Chapter #6Flashbacks and decisions by: Dylan M   Toph reached down and picked Naruto up with her trade-mark smirk.
"Toph please don't eat me!" Naruto shouted and tried to escape the giantess's fingers.
"CALM DOWN NINJA BOY, I'D NEVER EAT YOU." Toph said amused.
"I'm sorry I thought you were a boy, I'm sorry I used A Thousend Years of Death on you! just don't kill me!" Naruto said.
Toph giggled, Naruto was so scared he didn't realize she would never hurt him.
"WELL, I COULD HAVE SOME FUN WITH YOU NARUTO, OR I COULD GET BACK AT AZULA." Toph told him
"Azula...you mean that crazy fire-shooting hag I tricked?" Naruto asked
Toph nodded
Naruto smiled as he recalled that day.
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Naruto's FlashBack:
It was about 5 hours before Sakura showed up at Naruto’s camp that she was sitting around Aang and the other’s campsite eating lunch and chatting with Katara
The two of them had become very good friends in the time they had been traveling and were often seen talking, joking, or beating the crap out of Sokka for some dumb or sexist thing he had said
Sokka had quickly learned just how dangerous Sakura could be especially with that Genjutsu illusion stuff
More than once after he had said something that those two didn’t like he found himself in some sort of nightmare illusion that ranged from being covered in spiders to every animal he had ever eaten rising from the grave to kill him (That’s a lot I’m guessing)
And even more unfortunately the only way he had found of dispelling it was by whacking himself on the head with a club till he passed out
Aang enjoyed having her around since she was very helpful and always did her part so she didn’t feel like dead weight
They had quickly figured out Sakura had some kind of issue with that but didn’t ask her about it
Everyone had pretty much gotten used to having her around and were loving her ninja skills
More than once they had completely avoided the Fire Nation troops hunting them thanks to her ninja skills and training
Sakura picked up on enemy patrols coming their way and helped them sneak past the soldiers that occupied the forests looking for them
Azula had taken the liberty to make sure the Fire Nation had a strong presence in the area so that Aang couldn’t escape but with Sakura’s help they hadn’t had to fight once since she joined
Her illusions made getting past Fire Nation troops so much easier that it was unbelievable
Sakura had once used an illusion so strong they walked right through a Fire Nation encampment that was packed with soldiers in broad daylight and not a single solider noticed them
Sokka had even made funny faces in the commander’s face but he didn’t even notice
Sakura also appeared to be interested in bending and Katara had tried to show her some waterbending but they got nothing for some reason
Katara said that perhaps she just couldn’t bend like some people (Sokka)
Sakura had volunteered to teach Katara and Aang some jutsu but they were too busy with bending to try (Thank god for that!)
She was totally unaware of what would happen if Aang or Katara had tried it so she still had no idea the truth about benders and chakra
In all things were going good but that wouldn’t last for long…
“So Katara do you have any idea what this Ba Sing Se place is like?” asked Sakura as they all sat around eating fish for lunch (Minus Aang who was a vegetarian)
“Not really, Toph knew about that and said she had been there before, all I know is that it’s a big walled city that is probably the last safe haven from the Fire Nation” said Katara
At the mention of the “T” word Aang got a sad look on his face again that the others were used to seeing every time Toph was brought up
Aang still blamed himself for her death even though the others kept telling him that it wasn’t his fault
Some nights Aang would have nightmares of Toph’s fall being played over and over again as well as Toph yelling at him for causing her to die
It reflected in the real word as well
For some reason no matter how hard he tried he couldn’t do even simple earthbending techniques that he had used before
Everyone was worried that this could cause some problems in his training and kept trying to cheer him up
“Sounds nice I hope we get there soon” commented Sakura wondering if the city was anything like Hidden Leaf Village
“We should be there in a few days” said Sokka pulling out a map he had stolen from the library
“We are in this huge patch of woods near the city” said Sokka pointing to a large green area of the map that was close to the city
“What about this thing here?” asked Sakura pointing to a large blue area that separated the woods from the city
“That’s a huge lake that boarders the city that acts as a natural defense from invasion, it’s so big that it takes a few days to get across it” said Sokka
“How are we getting across that?” asked Sakura
“I don’t know” said Sokka embarrassedly
“We’ll figure out a way when we get there right now we just need to get out of these woods safely” said Aang seriously
He wanted to get to Ba Sing Se and be safe from any more surprise attacks or Firebenders
Aang was determined to not let anyone else die and was going to make sure they all got out of this safely for Toph’s sake
The young Avatar clenched his fists together as he thought about Azula for a brief second
“Aang are you ok?” asked Katara worriedly seeing him acting weird again
“I’m fine” said Aang trying to sound normal even though Katara could see through his false tone in a second
“Ok I’m just worried about you” said Katara in a caring voice
“Don’t be just worry about yourself, as long as you an the others are safe I’ll be happy” said Aang in an unusual tone to Katara
“Ok I guess” said Katara unsure if that was a good sign or not
“Hey Katara! Can you go get us some more water from that stream we passed earlier? We need some more for our canteens” asked Sokka loudly from the other side of camp breaking the tense mood
“Why do I have to?” asked Katara
“Because you’re a waterbender and it’s a women’s job to get stuff for the men” said Sokka smugly
A second later her realized he shouldn’t have said that
The next thing he knew there was a giant 50 foot angry looking Katara in front of him roaring like Godzilla before trying to crush him
He screamed as he ran for his life from it trying to crush him under its foot
All the others saw was Sokka running around screaming while looking over his shoulder at some unknown attacker
“IT’S GOING TO KILL ME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!” he screamed in terror as he ran
“What did you used this time?” asked Katara happily to Sakura had her hands in a Genjutsu handsign
