Introverted
Chapter Fifty-Four
Orochimaru of the Sannin was tone deaf.
Although that statement still did not describe properly how bad of a singer he was, Naruto supposed that it would have to do for the situation at hand. He never knew how one could 'supposedly' be a hostage and at the same time not, but apparently, he fitted the bill perfectly.
He wasn't tied. If he wanted, he could run away with ease. The problem of course would be being captured right back again by the two S-ranked shinobi who were currently escorting him —for lack of a better term— towards some place that was supposed to tell him the truth.
Naruto grumbled as he watched the snow slowly stop, the closer they went to the sea. They had completely ignored the cities and the villages of the Land of Frost, avoiding their few patrols and travellers. Leaving no trace of their passage, they made their way to the coast.
"What exactly are you hoping to achieve?" he asked one night, eying the Snake Sannin.
"Oh, I'm glad you asked," Orochimaru remarked carefully. "I plan on exterminating every single living being in the entire world," he smiled brightly, as if he had just told a child he was going to an amusement park or somewhere fun.
Naruto shuddered.
He didn't dare to ask again.
The trip gratefully ended after a few days of terse silence from Itachi and horrible singing from Orochimaru, as they finally reached the border of the Land of Frost with the sea.
The waves hurling against the sandy beach, covered in a light sheen of ice, were a majestic spectacle to behold. Their clear azure colours refracted the light of the sun and the magnificent pure blue of the sky, which held no clouds no matter how far Naruto looked for them.
Icebergs floated harmlessly further away near the horizon, and as Orochimaru opened up a scroll with quick movements of his long fingers, he began to hum contently to himself.
The call, if such a thing he could call the strange pulling sensation that seemed to grip at his very being, was enticing and rhythmic, like the lullaby of a nursery song.
He couldn't place it among the few songs he had ever heard, but whatever it was, it felt catchy.
"Judging by my calculations," Orochimaru spoke then calmly, "The island should be…in that direction," he thrust his arm forward, pointing between two icebergs. "We just need to make a trip of a few miles."
"Are we going to swim?" Naruto asked, his gaze going from the clearly cold water to the far off distance.
"If you enjoy that sort of thing then yes, by all means do so. I will take a better mean of transport," the snake sannin then bit his thumb, summoning forth a giant blue-skinned snake with picturesque depictions on its scales of the underwater floor. The snake could easily be as tall as a three floors building, at least judging by Naruto's eye.
"This here is Croat, Croat? Say hello to Naruto-kun."
"Hello," the giant snake replied with a soft voice, barely a whisper. Orochimaru rolled his golden eyes.
"He is incredibly shy with strangers, but he has the most powerful poison of the entire summoning contract…and is also one of the few means of transportation above water that I know of," with a hop, he jumped on the back of the snake.
"Hello?" Naruto replied nervously, eying the gigantic snake from head to tail with worry.
"All aboard the snake train now," the Sannin remarked. "We can't miss our target after all."
Then, Orochimaru flexed his legs as if expecting to surf atop the head of Croat.
Itachi too, who was generally always at ease, held himself as if he was about to be flying away at any moment. Naruto wasn't stupid. He kneeled and held himself tightly with his hands too to the skin of the summoned animal, letting his chakra stick him to the surface.
The next few minutes proved him correct, as the snake nearly soared through the water with the same speed a Maito Gai would.
Leaving behind a trail in the water, the wind slapping strongly on their faces, the snake's speed was beyond doubt inhuman. They passed by the middle of the two icebergs, heading towards the deepest waters and the horizon.
Orochimaru spoke no words, or if he did, the wind dispersed them.
Naruto's eyes peered through the salty air forward, his gaze slowly attracted to an island that was coming closer and closer. It looked as if two small hills had emerged from the seabed, and with time vegetation had covered them.
"There is a barrier, close by," Orochimaru's neck had extended to reach his ear.
"Gah!" Naruto exclaimed, looking at the face of the sannin mere inches in front of him. "What the hell!"
"Calm yourself," Orochimaru's tone was pissed now. "This is nothing to be surprised about," the golden eyes of the snake sannin peered through his own, before a smile blossomed on his lips. "We are going to keep the pressure off your back Naruto-kun, so while we do that, you need to head for the Waterfall of Truth. It's right at the centre of the island, you can't miss it."
Orochimaru licked his lips. "Try to act as quietly as you can, all right?"
