Hokage Tower.

Hiruzen was tense as he watched the events happen in the East Canyons. He changed the chakra flow and images changed to the streets of the village and then the outskirts.

'With many Jonins and Chunins out on missions, it's more difficult and time-consuming to track down and subdue the prisoners. The ones here are helping secure the main locations and searching for more explosives but they should be done soon. Still, with Genma caught up in a battle, Iruka and the kids won't have anyone to back them up. What a problematic turn of events.'

The old kage kept an eye on the surroundings of his village with the long range jutsu. It was at this moment he saw 4 ninjas wearing Leaf Chunin gear moving away from the village. The kage immediately recognized the spy from the Stone village and realized that the team of four must be disguised prisoners.

'If they successfully cross the border and news gets out of the commotion here then Onoki and Ai would no doubt be tempted to probe us… No. Things haven't spiraled out of control yet. Anko's patrol unit is roaming nearby. They'll soon intercept them…'

Hiruzen sighed and turned his attention back to Naruto and his group. He saw that their battle had already started. 'They're surrounded. I didn't think Mizuki would use such a clever tactic… Iruka, Naruto, Shikamaru… Just hold on for a few minutes.'

—-

East Canyons.

Shikamaru looked at the four and several strategies were running through his mind. 'Our goal should be to escape. Not to fight them head on. If we can create chaos then we'll have a chance to slip through…'

The young Nara recalled the Multi shadow clone jutsu Naruto used earlier and his eyes widened as he recalled a strategy Daichi once told them. 'That plan just might work. If he can create enough clones then we might be able to escape.'

Shikamaru looked at his friends standing nearby and hoped that they would remember the code words Daichi had taught them. 'The moment I open my mouth those Chunins might attack. If I tell the plan they'll hear and it won't help us. I have no choice. I just hope Naruto remembers.'

Shikamaru remembered the day they came up with that plan.

Flashback.

Daichi, Naruto, Shikamaru and the rest of his friends were in the forest near the academy just playing around. It was a couple days after Daichi saved Naruto from Hidden waterfall village spies in the back hills.

"I still can't believe that trick came in handy." Sakura said as she looked at Daichi.

"Yeah. We should have more plans and codes for stuff like that. Coming up with it actually sounds like fun." Ino chimed in as well.

Daichi chuckled and then gave them a scenario. "Alright. Here's a hypothetical situation. What if your team is trapped by enemy ninjas while you have to protect someone important or guard an important secret document?"

"We can fight!" Came the answer from Naruto and Kiba.

Daichi shook his head and spoke. "They're stronger and more experienced. Moreover you have important information with you and your only choice is to escape. What would you do?"

"Create a distraction." Shino answered as he sat under a tree and looked at the insect crawling in his fingertips.

"Too many unknown variables." Shikamaru said as he looked at the sky. He turned his attention to Daichi and spoke. "Your hypothetical situation doesn't count for the strength of our team, the enemy team, their number, the location and the value of the information we have. There are too many unknown variables…"

Daichi pondered "Hmm… I suppose you're right. But still, your only option is to escape. You and your teammates are weaker than the enemies."

"Well, my plan would be to create momentary confusion among the enemies and then slip away." Shikamaru replied with a shrug.

"What plan did you have in mind Daichi?" Choji asked as he opened up another bag of potato chips.

"Well, my strategy is similar to Shikamaru's. It involves someone who has more chakra than normal. Create dozens of clones and then your team would transform into the person creating the clone. Then everyone scatters."

"But the clone jutsu would be seen through by someone with experience." Shikamaru replied.

"Not if they're solid clones and there's like two dozen of them…"

"Wait, solid clone? There's actually ninjutsu for solid clones?" Naruto was excited to hear about that piece of information.

"Yeah. I've seen my grandfather use it."

"That's so cool. Man, I wanna learn jutsu like that."

"So what's the code name of the strategy?" Sakura asked.

"Don't make it too complicated or Naruto might forget." Ino teased the boy.

"Hmm… You're right." Daichi chuckled and agreed.

"Hey!"

"How about this? The name of this escape strategy is…"

Flashback End.

"1000 Ramen Surprise." Shikamaru suddenly said.

Iruka, Sasuke and the prisoners who were about to attack were suddenly confused. 'Why is he talking about ramen?'

