Chapter 11: Konoha "Crush"
Konohagakure no Sato, The Hokage's Tower, 31th October
The room within the Hokage's Tower, designated to host the foreign Kages, was neither a large nor a small place. It was neither imposing nor too welcoming. A simple room, like all the others within the tower with amber red walls. The only thing that differed from the rest was the expensive furniture that was placed in the middle of it, for any foreign dignitary to feel comfortable.
Five couches. Each were of the same size, and each had their own color that was reserved for a specific Kage who would visit, even if such a visit did not occur in nearly twenty years.
On one side of the wall, pictures of all Konohagakure's Hokages hung proudly, watching over the center of the room where one table for drinks and couches for sitting were placed.
And on those couches, the three men that were hailed as the strongest, not only in their respective villages, but of the Elemental Nations as well – sat, chatting on various things and laughing as a few old war pals. Behind all of them stood their bodyguards in addition to the Jōnin-sensei of the finalist team from their village.
Baki of Sunagakure stood firmly in the middle of the other two Kazekage's guards, whose names Kakashi did not know. Baki's stature showed everyone how the military man should behave. Arms folded together behind his back, contrary to the other two guards who had them hidden beneath their robes. And his half-covered face morphed into a stern look, focused on the table in front of the three Kage's.
The Raikage's guards were the complete opposite of the Suna group. The laid back Darui looked like he wanted to fall asleep right then and there, while the big-chested blonde woman, Samui, stood with her arms crossed showcasing her generous cleavage, and with a frown on her face.
Well... Naruto was right when he described her breasts... Kakashi mused inwardly while having bored look on the outside. Similarly to that of Darui.
Behind Samui and Darui, a Jōnin-sensei of the Kumogakure team stood – Mabui. She was in turn the opposite of the other two. A blank face, hands folded together in front of her, and posture firm. Dutiful. Kakashi heard the stories she was actually the Raikage's secretary as well, but he did not know why she was placed to lead a team to these exams.
The Hatake man was told by his student, Naruto, about the talk he had with the said beauty. And about the generous gift she gave him. While Naruto's tone was neutral like it was on many other occasions, Kakashi could sense a foreign sense of fondness that was not present in Naruto in the past. Kakashi realized that his student probably had a slight crush on the Kumo woman. But that was expected of the boy his age.
Kakashi knew that Naruto had read Jiraiya's books at least once. So the pervy streak should not be foreign to the boy. Along with the lustful thoughts that came with his age. A certain amount of familiarity with such a woman should pave the way to those thoughts in any case.
The other two Hokage's guards, Raidō and Genma stood firmly behind their leader, with Kakashi a bit behind them.
"...Is this the largest gathering of the Kages since the second Kage summit or what?" The Raikage asked in his raspy voice while having a satisfied smile on his face, and leaning back to his couch as he said it.
"I believe it is, Raikage-dono." The Sandaime said in a kind and proud manner. "Not even the peace talks of the third war gathered the leaders together. I am certainly proud to host the exams that brought the opportunity for this gathering."
"Indeed you should be, Hokage." Kakashi noticed the man omitting the title, but the Sandaime paid no attention to that. The Raikage was a proud man who most likely believed himself to be above the other two. "A shame that Ōnoki is not here. I'd wager that the man must be dying from curiosity, if not of the old age."
"I have to agree with that, Raikage-dono." Rasa said with a fake smile on his face. His voice betrayed his true feelings more than he would like. "Ōnoki-dono doesn't know what chance he's missing. But I'm more interested in Hokage-dono telling us how he had the greatest star of these exams hidden all these years." He addressed the Sandaime as he spoke. A pointless attempt to gouge out inaccessible information.
"Not everything can be hidden from the world, especially such an exotic information in regards to Naruto-kun, Kazekage-dono." The Sandaime said bluntly, smiling and acting unperturbed. But Kakashi understood what he meant to say beneath those words. It was a dangerous reply, but Rasa seemed to not have taken notice of it.
"Yes, yes." The Raikage nodded, a giant grin apparent on his face, as he turned to the Hokage. "I was surprised to hear the news of the boy's existence, but I'm nonetheless happy that Minato had a son before he died."
I wonder why...
"We all are, Raikage-dono." The Sandaime said with a nod. "Naruto-kun grew not only to be a great shinobi, but a great man as well. Just as Minato was."
"It is strange to me that Ōnoki did not attempt to somehow use this opportunity to see the boy himself... He did, after all, reveal his identity to the world." Rasa said in a monotone voice, his gaze moving between the other Kage's.
In other words – he refused to be a part of your invasion. Kakashi thought inwardly. If the offer was ever on the table. A pang of relief passed through his body. Though he was told that there was a chance that one of the Stone Daimyō's guards was actually a spy for Iwa.
Perhaps they have learned their lesson from the past wars.
"Who knows what that man thinks..." The Raikage said with a shrug. "All I know is that he's missing an opportunity to see the boy himself."
While you're able to.
Kakashi momentarily thought that Kumogakure might be part of the invasion, but analyzing the speech pattern from both Rasa and A, no such connection could be made.
Rasa seemed tense from time to time, whereas the Raikage emanated a carefree attitude. Completely unaware of the plot behind the outer appearances.
"We received no message from him ever since the peace agreement. It seems that he decided to curb his warmongering behavior as he got old." The Hokage said with a small smile.
"Perhaps he did." Rasa said evadingly, leaning back on his couch. "It is better for all of us. But tell me what is going on with the Mist? Strange reports came to me saying that Yagura is dead, but no other news arrived."
Again, his eyes flickered from the Sarutobi to A, back and forth.
"Same here." The Raikage gruffed in a displeased manner, shaking a cup of sake in his hand left and right. "I know not the name of the new Mizukage or the strength..."
"It seems we are all in the same boat regarding that village." Sarutobi said. "They are in a tougher lockdown than they were during Yagura's reign."
"Or Amegakure for that matter." Rasa commented.
"Indeed. I'm glad I'm not in their camp, considering the participants this year. The future of both the Senju and the Uchiha clan. It is once in a lifetime gathering." The Raikage said with an excited smirk. He seemed to have come here just to see Naruto.
Kakashi turned his one-eyed gaze towards the rest of the Kumogakure group for a moment. But Darui and Samui remained the same as they were. Mabui on the other hand, did not hide a slight frown from her face as she stared at one point behind the Raikage's back.
