I took my seat besides Kakashi as one of the 'Kazekage's guards appeared behind our group. The man tapped Gaara on the shoulder before walking into the hallway. Scowling, Gaara winked at me before following the man into the empty hall to meet with the 'Kazekage'. When he returned minutes later, he nodded subtly at me.
"This match is between Hyuuga Hinata and Sabaku (A/N:I fixed it) no Gaara. Those two come into the arena," Genma announced from his vantage point. The two genin nodded determinedly at the other, making their way to the field. "This match determines who goes on to the finals. That said, remember that if I declare the match finished, it ends. Begin!" he called, jumping back. Gaara smirked, his hands flying through the familiar seals before he bit his thumb, slamming his palm on the ground. Watching him closely, Hina-chan activated her Byakugan before going through the same seals.
When the smoke cleared, two summons stood facing each other, flanked by Hina-chan and Gaara. Gaara studied the mortal fox as Hinata-chan sized up the strange raccoon with narrowed eyes. Scowling, she spoke.
"That is completely unfair, Gaara. You can summon Shukaku already?" she growled. Gaara chuckled sadistically, nodding at Shukaku. A wave of killing intent pulsed away from the sand demon, freezing the civilians and most of the ninja.
"Have fun, Shukaku," Gaara laughed, feigned insanity coloring his voice. Shukaku grinned and grew until he was as tall as the arena. Haku glanced at me with narrowed eyes. I waved her away as Shukaku left a path of destruction in his wake, heading towards the forests.
"Sasuke, Sakura, Haku, I need you three to take Shukaku. Don't worry, he won't kill you. He's on our side," I said, narrowing my eyes as the Kage box filled with smoke. Kabuto placed his genjutsu over the crowds and my team easily released themselves. Seconds passed and the 'Kazekage' eventually flew out of the smoke holding Hiruzen with a kunai at his neck. The Oto nin emerged from their transformations, smirking at the Leaf ANBU.
"Do it," I heard the 'Kazekage' order. The Sound Four created their barrier and, like last time, the first ANBU to come in contact with it died. I jumped onto the roof next to the ANBU captain, my mask already on my face.
"The course of history is going to change now…" the 'Kazekage' said, still in disguise. Hiruzen studied the ninja holding him captive.
"Are you saying that you're starting a war?" he asked quietly. "One should avoid resolution through armed force and should rather seek a solution through negotiations. There's still time."
"Perhaps one gets addicted to peace with age… It's too bad," he smirked, "Sarutobi-sensei. The Leaf has been outmaneuvered. You've lost."
"Perhaps… But nothing is decided until the end," Hiruzen chuckled. "I believe that's what I taught you… Orochimaru."
The 'Kazekage' reached his hand to his face, peeling off the disguise. I growled as he smiled evilly at the Sandaime Hokage.
"I knew this day would come," Hiruzen announced. "However, you won't get my head that easily!"
"I told you, didn't I? It would be better for you to choose the Godaime Hokage quickly," he drifted off. "Sandaime… you will die here." The missing-nin lifted his kunai, his tongue flicking out to touch the metal.
After a pause, Hiruzen glanced at Orochimaru, somewhat incredulous.
"Are you so happy that you're crying, or do you have an iota of sadness in your heart to kill me, your sensei?" Orochimaru smiled, stabbing his palm.
"No… Early on I was tired; now, I'm fully awake," he said, releasing the Hokage and walking away.
"I thought it'd be something like that… After all, I know you aren't one to hold a grudge," Hiruzen said, narrowing his eyes. "You have no goal, no motive."
"Hmm… I guess I do have a motive," Orochimaru said, flinging his hat into the barrier, "To destroy Konoha."
"As I thought," Hiruzen said, a small smile on his aged features.
"To think, I'd be able to fight you again," Orochimaru smiled.
Outside of the barrier, the ANBU captain studied the barrier.
"I see," he muttered, glancing at his team and finally noticing me. "Kitsune, I didn't see you there!"
"It's okay. This barrier can only be broken from the inside, right?"
"Hai," he said, nodding. I smiled and closed my eyes.
