Thanks to everyone who left a review on the last chapter as well those who subscribed and favourited this story. The response has been near overwhelming. This is a bit longer than the last chapter and I will usually write longer than this at least 8K and at most like 13K. Size matters, people.

Hiruzen sighed as he sat in Naruto's room in a hospital. He had wanted to light his pipe, but he had a feeling the nurses and doctors would not appreciate that. Village leader or not.

Konoha had multiple hospitals. Some were designated for civilian use and others for shinobis only. There were three civilian hospitals and six Shinobi hospitals of varying size and quality. The largest hospital, the Hashirama Senju General, had the greatest capabilities of them all.

It could house up to 4000 patients, which was just about 20% of Konoha's maximum shinobi force including retired shinobi. Of course, Konoha's full force was rarely in its walls at all times.

Konoha was seldom at full military strength. They were a large number of shinobi stationed outside major Hi no Kuni towns as well as in countries with alliances with Hi no Kuni like Kawa no Kuni.

Konoha was strong of that Hiruzen was certain. They had never lost a war, but that did not mean they did not suffer all the same. Countless of shinobi were killed, hundreds of towns razed and many families were broken throughout the past three wars and countless skirmishes in between.

Some of these skirmishes were a result of squabbles between the Daimyo of various countries. In fact, the first shinobi war had been a result of trade deals collapsing during the dawn of the shinobi villages. The villages replaced the samurai of the Daimyo and a full-blown war spread across the lands.

The initial agreement between the Fire Daimyo and Hashirama had been worked upon by Tobirama and then again by Hiruzen himself. Daimyo still had a large amount of sway, but the Hokage was now given the power to deliberate and vote on matters concerning Hi no Kuni.

It was why trade had never sprung between Tsuchi no Kuni and Hi no Kuni. Onoki and Hiruzen did not trust the other nation nearly enough to ally with officially. The wounds of the past stung all too sharply for them even as old as they were.

Currently, no major country was allied with another except for Kaze no Kuni and Hi no Kuni. Suna, as well as various towns, were given supplies from Hi no Kuni and the tradeoff was more missions being redirected to Konoha. A stipulation Hiruzen had added himself.

It was a strenuous relationship. Rasa, the current Kazekage, was far too proud to accept his own Daimyo looking elsewhere for missions. The benefit to his country and village only barely stayed his hand.

It was why Hiruzen would have ensured that the village was far more prepared for anything had Rasa come to Konoha with a delegation. It was only a matter of time before Rasa would seek to sever the alliance one way or another. Hiruzen expected it.

He did not expect this from Taki.

The lesser village leaders usually held far less sway and control over the country. Some like Yugakure were essentially formal bandit camps that the Daimyo wanted next to nothing to do with. Yugakure was on the brink of collapse and their Daimyo was no small part of the reason.

Yugakure could not even retaliate as their Daimyo's standing army dwarfed that of Yugakure and of course, the Daimyo could and would hire shinobi from other villages. Instead, Yugakure was destined to die a slow death. They probably would not exist in the next five years.

Other countries like Kusa no Kuni and Ame no Kuni were almost the exact opposite. The village leaders had taken swift control of their home nation and even went as far to rename the country after the village.

The only reason Ame and Kusa never became major villages was due to their rather harsh climate and low population levels. Kusa had dense forestry filled with various poisonous plants and insects which razed crops and towns causing many civilians to flee ages ago.

Ame, on the other hand, suffered too much soil erosion due to the high amounts of rainfall and thus could not produce enough crops. It also made for a very depressing place to live. People left both countries for more ideal locations like Hi no Kuni or other countries more suitable to human life.

Both countries were almost self-sufficient and they dealt almost exclusively with each other when it came to trade. Ame had mines rivalling that of Tsuchi and Kaze no Kuni whilst Kusa grew just enough crops in shinobi-protected fields to trade with Ame.

Takigakure and Kawa no Kuni suffered none of these problems, however. In fact, Kawa was one of the most arable places on the continent. However, Taki was far too small to cover all the bases and needed Konoha's help to appease their Daimyo lest she cut their funding.

They had allied with each other during Hashirama's reign and had been given the Nanabi as a gift of sorts to help alleviate the strain. They were the big winners of the alliance from Hiruzen's eyes as the alliance with Konoha as well as having a Bijū kept them safe from any invasion.