Interesting... Kakashi mused. Could it be that she likes Naruto? A perverted thought came to his mind, of his student in the arms of such beauty. He fought a giggle from escaping his mouth. Better not to have all the eyes turned on him. And embarrass his village along the way.
Naruto did tell him though, that Mabui met his father before. Perhaps her affection passed onto the son?
Yet for all her good intentions, Kakashi couldn't bring himself to trust any of them.
He fought against Iwagakure in the last war. And even lost his best friend against them. But the distrust towards Iwagakure was the least present in Kakashi's mind.
As the natural enemies, the enmity from their side was expected. A passive enemy was far more dangerous than the one you never knew when to expect an attack.
And that is what Kumogakure was to Konoha. Because in the case of Iwa, they always had an incident that diplomatic talks couldn't heal.
"Have you heard about this new village that is being formed in the Land of Rice Paddies?" The Raikage asked, his gaze moving from Kazekage to Hokage back-and-forth.
"Indeed we have." Sarutobi said, scuffling in his seat to get more comfortable. "Though we have no idea why they decided to form it out of nowhere." The question came genuinely curious on the surface. Even if he knew the answer already.
"I was hoping they would at least send some Genins to participate. No better way to see their strength than in the exams." The Raikage admitted with a shrug. While Rasa eyed both of them suspiciously.
The Kazekage remained silent, his eyes not looking at either of the other two.
It was a question that Kakashi wondered as well. If the reports from Kabuto's interrogation said anything, it was that Orochimaru planned to involve his new village in these exams as much as he could. Along with the subsequent invasion.
But...
He did not. No Genins were sent to participate.
And most importantly.
There were no signs of Orochimaru, either during the previous rounds or now.
Konohagakure no Sato, The Arena, 1st November
"I don't think I ever saw so many people in one place before." Sasuke said, looking up from their position in the middle of the Arena.
"Indeed." Naruto slowly nodded as he stood right next to him. Dressed in a pitch-black tunic, with his grey armor donned on his body. Arms crossed together, while bandages were tied on both of his hands, all the way to his elbows. Clean, white wolf's fur was resting on his shoulders, and he was sure that it would be useful for what was to come.
It may be November, but even the early winter knew how to be hot in the Land of Fire. Chakra flowing through his body took care of that issue. Just as it did for the other Chūnin's and Jōnin's of his village. Otherwise, they would all melt in the scorching summers.
Not far from them, teams of Kumo and Suna stood evenly distanced from each other.
The Arena was filled with both the people from Konoha and the outside, with the latter being mostly the rich nobles of both the Land of Fire and the foreign nations. All coming here to witness the bi-annual spectacle of young ninjas fighting each other for their own amusement. Not knowing what was to come.
Naruto could sense a few chakra signatures that belonged to the people he knew. But not of his classmates. They had their tasks to do as well. Evacuating the civilians who were in the village among many things. The streets couldn't be empty. Just as the arena couldn't be empty either.
But he could not sense the chakra of people that were closest to him.
Uncle Kosuke and Kakashi-sensei were somewhere else. Knowing the fate of the former and uncertainty of the latter made Naruto remember the conversation he had with the old man on his birthday.
But he cried his tears already. He just hoped he would not need to cry more of them.
===Flashback===
"Why?" Naruto asked, looking at Sarutobi directly into his eyes, who did not waver even for a second, piercing back through him.
"For the safety of the village." Was the simple reply.
After meeting him at the cemetery, Naruto was invited to the Hokage's Tower by the Sandaime to discuss some things. And while Naruto expected it to be something out of paramount importance to the village, he did not expect it to be on those scales.
A new village called 'Otogakure no Sato' was formed, and by none other than Orochimaru, former shinobi of Konoha.
He allied his new village with Suna, a supposed ally of Konoha to crush the latter in the joint invasion during the final stage of the Chūnin Exams when they would not expect it. Or so they hoped.
His plan was discovered only because Naruto was a little more curious when he made another traitor Sabiru reveal himself.
"You discovered his plans from Sabiru?" He asked, getting back to the start of their conversation. Remembering the rouge-nin, also made him curious about what actually happened to him in the end.
"Not quite." Hiruzen said with a smile. "Only because you made him reveal himself did we discover his actual superior in the village that acted under Orochimaru's orders. And that's how we found out about his invasion plans."
"But why do you want me to join a team and go and flood a few villages?" That was something he did not understand. And that was his mission, though he felt there were more to come with the information he received just now.
"Two villages that lie by the Toshio river to the west and one village that is placed by the Akari river to the north, are also located in the direction through which the invasion forces will definitely pass. Countless villages have suffered when the invasion was commenced in the past three wars, and I have no intention of letting more suffer in, what I want, just to be a small and one-time invasion." Sarutobi explained with a firm tone. "In fact, only one exists on that road to the North as people have left the other ones in the previous wars."
"But wouldn't it be better if you just evacuated them?" Naruto asked. Seeing how Yoshikata and his son Yūsuke lived made Naruto believe that the average commoner of the countryside should be exposed and suffer from the shinobi battles, as much as ninjas of the Benisu Islands were involved in the World Wars.
Destroying their livelihoods was nearly as bad as them getting caught in a crossfire during the wars.
But then it clicked him. "You... want them to reach Konoha?" He asked slowly with a skeptical look.
Hiruzen nodded gravely. "It is better if they reach all the way here." Naruto continued looking at him in silence. "If we deal with them here, beneath our walls, the entire war might come to an end instantly. If I stop the exams now, it might draw the other villages to join the fray, and then we'll really have a world war."
Naruto knew that the old man was right. And the new war against the other two villages would have Konoha fight on two fronts simultaneously.
"It is prudent that both Oto and Suna do not back off as they invade before we deal a striking blow to their alliance, but it is also a must that the civilian casualties from the outside are nonexistent or at the very least, minimal. The villagers will simply be relocated to the sanctuaries in the hills. Or the other camps that are made for situations in case of a natural catastrophe."
He had to smile hearing that. "The natural catastrophe that we are going to create."
"Exactly." The old man smiled in return. "The team you'll be part of was the one I created specifically for these types of missions. The team leader, Karasawa-san should explain to you your part in three days when your mission should begin. Don't worry, it won't take more than a week to finish the task at hand."
He could do that. Not that much could change in relation to his fight with Gaara. There was nothing new except for his already existing skills that could help him beat. His Water affinity should be enough if his calculations were correct.
"But why are you certain that they will go in that direction? What if they decide to pass by a populous town and decide to raze it along the way?" Naruto asked.
