Disclaimer: This is a fan written work based on the works of J.K. Rowling. Also features Naruto which is owned by Kishimoto. It might possibly also have some elements of a number of other works. There is no money being made from this, it is merely a work meant for the entertainment of myself and the masses. This is merely for fun, and no profit. I repeat: I am not making any money out of writing this.
Warning: OCs OOCs Sues, and some crack. You have been warned.
Note 1: AU.
Note 2: This might potentially be the most confusing chapter to date, due to the time traveling that shall occur..sort of...
POWER
chapter thirty-five
"From the reports of my spies," Kujira said, he was speaking to Ryoku in a private meeting in one of the empty warehouses that could be found in the capital of Mizu no Kuni, "The other countries' leaders find Kiri, and by relation, Mizu no Kuni as a strong nation, especially with my family's ability to stay in power through a civil war. My spies have also uncovered that the hidden villages that participated in the exams respect and fear Kiri, you've outdone yourself it seems."
"So then, the mist is known as what?" Ryoku asked, then sipped some tea as that was the beverage they were enjoying.
"The Bloody Mist, due in part to whatever you did to the mists of your village," Kujira said, "Though I did notice that they weren't as bloody and death filled when I left."
"Couldn't have them in that condition all year round," Ryoku said, "We wouldn't be as hidden if a good nose could find us, now would we."
"I suppose so," Kujira said, "Another thing that was found out was that you have a new name. Listed especially in the Konoha Bingo Book, you have been dubbed as the Kirigakure no Akaryuu, a double S-class threat."
"I assumed as much, but are they aware that it is a transformation or do they think it a jutsu or a summon?" Ryoku asked, he himself had been a bit too busy to actually gather such information himself.
"No one is sure what you did," Kujira admitted, "Even I have to admit that I don't really know."
"That's good to know," Ryoku said, "It wouldn't do if one of my trump cards was revealed."
"One of? You have more?" Kujira asked, curiously.
"Of course I do! I'm OLD! I have loads more! I'm a one man army at it is," Ryoku boasted.
"I believe you," Kujira said, "I of all people have no place doubting your abilities, ye who founded Kiri."
"O'course, the only reason you know that is because of the thing with Mei," Ryoku said.
"So, when will you be stepping down?" Kujira asked, "You've done your part as Mizukage, the Mist has never been stronger."
"Who is the present Hokage?" Ryoku asked out of the blue.
"I believe a Yondaime had just been instated," Kujira said, "Namikaze Minato, I believe his name is."
"Ah..then you will be able to retire in about two years," Ryoku said, "I will need to make sure that my decision to have my wife lead Kiri in my stead will not be questioned by any of my present subordinates."
"Your wife? She's still your fiance you know," Kujira said.
"She will be when I step down," Ryoku said, "I'm hoping to time it when she has her period or something like that."
"What? In that state she could be a monster," Kujira said, knowing full well what a women suffering from the red tide could do, he shivered, "That's crazy! If an assassin tried to off her during the ceremony, then there would be hell to pay."
"I have already decided," Ryoku said, "Make sure you give your approval, you will still be Daimyo when I announce my decision, and you will still be on the Council of Water."
"She will have my vote, loyalty to the family and all that of course," Kujira said, "So..what will her new clan name be? Have you got one?"
"I have thought it over, and have decided on one," Ryoku said, "It has been a while since I've used one."
"So what will it be?" Kujira asked.
"I will use two," Ryoku said, "I plan on having at least two children, one will use the name Jikoku, while the other one will use the name Toukou. I will be known as Toukou Ryoku, while my wife will be known as Jikoku Mei."
"That's a bit confusing isn't it? A two in one family," Kujira said.
"It's Takeshi's fault, his direct descendants are two clans," Ryoku said.
"Oh? Which?" Kujira asked.
"Uchiha from the elder son, and Senju from the younger," Ryoku said.
"Well...I wasn't expecting that..." Kujira said, "Two of the most powerful clans in all the lands are direct descendants of the Rikudou Sennin..no wonder they're so powerful."
"Worry not my friend," Ryoku said, "The Royal Family too will be most powerful."
"But not as well known as those two," Kujira said.
"The Uchiha and Senju are fools, while I and my future family are true shinobi," Ryoku said.
"Ah yes, hidden in the shadows, unseen, silent, yet the deadliest warriors in the world," Kujira said in approval, "I really like your style, O Taijutsu no Tatsujin, Sennin no Seinsei."
