Chapter 83 - Faithful and Valuable

The two stared each other down. This was a sparring match, but with massive ramifications. Ekyt broke out his tonfa, already deciding how he was going to attack.

He and Shinmaru rushed each other. But something was strange. Neither one was getting any closer to the other.

“Release!” they shouted in tandem. As a genjutsu shattered, they realized they were next to each other. In surprise, Shinmaru struck with a kunai, while Ekyt flicked a tonfa open in an attack. The two attacks canceled each other out, and the combatants leapt back to their ends of the battlefield.

“Demonic Illusion: False Surroundings. That’s what my attack was…” Shinmaru seemed to be making calculations in his head. “You don’t have the Sharingan eye, and you didn’t copy my handsigns anyway. That means that you somehow returned my attack on me, or…Or you used the genjutsu without making handsigns. That’s really impressive!” Shinmaru applauded. “To use genjutsu without making handsigns! I never DID figure that out! But it seems as if my jutsu packs a little more punch…Demonic Illusion: Hell Viewing Technique!”

Ekyt used the same jutsu at the same time. Both combatants were silently engaging in a battle of mental superiority, each trying to force the other into a corner with nothing but illusions. Done properly, you could tell your opponent that you were putting an illusion on them, and even knowing in advance, they couldn’t break it. The stalemate between Ekyt and Shinmaru would be decided by he who broke the opponent’s genjutsu first. They were both standing still, their hands in the sign of the tiger. Sweat ran down their faces from the mental effort it took to keep a jutsu in place so long.

I hate to break out all my tricks early, but…Demonic Illusion: Death Foreseeing!

Ekyt used his favorite genjutsu trick: Casting two at the same time. That took a lot of practice, and wasn’t particularly effective when the opponent saw it coming. But it was quick, and often created an opening that Ekyt could use. Through the illusion he was suffering (He was in the Leaf Village, and everyone he saw died as he ran by), he saw Shinmaru stumble, then shake his head. Genjutsu couldn’t be broken by pain from another genjutsu, and you could sense when it was broken. Armed with this knowledge, Ekyt let the illusion on him continue, while he used his own illusions full blast. Shinmaru was likely seeing the death of himself in several gruesome ways, coupled with the illusion of being tied up with a fire spreading towards him. This battle was fought in a world of illusions. Ekyt could see clearly, so he aimed to close the distance between them.

I was wrong about him being a taijutsu specialist. If he uses genjutsu, then there’s a chance that physical attacks are his weak point. So let’s try that out. I don’t know my enemy, but I DO know myself. So I should trust my strengths to eventually expose his weaknesses. Let’s see if he can keep his illusion going while defending himself against my frontal attacks.

It became evident very quickly that Shinmaru could. In fact, he had a skill Ekyt didn’t.

As a kunai swept up to block Ekyt’s tonfa strikes, Shinmaru’s other hand made handsigns. (Similar to Haku) Sensing the chakra change, Ekyt jumped backward, holding his tonfa in a guard.

Cigarette. he thought, popping a chakra cigarette into his mouth. He knew a jutsu was coming, but he didn’t know from where, or what kind of jutsu.

“Earth Style: Boulder Graveyard!”

The entire ground shook. In the high-ceilinged (but windowless and dimly-lit) room, rocks shot up from the ground in seemingly random places. A massive boulder grew up from the ground in the middle of the room, while slender, more jagged rocks aimed for Ekyt himself. Forced on the defensive, and still fighting an illusion, Ekyt countered by releasing his own genjutsus, then quickly reapplying the Demonic Illusion: Hell Viewing Technique. It seemed to catch Shinmaru off-guard, as the rocks slowed down. But that wasn’t right. A boulder slammed Ekyt in the stomach, knocking him toward a sharper rock. Ekyt spun in the air and missed the rock-mostly. He felt his left shoulder tear open. He couldn’t even recover, as more rocks shot up. But the sharp rock cutting him open released the genjutsu that was on him, allowing him to see more clearly, if just for a few seconds, before the next genjutsu hit him.

So he’s created an combination offensive/defensive attack with those rocks. But it’s restricted his movement as well as mine. Could that mean that speed isn’t his strong suit? It’s not mine, either, but maybe I can make it work in my favor somehow…Ah!

Making the appropriate handsigns, Ekyt decided to take his first risk. He focused his efforts on making his genjutsu show Shinmaru drowning. Then he followed up with his “Tatsunokuchi: Dragon Gargoyle! Summoning Jutsu! Umisu- Water Style: Flowing River!”