Taki had never fought a war with any major village. Their population topped out at 3000 at most. Their leader was far weaker than any clan leaders let alone shinobi like Kakashi, Jiraiya and Tsunade. They were weak and they knew it which was what confused Hiruzen.

He looked towards Naruto who still slept peacefully. Naruto had apparently used some of the Kyuubi's chakra (and all of his own) in some sort of signalling pulse after he had been abducted. Hiruzen suspected the Kyuubi had a hand in that as Naruto knew only the bare basics of chakra.

The seal was still intact and Jiraiya would soon be in the village to examine it. A second (and undoubtedly wiser) opinion was needed in this instance just in case Hiruzen missed anything. To do anything less would be foolish.

Why it happened did not matter, though. Taki tried to take a Konoha citizen. A citizen that was Konoha's only jinchuuriki. A jinchuuriki that was the only son of their last Kage. For a rather benevolent shinobi village, this was as colossal a mistake as they could have made.

The beeping of the heart rate monitor drew Hiruzen out of his thoughts and it was no moment too soon as he sensed someone rapidly approaching the room. There was a knock at the door before it began to open. Hiruzen recognised the chakra signature of Kakashi before he saw the jounin's face.

The man walked in dressed in his jounin attire. His face was as stoic and calm as ever. His eye only briefly looked over Naruto before he dropped to one knee, but he was made to rise almost immediately.

"Shinren-san has escaped, Hokage-sama," said Kakashi, "He left his entire entourage behind with a clone and managed to slip away. We believe he's heading to Taki as we speak. The delegation has already been detained."

Hiruzen was mildly impressed. Shinren had prepared for failure and in all likelihood was nowhere near the village at the time of Naruto's abduction. Some, including Hiruzen, would see Shinren abandoning his people as treacherous, but the shinobi in him also applauded it.

It was too bad it would be for nothing.

"I trust our patrols and outposts have been able to confirm this?"

Kakashi nodded, "Inochi-san received word from our scouts that he went directly to the Kawa border a few hours ago. The Fire Daimyo has also given his express approval for the decided course of action. He said he will handle the Kawa Daimyo."

Hiruzen was sure the Daimyo had approved of this without any deliberation. The noble court tended to drag their feet on a lot of matters, but this was not one of them. Hiruzen was sure the Daimyo knew he did not need to assemble his court.

Taki's attack was an outrage. Konoha's retaliation would be swift and harsh

Similarly, Hiruzen had not even bothered to assemble the council for a meeting. This was something that none of them would be able to sway him from doing. Ironically, Hiruzen believed they would all follow his lead on this one even Danzo would approve.

"Are the Anbu in position with the package?" said Hiruzen drawing one last nod from Kakashi, "Perfect. Send word to the clan heads that I'm leaving. Shikaku and Fugaku are in charge until I return. "

Hiruzen rose from his seat and he spared a look at Naruto before he left the hospital. He used the Shunshin to get to the top of the Hokage monument. The winds were stronger up here and the sky was still black. Sunrise would only come in about three hours.

He would be done before then.

Four shinobi stood nearby and they all bowed before they calmly awaited his orders. Three of the four stood further behind the last one as if to pay deference. It made sense considering the three were jounin whilst the last man was the head of the Hyuuga clan.

"The package is in place," said Hiruzen as he stood before them, "Hiashi, are you ready?"

Hiashi nodded stoically and Hiruzen turned his attention to the other three men. Their faces were grim as the seriousness of the situation pressed down on them and squeezed out any joviality.

"Genma, is your squad ready?" said Hiruzen to the most senior of the three jounin, "Time is of the essence. "

"We are ready when you are Hokage-sama," said Genma a senbon in his mouth, "We've already managed to sense the tag."

"Let's go then," said Hiruzen and he walked up to Hiashi and the others.

The three jounin surrounded Hiashi and Hiruzen in a triangular formation. They began to go through handseals before finally, they came to a stop at the same time. The jounin put their hands out to touch each other and their voices announced their jutsu in unison.

"Hiraijin no jutsu!"