"I'm going in," I said. The ANBU began to protest until I shushed him. "Hiruzen has one of my Hiraishin kunai. I'm sure I can get inside. The sound four will be more difficult, they've surround themselves with the barrier… I'll help Hokage-sama with Orochimaru."
I shut my eyes and appeared at Hiruzen's left. Both of the older ninjas looked surprised at my appearance and I thought I saw Orochimaru rock back on his heels.
"There's nowhere to run this time, Hebi-teme," I taunted. "You've dug your own grave with this barrier." Orochimaru only laughed, his hands forming seals.
"Striking Shadow Snake!" he shouted, his tongue morphing into a snake, shooting towards Hiruzen. I withdrew Mizuchi in a flash, slicing off the snake's head with a wave of motion. The snake writhed as it receded back into Orochimaru's mouth.
"You betrayed Konoha… You attack my team… You tried to implant your disgusting soul into my student… You gave me the cursed seal of heaven… This fight does not concern your sensei. This is between you and me, Hebi-teme."
Orochimaru licked his lips and I grimaced.
"Why don't we stop playing these games, Naruto-kun?" Orochimaru grinned. His hands formed seals I had often seen in my past. He proceeded into summoning the past Kage; I smirked when the Yondaime refused to be summoned.
"My father won't be summoned using that technique, Hebi-teme," I said, watching the two coffins emerge from the tiled roof.
"I see you've heard of this technique. Pretty little thing, isn't it Naruto-kun?" Orochimaru smiled behind the coffins. The doors opened and the Shodaime and Nidaime Hokages stepped out, staring at the Sandaime behind me.
"Long time, no see, Saru," the Shodai, Senju Hashirama said in a monotone. His younger brother nodded.
"Oh, it is you… You've gotten old, Sarutobi," the Nidaime, Senju Tobirama, noted. Sandaime nodded, stunned into silence.
"I never thought I'd see the two of you again, not like this," Hiruzen said, glaring at Orochimaru. "It's regretful." The younger brother turned to Shodai.
"Reanimation, huh? Then this youth must have summoned us using the forbidden jutsu," he reasoned, glancing at Orochimaru behind him as the coffins fell to the side.
"Then… does this mean that we must… fight you?" Hashirama asked, staring at his former student. "There is always fighting, no matter where or when you live."
Orochimaru stepped behind them, holding two kunai aloft. Hiruzen narrowed his eyes at the Snake Sannin.
"No good will come by deriding the dead and playing around with time!" Breaking eye contact with his sensei, Orochimaru slide each kunai into the Hokages' heads.
"Let's get started, shall we?" he smiled at me, the two reanimated Hokage steaming as they regained their old strength. "They're ready."
Staring at his deceased sensei, Hiruzen's eyes watered. I glanced at him empathetically.
"You are a monster, Hebi-teme. You've summoned these souls for more than one reason. They might have been the strongest ninja of their time but they were also Hiruzen's sensei. For performing this jutsu, and so many others, you will die today," I promised as the two Hokage began to rush towards me. "Hiruzen; I'll keep the Hokages busy. You need to battle Orochimaru. I will help when I've finished."
"Don't get yourself killed, Naruto. I know my teachers' abilities. Don't underestimate them."
"I know, ojiisan. Go kill the snake, I'll save your sensei," I assigned. Hiruzen scoffed at the nickname but jumped towards Orochimaru. His predecessors jumped to meet them before they were interrupted by my blade. I sliced each with Mizuchi, forcing them away from Hiruzen.
"Ojiisan?" Orochimaru laughed at the title. Hiruzen narrowed his eyes, flying through seals.
"Kuchiyose no jutsu!" Enma appeared out of the smoke, transforming once more into a staff for Hiruzen. I turned away from the Snake Sannin and his sensei as a column of wood rose out of the tiles. My hands formed the rat seal and I muttered 'kai', feeling over three hundred pounds vanish away.
"Wood release… Haven't seen that yet," I chuckled, watching the Shodai fly through hand seals. Pillars rose around me and I grimaced, recognizing the technique used to restrain bijuu. I glanced up, staring into the first Hokage's eyes. "Senju Tsunade, your granddaughter, is here in Konoha. She is doing great; she even took on one of my students on as an apprentice."