From the gargoyle’s mouth spewed an endless amount of water, courtesy of Umisu’s own abilities. It saved Ekyt’s chakra while adding to his illusion. If Shinmaru felt real water hitting him, maybe drowning would seem realistic to him. It also gave Ekyt some room to work. But this plan backfired.

“Water Style: Tidal Crest!” Shinmaru cried loudly, aiming a hand toward Ekyt.

The water in the room shifted toward Ekyt. The continuous stream had weathered the rocks, smoothing the sharp points. No more chances for a vital hit that way. That also made the rocks slippery, adding nearly zero chance for escape to the already formidable amount of problems.

The giant wave coming at Ekyt was a problem, to be sure. He took a calculated risk and ran toward the wave, diving through the bottom of the water. The wave crashed harmlessly over him, as he avoided the crest itself. When he looked back, Ekyt saw the wall was full of holes where the white cap of the wave had hit.

Good thing I took a risk. I would’ve been skewered like dango!

Keeping his momentum, Ekyt slid toward Shinmaru. He took aim with his tonfa, hitting Shinmaru in the leg hard enough to break a small bone in the shin. As Shinmaru fell, Ekyt smashed him in the stomach, then again in the face. Shinmaru fell hard, curling up into a fetal position.

“It’s over. I win- !”

Ekyt bit his lip hard, then spun around just in time to deflect Shinmaru’s attack.

“Tricky genjutsu can come from anywhere, at any time. While you dove through the wave and closed your eyes, I put a genjutsu on you. Still, you’re very good for a boy your age. If you had waited two more years, you might have beaten me. You’re only going to get stronger.”

Ekyt thanked Shinmaru for the praise as they traded taijutsu strikes.

“I would appreciate it if you wouldn’t refer to me in the past tense quite yet, though. We aren’t finished here!”

Ekyt used a replacement jutsu, attaching an exploding tag on the log he used to replace himself with. Shinmaru ran away from the log, but Ekyt used a body flicker jutsu to reappear and kick the log toward Shinmaru. It exploded, this time really hitting Shinmaru in the leg with a ton of splinters. A minor burn also added to Shinmaru’s woes.

Shinmaru skidded backward. “Pretty good, kid! You actually wounded me! That’s farther than most get! But it’s not over by a longshot! You haven’t seen half of what I can do!”

Then Shinmaru vanished.

No. He didn’t vanish. He’s moving at a speed so great I can’t follow him! The water!

Ekyt swung wildly at the rippling water, but hit nothing.

“You’re not even hitting my after-images!” Shinmaru declared, standing on top of the giant boulder in the center of the room. A split-second later, he was crashing into Ekyt. He actually held on to Ekyt and drove him- and himself- backward and out through a wall. Their brawl had spilled outside, ruining Ekyt’s water strategy. But he thought quickly.

“Shadow Clone Jutsu! Dance of the Sickle Moon!”

Two clones wielding tonfa’s like Ekyt’s stood back to back to back with him. They all widened their tonfas with their chakra and started to swing. They didn’t hit anyone, but they really weren’t supposed to.

Now then; Bringer of Darkness Technique!

WHABANG!

Ekyt knew his darkness genjutsu had worked when one of his clones finally smacked Shinmaru. It also ended the genjutsu, but it had done it’s job. Ekyt grabbed Shinmaru and wrestled him to the ground. The clones held him down, and it looked like the fight had been one. But then the clones dissolved.

“What the hell?!” Ekyt exclaimed. He didn’t move! They had him! What the hell did he do?!

Shinmaru spat at Ekyt. It hit him in the face. Ekyt was disgusted, but then it got worse- his flesh began to bake.

“ACID!”

“That’s right!” Shinmaru confirmed. “Do you know why I’m bald, and my body almost completely hairless? It’s because I’ve dunked myself in acid in order to build up an immunity to it. That way, I can put it on my skin, and spit it on my foes. Then they can’t get near me, or touch me! If you thought all I was good at was genjutsu, you were dead wrong!”

Ekyt dunked his face in the water quickly, though the acid had given him a nasty burn. The fight had gone well, up to this point.

How the hell do I beat this guy? I’m going to have to KO him with my tonfas. It’s what he’s expecting, but I’ll have to let him expect it, and just somehow crack him in the head anyway…

Ekyt was running out of options, and he had to think fast. To take away the speed factor, he had to enclose Shinmaru somehow. But he couldn’t grab him, and clones wouldn’t work either. They were evenly matched when it came to genjutsu. Ekyt couldn’t hope to be faster than him, so he would have to strategize better.

