The Great Shinobi Empires of Jihopan (Naruto Quest, AU Canon)

You made hand seals as you jumped backwards. You opened your mouth and unleashed a massive vortex of wind that easily blew away the Lightning Blast into nothingness. The gale grew in power and size, easily ripping apart the large hornets! The wind was closing in on Ichizo who simply ran and jumped off the wall, summoning the queen wasp once again and flying away from danger.

"You insects cannot harm me, and I counter your lightning jutsu! Surrender and your life won't be forfeit!" you shouted to Ichizo.

"Up yours!" Ichizo roared back as he made a hand seal that pressed both of his index and middle fingers together, then positioned them in a cross shape. With a sudden explosion of smoke, there was now three Ichizo's standing on three wasps queens. They looked solid, so you knew they were Shadow Clones of some sort!

You made your sand blades fly at the Rock shinobi and his clones, but they all managed to fly away and the got some blood from their wounded lip and made more hand seals before ending it with a clap.

"Summoning: Mass Wasp Summon!"

An explosion of smoke so large appeared, briefly covering the sun. but it rapidly cleared to reveal thousands upon thousands of wasps. The buzzing drone was almost painful to listen too as two Ichizos flew higher into the air, constantly summoning more and more wasps!

"I'm the heir of the Kamizuru clan! The strongest member ever! None of those old fucks can compare to me!" Ichizo bellowed over the roar of the wasps. "Try your fuckin' wind jutsu again! For every thousand you kill, I'll bring two thousand more!"

You could see sweat dripping from Ichizo's face, but he wasn't out of breath at all!

"What a monster! He used Shadow Clones and mass summonings and he only looks mildly strained! His stamina is impressive, but he's just using quantity, he hasn't shown anything that can pierce my defenses. What shall I do...?" you thought.

[] Focus on the original Ichizo! Those clones and wasps will just keep coming if you don't cut off the source!

[] Go into the air and get rid of the clones! Even with a massive stamina pool, nobody can use Shadow Clones forever!

[] Call his bluff! Keep on destroying the wasps and see how far his stamina can go!

[] Turn a large portion of the wall into sand, then send as many bullets of sand as you can make upwards!

[] Something else? (Write In)

You had to focus on the original! Flying upwards on the platform of sand, you were suddenly rushed by a swarm of wasps, but your sand blades and automatic defenses easily blocked any damage. More and more wasps came, but you had your eyes locked on Ichizo, sending out whatever attacks you could at him! Thankfully with your defenses, you could ignore most of his offence!

"You bitch...!" he growled. He tried to make hand seals, but he was too absorbed in trying to bombard you with attacks. A sand blade had floated up behind him and slashed diagonally across his back, a spray of blood erupting from his wound. He roared in pain, his clones being distracted by their owner being injured, which allowed you to easily destroy them. With the Shadow Clones gone, along with the clones of the wasps, the seemingly endless hoard was now down to a third of its size.

Not allowing Ichizo to recover, you surrounded his body with sand, trapping him. He thrashed and snarled trying to free himself, but you finished off the battle by slamming him painfully onto the ground. You walked up to the Rock ninja, who was still conscious. He was glaring at you, but he was in no position to threaten you anymore.

"I was only one jutsu away from killing you!" Ichizo bellowed.

"Perhaps you would have won, if you didn't fight someone like myself," you bluntly said, creating a sand blade and holding it within your hand. "I am part of the Desert Three of the Sand Empire after all."

"Fuck you! I swear to you, I'll rip out your throat and-" Ichizo began, but you covered his mouth with sand. You tired of his voice. But now you had a choice. You could kill Ichizo and go home for a job well done, but he's the heir of the Kamizuru clan. That type of bargaining chip doesn't come every day.

What will you do?

[] Kill Ichizo. He's much too dangerous to keep as a mere prisoner.

[] Bring Ichizo in as a prisoner of war. As the heir of his clan, the Sand would hold some advantage over the Rock.

[] Interrogate Ichizo for information. Perhaps there's some important intelligence he can spill to you.

[] Take Ichizo to Shishio. He is the commander of this checkpoint after all, let him decide what to do.

[] Something Else? (Write In)

---
Apologies for the hiatus. I got massive writer's block, but hopefully it should be fine now!