"You've just given me another title," Ryoku said appreciatively, "Master of the Sages, I like it."
"Well its suits you and it is true," Kujira said refilling his cup, "You did train the Rikudou Sennin and the First Sennin, the Uzumaki Sennin."
"That I did, that I did," Ryoku said and finished his cup of jasumin cha.
#
Kirigakure no Sato had not suffered at all due to the double invasion attempt during the end of the First Chunin Exam. They got the opposite of what Kumo and Danzo wanted to happen, they got a huge image boost, thanks to the swift actions of the Kiri-nin and the Kage personally protecting the delegats of the other nations from a perceived possible threat, not much of a threat considering Ryoku had dealt with the men and women of Konoha's Ne ANBU Division swiftly, the battle if it could be called such lasting no more than a few minutes.
There was also the fact that the Chunin Exam was not halted or postponed while the invasion was occurring, it was a testament to the confidence, strength, power, and ability of Kiri to simply move forward, paying no mind to such a minor distraction as an attempt to cripple the great village.
Mei had been taked with overseeing the village in Ryoku's absence as he had another legitimate reason to leave the village in someone else's care. He had an official meeting with the Mizu Daimyo in the capital of the country. No one made a fuss over his not being in the village, as any paperwork that was delivered to his office was still looked over and taken care of, thanks to a very complex seal on the man's desk. No matter where Ryoku was he still received his beloved paperwork.
Mei was only tasked with everything else, ranging from making sure that the village's defenses were in place, that there were no breaches in the defenses, that all the inhabitants of the village were all legally there, that the missions were handed out, that the mission payments were handed out, and a host of other menial things.
Little did she know that someone was already planning for her future, not just her married life, but her actual career.
There was a masked kunoichi of Kiri that went by the name Kurenai Kei, the Crimson Whip. She only used the name she had made for herself. She wore a white bodysuit, one that clung to her form perfectly, showing off her curves, or at least they would have if she was not almost permanently wearing a tan hooded poncho which hid her curves from perverted eyes. No one but the Mizukage knew what she really looked like, and all that anyone could see of her body were her eyes. Her face was covered in a white mask, her hair tucked underneath somehow, since her file noted that she had long hair. Her hitai-ate was tied around her waist like a belt.
She was one of the elite jounin of Kiri, an assassin on par with the Seven, but had constantly refused a position amongst, then stating that she was happy with what she already had.
No one knew where she lived either, all personal information on her was classified, and required the highest of clearances, that being the approval of the Kage himself, and Ryoku wasn't about to divulge such secrets, not even to his present fiance.
The reason why she was given the name and title Crimson Whip was because she used a blade with nearly the same properties as the blade whip or sword whip which Mei herself used as a member of the Seven, the only difference being that it was permanently long, and chakra could only coat it, and not be infused. It was also semi-permanently coated in blood, whose blood, no one knew, but most suspected it was the blood of her victims.
Mei had met her on a few occassions, she had even met this fellow whip wielder as she listened to the oral report about the woman's most recent mission, which, while not assassination, had been delivering an important message to Ame's Hanzo, whatever the message contained, both assassin and Mei were not aware of the contents, but knew that it was from one kage to another would be kage.
What the woman had told her after the report was made sounded rather odd to her ears, as Mei didn't know if it was a hidden message of some sort or not..
"Worry not...your day too shall come.." Kurenai Kei said.
Mei did not know whether it was a threat, a compliment, advice, a taunt, or a coded message for the Mizukage, but all the same it was odd and out of place. The woman left soon after that taking another S-rank mission scroll with her.
With the Mizukage not within the village walls and with no important event being planned, gate duty returned to the capable hands of the Chunin. The Chunin had seen a lot of people pass through the gates of the village, many of whom were very strong, others were famous, and a small number of those that left never returned. They guards were charged with welcoming and wishing luck to those that came and left through their assigned gate. They were also the defenders of any that would wish harm to the village that passed through the gates, though it rarely happened.
They were also some of the lucky blokes that had the privilege of speaking with Kurenai Kei, along with a number of Kiri's legends, minus the Kage as he had a habit of leaving via other means, bypassing signing out via the logbook, not that it really mattered.
This day, they not only spoke to Kurenai Kei who seemed to be busy with her job, whatever it was, the Chunin at the gate, Kawa Miura and Kuma Mumei, were able to speak with another of Kiri's secretive jounin.