His neck snapped back, returning to his body at the head of the snake. Naruto closed his eyes and grimaced.
The snake suddenly curled in the water, before snapping up and jumping out of the water. It sailed through the air with its fangs bared, before landing its jaws against the…
The neck of the island?
Naruto jumped out of instinct, his hands grabbing on the branch of a tree on the biggest 'hill' of the thing just as both Orochimaru and Itachi dashed ahead in the direction of the thing's 'head'.
He widened his eyes as realization dawned on him that the thing was not a simple volcanic island created when an underwater volcano erupted. It was an old and still living giant tortoise. The ground trembled as screams echoed from the mouth of the turtle, while explosions and the noises of techniques echoed further away from his position.
Naruto laid low on the ground, closing his eyes and letting the noises filter through as he waited for his moment. He felt the ground tremble, heard the frantic calls of shinobi through their radios…
"Call reinforcements! There are two S-rank! We have to—"
"We must evacuate—"
"Warn Raikage-sama!"
He charged then, his soul snarling at him, longing for something that was deeper and deeper into the forest on the back of the living beast. The trees parted to reveal a meadow, where water was gushing down from a waterfall that held no visible point of 'recharge'.
His heart felt as if daggers were piercing through it, his stomach burned and his breathing grew ragged as he took another step forth.
Naruto gagged. He gasped and coughed, his flesh pulsing and trembling as he could swear he could hear the blood rushing from his ears. The waters of the waterfall began to boil.
He fell down on one knee. He should have used the opportunity to run away, not to follow through with Orochimaru's orders. Now, what else was there to do but get through it?
Naruto wobbled back up, grounding his teeth and snarling. He wasn't some weak willed bastard who'd tremble and die from some sort of unknown sickness. He was Naruto Uzumaki, and he was destined for greatness.
"Those are bold words," a tight voice spoke crisply, as a figure emerged from the waters of the waterfall.
Spiked blond hair, a long white trench coat, a necklace of beads…holding on to a staff with…a sword strapped to…
His mind short-circuited.
"To be destined is seldom to be happy," the figure remarked as he took careful steps forward. "To be prophesized is rarely to be blessed," the deep purple rings that surrounded the man's eyes shone slightly. "To be different is rarely a gift, and more of a curse."
With those words, the Sage of the Six paths stood in front of Naruto Uzumaki…and then he sat down on a nearby chair, that appeared out of nowhere.
"Eh?" Naruto blinked.
"It's been a while since I sat down on something," the Sage said with a small smile gracing his lips, while stretching his back and yawning slightly.
"Ohi," Naruto said. "No long-winded philosophical discussion?"
"Don't feel like it," the Sage retorted shrugging. "Frankly? You don't need one, kid."
There was a sloshing sound, and a bottle of sake found its way in the Sage's hands.
"You're drinking sake?" Naruto asked out. He looked around once more, trying to take in the ever-changing surroundings. This wasn't some sort of strange Genjutsu, was it? Something extremely fishy and strange meant to lower his guard and…
"Calm down, kiddo!" the Sage said suddenly, waving his arms. "Just relax and take it easy, all right? You've done your job well enough, you'll return to it eventually so just…take five, if you know what I mean."
"You are the sage of the six paths?" Naruto asked in a slow, questionable voice. "You?"
"Yes," the Sage nodded back. "You see the eyes? Back in my times, they got me all the ladies I could wish for."
"You are the one who brought chakra to the shinobi," Naruto continued, "The one who founded the shinobi system, who trapped the Ten Tails inside of his body and became the first Jinchuuriki?"
"Yes again," he replied.
"You then split him in nine, and formed the nine Bijuu."
"And once more, correct," the Sage clapped heartedly. "Want a prize?"
"No serious philosophical lines? No 'Repent, see the truth!' stuff now? Really?" Naruto's eyes were wide in disbelief.
"Ah…yes, I suppose being this place the 'waterfall of truth' I should give you some sort of encouragement, right?" the sage made a small smile with his lips, before closing his eyes and bringing both hands behind his head. "I'm not going to tell you how to live your life," he added in a murmured voice. "Everyone has their own belief of 'right' and 'wrong'. Live with whatever rocks your boat…as long as it lets you sleep at night, it's the right way."
Naruto chuckled as he slumped down on the water. "Only that? Really?"
