The Amazing Doodle Presents:
War
C. One;
"What are they, Daddy?"
--
So here the family of four sat... all warm and cozy by the fireplace. The youngest child sitting on his father's lap, while the two twins sat in front of him. The childrens' attention focused on their father, anxiously waiting for the marvelous story that they had heard many times before... never tiring from it. The mystery amazing them, the romance making them believe in true love, the mention of artificial beings and supernatural events thrilling them. They prepared themselves once more for that remarkable story to be retold.
"What are they again, Daddy?" The youngest asked.
"You should know by now, Nagoyaka!" The eldest twin somewhat scolded.
"C'mon, Kashikoi. Don't be so mean." The youngest twin said softly.
"I'm not being mean, Ryou!" Kashikoi defended.
Their father laughed. "Alright guys. Be nice. Why don't you remind him what they are then, sweetheart."
Kashikoi cleared her throat. "Artificial beings, in the best way I can comprehend them, are things that have full human capability. They can touch, feel, make goals for themselves. Since the first time you told us the story, Dad, I did a little research..."
"And?" Her father pushed.
"Well... I skimmed over some things in Uncle Kakashi's library, and from what I read artificial beings need to have a goal. Without one, they believe they have no purpose. It would be the same principle if all of you died and left me alone. I wouldn't know what to live for." She paused. "Uncle Kakashi told me himself that for an artificial being to survive in the real world, like us humans, there must be five elements present."
"What are those, sis?" Ryou asked, his voice still quiet.
"Environment, input or senses, memory or rule book, output or motor, and something like a goal meter. That's all Uncle would tell me."
"Dad," Ryou started. "Was Mom artificial?"
The raven haired man watched his son. He waited a bit before answering. "To this day, I'm not sure if he was. He was entirely human, I can tell you that. He had feelings, even if he didn't understand them. He could bleed. He had to do all of the things normal humans had to do to survive, and then some. He had a heart, just like me and you, and your brother and sister. In fact, I believe that in some ways, he was more human than all of us."
"Daddy, could you tell us the story now?" Nagoyaka asked sweetly.
Their father nodded. With a small breath he began. And while telling the tale, he tried thinking back to when he was there, the feeling bringing that welcoming warmth back to his heart.
"Long ago, before you and I were even born, there was an era of darkness in this region. Men no longer had pure, innocent hearts, but instead had black, tainted ones. The story begins with the experimentation for artificial life. Little was known about it, and the people were growing more curious about such a science.
"At first, they studied all they could, finding the information overwhelming, but couldn't help but want more. Years in the theory, they had begun their practice. The group behind the experimenting did not make their practice known, for they feared some may walk in and steal their secrets."
"Why did they want to try to make humans?" Ryou asked.
"Simple, Ryou. They wanted to play God. They wanted to feel the pride of creating new life, knowing that they had the power to control such a delicate and complicated work of science. They wanted to prove to the world that they were untouchable, that they were genuine geniuses."
Kashikoi huffed. "That's a stupid reason."
"How so?"
"Well, Father, for one, they didn't even comprehend the consequences and sacrifices of what they were doing. You'd think they'd have enough sense to know that they aren't God, no matter how much they wanted to be."
"That's just it. They were greedy. They loved the taste of sin, of the wonders science was able to show them."
"When did they first make one?" Nagoyaka asked this time.
"At first, they had no idea how to start. Creating life to them was new, and they knew little of what was needed of them to succeed. Every time they tried, they met failure. They knew that if they were going to succeed, they needed to do it quickly, for they knew that they could not keep their practice a secret forever. Someone was bound to figure them out. Most of them grew frustrated and said to hell with it, but those few that were determined enough not to quit stayed."
"How stupid of them..." Kashikoi mumbled.
The man laughed. "They didn't think they were so stupid when they had their first breakthrough."
The childrens' attention was on him fully now.
"It was during winter when they found some sort of success. Their happiness was short lived, when the test subject died within the week. They had no idea what went wrong; they were sure that they had done it right that time.
"While the other scientists mourned over the failure, one of them got to thinking about the process. The steps they took when they created that... thing, they had called it, and realized that the experiment lacked stability. There were too many forces working against the intricate design that they had studied."
"So what did that scientist do?"