The jounin in question was known as Shinku Rensa, Crimson Chain, as his weapon of choice, which could usually be covering his arms was stained crimson with the blood of his victims. He wore a bloodstained sleeveless shirt, dark brown cargo pants, black steel toed boots, steel plated fingerless gloves, and the most impotrant part of his ensamble was his mask. His mask covered his entire head, not even his eyes were visible.
"Yo!" Shinku Rensa greeted the Chunin as he stopped to sign the log book, "What's up? And if you answer 'the sky' I'll add you to my chains."
"Eheh...almost did...uhm..well, you just missed Kurenai Kei...again," Miura said, "Why is that anyway, you always seem to miss her."
"Ah..that.." he said, scratching the back of his head, "Erm...orders I guess you could say..."
"Oh...wasn't expecting that," Mumei said, "I was expecting something else...something along the lines of you two not getting along or something."
"Yeah..well..that's how it is," he said, "We even have a schedule of sorts...just to make sure we avoid each other."
"You have a schedule?" Miura asked, "Why?"
"Orders...listen, there's this guy at the capital..a member of the court...he's also got orders to avoid myself and Kurenai Kei, until a certain time in the future," he said, "Everything's already been predetermined."
"Why? And if its confidential, just say so and we'll let you leave," Mumei said.
"Its not really confidential...its complicated," he Shinku Rensa said, "It all stems from a kinjutsu..and a kind of Kekkai Genkai..."
"Kinjutsu accident huh, well whatever, you got a mission huh, would it be possible to know what?" Miura asked.
"Ah...I'm supposed to beat the crap outta a Konoha kunoichi, that's all, well sort of," he replied, "I'm a little confused about my orders...but a mission's a mission," he then bent his knees in preparation for a jump, "Well, gotta go!" he leapt into the air, descending into the mists. Unbeknownst to the two chunin as soon as his entire body entered the mists, he teleported away into the forests of Fire Country. The ability being part of his kind of bloodline limit. Kurenai Kei, having a similar ability, similar but not as strong.
In the capital of Water Country, specifically in the castle of the Daimyo, a young man who looked to permanently be fifteen for some reason walked through the hallways and corridors with no real destination. He had arrived only recently, having been introduced to the Daimyo by none other than the Mizukage himself. His name was Toukou Shiro, he was the son of the chosen heir of Mizu no Kuni, according to the Daimyo himself who's own child, a girl, had married into a shinobi clan. Whoever the the father of Shiro was, must have been quite powerful or impressive to have been named Heir.
Ryoku's entire family was screwed up, even before he got married and did the dirty deed which would produce him twin heirs.
Shiro was tasked with keeping track of all the going ons in the court, he was in all intents and purposes a spy for his father, as well as a prince, the only one the court and country would see for a few years.
Shiro had black hair, while his twin had dark red to bloody brown hair which he normally hid under a bandana or a mask. He had a single, his right, emerald green eye, and the other one had a tendency to change colors depending on the phase of the moon. His brother had a single, his left, emerald green eye, while the other one had a tendency to shift between gold and sapphire depending on the time of day. If Shiro had a scar over cutting a path from the left side of his forehead through his eye ending at the tip of his mouth, he would be an almost exact replica of his father, and it would really be obvious to people who his father was.
Unlike his father who had a tendency to cover up his technicolored eye, Shiro had half of his head covered in bandages, making him look a whole lot weaker. He was a puzzle of court officials and nobles as to how such a young man could freely walk around the castle and the capital itself without an escort and live through all the attempts on his life withe that one blindside looking head injury that wasn't.
At present he was actually just waiting for the daimyo to get back from his meeting with the Mizukage, it was quite confusing to him, who had the bad luck or good luck, depending on when you ask, of having a father who decided to play with the time stream using his family as the other pieces or dummies for his experiments in time. He decided to finally wait at the main gate into the castle grounds for the Daimyo who could straighten out who was the Mizukage of this time period, his father or his mother, as he wasn't sure whether it was the Yondaime or the Godaime that was in power, though he had the sneaking suspicion that it was the Yondaime for some reason. He didn't particularly know all the details of history as he was too lazy to actually listen to his tutors when it came to such a subject matter and chose to view the timeline for the answers he needed for his proficiency tests.
"Have you been waiting long, Shiro?" Kujira asked, finally getting back from his meeting with the Mizukage.