Hashirama made no reply as I Hiraishined away from the wooden columns. Nidaime studied me as I talked as I whirled Mizuchi around to deflect his thrown kunai. I stared at where I knew Orochimaru's kunai would be in their heads, largely unprotected if you knew how to remove them.
~Flashback~
"Itachi…" I coughed up blood, watching the reanimated Uchiha standing over me with a kunai closing in on my throat. At the last second, I rolled away, jumping behind him. I forced my hand closer and closer to his neck, reaching for the hilt of the kunai that kept him bound to Kabuto. Feeling the metal, I gripped it and ripped it away from Itachi.
"Na-Naruto," Itachi coughed, collapsing. I fell close to him, holding my broken ribs. Itachi stared at me, his body back under his control. "Naruto, let me-"
"I'll be okay," I said, my hand lighting up with green energy. "I'm glad you are back in control… I know what you did for Sasuke. I'm sorry."
Itachi watched me in silence, flexing his right hand.
"I don't belong in this world anymore. I need you to-" he was interrupted by a rain of kunai, pinning him to the ground. I whirled around, reaching for my own kunai. I was startled to find Shikamaru standing over me with expressionless eyes.
"We need to keep going, Naruto-sama," he reported. I glanced at Itachi's body before nodding, ready to fight Pain again.
~End Flashback~
Shooting towards me, Tobirama launched a spinning kick towards my head. I countered with my own kick, using the spin to strengthen my next, chakra enforced, punch towards his head. He blocked the blow, grabbing my wrist and twisting my arm backwards. He pressed my wrist to the small of my back, jumping away as his brother wound a spiral of wood around my body. I winced as the wood tightened. I pushed Kyuu's chakra out of each of my tenketsu, spinning around in a Kaiten. The wood pushed outwards as the demonic chakra came into contact with it. I jumped away from the wood, towards Hashirama.
"It… really is a shame… that I have to… fight you two…" I said in between kicks and punches. Hashirama met me blow for blow. I feigned a upper cut and the Shodai leaned away to the side, leaving the back of his head vulnerable. Faster than Gai could say 'Yosh!', the kunai was in my hand and ripped away from the deceased Hokage. He shuddered, just as Itachi had, before falling to his knees. I jumped away from him, towards his younger brother.
Tobirama narrowed his eyes at me, his white hair flying out away from his face. His hand flying to his back, I smiled as he drew Raijin no Ken, the sword of the thunder god. I grinned and drew my own sword.
"Before you attack me blindly, you should know that I was trained by the samurai and Kiri's Seven Swordsmen. Also, this blade is the Namikaze sword, Mizuchi. It may not be infused with electrical energy, but it can packs quite a punch if I add my chakra to the mix," I said, pushing both my wind natured chakra and Kyuu's fire natured chakra to create the flaming purple sword I now held in my hands. "If you still feel pain, I apologize," I said, running towards Tobirama. He tightened his grip in preparation.
When our swords met, the three elements exploded away from each other. Tobirama's sword was engulfed by purple flames, Mizuchi was tingling with electricity. Feeling the spark rush to the hilt, I dropped the katana as Tobirama threw his own weapon away.
"I didn't expect that," I admitted, glancing at Raijin no Ken, still aflame. I saw a shadow move towards me and I instinctively ducked, holding a kunai in front of my face. I stopped when I saw Hashirama standing over me, staring at his younger brother. Tobirama was powerless to stop his brother's wood techniques as they wound around his body. Glancing at me, Hashirama nodded.
"Go, I can hold him," he said sadly. I ran to the Nidaime, reaching into his head and gripping the kunai. Tearing it away, the Nidaime fell to his knees, coughing as the wood restricting him receded.
"Thank you, Shodai-sama," I nodded my head, glancing at Hiruzen, breathing heavily across from Orochimaru. I glanced at the deceased ninja. He nodded, his hands forming a seal I recognized from my days with Tenzo as Team Seven's captain. A tree sprouted from the tiles, each limb extending outwards until Orochimaru found himself trapped in a wooden cage suspended over the ground.