“Attack of the 50 ft Katara” replied Sakura simply as she watched Sokka run around crazily
“I need to learn how to do that” said Katara with a smirk as Sokka ran around
“Well that should last about ten minutes I’m going to get the water since I need to wash my hair anyway” said Sakura grabbing their canteens and walking off
“Hey fill this up for me will you?” asked Katara as she threw Sakura her water pouch that she needed refilled since Momo had accidentally drank from it
“No problem” said Sakura as she caught the pouch and headed off into the woods to find a stream they passed earlier that morning as they walked
15 Minutes Later, Campsite
They were all lounging around the campsite waiting for Sakura to get back with the water
Katara was busy playing with Momo, Aang tried to get his earthbending to work again but still didn’t get anything, and Sokka was busy recovering from his latest nightmare
He laid on the ground panting hard after all that running and screaming he did before when suddenly another giant Katara loomed over him
Sokka screamed for a second before he realized that it was just the real Katara standing over him with Momo on her shoulder
“What’s the matter can’t a man handle some illusions?” she asked tauntingly with a grin
“I wasn’t afraid of the crushing part. It was your face that scared me” replied Sokka
“Why you little!…” roared Katara angrily before she was cut off
Out of nowhere a red throwing knife came flying past her face missing it by not even half an inch
It came so close to hitting her it actually made a little cut on the tip of her nose that began to bleed slightly
The knife landed in a tree nearby with a thud and Aang looked at it for a second
He knew who used knives like this in a second since the one who used them had hunted him
Before Aang could shout a warning more knives came flying into their campsite right at Katara and Sokka
Katara reached for her water but found nothing and then realized it was being filled by Sakura
She had no way of blocking the knives and was about to be hit when Aang leapt in front on her and used a wind gust to knock them away
“Darn I missed” said a dull voice
“Must be your injury” reassured another cheery voice from the woods
“Not them again” said Sokka with dread
As soon as he said it Azula, Ty Lee, and Mai came walking out of the woods from where the knives had come from
“You!” shouted Aang fiercely at Azula with hatred in his eyes
“Not still mad about your little friend are you?” asked Azula tauntingly to Aang
Aang growled at her like an animal ready to pounce and kill it’s prey in one attack and you could almost see the aura of hate around him
“Come back to fight us?” asked Sokka seriously getting off the ground with his boomerang ready
“Not today, you’re in luck Avatar we’re not in the mood to play with you today so we’ll just do this the easy way” said Azula
“What?” asked Katara worriedly not liking how that sounded
Azula smirked before she snapped her fingers which was the signal to move in
Before they knew it there were Fire Nation troops moving in from the woods all over the place
In seconds Aang, Katara, and Sokka found themselves surrounded by an army of soldiers and Firebenders as far as they could see
“Uh oh! This isn’t good!” said Sokka looking around seeing nothing but red and black armor with small spots of silver for swords and spears
“Really? I couldn’t figure that out” said Katara sarcastically
“Hey sarcasm is my bit!” yelled Sokka angrily
“Guys we don’t have time for this!” yelled Aang pointing his staff defensively at a wall of Fire Nation soldiers
As all this was happening Sakura finally returned to camp with the water
She was walking in the woods close to the camp when she heard a commotion up ahead at the camp
“What’s going on?” she asked worriedly hearing the sounds of a lot of people as well as weapons and armor clanking
Sakura decided to head back to camp stealthily in case something bad was going on
She jumped into the trees and began silently making her way back to the camp to see what was going on and if the others were ok
When she got there she saw the image of Aang, Katara, and Sokka surrounded by tons of soldiers and two evil looking girls (Ty Lee does not look evil)
Sakura squatted on a branch and peeked her face out of the thick green leaves just enough to fully see what was going on in the camp
“Give it up Avatar you can’t possiblely be able to escape alive with your friends now” said Azula in a taunting tone
“Aang what do we do?” asked Katara worriedly as they looked at all the soldiers
This was really bad
They would have a hard time beating all the soldiers even with Toph and now she was gone, Katara had no water, and Sakura was not there
The entire situation looked hopeless to them probably because it was
“Come on Avatar, give up now and I won’t kill what’s left of your companions” said Azula knowing just what buttons to hit to unnerve Aang
Aang thought about it seriously as he looked through the seemingly endless ranks of the Fire Nation army
If they fought back odds are they would die or at least one of them would be killed and Aang was not about to lose another friend
Being a captive of the Fire Nation wasn’t good but it was still better than death
Aang threw his staff to the ground with a defeated look on his face
“Aang? What are you doing?” asked Katara in shock to what she was seeing
‘What? He’s giving up so easily?’ thought Sakura surprised
“Guys back down” ordered Aang seriously
“Smart idea Avatar” said Azula with a grin
“We’re just giving up?!” asked Sokka shocked
“If we fight back odds are that at least on of us will die, I don’t care if it’s me but I will not let you two die” said Aang almost emotionless despite the fact his heart was filled with very painful emotions
Katara and Sokka looked at each other with concerned looks as they tried to decide what to do
They knew Aang was right but it was just not right to give up so easily after all they’ve done
Aang stepped forward to address Azula
“I’ll give up and allowed myself to be captured so long as you do not harm my friends at all” said Aang seriously to Azula
“I can agree to that” said Azula in an official tone
“Wow that was easier than expected we should have killed one of his friends ages ago” said Mai amazed by how easy that was
“You made the right choice Avatar I’m sure your comrade would have done the same thing” said Azula
As the troops came forward and put cuffs on them they all thought the same thing
Toph would never have done that
Sakura watched as her new friends were captured and cuffed as prisoners and knew she had to do something
She knew that right now the area was too hot to try anything so she needed to get away for a while, come up with a plan, and come back to set them free when it was not so dangerous
