"What's wrong?" Sakura asked Naruto. He responded, "I don't know, it feels like something is wrong…" Sakura thought silently to herself, "He hasn't caught on that Sasuke has been following us, he's too distracted with thinking about the leaf village." Sakura then said out loud, "Naruto, Tsunade knows what she's doing, she'll protect the village." Naruto grimaced and said, "I really hope so, if something happened to her or you…I don't know if I…" Sakura walked over to him and said, "It's okay, and I know how you feel." Naruto looked up at her, "Do you?" Sakura looked at the look on Naruto's face, it was racked with…anger and venom. Sakura stepped back and said, "Naruto, what's going on-"Naruto shook his head and feebly grinned, "I'm just…strung out okay? I just want to get these people somewhere safe." Sakura breathed out and could only stare at the floor. "He wants to protect these people so badly he's hurting himself on the inside. I hope he can handle, he's not used to something like this; none of us are." Sakura had to cut her time of reflecting short when people from the main group hailed them saying that their short travel break was over.
"Come on, Sakura, we have a job to do." Sakura nodded and followed Naruto back to the group they were tasked to protect.
Back in the Hidden Leaf Village, things were going from bad to worse. The zombies had destroyed the barrier sectioning off a massive section of the village and the zombies that were locked inside were released.
The leftover ninjas were fighting with everything they had, every zombie they had killed, 2 ninjas had been turned…turned to follow the Gospel.
"BACK OFF!" Tsunade had smashed several zombies into mush with her monster strength. "Choza! How are doing!" Tsunade yelled. Choza yelled back, "We've been able to suppress them for a short time but more and more keep appearing!" Just then Inoichi Yamanaka had appeared, "Hokage!" Tsunade yelled back, "Inoichi, what do you have to report!" Inoichi replied, "Lady Hokage, things are much worse than we originally thought, look…" Inoichi handed her a headband, but it wasn't from the Leaf Village. Tsunade then said, "These aren't Konoha tags…oh my…this isn't just in Konoha…it's…everywhere!" Inoichi spit up and fell forward to his knees, revealing a large bite mark on his shoulders. "I'm sorry Lady Hokage…I had to get the information to you…if it was my last duty…." Tsunade dispatched another ninja zombie and walked over to Inoichi and knelt to him, "Thank you…Inoichi for everything you did. Your sacrifice will never be forgotten." A tear fell from Inoichi's face, "Tell her I love her." Tsunade nodded and said, "I promise."
With a wet squirt, Tsunade impaled Inoichi's head on a katana, killing him instantly. "Choza! How are our numbers!" Choza replied, "We're working with less than 60 ninjas, all chunin and lower, including civilians."
There was a massive explosion that killed dozens of ninjas, their entrails decorated the battlefield that was known as Konoha.
"What the fuck was that?" Tsunade ran towards the source of the explosion. The sight before was almost unbelievable. Choji Akimichi had been turned and was feeding on the poor people he had just blown to hell. Choza turned around the corner and stopped dead in his tracks, "No….no please…not my son…" Choji turned around and slurped another piece flesh and smiled, flashing his sharp disfigured teeth, "Poppa! How nice to see you! I was wondering where you were…I was going to hold a…dinner party, and I'd love to invite you." Choji walked towards his father. Tsunade stepped back slowly, "Choza, we have to run!" Choza started tearing, "How could I run from my beautiful boy…?" Tsunade grabbed his shoulder and yelled in his ear, "CHOZA! THAT'S NOT CHOJI ANYMORE, THAT'S NOT YOUR BOY!" Choza nodded, "What are you talking about," Choza walked towards Choji, "He's my beautiful boy, and I love him…" Choji sunk his massive teeth into his shoulder; Choza let out a guttural scream and fell to his knees. Choji tore off his arm from his socket using his teeth and starting gnawing on it.
