Background song: Young and Beautiful by Lana Del Rey. Sorry for being such a girl but I kinda see the whole with-age-comes-loss-of-innocence in it along with Great Gatsby themes of course for which it was written after. Beautiful 2013 movie, extra beautiful song.
OH! So I saw Road to Ninja in theater recently and in the English dub I caught words regarding the masked man "for years" which totally RUINS my fanfic lol. Damn it Viz! Oh well.
–Shaxra15, the atrocious writer and updater XD
_-xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx-_
Chapter 7: GODFATHER-The Death of a Hero
"You never realize death until you realize love."-Katharine Butler Hathaway, The Journals and Letters of the Little Locksmith
_-xXx-_
There was only one thing capable of stopping Menma and his growing power. One single thing. And now that one thing was in his godfather's hands…His godfather. For a moment, it wouldn't register inside himself; he couldn't digest the information so Menma only gapped, completely taken for surprise. Caught by the fact that the man who held the scroll he needed was Jiraiya. His godfather!
It took the demonic fox inside him growling to rouse him back from his shock. To point out that a target was a target. But…this wasn't some faceless rogue! He thought, being swallowed up by his uncertainty again. This wasn't someone with abilities he wanted! It was the man who had been there for him ever since he was little; who helped him when he had felt too smothered by Kushina and Minato, told him stories and shared with him the legends of past heroes as numerous as the stars above.
Shocked still, Menma blinked. There had to be a mistake! Some explanation! But no. There wasn't. There was only the here and the now. The world and love and hate and fear. All of which he was feeling with one glance, just one scene sending him off the edge of being an impassive murderer.
Seeing the masked man in front of him Jiraiya quickly buried the scroll into his trademark traditional shirt and pulled out a kunai. His eyes narrowed and he smiled, his grin wide enough to nearly reach his red face marks that trailed down his skin like dry tears. "'Bout time we meet face to face."
Oh, that voice. Sent flashbacks through Menma's mind with just one sentence. One sentence and a barred kunai.
There was no denying it was his godfather, a man who would daringly bare his weapon to a dangerous S-Rank criminal for the sake of his village….A hero whose fate was to one day die with valorous honor. Who would never back down from his enemies…and right now: Menma. Was. The. Enemy.
There was a sudden consciousness of that connection forming in his mind. The idea that this path had led him to face the man who he cared for most as a wise grandfather…and that he had to get the scroll from the gallant sage, who would never willingly hand over the dark chakra's undoing so it would take death's cold embrace for Menma to wrench it from his fingers.
Death. Jiraiya dead…Two words together he could not fathom. Two he didn't want, together or not. No. There had to be another way!
'MENMA!' Kurama roared, breaking his chain of thought. 'GET THAT SCROLL!'
'I will!' he snapped, wielding his own kunai to the open. 'I swear it! I'm not letting anyone from Konoha get in my way again!'
For the first time since his journey had begun he realized how arrogant and cocky he sounded. It was as if the old man's presence, the way he pointed his kunai at him, was reprimanding his new way of thinking, looking down on it when he knew nothing of it. And it ticked the teen off.
Angered, he let the spite for the scroll overwhelm the shock and give him steeled edge. He snarled hatefully, "Give me that scroll. NOW."
The man did not drop his grin nor his kunai. If anything both were raised higher than before in a bold laugh. "You're evil ends here!" he declared. "I'm not letting you touch this!"
Moved by crimson anger Menma lunged for Jiraiya who jumped back with surprising speed for a man as old as he, his long white hair moving gracefully in the movement. But being his godson who had sparred him on more than one occasion Menma knew not to underestimate him just because he was old and his naturally whitened hair only made him look so even more.
Hissing Menma twisted around, sending his foot into Jiraiya's face with even greater speed, the dark chakra churning through his muscles ever so subtlety, not yet coiling or moving his body by itself as it did in later stages of usage. He wanted to do this himself without its majoring aid, just to prove he could.
But instead of his foot landing in what would have been a knockout blow Jiraiya's kunai sliced into his raised leg, cutting fabric, past skin and into his muscles crudely in a hot line. Jiraiya's defense and quick thinking had been admirable, and had it been anyone else but Menma they would be in a dangerous situation with such a critical wound on such an important limb, but already the fresh bleeding cut was healing itself, the muscle linking itself together and skin closing until it was if he hadn't been injured at all. Jiraiya, seeing it do so, reeled back in shock and maybe a bit in fright.
"What the hell are you?!" he exclaimed.