Less than a second later The five shinobi disappeared in a yellow flash. The clifftop was soon empty as it's former occupants left with only one thought on their mind.

Revenge.

The Hiraijin squad along with Hiashi and Hiruzen appeared in a forested area. Around 20 Anbu were waiting for them and their leader, who stood in front of the others, wore a Tiger mask. Tiger bowed respectfully as did the other Anbu before Hiruzen finally spoke.

"Have you identified the location of Taki's tunnels?"

It was one of the few things that Taki could boast about. They had never been invaded and as such their village remained a mystery to the majority of the world. Of course, allies tended to know just a little bit more about each other due to simple things like visits to the village.

"I believe we've located around 70% of their tunnel system," said Tiger his tone tinged with annoyance, "The information we got on the range of the Sekaikan prevented us from going any deeper. However, we have identified various cave systems that we believe could lead to the village proper.

The information on the Sekaikan was reliable as it had been wrenched out the mind of Naruto's abductor by Inoichi himself. The furthest known range of it was thirteen kilometres and that was Shinren's range. They risked being discovered too soon if they went any closer.

Inoichi had tried to probe Ikado further to find out Taki's location, but Ikado died before Inoichi could pull it off. As it turned out, Taki had been able to procure a Juinjutsu (Cursed Seal Jutsu) that induced death upon interrogation on their location. It certainly cleared up how and why they had never been invaded.

It was possible that the seal only worked if someone tried to coax Taki's location from one of their shinobi. They had other Taki citizens, but it would be needlessly cruel to test that on them. Especially with what they were about to do.

"They will know we are coming," said Hiruzen his voice as solid as rock, "Alpha-1 and Beta-3 will go to the caves with Tiger. Destroy them. Ensure no one can get in or out. Hiashi will aid you with finding caves once he's done guiding the strike force to the village. The Hiraijin squad will teleport him to your location."

There would be no escape for Taki's citizens. Carnage would reign supreme and Hiruzen was sure their arrival was anticipated, but that would mean nothing.

A man may see a storm approaching, but there is little he can do to stop it.

"Tiger, take the Hiraishin beacon with you," said Hiruzen and Tiger picked it up from the ground, "Leave now. Only begin the demolition once Hiashi is by your side. Begin at the nearest site."

Nine of the Anbu took to the trees and Hiruzen took the time to take off his robes and hat. They were caught and sealed away by the Anbu closest to him and Hiruzen only briefly let his chakra flow speed up before slowing it down.

It was a silent call for attention that had the remaining shinobi on red alert. They would not be in the frontlines at all if all went to plan. They already had their orders. Raze all essential buildings and take anything of value. Jutsu, mission records, numbers and anything of the sort.

Hiruzen would serve as their distraction. In Hiruzen very unbiased opinion, he felt as though it would be a sufficient distraction. And that was not just his pride leaking through.

After all, who could ignore the God of Shinobi terrorising their village?

"Let's move."

Hiruzen breathed in deeply. In something of an unexpected move, no squads had been sent out to intercept them. It was likely that Shinren knew that Hiruzen was amongst the squad approaching his village and was looking to swarm him once he got to the village proper.

Not bad.

They sent out no one. Not even one shinobi. Hiashi reported that they were evacuating their citizens to an underground shelter. It was all futile. The civilians would have next to nothing to fear from them. This was not their fight.

Hiashi, who was leading the charge, slowed to a stop. Everyone followed suit and the clan leader turned to Hiruzen his Byakugan still active.

"We are now five hundred metres from Taki," said Hiashi, "There is a massive tree saturated with chakra in the centre of the village. I believe that this may be the source of their Hero's water."

The Hero's water was essentially a steroid that buffed one's chakra levels and potency. It was similar to the Eight Gates, but it damaged the user's chakra system instead of their bones and muscles.

Perhaps, Research and Development could find a better use for it.

"Anbu, avoid conflict where you can," said Hiruzen as he began to go through handseals, "Stick to the forest floor. Hiashi, please assist Tiger and his men. Once all of you are done, make for Konoba. Do not worry about me."

"I'll be fine."

Hiruzen finally finished his handseals. He felt his chakra flare and Hiruzen bit back a smile as Hiashi flinched ever so slightly. Hiruzen announced the name of his jutsu.