While the rest were momentarily confused they got the meaning behind Shikamaru's words in seconds. Naruto remembered the code word and its meaning and he immediately grinned. "Got it."

The rest of the students looked at Naruto and were ready to transform into Naruto the moment he created the shadow clones.

Mizuki was keeping a close eye on the students and when he saw Naruto's grin he was tense. 'What's he planning?'

Naruto brought his hands together and immediately made the cross seal. "Multi-"

Bang!

The next instant a punch sent Naruto flying into another tree while Mizuki stood in Naruto's spot with an extended fist. No one could track his speed and they were all shocked.

"Not this time you fucking brat. Kill them!" Mizuki sneered as he looked at them. The Genins and Iruka quickly jumped and created a short distance between them and Mizuki.

'Shit! He didn't even give us time to prepare. He's a lot more careful than I thought.' Shikamaru looked at Sakura nearby and threw the forbidden scroll to her. "Keep it safe."

The pink haired kunoichi nodded and the Nara jumped from his spot and landed on the ground. Ino and Choji joined him as Seijo appeared near them with a kunai in his hand.

Zefrek appeared in front of Iruka and sent a fast kick but the academy instructor was able to barely dodge.

"That wound on your arm looks bad. You're not going to last for very long, Iruka."

Iruka glared at his enemy. "I won't be that easy to kill."

Zefrek had a malicious grin. "I'm going to enjoy this and make you suffer slowly."

Nearby, Haroshi used a small fire jutsu against the incoming insects and jumped to the side and avoided shurikens from Kiba and Hinata. "I'm a Chunin. You brats don't stand a chance."

"Oh yeah. We'll see about that." Kiba and Hinata entered their Taijutsu stance and waited for an opening in their enemy's defense.

A short distance away the bulked up Mizuki glared at Naruto who was wedged on a large tree trunk. "Die!"

He jumped from his spot and headed for Naruto at a tremendous speed but a shuriken with ninja wire quickly tied around Naruto's leg and pulled him to the ground just in time to avoid Mizuki's attack.

Naruto fell face first into the ground but behind him the tree he was on was chopped in half. Mizuki turned his head and saw that it was Sasuke who saved his prey.

"Oww my face! What the hell bastard?" Naruto got up while holding his nose in pain.

"Quit your whining idiot. You should be thanking me for saving your life." Sasuke addressed Naruto but his eyes never left Mizuki.

"Sasuke, Mizuki looks a lot stronger than before. He must have done something. I don't think we can win." Sakura said as she looked at her former teacher in fear.

"If we do nothing we'll die." Sasuke narrowed his eyes and analyzed his opponent. 'He's definitely stronger and that speed... If I hadn't moved when I did, Naruto would be dead right now… Looks like all that training with Daichi really paid off. But these two, they won't be able to fight someone with such speed… Naruto might be able to hold him off with his clone jutsu but Sakura… I can't fight if I have to worry about her.'

"Sakura. Go and back up Iruka sensei. We'll fight Mizuki." Naruto said as he looked at the man who just tried to kill him.

Sasuke inwardly smiled. He had a feeling Naruto came to the same conclusions as well.

"But what about…"

"We'll be fine. Go. He needs your help more. But make sure to keep the scroll safe. This won't mean anything if they get the scroll." Sasuke said confidently and the pink haired girl reluctantly nodded. She left and headed to her teacher's location.

Mizuki looked at Sasuke and spoke. "Sasuke. You were able to see my moves. Not bad. You have potential. If you surrender, I'll spare your life."

The Uchiha smirked at that. "I'll pass. But I'm more interested in knowing how you got that strong so quickly."

Hearing that the rogue Chunin grinned. "Oh this? This is a gift from my master. Don't you want to become strong? I'll take you to someone who can give you true power. This village is useless. Especially that old fool who calls himself the Hokage."

"Don't you dare talk about the old man like that." Naruto was angry when he heard Mizuki talk trash about the kage. "Shadow clone jutsu."

Multiple clones popped into existence and rushed towards Mizuki but the Chunin disappeared from his spot. The clones looked around confused but then suddenly their enemy appeared in the middle of their group and started destroying them.

