Upon confirming who had saved the boy, Arthur's face remained unreadable. He just watched as blood dripped from the tip of his weapon.
It was a fraction of flesh carved from Naruto's body. And had he not been saved, he would have been cut in two for certain.
Finally accepting things for how they were, Arthur turned and said. "Good to see you, Jada."
Yet she ignored him and instead jumped toward the other two. His eyes merely followed her, trying to understand the who, what, when, where, and how.
Calmly, she laid Naruto's body down and urged Sakura to heal him if she still had chakra left.
"I-ugh-Yeah, I will!" Sakura obliged.
Jada then placed a final hand over Naruto's forehead, confirming that he wasn't dead. "Sasuke, when Sakura's done, head back to the Leaf Village immediately."
"I appreciate the help," he responded, "but I don't think you're a match for him."
"No… I'll handle Arthur alone."
"Oh…" Arthur mused.
Before he continued, he considered how she managed to arrive here so quickly. There was only one explanation, and he confirmed it with his Crimson Gaze by seeing what was on and around Team 7: Flying raijin marks!
Arthur hadn't noticed them before since they were hidden almost too methodically. Naruto's was inside his flesh, something he couldn't fathom how she got the boy to accept this. Sasuke's and Sakura's were on a piece of scroll inside their bags.
Now he understood why this team was left alone to roam the world. Because no matter where Team 7 went, no matter what they did, Jada was always watching them from a safe distance.
"So you learned the flying raijin?" he pointed out, unimpressed.
How could he be surprised? These people were Naruto fanatics who understood every method of obtaining only the best techniques in this world.
Had Arthur's plot never been revealed in the Chūnin Exam stadium, and had he not released his Transformation technique, Jada might have never taken such measures.
She calmed herself before choosing to face his cold gaze.
Nothing about her had changed much. Her jet-black hair was a few inches longer, but her youthful appearance remained surreal, a beauty that could leave other men speechless.
Her being here was not a good thing since people like her were troubling to deal with in times like these. And there were a lot of reasons why Arthur didn't want to fight a player.
For one, Jada was claimed to have used her Sharingan to copy techniques from characters like Might Guy and Kakashi Hatake. That already gave her an edge in taijutsu, genjutsu, and ninjutsu.
Then there was the fact she had already awakened the Mangekyō Sharingan. That meant she had automatically unlocked the Susanoo plus another technique between either the Tsukiyomi or the Amaterasu.
Who knows what this custom technique was given?
The scene soon became a dramatic confrontation as the two stared at each other, with neither one of them showing any emotions.
"Arthur… That sword… That's Zabuza's sword. And the ice on the ground… You killed them too, didn't you?"
He could tell by her mellowed-out tone that this wasn't the question she wanted an answer for. What she truly sought to ask was why he was acting this way.
"I'll let you in on something," he said, holstering the weapon up and resting it over his shoulder. "My life isn't something to play with."
Her eyes widened in disbelief as she whispered his name. "Arthur…"
"Jada, if you're so bent on playing hero and want me gone, beg them to return me to where I came from."
That statement struck a nerve, so she lashed out in frustration. "Arthur, you're taking things too far!"
"Not far enough," Arthur countered. Sasuke and Sakura could only listen in, unsure of what the two were discussing. "It'd be much easier if you were by my side."
"What?!"
"You heard me. Why don't you join me in destroying this world?"
Suddenly, she activated her Sharingan. "I'm done with that! With you trying to think you're some villain. If you would have joined us in the Leaf, we wouldn't be here; if we had worked together honestly, things wouldn't be the way that they were!"
"You have no idea the lie that you're living in."
"Lie?!"
She then swiftly drew out a small, earthenware saké jar and pointed the tip at him. The lid burst open, causing a spectral fire to blaze out until it formed a long blade. He recognized this weapon. It was the Totsuka Blade.
How did she of all people get that weapon?
The Totsuka Blade was written to be a legendary weapon, a component of Itachi Uchiha's Susanoo. And unlike conventional swords, its blade was formed from a liquid contained within the saké jar. This ethereal weapon also possesses the unique ability to seal away anything it pierced, trapping its victims in an eternal dreamlike state.
It was unlikely that someone like Jada would have gotten it.
