When Monsters collide

Sen's POV

Our entire squad was in a dilemma. We were stuck in a situation that could erupt into a full-blown war if even one wrong party made a move. We were on Taki's border. Children were being kidnapped from gods-know-which villages, the Root was hiding inside this "syndicate," a Jinchūriki was casually strolling straight toward our location, and an ancient bounty hunter was tailing them like death itself.

We were a spy unit. Only two of us had true war experience. I could fight if I had to-sure-but a Jinchūriki was always a wildcard. If the Jinchūriki snapped and unleashed their bijū mid-conflict... the beast could destroy everything in its path. It wouldn't differentiate between Root, us, the syndicate, or Taki's territory. It would just flatten everything.

"The Jinchūriki is about few kilometers away," Taichu whispered, eyes narrowed. "Looks like they're taking their sweet time walking. That means they're probably just passing through. If we stay hidden and don't interfere, there's a chance they'll walk past this whole area."

He paused, face grim.

"But we can't sit still and pray for that outcome."

We all understood exactly what he meant. The tension tightened around us like a noose.

Taichu turned to Beetle. "Beetle-send your best kikaichū swarm into the cave. Fox, send your ants with them. Poison every hostile shinobi at full capacity. Paralyze them-don't give them a single chance."

His voice was calm, but sharp enough to cut stone.

"We were going to wait, but we can't leave the children to their fate."

A cold determination settled over the team.

"Team," Taichu continued, lowering his voice even further, "be ready. We go in, grab the children, and regroup here. Keep yourselves hidden under the heavy genjutsu seals Fox shared. No direct fighting. Leave the paralyzed shinobi untouched-except Root operatives. We'll bring them back in case backup isn't here in time. "

He exhaled quietly.

"We do all of this before the Jinchūriki arrives."

"Hai, Taichu," we all answered softly.

Without another word, we moved. Silent. Focused. Deadly.

The kikaichū swarmed ahead, my ants fanning out like shadows across the ground. And together, we slipped out of camp, disappearing into the forest toward the cave.

The countdown had begun.

The mission was unfolding exactly the way we planned. Only two Root shinobi were inside the cavern; the rest had gone somewhere-maybe scouting, maybe transporting more victims. Beetle's kikaichū swarmed the entrance with silent precision, paralyzing the guards before they even realized something was wrong.

Once the way was clear, we slipped inside. I carefully checked the fūin traps along the passageway, chakra kept low and steady. All of us were hidden under Fox's layered genjutsu seals. At the open corridor, we split into two teams.

Raven and I went left.Taichu and Dove took the right.Beetle stayed behind to guard our exit.

The deeper we went, the heavier the air felt-thick with dampness, fear, and the faint metallic tang of blood. The enemies laying in the shadows were already unconscious, their limbs lax from the poison.

Shisui and I entered the children's cell.

Their condition hit me like a kunai to the gut.

four children-none older than ten-starving, trembling, eyes wide with exhaustion and fear...but still conscious. Still fighting to stay awake. Still hoping.

We didn't have time to waste.

I knelt beside the nearest one and channeled a controlled pulse of healing chakra into his small frame. His eyes widened at the warmth.

"Hey," I whispered softly, keeping my voice steady for him. "We're here to get you out. Stay quiet and follow us, alright?"

He looked one breath away from crying, but he nodded quickly.

One by one, we guided them out.Shisui kept them moving.I stayed close, scanning every corner.

We regrouped with Beetle, who stood calm and poised, a stark contrast to the chaos around us. He nodded at us.

"Taichu and Dove already moved three kids to the camp," he reported quietly. "

Then we headed toward the entrance again. I scanned the cavern once more-no more traps, no more prisoners. Good. The backup squad would retrieve the remaining paralyzed rogues once they arrived.

We were just reaching the open corridor entrance when I sensed them-sudden, sharp, trained chakra signatures dropping from above.

They landed in a circle around us.

We all shifted instantly into defensive positions.

"Konohagakure," one of them said calmly.

Beetle stepped forward without hesitation, shielding all of us.

"Suna," he replied.

The leader tilted his head slightly. "Looks like you beat us to the rescue. We've been tailing this trafficking syndicate for months-they led us straight here."

Suna and Konoha relations had been improving since the peace delegation. Even so, this was a dangerous intersection of missions.

"We rescued the children," Beetle said evenly. "But there's another situation. All the rogues inside are paralyzed and unconscious in their cells."

"I sensed them," the masked leader replied. He gestured to his men to go retrieve the criminals. "I'll accompany your unit to your camp."

Which meant he already knew the rest of our team was nearby, but couldn't pinpoint them.

We moved out, Konoha and Suna side-by-side, the children tucked between us. The remaining Suna-nin headed into the cavern to secure the captured rogues.

