Naruto: The Unwoven Threads of Fate

The chill to the air intensifies as the sunlight seems to fade on its own accord. But this isn't an effect of the nameless shinobi's killing intent, even though that skyrockets to new levels with each passing second. The sun is blotted out by something more sinister than killing intent: dark rumbling thunderclouds. The fury of nature itself has seen fit to elevate the stakes of their battle.

Or perhaps the fury of nature is reacting to their battle?

"Orochimaru." The nameless shinobi spits out in disgust as he raises his hands to the sky about a half meter apart. The seals that he placed on his chest all begin to ominously glow with chakra. Only three of the elements blaze on his chest like a precursor of what is to come. Water, wind and lightning are throwing off a near blinding light in the sudden darkness provided by the ominous clouds.

A clap of thunder and a flash of brilliant white lights up the sky as the storm prepares to unleash its fury. It casts an eerie glow down onto the nameless shinobi with the first bolt. With the second clap of thunder the next bolt doesn't remain within the confines of the sky, it jaggedly arcs down and slams into the earth behind the nameless shinobi casting him in a truly menacing shadow dance for the briefest of moments.

"You should wish I was Orochimaru, then you might have had a chance to stop me." The nameless shinobi doesn't bother to raise his voice despite the raging storm above everyone, just barely restraining itself from pouring its contents down on those below. It simply doesn't matter, everyone is enraptured with him at this moment. He has their full undivided attention.

"You claim to not be Orochimaru." Kakuzu boldly breaks his silence as dark grey takes over his entire body. He's preparing himself for a real fight now. He can feel the sheer amount of chakra this person is pouring out into whatever jutsu he's fueling. He's taking no risks here, he's holding nothing back. Kakuzu will bring his full might to bear against this shinobi. "Then there's only one other person you can be."

"I've had enough of your name games." The nameless shinobi squeezes his eyes shut beneath his mask. Arcing down from the clouds, and the center of attention of everyone present, is the brightest arc of lightning that anyone has ever seen. It's so bright that it becomes the main light source, surpassing the sun, and its light casts shadows away from it. There is no color to the world anymore, the sheer brightness of this technique is so intense that everything becomes white and a slightly whiter white.

But most importantly of all, everyone who didn't close their eyes becomes momentarily blinded. The abrupt influx of light on that scale is simply too much for the brain to handle and it shuts down the entire visual sense to cope.

"AARG!" Kakuzu raises up an arm to shield his eyes but it's too late. The damage has already been done, he's blinded. But by no means is he removed from the fight, he still has four other senses to rely on. Not to mention three other minions that were shielded from the flash.

Kakuzu isn't the only one to be affected by the biggest and brightest bolt of lightning ever. Both Yoro and Kegon got an eyeful too. They unleash their own cries of anguish as their retinas are seared and they unleash twin cries of surprise as they're hit square in the back by some sort of sticky rope.

Fuu, Yoro and Kegon are yanked off their feet and flung out of the clearing, disappearing amongst the trees, and if they could see they'd see a pair of spiders eagerly catching them and quickly binding them with gags before stuffing them into a cocoon of webs and scuttling away through the thick branches with them thrown on their backs.

"So Kakuzu. Answer a question for me." The nameless shinobi says as he adjusts his stance, lifting up one foot and slamming it into the ground to anchor himself. Accompanying the slamming of his foot are three mounds of mud that rise up. They quickly take on the shape of humans and slowly gain color. In a scant three seconds a nearly exact replica of Fuu, Yoro and Kegon are standing behind the nameless shinobi as if they never left in the first place.

A crack of thunder resonates from the dark ominous clouds above clones and men and the storm finally spills forth. It's soft at first, a gently pouring of rain that is barely a sprinkle. Then it gains momentum, the once sprinkle turns into a forceful shower, then buckets of water, then sharp tearing raindrops that feel like they're hurled down from the heavens with the all the ferocity of a hurricane.

Plants are becoming shredded as the unrelenting water spears fall on them. Leaves, twigs, branches and even a few decrepit trees fall prey to this storm's fury. Where what once stood a proud forest is quickly becoming a sight of what nature is truly capable of.

The wind surrounding the clearing - the entire forest - whips into a frenzy. No longer does the rain fall down, now it falls from every direction. The fierce wind is hurling those sharp droplets into all sorts of crazy trajectories. Left, right, forward, back. Nothing is spared as this storm rises to new heights of destruction.

Those leaves, twigs, branches and the decrepit trees that fell asunder to the sharp tearing rain are hurled through the air with impunity. The wildness of the winds doesn't care that they're not part of the storm, the winds are making them part of the storm if they want to or not.

"Can Orochimaru do this?" The nameless shinobi swings his arms out to his side and gestures to the whole storm and his gesture is accompanied by a bolt of lightning that drops from the sky. It jaggedly arcs from the heavens with the wrath of a lightning god directly at Kakuzu.