"Katon: Gōka Messhitsu (Fire Release: Great Fire Destruction)!"

A sea of fire erupted from Hiruzen's mouth and spread far and wide in front of the shinobi. The forest they were in rapidly caught fire and the flames continued to jump from tree to tree.

Within seconds, the previously quiet forest had descended into something of a nightmare and Hiashi was forced to deactivate his Byakugan. The sheer amount of chakra in the air making it pointless to keep it active.

"My chakra will cover yours from the Sekaikan," said Hiruzen as he lowered his hands from his mouth, "You'll know when this battle is over."

It felt as if it was the end of days for Taki.

Shinren had sensed Hiruzen's chakra the second he had entered his range. Their village had a record of having never been invaded, but not one of their shinobi would be able to halt the Hokage's charge.

No, it was better for them to wait. Shinobi were posted on the rooftops and the ground surrounding the Tree. There were also multiple shinobi in and around the Tree as well. Traps had been laid out and there were a few sentry squads, but the majority of the brawl would happen right by the tree. Hopefully, the battle would not spread too far and if things did not go so well then at least they still had that girl.

Shinren wondered what would happen if they lost here today. The attempt on Konoha's jinchuuriki had not been sanctioned by that coward of a Daimyo.

Lady Asuka would not dare strike out against the might Land of Fire. The lucrative trade deals and business options were too valuable to give up. Furthermore, She made use of Konoha shinobi just as much as, if not more than, Taki shinobi.

It was humiliating.

When Iwa had come up with an offer to help bolster the strength of their shinobi, how could he have said no? Iwa were not known to be trustworthy in the least, but the insignia of the Earth Daimyo on the proposal was worth Shinren's weight in gold.

Iwa were also vulnerable. At least as vulnerable as one of the Big Five could get. They still had multiple S-rank shinobis which included two jinchuuriki who both had a handle on their power.

If Taki could learn how to do the same for their jinchuuriki then all would be–

Shinren was drawn from his thoughts as he sensed Hiruzen immense signature come to a stop. Others around him also had the Sekaikan active and they realised just a little after that the Hokage had stopped his charge.

Shinren was about to speak when there was a massive flare of chakra. It had to have been the Hokage. Shinren could see even from this far away that there was an orange glow in the distance.

Fire.

The flames spread rapidly and the Taki shinobi's low morale took another hit as the horizon took on a menacing orange glow. The fires would be hard to contain and would keep burning and spreading until the chakra in them died.

If Hiruzen had been the one to cast that jutsu, and Shinren was certain it was the Hokage, then those flames could last hours. They had to be put out before any more harm could be done to the forest.

Shinren tried to feel out for Hiruzen's chakra, but a cold spike grew in his chest as he realised something terrible. The flames were not only meant to distract them.

They masked Hiruzen's squad's chakra signatures perfectly. Even Shinren could not sense where they were. To make matters worse, another massive firestorm erupted this time in the east and west.

Hiruzen had been coming from the south.

"Find the Hokage!" shouted Shinren his shinobi looked nervous, but they still obeyed his orders, "Spread out and find him! We can't sit back and wait for him to come to us."

In two moves, Hiruzen had countered their whole defence strategy. Their essential buildings were all in the vicinity of the Tree which was why they had to sit back and ensure they were safe.

That was no longer an option.

Shinren remained in his position even as multiple squadrons began to sweep the village for Hiruzen and his squad. The Hero's Water was his last resort. It was deeper in the Tree, but there was enough in there to give him a fighting chance.

He just had to time it right.

Shinren reached into his pocket and pulled out a picture of a boy with similar features to him.

"Shibuki, I hope you know I'll always love you. Please survive tonight. For me and the village."

The first of the shinobi to have found Hiruzen were caught unawares. They charged at him, but after just two handseals, spikes of rock burst from the ground. Ten shinobi were run straight through and dead before they hit the ground.

Hiruzen knew he had to be clever about this. His shadow clones had not been caught yet and were staying one step ahead of their pursuit squads. Hiruzen's instructions to his clones had been simple.

Raze.

Buildings, shinobi and whatever stood in their way. Taki's lack of formidable numbers and shinobi made it child's play. In the distance, Hiruzen saw a massive dragon made of rock shoot into the air.

