A Different Kind Of Journey 26 Arc 2: Separate Fights Part 1

I don't own Naruto. Kishimoto Does.

Author's note: Hey there Readers!, I'm back with a new chapter! I Hope you guys enjoy! I would also like to thank you guys for the Reviews. Favorites, and follows :) Thank you for also sharing your tips and thoughts for the story.

(BETA EDITED BY JUSTONEMOREWRITTING)

P.S: I am just newbie so go easy on me

Arc 2:

Chapter 13: Separate Fights Part 1

The fight had only just begun. With the destruction of the first puppet, it was not over yet. The cloaked human figure escaped his puppet armor and landed safely on the ground. He was disappointed that his only and precious self-made armor has been destroyed by this Leaf Shin.o.bi but he was impressed that she had such strength to destroy the armored puppet.

"The show ends today Sasori," Lady Chiyo exclaimed. She was confident that they can finally defeat her grandson and bring justice to the Kazekage.

There was only silence in response. The cloaked figured immediately recovered and turned towards the two.

"That is my intention as well," he finally spoke as he then removed his hood to reveal his true form and self.

Both Lady Chiyo and Sakura were overwhelmed with surprise and shock. Surprise, because the pink haired Kunouichi never thought that the enemy would be a young man. Shock, because Lady Chiyo was in disbelief that the man somehow didn't age in all these years and pretty much looked the same as the last time she saw her grandson.

"He hasn't aged a day!" Lady Chiyo commented. She observed her grandson who had a calm and collected manner.

"There is always this thing that I really wanted to show you." Sasori said. He drew a single scroll from his pocket and opened it to reveal some symbols that glowed brightly. Not in more than a second, a loud puff of smoke appeared and when the smoke cleared, a human-size puppet came into existence. It was very much familiar and shocking, especially to Lady Chiyo.

"It can't be..." Lady Chiyo trailed off. She was staring directly at the Third Kazekage or more so what's left of him. It was somehow a real human body that has been made into a puppet.

"The Third Kazekage?" Lady Chiyo exclaimed while Sakura gave the latter a confused and surprised looked.

The elderly woman simply nodded. She would go on to explain that the Sand Village leader disappeared many years ago in some unknowm circ.u.mstances. He was the most powerful Kazekage in the Sand village's history and she wondered how could the Kazekage himself fall into the hands of the enemy but she quickly figured it out.

"So it was you and your former partner, Orochimaru, who were responsible for the third's disappearance!" Lady Chiyo said. She accused the young man. She would then go on to explain that Orochimaru was the one who also killed Gaara's father, the fourth Kazekage and her grandson was the one who guided the enemy.

Sasori could only chuckle.

"You're mistaken old lady," He said as if she was not his grandmother.

"It was my subordinate who guided them but indeed, I was partnered with Orochimaru in the organization back then," he explained his side of the story.

Sakura was just silent. She could feel her blood boiling. This guy was the snake sannin's partner and he probably had conversed with him.

"So if you were Orochimaru's partner then that means you know him personally," the pink haired Kunoichi said. She was not kidding around.

"Then you're going to answer a lot of question that I have right now," she added.

On the other hand, Sasori was not intimidated. This young woman had the guts to speak to him like that. He was just smiling at them because he really wanted them to feel his power and wrath on what he could do to them.

Sasori sarcastically sighed," I believe that would be quite impossible."

He said as he readied himself for another round of bloodbath.

"Unfortunately, I must take you two out," he simply said. Not more than a second, He finally ordered his Kazekage puppet to charge towards the two.

Lady Chiyo gritted her teeth." Sakura, Brace yourself!" she exclaimed as she controlled the pink haired Kunouchi through the chakra strings attached to the girl.

Sakura nodded. She could only narrow her eyes as she prepared herself for what's to come in the form of a mindless human puppet of the enemy.

Sasori smiled evilly. He was so sure that they were going to be eliminated in his hands and there will be no survivors.

-MEANWHILE-

Sarada traversed through the woods. She was hurrying as fast she can to reach the main hideout where an ongoing battle between her young mom, Lady Chiyo and the enemy.

The Uchiha girl knew that she had no time to waste. Negative thoughts were now coming up to her mind, she was worried that maybe that she was too late and the enemy had already taken care of them. Sarada then shook her head. It was not the time to be in this current state right now, she had to act fast.