His face was filled with such disgust and anger. Never before had a facial expression hit Menma so hard but it had. He couldn't explain it-didn't want to ponder the reasons-but it had hurt worse than his leg, much deeper and harder than he would even admit. He, in response, let out a dark laugh, unable to do anything else but. "Jealous? I wonder if you can do the same!"
With that Menma raced towards Jiraiya his kunai flashing dangerously, aiming for his chest. The dark blade glazed across it barely, just enough to cut his shirt and to reveal the scroll, followed by the faintest trickle of blood. Cursing, Jiraiya started weaving seals and sent a giant ball of flame towards Menma in retaliation. The attack was huge, and roaring in heat that rivaled even the flames of the Uchiha clan, ready to consume him.
Smirking, the young rogue jumped out of the way with inhuman speed, nearly disappearing out of thin air only to appear behind him like a ghost. Another motion that had Jiraiya baffled as he realized just how dangerous and out of league this masked figure was. Even with his age this was like nothing he had ever encountered! Wars, and years had never involved such a deadly foe who could regenerate himself quicker than medical jutsu could, or move through air faster than Minato the Yellow Flash. There was just no comparison.
Yes, this was the power of being a Jinchuuriki with the dark arts. This was true undefeatable power! He had surpassed the old man, he told himself with pride…He could feel satisfaction radiate from the fox, encouraging him to show the man more of his gift. To show him who was the better man now.
That with each day and kill he had come farther than he had ever dreamed and everything else was baggage.
No…
Was this really what he wanted?
The question, whispered from the quietest voice, came inexplicably. Before he could answer that-or think to before the fox would force his own on him- Jiraiya quickly swiped his finger across his bleeding chest and weaved I-Inu-Tori-Saru-Hitsuji. "Summoning Jutsu!"
Immediately, a small frog had the scroll and in a poof of smoke disappeared with it to the unknown before Menma-caught in the question-could force himself to move.
Enraged and focus renewed, Menma summoned his own beast. If Jiraiya wanted to resort to that-fine! He would too. He sent his dark seahorse-like dragon flying after Jiraiya, watched in greed as the dark beast wrapped its tail around his leg and sent him to the ground with a whip of its tail. The man's head slammed into a giant tree root hard, but apparently not hard enough.
With a groan Jiraiya placed his palms to the cracked ground, shaking in pain and dripping blood, and righted himself, boldly standing to his feet once again in challenge. "It's over masked one," he croaked. "Just surrender yourself while you still can."
Eyes seething with discontent for such a foolish notion, Menma signaled for the dragon to attack again. Dizzy from his head wound Jiraiya's well honed defense did not move his body fast enough, and he took a nasty hit from the dragon again. It slammed him into a tree upright hard this time.
Summoning back the dragon Menma rushed towards Jiraiya before he could move from the trunk, his foot going for a kick, dark chakra rushing through it violently. Surrender?! There was a resounding boom and multiple crack sounds as it landed, sending Jiraiya into the thick chunk of wood further. Pinning him. "Surrender myself? Look whose talking," he hissed into the old man's ear. "You're so old you should have retired long ago."
With a cough, and new shiny crimson trails leaking from his face the man laughed. "Oh this ain't no'thin. I've had worse."
Not amused Menma yelled "Tell me where you sent the scroll, dammit!" and held a kunai to his throat. The man gave no answer and shrugged, well to the best of his abilities: a slight move of his shoulders since they were still forced into the cracked wood of the trunk. Menma screamed again, assailing him with shouts but still the man did not answer and if anything he played it off coolly. Smiling mischievously at the fact that the Masked Man was at Konoha's mercy as long as the secret location stayed with them.
Menma could feel his heart start to race, realizing this was the critical moment. Jiraiya would not give up and if he didn't find a way to make him Konoha would have the upper hand. Swallowing hard he steeled himself as the kunai started to drip crimson down the man's neck. He realized his shaking hand was starting to press a little too hard…For now.
The kunai that had killed so many so easily before…
"If you take me to the scroll, I just might let you live," Menma growled, his voice low and artificial through the mask. Low enough in pitch that even his godfather could not recognize it. Would never know it was none other than his godson holding the bloodstained blade.
"Go ahead, Konoha will still stop you," Jiraiya croaked confidently. Something about the way he had said it infuriated Menma and the beast within him. Jiraiya's faith in the weak village of Konoha that had only held him back nagged at his heart. He could just hear his father's voice echoing inside the old man and he squeezed the kunai tighter.