—-

Nearby Choji, Shikamaru and Ino were battling Seijo. The Chunin nimbly evaded the shadows coming his way. Several senbons were sent flying from between his knuckles towards Ino but the girl jumped and escaped.

Shikamaru looked at Choji and knew that despite the brave face, his friend was scared out of his wits. "Choji."

The Akimichi was tense as he turned to his friend. "I know it's scary but we need to fight. It's our only way out."

"I know that Shikamaru… But…"

Seijo laughed seeing the hidden fear on the Akimichi's face. "Haha… Pathetic. Just as I'd expect from a clan of fat idiots."

Choji narrowed his eyes when he heard that. It was one thing to mock him but it was another to insult his whole clan. The young Akimichi heir was mad and so were his friends.

"You really shouldn't have said that." Shikamaru said with narrowed eyes.

Choji immediately went through several seals. "EXPANSION JUTSU!"

—-

"8 Trigram - 16 palms"

A short distance away Hinata was engaged in a Taijutsu battle against Haroshi. He defended against the precise attacks coming and parried them.

"You have some skill but it's still not enough to save you little girl." Haroshi moved in to attack but the next second backed away as several black spikes erupted from the spot where he stood. The ninja took a closer look and saw the spikes were moving.

The next second the spike dispersed into a small cloud of insects and headed straight for the man.

The enemy nina went through seals and was about to use his fire jutsu but a fast attack by Kiba quickly foiled that plan. The ninja from the Inuzuka clan and his partner attacked from the shadows to take the enemy by surprise and give an opening.

Haroshi was sent tumbling to the ground and the insect quickly covered him and started absorbing his chakra. The next second the man turned to a wooden log and he appeared a short distance away with an ugly expression.

'Ch. This is going to be a bit more difficult than I thought.'

—-

Mizuki easily evaded the clumsy attacks of the clones and in seconds reduced them into smoke. "Is that the best you got, you trash?"

At that moment he tilted his body to the side and evaded multiple kunai and shuriken. He turned his head to look at the last loyal Uchiha of the Leaf village and smirked. "You missed brat."

Mizuki disappeared but Sasuke had experience fighting a fast opponent. His spars with Daichi had netted him valuable experience and it was this experience that allowed Sasuke to dodge the attack from Mizuki.

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Mizuki's speed was higher but Sasuke was able to barely keep up. He struggled to deflect the powerful punches but he was still hanging on. The Chunin was astounded that Sasuke was able to keep up with him even if it was by a small margin. 'This brat. How did he get so strong?'

Naruto didn't just sit back and let his rival fight alone. "Shadow clone jutsu. If you don't succeed, try again."

Two dozen clones appeared and attacked Mizuki from all sides. The Chunin was angry and quickly attacked the clones. At this time Sasuke took a kunai and slashed Mizuki's leg while the man was distracted and his vision blocked by the clones.

"Arr.. " Mizuki was angry that he was wounded and quickly destroyed all the shadow clones.

He kicked Sasuke and sent the boy flying backwards. Sasuke backflipped and gained control of his body and quickly landed on the ground beside Naruto.

Mizuki looked at the boy in anger. "Fine. It looks like you're going to die here by my hands. Too bad. You could have joined me and had a great future."

"I seriously doubt that." The Uchiha retorted.

Mizuki sneered and looked at the other person he hated even more. "I'm going to kill you two brats here. This forest will be your grave."

"I'm not gonna die to you Mizuki. I'm gonna be Hokage one day. You won't stop me."

The smile on Naruto's face only enraged the Chunin. Mizuki took a sword from his back and looked at the two. Killing intent rose from him and rolled out in waves.

The smile on Naruto and Sasuke vanished as they experienced the man's intent. The next instant Mizuki vanisned.

"He's coming." Sasuke pulled Naruto to the side and saved him from a sword swing. The Uchina immediately took a kunai and the two clashed. Naruto, not intending to just be a spectator, also joined in the fight. He created clones and it was an all out brawl.

Mizuki slashed one Naruto into smoke while he quickly defended and attacked Sasuke. 'These fucking pests. One of them is trying to overwhelm me with numbers and the other is trying to catch me off guard with his speed.'

Sparks were flying in the air with the sounds of blades clashing and flesh hitting flesh rang through the canyons.