Sakura withdrew from the tree and slowly crept away from the camp and all the Fire Nation soldiers before they could discover her
She had the advantage of no one knowing she was there which would be invaluable during the escape plan so she didn’t want to blow it
Near Naruto’s Campsite
After she cleared out of the area Sakura found a nice tree to relax in and plan what she was going to do about this mess
She knew this was going to be a difficult if not impossible solo mission dealing with an army of enemies if she messed up
Sakura had never been the strongest of her group and had never handled this dangerous a situation before on her own
She had defended Naruto and Sasuke from the sound ninja in the Forest of Death but she almost gotten herself killed and she only survived thanks to the help of Guy’s and Ino’s teams showing up
This time there was no chance that allies would show up to help her out, she was truly all on her own on this one
“Man I wish I had Sasuke here or Kakashi, I’d even be happy if Naruto was here” said Sakura in a depressed tone
‘That’s a new one, me being happy to see Naruto’ thought Sakura
She let out a weak laugh at the comment
Sakura was praying that anyone would show up to help her
She imagined Lee, Sasuke, Ino, Kakashi, and Naruto come flying out from behind some bushes and saying they were there to help her (Lee of course doing his signature pose and Kakashi reading his dam book)
But she knew that wasn’t going to happen no matter how hard she wished
“Nope this is the eighth time you’ve messed up that justu” came a familiar voice faintly to Sakura
“Huh? What’s that? Did someone just say jutsu?” asked Sakura surprised looking around
At first she thought it was only her imagination since she was the only one who knew about jutsu in this world or so she thought
“Hey I’m still new at this!” came a girl’s voice angrily through the woods proving Sakura wrong
“Someone’s there” said Sakura unsure of what was going on
She jumped down from the tree she was on onto the ground and began walking towards where the voices had come from
“Ok! Ok! Sorry! You don’t have to be so moody” said the first voice defensively
“Wait that voice! It couldn’t be…” began Sakura she then began to move faster towards the voices
She would know that annoying voice anywhere since she had often heard that tone before when she was angry
“Maybe you should focus more on doing the handsigns right and not on doing them quickly” came an older unknown voice
“Handsigns! They’re talking about jutsu!” said Sakura happily thinking that could only mean one thing
“Alright” came the girl voice again
Sakura began to run towards the voices
“Hey what is it?” asked the familiar voice confused
“I hear someone” said the girl voice
Sakura stopped when she heard this
Whoever it was already knew she was there so she approached slowly with caution
She could tell that she was close and the owners of the voices were just on the other side of some trees that were in her way
“Where?” asked the familiar voice seriously
Sakura knew who that voice belonged to
“There” said the girl voice
Sakura could just feel that they knew she was there and just decided to walk out
Naruto, Toph, and Jiraya’s Campsite
She walked around the tree and emerged in a small campsite like there own
In front of her Sakura was shocked to see none other than Naruto standing with a girl around her age in white with hair tied in a bun as well as a weird looking old man she had never seen before with an odd headband that said “oil”
Both Naruto and Sakura stared at each other in shock
“No way” said Naruto weakly
“Naruto?” asked Sakura in disbelief
“Sakura?” asked Naruto in equal shock
“Naruto!” yelled Sakura happily glad to finally see one of her teammates again
“Sakura!” yelled Naruto happy to finally see Sakura safe
“Hey Naruto you know this girl?” asked Toph wondering what was going on
“She’s one of my teammates! She’s the girl I told you about!” said Naruto happily as he ran over to Sakura with a huge smile
“Sakura I’m glad to see you safe!” said Naruto happily as he gave Sakura big hug
“I’m glad to see you Naruto but unless you want to die you’ll let go right now!” said Sakura in her demoness voice
She was happy to see Naruto but not that happy
Naruto quickly let go of her in fear
After Naruto let go Sakura began looking around the campsite rapidly looking for Sasuke or Kakashi hoping they would be with Naruto
She already had dreams of Sasuke grabbing her in a warm embrace and saying how much he missed her and confessing his love to her
“Hey Naruto are Kakashi and Sasuke around here?!” asked Sakura excitedly looking around as fast as she could
“Nope, I haven’t seen a trace of them since I got here. I was hoping you had seen them” said Naruto
“Ugh! Great that means I’m stuck with Naruto” said Sakura sulking with disappointment
‘It’s not fair!’ yelled inner Sakura angrily
“Hey are we invisible or something?” asked Toph loudly annoyed at not being noticed by whoever this girl was
Both Sakura and Naruto watched as Toph and Jiraya walked over to them
“So she’s one of your teammates huh?” asked Toph to Naruto as she examined Sakura through vibrations
“Yup, her name is Sakura Haruno” said Naruto happily
“Oh yes I remember her, she decked you when you tried to hug her during your training” said Jiraya remembering seeing Sakura before
He remembered her because she had reminded him of another ill-tempered woman he knew that was just as violent
Sakura looked at these two in confusion for a second
The girl looked like she might have been from this world based on the fact her clothes looked weird and appeared to be handmade
Meanwhile the old man looked like a ninja with a giant scroll on his back, a headband, and sandals
She could tell this strange old guy was from their world and he was a ninja
“Who are these two?” asked Sakura wondering who on earth they could be and how come they were with Naruto of all people
“Oh let me introduce you!” said Naruto happily walking over to Toph first
“This is…”began Naruto before Toph cut him off
“I can introduce myself ninja boy!” said Toph forcefully
‘Ninja boy?’ thought Sakura confused
“My name is Toph Bi Fong” said Toph proudly
This hit Sakura immediately
She had heard a lot about Toph from the others over the past few weeks as they traveled but this couldn’t possible be the same one
The others had all told her about how they had witnessed Toph fall to her death over the side of a huge cliff weeks ago the same day she met them
“Wait a second! Toph Bi Fong? You mean the Toph the Blind Bandit?!” asked Sakura in shock
“Yeah…how do you know my nickname?” asked Toph suspiciously
