IMPERIALS – SPECIAL TRAINING

East Ewoa

Last time Naruto and Hinata ventured south, this time they travel north towards the border. There is a lake with a wall of flames the other side of it, flames that burn forever like the immortal warriors of Homeworld. This makes the lake appear a vibrant orange, even so far from the flames. It is a beautiful sight and one that Hinata has not seen before. She is glad to see it for the first time with him. She sees this contrast between fire and water and wonders how they coexist so well. Perhaps when she works that out she will be able to balance her elements, perhaps she can even work out how to balance her souls.

Hinata has heard much about her past life with Naruto, things seemed much easier back then. Hyuuga Hinata's relationship with Naruto was very much like the water, much calmer than theirs, easier, a gentle flow of action and reaction. Endou Hinata's relationship with Naruto is more fire-like, a raging flame that engulfs everything, the intense and explosive partnership of Homeworld's two most famous rebels. Sometimes Endou Hinata wishes that she could have experienced the other relationship between them, and she wonders if Hyuuga Hinata would feel the same way.

Naruto tells her a few jokes. She smiles and shakes her head. Jokes, she will have to add that to dancing on his list of weaknesses. She finds that endearing though, sitting back and reacting to these terrible jokes, it spreads a warmth through her, makes her feel at home. She had come here worried about feeling this closeness between them, but before she realises what happened she finds herself resting her head on his shoulder. Every rational thought tells her to move, to distance herself from him, to avoid the almost unavoidable pain of his death. But she feels a comfort with him that is so hard to discard, one that even she is struggling to throw away.

Hinata eventually meets his eyes and asks him if he would like to dance again. Naruto accepts. They stand and begin to dance. Last time she noticed that he was terrible, but this time she has lost all focus. She feels herself shaking, her only concentration the feeling of her hand in his, her legs so weak that she misplaces her foot. She feels embarrassed at first but realises he is no longer using the One True Sense to monitor their feet. He took what she said before to heart; she said she likes to marvel at Homeworld's beauty without her sensory powers. Now he is doing the same, for her.

She eventually stumbles, bumping clumsily into him. He says nothing, catching her as she bumps into his chest, helping her to stabilise her feet. She doesn't want to pull away, in his arms is the closest she has ever felt to a true home. When she cranes her neck to look up at him, their eyes meet once again, eyes as deep as the lake with as much warmth as the fire. Neither of them knows how long they hold that gaze, nor when they started to inch closer to one another. For a pure moment they are lost completely in each other, everything else is gone and they are the only people in their own little world.

But when Hinata feels Naruto's lips brush against her own the empress comes rushing back to the surface. She places a hand on his chest and steps away, her breath heavy.

She has done it again. Naruto found the Hinata beneath for a moment, but she is gone. She asks him why he was offended before when he asked him to be the King of Cheqitori. As far as she is concerned that is the greatest honour she could possibly bestow upon someone, an honour far beyond what she ever expected a pocket-worlder to experience. She explains that it would make him her closest ally, afford him privileges even beyond the inner circle of the empress which he would also be invited to join.

Naruto has no words.

Hinata fills the awkward silence with her own words, a move more reminiscent of her Hyuuga counterpart than herself. In that moment where she acts like other self she catches his eyes for a moment, sensing the disappearance of that fire from before, seeing instead the pain that he is feeling. She catches more glimpses of their past life together. She sees a moment where he is in great pain, where she risks her life to spare him from that pain. She wishes she had the courage to do that now, but she does not. That is exactly the kind of pain she wants to avoid.

When she stops seeing the images, the empress reaches for Naruto's hand. But he disappears, his divine oddity powering his legs as he launches himself into the distance, running along the surface of the orange lake. He has chosen to be alone. She has been acting this way to avoid the pain of loss, but seeing him leave, seeing such anguish within him hurts her as much as anything she can remember. Her strategy of avoiding pain at any cost is clearly not working.

A tearful Endou Hinata returns to her sister, this time finishing the official private engagement alone. She learns that Naruto still hasn't returned and worries about him. She tells her sister about what happened, about the way she felt when they danced. She recounts a blissful story, a story that reminds the empress of her own mistakes, the joy that she is throwing away in fear of a corresponding pain. She tells Mana about the pain that her actions have caused her to feel, and about the doubts that pain has brought to her attention. She asks if she has made the wrong decision. She asks if the agony she was trying to avoid was inevitable.

When Hinata eventually calms down, she summarises her own decisions.

"I have been so stupid."

Above the Crystal Caves

'That's the empress,' Temari realises.

'She's orange,' is the first thought that runs through Inojin's mind.

'She's terrifying,' is the thought of ChouChou.

'Why is she here?' Shikadai wonders.