As the fight progressed Mizuki noticed something about the Uchiha. 'The way he's dodging my slashes and moving around Naruto to land his attacks. It's as if he has experience in fighting faster enemies and to coordinate attacks. How strange.'

"How did you get so strong?"

"I don't have to answer your questions, Mizuki." Sasuke said as he parried and deflected another sword strike with both hands. 'Damn. I need both hands to even deflect the strength behind one swing. If it keeps going like this I'll run out of energy soon. My only option is to completely dodge and fight, preserving my stamina.'

Mizuki was furious hearing the tone from the boy. 'Just because you're an Uchiha you think you're better than me? It's time to teach you about respect. I'll kill you first.'

Mizuki saw Naruto running at him from the corner of his eyes and swiftly dodged the boy's punch and sent a knee kick to his chin. A powerful punch a second later sent Naruto tumbling to the side.

He then focused his attention solely on Sasuke and his attacks became more ruthless.

Sasuke struggled due to the increased speed of his enemy but he concentrated as hard as he could to track the man's movements. His shirt and trousers started to get ripped and small cuts started appearing all over his body. 'Damn it. Come on. Follow his speed. Come on!'

Blood started coating Mizuki's sword bit by bit and he grinned looking at the struggling boy. 'I think I've toyed with him long enough. Time to finish this and get out of here.'

"This is the end for you brat. Die!" Mizuki increased his speed more and swung his sword at Sasuke's head.

For the young Uchiha at that moment it was as if time had slowed down. Sasuke saw the blade coming at him in slow motion and was able to tilt his body and evade the swing. He felt his chakra becoming stronger but he didn't pay it any mind at the moment. His focus was completely on Mizuki.

Mizuki, seeing his attack miss, tried again and slashed sideways aimed at tearing the boy's throat open. Sasuke took a step back and leaned backwards to avoid the lethal strike.

The rogue ninja was astonished. 'That's impossible. How did he escape my attacks… His speed shouldn't -'

It was at this moment that Mizuki noticed Sasuke's eyes. His own pair widened in shock as he saw red eyes with a tomoe glaring back at him "Sharingan. You actually awakened your Sharingan."

Zefrek and Iruka who were nearby also heard that and turned their heads to look at the boy. "Sharingan. So he's an Uchiha. Looks like he's awakened his bloodline. This just got a lot more interesting."

Iruka was also amazed but he immediately moved and attacked Zefrek. 'I need to keep his attention on me…. Sasuke. I hope you can hold out just a little bit longer.'

Sasuke was surprised at Mizuki's statement. 'So this is what it's like to have the Sharingan.'

Mizuki gritted his teeth as he looked at the boy. "You think just because you have those eyes, you can defeat me? Think again!"

The Chunin rushed at the boy and attacked with as much speed as he could with his sharp weapon. Sasuke saw the movements of the blade and saw its path. He evaded the attacks much better this time and was able to keep up with Mizuki.

As the Chunin's attention was on Sasuke he failed to see several people coming from behind him. Just as Mizuki was about to attack Sasuke with another sword swing, he felt someone kicking the back of his legs.

Mizuki lost balance and fell to his knees and Sasuke took that chance. He tired to plunge his kunai into Mizuki's chest but the man blocked it with his forearm.

"Arrrgh…" The grey haired ninja felt pain and anger as the kunai dung into his forearm. At that time he saw several Naruto surrounding him. Before Mizuki could defend, several took hold of his right arm and held it in place while the Narutos on the other side kicked Mizuki, sending him airborne.

Sasuke took the chance and immediately went through several seals. 'Fire Style - Fireball Jutsu.'

A Fireball immediately flew out of the Uchiha's mouth and struck the flying Mizuki and exploded, engulfing him in flames.

Zefrek, Seijo and Haroshi frowned as they saw Mizuki down on the ground in flames.

"Ha! Take that. You won't defeat the future Hokage of the Leaf. Believe It!" Naruto rubbed his nose with a grin believing that Mizuki was down for the count.

"Stay alert Naruto. That wasn't enough to defeat him." Sasuke warned the boy. His Sharingan allowed him to see Mizuki's chakra still strong as before.

"What are you talking about Sasuke, he's done for."

Before the Uchiha could reply the flames suddenly vanished and Mizuki stood with an enraged visage. "How dare… HOW DARE YOUUU…."