"Choza…." Sai appeared to Tsunade. "Lady Hokage we have to retreat!" Tsunade turned to him, "Sai…" Choza rose from his knees, he'd been turned, he'd become some perverse monster, feral, and hungry. Tsunade turned and took off with Sai. "Sai, what's left?" Sai replied, "We have a handful of ninjas holed up in a reinforced warehouse." Tsunade replied, "Any of them civilians?" Sai nodded and said, "They got every person that couldn't defend themselves first, wanted the appetizer course it seems…" Tsunade then said, "Watch it; you'll start talking like them if you start thinking that way." Sai grimaced and said, "Lady Tsunade, what is this strange emotion I feel? I've never felt this before…" They snuck into the warehouse, while dodging the patrols of flesh eaters roaming the streets. Tsunade replied upon entering the warehouse, "What you're feeling Sai, is what everyone left is feeling: Fear." Sai nodded questioningly, "I'm…afraid…? This is what fear feels like…I'm afraid…So very afraid…" Sai started shaking. Tsunade held him down and he calmed down, "Sai, I need you to keep calm. We need you." Sai nodded affirming.
"Lady Tsunade, what are your orders?" Tsunade turned around, "Yamato….Tenzo, how many of us are left?" He nodded and said, "If I die today, I want to die as Tenzo, not some façade". Tsunade smiled and nodded, "Okay Tenzo, how many of us are left?" Tenzo nodded and lead her into a backroom that was locked from the inside. Tenzo knocked on the door, and they were let in. "As you can see, there's only 8 of us left. There's only Sai and myself that are rank above Genin." Tsunade chuckled to herself, "It figures we're left to be saved by a bunch of Genin, Naruto, if you were here to see this would you smile?" Tsunade looked over the Genin, they were all injured, none had been infected but they were in bad shape, not only did they have to fight high level Jonin; they were also trying to eat them. Tsunade then asked, "How many you can still fight?" They all raised their hands, "Ok, how many people WANT to fight?" None of them even moved. "I figured that would be the consensus."
Sai then said to Tsunade, "Lady Hokage-"Tsunade interrupted him, "Sai, dispense with the honorifics, this is no place for them." Sai nodded and said, "Tsunade they're…afraid, they don't want to fight anymore." Tsunade looked despondently at them, "All of you, there's no measure of gratitude I can give to you, and you guys are the strongest shinobi I've ever laid eyes on. I truly wish I'd be around long enough to see you guys mature and become real shinobi. "They all looked up to her, she was crying. She knelt down her knees and started embracing them. Sai and Tenzo could only look at the show of affection that Tsunade would rarely show. She stood up and walked over to Tenzo and Sai. "You guys, the things you've done, the missions I've assigned to you…" Tenzo then said, "It was the utmost honor doing the things we did for you…Tsunade." Sai nodded in agreement, "You're our hokage, and we'd do anything for you." Tsunade smiled and replied, "And I'd do anything for you and for them, she gestured to the Genin.
Tenzo then said, "What are going to do, you're planning something…." Tsunade then said, "You always were a smart one…" She lowered her voice, "There's a cove underneath the village, only the village elders and myself know its location, and they killed themselves shortly after this whole mess started. Here".
Tsunade handed over a small scroll, "That is its location. Use your earth style and tunnel out of here and take refuge there. There are enough supplies there to last an army 30 years, and considering its seven people, you guys will be just fine." Sai then said, "Tsunade, you're coming with us right? Right?" Tsunade nodded, "Not this time, someone has to cover up your tracks, if they found you guys, everything I'm about to do will be for nothing, and I'd rather that not be the case." Tsunade walked over to the door, "Get digging Tenzo, that's a direct order…" she turned to the whole group, "Live. That's my final order, don't you dare disobey me or I'm going to be pissed." She walked out the door and closed it behind her. Sai then said, "I can't…I can't let her do this!" He ran for the door and tried to open but she had jammed it, "Sai, my final order was to LIVE, don't disappoint me." She said through the door. Sai then heard steps walking away, growing fainter until they were gone.
Sai collapsed to the floor. "I can't believe it, my emotions, they've come back…I…can't stop…crying…" Tenzo knelt down behind him and said, "Sai, you have to keep it together." Sai turned his head, fear was apparent in his eyes. "Come on Sai, let's get to work."
"Ok."