"You seem so surprised," the sage remarked. "Normally I admit the waterfall would show you your dark self, but apparently you sealed it away together with Kurama," the man shook his head with a hint of grief visible for an instant over his features. "It seems the faults of the fathers will always befall their children."
"Right!" Naruto's hands clapped together. "Explain it!" he said with a light growl. "Tell me…what was Kurama trying to say? What's going to happen in a year?"
"You are," the Sage answered quietly, "Although that is still up to debate."
"I am?" Naruto parroted. "But…me? Orochimaru was right?"
"And wrong at the same time," the Sage replied. "There are actually two more who can fit the criteria. Then again, depending on how you squint your eyes there can also be thousands. One 'taught' by the Toad sage could very well be Sai instead of you, or also a reader who tries a new sexual position after reading Icha-Icha Learn to Please."
Naruto's right hand went to his forehead, as he closed his eyes for a moment. "I just didn't hear the Sage of the Six paths say that."
"Why not? My, in my times there was only the missionary position, and after a while it was boring to—"
"I don't want to discuss your sex life!" Naruto yelled with his eyes wide. "I want to know what I'm supposed to do to make things right!"
"That's up to you," the Sage retorted with a light chuckle. "You could return to Konoha, get a slap on the wrist because you're too important to kill or punish, and then wait and see how the world reacts."
There was a heavy sigh. "You could go to Iwagakure, accept the offer of the Tsuchikage and turn the tables on him," the Sage suggested. "You could go to Kumo, to Suna —you could even keep on following Orochimaru. Who do you think I am, your nanny? You are the one who has to choose. No glass can be broken, if no hand wields the stone."
"Do what you want," Naruto grumbled. "You're not going to try and tell me that—"
"Why should I tell you where you are wrong? You chose that wrongness, thus you made it true. Some people enjoy living in a lie all their life. Would you consider it wrong to feast on human flesh? Nevertheless, some summonses do that. Would you feed on the dreams of children? Some summoned creatures do that too. In the end, what purpose does it serve to be right or wrong? It matters what you do, not how you do it."
"I killed children, wives, elderly…"
"And their faces and their screams will forever remain inside your head, forming scars that will never heal. There is no magic sponge that makes everything better, no forgetful potion to erase the guilt your soul can feel…but just like it is easy to forgive oneself, so too it must be easy to forgive others, right?"
"Forgiveness?"
"To forgive, to love, to accept…the shinobi world is filled with hatred, revenge, evil…but that doesn't mean it can't be changed. There are many who live respectable lives, who found their place, their reality. Evil cannot always be forgotten…but it can be forgiven."
"So I should forgive? Orochimaru, he…"
"I know your heart claims for his blood, after all his were the underlings that killed your sensei but…will that change anything? Even if it did, even if it didn't…the past will always remain unchanged."
"Ah, here is the philosophical discussion," Naruto sighed. "I was waiting for this."
"You're the one who's asking me questions. Is it a bit too ingrained in you to follow orders, perhaps?"
"A good shinobi does not ask, he obeys," Naruto quoted.
"I never said that," the Sage grumbled. "I made a single, simple rule. You'd have to wonder how they managed to change it into something else. I mean, I told them all to 'Have a Good Heart'. And what do they do? They get the entire use of Chakra and turn it into a killing business. Where did I go wrong? I should have written on a mountain 'No Killing With Chakra' but even then, I'm sure some imbecile would have erased the 'No'."
"How am I talking to you?" Naruto asked then, eying the sake bottle that never seemed to empty no matter the amount of swings the Sage gave it.
"Chakra lingers," the Sage remarked. "Powerful chakra lingers strongly. Ghosts are nothing more than a by-product of too much chakra left to impress upon a specific location." The man rolled his circled purple eyes. "I left some impressed into my favourite summon, waiting for the sheer chance one would come forward wielding more than a single Bijuu within them. I needed to warn them, after all."
"You're doing a fine job making no sense whatsoever," Naruto deadpanned. "I expected fire, thunder…you know, you're the sage of the six paths, you're practically a venerated god. Why the hell did you just pop out from nowhere with a sake bottle in hand?"
"Does it matter the form the message is delivered, as long as it is delivered?" the Sage retorted, "And I thought it would look cool, 'ttebayo."
"What was that?"
"Nothing," the sage looked actually flustered, "It's only a slip of the tongue, nothing more."
"That sounded…"
"Listen here and listen well," the Sage growled. "The Ten Tails must not be reformed. There are two ways to prevent that… one that is the easy way, and one that is the most difficult one. Of both, you are the one who has to choose."