"They won't." Sarutobi said firmly, closing his eyes and explaining. "We found out about the invasion route from the Sabiru's superior, Kabuto. It is too late for them to change their plans now if they are going with the invasion. Our borders are more than just rivers, mountains, and lines on various maps. Places through which they plan to pass are the one Orochimaru suggested to them. The one where the defenses are the weakest, and the route through which they could best hide their travels, even if they would need to eliminate the civilians along the way. An entire town is a much bigger fish to fry."
Naruto remained silent as he listened. He wasn't a captain or a general. The old man must have thought about this for a long time. But there was another thing that troubled him as he looked at the table in front of him, in nothing in particular.
"Something troubles you, Naruto-kun?" The old man asked.
Naruto's eyes moved towards the Sandaime, meeting his gaze."What about Gaara?" He asked directly the most important question at the moment. Surely, the enemy jinchūriki would have a larger role than a simple match against him.
Sarutobi sighed, remaining silent for a moment before speaking up, but not before pulling a scroll from beneath his desk. "I was going to give you this the day after the end of the second round, but from what Jiraiya and Kosuke have told me, I let you have a little time to rest." He tossed the scroll towards him, which Naruto caught, opening it up and proceeding to read what was written inside.
Similar things to what Mabui gave him, if not identical. But there was a technique that was written in one part of the scroll. One that he saw for the first time, but one that would help him immensely. Not only against Gaara, but possibly against other jinchūriki's, if it ever came to the point he would fight against them for survival.
"You will need to knock him down as he is the key to their invasion."
Naruto stayed silent as he listened to what Hokage said. But his blue eyes were focused on the old man as he spoke further.
"We need to capture him alive, his siblings as well." The old man said as he proceeded to explain the necessity of the situation.
The Sand siblings would be Konoha's hostages to keep Suna out of the war in case Konoha's resources should be directed to fight Orochimaru. But as Naruto listened to the Hokage's explanation, he felt once again that he hadn't been told everything.
The moment of truth came closer to him when he was told that Gaara should go berserk in a match either against him or Sasuke. But he wasn't told the reason why Sasuke was important here.
"Was I purposely set to fight against Gaara in the first match?" He asked slowly, distrust in his voice was showing.
Sarutobi did not avert his gaze, opting to remain silent for a time. "You were." He said in the end with a sigh.
"So when were you planning to tell me that? In case you haven't read this report, Gaara is not some random shinobi I am to beat, but a vanguard of the invasion." He asked indignantly, an anger boiling up in him. He hated being left in a dark or being manipulated. Both at the same time.
"I was going to tell you that, but I did not want to place more pressure on you. I know you've been under a lot of stress lately, Naruto-kun. But believe me when I say that your mental health is just as important to me as it is to you. Along with your physical health."
True. He was under a lot of stress lately, but who wouldn't be in his place. Though his life had many happy and peaceful moments, the past few months haven't been kind to him. From his failed mission at Wave to the pursuit of the Akatsuki.
"Still..." He wouldn't let this matter go easily. "I hope you don't do that in the future. You know I have always listened to you. The least you can give me was trust!" Naruto said to him.
He was hurt being kept in the dark.
Maybe he should listen to what his godfather told him and hire a hooker. Or he should just relieve himself by his own hand. A pair of large mounds he had a dinner with today certainly left much to the imagination.
Sarutobi nodded. "There are some things that need to be kept out of the eyes of the public." He said slowly. "But anything regarding you – you will be told, Naruto-kun."
Naruto nodded gratefully, but a distrust was still inside him. "Then I accept your mission, Hokage-sama." He said formally before adding more. "Both missions." It was not a time to vent out his frustrations.
Sarutobi smiled in gratitude, but his smile turned into a bitter one as he spoke the following words. "There is one more thing I wanted to discuss with you, Naruto-kun."
Naruto raised his right eyebrow, but said nothing, waiting for the old man to speak. "It is concerning our... common acquaintance – Shimura Danzō." He said with narrowed eyes.
Naruto did not show any signs of a surprise there, but he felt that whatever he has done, or whatever he talked with the Darkness of the Shinobi, was neither treasonous nor something that would put him in trouble.
=== End of Flashback===
The rest of the conversation remained clouded in Naruto's mind while he stood in the middle of the arena. Hundreds of voices from the spectators mixed together created a barrier for his mind to focus on. And the conversation regarding Danzō was at the end of his head right now. Excitement must be brewing inside them. They had no idea what was coming.
He fulfilled the task that was required of him. Joining a team of selected shinobi gave a sense of understanding to Naruto at why the old man kept some things hidden from him. The members of his team did not even know why they were required to destroy the livelihood of those villagers back then but did their task without complaints. Or questions.
Naruto suspected that the team leader, Karasawa Genba, knew all the details, but was ordered to remain silent because of the other members of the team. He was a bald middle-aged man with brown mustaches and a scar over his left eye, which was always closed.
Naruto found the team leader a decent person. He neither scorned him for the Nine-Tails, nor did he showered him with praise, hoping that one day, when the Senju clan was rebuilt – he would be in good graces with them. A professional through and through.
Naruto's mission was to locate the additional underground sources of water on the rocky grounds near those three villages where the new source of the river would be made, but in the meantime would destroy the crops for the time being, once the village was flooded.
All for the sake of appearances.
Naruto did the task that was required of him and realized in the meantime why the old man chose him for that mission. Not everyone had a strong affinity for water to sense where the underground source of water could be located. And while he could select someone else, someone more experienced for the task, the young Senju was grateful it was him who was chosen.
Giving me a mission of paramount importance was his way of telling me how important my fight against Gaara really was.
He still held a slight grudge for being left in the dark, but he pushed it away from his thoughts. As now he had more important things to deal with.
Looking towards Gaara, Naruto saw him standing with his siblings, though a bit separated from them. His back was slightly hunched. No doubt from the weight of that gourd on his back and all the sand he carried with him. But his eyes were focused on the Kage's booth above the stands of the noblemen below them.
And his way of saying he was sorry for manipulating me.
Naruto then looked onto Sasuke, who had his eyes closed, with his hands in the pockets of his black shorts. He seemed calm, even though he knew what was at stake here, as he too, had his own task to do.
Sasuke was to fight against the red-haired Kumo girl, Karui, but that fight would never come to be. And Sasuke knew that well.