You were going to keep Ichizo alive, the clan heir of the Kamizuru clan could be a very nice bargaining chip. However, you couldn't let him be a danger, so you made a hand seal. Ichizo's scream of pain was muffled by the sand around his mouth as the sand around his hands quickly imploded. Ichizo thrashed around, but he quickly fell unconscious due to exhaustion and pain. With that, he couldn't use jutsu until his hands were properly healed. Carrying him over your head with a cocoon of sand, you flew down to the checkpoint. Thankfully, Shishio and the rest of the Sand shinobi had repelled the invading Rock forces.

"Glad to see we won the day," you said to Shishio, who was quick to meet up with you. "Of course I was more worried about you than myself."

"Thank you. I am also glad to see you managed to defeat Ichizo. Do you intend to keep him as a prisoner of war?" Shishio asked, looking at the unconscious Ichizo. You nodded and Shishio continued, "Very well. There were no major losses here, so after a quick inspection the checkpoint will be back to work as normal."

"Good work, Shishio. Do you need anything else?" you replied.

"No. Please report the mission was a success and everything is fine," Shishio respectfully said. "It was an honor to work with you, even for a brief moment, Nou."

"Heh, I know. It was good to work with you as well. Anyway, I'll be going back to the village now," was your response, a smirk forming on your face. After making sure Ichizo was restrained, you flew away from the checkpoint.

---

The journey back to the village felt shorter, but by the time you got back, it was already dusk. As you approached the village entrance, you handed Ichizo off to the guards, informing them of how dangerous he is.

Entering the Sand was always a great feeling for you, to see the Empire you are so proud of made your heart swell! But you couldn't waste much time, you had to report in the mission. You walked to the Administration Building, easily brushing off any glares you got along the way. Entering the building, you walked up to the front desk and said, "I'm back from my mission. I'd like to report it."

"Oh, Nou. Good timing," the secretary said, adjusting her glasses. "You are speak to one of the Kazekage for your next mission as well."

"Which one?" you replied, silently hoping it was any of them except for Rasa.

"Lord Rasa is the only one in at the moment, so it would have to be him," the secretary plainly answered. You hid a sigh and felt a sinking feeling in your chest. Of course it would have to be the Kazekage who hates you.

"Alright, thank you," you pointedly said, walking up the stairs next to the secretary. You automatically moved through the hallway on the fourth floor and reached a large door that had the symbol of the Sand engraved on it. You knocked on the door and Rasa's stern voice came from the other side. "Enter."

You entered Rasa's office and winced at the sight of gold covering the walls, ceiling, and floor of the room. Rasa sat behind a gold covered desk which only had paperwork on it, barring a small, golden framed picture of a woman on the side. "Lord Kazekage, I completed my mission at the checkpoint."

Rasa glared at you with those icy eyes of his, a sneer on his face. He was about to say something, but apparently thought better of it before saying, "Alright. Anything else to report?"

You quickly told Rasa the details of the mission and told him of Ichizo. He didn't react at the news and replied, "Very well then. You have a new mission now."

"So soon after I got back? Is it important?" you asked.

"Of course it is," Rasa snapped at you. You bit your lip to keep yourself from responding as Rasa continued. "We have reports that the Frost Empire is sending a delegate to the Rock Empire. We are barely able to defend against the Rock as is, if they manage to get the support of the Frost, we will be as good as conquered. Your mission is to assassinate the delegate."

"Hm...alright. Shall I get support this time?" you asked.

"Yes, we suspect the Frost delegate would have strong shinobi to protect them. You'll lead the squad, choose two of them," Rasa said, handing you a small list of names.

Who will you take on the mission? (Choose Two)

[] Gaara Saito. The youngest son of the Fourth Kazekage. The host of Shukaku and a powerful shinobi who uses the Biju's power of sand to its full extent.

[] Kankuro Saito. The middle child of the Fourth Kazekage. A puppet user who is well known for being heavily offense oriented.

[] Temari Saito. The eldest child and only daughter of the Fourth Kazekage. A wind user who is also rather tactical in battle.

[] Pakura Mishoto. One half of the Hellfire Twins, a powerful kunoichi who uses small hand fans to flow her fire and wind chakra through. She is also famed for her lethal Scorch Release kekkei genkai.

[] Yusuke Mishoto. One half of the Hellfire Twins, a powerful shinobi who combined fire and wind jutsu for devastating results. He is also famed for his lethal Scorch Release kekkei genkai.