"So you're going to tell me what those ways are?"
"You already know of them," the Sage retorted. "Either you will bring forth the salvation of the world…or you will bring forth its destruction. You will become either the demon the world needs, or its hero. Let me tell you that at present, you're doing a great job at being a demon."
Naruto closed his eyes, bringing his fingers to massage his temples. "Let's say I believe those are the only two ways. Why are they the only two ways?"
"As long as people live, they feel. It might seem nothing, but love, sadness, happiness or anger…they all leave something in the world. Chakra is the energy that comes from within, from our very soul. It can be Yin or Yang, it can be positive or negative, but it leaves our body naturally with time and merges with the Senjutsu chakra."
The Sage brought his hands together, before tapping his index fingers together and then separating them, forming a circle in the air.
"As long as there is a balance, then everything is fine. As long as some people love, others can grief. If someone hates, another can laugh. Balance is extremely difficult to achieve however, since you can either increase the minor part of the two or you can squash down the greater part."
The circle of light blue chakra filled half with white and half with black, forming the Yin-Yang symbol.
"However, those amounts left in the Earth were nothing more than mere specks. It was when I unlocked the secrets to using Chakra…that things took a turn for the worse," here the Sage grimaced. "The amount simply increased, and balance was broken. It shattered apart," the black side began to engulf the white in the chakra circle floating in the air. "To have a good heart, to offset the evil, that was capricious of me to think. There cannot be good without evil, or evil without good. A world made solely of light is unable to exist. A world only of darkness is doomed to wither and die."
His eyes locked with Naruto's.
"Balance must be achieved. What, do you think, is alive?" the Sage asked then.
"Uh?"
"What do you define as 'living'? Does a rock live? Does a snake? Does a tree? Anything that can change…then lives. Be it a corpse rotting beneath the sun, or a mountain peak slowly eroding to water. As long as there is change, then there is life."
The Yin and Yang began to spin slowly. "Peace left the place to war, and war to peace," he continued. "But anger, hatred, revenge…those feelings never left. Is the Earth alive to begin with, Naruto? Are we nothing but parasites in the end?"
"So, the Ten Tails…the Jubi, he's a good guy?" disbelief laced Naruto's question, as he stared wide-eyed at the sage's completely serious face.
"That is the crux of the matter," the Sage acquiesced. "With Chakra used for evil purposes, the Jubi came to be to remove it. Like a father, he punished the unruly children with overwhelming strength and severity. Like a monster, he showed no mercy."
"And then you sealed it away," Naruto added. "So that he couldn't complete his purpose."
"Indeed… and when my time came to an end, after I preached long and wide about the dangers of using Chakra wrongly, I was met with a choice on who to name my heir."
"The Senju and the Uchiha ancestors, right?"
"I chose the youngest one," he sighed. "Thinking back on it, I should have chosen someone else entirely. Why is it that brothers always have to fight? I loved them both dearly…and they turned that love into a competition, that competition into hatred, and that hatred became the foundation of the shinobi arts to kill."
He shook his head softly. "If I could spin back the hourglass of time, I'd turn their asses red from slaps."
Naruto nearly choked at the mental image. "Why did you split the Jubi apart?"
"Because he was too powerful," the Sage replied. "He wasn't simply strong, or filled with chakra. He was powerful. You know what it means, to face overwhelming odds? To literally be in the presence of a god that you have to fight without escape? I could have probably lived for hundreds of years, but my life shortened by merely holding that beast within. I had no choice in the end: I split him into nine pieces and taught each of them to have faith, and wait for the day where they would finally find peace."
The Sage's face slowly showed a small smile.
"I dreamed of a place with no hatred, with no death, no misery, no violence…a place where no evil can grow and fester uncontrolled and unchecked…and that was how I dreamed of two earths, rather than one."
"One was of charred ground and another of peace?" Naruto muttered back. "Nice dreams you have."
"You picking up a fight?" the Sage snarled. "I'd like to see you find another way."
Naruto shook his head, before carefully opening his hand. "So, this is all there is?"
"Yes," the Sage acquiesced. "But problems cannot be ignored, Naruto," he grimaced. "The more a problem is ignored, the more it will fester and grow, until it will inevitably reach a proportion beyond salvation."
"So, what you're saying is that there's no magical aid?"