We reached our base just as Taichu stepped forward to greet the leader.

"Sasori of the Red Sand," Taichu said respectfully.

My heart lurched.

Sasori?

This was that Sasori?

I couldn't sense even a flicker of chakra from him. It didn't match the appearance of the man who once visited Konoha. Then I remembered-he was a puppeteer with an arsenal of bodies. Who knew which one he was using right now?

All I could do was stand there, silent and alert, trying to piece together the danger we had just stepped into.

Taichu immediately took command of the situation, stepping forward to speak with Sasori.

A one-man army, I thought, watching the silent formation behind him.

The kid standing next to me suddenly lurched forward when he heard Sasori's name.

"Sasori-niisan!" he cried and ran straight into his arms.

Sasori didn't hesitate-he hugged him tightly, then lifted him in a smooth, protective motion.

"Hey... Kankurō," he murmured, voice surprisingly gentle. "I'm sorry we took so long. But you're safe now."

So this boy was Gaara's older brother.

While Sasori soothed him, Taichu and he began exchanging details. I moved among the remaining children, checking their vitals and chakra systems as quickly as I could.

Without warning, Sasori looked up at us.

"Just so you know-there's a jinchūriki heading this way."

"We're aware," Taichu replied calmly. "He's being tailed by Kakuzu-S-rank, extremely dangerous."

From Sasori's slight shift in expression, he knew that too.

He exhaled once, then said, "We'll take two of our children-Kankurō and the one your medic is tending to. Both were kidnapped about a month ago. And the rogues my squad captured will also come with us."

This was a problem.We needed those syndicate operatives too-especially with Root involved. Luckily, we already had one Root operative secured.

Taichu didn't budge. "We'll take half of the syndicate members," he said smoothly. "We're the ones who neutralized them. Even if you hadn't arrived, we would've secured them."

Sasori's face tightened-annoyance, barely masked.The children were now awake, healed as much as time allowed, huddled close together. The other Suna child rushed straight to Kankurō's side, standing behind Sasori protectively. The remaining five stayed clustered around us.

Sasori opened his mouth to argue-and then the world cracked.

A roar ripped through the forest, so deep it vibrated in my bones. A wave of killing intent followed, suffocating, primal, unlike anything I had ever felt.

My knees nearly buckled.Everyone froze.

That wasn't just any chakra.That was a bijū unleashed.

And it was coming straight toward us.

In an instant, Sasori's puppets snapped into motion-strings flashing as each puppet grabbed a child and sprinted south with terrifying coordination. No hesitation. No wasted movement.

We all understood the message clearly:Get the children away. Prepare for the monster.

"We have to contain the jinchūriki-and Kakuzu," Taichu said, voice loud and steady.

"Jōnin, follow my lead!" Sasori commanded his men. "Do not get in the bijū's path!"

Sasori met Taichu's eyes, tension sharp between them. "We'll need to fight him together."

Taichu nodded once, decisive."Prepare for combat. Everyone, positions!". And just like that, the battlefield shifted-from negotiations to survival.

Both sides-Suna and Konoha-stood shoulder to shoulder as the battlefield trembled.The bijū was in full destructive rampage, its chakra flaring wildly while Kakuzu danced around it, provoking and prodding. Fortunately, he was still fighting in one body. If he unleashed the other four... none of us would have the upper hand.

"Bijū can only be contained with a seal or a powerful genjutsu," Taichu said grimly.Then he turned to Shisui."Raven-can you subdue it with your genjutsu?"

Shisui blinked, visibly taken aback. He had never faced a bijū before. But his voice came out steady, almost too calm.

"I'll try my best, Taichu."

It was strange-he sounded nothing like the warm, cheerful Shisui I knew.

Taichu raised his voice. "Sasori! Can you distract the bijū with your puppets while my operative gets into position?"

"Yes," Sasori replied sharply. "But what about that maniac Kakuzu?"

"I'll handle him," I said before Taichu could answer."I'll need Dove's support."

"Fine. Kunoichis." Sasori commanded.

Dove and I launched forward immediately.Behind us, we could already hear the clash of puppets, steel, and the thunderous roar of the bijū. The killing intent rolling across the forest was so heavy it felt like drowning. There was no doubt neighboring villages would sense this.

We landed in front of Kakuzu.He halted, staring at us with eyes that felt ancient.

"Who are you idiots?" he hissed, voice rough and dangerous.

Dove and I exchanged a brief look.Our goal was simple-kill Kakuzu before he could deploy his elemental hearts. If he unleashed those chakra beasts, we'd lose our small advantage.

"You're a threat to every village," Dove snapped, stepping forward to keep his attention on her. "And you'll die here today."