"No, he can't." Despite the frankly ridiculous situation that he finds himself in Kakuzu is remaining calm. Never, in all his many years, has panicking ever been the correct choice to make. He's steeled his mind and body against such feeble emotions long ago so even though this shinobi is much more dangerous than he seemed Kakuzu keeps his calm.

Sprouting out of his back is a long spindly mass of threads capped by a mask depicting some form a strange beaked creature. It snaps outward, not wasting time with pulsing out of his back. Kakuzu can't afford the intimidation tactic in this instance and he knows that this shinobi won't be affected by it regardless. The new appendage faces upwards towards the storm and unleashes a twisting tunnel of wind that rises upwards.

The rising wind and the falling lightning collide in a brilliant flash that lights up the overcast sky. The twisting tunnel of wind outmatches the lightning and punches a hole through the dark ominous clouds that take up the sky, revealing a speck of blue for the faintest of moments before the clouds swirl back into the hole.

"I must admit, nameless shinobi, that you're quite skilled. The chakra you can wield, the skill in which you manipulate it, the fluidity of your actions that transition smoothly into the next are very impressive." Kakuzu's mask distorts as the man beneath it is sinisterly smirking. He boldly takes a step forward and two more long black spindly appendages join the first hanging out of his back. "But no matter how impressive this jutsu is, no matter how easily you see through my attacks, no matter what you do, you're right. You're not Orochimaru. He's much more dangerous than you ever could be."

"I didn't plan on killing you tonight." The nameless shinobi growls out as he wills four more lightning bolts to fall from the sky. "Thankfully I'm willing to make amendments to my plans."

"So, a test of jutsu is it?" Ripping out of the same mask as before is another gale of wind, this one is much more widespread as it easily swats all four lightning bolts away from their target. "You're quite formidable at a distance and I freely admit that with this outstanding storm you've conjured I might be overwhelmed. Yet we are not samurai. We do not sit idly by and let our opponents get ready to battle. We do not play on an even playing field. After all, what kind of shinobi would we be if we didn't take advantage of our opponent's weaknesses?"

On Kakuzu's final word he sprints forward to close the meager distance between him and the nameless shinobi. He stays low to the ground, his wind mask stays aimed at the sky and the other two swivel towards his prey. Though it doesn't seem possible, Kakuzu's already grey skin goes even darker as if he's pouring more into this jutsu with each step closer to his goal.

But Kakuzu's dash for his prize isn't without obstacles. Lightning falls from the sky yet again and this time it's not alone. The wind picks up and a single sickle like blade surges towards Kakuzu from his left at waist height. Off on his right he sees numerous sharp water spears streaking through the air horizontally as if they're unaffected by gravity. They number in the hundreds and easily cover more area than his body and appendages takes up.

"This impressive jutsu is useless against me!" Kakuzu roars out as his wind mask easily disperses the ferocious lightning from above and he let's the other attack break against his body. The wind sickle shatters against his near diamond hard skin and the hundreds of water spears scatter as they harmlessly pelt against him. "I can easily counter anything and everything it can throw at me! Orochimaru would never try something so dimwitted against me! He would know it's useless and it will be your downfall!"

The other two masks spark their own jutsu aimed directly at the nameless shinobi. A pale blue spark of electricity and a wisp of brilliant red flame spring to life before doing their master's bidding and lunging towards the soon to be roasted and spasming target. A gout of orange flame that causes the rain near it to sizzle and evaporate on contact and a linear streak of lightning rage towards the nameless shinobi mere moments before Kakuzu himself.

"That's where you're wrong. You're so like Hidan, even if you don't want to admit it." With two flicks of the wrist the nameless shinobi unfurls two scrolls that greedily gobble up the two jutsu raging at him. Beneath his own mask he grinds his teeth together. "I've -"

CRACK

This thunderclap doesn't come from the sky. It came from a fist meeting a chest. The nameless shinobi ragdolls away from the single punch as if he was hit with an entire mountain of boulders at the same time. He raggedly bounces across the ground, clips a tree that sends him spinning sideways and ends up stopping when a luckily placed boulder turns to rubble as he hits it. Instead of sprawling out on the ground like any normal - and most of the abnormal - people in this world he manages to twist his body around at impossible angles to land on his feet.

"Strange, it's like you forgot I'm immortal." The nameless shinobi sassily retorts as the storm strikes out again. Lightning, wind sickles and water spears relentlessly attack Kakuzu. There's no pause to their striking, when lightning stops wind steps in. When the wind dies down water springs forwards to fill the gap. When the water runs dry lightning eagerly darts forward. The epicenter of this storm is Kakuzu.

But none of it damages him in the slightest. A near continuous twister of wind stops all the lightning dead in its tracks. The wind and water simply don't have enough destructive capabilities to breach his defense and he lets them break uselessly against his body without care.

"Strange, it's like you forgot I have a teammate." Kakuzu holds up a grooved metal cylinder and studies it as the storm rages against him. "It's a pity I have to break it, I'm sure it would have been a fun toy to have."