'Kill him. He is in our way, boy,' the booming dark voice residing inside him hissed.
"I'm going to give you till the count of three to change your mind before I slit your throat. One…"
Suddenly, whether it was the old man's solemn smile, or seeing his back, he was hit with images from his past, his younger days of looking at Jiraiya's back from afar, of counting games and things…
No. Get out get out get out!
Black chakra rose inside him, corroding the images until they were gone, Kurama growling quietly. 'Meaningless,' he hissed. 'Now get on with it.'
He had to do this-so what was stopping him? Why was he even counting? All he had to do was cut…Easy as that. Menma had killed once today already so this kill should be no different, he told himself. He had to do this. Jiraiya was no exception to Menma's plight-he would be felled like he had everyone else who got in his way.
But somewhere deep down from the fox's influence he knew it was different. It-the old Menma- screamed this is wrong, but it became mute over the sounds of the fox hissing. His little host was so close to being at a desirable level….
"Two…" Menma-the new improved one- warned. Why didn't Jiraiya just submit already? He was an old stubborn fool playing the part of a good little ninja from Konoha. Menma should have known he wouldn't talk. 'Just do it. It's no big deal…We all die someday, I'm just ending his misery early.' Menma tried persuading himself as he pressed the kunai harder. If he didn't kill Jiraiya now he would have to latter and it would only give Konoha more time for him to show them the scroll…
Jiraiya smiled. "Good to know my final mission was accomplished. A fitting end to my life's story. I just wish I could have spent more time with my godson. He made me more proud than anything….Who knows? Maybe you'll meet him and that Red Moon Scroll soon. Tell him I love him."
Fingers pointed to the sky, the stars, rolling laughter, and adventure-his whole open world.
A single forgotten wish upon the last falling start they watched together….
'SHIT!'
Scorching feelings raced inside him beyond the fox and he felt as if the man could see right past the mask and into his soul. Could see that he was no longer that hero he'd imagined him to be but the evil one and it made his stomach twist in tight knots.
He was no longer the godchild the godfather loved. He had become the detestable villain and there was no going back to change that. It was sealed in him, hot in his body, his soul, his entire being, forever corroding him until he was nothing but one with the too compelling dark and the desire of power that engulfed him, gave him satisfaction and he had no choice….
Menma felt something inside him crack and he swung the kunai.
_-xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx-_
"I assure you," the Kazekage spoke, "had anyone else but this lovely beautiful dame broke my guy's arms they would be killed for their crimes but she…" he leaned down and kissed her hand. "She has the most beautiful hair, locks so long and flowing, bright in hue that it puts all the sunsets painted by the fingertips of gods upon the sandy horizon together to shame and I am helpless to it."
"Oh, stop it." Kushina blushed as she pulled her hand down from the Kazekage's lips and blushed. Minato crossed his arms and looked down, feeling out of place and frankly nervous. He had just witnessed her breaking both arms of one of the Kazekage's Anbu when usually she only broke one and even then that was the most extreme…Not only was she dangerously upset but the Kazekage freakishly forgiving…and was he hitting on his wife?!
Blushing, Minato coughed and put himself between the man and his wife. "Oh, um…about that information."
"Oh yes, the matter you came to me to speak about," the Kage said boredly. He plopped down in his throne-like chair. They were at the Sand's Meeting Room table and therein was only two chairs, signifying a giant council did not meet to discuss policies like Konoha. The sole ruler shook his head. "I don't wish to speak of such dishonor, it's marring my family and village's reputation, you see? The little bastard…."
Minato arched an eyebrow quizzically and Kushina bade him for a further explanation. It was only after staring into the woman's eyes that the Kazekage made a noise through his throat that struck Minato as broken resistance and he gave in to her beauty.
"Woman," he said blushing, "that hair shines in so pure a red like the wine of our village, flowing evermore from the cups of the golden gods, lush in beauty, and tempting in scent." He licked his lips. "If you were not married already I would like to partake in such fine wine but I guess I'll have to make do with the earthly drink of mortals."He smiled at Minato. "You are a lucky man, here now, let me summon us all a drink. You see, it's quite hot in these lands, more so than you're used to I'm sure."
With a snap of his fingers a young woman entered in. The first thing that struck Minato about her was how large her breast were-he just couldn't fathom how she moved about with them-and the second thing was how young she looked. She couldn't have been more than twenty and she was wearing an unnatural amount of make-up. To be frank she looked like a whore…And judging by the Kazekage's…fancies she most likely was. He pulled Kushina into him by her waist, uncomfortably and she rolled her eyes in response. "Oh, please," she whispered into his ear.