Mizuki felt the chakra in his body increase in response to his rage and he felt his body morph and his power increase.

Everyone looked on in astonishment as steam started to rise from Mizuki's body. The Chunin's body bulked up again and his skin began to change. Everyone stopped their battle and watched the transformation in fascination and horror.

In seconds Mizuki stood in his new form. His entire body was transformed with his skin and face resembling a tiger.

"What the? What did you do, Mizuki?" Iruka looked on in horror and couldn't help but wonder what his former comrade had done.

Shikamaru and the others were sweating as they saw the new Mizuki. The information Shino's insects passed on to him made him nervous. Kiba and Hinata were also cautious due to their sensing abilities.

Sasuke looked at the chakra being emitted from Mizuki and his body slightly shook in terror. 'Such power. What kind of transformation is that? Where did he get so much chakra?'

Mizuki felt the changes and looked at his palms. He clenched them a few times and felt the strength coursing through them. "Hahahaha HAHAHAHA…. This is incredible. I knew I made the right choice following him. I'm invincible."

He came down from his high and looked at Naruto and Sasuke. Both of them were on alert but it didn't help them defend against the Chunin's next attack. Mizuki vanished and a moment later Naruto and Sasuke were hit with a strong force that launched them backwards for several meters. The two crashed into the nearby trees and slumped to the ground.

"Wh- what the hell…. Was that?" Naruto slowly stood and looked up.

Sasuke had pain in his chest and looked down to see 5 claw marks. He was bleeding but it wasn't a serious wound. He gritted his teeth as he looked at the enemy.

'Even with my Sharingan I couldn't follow that. In that fraction of a second, he not only sent us both flying but he also wounded me. Damn it! This isn't good.'

Mizuki looked at Naruto and grinned. "How will you be the Hokage when you can't even keep your headband safe?"

Naruto was confused. "What are you talking about?" He brought his palms to his forehead and immediately felt the absence of his forehead protector. "What the? Where did it…?"

Naruto looked around and soon saw his headband in Mizuki's right palm. The blond boy was angry his headband got taken. "Hey! Give that back!"

"Oh you want this?" Mizuki held his palm open just long enough for Naruto to have a glimpse of his Leaf headband. The next second the Chunin closed his palms and crushed the metal band in his hand. Once Mizuki reduced the headband to a crumpled mess he tossed it into the darkness of the forest.

"Whoops. My hand slipped. Hahahaha…." Mizuki laughed seeing Naruto's furious reaction.

Naruto gritted his teeth at the disrespect shown by Mizuki. "You're going to pay for that. SHADOW CLONE JUTSU!"

Hundreds of clones appeared and rushed at the transformed Mizuki. The transformed ninja also rushed at Naruto. His speed was several times faster and even with hundreds of enemies in his way, he still had the upper hand.

He went through several seals and used a wind style jutsu to blow all the Narutos away. Due to the force of the jutsu the clones dispelled and only the real one was left standing. Mizuki had a mad grin as he looked at the tired boy.

Nearby, Zefrek looked at the chaotic scene and frowned. 'This is taking too long. We don't have much time. If the other ninjas get here none of us will be able to escape.'

The rogue Jonin looked around and his eyes fell on Sakura and the scroll strapped behind her. 'This girl has been an annoyance with her sneak attacks and Genjutsu. It's time I get rid of her...Yeah. That way I'll have the scroll and can escape quickly.'

Meanwhile Mizuki dodged several shuriken from Sasuke and turned his attention to the Uchiha. "Looks like you have a death wish. I'll be happy to oblige."

Zefrek, seeing Mizuki's attention on the Uchiha, rushed toward the pink haired girl. Sakura tensed and held her ground as she saw the ninja coming but Iruka intercepted the man. "You're not getting the scroll."

"Get out of my way!" Zefrek ducked under a punch and plunged his fingers into Iruka's wounds.

"Aaaarrr!" Iruka lost focus due to the pain and the next second he was punched in the face and sent tumbling backwards.

"Sensei!" Sakura's eyes widened at Iruka's injury. But she knew the scroll on her back was much more important. 'I can't let him get the scroll.'