"Daimyo-sama..who is the Mizukage?" Shiro asked.
"The Yondaime is..why? Have you heard otherwise?" Kujira asked curious about the boy's answer.
"No..well..it depends..Otou-sama is really confusing sometimes..." Shiro said, as his meetings with his father were very confusing some of the time. Ryoku had managed to spread out his consciousness to all the time periods that his family inhabited, it made conversations with him about current events a little bit confusing.
"Tell me about it," Kujira said, "He just told me what he plans to do...so I'm not so in the dark now...but still a little bit confused...just as I was meeting you not so long ago.."
"Really...well don't bother telling me about it..I already know it...most of it anyway," Shiro said as he walked the presnt daimyo back into the castle proper, flicking his wrist every now and then, flinging senbon everywhere he perceived a threat to the daimyo was, and there were always several of them. None had succeeded to even expose themselves before Shiro killed them.
"Was that really necessary?" Kujira asked Shiro after the two of them had entered the castle proper.
"It would be rather suspicious if you survived from whatever they had planned on doing," Shiro said, knowing full well that his father would ensure that the shinigami's icy fingers did not touch the old man for a certain amount of time.
"Alright, fine," Kujira said, then asked, "When will I be meeting your brother?"
"The one that will be twenty-five when we get together in the true present of the timeline? Or the one running around now?" Shiro asked, the reason for his non-aging looks was that he was temporarily out of sync with time, as were the rest of the member of his immediate family, namely his mother and brother, his father being the exception. His mother and brother from the future of the true present.
"The one running around now...?" Kujira asked unsure of his own answer.
"Err...dunno...he and I are technically not born yet.." Shiro said, "Quite confusing isn't it."
"Toukou for the beginning, and Jikoku for time or the timelessness of it all," Kujira said, understanding somewhat the reason for Ryoku's choosing the names.
"Yeah..someting like that," Shiro said, then lead the old man to his own chambers as dealing with the eccentricities and complicacies of Toukou Ryoku was taxing on the mind.
#
Shinku Rensa, also known as Jikoku Takeshi, was the older brother and twin of Toukou Shiro. He found the experience of aging through the timeline as a most fun experience, and at the same time a taxing one on the mind, as there were so many rules and orders that his father had made sure that he, his brotehr, and his mother had to remember. While they couldn't exactly change the past..not that the past was a constant as it too kept changing with every step that Ryoku himself took, they took pleasure in being in more than one place at any given time, and having more than one age at almost any given time. They also got to play around with their former selves, their younger selves. Mei herself having the pleasure of meeting with herself on occassion, nothing wrong with that so long as she had her identity concealed, which was why all files connected to herself and her sons were classified.
Takeshi, had been given the mission of attacking Uzumaki Kushina, one of his father's first student's descendants, his side mission was the part that eluded him, he was supposed to attack her within sensing range of the Yondaime Hokage, Namikaze Minato, a man who had ties to Kiri and Suna through his blood, though he was unaware of it, as well as ties of the Daimyo clan of Nami no Kuni.
'What ever Tou-san is planning...as much as I'd like no part in it...I have to do it..' Takeshi mentally mumbled, he had been named after one of his father's students, his first student to be exact.
He arrived in record time at the gates of Konohagakure no Sato, the so called Village Hidden in the Leaves, it wasn't all that hidden since almost everyone in the shinobi world knew where it was located, unlike Kirigakure where one needed a guide to actually find it without getting lost for hours in the mists that protected and hid the village from prying eyes.
This was the first mission that he would be peforming without his mask, revealing his face to the world, luckily no one from Kiri was around to see it. It was part of the orders and rules, 'no one from Kiri can see your entire face', Shiro being the only exception to that rule, his was different, 'no one from anywhere is allowed to see your special eye'.
His family's brand spanking new Kekkai Genkai was the ability to manipulate time, to an extent, use magic, and have unnaturally high chakra and magic reserves. Chakra needed control and magic required imagination. The covering of the special eye, ensured that the flow of chakra was regulated enabling Shiro and Takeshi to have nearly perfect control over their chakra, while the eye patch sealed away the emotion fueled magic, accidental magic to the usual members of the Wizarding World, but when was Harry Potter and anything to do with him normal. He had even bent some of the rules that Alex had told him existed in this world of chakra.