As the seconds turned to minutes, so did the sound of the excited audience grew louder and louder. Naruto wondered how many people were cheering for him. Or how many people were betting on him. Perhaps he should have done that as well.
"Alright everyone, listen up." A Konoha Jōnin with eyeglasses and dark spiky hair spoke with a loud voice and a smile on his face, as he appeared in the middle of the stadium. Yamashiro Aoba, Naruto remembered. One of Kakashi-sensei's friends, albeit a bit older.
All the Genins turned their attention towards him, the loud sound of the audience was being subdued as well.
"Welcome to the bi-annual Chūnin Selection Exams hosted by Konohagakure no Sato and our esteemed Sandaime Hokage, Sarutobi Hiruzen..." The clapping of the noblemen and cheers of the audience was heard in the instant. And Naruto wondered if the old man enjoyed being praised by the people at that moment.
Aoba continued explaining the rules of the fights and introducing himself. Killing was allowed, but if he saw that match was over, then he, as a proctor could stop it immediately and declare a winner. Those who go against the rules, or his word, would be disqualified.
Naruto did not doubt that Aoba knew about the invasion as well. Just as many other Jōnin's and Chūnin's of Konoha knew. In fact, many of them were currently on the walls of the village or in the forests outside. Waiting for the enemy to arrive, so they could send their souls to the Pure Land.
"For those of you who don't know it by now, the following matches are:
Match number one: Senju Naruto versus Gaara of Sunagakure.
Match number two: Nii Yugito versus Kankurō of Sunagakure.
Match number three: Uchiha Sasuke versus Karui of Kumogakure.
And match number four: Temari of Sunagakure versus Omoi of Kumogakure."
Aoba listed, before continuing. "Except for Senju Naruto and Gaara of Sunagakure, the rest of you wait in the finalist stands up there." He pointed out.
"Good luck." Sasuke said to him with a confident smirk before he started walking away. Sounds of the audience slowly started taking over the entire arena as the other finalist began leaving the stadium. It was a pleasant sound to his ears.
"Thanks." Naruto said in a whisper, just enough so Sasuke could hear him say it, looking the Uchiha's back as he walked further and further towards the finalist stands. He did not turn back or acknowledge his gratitude.
Naruto sighed good-naturedly at that. He wondered what Sasuke thought of today's war-to-be.
Knowing him, he's probably excited at the prospect of a fight.
In the finalist stands
Just as they all stood far apart from each other in the middle of the arena a few moments ago, so did they stood in the finalist stands as Sasuke observed the other finalists.
Suna siblings stood by the wall, and they looked nervous and unsure of the fight that is about to happen. He would have to keep a close eye on them. As they were his targets. To capture of course.
Sasuke was told of the invasion that was about to happen a week before the finals, in a meeting with both Kakashi and the Sandaime. Being given a task at the same time, it was prudent of him to be involved.
But...
He was also told that he was a target of a former Konoha shinobi, the Sannin Orochimaru.
A target to become his new body in order for the Sannin to acquire his Sharingan. The Sandaime was detailed in the dangers and consequences of becoming involved with his former student.
The one thought that lounged in Sasuke's mind was the one that his clan would definitely die out if he ever went with the rouge Sannin. Not that he would. For Sasuke never considered himself as a traitor. Itachi was the Uchiha traitor after all... And Sasuke told himself he would not follow in his footsteps.
Looking down at Naruto, he wondered how his teammate would face in this battle, for he had the hardest task of all. But he also wondered if the fight has already started on the outside of the village's walls.
Despite not feeling much connection to the wider village and its population, Sasuke loathed to see it turn into the bloodbath that happened in his clan. The moment he thought about it, his grip on the railings of the finalist lounge tightened.
"When are they going to start!?" Sasuke heard the girl he was supposed to fight against complain loudly to her teammates. "They've been staring at each other for how long? Five minutes?"
Sasuke glanced at their group from the corners of his eyes. The three of them stood in the middle between him and the Sand siblings.
Jinchūriki girl, Yugito, smiled as she spoke. "You really don't want them to go all out, Karui. Better that they just eye each other for now."
"True." The other dark-skinned boy, Omoi, spoke. As he pulled out his lollypop from his mouth. "Just imagine if one of them loses control over their bijū. Everyone in this arena could possibly die, and we as well. Perhaps not even B-sensei would be able to calm them down."
He spoke one thing after another as if the end of the world came closer and closer. Though, the tone of his voice was low and linear. Even the Sand siblings looked at him from the side, worried and unsure expressions still echoed on their faces.
Almost oblivious to Genins of their rival villages, Karui scolded her teammate. "Just shut up and stop being so paranoid." Then she said in a bored tone."I just want them to begin already." She looked at him from the side, a faint blush appearing in her cheeks, though, Sasuke ignored her.
At least Konoha is not the only one who has the fangirls...
As he watched the still figures of the two Jinchūriki's, Sasuke noticed that they were finally about to start the fight, as the cork on Gaara's gourd was sent flying into the distance, and sand slowly emerge from it like lava from a volcano.
But Naruto remained still, unmoving in his place, while more and more of Gaara's sand emerged from his gourd. If he was told before seeing it with his own eyes, Sasuke would not have believed that an entire beach could be stored in such a small object.
He must be creating a new sand from his own chakra. Flaring up his Sharingan, Sasuke could see traces of Gaara's chakra spontaneously spread in the massive sand, holding it in the air.
Naruto will have his hands full with that.
Unlike the wild and mad look that Gaara had previously, now he was composed, as Naruto watched him from his position in the arena.
Aoba has long declared the match to begin, but neither Naruto or Gaara moved from their positions.
Only stares were exchanged, and Naruto struggled more to understand Gaara's personality from that exchange than make a move and attack.
Gaara's eyes screamed hatred, even though his body was silent. His feelings on the other hand... were much more complex. Sadness, hatred, anguish, and even joy emanated from him.
"You're welcome." The Kyūbi said in his head.
"Somehow, I think I'd be happier if I could not sense his emotions." Naruto said in a laughing tone to the fox. He was in fact thankful that he was given the ability to sense the negative emotions from other people. It could be very useful in the future.
"Know that if you lose to Shukaku's brat, I will renegade any deal I have with you, and I'll do everything I can to leave this prison!" He snarled to him in the end, though, Naruto could hear pieces of enjoyment in his voice.
Looking at Gaara, Naruto still saw that murderous look of his hidden behind a bored facade.
I could have been like him.