“Yeah how do you know Toph Sakura?” asked Naruto confused
“You can’t be the same Toph! Aang, Katara, and Sokka told me you were dead and that you died weeks ago the same day we arrived” said Sakura not understanding how this was possible
“You know Twinkle Toes, Sugar Queen, and the idiot Sokka?” asked Toph surprised
“Who?” asked Sakura confused at Toph’s nicknames
“Aang, Katara, and that idiot Sokka” repeated Toph
“Yes I met them the day I got here, the day they told me you died” said Sakura
“So Aang and the others think I’m dead?” asked Toph
“Yes they told me you fell off a huge kill into the canyon below. How did you survive and how do you know Naruto?” asked Sakura confused
“Well that’s easy, there was a river at the bottom of the canyon that broke her fall. She blacked out in it and floated down river. A little while after I got here I found her in a stream that the river flowed into and pulled her out half-dead. She was barely alive and I took care of her until she was better. We’ve been traveling together since” explained Naruto to Sakura
“So Naruto saved you and took care of you?” asked Sakura to Toph
“Yes, now explain to me how you know twinkle toes and the others” said Toph
“After I got here I wandered the woods for a little while until Katara ran into me while running from some Fire Nation troops. They thought I was helping her and attacked both of us so I as forced to fight them with Katara. After I met Aang and the others they told me that Toph had just died and they were on their way to Ba Sing Se to get a new earthbending teacher and get Appa back. I decided to go with them to Ba Sing Se and hopefully run into someone from my team on the way” explained Sakura
“Hold on! Twinkle Toes is getting a new teacher!!?” roared Toph angrily upon hearing this
“Well he thought you were dead” pointed out Naruto but that did little to calm Toph
“I’m going work him until he hurts in places he doesn’t know about! I’ll throw everything I got at him! How dare he get a new teacher!!!” yelled Toph in a tone that could scare the Fox
‘Boy that Avatar guy is in for hell when Toph catches up to him’ thought Naruto
“Seems like there has been a very big coincidence here with Naruto meeting with Toph and Sakura meeting with the Avatar” said Jiraya
Sakura then turned her attention to him when he said this and realized she still didn’t know this guys story
“Hey who is this guy Naruto?” asked Sakura
“Oh that’s just my pervy sage, he was training me for the final exams in our world. He accidentally got transported here about two weeks ago” explained Naruto
“Hey! Don’t call me the pervy sage! I’m am Jiraya the Toad Sage!” said Jiraya proudly
Sakura gasped when she heard this name since she had read it many times before in books on great ninja
“Did you just say Jiraya the Toad Sage!?” asked Sakura in shock
“Yes I did” said Jiraya
“Oh my God! Naruto this is who has been training you?!” asked Sakura urgently shaking Naruto violently
“Yes. Why? He’s just a perverted old man” said Naruto wondering why Sakura was making a big deal of it
“NARUTO! This guy is one of the Sanin! The three ninja of legend!” said Sakura loudly to the clueless Naruto
Naruto looked at Jiraya for a second before bursting out laughing
“Ha Ha! This old toad a Sanin!? Ha Ha! He’s just a dirty old man! Ha Ha Ha Ha!!!!” said Naruto rolling on the floor laughing
“I don’t get any respect” said Jiraya in a sulking tone as Naruto continued to laugh at him
“NARUTO!!! SHOW SOME RESPECT!!!” yelled Sakura stomping on Naruto’s face
“Ow that hurt” moaned Naruto in pain with a shoeprint on his face
“What’s she talking about? What are Sanin?” asked Toph confused
“The Sanin are supposed to be three unbeatable, insanely powerful, legendary ninja. They are considered the strongest in the entire world back home. I’ve read that all of them were very wise and skilled fighters with amazing abilities” explained Sakura seriously almost quoting most books on them
“Jiraya wise? HA HA HA HA!!!!!” said Toph busting out laughing on the ground like Naruto had
“That’s a good one! Jiraya wise! I’ve seen Naruto trick him so many times over the past two weeks it’s not funny!” said Toph still laughing on the ground a bit
“Can’t I get a pupil that doesn’t think I’m a complete idiot?” asked Jiraya sulking as Toph laughed at him
“I’m sorry for how they’re acting mister Sage sir! They just don’t realize how important you are” said Sakura in a very respectful tone to Jiraya (Foolish Sakura giving respect to Jiraya, she probably won’t think he’s so great when she finds out he writes Icha Icha Paradise)
“It’s no problem, the fact is that I never told them who I am” said Jiraya
“Wait! So you mean you actually ARE one of the Sanin?” asked Naruto surprised as Toph stopped laughing and sat up
“Yes I am one of the Sanin” said Jiraya
“So one of the super powerful Sanin is a dirty old man who does nothing but drink and go after women?” asked Naruto with a “you have got to be kidding me” tone
“NARUTO! Will you shut up already!? How could you accuse a Sanin of something like that!?” yelled Sakura as she beat him over the head
Sakura was foolish enough to believe that one of the Sanin couldn’t possibly be a pervert or an idiot and that Jiraya was some wise and powerful guy who always knew what he was doing and was very serious
Boy was she wrong!
“Will you quit hitting me?” asked Naruto in pain with a lump on his head
“So you’re actually one of those really powerful Sanin guys?” asked Toph realizing he was serious now
“Yes” said Jiraya seriously
“Well if I can be a master earthbender and Aang could be the Avatar I guess it’s possible” said Toph
“Thanks for the confidence” said Jiraya sarcastically
“Naruto how did you get a Sanin to train you!?” asked Sakura urgently to Naruto
“Well he accidentally flattened my first trainer so I demanded he train me instead” said Naruto
“This is incredible! How could Naruto get a Sanin to train him?” asked Sakura to herself
‘The Sexy Jutsu’ thought Naruto
“While this little reunion and revelations thing is fine I would like to know where Aang and the other two are” interrupted Toph wanting to get back to Aang to give him a good beating…um, “training” session
“That could be a problem” said Sakura seriously
“Why?” asked Toph
“They’ve been captured by the Fire Nation” said Sakura grimly
“WHAT!? How did that happen!?” asked Toph angrily
“Aang just sort of gave up and surrendered when he and the others got surrounded when I went to get water” explained Sakura
“HE DID WHAT?!!!! TWINKLE TOES JUST GAVE UP!!!?” roared Toph furiously
Earthbending was all about standing your ground and not giving up and that little miserable wimp just rolled over and gave up!