There was also something bothering her lately. She somehow felt weak as if her Chakra had been drained. She wondered if this had to do with the fight against her Uncle's partner.

Sarada then suddenly stopped her tracks as she held on to a tree. Her knees were shaking and she felt a bit dizzy as if she was going to collapse to the ground. She felt her breath shortening every single second. She thought she was losing consciousness.

"Come on! Not now!" the Uchiha girl gritted her teeth.

She tried to calm herself down. Maybe she was just having an anxiety attack. A few seconds later, all of the signs disappeared and she finally regained her composure and she then finally had the strength to travel again.

The girl then made a determined face. No matter what happens, she was going to reach that place and helped her young mom. She was going to make sure that Akatsuki member or whoever that person's ident.i.ty was not going to hurt her.

As time pa.s.sed by, memories began to cloud her mind yet again. She began to think of her young mom. To be honest, she was just getting to know her personally. She really loved her and she won't forget how she risked her life to save her back home. It was now her turn to save her.

By the time she finally arrived at her destination. She was greeted by an unexpected surprise. Sarada expected that the hideout would be a huge cave itself but what she saw was a cave that had been half-destroyed with its upper part gone.

Sarada could only widen her eyes in shocked when she saw the current situation inside.

It was bloodbath.

(Interview)

"It was pretty much chaotic with all these puppets running around like pest. Especially, when you see them trying to overwhelm Mama and LaDy Chiyo."

-Sarada

-MEANWHILE-

"I never really thought that Lady Hokage would a.s.sign you into this kind of mission!"

Hanabi wondered as she gave a very surprised looked at her future niece, who was currently resting on a tree. The Hyuuga girl was currently treating the girl's minor wounds that she sustained during her fight with the imposter clone of Neji.

Himawari could only sigh. This is what Granny Hokage had a.s.signed them. This was their first mission so they really had to deal with. She also explained to the two that the trio had been somehow separated with the main team along the way and they stumbled upon two Akatsuki members who were revealed to be none other than, Itachi Uchiha and Kisame Hoshigaki.

Both Neji and Hanabi's eyes widened with shock.

"You managed to find them?" They both yelled in unison. This was just a surprising revelation.

Himawari simply nodded.

" Yeah, and we were able to converse with them. Well at least Saradnee managed to have a peaceful talk with her Uncle Itachi," she explained.

Neji then sighed.

" No wonder why that Kisame guy vanished into thin air while we were fighting him. He was just an illusion," he said as he finally figured it out. It now made sense.

"So Sarada fought the shark man and she managed to kick his b.u.t.t?" Hanabi asked. She couldn't believe that the latter managed to do the impossible on an S rank criminal.

"Well, not in the b.u.t.t, more likely in the face." Himawari objected. She was a witness and she saw how her adoptive big sister literally kicked the man in the face to knock him out.

(Interview)

"It was just unbelievable to hear the true story, My feelings were right all along, The trio had been a.s.signed into this mission and they have already contributed from behind the scenes."

-Neji

"Hearing Sarada kicking the Shark moron on the face was really music to my ears. That guy was seriously c.o.c.ky as freak."

-Hanabi

"So where are the two now?" Neji asked. He wanted to know the current situation of the two.

"Well, communicate on a walkie talkie and since all the seals have been destroyed, they might as well be on their way to save Uncle Gaara or maybe helping Aunt Sakura." She explained. These were her theories so far.

"Himawari then tried to stand up.

" We really need to help them," the lavender haired girl said. She can still feel the pain in her body.

Hanabi on the other hand, attempted to calm down the latter." Hima, your wounds are not healed yet and we understand what you want to do but you need to rest for awhile." She explained. She was also worried for her future niece; she didn't want for her to get hurt again.

Himawari did what her young Aunt had said. She calmed down and rested on the tree once again. There was this urged to get up and help her big brother and sister but she managed to put that aside for awhile.

Meanwhile, Neji suddenly realized something, if there were explosive tags planted on the seals then that means, Bushy brow, Tenten and his sensei also got involved with those tags which were detonated and created loud explosions nearby, He hoped that they were alright.

"Hey guys do you hear that?" Hanabi asked. She was hearing a familiar voice from somewhere while Neji gave her a confused looked.