That was the distraction.

I acted exactly as I did when Root captured Satsuki.A burst of medical chakra pulse shot from my hand-fast, sharp, and targeted.

Kakuzu jerked violently, body seizing for a split second.

Those two seconds were all we needed.

Dove blurred behind him and slammed her chakra-empowered fists into his back-once, twice, thrice, four times-each strike shattering one of the hearts stored inside his stitched body.

Kakuzu staggered backward, shocked, unprepared for the precision of our attack.

I surged forward and sent a stream of chakra through Dove's chakra thread as she slapped the sealing tag onto his exposed back mid-strike.

He hadn't even understood what was happening.

His body went rigid.

Then he collapsed-lifeless, silent, defeated before he could react.

Our plan had worked flawlessly.

Kakuzu never even had the chance to scream.

I hurriedly sealed Kakuzu's body and pressed the scroll into the storage seal on my left armband seal. No risks. Not with him.

"Damn it... can we get a break for once?" I muttered-but the answer arrived immediately.

"Shinobi incoming!" I shouted to Dove. "Fast-coming from the Iwa side!"

Of course.Because why wouldn't the universe try to kill us today?

Suna and Konoha could tolerate each other. But Iwa?

Iwa despised Konoha with every breath they took-thanks to Yondaime Minato Namikaze, who had wiped out a thousand of their shinobi in a single night during the Third War and forced their humiliating retreat. They never forgot. They never forgave.

And now here we were.

Suna and Konoha standing together.About to seal Iwa's loose bijū.With Kakuzu's corpse in my arm seal.And Iwa forces sprinting straight toward us.

This was the worst possible combination.

"Shit," Dove whispered. "They won't even let us explain."

I set my stance, activating every seal I had.

"Fox," Dove shouted "Be ready."

Junpei's POV

Team Ro and Ko were ordered to act as backup for a team that had gone on a spying mission near the Kusa-Taki borders. Unfortunately, that group had tracked the syndicate inside Taki. With Root involved this close to multiple borders, it was practically begging for an international incident.

For now, we were just the backup- and the team we were backing up was sitting out, trying to avoid a full-scale fight.But for how long?No one knew. I only hoped we'd reach before things exploded.

We were running at top speed when we finally arrived.

And what we saw was far beyond what any of us imagined.

Suna and Konoha shinobi struggling to subdue the Five-Tails.Iwa shinobi fighting Suna puppet troops that could only belong to Sasori.It was a battlefield stitched together from nightmares and political disasters.

I could spot only three Konoha shinobi actively in the fight-Shisui, the one called Raven; his captain, Deer; and another teammate, Beetle.

Before we could even step in, Shisui finally forced the bijuu into a Sharingan-induced genjutsu-the best possible way to subdue a jinchuriki or the beast itself.

The bijuu recoiled, calmed, and was forced back into its unconscious jinchuriki.

Team Ro stood between the Iwa shinobi and the others. The battlefield froze in place.No one dared move.

"Jinchuriki is unconscious," Shisui-Raven-said, stepping aside.

"Good job, Raven," his captain, Deer, sighed.

For now, the worst was over.

"Konoha dogs! You will pay for what you just did!" an Iwa jōnin shouted from behind his troops. Team Ro stood firmly in front of them, ready to counter.

"Konoha did nothing," Deer snapped, his killing intent silencing half the field. "We were here for another mission when your rogue jinchuriki came jogging right into us."

The Iwa shinobi didn't like the answer, but they had no rebuttal.

"Deer," I said as I approached him, "we were your backup, but it looks like you guys beat us to the fight."

Team Deer looked exhausted.

Deer gave a tight nod. "The mission turned sideways after we sent the message to Konoha. Now we have Iwa shinobi ready to jump us."

"I'm taking over the mission," I told him calmly. "You and your team take a breather.Where are the rest of your people?"

"Dove and Fox went after Kakazu," he said, scanning the area-and realizing they were nowhere to be seen.

"Oh, those bitches?" the Iwa jōnin laughed mockingly. "My men would've killed them by now."

There were eight Iwa shinobi here, all of varying chakra levels.We could wipe them out if we had to-but that would only escalate things further.And we were standing on Taki land, barely a few kilometers from the Fire border.

"If you throw another jab," I said coldly, "none of you will see the light of day tomorrow. Don't make me repeat myself."

"Hound," I ordered Kakashi without turning, "track down the remaining Deer teammates."

He summoned his ninken, and the dogs immediately began sniffing out their trail.Kakashi and Obito followed Pakun into the trees.

"Who is your lead?" I asked the Iwa squad, keeping my voice steady.

"That would be me," the jonin snapped, fury rolling off him in waves.