Toph was going to beat him to the edge of death when she got her hands on him
“He better pray the Fire Nation kills him because if I get my hands on him he’ll be put through worse stuff than death!” yelled Toph
“Well last I saw they placed him, Katara, and Sokka in cuffs and were setting up camp” said Sakura
“We have to go and get them” said Toph seriously
She couldn’t beat Aang if the Fire Nation had him
“Hey hold on! They got an army and there are only four of us! We have to think this through before we try anything!” said Sakura seriously
“That’s a good idea” said Jiraya
“Ok what do we do?” asked Toph
“We need to come up with a plan” said Naruto
“Yes but first we should do a little recon of the camp and gather Intel so we can come up with a good plan” said Jiraya
“Alright” said Naruto, Sakura, and Toph
“Can you lead us to the camp?” asked Jiraya to Sakura
“Sure” said Sakura
“Alright then let’s pack up and move out we got a mission ahead of us” said Jiraya
“Finally some action!” said Naruto happily looking forward to some excitement
Toph, Jiraya, and Naruto gathered their things from the camp and set off with Sakura to find the Fire Nation camp
Fire Nation Camp
Meanwhile back at Aang’s camp the Fire Nation troops and Azula had set up camp in a very short amount of time
Apparently being so important in the Fire Nation meant that you had a lot of people in mortal fear of you doing all your work very quickly…or else
Azula’s troops had brought in her tank/train/mobile home thing that carried all her stuff and unpacked it in amazing time
Before they knew it the Fire Nation troops had a very decent camp set up where Aang, Katara, Sokka, and Sakura’s had been earlier
It was very simple with just a few small red tents set up in rows for the troops, a few bathroom tents, and of course a royal tent for Azula, Mai, and Ty Lee
Meanwhile they had also set up a cage in one corner of the camp for Aang, Katara, and Sokka
Momo was in a smaller cage nearby screeching crazily
Aang had his staff taken away and his bending shut down by Ty Lee
Not that it mattered much since Azula knew he would never risk his friends getting hurt now with a escape plan
Katara was unbound since she couldn’t bend without water, which they denied her (even going as far as to put the bathroom tent on the other side of the camp even though Katara wouldn’t try that no matter how bad it got)
Sokka was also unbound since all his weapons had been taken away and he was just a moron so they did not consider him a threat
Even though Aang and Katara where in a bad mood and they were all seemingly doomed that hardly stopped Sokka from flirting with Ty Lee through the bars of the cage
They chatted on as Katara looked on annoyed
“So you worked for a circus before you got here?” asked Sokka obviously interested in Ty Lee
“Yes, it was my true calling” said Ty Lee with a stupid look on her face as she talked with Sokka
“Why are you here with the demon princess then?” asked Sokka
“Well Azula called a little louder and she was a childhood friend of mine so I said yes when she asked me to join her hunt” answered Ty Lee
“How can anyone be a friend to that wicked witch of the east?” asked Sokka looking at Azula who was busy yelling at some slightly imperfect soldiers to speed up with their work like she was a monster
“We went to the same school together and grew up together” explained Ty Lee
“You went to school?” asked Sokka (I think it’s pretty obvious that he never went to one)
“Yes, it was a school for elite girls within the Fire Nation” said Ty Lee
“Meet any boys there you liked?” asked Sokka trying to sound cool and smooth
“Um, Sokka she just said it was an all girls school” interrupted Katara
“Ha! Ha! Right I knew that!” said Sokka embarrassedly
Ty Lee let out a few giggles at this
“You’re pretty funny…and cute, maybe I can ask Azula if I can keep you prisoner in my room” said Ty Lee teasingly with a smile
Sokka immediately blushed before trying to act all cool and impress her
“Well a lot of girls think I’m a great, wise, warrior with an amazing amount of charm and good looks” said Sokka trying to act as cool as possible
“Yeah right” said Katara sarcastically in the corner
“Do you mind? I’m trying to impress a girl here!” whispered Sokka annoyed to his sister
“Ever kiss anyone before?” asked Ty Lee teasingly
“What?!” asked Sokka shocked
“Wana try it now?” teased Ty Lee putting her face close to the bars
Sokka got a huge smile before he too went to put his face to the bars
They were mere inches away and dreaming about what would happened when suddenly someone pulled Ty Lee away from the bars
“Hey Azula said no talking or flirting with the prisoners” said Mai as she pulled Ty Lee away from the cage
“Aww you’re no fun!” whined Ty Lee as she looked back at Sokka with disappointment
“Why does it seem that every time something good happens for me it goes horribly wrong ten seconds later?” sulked Sokka
“Quit complaining we need to find a way out of this mess, not waste our time flirting with the enemy” said Katara annoyed
“She’s not an enemy!” said Sokka defensively
“No she’s just someone who hangs around with the evilest person in the Fire Nation” said Katara sarcastically
“But she’s really nice” argued Sokka
“When she’s not fighting us” argued Katara
“Let’s just change the subject” said Sokka wanting to change topic
“How are we going get out of this? We need a plan” said Sokka seriously
“What do you think we should do?” Katara asked Aang who had been sulking in the corner the whole time his thoughts riddled with guilt and uncertainty
He had given up but it had been to save his friends so that made it okay, right?
Aang wasn’t sure anymore of just what he should do
So far his actions had lead to Appa being kidnapped, Toph being killed, and all of them being captured
It seemed anything he did or decided would lead to something else bad happening and he wasn’t about to chance that
“I don’t know” said Aang weakly
“Well that helps a lot” said Sokka sarcastically
“What do you think we should do first?” asked Katara to Sokka
“The first thing we need is a plan to escape, then we need to focus on a way to get away from this camp safely” said Sokka planning
“What should we do?” asked Katara
“I overhead some of the troops talking, Azula is letting them all go to a nearby town for supplies in a little while that’s a perfect chance to get away” said Sokka
“Won’t she keep some around as guards?” asked Katara
“No, she thinks we’re helpless and that no body is going to come save us with Toph dead and Sakura…wait were is Sakura?” asked Sokka finally realizing she was gone
“She went to the stream to get water but never came back” said Katara
“She could be our only hope to get out! When Azula’s troops leaves she can probably use some ninjay trick or jutsu to get us out! Then all we have to do is sneak by Azula and the others to escape!” said Sokka excitedly
Then would be the perfect time to escape
Also as a bonus they had heard that Azula, Mai, and Ty Lee were injured in a battle recently and that’s why she didn’t want to fight
Ty Lee had suffered some minor breaks and had gotten massive headaches from a head injury
She had even complained of a few pains while she and Sokka were talking and he had even asked her if she was alright when she winced a little in pain
Mai apparently had a deep gash in her rib cage that was bandaged but still bled from time to time
Azula had suffered a few burns, several minor injuries, and had one bang cut off by some stranger with one eye or a red eye or something
All of them were hardly in full fighting condition and might be easy to beat if they could find a way to escape and fight them
“How do we tell her the plan and we still don’t know where she is” pointed out Katara
“I hadn’t thought that far” admitted Sokka
“It’s hopeless isn’t it?” asked Aang solemnly
“Don’t worry I’m sure it’ll be fine” said Katara trying to cheer him up
Outside the Camp
Meanwhile Jiraya, Sakura, Naruto, and Toph arrived outside the camp and hid in the forest to spy on the Fire Nation
“Wow you weren’t kidding about the army part” said Naruto to Sakura as he looked at all the soldiers walking around the camp
“I can handle that many troops! Twinkle toes shouldn’t have given up and just fought them” said Toph angrily
“I think he was too scared of losing anymore friends” said Sakura
“What do you mean?” asked Toph
“Aang’s been feeling pretty guilty about you dieing, he thinks it’s all his fault” explained Sakura
“So he lost his nerve because he thought he’s responsible for me dieing?” asked Toph
“Yes” said Sakura
“Well that still doesn’t make giving up so easily right” said Toph bitterly
“There are a lot of them Toph, it may have been a good idea to give up” said Naruto
WHACK!
