Ripples and Consequences
Chapter Ten: Momo's Bizarre Adventure
Nami No Kuni, Two Months Earlier:
Thanks to the efforts of Team 7, Nami had been liberated from the tyrant Gato.
Unfortunately for Team 7, they also lost one of their members that day. In her honour, the bridge builder, Tazuna, had dubbed their new bridge 'The Great Sakura Bridge.'
Personally, Momochi Zabuza didn't really see it. Having fought against Team 7 alongside Haku, Zabuza found himself feeling wholly unimpressed.
'Only that blond boy had any real ability out of the Genin, he even beat my Haku.' Zabuza thought to himself, still sore at their defeat.
In Zabuza's own opinion, if anything, all the pink-haired Genin had done was save his own and Haku's life. While he was slightly grateful for that, he was also aware that their survival was an unintended result of her death.
Haku had loyally moved to take a strike that was meant to kill Zabuza, when Kakashi had paused at the sound of Sakura's dying scream. Between Kakashi's hesitation, and the untimely treachery of Zabuza's employer, both himself and Haku had survived the battle.
Zabuza and Haku had both decided to leave and return to Mizu no Kuni, feeling that their purpose in Nami had been fulfilled.
Though Zabuza didn't think they had the assets to defeat the Yondaime Mizukage yet, he was determined to gather resources and soldiers to assemble under his banner.
Leaving the scene of their battle, none of the shinobi were aware of the young girl who had witnessed the events.
Mizu No Kuni, Present, Unknown Location:
It had been two months since the events of Nami No Kuni. Haku and Zabuza were settling well into their new roles. After returning to Kirigakure, they had been shocked to discover that there was already a rebellion that was largely formed, under the banner of Terumi Mei.
Haku found that he had come to like the leader of the rebellion, though his loyalties still laid with Zabuza, and he only worked for Mei indirectly.
Zabuza had been initially reluctant to join the rebellion of another, but after witnessing Mei's strength with her Kekkei Genkai, plus her intent of reforming the Seven Ninja Swordsmen, the bandaged man decided that he would be wise to take part in her coup.
Mei's hopes laid in the reformation of many of the stronger bloodline clans. Using the bloodline wielders in her rebel army, she intended to bring down the Yondaime Mizukage, Yagura.
However, there was a reason that nobody had been able to kill Yagura thus far. Contained in his body was the power of the Sanbi, meaning that no ordinary shinobi could even face the tyrant in a battle.
Zabuza's own coup two years prior hadn't even managed to reach the Mizukage, leading Zabuza to leave the country in disgrace. While Zabuza was one of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen, they had yet to find a member who could surpass Hoshigaki Kisame.
Fortunately, they would have the luck of avoiding a battle with the monstrous man this time around as Kisame having defected from Kiri to join Akatsuki.
Haku wasn't as confident about their success as her master was, a result of years of oppression under the Mizukage's tyrannical regime.
After watching his father turn on his mother and murder her, Haku had lost faith in the hope for a better Kiri, at least until he met Zabuza.
Mei, too, planned on leading Kiri to a better future. A future where Kekkei Genkai wielders wouldn't be massacred simply for having abilities that they had never chosen to have.
Despite herself, Mei was suspicious of Yagura's entire regime. While she hadn't known the man before he had become the Mizukage, she had heard that he used to be a kind young man, loved by civilians and shinobi alike.
While it was entirely possible that the man had merely been pretending to be kind so that he could gain the position of Mizukage, the drastic change seemed highly unusual to Mei.
Zabuza and Haku were enjoying a meal in silence, awaiting their next mission from Mei, when a messenger shinobi appeared.
"Momochihada-san, Mei-sama wants to see you." Reported the messenger.
"It's Momochi, not Momochicabana or whatever you just called me, runt." Zabuza responded, annoyed at the mispronunciation.
"Understood. Should I simply call you Momo-san?" Asked the messenger, unsure of how he was supposed to address the former Kiri Jonin.
"No. God no!" Momo said, quickly trying to get rid of that horrible nickname before it stuck.
Little did he know that the author had already decided it would stick.
"Understood, Momochibabua-san." Said the messenger, much to the bandaged swordsmen's annoyance.
Haku tried and failed to contain a soft laugh at his master's predicament.
Zabuza's face flushed red in anger, growing increasingly annoyed with the messenger's seeming inability to pronounce his name correctly.
"Just call me Zabuza." He asserted gruffly, growing fed up of the conversation going around in circles.
"Understood, Zabuza-san. If I may?" Zabuza nodded, dismissing the messenger. Wondering what Mei could want, the man decided he would acquiesce to the rebellion leader's summons.
Once Zabuza reached Mei's temporary office, he knocked on the makeshift door. Due to the nature of the rebellion, they were forced to hide their bases all over the place. This particular base had been formed as an underground bunker on an island not far from Nami No Kuni.
"Come in, Momo-san." Mei called out. Zabuza's annoyance grew as he realised the messenger must have reported back to her after delivering the message.
Otogakure Base, Kiri:
Hidden in a base at Kiri's island shoreline were several of Orochimaru's lackeys. Chief among them was Guren, a user of the Shoton release Kekkei Genkai.