The woman, Momo, upon command brought with her a tray with three wine glasses. Minato took his but did not drink. He did, though, catch Kushina take a few sips and part of him just wanted to grin. Kushina like to hide it but she couldn't resist an intoxicating drink now and then (and part of Minato blamed her tempting sin for her violent reputation). The Kazekage after making out with the woman, quickly, took his cup and shooed her off. ("We'll play later, baby." "In the gold chamber, Kage-samaaaaaa?" "Yes, my little sphinx, in the golden chamber." *Giggle*.)
Chugging his cup down the Kazekage finally began his story. According to him his forsaken heir was the biggest bastard-and to hear him speak that way about his son broke the young blond father's heart-and was, in fact, also the current leader of the mysterious organization that was starting to grow into a bigger threat to the villages. This Roots.
Kushina gasped a little. She had heard that name before. Years ago a man by the name of Danzo left the village, swearing he would return to destroy it…and the Kyuubi host with it. Him and his newfound organization by the name of Roots.
Minato's hair went down from when it had been standing on end during the Kazekage's passionate display and he felt his mouth drop. He also knew about Danzo and his organization but to think that he had pulled the Kazekage's son into it….Just how much had it grown outside the village? He could only imagine what would happen if even the Masked Man joined leagues with it. Roots would threaten the peace and stability of the entire world of shinobi villages.
"Do you know how to stop your son?" Minato demanded, not even noticing he had dropped the wine glass. Shattered pieces littered the floor and red soaked it ominously.
The Kazekage's eyes darkened and all playful perverted traces were gone from his serious eyes. "Namikaze," he said slowly. "That bastard is not my son and I want nothing to do with him unless it is his severed head on a platter, served by the hands of anyone else but me. I will not touch such disgrace." And then his voice became quiet, he leaned toward the young parents. "I understand you are parents, yes?"
Minato nodded his head.
"Never…never let your child go and don't hold them too close or too far. Be happy together for as long as you can because one day they are going to come to an age where…" He didn't finish but Minato had a feeling he was going to say they come to an age where they lose their innocence.
After a long-and frankly-awkward silence the man giggled and stood, as if his shocked guests weren't even there. "Oh MOMO!" he cried. His whore was the only source of relief from the past. And had Minato not been so disgusted by his perverted nature he would truly feel sorry for the man who could not escape from what he had bred into the world or his one and only true beloved he had lost with his son's birth. He prayed he would find a true love again that would fill that empty space truly and that he would one day find it in his heart to keep his son again and forgive him.
Walking together outside in the sand Kushina leaned her head into his chest. "Baby," she said. "I feel sorry for him. I can't imagine a parent ever hating their child so much."
"I wonder what drove them to that point…"
"I don't know but he said…to not hold them too close but not far either." She looked at him, her eyes big and hopeful. "Ya know," she said. "Maybe…maybe we should take Menma on a big mission next time. He's old enough, ya know."
Minato nodded. "Yeah. Next one he definitely goes."
She smiled.
What could possibly go wrong?
_-xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx-_
He swung the kunai and…
It landed in the tree, clear away from Jiraiya's head.
He just couldn't do it.
And he never would.
'If you won't I will!' the fox roared. 'He must be defeated Menma! He must, he is the embodiment of everything we've worked so hard for against! He must die with all of it! Do you hear me?!'
Inside the bleak subconscious walls of the seal Menma only stared, as if stuck in a drugged daze, thinking over and over, I can't do this, I can't do this.
He was at his weakest…and the fox filled his inactiveness with his own will. Moving his limbs for him, his eyes became crimson and slit, his demeanor feral and voice the fox's own.
By the time Menma came to his senses it was too late.
He had stopped Kurama from dealing the final blow but it was still beyond too late-noting could change the old man's fate which the old sage frog had warned would happen if he choose to protect the village over his own safety. Jiraiya wouldn't make it to the village alive in his condition.
And watching him crawl away, slowly bleeding to death, the fire in his eyes and love for the village the only thing keeping him going, dying from Menma's own kunai, he was unable to end his misery. Unable to approach him.
And he realized why. He was ashamed, and utterly horrified…and because he was responsible for Jiraiya's death-willingly letting the fox take over-he was past saving. His sin was too great to be forgiven and now he truly understood why once on this path there would be no going back. It was because he couldn't.
This could never be forgiven…
And it hurt.