There was silence that took over the area. The three kept quiet to find out where the source of the familiar voice was coming from. Then there was this strange urge for them to looked up in the sky.

Not in more than a second, the familiar voice, which belonged to Might Gai, could be finally heard nearby. A few moments later, something crashed on the ground in front of the three which startled them.

When the smoke cleared, an exhausted Might Gai could be seen in the small crater that the impact had created.

" Man, that was a long ride,' He commented as he laid down on the gra.s.sy field. His voice was tired. Apparently, He was screaming the whole time he was flying in the air. He didn't know how long it was but it somehow felt great.

As for the three teens, they were just staring in confusion and amus.e.m.e.nt. How did the youthful sensei of Team 8 ended up here? And why was he flying in the air just a moment ago?

"Sensei!" Neji exclaimed. He headed to where his sensei was located,which was in the small crater.

Hanabi could only shake her head. She wondered how her big cousin ended up having a sensei like that in his team. She was quite amazed on how he was never influenced by the latter's Youth principles.

She then turned back to her future niece to say something but then she was greeted by the girl's silent and worried face. Apparently, her mind was somewhere else.

"Hima, is there something wrong?" Hanabi asked. She was curious on what the girl was thinking right now at the moment.

Himawari then snapped away from her thoughts as she then looked back towards her young aunt.

" I'm fine Aunt Hanabi, It's just that I'm worried about them," she explained.

(Interview)

"I really wanted to catch up to them, I can use my Byakugan anytime I want to locate them easily, yet the current situation is preventing me.

-Himawari

-BACK WITH SARAD

The Uchiha teen had finally arrived at the main site where the current battle was taking place between the pink haired teen and the elder Shin.o.bi puppeteer. Sarada was witnessing a battle that was so intense that the place looked like a small war zone. She can't believed that the situation escalated that quickly.

As she neared the area, the raven haired teen then decided to head towards a particular area where she will not be noticed by the enemy. From there she watched as the battle unfolded in front of her eyes. By the time she had arrived, she saw how her young mom, who was battered and wounded, destroyed the third Kazekage puppet which also shattered the black metallic large blades that acted as a trap.

Right now silence that took over, it was more like a time out for everyone to recover. Sarada saw how her young mom treated the wounds of the elder puppeteer. They also had antidotes injected in their body to prevent and neutralized the poison. A few moments later, her young mom took all the available time to rest. She had let out all the pressure that was building up inside of her.

Sarada felt an urge to help her young mom. She was about to stand up when she suddenly realized that it was not the right time yet. Somehow, she had to let the things unfold before she can join the conflict.

(Interview)

"I can't just rush things up, I needed the perfect timing to enter the scene without any flaws.

-Sarada

-MEANWHILE-

The Puppet master of the Akatsuki couldn't believe what he had just witnessed. His most valuable and beloved puppet had been destroyed by some mere teen from the leaf village.

"You're an impressive kid," he said. He was quite amused the fact that she destroyed with one single punch.

The pink haired teen and the elder Chiyo kept silent. They were just preparing themselves for a second a.s.sault. They knew that this was not over yet.

Sasori just smiled." It's been a long time since I've used this, you people could be the first ones to experience my masterpiece," The puppeteer explained. He then removed his Akatsuki cloak to reveal his body which had been turned into a puppet.

Everyone was shocked to see the big revelation. The question was about him not having aged a day has been finally answered. He had turned himself into one of his own creations. His body was all artificial except for one thing, his heart that was keeping him alive.

Lady Chiyo and Sakura were at loss for words. They didn't knew what to say right now. They just took cover behind two separate rock formations planning on what to do next.

On the other hand, Sasori just smiled as he positioned in a offensive stance, he drew both his hands and pointed towards the two. He opened his fist to reveal two holes and not in more than a second fire burst from the his hands towards where the two were taking cover.

The final fight had just began.

As for Sarada, She found herself being the observer or audience for another while. The final fight was beginning to take shape. She knew that she would have to play her role in the near future but for the mean time she had to wait.

As an observer of this battle, the Uchiha girl saw how the puppet master of the Akatsuki used his puppet body as some kind of killing machine to deal with his enemies. His puppet body had all the weapons you could think off. It sprouted huge blades from its side, spinning rapidly to attacked the two.