Toph decked Naruto right in the face plowing him into the ground
“What was that?” asked Toph innocently
“Nothing” said Naruto weakly in pain on the ground
“Let’s stop arguing and come up with a plan to save Aang and the others” said Jiraya seriously looking over the place with his telescope
“What does Aang look like anyway?” asked Naruto
Sakura grabbed Jiraya’s telescope and looked around the camp until she spotted Aang, Katara, and Sokka in a cage in the corner
“There he is” said Sakura
“Let me see” said Naruto as he took the telescope and looked at the cage too
“That’s him? He doesn’t look big or powerful, and what’s with the ponytail?” asked Naruto looking at Sokka expecting the Avatar to be a big and muscular guy
“No that’s Sokka, Aang’s the other one” said Sakura
“You mean the Avatar is a girl?!” asked Naruto surprised as he looked at Katara
“Sure is” said Toph with a smirk
“No he’s the bald one with the arrows” said Sakura
Naruto then finally looked at Aang through the telescope
“Wait you mean that little shrimp is the Avatar!? He looks about as threatening as a bunny!” said Naruto looking at Aang amazed he was the super-powerful Avatar
“He’s about as brave as one too” added Toph
“Let me see” said Jiraya taking back his telescope and looking at Aang
“Wow he hardly looks like the type to win a war” said Jiraya looking at the tiny little kid that was the Avatar
“So what’s he like?” asked Naruto
“Well he’s been really sad lately about losing Toph so I only saw him sulking and frustrated” said Sakura
“He looks to be doing plenty of sulking now” said Jiraya looking at Aang in the corner of the cage
“Hey something is going on” said Sakura pointing at the camp where all the soldiers where gathering around Azula
“Hey who’s the evil looking girl down there?” asked Jiraya looking at the magnified face of Azula through the telescope and shuttering
“Evil looking? That’s probably Azula the fire princess” said Toph
“So that’s Azula? Wow she’s uglier than Katara described her” said Sakura having heard many stories about Azula from Katara and Sokka
“Who are the other two girls with her?” asked Jiraya looking at Mai and Ty Lee
“The one in pink is Ty Lee a hand to hand specialist, the other in red is Mai a projectile specialist” explained Toph
“Wow I never thought I would meet a bad guy that wore pink” said Naruto looking at Ty Lee
“I’d be careful, Katara told me about her. She can hit pressure points to shut off bending and paralyze the body. I make a note to avoid her since the last thing I like to be is helpless” said Toph remembering how much she despised that feeling
“Sounds almost like the gentle fist style of Neji” commented Sakura knowing Neji could do the same thing
“Ha a fight with her would be perfect training for the final chuin exams for me! Let me fight her” said Naruto happily
“No a direct attack with all these troops would be too dangerous and even if we could plow through them there’s the chance that Azula could kill the others if we get too close” said Jiraya
“What do we do?” asked Naruto wondering what the plan was
“We first need to get those troops out of the equation” said Jiraya
“That might not be a problem” said Toph happily with a smirk
“What do you mean?” asked Naruto wondering what Toph could be talking about
“I can hear what Azula is telling her soldiers from here, she’s telling them that they’ll be heroes back in the Fire Nation for capturing the Avatar. She’s telling them to go to the nearby town and send the word to the Fire Nation as well as get supplies and to be back in five minutes” said Toph able to make out Azula’s orders even from their position
“She’s sending all of them? Won’t she keep so for protection and guard duty?” asked Sakura surprised that it could be that easy
“They’re staying behind to guard them personally since they don’t think that’ll be a problem. They think Aang, Katara, Sokka, and Momo are powerless, they think I’m dead, and they don’t have a clue about you guys” said Toph with a smile
“So they don’t think there’s anything capable of stopping them! They won’t know we’re coming at all!” said Sakura happily
“We’ll be able to catch them totally off guard!” said Naruto happily knowing this is just what they needed
“But five minutes isn’t a lot of time” pointed out Toph
“No problem just leave it to me, I’ll follow them and stall them at the town” offered Jiraya
“An entire army?” asked Sakura amazed he was offering to face an entire army single-handedly
“Of course! I’m a Sanin right? I can handle it” said Jiraya proudly already forming a brilliant plan
“Of course you can! How could I forget you were a Sanin? I’m sorry for doubting you” said Sakura respectfully
“No problem just don’t do it again” said Jiraya
“I won’t” said Sakura
“You think we should tell her that he’s not really that great?” asked Toph quietly to Naruto watching Sakura making a fool out of herself by respecting Jiraya
“No let’s wait for him to reveal how big a moron he really is” said Naruto
“Well I’m off, while I’ll stall the army you guys have to take out Azula and those other two and free your friends” said Jiraya as he walked away following the leaving Fire Nation army to town
The Fire Nation troops marched single-file in formation down a dirt path to the local village while Jiraya’s stalked them hidden in the trees
They also brought along the main part of the tank to hold the supplies and left Azula’s compartment back at the camp since it would just slow them down
“How do you think he’ll stall them?” asked Toph doubtful he could handle it
“He’ll find some way, he is a powerful and wise Sanin” pointed out Sakura to the annoyance of Naruto and Toph
When Jiraya and the army where gone all that was left were Naruto, Toph, and Sakura hiding, Azula, Mai, and Ty Lee doing guard duty, and Aang, Katara, Sokka, and Momo hanging in their cages
Everything was in an eerie calm and quiet so Naruto, Toph, and Sakura quieted down to whispers to avoid being heard by Azula