[] Sasori Chikamatsu. Grandson of Lady Chiyo, an extremely powerful shinobi who is a master at the art of puppetry.

[] Sozen Uchiha-Mishoto. An Uchiha who abandoned the Leaf and made a new life in the Sand. Proficient with Genjutsu and Ninjutsu.

[] Fumi Komatsuzaki. Part of the Desert Three, a kunoichi who has skill in most of the unique combat arts of the Sand, such as puppetry, wind jutsu, and even her own unique Kekkei Genkai, Pressure Release.

"I'll choose Sasori and Sozen," you said after a long moment of thought. "I need their power if we are to assassinate such an important figure."

"Took you long enough," Rasa sneered. "It'll be your job to inform them. I expect you three to leave within a few hours. Now begone."

You easily shrugged off Rasa's rudeness and left his gaudy office as fast as you possibly could. You took a large breath of the outside air and ran your fingers through your hair. You were hoping you'd get a break, but there was no rest for such a famous shinobi like you! Before scouring the village for Sasori and Sozen's residences, you quickly bought a small boxed lunch and restocked on any supplies you needed. Scarfing down the food, you figured out that Sasori's house was closer by, so you went to him first.

Sasori's house was on its own patch of land, a deliberate distance away from other residences. The house was made out of stone and clay like the other buildings, to help keep the inside cool against the harsh desert heat, but you noticed it looked rather abandoned. The outside of the house was rather dirty and you could see thick cobwebs at the edges of the windows. Before you could even take another step closer, you froze.

You formed a blade of sand and spun around, seeing a cloaked figure. However, you stopped once the figure began to speak in a gruff, raspy voice. "Who are you and what do you want?"

"Sasori...?" you asked cautiously. You had never seen the man before after all. However, the figure was limp and floating off the ground and upon a closer look, you noticed it was a puppet.

"Answer me, woman," the puppet pointedly said, lifting its head to reveal a video camera within its single eye.

"I am Nou Saito, one of the Desert Three, and the Fourth Kazekage issued a mission that me, you and one other shall go on," you confidently answered.

"I suppose my inclusion is absolutely required?" the puppet asked.

"Indeed. The mission is to assassinate a delegate of the Frost Empire that is traveling to the Rock Empire," you explained. "We cannot allow-"

"I understand the consequences, Saito. Very well. I shall be waiting at the entrance to the village, do not keep me waiting," the puppet firmly said. It then vanished in a puff of smoke. You shrugged and left the area. Sasori was going to be a piece of work, but it wasn't anything you couldn't handle! It was then you tracked down Sozen's house. It took a bit of time, since he lived practically on the other side of the village!

When you landed in front of Sozen's house, you knocked on the door and waited. After a moment, the door opened to reveal a man with raven colored hair that was tied in a small topknot, but still went down his neck in length. He had a goatee surrounding his mouth and covering his chin. His skin was pale, but the most noticeable thing was the very deep bags underneath his eyes, along with the creases around the corners of his eyes. It made him look very exhausted and much older than what he actually was.

"Greetings! What can I do for you?" the man asked, his voice warm and kind.

"Yes, is Sozen here?" you asked.

"Right here," he said. "What's going on?"

"I'm Nou Saito, one of the Desert Three, and you have a mission," you bluntly said with a small smile.

"Really?" Sozen sighed, sounding rather disappointed. "I was hoping to stay long enough for dinner with the family. It's pretty rare we're all here at once, you know?"

"I apologize, but you know how this war takes its toll," you replied.

"Yeah, yeah. Well, hold on. Dinner is almost done, is the mission urgent?" Sozen asked.

"Yes, but the Fourth Kazekage did say we had some time to prepare," you answered honestly.

"Great! I'll finish up dinner and then we can go! Shouldn't take that long!" Sozen happily said. "Hey, while you're here, want to join us? Our family always loves guests."

"I'm unsure, Sasori said he'd be waiting at the entrance for us..." you trailed off.

"I'm sure he'll be fine," Sozen said. "Plus, I really don't want to miss dinner. So, what do you say?"

Well?

[] Decline the offer and go wait with Sasori. You don't want to intrude on Sozen's family time.

[] Accept the offer. Sure, Sasori might have to wait but hey, free food!

[] Tell Sozen to get ready for the mission. Dinner with his family can wait, this mission cannot.

[] Something else? (Free Choice)