Then the solution hit him. He reached for a ward, keeping it hidden in his sleeve. He whispered the activation. All he had to do was set it.

Shinmaru grabbed Ekyt in a bearhug.

“AGHHH!”

The acid bit into him, eating through his clothes. Ekyt held fast, and slapped the tag on Shinmaru’s bare chest. Immediately, Shinmaru’s grip weakened. Keeping his mind on the tag, Ekyt slammed Shinmaru to the ground.

“Now it’s over. Your chakra is sealed. And there’s no way to- ?!”

The tag was disintegrating at the corners. That took Ekyt’s mind off the chakra he was putting into it, and the tag disappeared. Only burnt ash remained.

“Whew! I don’t know what the hell you just did, but it was a good move! Too bad it didn’t last!” Shinmaru was up again, and fast as ever. He blindsided Ekyt with a kick that knocked him through another wall.

-

“What the hell?!” Naruto exclaimed, as Ekyt came flying into the room, his clothes torn and his face bloodied. He skidded across the table, taking out the food and drinks. The girls screamed and ran for cover. Before Ekyt could even roll to his feet, he was kicked again, this time bouncing off the back wall. His headband slipped and fell off. A half-second later, a hand was around his neck.

“You’re defeated. Admit it. Because next I squeeze your windpipe, and I kill you.”

“(koff) Fine, kill me. But not in front of them.”

Ekyt braced his feet against the back wall, and kicked forward. Shinmaru had him around the neck, though, and Ekyt only managed to slam himself into the table. Shinmaru held him up. Slowly, the life was being choked out of Ekyt.

-

“Asuma, what do we do?!”

Asuma was up in an instant. His knives were at Shinmaru’s neck.

“Alright, he lost. So let him go, or you’ll be fighting me next…”

Asuma’s threat proved substantial. Shinmaru let go, and Ekyt clattered to the ground. Immediately, the others gathered around, and Sakura began healing him.

“Burns over one-third of his body…but other than that…”

Sakura’s diagnoses brought relief to everyone in the group. Everyone except Ekyt, that is.

I was defeated, and he didn’t even seriously hurt me? How strong is he? Or how weak am I? It doesn’t matter. He’s the victor.

“…shoot…”

Everyone looked sympathetic. Shikamaru asked about the strategy Shinmaru used. When Ekyt outlined it, Shikamaru thought it was tricky.

“If you had Shadow Possession, it would have been easy enough to snag him early on. But without it... Man, must’ve been a drag.”

“Yeah…”

Shinmaru walked over to Ekyt. He bowed to the Leaf group, who all tensed up, ready to defend Ekyt, should Shinmaru try to finish the job.

“Guys, don’t worry. I knew the risks. The loser gets killed. I lost, so I’ll accept it.” Ekyt smiled lightly at them, then turned his head to face Shinmaru. His face showed no trace of anger. And why should it? Shinmaru hadn’t done anything wrong except be a strong fighter.

Shinmaru shook his head. “You’re brave, and you fought well. Asuma told me about your illness. To fight with that, you are a gifted warrior. You did lose, however, so you won’t become one of the guardians. But still, you’ve earned this. It’s a special kind of…promotion, I guess, from the Fire Daimyo himself. Seems you impressed him!”

In Ekyt’s hand was a waistcloth, similar to Asuma’s. It had the same design and writing, except for a small ‘ni’ (two) in the corner.

“It means that you’ll be counted on to help the Fire Daimyo in a time of war, or should he come to your village. So, in a way, you’re a comrade now. I wish you the best of health and fortune, friend.”

Ekyt was speechless, though Shinmaru seemed to understand. Ekyt managed a bow, which Shinmaru returned.
-

“Go on, wear it home. You’ve gotta show Lady Tsunade, at least.”

With the waistcloth tucked proudly into his pants, Ekyt walked side by side with his…friends.

For once, I feel that I deserve their company, and this vest. I’m a jonin of the Hidden Leaf, and an associate of the Fire Daimyo. I’m not Kakashi, or Yamato, or Asuma, but I can at least feel like I’m worth something now. Even if I DID lose. Now it’s gonna bug me. How the hell DO you beat a guy like that? And more importantly, why did that tag disintegrate? Was it because I lost focus, or because of that acid?

Before the ten had gotten far, they saw someone blocking their way. The cigarette fell from Ekyt’s mouth.

“A-Azami?!”

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