Naruto repeated those words in his head, taking that moment to thank the gods for not becoming like that.
The wait was over, and his real nature comes to light now. He realized why the jinchūriki of the One-Tails acted the way he did before. Gaara was excited at the prospect of killing him.
What did they fill his head with... Naruto wondered.
That could be one of the explanations for Gaara's behavior.
A cork from his gourd was suddenly sent flying away, but Naruto did not move an inch, nor did he bother drawing any sort of weapons.
Sand emerged above Gaara, shadowing him, and part of the terrain around, but he still did not sent any attack. The sounds of the audience talking has long been subdued, as they all watched the match in front of them in silence.
Naruto moved his right leg over the surface of the ground back, a small dust following in his wake from the sides of his feet.
Gaara said something under his breath, but as he was too far away from him, Naruto could only read from the movement of his lips.
Existence...
That was the word Naruto was sure that Gaara said, but he did not have time to dwell on that thought, as the floating sand was finally sent flying towards him. Like a tsunami charging to wipe out a coastal town, the sand charged at him, but Naruto simply jumped backward, holding himself against the wall that stood behind him.
But Gaara did not wait a second longer, as a few spikes emerged from the sand that laid on the ground where Naruto previously stood.
Even though he stood even further than he did previously, the sound of Gaara's monotone, but hoarse voice was now heard.
"Sand Spikes!" He outstretched his hand towards him.
Naruto leaped leftwards with his speed evading Suna-nin's attack. As he landed on the ground by the wall on the other side of the arena, he turned back, seeing at that moment how Gaara's sand spears clashed with the wall where he stood. No damage was made, as his opponent must have noticed him evading the attack.
He's trying to conserve his chakra.
A new attack from the sand charged towards him, but instead of going to the left again, Naruto returned to his previous position, holding himself by the wall. Gaara left plenty of the sand by that place before he sent another attack. But that was what Naruto wanted.
Going through the sequence of hand signs, Naruto gathered chakra in his stomach and exhaled from his mouth a long flow of water, hoping to make some of the sand heavy and thus useless.
Water Release: Water Bullet Technique!
But as the flow of water from his mouth was about to turn Gaara's sand into its heavier version, the sand itself scattered left and right, quickly rising into the air, while the water simply clashed with the ground, creating a minor lake. Or better said, a large pond.
Naruto raised his eyebrow at the quick movement of sand, which directly charged at him. However, he managed to evade it in the last second, jumping to his right with all the speed he could muster.
The moment he landed, he heard the sound of Gaara's sand clashing with the wall. This time, leaving a rather large crack in its construction, with some of the broken rocks from the wall being made, dropping to the ground one by one as the sand retreated back towards Gaara.
He went for a direct kill there. Naruto thought as he stood up and watched as Gaara's sand from all sides returned to its owner.
"Do you take me for a fool, Senju Naruto?" Gaara's monotone voice rose up as he mentioned his name. He wasn't even fully turned towards him, only looking at him from the corner of his eye, but being faced up towards the direction where Naruto moved after his first attack. "Did you think I would be an easy opponent you could defeat without much work?"
Naruto did not answer right away, as he waited and watched the sand gather around Gaara, but he left some of it close to Naruto. The Senju still had the traces of the water he previously used on his mouth. Wiping it aside, he answered.
"The same can be said about you. It'll take more than just a random mindless charge to take me off guard."
Mindless charges of the sand wouldn't be enough to beat someone of the Senju blood. But Naruto felt slightly uncomfortable at saying that loudly with all the people present in the arena.
But it will tire you eventually, if you don't run away from your chakra, Gaara. Naruto knew that maintaining all that sand could be more of a burden than a gift. And Gaara did not look like someone who was in good physical shape to last too long. Unless Shukaku somehow gives him the strength to continue.
Gaara did not say anything else, but the sand that was close to Naruto quickly rose up from the ground and was sent flying towards him.
Needle Jizō. Naruto thought as he went through a quick sequence of hand signs, with the white fur from his shoulders enveloping him in a protective hug from head to toes, but leaving just enough space for his hands to move with more ease inside. He couldn't see anything outside of it. The sand clashed with the steeled fur, but the defense did not waver.
But the sand continued attacking and attacking. Failing to break through each time. No sand could be raised from the hard ground.
Go on, you bastard. Waste your chakra and your strength.
And while Gaara continued attacking, and even pressuring his steeled fur with the sand from all sides - inside his protective dome-made-of-fur, Naruto went for another sequence of hand signs. But instead of his body, he focused on the water outside. Water in the air itself.
Water Release: Water Colliding Wave! He still couldn't see anything, but water itself began leaking into his protective dome from the air, getting the earth wet. He still focused on gathering the water from the air, sending it all the way forward in the direction of Gaara where he sensed his location was. But he eventually stopped, as the sand attacks have long ceased to clash with his steeled fur.
The attack itself was something akin to a tsunami.
Release. The protective fur retreated to its normal size, and Naruto got a full view of the terrain around him, as well as his enemy. The field was covered with dozens of minor ponds with wet sand leaking from it. Gaara on the other hand, was flying on some sort of sand-cloud in the air.
"You can fly?" He asked incredulously. But whether Gaara heard him or not, he did not answer. He only looked at Naruto in contempt, exchanging the looks between him and the mud that was previously his sand.
"As you wish." Naruto muttered under his breath, summoning four shurikens from the seal on his bandage-covered arm and sending them flying towards Gaara.
Suna Jinchūriki did not move or react, except for the constant floating of his sand cloud up and down in the air. But the point of Naruto's attack was not to hit him anyway.
The sand around Gaara formed a protective wall around him, absorbing the four shurikens in it at first, but after two seconds sending them back towards Naruto at greater speed then Senju sent them in the first place.
Pulling out a kunai from his pouch, Naruto deflected three of them, except for one, which he grabbed with the end of his kunai through the little hole in it, letting it circle before its movement quelled. This time, he sent only that shuriken towards Gaara, but in the mids of it, Naruto multiplied it by twenty.
Shuriken Shadow Clone Technique!
And again, Gaara's sand appeared to protect him from his attack, but Naruto noticed that there was more of it gathered around him this time.
The shurikens were stuck in the sand wall, but as Gaara was about to send them flying back to Naruto once again, the shurikens exploded, creating a large ball of smoke in the air where Gaara floated on his sand-cloud.