It hurt so bad he wanted to do anything to make it stop! It was suffocating!
'Kill your emotions, boy,' Kurama whispered darkly. 'Free yourself from the pain. Give everything up…to me.'
Menma instead of replying just stared at his blood stained hands. Then he whispered four words: "Quote the Raven 'Nevermore.'" Unable to stand the pain any longer Menma finally gave in, and the dark chakra amplified until it was all his broken heart felt. An ecstasy of darkness, ever thrilling to his mind.
_-xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx-_
What Menma didn't know was that the scroll had remained with Jiraiya the entire time, the one the frog took was just a decoy to get him off his back…Gasping for breath Jiraiya continued his cryptic coded message to Konoha. In it he wrote the directions to the real scroll which amazingly enough he had managed to get it to safety where it would be guarded by the frogs of Myouboku where only Minato would be able to retrieve it. Minato just had to!
He had to because the frog had said a boy with blond hair and blue eyes and of Namikaze and Uzumaki blood would be the one to use it-he prophesized it and he was known to remember details down to the text. It was written in stone. Too proud to not even notice that the old sage had never used Menma's name Jiraiya laid back into the ground where he could feel his body bleed out. This was it.
He closed his eyes and smiled.
His story was up and a new one would soon begin.
_-xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx-_
It's funny. How people are connected. As an orphan climbed into a tree to get a better view of her village and of her father's face carved onto the sacred mountain another version of her griped about her parents to an orphan who never knew his.
And that's when it happened; the connection clutched on to them by the masked one's command and threw them into the mirror world of their village. Purpose and accident. The orphan girl, daughter of heroes was caught up in his malice and found herself falling down like Alice into the rabbit hole, through tree branches. The other girl and orphan opened their eyes to their own mirror image and the journey of the Moon Scroll Hero began.
_-xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx-_
Following Jiraiya's death he got drunk and in the liquor's rage set a forest to burn. There was no more putting fires out as he had always done before. He just didn't fucking care anymore. And stupidly a Leaf ninja with black hair came as if the heat of his unquenchable furry had called him like a siren. And of course Menma killed him. Deciding to absorb his abilities Menma began dragging the fresh corpse across the ground, his mind still seething in darkness…
And that's when he saw the other masked figure.
_-xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx-_
"There is a kind of contempt of the landscape felt by him who has just lost by death a dear friend. The sky is less grand as it sets down over the less worth in the population."-Ralph Waldo Emerson, "Nature," Essays
FYI Quote the Raven "Nevermore" is from The Raven by Edgar Allen Poe and of all the lines of quotes from anything I could have picked from I wanted him to quote that one line because of how impacting it can be when one understands what the Raven is about. My amazing English teacher did a dramatic reading of it and I've never forgotten it. Actually last school year and I decided soon after to use it for this scene.
Sorry this is rushed after a certain point (I totally skipped a scene where Gaara would have spotted him in a bar and even the prophecy one) but 1) Blame that on A Game of Shogi which I plan on ending very soon because it's sapping so much of my muses! And I don't want my mask-crumbling Obito to accidently bleed into the hard impassive one this one needs to be for the next chapter (I feel both stories are bleeding into the other and that needs to stop) and 2) I work too much (FREAKING COLLAGE PEOPLE all flock to my store at once and holy crap it's gonna make me go crazy!) and 3) my first anime convention is this Friday and I'm freaking out! 4) I don't want to keep this chapter from you guys any longer so I went ahead and just dove in. Um…please note I started this before my last few AGoS chapters so it is NOT copying a few things off it but rather the other way around :3 Like I said, they bleed and at one time (actually a lot of times) I accidently typed one character's name for the others XD
Anyway this may be on Hiatus until I finish AGoS once and for all but there's a chance I might hurry up and finish the last three chapters of this too but really at this point you can just watch the movie and wait patiently for me to get off my big writer's ass and write the last three chapters. Unlike AGoS when I say I want it to stick to ten chapters I mean it :3 I'm very proud how since the beginning I've followed my very simple plans rigidly. All thanks to the title chapters: Next up is MADARA I think… I have to find my notes to double check and I don't know where they are ^.^
Hee hee, I'm so proud! 10 chapters! Wait…I just remembered the two fillers. Hee, whoops. At least it's not grown into more arcs than planned (drug out) LOL
OH! You totally didn't see him not killing Jiraiya directly did you! HAH! Expect the unexpected from Shax mwha ha ha! Actually I wanted him to be SOMEWHAT redeemable in the future.