"Well, Ryou, he spoke up. When he got the others to listen, he had persuaded them enough to let him tamper with the procedure a bit, and with the new modifications weeks later, they tried again. This time, the results were better.
"The subject didn't die. In fact, it didn't do anything. It was nothing more than a puppet with fake flesh. The scientist had once more began thinking what had gone wrong, and when it hit him, he tried telling the others. Unfortunately for him, the other scientists had blown him off. They believed that he was nothing more than a loon."
"Yeah. A loon that took their good results a step further. Closer to creating actual life than they had ever gotten."
"That's right, Kashikoi. But the others didn't seem to care. They had decided to ignore him, but the scientist wasn't deterred. He kept researching, finding new ways to make the procedure better, more efficient. And the next time he ran the tests, once he found out what the missing component was, he did it."
"Did it?" Nagoyaka repeated.
His father nodded. "And you know what the missing component was?" He chuckled when he saw the children shake their heads. "An actual human being. Sort of like a trade-off of life."
The children remained attentive. Their favorite part of the story was nearing, and it made them anxious in its wake.
"The others couldn't believe their eyes," he continued. "It turned out that the fool was more of a genius than they had ever comprehended. When they asked how he had done it, he said it was simple.
"All he had to do was get two identical tubes, intricately connect them, and fill them both with this strange green liquid. Then, he put the mindless subject from before into one of them, while he had some men grab an unsuspecting male off of the street and had him occupy the other. While the process took about two years to complete, the mindless doll was real enough to be human."
"'Real enough'? Dad, I thought you said that he was human."
"Don't worry, Kashikoi. I'm getting there." The other two kids laughed at their sister's outburst. "Anyway, he had begun testing the limit of the life he had created. That was when things got interesting.
"About six months into the boy's 'training', the scientist had made a shocking discovery: the being he thought he had created that 'mimicked' a real human being, was one. He bled, ran out of breath, had feelings. Upon closer inspection, he had found that the boy had actual organs. A beating heart, breathing lungs. This shocked him beyond all comprehension.
"He had wondered what had happened during the year long procedure, then he came to one conclusion: the human he had used to fused with the past failure had somehow passed its body to the doll. No trace was left of the other human, just his empty body. The doll had a personality of its own, something that had intrigued the scientist.
"He then began to notice that the boy had no real determination, and his eyes were dead. He had assumed that the boy needed some sort of goal, a reason to live, so to speak. So he gave him one.
"'Live for me, boy,' he said. 'Protect me with your very life. For if word got out that you are truly human, they would come and find me'." He paused for a bit. "So, the man took the boy under his wing and taught him the basic principles of living. He didn't treat the boy as a tool or slave, but as a son, or someone closer to him than any other before.
"On the boy's birthday, or the day he had been created, he decided to give him a name. Do you guys remember what it is?"
"Naruto!" The kids said in unison.
"Yes. The man supposed that Naruto was around 25, for he took the other human's age and physical appearance. The two grew very close, until their peaceful life was shattered. His life was threatened, and he panicked when he realized that Naruto would save him, for it was his only purpose for living. Before his death, the scientist had trapped the boy in a freeze capsule, sort like a time capsule, preserving him until he was to be released.
"Now children, this is where that real story begins. Are you ready?"
The children nodded eagerly. "The story of how Uchiha Sasuke, you, Dad, had found the frozen man, and lived happily-ever-after until Naruto passed away... or, should I say, Mom." Kashikoi stated.
Sasuke laughed. "My, my. The drama in that speech."
Ryou looked up at his father and said, "I still want to know how he had us."
"Had you?" Sasuke repeated.
Ryou nodded. "Gave birth to us, Dad. He took the other guy's body right? So that means he shouldn't have been able to--"
"I didn't say that the procedure went off without a hitch. Now be good and enjoy the story you three obviously can't get enough of."
--
As the war of a lifetime raged on, an entire land was put on the line. Its citizens did all they could to survive, hoping that soon, their efforts would pay off. The children lived on in constant fear, wondering if the chaos would ever cease. The adults, however, have given up hope... knowing that peace was far beyond there reach now...
Seidai, year 3012; Fall
"Yo, Sasuke! Get yer ass over here!"
