Iruka landed on the surface of the ocean, eyes flicking left and right as he searched for his opponent. With any luck, the swordsman would be injured enough to make subduing him easier. A bubble of water catching him in its clutches put that idea right out the window. Iruka managed to swallow an oxygen pill as a burnt and bruised Zabuza climbed out of the water, one hand in the orb of water.
"That... was painful. But what really pisses me off is what you did to Kubikirihouchou," he spat, his other hand raising the remaining half of the blade to point at the less-than-ecstatic Iruka. "I'm going to have to take your blood to repair- FUCKER!" he roared, losing his composure as the Konoha-nin darted forwards and snapped his jaws around Zabuza's hand. The water prison fell apart, Iruka jumping back, well out of slashing range. Zabuza stared at him accusingly. "You bit me!"
Iruka shrugged. "I also tried to kill you with a massive explosion. But it bodes well for me that the biting is what you're actually upset abou-" he started, before a water dragon slammed past him, narrowly missing his head. Zabuza followed up with another barrage of furious blade swipes.
"Why can't I hit you? I know I'm faster, I can see that, but you're just... Wait. Are you using Suiton streaming on your own body? Who the fuck does that?" he asked, bewildered, managing to land a kick and send Iruka bouncing off the surface. Iruka smirked, even as he had to dodge a barrage of water projectiles, countering with his own Mizukachi.
"I have a civilian with an eidetic memory, perfect chakra control and a possible split personality on my team. She's the most normal of all of us," he explained cheerily, throwing some shuriken just past his opponent, the trailing wires wrapping around the loop in the sword. The shuriken (with some assistance from a subtle ninjutsu he'd picked up) then closed a loop around the bridge's support pillar. "If I wasn't as crazy as I am, I'd be failing them as their sensei."
Zabuza simply held tighter, completely neutralising Iruka's attempts to disarm him. "And if you were a little more sane you'd realise that holding both of us in place was a grave miscalculation. Suiryuudan!" he roared, unleashing a smaller version of his earlier attack. Iruka managed to dodge it, dropping the wire, before Zabuza jumped back onto the bridge.
"Don't think I'm forgetting about you, but I have business to attend to. Catch me if you can, no-name shinobi." he taunted, taking off at full speed even as Iruka landed on the bridge, planks splintering underfoot as he forced himself onwards.
'No way I can keep up with him, even if he is getting tired faster than me,' he thought, before turning his attention to the pools littering the bridge. Readying as much chakra as he could spare, Iruka grinned. 'This is going to work either really well, or really badly. Time to see just how much I've improved!'
SCENE BREAK
Naruto sped forwards, dimly aware of the civilians fleeing the streets to hide from the battle that was brewing, even at this distance. Seeing a man with a katana threatening a mother and her children, he slowed to what to him was a moderate jog, grabbing the offending party by his hair and flipping him onto the ground, the blade snapping beside him. All that the civilians saw was a flash of golden hair and silver clothes.
Satisfied, Naruto took to the rooftops, trying to catch a glimpse of what was going on at the battlefield. The bridge was barely visible from his location, but he could still make out a few specks that he assumed were his teammates. 'I just hope you're all still okay when I get there... Shikamaru, whatever you were planning, it'd better work!'
Having a sudden brainwave, he made a few handsigns, exchanging himself with a pile of bricks left on a ruined balcony, while still running at full speed. 'I'll be there in a couple minutes, guys, don't worry! I'll kick that nuke-nin bastard all the way back to Kiri!'
SCENE BREAK
Sasuke fired off a Housenka as Sakura moved in to catch their opponent. Both were caught off-guard by the sudden appearance of pale walls, which absorbed their strikes harmlessly. 'What the... Ice?' Sasuke wondered, before trying a fireball, hoping to melt the barriers. A burst of steam later, and a few water droplets fell to the ground, the walls virtually unaffected.
"Sasuke-kun, watch out!" Sakura interjected, throwing a kunai over his shoulder, forcing Haku to jump back instead of grabbing the Uchiha. Sasuke darted forwards to land beside her, muttering his thanks as he kept his eyes on the hunter-nin.
'Shit, got careless. Good thing Sakura was here to keep me focused.' he mused, wondering whether he should say something else to her. The thought quickly fell by the wayside as Haku engaged them both in combat, forcing them to pull their punches or risk hitting one another. Haku began speaking again, reassured that neither genin could keep up with his speed.
"My Kekkei Genkai, the Hyoton. I can create ice at will and manipulate the water around us," he explained, Sakura paling as she realised the mistake it would have been to fight further down the bridge. Haku continued, thin wisps of water forcing the pinkette away from the Uchiha. "I could have killed you easily as soon as you got within range. I will not offer you another chance to surrender. Stand down or die."
Sasuke's response was a punch to the blank mask, easily caught by his opponent, who began making seals with his free hand. "One handed?" Sasuke asked incredulously, before being tackled by Sakura, who received the attack in his place. Razor-sharp ice spikes erupted from the ground, tearing through the back of her leg, mercifully missing her major blood vessels. That said, the attack still left her unable to stand, as Sasuke flew into melee once again.