"Exactly," the Sage chuckled. "Facing one's problems, accepting one's actions, acknowledging one's weakness… is the way forward."
Naruto's heart clenched painfully. He hissed, as he felt a wave of hot air pressurize down on his neck. "Argh…" he moaned, as his head thrummed and his ears ringed. "W-What is…"
The sage's hands went to his shoulders, firmly clasping on them as his eyes narrowed on Naruto's. "There are paths that one must travel, before he may claim to know the world. There are things that one must acknowledge, before he can claim to know. There might be a third way, beyond destruction or forced peace, but I do not know of it. Balance must last, for there is no hope beyond the end of the year for you all."
"I'm the one who has to save the world then?"
"As I told you before…"
"I'm not going to believe a wanker is the prophesized one no matter the way you put it, old man," Naruto grumbled.
"Who are you calling an old man?" the Sage retorted hotly, a nervous tick mark on his forehead. "I'll let you know I'm in the prime of my youth."
"Still old," Naruto retorted. A twinge of pain sliced his heart. "I…I better leave?"
"When you meet Gyuki, tell him…" the Sage smiled warmly. "Tell him that violence never solved anything."
The world around Naruto shattered then, and with a heavy gasp of air, he felt his entire body flung backwards as the waterfall exploded. His hands came up, shielding him with sand that rose from the ground to protect him as jagged rocks slammed against the impromptu mass of gravel.
The water drained quickly in the pond, leaving behind nothing but a muddied hole. Beyond the waterfall was now visible a cave, where the lullaby called to him even stronger than before. Yet, abruptly, the song ceased.
The ground cracked as the trees splintered. A scream describable only as that of a mournful spirit ruptured the very air. Fissures spread on the soil; crimson mist sprayed out, colouring of red the grass and the trees. The stench of rot filled the winds, and Naruto couldn't help but slam his right foot on the ground to jump high above it all, to try and understand what the devastation was about.
His answer came from his very soul, as the Nibi whispered with a quiet voice.
"Once a summon has finished its task, it will unsummon."
Naruto's hands went through the hand seals for a summoning, before he bit down on his thumb to call forth a bird to hold him in the air.
A giant vulture —but not Hagewashi— answered the call, and as he gracefully landed on its back, he eyed the devastation wrought upon the island.
The giant tortoise was screaming in pain, as centuries of rocks, tree roots and branches broke away from its shell. It couldn't unsummon however, for some reason Naruto didn't understand.
"She tried hard to remain among the living, defying even Death," the Nibi whispered. "Now, wounded and poisoned, without enough chakra to return home…I suppose it's just fitting for someone to end her suffering, rather than let her die by the hand of venom upon a foreign land."
Naruto's hand went to the handle of the Butcher's cleaver. He held it sideways, giving a light tap to the vulture's back who understood his intention.
Wind chakra formed on the sides of the cleaver, so strongly that a gale began to blow upon the waters. The vulture cawed before plummeting down, flapping its powerful wings to increase its speed.
The whistling noise of the wind grew louder and louder, as Naruto clenched his teeth and held his tongue steady. Was it merciful, to kill someone in pain?
His hands stopped trembling from the pressure of the descent. Chakra flared briefly to increase the length of the butcher's sword, and then Naruto jumped down from the back of the bird, silent as if the action itself wasn't suicidal to begin with.
Time seemed to slow as he poured all the chakra he could muster through the blade as he brought it down. The death would be quick, painless. It actually didn't matter that 'Croat' was in the way. He'd unsummon probably. In a single instant in which there was nothing but silence filling his head, Naruto felt at ease.
This was his nature. He was a weapon, deadly, lethal, and powerful. His power went beyond the mere knowledge of techniques or the amount of chakra. In that single instant of pure adrenaline, his heart drummed strongly and a smile formed on his face.
Then the cleaver came down.
Blood sprayed for a single instant, tinging the waters of the ocean in crimson puddles. An enormous explosion of smoke rocked next, pushing away Naruto from the water's surface. The Vulture grabbed his back with the tip of its beak, pulling him back on his shoulders between its wings.
Naruto gasped for air staring at the devastation brought by his attack, as his throat twitched in desperate need to let something escape.
A dry chuckle emerged from his lips; the boy shook his head in disbelief.
"Really," he chuckled, bringing his right hand to cover his face. "What a mess."
"Where to, summoner?" the Vulture asked.