It was lit on fire before it shot straight back down to the ground. There were screams as it tore through shinobi and buildings. There was a low boom that Hiruzen knew to be the sound of the dragon exploding.

Flaming shrapnel would be sent through the air and only true elites would be able to get out of that attack unharmed. Hiruzen began to go through handseals again as he came across a large squadron of shinobi around fifty to sixty trying to extinguish the flames.

Multiple rivers ran through Taki and just as the shinobi were using nearby water to extinguish the flames, Hiruzen opted to do the same.

"Suiton: Daibakufu no jutsu (Water Release: Great Waterfall Technique)!"

The river seemed to come to life as it surged up in a column. The Taki shinobi were shocked at the sight of the rushing flood of water and Hiruzen went through another set of handseals.

"Raiton: Gian (Lightning Release: Electromagnetic Murder)!"

The lance of electricity slammed into the large wave of water and the combination washed over the squadron of shinobi. Hiruzen only paused for a second to watch as the shinobi were slammed into various buildings as their bodies began to convulse violently.

Yet again, Hiruzen was able to avoid detection. This was how Hiruzen had decided to cause the most chaos. Hiruzen was adept in everything to do with the ninja arts. However, ninjutsu always had and always would be his forte.

Spires of rock, towers of water and waves of fire all rained down on Taki. Immense winds would fan the spreading flames or cut down swathes of shinobi. Bolts of lightning would pierce through even the thickest of armour.

Over the next thirty minutes, Hiruzen brought hell upon Taki. One of his shadow clones had been dispelled finally. Its chakra had been running out and it had dived into a group of shinobi to engage in Taijutsu.

It had done admirably before it was killed by a suicidal dive from a kunoichi. It was all for nought, however, as the clone exploded. The Bunshin Daibakuha (Clone Great Explosion) taking out more of Taki's ranks.

Hiashi's estimate of the shinobi in the village had been rather optimistic. Hiruzen guessed only about 40% or at best 50% of Taki's shinobi were in the village. A large proportion of that being Genin and Chūnin.

Hiruzen ducked into an empty building as his second clone dispelled. A rush of memories went through his head and he was pleased to see that his Anbu squads had managed to plunder Taki of their jutsu, records and whatever else had been deemed of worth.

They shot off in a Shunshin and Hiruzen could sense them leaving the village through the seals that were etched on their shoulders. There were far less shinobi in the village now and Hiruzen believed they had gone down to the caves to begin the evacuation protocol.

The fire he had started earlier had now spread in all directions and stopped the Taki shinobi from taking an above-ground escape route. Tiger's group should have collapsed the majority of the caves by now which would only cause the shinobi to have to double back.

Hiruzen was in a warehouse of sorts and he jumped out one of the windows at the top. Hiruzen was sure Shinren was at the centre of the village at the Big Tree. Hiruzen could detect that two of his Anbu were there too and judging by their movement they were currently in battle.

That all changed as there was a massive flare of insidious chakra that seemed to poison the very air. Hiruzen bit his thumb and went through five handseals before slamming his hand onto the roof.

"Enma, I need you in your Bō form please," Hiruzen's tone was firm and Enma senses the gravity of the situation as he transformed immediately.

"Saru, is that what I think it is?" Enma's voice asked as Hiruzen held onto the staff tightly.

"It is," said Hiruzen his tone as serious as ever, "Taki have unleashed their jinchuuriki."

Fū wasn't sure what was going on. She had been sleeping in the corner in her room before everything. Her 'bedroom' was small and cold and dark. She always brought her old futon to the corner so the room wouldn't feel as scary.

She had managed to make some food and it had tasted pretty good. A lot better than when she had begun to teach herself how to cook. She only managed to get food from Io-chan who would buy her some extra groceries every few weeks.

Fū knew that other than Io-chan, no one liked her in the village. Kids stayed away and adults ignored her. It hurt. Today had been even worse than usual.

She had gotten an ice-cream cone from Io who had left on a mission earlier to another town in Kawa. Some girl had taken her ice-cream and thrown it on Fū's shirt.

No one had helped her and some kids were even laughing. Fū had run all the way home and she had made her food before crying herself to sleep. That was the last thing Fū remembered before some shinobi took her to the inside of the Tree.

