Samurai Showdown With Kakashi

A few minutes before the Reapers of Metal appeared.

- Maybe I should have sent the clone here, but I just couldn't resist seeing this myself. - Linja thought to herself.

She was now going down the rock stairs from the entrance of the cave seeing the flashes of light from the lit torches lighting her path. Once she finally got to the bottom, she could witness the scroll's shrine in its full beauty. Light blue crystals were hanging as stalactites as the red light from the torches trespassed them, illuminating the place in an intoxicating purple aura. The scroll was in the center of the room, surrounded by stone spikes that bloomed from the ground. Linja approached the scroll, commenting:

- It's not nearly as big as the Forbidden Scroll of Jutsus from the Leaf Village. Let's hope I'm a little disappointed, but let's hope I don't get hunted by a Kakashi again.

Linja carefully removed the scroll from its place and laid it open on the ground. She took out some scroll paper from her bag, and started copying the contents.

- Interesting, this is nothing like anything I've ever copied. I've never seen jutsu that relied on weapon movements instead of hand seals. I guess its custom made for the samurais. I'll have to recopy some of these to smaller scrolls later. I would love to try them out. But now, let's speed things up. I don't want to waste Rod's efforts outside.

Linja hurriedly passed the contents from one paper to the next, and she was there for a comfortable 7 minutes, before walking was heard. At a fast ninja like pace, the electric reaper reached the bottom. Linja hurriedly put the scrolls she could inside her own bag, while keeping two in hand, and wielded a kunai. The blonde man showed up in mere moments. Linja observed him. Long blonde hair, a scar on his eye, as well as sharp teeth, like he purposely cut them to appear menacing, but the most worrying part was the headband he had on.

The reaper said:

- Odd, and here I thought I had seen you upstairs. Ih ih ih! - He laughed in a maniacal way.

- Who are you? You're not one of the guards.

- My name is Jack the Reaper, baby, and I've come here to steal a scroll. - He looked around, realizing there was no scroll in sight, except those in Linja's bag. The connection was obvious. - And it seems you're the one who has it.

- Can I please keep it? - Linja tried the nice approach, it has never worked before, but you never know.

- Look girl, I need that. Mister Pain told us not to kill any of you, and I wouldn't like to break his rule. So don't force me to do what I don't want.

- Fine. Here. - She said extending her arm. She took out a paper scroll from her bag, handing it to the reaper. He took it from her hand, and she started heading towards the stairs outside.

- Now let's have a look at what's inside here. - Jack opened the scroll, and Linja quickened her pace. When it was unraveled, there was merely blank empty paper. Jack smiled menacingly, and in a singing tone said:

- Looks like someone wants to die.

Linja was nearly halfway through the three floor stairs, before being stopped by the reaper who reached her in a heartbeat, like a bolt of lighting, in fact, his body seemed to be electrocuted. He commented:

- You thought you could run away from Jack the Reaper? - Linja stumbled back in surprise and horror, falling from the stairs all the way back down. She tried to get up:

- Who the hell thought making these many stairs was a good idea?

- I think they're great. - He jumped down. - Now girl, since I'm no meanie, I'm willing to give you a second chance. Give me the scroll, the right one, and I'll let you live. You have nothing to lose. - He said getting continuously closer to her, with his scythe aiming at her neck.

Linja only had one trump card, her friends and the two scrolls she had, both the copy and the real scroll. She took the real scroll as well, initially because if it had been a guard coming down there, she could give the fake one back and flee with the real one. Even though the copy worked as well as the other, nothing compares to having the real deal. She thought she could flee with both, and sell one of them, but she wasn't going to run the risk anymore.

- Here. This time it's real. I promise. - She said giving the fake scroll away.

Jack approached and when touching her hand, he realized:

- You seem familiar... Are you from the Hidden Village of Clouds?

- How... did you...

- Your shoulder. It has an inscription on it. - When falling down the stairs, Linja's outfit ripped in her shoulder. - What are you doing all the way here? Are you a spy?

- Its none of your business. Now scram.

- Ohh, feisty. Come, enlighten a curious man. If you're not a spy, then I can only think of one other thing. - Linja stayed quiet. - You're a failed outcast. Someone so pathetically weak they had to get rid of.

- Shut up! - Linja shouted. Her stress spot had been hit. - You're one to talk. Your headband is from there as well, and what are you if not an outcast? We're the same.