Guren's loyalty to Orochimaru was second to none, and she was all too eager to fulfil the snake Sannin's orders.
Orochimaru had ordered her and several others to act as spies within Kirigakure in the hopes of implanting spies within both the Mizukage's army and the rebel forces.
Befitting of a snake, Orochimaru's plan was to ensure that he had a 'trusted' spy among the winning forces, regardless of which side won the battle. For that purpose, he had sent Uzumaki Karin out on a retrieval mission, hoping to attract a certain individual to his side.
So far, his plan had been successful. His spies among the Mizukage's ranks had been successful, and the training of the spy whom he planned to plant among the rebels had been coming along swimmingly.
Despite this, Orochimaru wasn't present in this base. He had left to make a trip to Tanzaku town, hoping to recruit Tsunade of the Sannin.
Guren, however, didn't approve of his recruitment plan. Like many kunoichi, as a child she had always looked up to the Legendary Sannin, Tsunade, until she had come to learn more of her idol.
Tsunade's drinking and gambling habits, combined with her now-known hemophobia, a crippling trait for a medic shinobi, had jaded Guren's opinion of the woman. Having once come to blows with Jiraiya of the Sannin before being forced to retreat, Guren could say with confidence that she felt Orochimaru was the only one of the three that was worthy of their title.
Truly, the years of peace had drastically weakened Konoha. With one of its Sannin perpetually absent, and the other constantly out of the village with no sign of training a successor to take over as spymaster, Konoha's strength was sure to only fall further in the coming years unless something changed.
With the untimely demise of the Uchiha clan, the village had only been weakened further. In Guren's own opinion, the only reason that Konoha was still standing was because the other villages lacked the backbone to capitalise on their weakness, all of them afraid to attack in fear of disturbing the geo-political climate.
Out of the big five shinobi villages, only Kumogakure had been continuing in its growth. In recent years, Kumo had made their academy standards stricter, gained several of the artefacts of the Rikudo Sennin, and strengthened their military forces significantly while shoring their own defences.
Guren couldn't help thinking that if there was another shinobi war, Kumogakure was sure to come out on top as things stood.
That was a resolution that she wasn't happy with. To her, Orochimaru was the only man fit to hold the majority power of the world, and she would accept no other.
Konoha was still recovering from both the Kyuubi attack and the Uchiha Massacre, leaving them weak. Still, they had been cunning enough to overcome her master's plan, infuriating her greatly.
However, she may have hated Sunagakure even more. Despite agreeing to help Orochimaru with his invasion plans, upon the defeat of their Jinchuriki the Suna shinobi had gladly reneged that promise in the hopes of coming out unscathed.
Between their loss of missions over the years, the recent loss of their Kazekage, and the fact that they were being forced to beg for Konoha's mercy, it was easy for many to see that Suna was ripe for the taking.
Despite this, Orochimaru had ordered them not to move on the desert village. As much as those orders confused her, Guren feeling that they were more than capable of taking the village as a foothold for her master, the Shoton user's loyalty and determination to fulfil her master's orders won out.
Still, she wished that this phase of the plan would be completed quicker, feeling antsy at the lack of orders she had received as of late.
Since the aftermath of Konoha's Chunin Exams, Orochimaru had seemed more driven, perhaps angered by his invasion plans collapsing before the invasion itself began.
In truth, that was what had led to the Mizu no Kuni operation that was being enacted. That, and one other factor. Yukimaru, a young man that had been recruited as a part of Otogakure by Guren herself, possessed the unique ability to partially control the Sanbi.
While it was unusual enough in itself that he was able to control one of the bijuu, the part that really added some intrigue to the events in Mizu no Kuni was the fact that he was able to summon the beast, which should've been tightly sealed within the Yondaime Mizukage.
Something about the entire scenario smelled rotten to Guren. Regardless, Orochimaru hadn't seemed concerned by the revelation, merely citing it as intriguing. Perhaps the man had already possessed some insight on the internal affairs of the country.
What Orochimaru had valued greatly, however, was the abilities of the young Yukimaru. Summoning a tailed beast was no ordinary feat, after all.
Behind Yukimaru's ability laid a secret that had been revealed to none of the other Akatsuki members, including its leader.
Twenty years prior, Nohara Rin had died while containing the Sanbi, as per Uchiha Madara's plan. However, that wasn't the entire circumstance that had occurred. From there, he had managed to take control of Yagura, who had, despite being the next Sanbi Jinchuriki, managed to reach the rank of Mizukage.
From there, he had initiated the bloodline purges. Deciding to weaken Kirigakure significantly, Madara, using Yagura as his medium, had commenced with the destruction of both minor and major clans alike within Kirigakure. Using this channel, he was also able to recruit Hoshigaki Kisame for his purposes.
Out of all the Akatsuki, Kisame was likely the most informed of the events that were about to unfold in Kiri, having witnessed the foundations for those events. However, even he would be unable to predict how Yukimaru played into this plan.