The zombified Shizune roamed the street searching for something to eat, "Did you find anything, Kurenai?" Kurenai appeared from the shadows, she had been long turned now, and she was gnawing on a small bone. "Where'd you get that? You aren't sharing." Kurenai spit out the bone on the floor, "That WAS my son, I was saving him for last; I figured he'd be the most delicious, just like I wonder how Asuma would taste." Tears started flowing from Kurenai's bleached white eyes, "It seems whatever human part of you that is left is crying." Shizune mused. Kurenai replied with a sick cackle, "Like there's anything human about any of us left! I only regret not getting to eat Asuma and the brat!" Shizune started cackling sickly as well.
Shizune stopped laughing, "Hey, what's that sound?" Kurenai said, "I don't-"
Kurenai's head exploded into a fine mist. Shizune tried to signal for help she turned have her head punched off her shoulders by Tsunade. "Come on now, that's no fair!" Shizune said as her head rolled. Tsunade stopped it with a stick and said, "Shizune, I'm sorry I wasn't there to protect you." Shizune started laughing sickly, "Protect me! This is the best thing that's ever happened to me! I don't have to be afraid of anything anymore, I am forever and so are my comrades, who will be here soon!" Tsunade nodded and said, "Well you won't be around when they get here, so that little satisfaction will be denied to you." Tsunade crushed her head with a hard stomp.
"Well that wasn't very nice was it?" Tsunade turned around and saw them. Kiba, Choji, and the other members of their graduating class. They had been turned and they were hungry. Tsunade then said, "I feel sorry for all of you. It was my duty to protect you and you were changed into these monsters." Kiba replied, "Why should you? We've transcended the human condition. All there is the word of the gospel and we shall spread it wide and all those that don't submit will be silenced." Tsunade chuckled and said, "That was good, did you rehearse that?" Kiba grimaced and said, "You know I always liked your sense of humor, Tsunade, so did Akamaru, shame he isn't here, he tasted great though."
"Now Kiba, we must show our hokage proper respect." Tsunade's eyes widened in surprise. Ino walked towards her, she had been changed. "Come on, Tsunade, the power is amazing, knowing that time will never hurt you, stay young forever, who could say no to that?" Tsunade nodded and said, "Ino…I have something to tell you." Ino tilted her head and said, "What would that be?" Tsunade said, "Your father wanted to say that he loves you." Ino smiled and said, "Oh really well-"A razor wire had wrapped around her head, chakra had channeled through it and her head exploded.
Kiba had said "Well then it seems we have your answer, shame, we really wanted you to be one of us."
Tsunade threw a kunai at Kiba, it sunk into his chest, "Huh?" There was a string of explosive tags attached to it and it exploded. Tsunade slipped away in the smoke from the explosion and ran down a alleyway.
The zombies were angry now, angry and hungry. "Find her!" they all screamed. They scoured the area looking for Tsunade, the winner of that particular contest would get to eat her breast, or that's what they were musing, it seemed they still had their senses of humor, as twisted as they were.
Several zombies walked down the alleyway Tsunade was hiding in, she appeared behind what was left of Might Guy and tore his midsection from his legs and sent two super powered fists through the skulls of the other 2 zombies. Might Guy was crawling toward Tsunade. "You know you can't win!" Tsunade replied, "Nobody knows the future. I'm sorry, I know the things you did you did because you couldn't control yourself. Allow me to help you." Tsunade crushed his skull.
"GAAHH!"
Tsunade looked down, there was a long katana through her side, she fell down to her knees, and "I got her! HAHAHAHA!" resonated through her ringing ears. She turned around and Tenten or the sweet young girl that used to be Tenten had her hooked on a katana by a chain. Tsunade broke the blade off inside her and threw with such force Tenten's head was split down the middle leaving the 2 halves of her head hanging off her shoulders. Tsunade jumped through a nearby window to escape before the other zombies showed up. Tsunade hid under the view of the window. She could hear them talking. "She's gotten Guy and Tenten and the other 2 guys from the Sand village. What do we do?" A zombie's sickening tongue tasted Tsunade's blood on the blade. "Well its simple…we're going to find her, and everyone gets a nice big mouthful out of her. I hope nobody has a problem with that…" The zombies all chuckled, "It's a good thing you know all about the secret hideouts in the village…Kakashi." The zombie Kakashi turned around, his mouth torn through his mask, his Sharingan eye glaring in the sunlight, "Now, let's go find…a bite to eat."