Takeshi and Shiro also had their mother's Kekkai Genkai, the ability to use Futton/Boil Release and Youton/Lava Release jutsu. The brothers, like their mother, and her clan, the Terumi clan, not the Murasaki, were able to use the two styles with unrivaled ability save from another member of the clan, and possibly a jinchuuriki or a training maniac.
He placed an illusion, the magical and undetectable kind over his chains, which were his weapons and which he used as a kind of sleeve. He had to also hide behind an illusion the stench that the blood gave off, he normally used it as a tool for intimidation.
It was a good thing that his clothes weren't what made him famous, else he would have to transfigure those, and that would be a pain in the ass as transfiguration wasn't one of his strong points, he was more of an illusion kind of guy, it came with the territory of being a shinobi and not some Miko.
He walked into the village and almost forgot to remove his hitai-ate, lucky for him that he remembered that he was wearing it, and immediately placed it too under some illusion, one that made the plate look blank.
"Hey you! Guy! Person! Get over here!" a Chunin shouted at Takeshi as he entered the gate and prepared to look for his 'target'.
"You can't just walk into the village without signing in, even the ninja sign in," the other chunin guard said as Takeshi approached them.
"Sorry about that..hehe...I'm not used to walking into ninja villages yet," Takeshi said acting embarassed, "This is my actual first time in a Hidden Village, I actually got lost on the road of life while getting here."
"Well..alright..that's perfectly normal..we've had to deal with some people like you," one chunin said in understanding as it really had happened a few times on their shift before.
Takeshi was handed a pen and the log book, and wrote his real name down, as for his purpose, well he wrote down exactly what he was supposed to do there, but made sure to place a kind of timed illusion which would expire once his business in the village was finished.
"Well, everything seems to be in order," one chunin said as he checked over what Takeshi had written.
Takeshi had written down that he was looking for Uzumaki Kushina, he had a message for her from a friend of her clan, Takeshi didn't know what the heck kind of message did attacking someone convey other than 'I want to kill you', but Takeshi didn't bother thinking too hard about it lest his head get an ache more than usual from all the time jumping he did.
"You should be able to find Uzumaki-san at the Ichiraku Ramen bar, just ask around for direction," the other Chunin said, making Takeshi's job easier.
Once he was beyond visual and audial range of the chunin, he took to the roofs, layering illusions over himself to make his stealth on par with someone who stopped time completely, something which he could do, but only for a short time. But he needed to ask people that were moving around in time, for directions and couldn't just use the time stopping method, as those other people were not part of the thing.
It took him a while before he found his target, she was berating a blonde man who was eating ramen like there was no tomorrow. It looked like he would not have the chance to actually deal a lot of damage to the woman, seeing as phase two of the mission was sitting right there being screamed at by phase one.
But then he remembered that he was supposed to avoid as much property damage as possible, and therefore he had to wait for the woman to be alone in some training ground or something like that. He guessed that the village could probably be considered as within sensing distance of the Hokage.
He followed her to, thankfully, an empty training ground. He was still under heavy illusions, and therefore she was unable to sense his presence. He dropped his illusions once he was standing right behind her, as she was warming up for whatever training she would be performing.
"Holy shit!" he exclaimed as he jumped over her attempt to take his head off, and landed several feet in front of her, "What the hell is your problem? You could have killed me!"
"You snuck up on me and expect me not to attack you? What kind of person are you!" she said as he landed in front of her, "What is your purpose surprising me anyway?"
"Eh...well..." he scratched his head, his hands slipping through his luckily still hidden hitai-ate, his chains were also still hidden, it was just the illusions that his his presence which he released, "Ah..well..you see..I'm supposed to give you a message..."
"Well..what is it?" she demanded of him.
"Are you sure you really want to know? Its from a friend of your clan.." he said, hesitantly, scratching his head, a bit in part to embarassment at almost being decapitated by the red scythe she was carrying as her weapon.
"A friend of the clan? Who? If I don't like your answer, I won't hesitate in killing you," she stated, her stance shifting into an attack one.
"..eheh..would you believe me if I said I forgot what the Uzumaki clan called him?" Takeshi did not receive as verbal reply, but had to dodge swipes from the scythe.
She followd up her swipes by forming half seals with her unoccupied hand, then instead of calling out the technique, she pushed him to the ground with the flat of her blade, and slammed her other hand on the ground, immediately where he had landed a mud whirlpool formed.