Haku managed to score a glancing blow, just enough to leave Sasuke open, before moving to suppress the downed kunoichi, who vanished in a burst of smoke. A sandal erupted from the cloud, clattering against the porcelain mask. Naruto stepped out, glaring at the enemy.
"My name is Uzumaki Naruto. You hurt Sakura-chan. Prepare to die."
SCENE BREAK
"Haku, you'd better have those brats dealt with when I get back." Zabuza muttered, moving swiftly back across the bridge, before ducking to the side as a kunai flew past his ear. Turning to face the jounin who just would not give up, his shoulders sagging. "What in the actual fuck." He didn't even have the heart to make it a question.
Iruka stood atop a floating disc of water, left hand in a half-ram as he pulled out another kunai. "I had wondered if this was possible," he gasped, releasing the Mizuryu and dropping to the bridge. "But I think for now, I'd better focus on you." he said, now completely serious. "You will not harm my students. If I have to kill you to protect them, then I will find a way to do it." he swore, now dual-wielding his blades. Zabuza smirked, raising his blade.
"I have to say, you've got balls. Taking me on now, when you're starting to run low on chakra? Tell me your name. You, I think I'll remember." he offered, dashing forwards to cross blades. Iruka leant forwards, smashing his hitae-ate against the other man's face, before lashing out with a wide swipe.
"My name is Umino Iruka. I suppose you're still not inclined to discuss this trying to kill us and our client thing?" he offered politely, sighing even as he jumped backwards to avoid blasts of water. 'Damn. I'm running on soldier pills at this point. Still, those kids should be able to deal with his accomplice, even if he's probably as strong as I am. I just have to keep him busy for a little while longer."
Zabuza, meanwhile, was now even more determined to defeat his opponent. 'I fucking knew it! I knew Uzushio had to leave some survivors! Still, at least I'm not dealing with an Uzumaki...'
SCENE BREAK
Sakura flinched as she pulled herself back to a standing position, leaning against a stack of lumber. While she did appreciate the rescue, being forcibly Kawarimi'd without warning was not a pleasant experience. She could clearly see Naruto flinging himself at his opponent, calling up some clones to catch him off-guard. Sakura reached into her emergency pack, eager to bandage her leg properly. Between Sasuke-kun and a fresh Naruto, the match wouldn't last too much longer.
Haku, meanwhile, was starting to feel the pressure of fighting for so long. Even if neither of them could stand up to him one-on-one, the two genin had been just plain difficult to fight together, before their third teammate had turned up. 'No other choice... Kami, I hope I can take them both out with this...'
"Makyo Hyosho," he intoned, calling up ice mirrors to surround the three of them, though only the exhausted Sasuke was trapped, as Naruto barrel-rolled through a gap underneath one. "If you do not wish for me to kill your teammate, I would surrender. Your kawarimi, advanced though it may be, cannot pierce this technique," he continued, addressing the blond. He melded into the ice as Sasuke lunged, Naruto hesitating as he weighed his options.
"What the hell are you doing, Uzumaki? If you don't have a way through this, go help Iruka-sensei while I hold him off!" Sasuke barked, before a barrage of needles erupted from several mirrors, a few managing to hit their target despite his best efforts. "Move it!" he roared, gritting his teeth against the pain as he ripped out one of the senbon, movements slow and jerky.
"But-" "No buts, baka! Get going!" Naruto nodded, disappearing and being replaced by a piece of rubble as Haku rematerialised in front of the Uchiha, now clutching a kunai he'd retrieved at some point.
"For whatever it's worth, I am sorry for this," he whispered, ice forming around the knife, extending it to the length of a sword. "But Zabuza-sama has goals in mind, and I have sworn to eliminate any threats to his dreams." With that, he lunged, Sasuke instinctively flinching, eyes closed.
A dripping noise and a strangled gasp caught his attention, his eyes snapping open. A grinning Naruto stood in front of him, a frozen blade erupting from his chest. "Heh... maybe... I should've... thought this through," he coughed, collapsing to his knees as Haku's technique dropped, seemingly no longer seeing either boy as a threat.
Naruto's arms dangled uselessly as he continued. "L-listen, Sasuke... if this is it... y-you were like my brother... Promise me. P-promise you'll keep going... for both of us... don't let... don't let yourself get killed, too..." he panted, blood dripping freely now. "Thank you... and thank Rei-chan, and Daiki... and all the kids... you guys... thank you for showing me... what a family... was..." he finished, eyes closed, as he finally collapsed in front of his best friend.
Sasuke was staring, eyes wide, unable to think. 'N-Naruto... No! Nonono, this can't be happening! THIS CAN'T BE HAPPENING AGAIN! I CAN'T LOSE ANYONE ELSE!' he screamed internally, feeling his heart pounding in his chest as he gazed up at Haku.
"You. You killed my BEST FRIEND!" he snarled, feeling a burning build up in the back of his eyes as he ripped out the last few senbon, tearing his skin open in the process. "Now, you die." he swore, the Sharingan blurring, taking on the shape of a six-pointed flower.
"Amaterasu."