As Boruto and Himawari introduce Empress Helion Ashen to them, he attempts to analyse her body language. It is of no use, she is unlike anyone he has ever met before, she has such sublime self-control that gauging anything from outward appearance alone is impossible. He still wants to know why she is here. He said that words may be the Uzumakis best weapon against the empress, but he didn't expect them to be so effective. What could be her motivation? Why has she agreed to help Boruto and Himawari?

"This is Temari, she was an ambassador to our village when we were attacked by the Homeworld Military," Boruto explains. "That is ChouChou, she is an expert size-manipulating shinobi. This is Inojin, he is an expert with ink-based powers. And this is Shikadai, he is Temari's daughter and our village's best thinker."

There is only one way for Shikadai to find out more. That is to ask.

"Why did you agree to help Himawari?"

"I don't see any need to justify myself to you."

"There is every need to justify yourself," Shikadai says. "Everyone else here is too trusting, that's why it falls to me to be sceptical. You once vowed to destroy this world and everyone in it to pave the way for your people. Anyone who can inflict such pain upon so many people has no sense of right and wrong. Every action you take is to further your own best interest, trusting someone like that is dangerous. Make things clear for me, explain your actions."

Ashen looks at Boruto and Himawari, smiling to them. They have no intention of stopping Shikadai's interrogation. She has no need to answer, she is confident that she could fight her way through everyone here and leave, but now Shikadai has made her curious. He is their village's best thinker; then how will he hold up against the Empress of the Dark Dimension?

"I have no wish to be sealed again, cooperation is the best way to avoid that," Ashen says.

"Do you believe that Boruto and Himawari could seal you again?"

"No, but I'm sure that Akashi could."

Shikadai minimises his reaction to this information, but he can feel his pulse racing as he adjusts his line of questioning. Boruto and Himawari clearly haven't told Ashen that Akashi is dead, a wise decision. He must adjust his behaviour to maintain that illusion in front of this deadly warrior.

"That explains why you aren't attacking us. It doesn't explain why you are helping us. Do you believe that Akashi would be willing to seal you again even if you avoided fighting?"

"He may not want to but his subordinates would force it upon him," Ashen reveals. "He was a wise and fierce opponent, but beyond everything else he was a naïve fool. He wants to see the good in people, and if he saw that I was not killing anyone he would want to give me a chance. But his subordinates are too frightened, they would demand that I was sealed again. The only way to ensure that Akashi does not do that is to cooperate."

"You believe he would do it even if he thinks it is wrong?"

"He is a leader, not a ruler."

"Which were you?"

"Neither."

"Then what were you?"

"I was chosen, by fate and by the people. My world was dying and it lead to the attempted invasion of Homeworld. I was called upon to lead us into that war, leadership was demanded from me, rulership was promised to me, but neither was my choice. In the end I was just a soldier."

"A soldier who killed millions of people from this world."

"The only way to save my own people."

"And that justifies killing so many?"

"Akashi was a hero who wanted to save as many people as possible, not a soldier like the rest of us. When I joined the war, Homeworld's War Council had no problem with killing my comrades. I imagine the War Council still exists does it not? We had the same job, kill the enemy. Am I unforgiveable because I killed during the war, or am I unforgiveable because I was better at it than they were?"

"This was their home," Himawari says.

"Their right to life is superior because of where they were born?"

"Of course not but—"

"But?"

"Why didn't you work out a fairer solution? Why didn't you ask to share Homeworld?"

"I only heard rumours about the discussions that took place between our two worlds. All I know is that an agreement was not reached and my people were denied safe passage to Homeworld. If you think that the decisions were unfair blame the negotiators and the politicians, don't blame those of us they sent to die on the front lines."

Himawari pauses. Ashen is different to those she has met before; she feels herself wavering before the empress' charisma. She has heard the arguments of would-be dictators, of villains who would destroy her village, of heroes like her father who wanted to save everyone, but never one like this. Ashen is as she describes herself, a soldier with a cause laid out before her, fighting for that cause with all the strength she can muster. The cause has never been hers; it has been the cause of people she had entrusted with her best interests.

"You must have seen that the war was wrong," Boruto says. "Why didn't you use your position as the empress to bring an end to it?"

"Because the Dark Dimension would have become too small for us to survive, and my people would have met their end. Besides, I think it is a dangerous precedent."

"A dangerous precedent?"

"Believing that you alone know right from wrong, that is a dangerous level of arrogance. Have you never made a mistake that has cost someone their life? Have you never made a wrong decision? Look yourself in the mirror and ask if strength qualified you to make that choice, then admit how your dead comrades would have answered."

"Do you aim to continue the war soldier?" Shikadai asks.

"What would I have left to fight for?"

"Your Little Diamond," Himawari answers.

Ashen smiles. "Yes, I suppose so. But I am answering no more questions on the subject. You have all the information I am going to give you. Mr Thinker, whether to trust me or not is your decision, but be warned, if you decide not to trust me it may end poorly for you. No matter what, I am not going to let myself be sealed for a second time."