"Damn it woman! Quit it!" he shouted as he slipped out of time in order to not get stuck in the mud, he diengaged the ability as it took too much energy to perform, as well as was a bit taxing on his sanity, in a way.
He landed where his opponent had started, the spot he stood near before she tried to decapitate him. It was then and there he knew that he could not afford to hold back, how was the Hokage supposed to come to her rescue if he didn't give him a reason to.
"Play time's over," Takeshi said as he got into the relaxed stance which his father favored, he also cancelled the remaining illusions he had on, he even uncovered his eye, unleashing his sealed power.
Kushina felt Takeshi's aura shift from seemingly harmless into extremely dangerous, as soon as he uncovered his other eye, the only part of his face that had been covered. His power exploded out of his, as if he could not fully control the raging inferno of power that circled around him. It was an aura which was sure to be felt by the entire village. But for some reason she had a feeling that she was the only one that could feel it. Which was actually true, as Takeshi instantly erected a barrier to hide his immense aura, it was the first time that he had actually done something like this during a battle. He feared feeling his father's battle ready aura after feeling his own.
"Ready? No? Good," Takeshi said before launching himself in her direction, his natural speed augmented by his aura, a mixture of both magic and chakra, and a bit of his time related bloodline limit. He was probably just as fast as the Hokage, which was faster than Kushina could react.
The first thing he did was punch her in the solar plexus, with enough force to kill a civilian, but for a kunoichi, it would only stun her momentarily. But in a high speed battle, one moment of weakness was all it took to die, not that Takeshi intended to kill her, just lure out that blonde ramen loving guy that lorded over the hidden village they were in at the moment.
The force of the blow also managed to push her back by a few feet. As she skidded and bounced across the ground, Takeshi wrapped her up in his crimson chains, and made them begin to squeeze the life out of her. Slowly at first, but soon enough she was screaming in pain and for him to stop.
When he sensed the approach of Konoha's most powerful shinobi, he magically replaced his mask, covering his face, as well as burying Kushina's memory of what he looked like, deep within her mind, that it would take someone like his own twin brother to dig it back out. While he was the one that preferred physical activities and illusions, his brother was the one that liked mental activities as well as the other forms or branches of magic, specifically charms.
As he felt the Hokage's overpowering, to most of his foes, aura near their position, Takeshi yanked his chains back just in time to save then from the Hokage slicing them to pieces, or trying to. He rewrapped his chains around his arms, as he faced the Hokage, his stance returning to the seemingly relaxed state that his father favored. He was prepared to do battle with the Kage, prepared to do battle and come out in a draw as was stated in the mission scroll which he had remembered to burn.
No words were spoken but his body language did the talking for him, Minato was clearly doing more than simply defending one of his subordinates, his body clearly told Takeshi that his opponent considered Kushina as more than just a subordinate of a friend. It reminded him of his father and mother, before they started this time travelling adventure.
"Well, well, well, if it isn't the Hokage," Takeshi said mockingly, the mask masking his real voice, "What are you doing here?"
"What is your purpose here?" Minato demanded instead of of answering Takeshi's mocking question.
"My purpose?" Takeshi said, he knew that the blonde was stalling for reinforcements to arrive, "Wouldn't you like to know."
Takeshi wasted no time allowing Minato to feel his aura, to feel the explosive power of a shinobi almost unlike any other.
The Hokage was startled by the sudden pressure of Takeshi's oppresive battle ready aura. He had no clue that his present opponent had such power, such hidden potential. He was surprised that his 'secret love' was able to hold off Takeshi as long as she did.
'He wanted me to come..but why?' he thought as he realized that Takeshi could have killed Kushina at any time, and that he was waiting for him to arrive, for what reason the Kage did not know.
"Oh so that's the message!" Takeshi said in excitement as he fully realized what his father wanted him to do, it was a really screwed up game of matchmaker.
"Message?" Minato asked.
"Yes, my purpose is to convey a message from one of the friends of the Uzumaki clan," Takeshi said as he let part of his crimson chains drop to the ground, in preparation for the continuation of the fight.
"I don't get...it," Minato got the message, "Isn't this quite a dangerous way to deliver a message?"
"You'd probably never let your feelings be known," Takeshi said, "If I didn't use this method...but now that I think about it...I don't think you are worthy, therefore, I will not allow you to say the words."
"So...is this part of the...omph!" he said, but was slammed in the gut by one end of Takeshi's chain, when he regained his balance and his breath he continued what he was going to say, "Message?"