She heard screams and shouts and explosions as Shinren-sama began to paint on her skin. She had been told to stay still and Fū listened. It felt ticklish and took so long until finally it was done.

"Here," said Shinren as he pushed a glass of water to her. Fū almost dropped it from how quickly he had given it to her, but she drank the water fully.

It tasted weird and Fū felt like her body was on fire before she heard Shinren's words as she slowly fell asleep.

"Do not fail me, jinchuuriki."

Hiruzen landed at the base of the tree and it was there he saw two of his Anbu lying on the ground. They had deep scratch marks all over their body and Hiruzen could sense they were long dead.

Bijū chakra hung heavily in the air and Hiruzen was on red alert as he searched for the killer of his Anbu. There was a flare of chakra from above him and Hiruzen lashed out with his staff at a dark red blur.

There was a screech as his target was sent flying before slamming into the trunk of the Tree. Hiruzen stared at his new opponent and he was unsurprised to see what was the jinchuuriki of the Nanabi in a chakra cloak.

However, there was something wrong about the scene in front of him.

"A child?" said Hiruzen and he scanned all around him for Shinren, "Your jinchuuriki cannot even be 7 years old, Shinren! How can you do this?"

Hiruzen received no answer of course. Hiruzen had been too young to fight in the Warring Clans Era, but even then the effect had been obvious. He grew up to see young teenagers within his clan crippled from previous battles.

His father would tell him of the terror of those times and so too did both of his predecessors. Even Tobirama-sensei, as cold as he was did, not look back on those days with anything, but hatred.

Of course, Hiruzen knew that he had allowed early graduation for talents like Kakashi, Itachi as well as all three of his students. It was hypocritical of him, but judging from the gait and stance of the child before him he knew one thing for sure.

"You coward," Hiruzen spat as the jinchuuriki rose to his(or her) feet, "She's not even trained. End this now. You have nothing to gain from this."

Of course, there was no answer and Hiruzen channelled chakra through his staff as the jinchuuriki's cloak grew two more wings. Hiruzen had fought a few jinchuuriki before, but even if he had not he knew what was going on.

If he didn't end this soon enough, the Nanabi would be released and with the caves being destroyed by his Anbu...

"Kage Bunshin no jutsu."

The pinch on his chakra system was painfully noticeable and Hiruzen knew he'd have to be more conservative with his approach. The single clone he made already took off in a random direction.

There was another screech from the jinchuuriki that Hiruzen was sure was a girl's voice. She flew towards him, but Hiruzen extended his staff and slammed her back into the trunk of the tree.

Hiruzen pressed his advantage and he closed in on the girl as he delivered crushing strikes with his staff. The girl let out screams of pain and tried to retaliate, but was far too slow to come close to hitting him.

Hiruzen finished off his onslaught with a harsh blow that sent the young girl into the ground. Her movements were jerky and unrefined as if her muscles were made of metal rods as she slowly began to rise to her feet.

"Enma, bind her!"

Hiruzen threw Enma at the girl and there was a loud burst of smoke as he reverted to his original form. Enma formed copies of himself before they all transformed back into staffs. Soon, a lattice box of staffs formed around the jinchuuriki.

It was only a temporary fix, but it would have to do for now.

Hiruzen sensed a flare of chakra behind him and he jumped up into the branches. A sword made of water landed where he had just been and Hiruzen tracked its trajectory to Shinren who stood next to a clone of himself.

The one Hiruzen believed to be the clone was holding a water sword similar to the one that had just been thrown. The real Shinren was crouched on one knee his hands making the ram seal.

"I was so close to eliminating the God of Shinobi. It's a shame that poor, poor orphan could not distract you long enough," said Shinren his voice only holding the slightest bits of strain, "Your bounty alone would keep the village afloat for at least a decade and that's after buying a diamond mine."

It didn't take long for Hiruzen to figure out that Shinren was controlling the jinchuuriki's body. It was a crude plan, but it had worked well enough to take out two of his Anbu.

Hiruzen spared a glance behind and he saw the jinchuuriki try to bust out the cage she was in. Enma's staff form was indestructible, however, so it was pointless to even try. All Hiruzen had to do was keep Shinren talking.