Naruto heard his sensei's scream and then saw that Zefrek's target was Sakura. He immediately rushed to the man while creating a few clones. 'Damn it. My chakra is running low. I can't make much more…'

Naruto and his five doppelgangers got in between Sakura and Zefrek and they fought. Unfortunately for Naruto, Zefrek's Taijutsu skills were far greater than his and in a short time Naruto and his clones were beaten. Sakura jumped to escape but Zefrek caught her leg and twisted her ankle, throwing her to the ground.

Mizuki, while fighting Sasuke, noticed Zefrek's intentions to escape with the Forbidden Scroll and gritted his teeth.

Zefrek moved towards Sakura but the next second Mizuki appeared near him and punched the man. Zefrek skidded several meters and came to a stop.

Mizuki snarled at the man. "Don't even think about it. I'll kill you where you stand."

"This is taking too long. We need to finish this and leave."

"Fine. Kill Iruka and I'll take care of things on my end." Mizuki replied and turned his attention to Naruto who was in front of Sakura. He was breathing hard due to chakra exhaustion but he was determined not to fall.

Mizuki took his sword and aimed the top at Naruto. "It's time you die, demon."

Shikamaru's group and Kiba's group were fighting a short distance away but they could see what was happening. Their eyes widened in fear as they saw Naruto on his last leg and Mizuki getting ready to kill.

Shikamaru gritted his teeth as helplessness surged through him. 'Damn it. This bastard won't let us get to him.'

Ino's eyes held fear as she saw Mizuki move towards Naruto and Sakura. 'No.'

Sasuke's eyes widened as he saw Mizuki's body tense up. He realized what was about to happen and his body immediately moved. Sasuke didn't know why but the words Daichi once said to him rang in his ears.

"You know, he and you are a lot alike."

With the Sharingan, Sasuke saw Mizuki closing in on Naruto.

"Both of you suffered tragedies and lost parents. Granted he doesn't know his family, but still, I imagine the pain he feels of not knowing is quite significant."

The Uchiha pushed himself to move faster and faster.

"You both have high ambition. And he works hard once he sets his mind to something. Just like you."

Chakra rushed to his limbs as he saw the blade getting closer and closer to Naruto's chest.

"You think he knows the kind of loss and pain I feel?"

"Not the same kind of pain you've experienced but he has felt immense pain and heartache. There was a time when he had no one he could count on for help. Sasuke, what happened to you was bad, but you do not want to switch places with him. Trust me on that."

"Naruto. I want you to know… I'm proud of you." For some reason, Iruka's words reminded Sasuke of the words his father spoke to him near the end. "That's my boy. I'm proud of you… Sasuke."

The sound of blade piercing flesh was heard throughout the area. Naruto was breathing hard and was prepared for the worst but a moment later someone was in front of him blocking Mizuki's attack. The blonde boy saw blood flying and stood in shock. He saw the Uchiha crest on the back of the shirt and it was only then that he realized who it was that saved him.

"SASUKE!" Naruto didn't know what to think as the Uchiha stood motionless.

All the fighting stopped with the Genins scared for their classmate's life. "Sasuke!"

In the Hokage tower Hiruzen was shocked at the turn of events. 'Damn it. This isn't good. If Sasuke dies, then there will be dire consequences. Itachi will retaliate against the village.'

The kage immediately scanned the crystal ball to find nearby ninjas and medics. It was then that he noticed a strong chakra signature heading straight for Naruto's location. He focused his jutsu and a second later saw a face that gave him hope. 'Come on Daichi. Please get to him in time.'

Mizuki was shocked at the boy's action. He took his sword out of the boy's body and took a step back.

Sasuke stood still but spat out a small wad of blood.

"Hmph. If you wanna die so badly then I have no problem with it." Mizuki looked at the boy and had a condescending smirk. The transformed ninja raised his sword ready to cut down the Uchiha.

"MIZUKI. DON'T DO IT!" Iruka's yell did nothing to persuade the man from killing.

Sakura had tears in her eyes as she saw the person she loved about to be killed.

Shikamaru and the rest of the Genins were scared and tense at what was about to happen.

Ino looked at the scene and could only hope for a miracle. 'Someone, save us.'

"Die!" Mizuki brought his sword down with the intent to cut Sasuke in half but at that instant he and everyone else heard a scream coming from somewhere.

"NOOOO…."

