Naruto was feeling a bit sluggish as he stood. He had to shake his head a few times as he stood again, he was feeling sluggish. "Were those needles poisoned?"
"Yeah, just hold out a little longer," said Sakura.
Naruto nodded slowly, clearly feeling the effects and looked back at Washi to see several needles sticking out of their opponent's arms. He was moving slowly towards Naruto and seemed to be slowing more with each step.
Naruto knew with that with Washi slowed significantly that now would be the time to bombard the boy with mud balls. Naruto ran through hand seals as fast as he could and spat a mud ball.
Washi didn't even register the mud travelling toward him, he was enveloped in his transformation, so when the mud ball hammered into his head knocking him back he didn't care. He cared less when the next three mud balls impacted his chest and arms. He couldn't care anymore as something else hit him with the force of an anvil relieving him of consciousness.
Naruto and the group froze in surprise when a blue leathery ball about the half the size of Washi's whole body burst from the swamp water and impacted the boy knocking him unconscious. Before Washi even hit the ground, his transformation had begun to fade away. They were more surprised when the ball uncurled to the form of another alligator, significantly smaller than the first they fought and this one was completely blue in color.
Wani Chisai Ao Lvl 20
They were stunned when the alligator reared up on it hind legs and bowed toward them repeatedly, growling something they were never going to understand. It then turned toward Washi, its stubby front legs and paws picked up Washi, now completely free of his transformation, and proceeded to slap him several time.
"Chisai Ao, is this the afterlife?" the boy groaned, seeing his partner.
Chisai growled at the boy, its tone and inflection changing several times.
"I'm not dead? How are you alive?"
Another series of growls.
"But I saw you die, I held you in my arms."
The alligator slapped him several times again and growls more.
"I thought you'd grown to fight them."
More slaps and more growls.
Washi blushed and scratched the back of his head before turning to look at Naruto and his team.
"This is so embarrassing. I thought you'd killed Chisai Ao."
"You do know that Chisai is blue right? And the other gator was black?" shouted Ino.
"Ah . . . well . . . you see . . . the thing is . . . my clan is color blind because of our relationship to alligators."
Ino had to be restrained, thankfully Shikamaru was way ahead of her and had restrained both her and Sakura, the later more precautionary and thankfully unnecessary.
"I guess I'll be going, sorry for the trouble. Oh, and I guess you can have this for your trouble. I was done learning it anyway," he said, tossing a scroll toward the group. Then together he and Chisai jumped into the swamp and vanished into the murky waters.
"We just let him go?" demanded Ino. "We're totally going to report him right?"
"You can try," said Shikamaru. "No one was really hurt so it's not really a big deal."
"Speak for yourself," said Naruto, he'd lost half of his HP trying to contain the guy and protect his friends while not causing permanent damage to Washi.
"Oh, stop your whining, I'm healing you now, aren't I?" asked Sakura, as she focused on healing Naruto of both the damage he suffered and the poison he'd been inadvertently hit with.
"What's the scroll, Shikamaru?" asked Ino.
"[Suiton: Teppodama no Jutsu]," he answered.
"Is that a water version of my [Doton: Teppodama]?" asked Naruto.
"Pretty much," said Shikamaru. "So, who wants it?"
"Give it to Ino-pig," said Sakura. "She needs something if she's going to be useful in the future."
"Troublesome," said Shikamaru, anticipating the fight that would break out between the two shortly. He held out the scroll to Ino, instantly distracting her from her plans to maim Sakura, or try to at least.
"Thanks, Forehead."
"Check it out," said Chouji. While the group had decided what to do with the scroll, he'd gone to check the body of the Oversized Alligator which had decomposed quickly after it died. In his hands he now held a stack of Ryo and metal plated skull.
"What the hell is that?" asked Ino, pointing to the skull.
Naruto looked at it, activating his [Observe] wordlessly.
Wani Skull Cap – The skull of a chakra mutated alligator that has a strong metal plate bonded to it. Imbued with the hardheadedness of the alligator it came from it is also blessed with the strength and resilience of the very gator it came from. Stats: +20 DEF, +20 VIT, +10 STR, DUR 75/75.
"That should definitely go to Chouji," said Naruto. "It has a ton of defense and the chakra imbued in it will enhance his vitality and strength."
"How do you know that?" asked Ino, her eyes narrowing in suspicion.
"Fuinjutsu," Shikamaru covered for him seamlessly. "He can sense chakra enhancements because of it."
"That's kind of cool. Maybe you're not completely useless after all," said Ino, smirking.
"Whatever, Ino-pig," said Sakura, coming to her teammate's defense. "If not for Naruto you'd have been gator food already. Anyway, how much Ryo did we get Chouji?"
"15000, most we've gotten yet," he answered, dividing it up into equal stacks then handing everyone a stack.
"So, now what?" asked Ino.
"Now, we leave this kami forsaken swamp," answered Naruto. Sakura had finished healing him so it was definitely time to go. "Then, Shikamaru and I are long overdue for some Shogi."
"I'm going home to shower," said Ino. "This place is so dirty."
"Jacket first," Naruto ordered, holding out a hand for it.
"When we're out of the swamp," said Ino. "I'm not going this far only to risk getting my dress dirty now."
"Ino-pig, you and I are going to Higurashi's first then you can go home to shower."
"Like hell-"
"You're going," Sakura stated firmly, leaving absolutely no room for argument.
Ino frowned. "Fine, but I won't be wearing anything as ugly as your outfit, you fashion impaired shrew."
"You'll wear it if I say you'll wear it, you purple monstrosity," snapped Sakura.
It was once again quick to descend quickly into pointless bickering between the two but it was completely absent the earlier malice when they started the day. It continued like that all the way out of the swamp.
Naruto, Shikamaru, and Chouji all sighed, then shared a shrug before following the girls out of the swamp.
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