Great Shuriken Clone Explosion! Naruto thought as he channeled his chakra into those shuriken clones, his hands placed in a Tiger sign. And the attack succeeded. A cloud of smoke enveloped Gaara as he flew in the air. But at the same time, five sand bullets flew towards Naruto.
Naruto didn't jump away, as the bullets weren't particularly fast – he only moved a step away, thinking of letting them go past by him. But at the moment as the bullets flew by him, they exploded, with some of the sand getting into his eyes.
How did I not see this coming... Naruto thought bitterly, as he rubbed his eyes, cleaning it from any tiny grouses of sand that stuck in them.
And that was all that Gaara needed. As he landed on the ground, he sent some of his remaining sand towards Naruto, intending to crush him like he did before.
Fuck.
Naruto jumped into the air, while his eyes were still red, teary, and itching with annoyance, but the sand followed. And as it was about to grab him, Naruto went through a few hand signs, focusing on gathering the wind in his hands.
Wind Release: Gale Palm!
The wind was sent from his hands towards the sand, pushing it away, and even dispersing some of it. But it also pushed Naruto away on the other side of the arena, particularly onto the middle section of the arena wall, one that was faced towards the north.
The crowd cheered in support, and he had to smile at that.
Gaara stood in the middle of the arena but did not pursue his attack further. Instead, he stood calmly, gathering his remaining sand around himself, and forming a ball-like protection around himself.
Naruto took that time to massage his eyes a bit, and his eyesight became blurred for a moment before it returned to normal.
He focused his gaze on Gaara, who still hid himself in his protective dome.
As Naruto focused on his sensory ability, he noticed that more and more demonic chakra, Shukaku's chakra was present in the Gaara, although at a slow pace.
So he's finally planning to transform. Naruto mused inwardly. He momentarily went for the counter-attack.
As Gaara continued gathering more of Shukaku's chakra, Naruto went through a quick sequence of hand signs, gathering the water chakra in his stomach.
Water Release: Water Dragon Bullet Technique! A massive water dragon emerged from the place where he stood and was sent flying towards Gaara and his protection. But once it clashed with it, it dispered into regular water.
He must be strengthening it as much as he can. The sand protection got darker, as if it was turned into earth.
"Let's see if it will protect you from this." Naruto said quietly, as he went through another sequence of hand signs, the ones that were meant to summon a far stronger attack.
Water Release: Water Severing Wave! Naruto said in his mind, once he clapped his hands together, sending a far stronger and devastating attack than he did the first time from his mouth. He fired the high-pressure steam from his mouth five times – each time striking Gaara's protection and blowing it away.
The final sixth time, Naruto fired a weaker attack that hit Gaara on his right shoulder. His painful scream was heard through the entire arena.
And as the sand shattered onto the ground, and as Gaara struggled to stand still, covering the wound on his shoulder with his other hand, panting heavily – Naruto took that moment to finish the fight.
Appearing in front of him, Naruto punched Gaara in the face, but as he did, he felt something cracking up like a porcelain, and it was not a bone. What is he... Something akin to a black abyss stared at him from the hole in Gaara's cheek, but Naruto did not dare to dwell too much on it.
He made two shadow clones to hold Gaara, while he placed a seal on him. The sand did not even bother attacking him or preventing his movements.
As the clones held Gaara up, with one of them kicking the gourd away, while the other removed the white scarf and the upper part of his black suit – revealing the seal he never saw before but read much about. It was red in color and in a form of the kanji for 'love', the same as that of the tattoo that Gaara had on his forehead. It was a two-element seal, one that could keep Shukaku at bay, if the user wanted it to. (1)
"Five Elements Seal!" Naruto said as he slammed his hand onto Gaara's stomach, getting another cry in anguish from the auburn-haired jinchūriki before he was rendered unconscious. The two of his clones still held him in their arms.
The Fūinjutsu which he used was a gift from the old man on his birthday. But Naruto figured it was another one in line of his apologies. Not that he complained, it did its job.
Aoba landed near them, inspecting Gaara's pulse while Naruto took a few steps back. After a few seconds or so, Aoba stood firm, facing him. "Good work." He simply said, before turning towards the audience.
"The first match of the Chūnin Selection Exams is over. The winner is Senju Naruto." Aoba said as the crowd erupted into a wave of cheers.
Two ANBU took that chance to appear near him. Cat and Eagle, Naruto remembered.
"We'll take it over from here on, Naruto-san." Cat said to him. "Good work."
He said nothing, only giving a smile in return. And they disappeared right away, taking Gaara with themselves.
Aoba spoke again to the roaring crowd. "We'll have a five-minute pause before we move onto the next match."
Naruto snorted hearing that his own match did not last that long. But he mused that Aoba did that for the sake of the entire operation.
"Go on then, kid. And do the rest of your mission." Aoba turned to him.
"Right away." Naruto said as he body-flickered away in a combination of leaves and water.
Not to the finalist stands, but onto the hidden part of the audience stands, behind all the people that were currently engaging in whatever conversations they had.
He focused on emanating the chakra on the wide section of the arena. From the Kage's booth, across the stands to the place where the other finalists stood.
It was better for the remaining civilians who weren't evacuated and the noblemen from the other nations, to be as clueless as they could get. And not to run amok mindlessly. Spreading panic as well.
Temple of Nirvana technique!
And the white feathers started falling down and putting the innocents to a long nap.
If they hadn't fallen during his match, then it was up to him to keep the appearances.
Kage's booth
"That water technique should have drained him to a near exhaustion." Samui commented quietly as she stood behind him. The Raikage couldn't help but agree as he watched.
"And he doesn't seem fazed at all by that." He only said, not even blinking as he didn't want to miss the show. The fight moved fast, though not as fast as his own battles with Minato. But looking at his son and the way he evades Gaara's attacks, he couldn't help but compare the two.
Though, the boy still had much to train to reach his father's level. At least he fought with his brain.
And the fight was soon over. Once the sand was useless, the Suna boy was practically crippled.
And as the Yondaime Raikage thought about that, a real wound was given to the son of the Kazekage. Along with a strange seal he never saw before, but one that made a strange and uncomfortable feeling to appear in his gut.
It ended the fight pretty much.
So as that report said... Wind and Water affinities... A large chakra reserves...
The two ANBU's appeared to take the other jinchūriki away. But the Raikage did not focus his mind on that.
He's fast, and he obviously has a slight talent with fūinjutsu...
He could become a dangerous enemy one day. But his abilities were the testament of his blood. And that is what intrigued him the most. The Raikage did not see any hand-to-hand combat in the fight, but he did not doubt that boy was adept in it.