It was not only that, during the battle, the puppet body even unleashed deadly acid gas that melted any solid object but the two managed to avoid the attack itself. The person who was on the frontline was none other than Sakura herself. She was the one who was taking all the shots while the elder Chiyo continued to back her up with her puppet abilities.

It was like some kind of action movie. Sarada remained in awe as she watched the battle unfold. Unbeknownst to her, the memories were slowly coming back to her to the point that she thought she was back home fighting the unknown enemies that had invaded the village. The Uchiha herself felt her knees shaking and her heart beating faster.

There was a moment where victory was on their doorstep. Sakura managed to perform a powerful attack on the enemy by pulling the metallic chains that sprouted from the his puppet body. By the time, she managed pull those chains. she had gotten the opportunity to get as close to the enemy as she could and unleashed a single punch that sent the Akatsuki member flying away to a distance and the puppet's body got destroyed and scattered into large pieces, especially the actual heart which landed on a specific spot beside the puppet's body.

It was that moment when everyone thought that the battle was over. However, a few moments later there was a strange energy that engulfed the destroyed the puppet's body and suddenly in a few blinks of an eye, it was put back together again and Sasori came back to into being once more to continue the battle.

That moment, the battle had reached the climax. Sasori, who finally had had enough of playing games began to treat this situation seriously. He smiled as he opened a small part in his chest, where his heart was located and a surged of Chakra erupted from it releasing a large number of strings. He then drew out a scroll that was attached to his puppet body and with a few hand signs and incantations, He summoned his own army of puppets to counter his grandmother's small puppet army.

Thus the battle continued with the situation turning into a small but full-blown war. Sakura braced herself for another round as she began to defend herself from the attacking large number of puppets.

Meanwhile, The memories took a toll as the raven haired teen began to see visions from her war-torned home. When she blinked for the first time, she suddenly found herself seeing her young mom being replaced by her real mom. Sarada widened her eyes in shocked, this was the exact same scene she remembered. The scene where her mom took her last stand to protect her from the invading enemies.

Sarada began to panic, She didn't know what to do now. At this point she felt helpless. She began to survey her surroundings and it was total chaos. Her world began to slow down as she cannot hear a single thing around her. Unbeknownst to her a large puppet had took noticed of her and it headed towards her from behind.

As for Sarada, she just closed her eyes to get away from this. She knew that the trauma was still there and she was beginning to see visions of how her mom perished and she really had no idea how to deal with it. It was just silence around her as if there was no battle at all. A few moments later, she felt an unexplainable peace in her mind. There was this presence that gave her comfort as if it was telling her not to worry.

Suddenly, A very familiar voice spoke which the girl recognized.

"Sarada, Mama will be always here for you."

By this time, Sarada opened her eyes. She felt a strong surge of energy that electrified her body. The anxiety and nervousness was gone. It was replaced with full confidence and determination. By the time, the large puppet reached her point blank range, it quickly raised its large blade to strike the girl.

Sarada's eyes automatically activated her sharingan, and the girl immediately evaded the strike, she then turned around with full speed and performed a single powerful punch which instantly destroyed the puppet into pieces. She then turned around saw that other puppets were taking notice of her.

The Uchiha girl smirked as she then charged towards the centre of the battle, she was sure going to enjoy this.

(Interview)

"I finally managed to gather myself up and took charge, this is a one time chance and I knew I had to be perfectly quick as possible."

-Sarada

-A LITTLE WHILE LATER-

The battle continued to rage on, The combined force of Sakura and the elder Chiyo's white puppets clashed with Sasori and his own army of creations. If someone would be present during the battle they would actually witness a royal rumble between those puppets.

However, the main event slowly shifted on the unexpected appearance of the raven haired time traveller. Sarada was having the time of her life, since she joined the battle, she was now a big help towards her allies. She somehow attracted a large number puppets which charged towards her.

Meanwhile, the other three had took noticed of the newcomer, who was easily rampaging through the puppets one by one. The elder Chiyo was surprised to see the girl because she hadn't seen her before. Sakura was shocked because she was not aware that the rookie was here and she was fighting the puppets, and she held on her own. Sasori was amused to see this newcomer, somehow she reminded him of Itachi.