Shikadai paces and massages his temple. Ashen makes a good argument philosophically, it speaks to the character of someone who can most likely be trusted. However, she could have just been acting a part, portraying someone else to them. For all he knows the Empress of the Dark Dimension is the terrifying power-crazed maniac he imagined her to be. She holds herself with such confidence and speaks with such charisma that he cannot see through her. It is like when the 7th Hokage speaks, her voice holds a sway that makes people sympathetic to her way of thinking.

However, despite everything else Ashen has not shown them any hostility.

"You can prove that you are trustworthy," Shikadai says.

"How would you like me to do that?"

"Himawari has the potential to become a class 9 warrior. With the exception of the emperor, you are now the strongest person in Homeworld. If anyone can train her to become a class 9 warrior it is you. Do that and I believe that she and Boruto would have a chance of fighting back if you become hostile. Teach her and I will believe that you can be trusted."

"That isn't possible Shikadai," Himawari argues. "I would need to understand tier 3 'fire', 'wind', and 'lightning' energy. That will probably take years, even if I had a teacher to show me all of them."

Shikadai disagrees. "It depends on the method of teaching you use. Normally a teacher would educate you about your element, offer you insights, and answer your questions, but there is another more dangerous way of teaching someone. That is by direct hostile exposure to the element. If I understand the empress' powers, she is the only person in the world who could teach you that way."

Ashen smiles, Shikadai has impressed her.

"You are right, my Crown gives me access to all normal and transcendent elements. 'Fire', 'wind', and 'lightning' are all included of course. I could offer you direct exposure training in all of these elements, and I believe I could do so without risk of killing you. I also believe that someone with the talent to understand three elements by themselves would be an easy student to teach. If that is what it takes to earn your trust, I will do it."

"Good."

"But I must warn you," Ashen continues. "Even with Boruto and Himawari as class 9 warriors, it wouldn't be enough to defeat me. You are looking for some safety, a guarantee that no harm will come to you as I as I travel with you. That guarantee does not exist. Even Homeworld's mightiest warrior struggled to subdue me. If you and I become enemies there will be nothing you can do to stop me."

"I don't believe that," Shikadai says.

"Good."

"We don't have time for this training," Himawari says. "We need to start working on a counterstrategy to the Hive Mind right away."

"We don't need time," Ashen counters. "As I mentioned you use three elements. You have already reached tier 2 in all of those elements, implying a better than average skill in each of them. You are also the granddaughter of Akashi and Enri. That tells me everything I need to know about your talent. If I worked with an average warrior I would promise that I could get their energy to tier 3 in a matter of months. For you I can help you to reach tier 3 in every element in a matter of days."

"Days?"

"Yes. Himawari, if you decide to become my student I can make you reach class 9 before the end of the week."

Boruto and his sister exchange a look. Neither of them can deny that it is a valuable opportunity. Ashen herself has neglected to mention something; even if they cannot defeat her working together, they will still be one step closer if she breaks through. Furthermore, if Ashen is serious about taking Himawari as her student it may make her more sympathetic to the rebel cause as she begins to understand what the war is about. This is a golden chance to put another nail in the empire's coffin, to walk one step closer to Homeworld's freedom.

Himawari offers her hand to Ashen.

"No, that is not how we do things in the Dark Dimension. If you want to learn from me you have to agree to carry on our traditions. That is more important now than it has ever been before."

"OK, how do you do this in the Dark Dimension?"

"Clasp both your hands together and reach your arms out in front of you. Bow your head and ask me for what you want."

Himawari intertwines her fingers together and pushes her palms together tightly. She stretches her arms out before her Ashen instructed and bows her head politely. Many in Homeworld would be horrified to see the Blaze Princess affording the Empress of the Dark Dimension such respect, but she knows that this is necessary. It is time to move on from previous wars, for her, for her mother, for everyone.

"Empress Helion Ashen, please be my teacher."

Ashen places her left hand atop Himawari's clasped hands.

"I agree to become your teacher. You may raise your head, Himawari student of Ashen."

In Response to Engineer
Who asks if we will learn more about Mirai's power

I couldn't say without potentially giving away spoilers.
Sorry.

Thanks for reading.

In Response to Sarada chan san
Who asks why this story is named 'To the Future'

Beyond the obvious reason I don't think there was anything else.
I started writing this story in 2017, so I may have forgotten.

Thanks for reading.

In Response to iloveffn
Who asks several questions

Q1: Is Killer Bee dead?
A1: Yes.

Q2: What happened to hachibi?
A2: Given that Killer Bee died I believe he eventually will re-appear in the pocket-world.

Q3: If Goku from Dragon Ball Super were here what class would he be?
A3: Power-scaling Dragon Ball is always difficult. Then there is pocket-world vs Homeworld scaling. I wouldn't like to say, for now but power-scaling will be addressed more in future chapters.

Thanks for reading.