I wonder what else he knows...
"What is the meaning of this, Hokage-dono?" Kazekage said, clenching his teeth in anger, his eyebrows furrowed together in displeasure. "Where are your ANBU's taking my son?"
"Only to the hospital so he could be given a medical treatment. The last attack Naruto-kun gave him was from one of the strongest techniques of our esteemed Nidaime Hokage. The things could turn ugly if he does not receive an aid." Sarutobi said, smiling with each word he spoke. "Everything will be alright. I assure you."
"In any case, I wish to see him immediately." He rose up from his seat, still wearing a mask of anger.
"I'm afraid I can't allow that." Sarutobi said, rising from his seat as well. Though his voice wasn't angry or harsh.
The Raikage followed the suit and stood up as well.
"I have every right to see him and make sure he's alright," Rasa replied in a snarl. "Given his status, you should be aware of."
"Hmm." The Sandaime hummed, folding his hands together behind his back. "I really should. Just as you should have told us that, and warned us of his unstable mind."
So they knew as well... But Mabui was truthful when she reported to me... The Raikage mused inwardly.
"He may be a bit detached, but he is of the stable mind, I assure you."
Sarutobi snorted. "We all love to tell lies to ourselves. To deceive ourselves, but also to console ourselves. To make the reality more pleasing." His smile then turned into a neutral frown. "I ask you once again to sit down, and leave my shinobi to heal your son, Kazekage-dono."
"And based on what do you think you have a right to order me around!?" Rasa snarled once again, his eyes shooting a murderous look towards the Sandaime Hokage.
"Have those two gone insane?" Samui asked Darui, who was completely serious now. None of his laid-back attitude was present as he stared at the other two Kage's.
"I really don't know." Darui said.
The Raikage knew very well that the Suna budged was cut almost in half by their Daimyō. And that he passed many missions that would usually be given to Sunagakure to Konoha.
That must be the cause of their argument. Though, why haven't they talk about it before...
As Raikage though about the other reason for the antagonistic talk in front of him, white feathers started falling down, among the three Kage's and their bodyguards.
"Based on the fact that the game is over." The Sandaime said, his tone now fully neutral. And his two guards almost ready to attack. The white feathers around the six of them dispersed.
"Genjutsu." The Raikage said in a raspy voice, flaring his chakra and blowing off the feathers away from him.
"Game?" Rasa had a fake smile on his face. "I'm not sure I understand what you mean, Hokage-dono?"
"Oh," Sarutobi said, faking a surprise, and then releasing a short chuckle. "I'm sure you do."
And then the gold sand from Rasa's Kage robes started flowing out, charging towards the Sandaime, and in turn, towards him as well.
"Feathers." Temari said, looking at the entire arena as they covered it while falling down.
"That's the signal. But what should we do when they took Gaara away?" Kankurō said, looking at her with a frown on his face.
"I don't know, Kankurō. We should go and ask Baki-sensei." He only nodded, but as they were about to jump over the railings of the stand, Temari saw black and red eyes. Three tomoe circling around, and it paralyzed her completely.
Sharingan.
Temari quickly returned to her senses, but once she turned back, she saw her brother standing still. And Uchiha Sasuke holding a kunai beneath his neck.
"No!" She shouted. A fear of losing her brother overtook her. Konoha might have already took Gaara away, she did not want to lose another brother as well.
"Don't move." The Uchiha replied coldly, looking straight at her with his onyx eyes, almost as if he was piercing through her body with a poisonous blade.
Temari gulped once before she spoke with a tremor in her voice. "Please, please don't kill him." But she instinctively moved back.
And once she said and did that, Uchiha Sasuke simply cut the throat of her brother and the blood began pouring out on all sides. She felt as if Kankurō's blood got into her widened from horror eyes, as everything suddenly got red and black.
The rage overtook her horror and fear, and she charged towards the Uchiha, intending on killing him with her battle fan. Orders to spare and capture him were on the end of her head now. All she cared about was revenge.
But once she took a step forward, darkness started taking over the edges of her eyes, all until she could see nothing or feel nothing...
"Uchiha, what the fuck do you think you're doing to them!?" Karui shouted from the bottom of her lungs.
Sasuke looked at her with an annoyed look, and she flinched slightly, looking away and not saying anything else. "Nothing that you should be concerned yourself with." He said to her.
The Sand siblings laid on the ground knocked out. First Kankurō and then Temari, who was busy being paralyzed in his genjutsu while he took care of her brother.
It was not a hard task to do. He only had to look at her with his fully matured Sharingan to paralyze her. And to stuck a poisonous needle into her brother while she was distracted.
Naruto's quick victory against Gaara must have shocked them to the core. Sasuke snorted inwardly.
"Actually we do have a right to know why are you doing this." Nii Yugito said to him with a frown on her face. She had a bit more courage. Even the other boy, Omoi, looked like he was ready for battle, if his half-drawn sword was any indication.
"It's the invasion. That's what's happening."
"The invasion?" Yugito repeated. "But..."
"You might want to talk to your Kage about that, and stay away while you're at it." Sasuke cut her off, while he at the same time began tying down his two captives. The still posture of the other Genins made him frown as well. "Unless... You're part of the invasion as well?"
He was told that the chances of it were low, but that he should be alert all the same.
"What!?" Karui shouted again, regaining her posture, pointing her hand accusingly at him. "No, we're not! We wouldn't do that. And who is invading you anyway? Can't be just Suna?"
The two ANBU's he did not know appeared in the booth. Sasuke did not answer her.
"Nice work, kid. We'll take it over from here." Sasuke nodded to one of them.
Before they left, two ANBU's looked at Kumo Genins who were still unsure what to do.
Eventually, Yugito spoke first. "Omoi, Karui. Let's go and find Mabui-sensei and meet up with Raikage-sama." They both nodded to her and then left.
The ANBU's then left as well, taking the Sand siblings with them, as Sasuke was left standing alone in the finalist booth.
He walked towards the railings and looked over the arena which was silent as the night, barring the occasional clashes of steel that eventually stopped. The white feathers have long disappeared as well. Looking over towards the walls of the village, Sasuke saw that they were still intact and that no smoke could be seen on the buildings inside.
"So they haven't breached in." He smiled at the sudden surge of pride in his village and the vigilance to keep the invaders at bay.