"How should I know," Takeshi said, he then vanished from where he had been standing, and appeared in front of Kushina, instead of in front of Minato, and was about to slam his chains down on the woman while would kill her.
Minato used his speed technique to appear in front of her, and managed to push away both the chains and Takeshi, causing him to skid for a few feet, before stopping, and yanking back his chains.
"I won't let you hurt her," Minato said, sounding not as a Hokage, but as a man defending his precious person.
"Really?" Takeshi said appearing behind him and right above Kushina with a kunai, and not one of his chains, in hand, about to plunge it in her side.
Minato reacted instantly, by spinning in place and planting a vicious kick to Takeshi's head as he was upside down, and pushing him away with an aching head.
"Maybe I should get you out of here," he said to Kushina as he kneeled down beisde her, believing that there was no way Takeshi would be getting back up for a while after an attack like that.
"Behind you!" Kushina shouted, even though shouting was rather painful.
Takeshi had managed to move again, and speedily, right after Kushina shouted her warning, he wrapped his chains around the Kage's neck and waist, and pulled him away from his love, hard. The pull was strong enough to snap the man's neck, but Takeshi was rewarded by a puff of smoke indicating a kawarimi, and true to form a shattered log was what had been shattered by the chains.
Takeshi had managed to evade Minato's counter attacks. But it was then and there that Takeshi decided that perhaps he had pushed the Kage's buttons enough and it was time to simply fight the guy. Taijutsu versus taijutsu, his forte thanks to his father's love of it, and legendary status regarding it.
They traded punches and kicks with one another, dodging and evaded some blows, and over all looking like two blurs. By the time that the Konoha Anbu arrived, they were greeted by the sight of multiple yellow flashes and streaks of red, criss crossing the training ground. Every now and then some blood would hit the ground. Takeshi and Minato had decided, just as the Anbu arrived, to begin using their weapons once again, Minato his kunai, and Takeshi his chains.
The Anbu didn't know if they were to interfere with the fight or not, so instead of joining their Kage in the fight, one of them made her way to the downed form of Kushina, who both fighters seemed to be avoiding.
While Minato was busy with his fight, the other Anbu didn't know what to do, Kushina was left at the mercy of the single Anbu that approached her form. It wasn't a regular Anbu from what she could tell, and it wasn't a Ne Anbu either, not that she knew about them.
When the Anbu removed her mask, the face that was revealed was that of no one. The Anbu had no face, the figure suggested a kunoichi, but now when faced with a truly blank face. Kushina didn't know what to think. She also began to feel rather sleepy.
"Be at peace," Kushina heard the Anbu that was not an Anbu whisper, the figure became that of a blank slate, niether male nor female in appearance, as if some physical appearance altering jutsu had been used.
The Anbu then pulled out a syringe containing a colorless liquid. The Anbu tested it to make sure that it would inject the liquid, satisfied with the results, the Anbu injected whatever it was on the sleeping Kushina. But that was all the fake Anbu was able to do before It's head exploded thanks to a Rasengan to the temple. Blood flew everywhere.
Takeshi too had noticed the odd Anbu approach phase one, and thought nothing of it as he was having way too much fun battling the Kiroii Senkou. He had also managed to notice when Minato flashed away to deliver a Rasengan to the Anbu's head. Takeshi had managed to stop himself from moving forward by rewinding himself back a few steps. A space-time bubble covering only himself for a few seconds in order for the rewind to only affect his body.
"Well...I wasn't expecting that..." Takeshi said, wrapping his chains around his arms, like sleeves, again, and reapplying his illusions, the ones that hid his chains, as well as his eye patch.
"How did you get one of your men into my Anbu ranks?" Minato demanded as another Anbu member checked on Kushina to make sure she was alright, and that whatever was injected was not some kind of poison of any kind.
"Hey, I didn't know about the Anbu," Takeshi said defensively, "I was just as surprised as you."
"How can I be sure that you're telling the truth?" Minato said, preparing to reengage Takeshi.
"She's just sleeping, Hokage-sama," the Anbu that was checking on Kushina announced, "My diagnosis has shown nothing out of the ordinary in her vitals."
"Whoa...I thought I really messed her up," Takeshi said dumbfounded, "I mean I beat her up quite thoroughly...guess you just killed someone that was trying to help..."
"Are you done talking?" Minato asked.