They didn’t want to blow the element of surprise they had
The tree of them snuck down to some bushes closer to the camp and hid behind them so they could get a closer look at what they were up against
All three evil Fire Nation girls were doing various things to help pass time while guarding
Azula was practicing her fire bending movements and would sometimes send up a ball of blue flame as she practiced
Mai just looked bored and hung around under a tree playing with her knives and complained about how boring this was
Ty Lee did some cartwheels for fun but this was just a ruse so she could go back and forth in front of the cage to see Sokka since Azula would be mad if she knew she was trying to get close to a prisoner she liked
Sokka looked on and complimented her sometimes as she did her gymnastics moves in front of the cage
Despite the seemingly relaxed mood of the scene things were tense for Naruto, Sakura, and Toph
“So what do we do guys?” asked Naruto to the girls
“Maybe you can use some genjutsu on them Sakura” suggested Naruto
“I don’t know, they might be able to see through it if they’re smart enough and Katara told me Azula isn’t easily fooled by tricks” said Sakura unsure
“Let’s just fight them! It’s 3 vs.3” said Toph forcefully
She was more than eager to get revenge for what they had done to her
“I’m not sure if we are a match for them Toph, they look pretty strong and they might try to harm Aang and the others if we get too close. We need a plan to attack and beat them quickly before they can try anything” said Sakura seriously thinking it over
How could they take down an entire Nation’s strongest and most deadly team quickly by themselves
“Let me crush them!” came an evil and angry voice
“I’m not sure that’ll be so easy Toph” said Naruto
“What? I didn’t say anything?” asked Toph confused
“That was me child” came the familiar voice of the Fox in Naruto’s head
‘What are you here for?’ asked Naruto annoyed
“I came to ask about the seal since you haven’t seen me about it yet” said the Fox
‘Now’s not a good time, I’ve got to beat these three evil fire girls and save the Avatar’ said Naruto
“So that little airbender is the Avatar huh? He looks just like him” said the Fox
‘Who?’ asked Naruto
“…Um no one, but anyway let me help you destroy them with my power!” said the Fox
‘Hey! I just want to beat them and free Aang, not kill them using Fox power!’ said Naruto
“I do, I have some issues with the Fire Nation” said the Fox
‘Just leave this to me please. We need to come up with a plan, I want to help Toph get revenge on these three…wait that’s it! I just got a brilliant plan!’ said Naruto
“What is it?” asked the Fox
‘I suggest you stick around for the show since this is going to be really cool’ said Naruto
“What are you planning?” asked the Fox
‘Well if everything works right Azula is in for a really big scare and a severe beating’ said Naruto
“Scaring isn’t as good as killing but it can be more fun when drawn out I suppose” said the Fox
Naruto turned to Sakura and Toph who where both planning out what to do
“Hey guys I go a really good plan” whispered Naruto excitedly
“Really what is it?” asked Sakura surprised since Naruto was hardly smart enough to be much of a plan guy
“They still think you’re dead right Toph?” asked Naruto
“Yeah why?” answered Toph confused
Naruto began whispering his plan into the two girls’ ears
You could see the smile break out on their faces as Naruto outlined his plan to them
“This is going to be good!” said Toph excitedly when Naruto told her his plan
“That’s brilliant Naruto!” said Sakura really surprised by how clever the plan was
“Yeah but I’m going to nee both of you to do it” said Naruto seriously
“I can handle it” said Sakura confidently
“No problem” said Toph
“Alright now let’s get into our positions and get ready to attack” said Naruto
Toph and Sakura nodded before going where they needed to
Sakura disappeared into some trees while Toph sank under the ground to get ready for a great performance
Naruto stood where he was to get ready for his part and to enjoy the show
This was going to be awesome
Inside the Fire Nation Camp
“Where are they?! They were suppose to be back after only five minutes!” yelled Azula angrily as she waited for her useless troops to return
They had been gone for seven minutes and Azula was hardly the one to forgive people under her command for failing to comply with and order even if it was next to impossible to do
“You did only give them five minutes to go to town, get supplies, and come back. That’s kinda unrealistic” pointed out Ty Lee
“I gave them a simple order and they disobeyed it! When they get back they are in deep trouble!” yelled Azula angrily ignoring Ty Lee’s reason while Mai just looked on indifferent
“Wow she looks mad” commented Katara from the cage looking on as Azula raved and rampaged
“Women are so temperamental” said Sokka watching too
“What was that?!” asked Katara offended
“Nothing!” said Sokka nervously
Aang didn’t bother to look and continued sulking in the corner thinking about Toph and Appa and how he failed them
“Hey Aang you should come watch this it’s pretty funny” said Sokka to Aang pointing at Azula
“No thanks” he said weakly turning down the offer
Azula continued on her little rampage while raving on about what she was going to do to her troops who where now 8 minutes late
Even her descriptions seemed to cause pain as she described torture so horrible that if I typed it here my computer would crash
“I wonder why they’re late?” asked Katara
“Who cares we still need a way to get out and escape and this would be the perfect time” said Sokka
“Our only hope is Sakura but we don’t know where she is” pointed out Sakura
“Maybe she’s around here” speculated Sokka “She could be using her ninja powers to be hiding in plain sight. Quick look for any moving rocks or people hiding bushes!”