"We don't want any fighting," I said calmly. "Konoha was on another mission when we encountered your jinchūriki-along with another S-rank missing-nin, Kakuzu."

That made them pause.

"We were tracking that S-rank too," the jonin growled. "He caused chaos in our village before fleeing."

"Konoha has no interest in your jinchūriki. If you don't want to believe it, that's your problem," I replied, keeping eye contact.

Just then, Kakashi and Obito returned with Dove and Fox.

"Any casualties on the Iwa side?" I asked.

"No, taichō. All four of them are temporarily paralyzed," Fox reported.

"We're retreating. Your jinchūriki is your concern," I told the Iwa captain before signaling the withdrawal. With that, all Konoha and Suna shinobi pulled back toward Fire Country.

Kawarama-Hawk-raised a mid-sized wooden shelter, large enough for all of us. Kakashi and Obito set the perimeter with the ninken; Shisui sent his crows circling overhead like a dark halo of vigilance.

Inside, we gathered in the dim warmth of the wooden walls as Deer briefed us-how the mission changed the moment they contacted Konoha, how Suna joined mid-battle, how the children were secured. How Kakazu tailed the jinchūriki, how the Iwa squad stormed in.

A spy team thrust into a running disaster... and yet they handled it. Having Shisui and Deer on the team had been a blessing for them.

"This is still an international issue," I said, shifting my gaze to Sasori. He nodded. "Suna will handle their part accordingly."

"But we must inform Kusa and Taki as well. And there will be talks with Iwa later," I added. "Nara Shikaku and Orochimaru are already en route. They'll take over diplomatic control if needed."

The rest would unfold in their hands.

An hour later, Shikaku and Orochimaru arrived-faster than expected. The division was set: Suna took half the rogues; Konoha took the Root operatives and the remaining children. A temporary measure until political discussions about the Syndicate began. This wasn't over. Not even close.

It was just the Konoha teams now, and the remaining children. We travelled slowly, carrying the little ones on our shoulders-they were far too exhausted to walk on their own.

"Kusa and Taki forces had no idea what was happening on their borders," Shikaku muttered as we moved closer to Konoha's territory.

"This only demonstrates how weak their intelligence networks truly are," Orochimaru replied, voice low and sharp.

He wasn't wrong. We had all been bracing for a diplomatic disaster. Instead, Iwa retrieved their jinchūriki and disappeared faster than expected.

"Iwa even got their jinchūriki back without a fight," Orochimaru added.

"That's why they didn't attack again," Shikaku said. "But there will still be political talks. This situation involves too many nations."

By the time we reached Konoha's gates, healers were already waiting. The children were rushed to the hospital while all teams were ordered to report to the Hokage immediately. The Root operatives we captured were secured in the underground ANBU cells.

Team Deer, Team Ro, Team Ko-along with Shikaku Nara and the Snake Sannin-we all stood before the Hokage.

First, Deer delivered his full report: how the mission shifted from A-rank to S-rank, how Root operatives entered the equation, how the Five-Tails jinchūriki and Kakuzu appeared, and how Iwa arrived mid-conflict. Then I stepped forward to give mine.

"Everything was under control until we arrived, Hokage-sama. The bijū was subdued by Raven, and Kakuzu was handled by Dove and Fox," I explained.

"That's good. What about Kakuzu's body?" Minato asked.

Operative Fox stepped forward. A sealing tattoo on her arm glowed faintly as she summoned a scroll and placed it on his desk. Only one person used those kinds of arm seals.

Sen.

"Hokage-sama, this scroll contains his body-but his extended appendages, the blade-like ones, remain dangerous," she reported.

"Orochimaru will take over the autopsy," Minato said, glancing at him. "Be aware of the nature of his body."

Orochimaru simply nodded.

"For now, take a break. Team Deer-you have a week off. Dismissed."

They left with visible relief.

"Team Ro and Ko, you may leave as well. You may be summoned again soon. We need to start diplomatic talks with the involved nations, and you'll be needed for travel."

With that, we bowed and exited the office, leaving Minato, Shikaku, and Orochimaru behind to handle the political storm that was only begin.

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Thanks for reading so far, guys!It’s been a whole year since I first uploaded this fic, and I’m really grateful for everyone who stuck with it.

On a good note, I actually started a new story recently—but had to pause it because of some health issues. I couldn’t focus on long writing sessions for a while. I have completed a few chapters for that one, and I’ll start posting them either in December or January.

As for this fic—yes, it is still continuing!Thank you for all your support so far. I know there are many mistakes here and there; English is basically my third language, so please spare my errors :PI’ll fix things slowly if I ever start rereading it.

》》》 Thanks madisonhilbach19  for guessing the wildcard entry right. I'll contact you for slice of life scene ;)

Thanks again for being here ♡

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