"Not really," Takeshi said, "But I am done fighting. My mission is complete, I'm going home now.."
He didn't wait for Minato to acknowledge what he said and simply teleported out of there, just as another fake Anbu appeared beside the Hokage and injected him with the same clear liquid, and was also killed, or more like obliterated by the overly excited or anxious Anbu.
'Who the hell was that?' Takeshi wondered in mid-transit to Kiri's main gate.
When he arrived at the gate he was greeted by none other than his father in his kage robes. But seeing as he was still in uniform, he greeted the man by kneeling, head down, and waiting to be acknowledged or told how to proceed.
"Report," Ryoku ordered.
"Mission success," Takeshi reported, he had arrived back at nighttime when only the main gate was open, the guards being Anbu and not Chunin.
"Excellent," Ryoku said, "You may rest, but proceed with your next mission, all preparations must be complete for when I step down."
"Hai, Mizukage-sama," Takeshi said, then vanished from his spot on the ground knowing that he was being dismissed.
With his son away on to his next mission, the mission scroll being left in a special pocket dimension in the timeline of the world, Ryoku himself teleported back to his office, as the paperwork still needed to be finished.
#
The wedding ceremony that joined Toukou Ryoku and Terumi Mei, was an uneventful one, nothing totally out of the ordinary happened. Thre were guests, of noble and royal blood, as well as those that weren't even human.
No one attacked the temple, no one that was not invited had done anything similar to crashing the wedding, or the wedding reception and after party for that matter.
Everything went perfectly the way that Mei and her mother had planned it. All was thanks to Ryoku who had made sure that his alter egos were the security details for all three events. Making sure that no saboteur was able to ruin the happy occassion. There were those that tried, and once again it was orchestrated by Danzo, most of them any way. A fair number of the nins that tried to sneak in or gate crash were Kumo-nin, and there were even a few Iwa and Kusa nin mixed.
"So..where is home?" Mei asked Ryoku when they were finally alone, when they left the party, or rather the village wide celebration, they had retreated to the Mizukage's Office.
"Just a little while longer," Ryoku said as he opened up a portal to his home, his only real home in the world.
A door suddenly popped out of nowhere right in front of where he was standing, and he opened it and beckoned her to enter..
"Ladies first," he said.
"Ok," Mei said and walked through, Ryoku followed her. As he closed the door from the other side the one in his office disappeared just as Kisame, Yagura, and Raiga, entered the office planning on playing a prank of the happy couple. They freaked out when they saw a door in the middle of the room vanish like it was never there.
What Mei found on the otherside was a Ryoku's cabin, the same one he lived in with the first person he named Takeshi. They were somewhere in the mountains of Mori no Kuni.
"Where are we?" Mei asked as she looked around the relatively peaceful looking place, she also admired all the nature around her.
"We are on a mountain somewhere in Mori no Kuni," Ryoku replied, and picked her up bridal style to take her into his home, that they may begin performing the consumation rites of the marriage.
Once inside, he put her down, on the single bed in the cabin. It wasn't messy like when the Rikudou Sennin used to live with Ryoku. The whole place was neat, and clean, there was no evidence that Ryoku had not been there for some time.
"What is this place? Since when have you had it?" she asked him from the bed.
"This is my home in this world," Ryoku said, "I lived here for many years. Kagemusha also lived here with me in the past, back when he was but a child."
"You mean to tell me that this place has lasted for countless years?" she asked astonished and awed.
"Magic can do many things," Ryoku said, "Seals too."
"So..are you going to just stand there all night, or are you going to perform your duty?" she asked, a bit of her imaptience leaking into her voice.
Before removing any of his or her clothing, Ryoku removed his eye patch, Mei was slightly surprised by the action, she didn't know what she would find behind the patch. She was really surprised when she gazed at both of his eyes, the one that stuck to one color and the other one that seemed to cycle through all the colors in existence.
Ryoku calmed his energies, in effect causing his eye to shift slowly, then settled on emerald green.
"So the only reason you hide that eye is because of the way it looks?" she asked him curious.
"Not really," Ryoku said, "The other reason is that it seals away my aura, which you can't feel right now since I am not letting it flare, that and that I am relaxed and comfortable with your presence."
"Oh," she said, not knowing what else she could say or ask.
"Are you just going to sit there, or am I going to have to peel off those clothes off myself?" Ryoku asked teasingly.
"What do you think?" Mei asked him.