"Why did you take Naruto?" said Hiruzen causing Shinren to smirk, "Our alliance was strong. Our villages have a long partnership and you threw that all away for what? Another jinchuuriki you couldn't develop?"

"You're wrong," said Shinren his eyes cold, "Our alliance made you strong. Our Daimyo doesn't respect us. Your shinobi are all over our country and you have far more trade deals with other countries that we have not received a share of."

"Your village is already in the prime spot on this continent," said Shinren his anger beginning to build, "Your Daimyo is rich. Your crops are fruitful year after. Your rivers clean and unpolluted. Your forest spread far and wide and your mines run deep into the ground."

Shinren's frame was taut as he released years of frustration, "Despite all of that, your village wants more and more. Herbs from Cha no Kuni. Cloths from Tori no Kuni. Access to the sea from Nami no Kuni! Your village is gluttonous and arrogant!"

Shinren's face was red as he breathed heavily, "When I got the offer from Iwa for a new alliance. I took it! Their Daimyo was on-board. Onoki had met with us multiple times! I just wanted one last thing from you before cutting ties."

The Kyuubi.

"Iwa proposed a knowledge and shinobi exchange as well as fairer trade deals," said Shinren in a more subdued tone, "Open borders and joint military exercises. How could I not accept that?"

"We are not the ones who are greedy," said Hiruzen his voice as firm as steel, "Every attempt Konoha has made for peace has backfired on us. Iwa, Kiri, Suna and Kumo started the first war by attacking us. Hashirama-sama ended it at the cost of his own life. Suna attacked us in the second war and Kumo killed Tobirama-sama. We ended it. The third war started with an attack from Iwa and Kumo on us and Minato ended it."

"After every war, we could have crippled a lot of countries for compensation," said Hiruzen, "We did not. We could have ordered the death of every Kage who gave orders against us. We did not. "

Hiruzen stared at Shinren and let his chakra radiate from his body, "That is why we have more business than any other nation. That is why smaller countries trust us and work with us. We've come to the aid of many countries on the brink of war including your own."

Hiruzen's chakra seemed to press down on Shinren's whose anger was quashed by the mere presence of the longest-serving Hokage. The wood beneath their feet cracked as Hiruzen said his last words.

"We can, and often, are your greatest allies," said Hiruzen as he turned his back on Shinren, "However if you cross us. We will be your worst nightmare."

Hiruzen did not turn back to face Shinren as he walked away. He reached inside his armour and threw a scroll at Shinren. There was no sound of it hitting the thick branch they were standing and Hiruzen assumed Shinren had caught the scroll.

"Those are the terms of your surrender," said Hiruzen, "Lady Asuka has already signed off on it so long as we keep our trade deals intact. It's over, Shinren. You lose."

That seemed to send Shinren over the edge and there was a flare of chakra as the jinchuuriki's body began to grow bigger and bigger. The cloak now had a tail and Hiruzen watched as red and blue spheres formed around the young girl's mouth.

"You will die today, Saru–"

"Hakke: Kusho (Eight Trigrams: Vacuum Palm)."

Hiruzen looked over his shoulder just in time to see Shinren get sent flying by a shell of air. The man landed harshly on the ground and was knocked unconscious.

Hiashi landed on the branch a second later his Byakugan activated. He bowed to Hiruzen before speaking.

"The caves have been destroyed, Sarutobi-sama," said Hiashi his voice as calm as usual, "Their evacuation attempt was unsuccessful and I expect them to return to the village within half an hour."

"Thank you, Hiashi," said Hiruzen and there was a loud pop as Enma changed back to his normal form.

The reason for this was shown as branches of wood from the Tree were wrapped around the jinchuuriki and absorbing her chakra. The process was a slow one, but soon a girl with blistered skin wearing burnt, off-white clothes was revealed.

She could only have been a year older than Naruto at the most. Her skin was completely burnt away in some places and lines and dots were glowing just underneath her skin. There were black smudges that looked to have been a seal of some sort. In some places, her clothes were fused to her skin making for a rather grim sight.

"Her chakra system has suffered immense damage," said Hiashi as he stared over the girl, "She must have taken Taki's Hero Water in a bid to force more chakra to the surface. She won't survive the night unless–"

"Unless?" said Hiruzen as he watched the branches Tiger had summoned retreat back into the Tree.