"Don't be so loud, Kiba. I'm right here." Walking over to said man, he glanced at the officer before him, wearing a black police uniform, a mask, and an eye patch. "Who's this?"
"I am officer Hatake Kakashi of Division Four. I hear there's been some disturbance around here." The man glanced around the place.
It was an absolute dump. Literally. Since Seidai was in a time of war, it was to be suspected. Ever since the ruler had been assassinated, the region went into an uproar. Many citizens started rebellions, while most of them were killed off. The once prosperous land was trying its best to stay on its feet, fending off the strong enemy that faced them.
"What would an officer want at a refuge spot?" Sasuke asked.
"I'm just trying to help keep the peace. Seidai is in enough trouble as it is. We don't need whatever loyal inhabitants it has making fools of themselves and causing more chaos."
"We're living in a war zone, man. Chaos is all we're faced with." Kiba sighed. "You don't have any idea how hard it is comforting my daughter in the middle of the night because she thinks she's gonna be killed before dawn comes. Not to mention that my wife faces illness. I don't wanna have to lose her, too. I've lost enough people close to me."
"Kiba," Sasuke started, elbowing the man in his side, "speaking of your wife, you should see if Hinata needs anything."
Kiba nodded and ran off. Kakashi remained, though, and was staring at Sasuke intently.
"What do you want officer?" Sasuke asked coldly.
"Would you by any chance have any identification on you?"
Sasuke rolled his eyes, pulling out his card from his back pocked. He handed it over. "What would you need it for? As far as I know, I haven't done anything wrong."
"Uchiha Sasuke. Age 27, citizen of Seidai, lower class." He handed the card back to Sasuke. "Lower class, huh? Not exactly something one would expect from an Uchiha."
"I don't really care about my lineage anymore, not that it's any of your business. Is there anything else you needed?"
"Not really." Kakashi glanced at the rest of the refugees. "I think I'm just going to scout the area a bit more, just to make sure that everything is as it should be."
"Well, officer, things will never be as they should be with this war. Even you should know that." With nothing else to say, he headed toward Kiba inside the food tent, who was handing over his bowl to Hinata.
"No, K-Kiba. You need to eat, t-too." Hinata said weakly.
"Ah, I'll be okay until tomorrow. You, on the other hand, need all the nourishment you can get."
Once Sasuke had returned from the line and sat with them, Hinata's bowl was empty, along with the one she had received from Kiba. He glanced down at his own. He wasn't all too hungry, and he agreed when Kiba said Hinata needed all that she could get. He took a few bites and handed his to Hinata as well.
"I can tell that you're still hungry," he said. "I'm not that hungry tonight."
Hinata nodded and Kiba thanked him whole-heartily. Sasuke then looked up at the sky. Night was quickly on its way, and tonight would be chilly. Colder than it had been for the past few nights. He glanced over at Kiba, his seven-year-old daughter on his lap while holding Hinata's hand protectively as she ate.
At times, Sasuke would envy him. He had a family, something to come home to. And while they welcomed him as part of that family, he knew it wouldn't be the same. He wondered if there was anyone out there he could love, or at least hold on to. Though Sasuke knew that that was nearly impossible for him.
The people of Seidai once looked up to the Uchiha, until they learned that the head family had tight connections with the enemy. Since then, even though Sasuke was and always had been loyal to Seidai, most people looked at him with a hint of hate in their eyes. If he were to find love, it would never be here.
He had learned to live with that simple fact, even if Kiba had always told him otherwise. Kiba was never truly alone like Sasuke was. And with a family, he never would be.
When they all settled in for bed that night, Kiba sharing a blanket with Hinata and Sasuke sharing one with their daughter to keep her warm, Sasuke had dreamed strangely that night. In that dream, he was staring into blue, emotionless eyes. Ones that were confused and hinted with fear. Then the boy had hugged him, and before Sasuke knew it, it was day once more.
--
"Are you sure that you found something of value around his area?" Sasuke questioned Kiba, scanning their surroundings carefully.
Kiba had led them into a cave. Surprisingly it wasn't dark, like he would imagine a cave to be. The faint sound of dropping water was present, along with an eerie aura that didn't seem to bug Kiba at all.
