There were many echoes of pain and ferocity throughout the final stretch of this terrible battle; Kaede stood firm in the middle of combat, miraculously ignored by all participants. It seemed to be a standard that if the sub commander, being Kenta, had allowed her to pass then it was his responsibility to see to her in some form. Channeling her chakra throughout hundreds of people at a time, her passive recovery of chakra and tissue repair was now much more active, resulting in a battle that was completely in the favor of the rebellion forces. Although she was glad to be of use to her comrades, seeing so many enemies fall did not bring her pride nor pleasure, only the exact opposite. With her attention on all of her surroundings she had not neglected to keep an eye on the battle with Kenta, and had to resist an urge to smile after hearing him rant. Although they met as enemies, he still cared about the youth of the Leaf enough to point out mistakes during a battle he didn’t intend to survive. Even now she could be thankful that in spite of his disagreements with the village he hadn’t broke ties with the people he cared about, enough to instruct others on how to best defeat someone like him and even better: Work as a team. 

She was prepared to make her move and allow her comrades to finish what they must until a particularly violent surge of chakra was detected within Natsumi, who had been idle for almost a minute or so. Hesitation was not surprising, and even Kaede was guilty of it just prior to Kenta unleashing his chakra; the others may have seen Kenta as a traitor, but between Natsumi and herself all they had seen was a friend on the opposite side of a world they both wanted to have. Her friend had reached for her fans and had taken a good look at Kenta before charging, her foot digging into the earth as she charged towards him. No one else had seemed to take notice of the change enough to hesitate, but Kaede herself was starting to tremble at the chakra raging within Natsumi. 
It wasn’t hers …not entirely.

[i]‘Natsumi …what’s happened to you?’ [/i]

~
The scrawny form of Katsu had split into two, vanishing and replaced with the kunai he had thrown earlier, bark and all. A substitution was one of the classic techniques taught in the Academy, simple but effective as a beginner tool to avoid danger and confuse an opponent. Kenta didn’t know how the young boy had figured out his target and much less know this was coming, but put more of his attention on deciding how to escape this predicament. Substitution would be delicious irony, yet why not reward the kid for a job well done? In spite of the earlier childishness, Kenta had shielded his face and endured the explosion, using his enlarged forearms to help shield himself from the close proximity. There were assorted burn marks along his armored forearms and his ears rang a little, but all in all he was in one piece. Bringing chakra to his feet, Kenta kicked off of the ground, better avoiding the follow-up that Katsu had planned and allowing him to waste his chakra. His technique may have been powerful, but it wasn’t as though it could move in other directions!

Landing with a noticeable quake in the ground, Kenta grinned proudly and looked towards the Uchiha boy. [b]“Not too bad, maybe there’s a little hope for you kids after all!” [/b]He was plotting his next offensive to keep these kids on their toes until a dangerous feeling began to overwhelm him. Instinct told him to flee, but experience and courage killed that sensation immediately. Concerned, he glanced over in time to see where it was coming from, only to prepare to defend himself as it ran right for him: Natsumi!

[b]“Natsumi!?”[/b] he exclaimed in surprise, witnessing a side of her he had never expected to witness. A reckless charge with flames surrounding her, flames even he didn’t want to tempt unless he had no other choice. He was awestruck at the ferocity in her eye, and both recognized and feared that she had entered a state of mind that might render her unreachable if things continued. With someone like this on a rampage there was no way he’d want to risk his men and women further. Preparing to take another bounding leap, he found that the prison beneath him was returning yet again, this time much more narrow in an attempt to better box him in. Another leap was clearly in order, but Natsumi had overtaken him. It seemed that Karela’s careless usage of the exact same jutsu a second time would benefit her, but only due to this current matter. Leaning his head to his left, he had gritted his teeth and channeled chakra into them once more, markings coating the surface of the skin. The momentum Natsumi brought with her was great, but Kenta braced himself and managed to catch her by her wrists. From this range he could feel the heat emanating from her fans causing a discomforting tingling sensation across his face. That was nothing compared to his hands, which felt like he was placing his hands in fire itself. The chakra on his hands was doing well to keep his flesh from melting, but a fireball was child’s play compared to continuous flame at this close range.

Causing his expansion capabilities to move to his feet, he had increased their size to the point they had broken free of the prison Karela had created and began to swing Natsumi around faster and faster. Without taking into consideration where he was aiming, he had coincidentally released her in the direction of Katsu. Once released he could relax himself only slightly; even in the heat of battle he could see that things were not going to be able to go in their favor, and so Kenta had sucked in plenty of air before releasing his final order: [b]“RETREAT! Gather everyone you can and RETREAT!”[/b] there was enough blood spilled today, and there was no good in letting his soldiers die due to pride he didn’t have. The soldiers had taken the order and, once again, began to pull back. The wounded were aided and the Empire’s presence was being pushed back towards the Land of Rivers once more. Digging into his pack once again, Kenta had retrieved a round yellow pill and consumed it, flooding his chakra pool once more with a renewal of energy, causing his aura to shine through once again even as his girth had dropped a considerable amount. 