“What are you talking about?” asked Katara annoyed at her brother’s stupid ideas
“She must have some illusion or something up to keep us from seeing her, we need to contact her somehow” said Sokka looking around suspiciously
“Or she could just not be here” pointed out Katara
“She probably abandoned us because she didn’t want to get killed or captured like us” said Aang in a depressed tone
“Don’t say that Aang” said Katara compassionately coming over to Aang and sitting by him
“It’s true! I’ve just lead us into disasters again and again and lost two friends because of it! I won’t lose anymore” said Aang sadly
“Aang it wasn’t your fault. We got some good info from the library that could win the war and we can get Appa back when we get to Ba Sing Se” said Katara
“But Toph is dead because of me and we can’t get her back. I should have just took that fire blast and let her live” said Aang sadly seeing that moment again when Toph fell
“You didn’t mean for it to happen and it was all Azula’s fault not yours. The world still needs you to live and end this war so that the Fire Nation can’t hurt anyone else. But we can’t do that from this cage so we have to escape” said Katara
“I guess…” said Aang in a distant tone
“Oh Aang…” began Katara but she was cut off by the ground suddenly shaking violently beneath them
They all started panicking as the ground shook from side to side rapidly all over the camp with enough force to bring down several tents
Momo’s small cage jumped up and down upon the shacking earth him screeching inside
Outside Ty Lee lost balance and fell to the ground while Mai and Azula struggled for balance
“An earthquake!” shouted Sokka as he held onto the bars of the cage to stay up
“Everyone hold onto something!” shouted Katara urgently as she hold onto the bars with Aang
Mai and Azula held onto the support poles for a tent while Ty Lee struggled to get back to her feet and stand
Just as suddenly as shaking started it suddenly stopped and everything calmed down in the camp
“Is it over?” asked Ty Lee
“I think so” said Sokka
“That was a short earthquake” said Katara surprised
“I don’t think that was an earthquake” said Azula suspiciously looking around
“What do you mean?” asked Ty Lee
Suddenly a pillar of rock came blasting out of the ground at Azula’s feet and nearly hit her right in the face
She barely was able lean backwards to avoid the direct hit to the face and she actually got a scrape on her chin from it
Azula, Mai, and Ty Lee got into positions and got into fighting stances while looking around seriously
“A earthbender! We’re under attack!” said Azula seriously
“Where are they?” asked Ty Lee trying to spot any green robes that were a sure sign of Earthbenders
After she said this a figure slowly rose out of the ground in front of them
It was small with it’s backed arched, it’s arms hanging limply at it’s sides and it’s head drooping down so the face couldn’t be seen
“There you are!” shouted Azula fiercely to this unknown person
It just stood there not saying a word and not moving
Azula noticed something about this person
They looked very familiar with their hair in a bun, bare feet, and two weird puffball things on the side of their head
Azula gasped in fear when she realized who it was
“Impossible!” she yelled at it actually looking scared and backing away slowly
“Who is it?” asked Ty Lee confused and shocked to see Azula scared
“No way!” said Sokka also realizing who it was
It was deceased Toph standing before them
The only thing was that she looked like a zombie with dark green skin, tattered and dirty clothes, an evil look on her face, bad scratches and cuts all over her body, and several bloody holes in both her legs
“It can’t be!” yelled Mai actually scared backing away
“It’s Toph” said Katara stunned looking at this undead Toph
“Azuuuulllaaaa!” moaned the Toph zombie
“It’s not possible! I killed you!” yelled Azula in fear
“I’ve come back from the grave for revenge” moaned the zombie slowly
“Oh hey it’s that girl you killed Azula! Except you know, all zombiefied” said Ty Lee in a upbeat clueless tone finally recognizing Toph
“Toph?” asked Aang in shock from the cage
“I’ll deal with you later twinkle toes!” yelled the zombie
“This just can’t be happening! People can’t rise from the dead! This can’t be real!” yelled Azula fearfully backing away from the zombie
“Trust me this is real” said the Toph zombie
“This has to be some kind of nightmare or something!” said Ty Lee fearfully
All the girls were terrified (The unemotional Mai was even shocked a little) since they knew they could handle anything living but they didn’t know if they could handle the living dead or spirits
“Your nightmare is only beginning” said the zombie with a smirk
At least fifty other Toph zombies suddenly rose out of the ground all around them surrounding the three girls
They randomly moaned and groaned as they crept out of the ground all facing Azula, Mai, and Ty Lee
“Prepare to face my wrath” they all said at the same time
“Wow Toph is much scarier dead than alive” said Sokka
“How can there be more than one of her?” asked Katara
“Zombie powers duh!” said Sokka
“There’s no such thing!” said Katara
“Yes there is, all spirits and mystical stuff have weird freaky powers! Just like Aang” said Sokka
“How do you know?” asked Katara doubtfully
“I’ve heard a lot of ghost stories” said Sokka
“You’re an idiot” said Katara plainly
Meanwhile Azula, Mai, and Ty Lee where trying to figure out what to do with an army of undead Tophs surrounding them
“Ahh they’re going to steal our souls!” yelled Ty Lee scared
“No, zombies eat brains not steal souls” said Mai
“This has got to be a trick or illusion or something” said Azula fiercely thinking that was the only explanation
She sent a fire blast at a zombie to see what would happen to it
The fire blast hit a zombie but when the flames cleared the zombie was totally unscratched and just gave her a smirk
“I can’t hit it!” yelled Azula
“I’ll try” said Mai grabbing some knives from under her robes and throwing them at the same zombie
They just passed right through like the zombie like it was a ghost and landed in the grass behind it
“No good! We can’t touch them!” said Mai frustrated
“Ok it’s my turn now!” yelled three zombies as they got into earthbending stances
They all slammed their feet into the ground and sent three pillars of rock right at Azula, Mai, and Ty Lee
All three girls were hit right in the face by the pillars and sent flying backwards onto the ground
“Hit you that time” said all the zombie Tophs
They skidded along the ground kicking up a dust trail for a few feet before stopping and sliding to a halt
“Ow” moaned Ty Lee
Her hit to the head during the fight with Sasuke had given her massive headaches recently at even little things so she was in serious pain after a direct blow to the face again
“That’s not fair, we can’t hit them but they can hit us” said Mai painfully as she and Azula slowly got back to their feet
Ty Lee was down for the count though after that direct hit and she stayed on the ground clutching her pounding head
“Are you ok?!” asked Sokka concerned as he saw Ty Lee on the ground
“She’s a bad guy remember?” pointed out Katara again
“Hey undead Tophs! Go easy will you!?” yelled   indicates the next chapter needs to be written. |
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