"Meh." Directly contradictory to what Kakuzu expected, the nameless shinobi shrugs. Literally, during this intense battle that could wipe out shinobi by the dozens the nameless shinobi shrugged. "It was going to explode soon anyways. It's a prototype, not a finished product. Like I said earlier, I just needed Hidan out of the way. Speaking of Hidan, remember what I was saying earlier? You're more alike than you'd care to admit. You see, I've already-"

"Will you just shut up?" Kakuzu growls out as he throws the hilt straight up into the next bolt of lightning that falls from the sky. The hilt explodes in a pale red energy discharge and none other than Hidan comes out of it.

"-skin him alive and use his entrails as a jumping rope that motherfucking son of a OH SHIT NOW I'M FUCKING FALLING!" Hidan awkwardly flails in the air and starts to tumble to the ground. He can't adjust himself at all, there's nothing to grab onto. "WHY THE SHIT IS THERE A STORM NOW!"

"Oh good, he's back." The nameless shinobi groans out. A lightning bolt streaks down from the sky and slams into the back of Hidan's head.

"WHAT THE HELL DID I DO!?" Hidan shouts at the storm as he pushes himself up like he didn't just survive electrocution. His purple eyes dart around, trying to figure out what the hell is going on before going bloodshot.

He's seen the nameless shinobi. And he's pissed.

"Well shit. Kakuzu, I suppose I'll have to kill you another time. Now that you're both serious I doubt I stand a chance anymore." He idly stands up and turns to start walking away. "You know, as I've kept trying to say, I've already -"

"You fucking HEATHEN!" Hidan roars as he lunges forward towards the unprotected back of the nameless shinobi. "Don't you dare turn you back on me you worthless piece of shit! You're going to be a sacrifice and I'm going to enjoy torturing the ever living fuck out of you!"

The nameless shinobi sends a scathing glare at the enraged Hidan. He's frothing at the mouth, his eyes are bloodshot and there's an even more pronounced crazed gleam in his eyes.

"Don't." Two wind sickles streak out from Hidan's sides and slice the mad berserker into three chunks. "Interrupt." Hundreds upon hundreds of water spears plunge into the immortal who is rapidly losing the shape of a human as the punch straight through him. "Me." A trio of lightning bolts light up the sky as the chunks each get shocked black by the electricity. "Though I thank you for letting me actually do something with this jutsu. Seriously this shit isn't easy and it was pissing me off that Kakuzu was just shrugging it all off like nothing."

"I'm not beaten yet!" The mass that is Hidan starts to attempt to make its way towards the nameless shinobi. It leaves behind a sticky reddish brown trail as only a third pulls itself towards its goal. "Jashin-sama demands your soul and he will get it! All I need is a drop of blood! Just one! Come here and bleed for me you heathen!"

"Holy shit I'm actually impressed." The nameless shinobi can't help but feel a faint sense of fear. Sure, he brags of immortality but his is a fake at best. He can still be killed, he can still die. For instance, the attack that he just used against Hidan - if it hit him - would utterly defeat him. Back up hearts or not, they'd all be destroyed in one go. But Hidan? He has the gall to crawl towards his attacker and demand he comes closer. On top of all that, his wounds are already regenerating. "So this is true immortality. I got lucky it made him complacent. Now if you'll excuse me, I'll be going now."

He resumes his walk away as the rolling rumbling storm overhead begins to fade and with it the blazing light of the seals on his chest dwindle. Faint beams of sunlight begin to streak through the clouds and shine once more.

"You assume you can just leave after all this?" Kakuzu growls out as all three masks swivel towards the nameless shinobi. "You've cause us a great setback. It cannot be allowed to stand. That's not mentioning the heart you owe me."

"Well yes actually. As I've been trying to say I've already… you know what. Fuck it, you'll figure it out. Look where we stand. You're between me and the idiots who STILL HAVEN'T LEFT YET OH MY GOD WHY AM I SURROUNDED BY MORONS!" He throws his hands up in the air and starts stomping away. "That's it! I give up! Just take them! They're yours! I have eight other jinchuuriki to worry about anyways, I just have to win once. It'll probably be easier when I don't face an immortal duo anyways."

"So it would seem." Kakuzu ancient eyes dart to the trio of Taki shinobi - two of which seem to have fallen to their knees in sheer awe and disbelief and fear and the third is still paralyzed. "That does not excuse you from the heart you owe me."

"Take a rain check." The nameless shinobi throws his words over his shoulder as he jumps into the trees. "You've got a jinchuuriki to take back somewhere and do something with. Probably have people waiting on you, no doubt they're growing impatient."

"It appears we did settle this with words after all." Kakuzu strides over to the floored Taki shinobi. He stands before them, staring down at the dazed bunch. They're pathetic, to have given up simply because of witnessing the scale of the battle that took place before them. Good shinobi would have at least run away. These three barely seem capable of movement, they're eerily still. "I can't help but as one last time, nameless shinobi, what is your name?"

"It's not fucking Orochimaru I'll tell you that." The nameless shinobi disappears from sight.

"Now, what to do with you three." Kakuzu focuses on the trio of Taki shinobi once more.