The Chunin only had time to glance at the person approaching him and he immediately recognized the new arrival.

'Daichi!'

Before Mizuki could even give his body the order to move away, he was struck with a powerful punch that reverberated throughout his right arm and then the rest of his body.

Mizuki's right arm was mangled and the sword was blown away before it could touch Sasuke. The force of Daichi's punch blew Mizuki away from the battlefield. He was sent flying and crashed into several trees before slamming violently into a boulder and coming to a stop.

Daichi skidded several meters and he immediately brought chakra to his fingertips and changed it to lightning nature. He grabbed the earth and was able to quickly bleed off the momentum.

The rookies and Iruka looked at what had just happened in shock and then turned to the person that just arrived. It took a second longer for them to realize that it was their friend and they were relieved. They had huge smiles on their faces as they looked at Daichi.

Sakura looked at Daichi and hope bloomed in her heart. She knew he was a medic ninja. "DAICHIII…!" She screamed for his help.

Daichi turned to her just in time to see Sasuke Uchiha fall to his knees, going unconscious with Naruto holding on to him. Sasuke was bleeding profusely from his chest. 'Oh no.'

"Thud." Sasuke's body hit the ground and was without any movements.

Daichi gritted his teeth as he looked at the scene. 'Damn it all. What the hell happened here today?... It doesn't matter. I need to save his life. But I also can't leave the rest of them to defend for themselves.'

Daichi made a cross seal and created Five shadow clones. Two of them went to heal Iruka and to battle Zefrek while another two went to the remaining two teams.

The real Daichi and the remaining clone pushed chakra to their limbs and was immediately by Naruto and Sakura's side. Daichi immediately made hand seals for a scalpel jutsu and cut Sasuke's shirt.

The medic ninja looked and saw that the Uchiha was still barely conscious of his surroundings. Daichi and his clone were examining the wound and making notes of the extent of the damage. 'There is an exit wound and he has severe internal damage and is bleeding fast.'

"BASTARD! WHY DID YOU DO THAT? I DIDN'T ASK YOU TO SAVE ME!" Even though Naruto was angry and yelling he had tears falling down his eyes as he looked at Sasuke.

The Uchiha had a weak smile on his face. "I… I don't know… My body just moved… My brother… He's out there… I-"

"You'll get the chance to avenge your family Sasuke. You'll get the chance to fight him."

Sasuke recognized that sound. "Daichi?" He asked in a weak tone. He couldn't stay awake for any longer and truly fell unconscious.

"Yes Sasuke. He's here. Daichi's going to save you." Sakura said with tears in her eyes. "Right?" Seeing Sasuke unconscious, she looked at Daichi and asked with uncertainty in her voice.

"Don't worry. He'll live." Daichi gave the girl a reassuring smile. At that moment he sent a signal and the clones he created for searching the various locations dispelled themselves and he got most of his chakra back.

"You can save him?" Naruto asked with hope in his voice.

"Yes. He'll be just fine." The next moment, green chakra lit up around the two Daichi's palms and he and his doppelganger started closing the wounds on Sasuke's front and back to stop the bleeding.

In just a little over a minute Daichi managed to heal the major internal damages done to the veins and lungs and he was able to close the wounds on the Uchiha's body.

There were battles taking place all nearby but he knew he could trust his clones.

At that moment the sound of trees being crushed was heard. Daichi, Naruto and Sakura turned their heads and saw Mizuki slowly walking towards them with a limp arm. His right arm was mangled up and completely bloodied. His eyes were bloodshot and he had a crazed expression.

Naruto, seeing the man, clenched his fists and stood up without a word. He walked forward towards Mizuki and didn't stop even when Sakura called out to him.

The real Daichi looked at his clone and nodded. "Go. I'll take care of this."

The shadow clone Daichi stood and walked near Naruto while the real one kept healing the Uchiha.

Daichi's senses picked up on Naruto's agitated chakra. He inwardly sighed as he began to sense the presence of the Nine tails chakra being brought to the surface.

Mizuki looked at Naruto's face and saw the rage present in his eyes. His red, slit pupiled eyes… A familiar chakra he had experienced over a decade ago suddenly brushed his senses… Mizuki's eyes widened in fear as he looked at the boy.

'The Nine tails.'