As for Sarada, her emotions were sky high. She was not furious or whatsoever, she wanted to get everything straight and she was looking for a way for the situation to not end in a bloodier note. She was going to make sure that everyone was going to stay alive.

"Who's that young lady?" Lady Chiyo asked.

"That's Sarada, She's one of the rookies that were a.s.signed on this mission," Sakura explained. She also wondered on how she managed to get here.

"I see." Lady Chiyo nodded in understanding. She observed the girl and she was amazed on how well she handled the situation. She was quite skilled and smart.

By the time Sarada was finishing the last few puppets, she felt a someone heading towards her and she turned around to see Sasori who was the one charging towards her. The puppet master, who yielded his own two blades, attempted to strike the girl.

On the other hand, Sarada having already antic.i.p.ated this move, quickly evaded the blades that were meant to strike her, she then drew her Kunai from her pouch and countered the move by slashing the blade itself so hard that it broke and fell to the ground. She then decided to go on the offensive and clashed fire with fire.

"How impressive," Sasori commented as he then unleashed a series of combos using his blade against her. He wanted to see for himself if this was strong but unbeknownst to him, he was underestimating the latter.

Sarada carefully evaded those attacks against her and waited for right moment to counter it. At the same time, she was already thinking of a way on she could finish this in one swoop.

Sasori was observing the girl as he then noticed a familiar red color in her eyes.

"Sharingan? But that's impossible?" he thought to himself. He only knew that Itachi and his younger brother were the only ones who had the ability, but this girl could somehow also use it.

Sarada on the other hand, had finally planned about what to do next. She blocked and evaded his attacks as she tried to looked for an opening. When the right time had finally came, which was when Sasori made another attempt again to slash her, the Uchiha girl then dropped her kunai as she then grabbed the man's hand and struggled a bit to hold on.

Sasori smirked.

" It's no used, You'll eventually get tired of struggling," he taunted at the girl who just kept silent as she held two of the man's hands which prevented him from doing anything but slowly the man was gaining the upper hand was overpowering the girl.

Sarada then looked up and met the man face to face and eye to eye.

" I think you're mistaken," she said with a smile much to the latter's surprised.

The Uchiha girl's three tomoe red eyes then began to transform into another form as it spun to take a shape of small red flower and made a direct eye contact with the latter.

Sasori's eyes widened in shocked.

" Mangekyou Sharingan!," He exclaimed as he came contact into one of the most deadliest eye abilities of the Uchiha clan. His vision began to change as small black flames started to appear all around his surroundings and he tried remove or escape but the black flames just kept on coming and climbing all over his puppet body.

Sarada stared and observed the man. She had used the last few of her Chakra to cast out a dojutsu called "Amaterasu" which produces black flames at the focal point of the user's vision.

Meanwhile, Sakura and Chiyo were just standing there and watching the whole scene unfold. Sakura was wondering why the man was going crazy. What had gotten into him? Chiyo was trying to figure this out. This was the first time her grandson was in current state as if he was being tortured by an invisible force.

Meanwhile, Sarada waited for the perfect time to dispel the jutsu and once she removed the jutsu, she immediately went for the final move by charging at the latter with full speed, she then gave the final blow by performing a combo of hooks and haymakers. The last one was an uppercut to the chin which sent the latter flying away to distance and he crashed into a rock formation.

Silence had taken over the whole area. Sakura and Chiyo were just staring at raven haired teen. They were in disbelief that she managed to defeat Sasori in a nick of time. Just who was this girl?

Sasori laid down on the rocky ground. This was the first time that he felt pain and was defeated. All hope was lost now. He just wanted to end this once and for all. A few moments later, he was then met face to face again with the girl who stood above him. The girl gave him a serious stare as she held his blade on her hand.

"What are you waiting for? Go ahead and kill me," Sasori said. He urged the latter to end his life once and for all and he expected that from her. There was no point of getting himself redeemed from this.

Sarada gave a serious stare. She gripped the blade from her hand and she raised it to strike the man. Although, she had no intention to kill him but to only scare him and show him that there is still hope to change.

As she was about to do it, a voice then yelled at her.

"Young lady please stop!" Lady Chiyo yelled out. As she immediately headed towards her grandson. She couldn't take it anymore. She still loved her grandson.