To that question, Naruto now knew the answer very well.
"Iwagakure," he remarked. "Never trade an unknown threat for one you know of," he added in a meek whisper.
There was really no need to stick around for either Orochimaru or Itachi. Orochimaru hadn't forced him to follow him, and the meeting with the Sage had actually yielded some interesting and insightful answers to the problem at hand.
He wondered, his gaze settling on the clouds that streaked by in the sky while his arms crossed in front of his chest, if freedom was peace.
People generally considered clouds peaceful, and they were free. Yet at the same time, wind enslaved them to his will. Sheep lived in ignorance, guided by their shepherds…but they were peaceful. A form of law always had to exist, when society came to be. Wasn't that just the final proof that humanity could not rule itself?
Given chakra, they had devolved to brutally. Without it, they still fought with steel and tore apart countries. He shook his head, letting the wind ruffle through his hair. "A wasteland of sand or a meadow of silence," he mumbled. "There has to be a third way…" he stared at the black wings of his summon, "If you call bonds shackles, then you enslave. If you call shackles bonds, then you bring together people."
"It's all a matter of perspective, after all," he chuckled again, taking one last steadying breath.
"I'm getting married, I suppose."
Mei Terumi
"I told the Raikage we have nothing to do with it!" she hissed. "Zabuza is dead, we burned his corpse and someone took his sword!"
Candles softly lighted the office of the Mizukage, as a thick woolly carpet occupied much of the floor. There was a desk, a few cerulean tinted windows and a few armchairs. A fire crackled in the nearby fire pit, casting lights and shadows over the face of the Kumogakure ambassador.
"But what if he isn't dead…" the white haired man was getting on her nerves. His name was Omoi, and he was there either to suck Kirigakure dry or to force a war against them with a Casus Belli.
"There are no what ifs!" she nearly shrieked, instead opting for a light hiss. "Someone is trying to pin the blame on Kirigakure."
"An entire squad of Kumogakure shinobi blames your Demon of the Hidden Mist, Mizukage," Omoi retorted dryly. "One might be a traitor, but all of them?"
"Maybe they all need glasses," Mei retorted. "Listen, ambassador, we do not have the sword. We are looking for it as we speak! You think we would lie about having lost it?"
"Why not? You could lie about having it to avoid looking weak, or you could lie about not having it to keep the Demon hidden and use him," Omoi said, "And what if it's all a ploy within a ploy, and in truth you're actually protecting a secret by not protecting it and thus you really don't have the sword?"
"Yes! We don't have the sword!"
"But because you said you don't have the sword, what if you do have the sword?"
Mei closed her eyes and took a deep, sharp breath. "Ao, show the ambassador the door to his rooms. We'll talk with him more tomorrow."
"Follow me," Ao said then crisply, entering from the door and stepping right next to Omoi who made a dry 'tsk' sound.
"Raikage-sama told me to stay only one day," Omoi said briskly, his gaze moving from Ao to the Mizukage. "If you do not wish to admit your fault in the matter, then I will leave today."
"No doubt tomorrow there will be a fleet from the North," Mei hissed. "You already have some men prepared, haven't you?"
"We can no longer remain blind to this threat," Omoi said, his eyes flicking towards the windows.
"There will be no need for any explosive escapes," Mei stated, a small smile settling on her plump lips. "You are free to go then, and while you're at it do inform your Raikage that if it was a war he asked…then a war he will receive."
With those words said, Ao escorted Omoi out of the office of the Mizukage, where two Kirigakure Anbu would then finish 'guiding' him outside the village.
Mei stood up then, as the door closed, and turned to watch the village from the window. The entire structure was new, just like much of the village. There were barely a few buildings that had survived the onslaught of the three tails, and of those, she ordered many brought down to be on the safe side.
She disliked acting rashly, too many times people around her called her 'hot-blooded' because of that, as if they were funny, making a pun on her bloodline ability. She closed her eyes for a moment, taking a deep breath. Within the end of the day, the village would know of war looming over the horizon. Within the end of the week, the first casualties would trickle in with ink and paper reports. Within the end of the month, the other nations would know.
Within the end of the year, she'd be either standing on the ruined ashes of Kumogakure, or with her legs open and popping out babies for the Raikage and his ilk.
She bit on her lips furiously. She'd rather die than become a breeding cow for Kumo.