"Yeah. I was around here yesterday, before that officer shown up. I caught a glimpse of it, and whatever it is, it's real shiny, meaning it must be something that would sell for a really good price."
"What would you possibly buy with that money if we ever find this damn thing?"
"Medicine. I was gonna ask this healer down the road if she could brew something up for Hinata, before she gets worse. I'm thinking that if we catch her illness while its not too harmful to her, then maybe we can cure what she has. I dunno."
"Kiba, the things you do for that woman." Sasuke noticed that Kiba had abruptly stopped, causing Sasuke to bump into him. "What's wrong?" He asked.
Kiba pointed off into the distance. "You see that shine over there? Were almost to it."
It took about ten minutes to maneuver through the cave, but they reach their destination. Sasuke's eyes landed on the object Kiba had pointed out, and his eyes momentarily widened.
"Do... Do you have any idea what this thing is, Kiba?" Sasuke said.
Kiba shook his head. "Nope. I just thought it was junk. Do ya think it'd sell well?"
"Sell well? This thing is a freeze capsule, Inuzuka."
"What the hell is a 'freeze capsule'?"
Sasuke slapped his forehead and sighed. "You're an idiot, Kiba. A freeze capsule preserves something so that it can be used for later purposes. Say for instance you put a... what would you put in here?"
"A live dog." Kiba said, naming the first thing that came into his mind.
"If you put a live dog in this thing, and you opened it... let's say ten years later, that dog will come out alive and kicking, almost as if ten years hadn't passed at all."
Kiba jumped in fascination. "Think of all the money, man! Hinata will be healthy in no time!"
While Kiba celebrated his good fortune, Sasuke crouched down to inspect the capsule. It was terribly old, and was almost reduced to a dark muggy color. Apparently it landed in the cave during some sort of bombing. There was no way that it belonged in here. Upon closer inspection, Sasuke noted the faint inscription that read:
'Madara, number K2, N.A.R.U.T.O., year 0012'
Year 0012? Sasuke thought. 3,000 years ago? What the hell is it doing here?
"Kiba." Sasuke said, halting Kiba's excitement. "Help me flip this thing over. Just in case something is in it."
"In it? What would be in it?"
"I don't know!" Sasuke snapped in frustration, moving to one end of the capsule. "That's what we are about to find out."
With some brute force, Sasuke and Kiba were finally able to turn the object over. Wiping the glass with is sleeve, Sasuke managed to glimpse a hand.
"… Someone's in here, Kiba," he said slowly.
Kiba's eyes widened in fear. "Someone?! Shit, dude! What the hell are we going to do?" He yelled.
"Calm down. Help me pry this thing open."
Kiba shook his head and stepped back. "No way. I'm not going near that thing!"
"Fuck, Kiba. Nevermind. I'll open the damn thing myself." Sasuke pulled at the door of the capsule, but it wouldn't budge. "I can't do this alone!"
"Fine!" Kiba yelled out of frustration and fear.
It took almost an hour of constant pulling when the the door had finally opened. A blast of below freezing air slapped them in the face as they jumped back, watching the capsule closely as it opened.
The hand Sasuke had seen earlier was slowly gripping the edge, then he saw a flash of blond hair. The man stood out of the capsule, but tripped and landed on his face due to loss of balance. Kiba stared on in shock, wondering what the hell was happening. Sasuke, on the other hand, slowly crawled over to the fallen figure.
The blond boy slowly lifted his head off of the ground, staring at Sasuke is disbelief.
"Ma... Madara?" The boy said cautiously.
"Who?" Sasuke asked. Before he knew what hit him, the mysterious boy had glomped him, shouting, "Madara!!"
Sasuke managed the push the blond boy off of him. "What the hell are you doing?!"
The boy looked at him curiously. "You're... You're not Madara?"
"No. I don't even know who that man is. I've never heard of him before!" Sasuke snapped.
"But you look like him--"
"Look, you must be severely confused. My name's Sasuke, not Madara."
"I see," the boy said blankly, eyes growing dull. "He must have thrown me in the capsule before they..." He stopped.
Kiba had finally found his voice and said, "Sasuke, man, we're totally screwed."
--
Notes: I edited this chapter a bit. Fixed grammatical errors, added/changed sentences. Nothing major.
Kiba's daughter's age has changed from three to seven.