But as he looked at the distance, he saw his teammate, Naruto, from the corner of his eyes - jumping up the walls of the section of the arena where the noblemen were stationed, and above in booth which the Kage's sat.
Not having any other mission to do, Sasuke went to join him.
Once his genjutsu has been cast, Naruto went to join the old man as he was ordered to do.
He was given a mission to cast that genjutsu on the entire arena, yesterday. As apparently there were no signs of Orochimaru. And it was suggested he might back off from the entire invasion if he found out his right-hand was captured.
And he apparently did found out about Kabuto's capture. Naruto thought. I was never told what happened to that Kabuto in the end.
Dead most likely. If they extracted the information from him then there was no need to keep him alive any longer.
As the Temple of Nirvana was pretty unknown to the rest of the shinobi population, Naruto was chosen to perform it.
And perform it well he did.
He soon reached the roof of the highest building where he found the three Kages and their bodyguards standing.
The Hokage and the Kazekage stood opposite of each other, their robes flowing in the wind as they stared at one another. The Raikage was standing on the lower edge of the roof. His two bodyguards standing beside him. Naruto barely spared them a glance.
"Mission accomplished, Hokage-sama." Naruto said neutrally as he joined up beside him. Loud enough for others to hear. But his voice carried a certain flicker of joy.
The old man spared him a smile, along with the words of praise. "A job well done, Naruto-kun." He could hear Genma and Raidō snorting behind them.
Kazekage only stared at them with hate-filled eyes.
The Sandaime turned towards Rasa once again. "It seems that my old student really has deserted your cause once his spies were discovered."
"What!?" Rasa asked back.
The old man ignored his question, only continued talking. "I'm saying that the shinobi of the Sound village are not dying in the forests of the Land of Fire as we speak, Kazekage-dono. Once he found out his spies were discovered in Konoha, Orochimaru probably decided to fully back-off from the invasion and rearrange his plans."
"If you knew, why didn't you say anything to us!?" A foolish question came from Rasa's mouth. His eyes bulged with anger and resentment. Naruto was glad that he was not in his skin. "You always presented yourself as a paragon of virtue, as a man of peace. Why did you let it escalate it all the way here if you knew about the invasion? Your men died as well!"
Naruto immediately closed his eyes as he heard those last words. He did not want to dwell on them.
"To teach you a lesson." Sarutobi immediately replied back. "And to teach everyone else a lesson not to mess Konoha in the future. Orochimaru hoped you would weaken us as much as you could, but how far was he from the truth. He never expected for you two to defeat us. Lest of all if you attacked us alone. All he wanted was to kill me in his foolish quest for jealousy-filled revenge."
Many more Konoha ninjas began appearing on the roof. Among them Kakashi-sensei and uncle Jiraiya.
The only additional support that Kazekage got was Baki, a Jōnin-sensei to his children. Naruto could see the traces of blood all over the lower part of his body.
"Baki!" Rasa all but shouted. "Where are Kankurō and Temari!?"
Baki looked at all the men that have surrounded them from all sides. "I don't know, Kazekage-sama. They may have fled. Konoha also placed four ninjas around me to capture me as soon as the battle started."
Baki must have killed those four ninjas.
Naruto turned his head around and saw Sasuke smirking, but otherwise saying nothing. At least he accomplished his goal.
"I'm glad to see they have failed in at least that." Rasa returned his gaze towards the Sandaime, but he also looked at Naruto.
"Your men have either died or fled back to Suna, kid." Jiraiya said, crossing his arms. "It's best if you surrender."
Rasa did not even pay attention to him.
"Surrender now and end this foolishness, Kazekage-dono." The Hokage said to him. "There is no need to spill blood any longer."
Rasa clenched his teeth and then bit his lips so hard that a trail of blood could be seen, dripping down his mouth.
"As if." He only said, his gold dust flying over his bodyguards as they disappeared in the wind.
Konoha shinobi went to follow, but the voice of their leader stopped their pursuit.
"Let him go." Sarutobi said with a stern tone, his eyes following the direction of the wind where Rasa fled. "It is a foolish notion to chase after him."
Naruto stood beside him, and watched as well, while his sensory ability was able to detect the disgraced Kazekage still being in the village. Although fleeing further and further away. Maybe they could catch up to him if they were fast enough.
"Let him go." The old man said again, although in a quiet tone, so only he could hear. "We'll deal with him some other time. The plans have changed."
He purposely let him escape... Naruto understood. If that was his strategy, then so be it. He learned until now that he should not question him or his decision when it came to the protection of the village.
They had his children, so Kazekage would be less inclined to wage an all-out war against them. Even with his failed invasion, Naruto was sure that he lost only a fraction of his troops. And that he still had many more men under his command.
Dozens of Konoha ninjas were gathered around the roof. Kumogakure group looking out of place as they watched the spectacle with uncertain eyes. The Raikage, his bodyguards, Kumo Genins, and even Mabui was there. But none of them knew what the future would bring.
The Raikage only watched the old man and him. His eyes were narrowed down, and his nostrils fuming with rage. Or was it a normal breathing for him?
Let him rage for whatever reason he wishes. Naruto mused inwardly, while the Sandaime gave a victory speech to all the men around him. Who cheered in return. Konoha won today!
Mabui looked at only him, uncertainty in her emerald green eyes visible. Naruto only spared her a smile.
This failed invasion showed what would happen if others dared to invade them. If any of their future allies dared to betray them. The invaders were crushed, and the potential ones would be warned not to repeat their mistakes.
And now it was time to mourn for the dead.
Author's Note:
(1) I made that up. As it was never said what kind of seal Gaara had, I took the liberty of making that up here.
And that would be it for this chapter. Thank you for reading it. I know I have changed much of the usual pattern for Chūnin Exams, but I simply couldn't force myself to write a match after a match. I do have in plan to write spar between Yugito and Naruto, but that's it really.
Usually, many fics also stop when it comes to the Chūnin Exams as many writers lose inspiration to write that. And I just wanted to get it over with. And I know that the fight wasn't an all-out jutsu throwing. But as Gaara really had a limited arsenal of techniques, I had to make the fight as quick as possible. Not to mention that it would be lame if I nerfed Naruto in a fight against him considering how I wrote him until now.
In the next chapter, I would like to show the battle outside the village. But I will also explain Konoha's strategy in full in the "aftermath".
If you notice something that was worded in a wrong way, don't fret and message me so I could correct it.
And I also want to thank you all for following this story as I have passed 1000 followers! Thanks!
~HyperboreanRealist