Sasori was taken by shocked as he didn't expect his grandmother to rush to his side. All these years, he never felt loved by his grandmother but somehow there was this strange emotion that he felt. He then stared at the raven haired girl who was giving him a smile of encouragement as if she was telling that there is still hope to change.

Sarada on the other hand, stared at the red haired puppeteer and his grandmother. This was the first time that she actually seen them like this. She then turned around to face her young mom who was giving her worried face.

"Sarada, Are you okay?" Sakura asked as she took a few steps closer.

"M-Mom?" Sarada muttered before suddenly collapsing to the ground due to exhaustion and overuse of her chakra. Sakura quickly caught the girl before she can fully land on the rocky surface.

Meanwhile, As Sarada felt her consciousness was fading away, her last thought was that of her blonde teammate. What has happened to him. Was he alright?

She hoped that he was.

(INTERVEW)

"The rust was still there and I almost got myself into almost s.c.r.e.w.i.n.g up, it was good thing that I managed find a small weakpoint to finally beat him.

-Sarada

-MEANWHILE WITH BORUTO-

It was like a cat and mouse chase. It had been an hour since Boruto started to pursuit the Akatsuki Member Deidara who was riding his giant bird made of clay.

"Man, are things gonna be like this for awhile?" Boruto asked. He wondered if they were going to continue the cat and mouse chase all day.

The blonde teen also observed his young dad and Uncle Kakashi who were also in pursuit to catch the culprit. Boruto felt irritated because the enemy won't shut up and kept taunting the two. He had to find a way get unnoticed and attack him from behind. Although, How's he gonna do that?

"Come on Boruto you can do this!" the blonde teen was overwhelmed with thoughts. He was currently on the upper ground and was dashing his way through the forest. On his left side, he can see the whole scene of the cat and mouse game.

Boruto then took a deep breath. He finally made up his mind as he prepared himself. Apparently, He was gonna jump of the cliff towards the giant clay bird. A few moments later, the blonde finally decided it was time, but first he was gonna do a special move for the enemy.

By this time, Deidara had unleashed his clay bombs in the form of small creatures which jumped to its target. Although, the two leaf shin.o.bi managed to avoid his attacks. He also survived being teleported away by the white haired shin.o.bi via the Kamui ability.

Deidara could only smile. He knew he had the upper hand. He was confident that they wouldn't get him that easy. Although, the celebration was short-lived.

He suddenly felt a presence coming towards him. It was not from below but from left side. The Akatsuki bomb expert then turned to his side to see some kind of ball of energy that was going towards him.

"What!?" Deidara exclaimed. He was suddenly caught off guard by an unexpected attack but suddenly, the ball of energy disappeared into thin air.

Deidara took a sigh of relief as he deduced that the ball of energy or a Rasengan was just an illusion.

" You think that would scare me to fly down?" he taunted.

"Yeah, Definitely it will jumpscare you!" a voice then suddenly yelled.

As Deidara was going to say his next words, the ball of energy suddenly reappeared in front of him and not more than a second it went directly straight to his face which sent him directly into the forest.

Naruto and Kakashi were wide eyed in surprise. They were still pursuing the man when he got suddenly hit by something unusual which was some kind of rasengan but it was somehow flying. Who was the one responsible for this? Where did that strange Rasengan came from.

As for Boruto, he finally made the jump and safely landed on top of the giant clay bird. He suspected that his Uncle Gaara might be inside the bird and as he was about to drew his kunai. The clay bird suddenly turned its direction and headed to the forest much to the surprised of the blonde.

"You've got to be kidding me?" Boruto exclaimed as he held on to the bird who then flew towards an area of the forest where its true owner was located.

The clay bird was flying at a rapid speed and was heading towards Deidara, who was just standing there and holding a clay bomb in his hand. He was evilly smiling as he had prepared something for this newcomer. It was payback time.

For Boruto, He just made a confident smile. He then braced himself for the impact. He knew that he was heading directly towards the man and was gonna clashed with him at any second. The blonde then drew his Kunai from his pocket and readied himself for the clash.

"Let's do this Datteba.s.sa!"

(INTERVIEW)

"I've heard that this Deidara guy is quite the arrogant son of a gun, It's time to teach him a lesson in humbleness."

-Boruto

CHAPTER ENDS.

AN: Thank you for reading the chapter!