- Don't compare myself to you! - Jack pushed Linja against the wall. - We're not the same, we're the opposite. I was feared, while you were mocked. I was so unstable, the Raikage himself released me from the Village so that my chaos would infect other towns, and now with the Reapers of Metal I will do exactly that. Pain tells us that we will be the new Akatsuki, the ones who will affect the parts of the world the regular Akastsuki can't act upon, and the Land of Iron is simply the starting poiny. I will crush this world in my hands. But first we need more power. A new member. Pain says he can't stay forever, and this scroll will solve that problem. We will find someone capable and gift his this ancient power. Then I will the world at the palm of my hands - From the man's hands, small lightning kept reverberating, and Linja could feel the stings. Something was about to erupt. - If you don't want to cooperate, then I'll just kill you and look in your bag. - Linja wasn't scared. She wasn't ready to die, but she's smart enough not to get caught so easily. She retorted:

- You'll kill me, huh? Although, I wonder, which me? - Linja smirked as another her punched Jack from the side. - I wasn't going to let the real me stay here unprotected. Now you have two Linjas to defe... - Jack sent out a kunai, hitting the clone and immediately turning it into smoke. - You could have at least waited a bit.

- I'm tired of being tricked, I just want to play, and Jack the Reaper's game is the one of death.

- You want to play a game. I know one. - Jack stopped for a bit, and even seemed interested.

She went into her bag and grabbed three scrolls, showing them in her hands.

- One of these is the scroll you want, one is a bad copy and one is an empty scroll. If you guess the right one, you may kill me and leave, and if you get the wrong one you'll let me live.

Jack moved at a speed faster than Linja could even perceive, and took all three scrolls. Jack laughed:

- I'm not into playing games like those. You made a mistake in showing me the scroll I need, now let's see what it's like.

Jack unveiled all three scrolls, and saw an odd paper stuck in each of them. Linja crouched and protected herself.

- Wait, are these...

- PUMM!! - Three paper bombs exploded right against Jack's face throwing him to the other side of the cave, incapacitated.

Linja was able to escape unharmed, and commented:

- Bad luck. I was only going to hit you with one of those. At least now, I can flee safely.

Linja tapped her clothes, cleaning them from all the dirt she got from the explosion. Once she was ready, she looked forward only to see an old man with a small bird show up.

- Oh god. Are you another one of those reapers?

- Impressive. You actually beat Jack. And us thinking you were the weakest one of the bunch. It pains me to kill such a beautiful young girl, but you're too dangerous to keep alive. - He started doing hand seals, finishing it off in a fl.i.c.k.i.n.g motion. The little bird on his shoulder landed on it, and the old man said:

- Fire Style: Charging Phoenix. - He seemed to whisper these words as he calmly flicked his finger.

The little bird started gaining flames and growing in size at an unbelievable rate. By the time it was halfway to Linja it was already her size, when before it could fit in the palm of a hand.

Linja didn't know what to do, with no time to take out a scroll or dodge, and with no clones left, would she really be hit with the phoenix? That's when she heard.

- Double Laidõ Explosion! - Flying past the old man, I held my swords and slashed the bird's fire wings, as my swords seemed to stop the rest of the jutsu. All that reached Linja was the tiny bird, which only pecked her nose and was quickly shooed away.

When I saw Renji throw these swords at me, I noticed they came from Zoro's tomb, but didn't realize what that meant. He was known among many names, as the Fire Stopper, since his blades were capable of cutting through anything, even fire. It was nice to prove a myth true.

The old man seemed impressed, almost excited.

- Its been years since I've come across an opponent who can deal with my fires in such a way. You're name is Roderick, isn't it my child? Well then, let's put you through the test. - The old man bit his finger, and putting his hand on the ground said:

- Summoning Jutsu, 100 Finches Flock.

- 100?! - Linja screamed as 100 small birds appeared.

The old man closed both hands, and readied to flick with every finger he had. I felt Linja holding my back, but not in a comforting way, more like in a human shield type of way.

- What are you doing?

- Block those. I know you're fast, but for the love of god, don't you dare dodge. I don't want to get hit by any fireball.

I looked at both my swords, and remembered Rakuma's training about defense. This is what he was training me for. I won't let him down, I'll save Linja.