And show me your resolution!" Gai was speaking to their foes, but even then his words sparked a desire in the hearts of his comrades to do their utmost best.
Neji's hands rose, palms outwards, and were held outstretched before him, preparing himself to use any of the Hyuuga's defensive manoeuvres if need be. Lee, much like Gai, had already gotten into the same position by the time his sensei had finished speaking. Sasuke's hands held multiple shuriken, preparing to throw them when the battle started while his crimson haired teammate had summoned two shadow clones that stood by her side. Kiba got down onto his hands much like a canine, growling aggressively at the pair.
However, a faint, unfamiliar scent in the breeze that smelt strongly of assorted herbs, a scent he had picked up over the smell of bloodshed, caused Kiba's nose to twitch violently and the canine boy began to sniff the air. In a blur, the boy's head shot to the side of the bridge, staring at the air as he began growling again.
"Up there!" Zabuza scowled when he realised his apprentice had been found out. Haku was supposed to be his surprise attack, but he had not considered the appearance of scent trackers.
"Haku!" He yelled and faint whistles from speeding objects came from above. They tore through the fog in the form of large icicles, a sickly blue that was tipped with a very, very sharp end.
Gai allowed his student to step forth, "Neji!"
"Hai!" The boy ran forth, away from the group, and as he did the veins around his eyes bulged significantly and the pale eyes sharpened in focus. The world turned clear and Neji could see everything. He could see everyone of his Konoha comrades as well as his foes, including the one that had been discreetly hiding in the sky in some kind of... floating mirror. The icicles that were about to rain down upon them were also visible, clear as day despite being enveloped in the thick fog.
"Hakkeshō Kaiten (Eight Trigrams: Palm Rotation)!" The icicles slammed into the large, blue hemisphere that sheltered Neji, shattering into tiny, unseen water crystals that evaporated immediately. Naruko, Sasuke, Kiba and even Lee gaped at the ability.
Hate to admit it, but that was pretty cool. Was the general thoughts going on in all but the latter's heads. Lee was in more of a proud shock than anything.
"That was fantastic! I have much training to do in order to catch up to you, my youthful friend!"
Seeing that their surprise attack had failed, Zabuza and Raiga frowned. Raiga brought one hand up, still holding onto his weapon, and muttered beneath his breath.
"Kirigakure no Jutsu."
The mist thickened almost immediately, surrounding every single person in the nearby vicinity, and both men stepped backwards into the pearly-white realm, vanishing from the sight of all but one of the Konoha Shinobi.