"Every move," she said as her face almost contorted in anger, "every plan—it was all you from the beginning, using us as pawns!"
"You must mean when Orochimaru gave Sasuke the curse mark…"
When Sasuke heard that, he reached for his neck as his eyes stayed narrowed at Arthur's figure.
The air then blew past their hair, making the tension even stronger.
"There's a lot of things I dislike, Jada, and being lied to is one of them," Arthur said. "So wake up already and stop playing pretend in this godless world."
"You... I won't let you ruin things here just because you're delusional."
"The only delusional person I see here is you."
"Just why, Arthur? Why are you trying to destroy things?"
"It's the only way... The ninja world and all of its flaws have to come to an end."
This made her shake her head in disbelief and anger. "No! You're insane. I know your kind. You'd betray everyone, and I'm not gonna let your sick, twisted dream be realized!"
"Then you're just as lost as the others… I'd like to know: who was it that gave you that weapon, and how did you learn the flying raijin?"
Jada's expression turned grim as she got into a battle stance and shouted, "Nothing that happens now is any of your concern! Your very character needs to be erased… I'll protect everyone! Arthur!"
'Now…'
Arthur quickly turned and sprinted towards the hill, dematerializing his weapon in the process. Jada was taken aback but immediately ran after him.
The chase was on.
Arthur, who'd honed himself to perfection, dodged obstacles left and right with his movements never ceasing. He leaped over fallen logs, dodged low-hanging vines, and squeezed through narrow passages without breaking stride.
Jada was no less impressive; she matched his speed with equal fluidity as the Totsuka Blade blurred of light in her hand.
The ground broke underneath their feet, and the wind whipped through from their quickness.
Arthur eventually reached the edge of the forest, where the land transformed into a canyon of water and trees. As he controlled his breathing, he suddenly heard her roar, "Earth style: mud wall!"
A giant slab of rock suddenly pillared the sky to block his run. But that didn't stop him as he launched himself over it and performed a double acrobatic flip. The instant he landed on the other side, he took off again.
The giant rock formation crumbled to pieces from Jada slicing through it like it was never there. She then emerged out of the debris, running even faster than before.
Apart from where Arthur was headed, all he could think about was that last technique she used. Her natural affinity was water, yet she had performed an earth style technique. To even learn one element often took years, so just how much training could she have possibly accomplished in this little time?!
Arthur continued to bolt as the canyon walls blurred into a pale vortex around him. Pebbles snapped and dust scattered in his wake. His lungs burned; his heart pounded like a drum, but adrenaline propelled him forward.
Behind him, he could both hear and see the relentless pursuit of Jada's figure. Her Sharingan was no joke. It wasn't just anticipating his movements; it was giving her an almost precognitive awareness to predict which direction he was most likely headed.
Then there was her Totsuka Blade, a constant threat that could end his existence for real, much like she wanted.
Suddenly, she made one hop over a small hill, and her figure couldn't be seen. But when she reappeared, she was running directly next to him.
"Lightning beast running jutsu!"
Electricity covered her palm as she swiped the air, sending a wolf made of pure lightning in his direction.
Zap!
The technique hit, electrocuting his body. But in that split second, a smouldering rock was in his place—a successful substitution that gave him a better lead.
While running, he was considering her last attack.
The Lightning Beast Running technique was from Kakashi, and it could only be used after learning the Lightning Blade. That also meant Jada had acquired earth style, water style, and lightning style!
'She's pretty dangerous…'
The canyon walls soon closed in around them as the air got thick with the scent of pine needles and damp earth.
Arthur knew he had to turn to the wilderness, so he darted left and reached a steep cliff face that he began running up.
"You're not getting away!" she screamed while climbing with the same agility as him. "Water style: water shark bomb jutsu!"
A cascade of water roared in front of her, transforming into a ten-foot shark. Arthur recognized the technique. To think she would have learned one of Kisame's moves.
The shark swam in the air faster than the two could run, meeting him quickly.
Bang!
He dodged left just as it crashed into the wall.
Bang!
He dodged another, causing part of the wall to explode outward in a concussive wave while taking him with it. When she thought she had him, he suddenly hopped from one falling rock to the next until he flipped right to the top—all without losing his balance.
"Tsk..."