Mei's hand went to the lock of hair that covered half of her face, and slowly, she removed it to stare at her reflection in the mirror. Scars covered that side of her face, scars and burn marks. The fight against the previous Mizukage had not been without its price, and her body had been one of the things that went first.
Still, she had gladly paid the price for the power she now had. She was the Mizukage, and she, alone, decided the lives of those within Kiri.
"Bring in that representative of Gato industries," she remarked then, apparently to no one, "He and I will have a chat face to face about some...troubling events."
A deal with the devil more, one less…what difference did it make?
Isobu
Everything was his.
Everything belonged to him.
Everyone was his toy, his object of desire, his possession —whether they knew it or not, they all where his in the end. Closed away from the rest of the world, he slept within his own shell. Everything was his, the ground, the water, the air…
It all belonged to him.
The Sin of Greed fed him, and the more he wanted the more he had, the more he had the better he was, the better he was the more he could obtain. The bar of greed never lowered, but always increased. If someone had a hundred, they desired two hundred, then four hundred, then tens of hundreds. If someone was happy and their neighbour was happier, they desired their happiness, their wealth, and their possessions.
The ugly wife changed for the beautiful one. The money in the household increased for no other reason but greed and desire for more.
He felt all that as he rested, and suddenly, he felt more.
His tails swished back and forth. They trembled, as his body wracked with spasms. It was coming. He could feel it deep within his very essence. The time of war, the time where Misery, Death, Greed, Revenge, Arrogance Disgust, Ignorance, Violence and Malice ruled the world and the minds of humans would come once more. Blood would pour on the ground; screams would reach upon the very foundations of heaven itself.
He would be there, to watch it all fall.
He heard the desires, he felt their greed…and in the end, he knew where he had to go.
"I am coming," he spoke in the depths of the sea, his left eye shining as it opened. "Brothers, sisters," he said, "I will lend my aid."
His hands gripped tightly on the seabed, lifting clouds of sand as he flexed his fingers and arms. The next moment, he pushed himself away from the bottom of the sea with a single powerful push. He rose through the water quickly, spinning around as fast as he could.
He emerged from the water with a bellowing roar, as corals formed to cover the sea's surface. He landed atop a platform of them, crunching a few beneath his weight and firmly gripping on his impromptu raft.
Isobu flexed his muscles again, and once more, he jumped. He'd have to hurry…he didn't want to miss his cue, after all.
Karin
Konoha was a village of imbeciles. If the Spandex-clad man assigned to be her escort wasn't enough to prove it, then there was the stupid tanned girl who was also a Jinchuuriki, and who was on permanent 'patrol' duty around Konoha. She was there too to begin with, but 'this and that' and 'oh well, can't help it' made it all the more understandable.
She bit her lips, letting the pleasurable sensation wash over her mouth as blood trickled on her tongue. There was nothing for miles around them, except Konoha ninjas, yet since the return from the Land of Iron security had tripled.
"Karin-chan! Have your youthful flames found anything!?"
She shook her head. "No," she replied. "Nothing. There are only Konoha shinobi as far as I can see."
If someone had told her she'd be working for Konoha in the end, she'd have laughed at them, butchered them into tiny pieces of flesh and then raped their corpse cold with barbed wire, before setting the person in question on fire for daring to even joke about it. She could manage that without actually 'killing' them completely —the special qualities of her blood always managed to surprise her somehow.
Yet in the end, here she was, working for Konoha.
"Ah! I see! Yosh!" Gai exclaimed once more, fist pumping in the air. "Then we will move to the South Gate! If we cannot reach it in five minutes, then I will make five laps around Konoha!"
"Oh! Oh! A game!" Fu yelled back, clapping her hands excitedly. "Let's play! Let's play!"
Karin narrowed her eyes, and then tapped gently on the bulge that was below her stomach.
"Ahem, pregnant kunoichi here," she bitterly muttered. "No running."
Author's notes
…
The reason I'm late with the update? I had to scrap and rewrite the Waterfall of Truth scene a dozen of times. No use putting Dark Naruto there, hence the Sage making his appearance. And the bit with Karin was, well…
*Chuckles quietly* now I dare the pairing guys to find out what 'pairing' this is. It could be NaruKuro, NaruKarin, NaruSakur…or, of course, it could be no pairing at all as stated on the tin.
Ah…the beauty of being The writer? I now know how it ends. I give this…maybe twelve chapters more. (then my muse might prove me wrong and go further, but we are reaching the finishing stretch)