"I can halt the flow of her chakra," said Hiashi his tone only holding the slightest hints of hesitation, "Her chakra is in a volatile state and its damaging her coils. If I stop it for a while then her chakra will revert to normal."

"Do it," said Hiruzen and Hiashi, to his credit, did not falter as he did as he was told. There were a few more Anbu left as well as the Hiraijin squad who had come back from the caves.

It was rather ironic that Hiruzen had needed their help in the end, but that was neither here nor there. The fires around the village and in the forest had finally been extinguished and Hiruzen pointed to one of the Anbu.

"Boar-6, you're the best medic here, correct?" said Hiruzen drawing a nod from the man, "Help heal the girl. If it is beyond your capabilities, then use the Hiraijin squad to get her to Konoha."

"Tiger," said Hiruzen already turning away from the other Anbu, "The source of Taki's Hero's Water is deeper inside the tree. Retrieve as much as you can and we'll depart for Konoha."

Tiger melted into the wood and one of the other Anbu took that moment to speak.

"Sarutobi-sama, may I ask why we are healing their jinchuuriki?"

It was a fair question. It was also one lacking insight. Empathy was something a leader needed and in truth, Anbu tended to erode that from a fair share of their members. Someone like Kakashi or Jiraiya would understand perfectly.

The girl was just a child. Her lot in life was set in stone, but that did not mean she had to die. Hiruzen had been prepared for Taki's jinchuuriki to die whether now or in a few days, but now things were different.

"Other than potentially unleashing the third-strongest Biju? She is now a Konoha citizen," said Hiruzen drawing a few murmurs, "Our alliance with Taki is null and void. We are taking back what had been a gift to their village."

The Anbu seemed a bit uneasy and Hiruzen could not blame them. However, anything less than this would be foolish. The other villages would not be happy about Konoha having the Kyuubi and the Nanabi.

It would cause hesitation and Hiruzen was sure that would push back any looming threats of war. Of course, all the other villages would be preparing for war and Konoha would not be caught unawares.

The new academic year was set to start in a few weeks and some massive overhauls would have to take place. The fight today had shown Hiruzen that quantity would not be enough.

His shinobi needed more quality and reforming the Academy was the best way to start. Naruto was due to start next year and he needed to be prepared for what was coming his way.

It was only a matter of time before Naruto's jinchuuriki status was spread across the world. The same held true for the young girl. They would both have massive targets on their back and Hiruzen had a plan for them to be ready for it.

Suddenly, Tiger emerged from the ground holding a storage scroll and Hiruzen shook his head as he focused on the present.

"Genma, Raido and Iwashi," said Hiruzen, "Take one soldier pill each. You're about to be very busy."

The Hiraijin squad seemed a bit dejected (understandably so) but they did as they were told and soon the transportation back to Konoha began.

The status quo of the shinobi nations had just been thrown into flux. Konoha having a second jinchuuriki, and the Nanabi at that would ruffle some feathers. Hiruzen looked over Taki once more as he took in its destroyed state. This would send a message that Konoha was not to be taken lightly. It would be a few years before any serious moves were made against them.

Hiruzen would not waste one bit of the time they were being afforded. He could not.

Author Notes:

Hey, guys here's the second chapter of Dauntless. Konoha's retaliation had been swift and very crippling to Taki. I feel like Hiruzen gets portrayed as a doddering, old fool a lot which is so annoying. If maybe Iwa had tried to abduct Naruto he would have acted with more restraint, but some mooks like Taki would defos get their cheeks clapped by him.

I didn't add any Jutsu descriptions coz all of those were canon or appeared in the anime at the very least. I'll only put OC Jutsu descriptions down which there are going to be quite a lot of (hint hint hint hint). I also prefer using Japanese names for jutsu so I mean yeah I'll add the translation next to it. I'm far from being even passable at Japanese, but that's what's great about artistic license.

Please tell me what you thought of this chapter. I love hearing what you guys have to say and if you want to have a more in-depth conversation you are free to send me a PM. If you have any theories, ideas or thoughts about future events, teams, fights, jutsu drop a review or PM.

Finally, stay safe from COVID-19. You can never be too safe.