As of now, he was paying more attention to the enemy that pursued the retreating soldiers rather than the group of children who couldn’t even work together against a common threat. Without hesitation he had taken off, leaving the current battle zone to assist those who worked under him. 

~

[b]“I saw what happened to Yuna …and I don’t want to see that happen to me.”[/b] Kenji muttered back to Takeo, the two traveling together towards the height of the battle and taking their time in doing so. It just so happened that the Jounin Commander had mentioned his daughter’s role in the war from this point on. He allowed Natsumi to free the village because she had done as he asked for the past six months, and because she, as a shinobi of the Hidden Leaf, deserved the right to defend the village with her comrades. To release her out into the world knowing she’d be a huge target did not comfort him. [b]“Chizuma and I stopped Yuna. I don’t think anyone could stop me.”[/b]

[b]“I’d say that it wouldn’t happen to you, but I know better than that. Truth be told I’d be beside you on that path.” [/b]Takeo had already lost his wife early in their marriage, and to lose his only grandchild would send him on a spiraling descent into darkness he didn’t expect to escape again. [b]“Natsumi is my grandchild, your daughter, and we both want to protect her. I don’t believe keeping her locked up in the village is going to help her grow.”[/b]

[b]“If the Empress gets her hands on Natsumi, you really think she’ll let her go again?”[/b]

[b]“The point is that she’ll be prepared to fight so that doesn’t happen. Peace makes ones blade a little dull, and it was hard to keep her skills sharp with so many eyes around. This is the opportunity to get her out in the world Kenji, she can’t be your little girl forever.”[/b]

[b]“I know that damn it!”[/b] Kenji shot back, frustrated. Sealing the Kyuubi in her wasn’t exactly something he wished for her either, but she made an unfortunate circumstance work in her favor. She had come to know his name, even when no one else had asked. All Kenji had seen was a violent monster, but Natsumi saw him differently, at least bothered to know who it was beneath all that harsh exterior. [b]“I know …I know. If anything ever happened to her…”[/b]

[b]“I share that concern, but she’ll need this. We won’t be around forever.”[/b]

The two fell silent for a time, not wishing to reflect more on the suffering. They were connected by two people very dear to them both, and they both understood what would become of them should they lose them, and what would become of those that took them away. Hatred was a powerful weapon, a weapon they would rather not have to wield unless absolutely necessary. The sounds of metal clashing against metal were still a ways away.

[b]“The organization Root,”[/b] Kenji returned his gaze to Takeo. [b]“They said they’ve got a new tool for the Leaf up their sleeves ...something big, they called it a ‘Mark’.”[/b]

[b]“…”[/b] Takeo considered this; although the Leaf wasn’t weak, anything to help tip the scales in the rebel’s favor would be welcome. Almost anything, anyway. [b]“What do you know about it?”[/b]

[b]“It's something to increase a shinobi’s power in every single attribute. They didn’t tell me much more than that, but assured me it would be ready shortly. I’m only telling you because I’d feel more comfortable if someone else knew, I haven’t told anyone else yet.”[/b] Kenji knew Root’s formation was long before his time as Hokage, and that they were an organization similar to the ANBU, only their missions were much more underhanded and deemed ‘necessary’ by the Elders of the Council. Although Kenji was uneasy about their existence, they took a big risk when it came to informing them of their existence prior to the war’s outbreak. Few knew of its existence and none knew of it outside Konoha itself, meaning that those old timers knew how to play the game of secrecy. 

[b]“You’re not considering Natsumi, are you?”[/b]

[b]“She’s got enough to bear, adding something the Elder’s come up with would just increase the weight. Besides, I’d rather see the effect on someone willing to take the risk. All that talk of its capabilities and no subject to demonstrate it. Once I see it I’ll determine if it’ll be used …but they made it clear that they decide the users.”[/b] The Elders took pride in it, enough to approach him about it before its completion. [b]“From the sounds it’s been in the works for a long time.”[/b]

[b]“Six months forced to not take action? I’m sure they’re more than eager to give the Empire their gratitude for that.”[/b]

Kenji was prepared to respond until a discomforting jolt shot through his senses, something Takeo too experienced. They both had come to an immediate halt, looking to one another. 

[b]“You felt it too?”[/b] Takeo asked

Kenji nodded immediately. That chakra was faint, but it was something he wouldn’t forget any time soon. Takeo was with him during the sealing within Natsumi, so he’d be just as familiar with it as he was. This was the first they had ever felt something coming from his daughter.

[b]“You mentioned Kenta …you don’t think he—“[/b]

[b]“He’s got a knack for encouraging you to go farther than you could ever imagine. My guess is he brought it out …somehow.”[/b]

[b]“Double time it!” [/b]

The two had once again vanished without a trace, accelerating towards the battlefield.