In truth, Yagura had several bastard-children, whom even he was unaware of. Primarily because Yagura himself was still under the Genjutsu, and thus unaware that his wild nature before becoming Mizukage had led to several women conceiving his children. On top of that, none of the mothers of his children were willing to reveal their connections, knowing that their children would be unjustly persecuted for the brutality of their father's regime.
Yukimaru was one of these children. Seemingly possessing an unnatural affinity with the bijuu, Orochimaru prized Yukimaru's abilities greatly. Though, even he was unaware that the boy's resonance with the bijuu was a result of the Sanbi's chakra recognising his own, being similar in nature to that of his father.
With Yagura still alive and in possession of the Sanbi, Orochimaru was unable to test his theory that young Yukimaru would be able to summon the bijuu, however, he was certain that the events of the coming days would give him the opportunity to do so.
Still, Guren had found herself developing a mother/son bond with the boy. Yukimaru's mother had saved Guren from a fatal injury by taking care of her in her own home. Unfortunately, Guren's loyalty to Orochimaru won out over the debt she felt she owed, thus she followed her orders to kill Yukimaru's mother.
Perhaps as a form of atonement, Guren had since taken on the role of being a mother to the young man. Yukimaru was a very soft-spoken teen, and he was also very sensitive emotionally. As a result, he had quickly grown attached to Guren, seeing her as being much like his own mother. Despite serving Orochimaru, Yukimaru's only loyalties laid with Guren.
Guren found herself feeling glad that Orochimaru saw the value of Yukimaru's abilities. She deeply dreaded the day that she may be ordered to kill her pseudo-son.
Pushing such bleak thoughts to the side, Guren finished preparing the supplies for Orochimaru's 'loyal' spy. Though she wasn't fond of Orochimaru's newest underling, she would remain profession and follow her orders.
By nightfall, the spy would be planted within Mei's forces.
Mizu no Kuni, Rebel Outpost:
Following his meeting with Mei, Zabuza had taken Haku and departed for an outpost deep in the heart of water country where there was an arrangement for the newest potential recruits for the rebel forces would gather.
Personally, Zabuza thought it was a foolish idea to have such a blatant gathering, feeling it was an easy opportunity to be infiltrated. Mei merely assured Zabuza that once Yagura was taken care of, they would be able to perform thorough sweeps of their forces, but that, for the time being, they would take any help they could get that was unaffiliated with Yagura.
Still, Zabuza reluctantly agreed to follow Mei's orders, if only to potentially weed out any of the spies himself.
Haku was remaining silent, still trying to restrain his laughter from their journey to the outpost.
Along the way, they had been attacked by some of the Yondaime Mizukage's forces, leading them into a brief skirmish. Haku's only warning was Zabuza's muttered question.
"Could this be the work of an enemy stand?" Zabuza muttered lowly, referencing a book that he vaguely recalled reading many years prior. He thought it might've been called Momo's Bizarre Adventure.
Haku had begun to attack the enemy forces, ending the battle quickly, but had accidentally frozen Zabuza in solid ice. From there on, Zabuza spent the entire journey acting tough, trying to ignore the coldness of his blood. However, Haku had seen that the man was noticeably shivering and spent the entire journey in a cycle of trying and failing to hold back laughter while avoiding Zabuza's wrath.
Zabuza noticed the 'recruits' had begun to gather when he noticed a familiar face amongst the crowd.
"Well, well. I didn't expect to see you here. How exactly did you make it here?" Zabuza questioned the young girl who had concealed most of her features.
"No thanks to you, I assure you. One of the Kaguya clan saved my life and trained me for a short time. Sadly, last week he was cut down by one of the Mizukage's men. I guess I'm here for revenge." Elaborated the kunoichi, delivering the story that Orochimaru had supplied her with.
Though Zabuza found the girl's story to be slightly wanting, with no proof there was no way he could question her joining, for the time being at least.
"Well, you may as well remove that pointless hood. With features like yours, it's not really concealing anything." Zabuza asserted, trying to test the girl's loyalty straight off the bat.
Conceding the point, the kunoichi pulled down her hood, revealing her features to Zabuza and Haku, the latter of which was shocked to see a familiar figure.
Tying back her long hair, the girl pushed her noticeably pink bangs out of her face.
"Haruno Sakura, I don't know how you survived, but welcome to the rebellion."
Author's Note: Thanks for reading Chapter 10!
Yes, I blatantly referenced Jojo's using Momo (Momochi Zabuza).
This is a lot shorter than my usual chapters, mostly as a result of being released only a day after the previous chapter, but I felt it was important to make this advancement by making a chapter about the other characters, rather than trying to cram all the events into a single chapter with the Sannin battle.
Chapter 11 will be out on Thursday!
Thanks for all your reviews and support thus far, this story has quickly become far more popular than I had even dared hope.
Sorry to build the tension, putting this chapter right before the three Sannin battle, but this chapter was necessary to advance the story. With the survival of Zabuza, Haku and, most importantly, Sakura, most of the pieces for the Kiri rebellion are assembled. If you want to see these events all come to a head, you'll have to keep reading!
Feel free to review! Ja Ne!