"What is your name?" Shodai asked me, standing close to his brother. I smiled, pointing to myself.
"Namikaze Uzumaki Naruto, future Hokage," I grinned. The Shodai only chuckled as his younger brother stood up. Hiruzen walked up to us and I nodded, returning to Orochimaru. He glanced at me, scoffing.
"Heh, heh, if it isn't Naruto-kun?"
"I promised you something Hebi-teme. I told you that you would not be leaving this rooftop with your life. I'm here to keep that promise; Kuchiyose no jutsu!"
Kyuubi appeared, only half his normal size. I jumped to his head, a palm on his forehead as I stored his excess chakra.
"I have seen your crimes, snake. Shinigami-sama will be pleased with your soul at his gates," Kyuu growled. Orochimaru paled as Kyuu lifted a paw, ripping the cage to shreds and pinning the missing-nin to the tiles roof. "Start screaming, snake. You'll get no mercy from me."
I walked away, leaving Kyuubi to his fun as Orochimaru's girly screams filled the air. Each of the sound four, rushing in to help, were quickly disposed of, courtesy of Kyuubi's thrashing tails. I walked to the three Hokage, whistling. Each stood at me, amazed and frightened for the Leaf.
"What?" I asked, aware of their fears. "He won't do anything but kill Hebi-teme and his minions. He knows what his punishment will be if he touches anything or anyone outside of Oto."
"You seem to be on good terms with this bijuu, jinchuuriki," Shodai glanced at the bloody mess that was Orochimaru. I grinned as Kyuu joined us, shrinking till he was up to my waist. I put a palm on his forehead, scratching his ears.
"Isn't that what you wanted when you divided the bijuu amongst the nations? If a jinchuuriki respects their bijuu, and the other way around, they can form a dangerous tag team." I reasoned. The Shodai and Nidaime only chuckled, glancing at Hiruzen.
"How old is this one, Saru?" Tobirama asked. I blinked, remembering that I still had my mask on. I reached up to it as Hiruzen answered.
"Naruto is one of the youngest jounin in the history of Konoha. He skipped the chuunin exams altogether. He is twelve years old." The Hokage all turned to me; inevitably, my arm went to the back of my head, embarrassed as I removed my mask.
"Hiruzen-ojiisan," I complained. "You act like it's such a surprise. I'm my father's son," I shrugged. Hiruzen nodded, chuckling.
"Namikaze Naruto is the last of the Namikaze clan. His father, Minato, was the Yondaime Hokage, the third coffin Orochimaru tried to resurrect. He died sealing Kyuubi into Naruto twelve years ago."
"I still need to kill that Uchiha for what he did," Kyuubi growled. I nodded as the two deceased Hokage looked surprised. I remembered that they both thought Madara to be dead.
"Most of Konoha is under the impression that there are only five Uchiha left in existence. Four years ago, Uchiha Itachi killed everyone in his clan with the exception of his younger brother Sasuke and his pregnant girlfriend. Itachi then left Konoha as an S-ranking missing-nin and joined up with the Akatsuki, an organization made to collect the nine bijuu from all over the world and create a super weapon. The leader is a war orphan from Ame named Nagato, also know as Pain. He is only a puppet, though. The true mastermind is Uchiha Madara."
"He's still alive? I thought he died after our battle," Hashirama said quietly.
"That's because he wants everyone to be under the impression that he died. He is laying low, gathering followers and making plans. You wounded him badly enough that he is still weak, at least compared to his former strength. Crippled, he won't make a move until he's sure it will be successful. Unfortunately for us, that means he can stay hidden while he puts together his forces."
"You sound like you know a lot of Madara."
"I do know a lot about Madara. Whether he knows it or not, I already placed a spy inside the Akatsuki. Personally, I doubt that Madara killed his brother for the Eternal Mangekyou Sharingan. I know that he feared that the Uchiha would be oppressed by the Senju when Konoha was first created. That paranoia drove him to plot against the two of you, leading to his banishment within his clan."
"I remember hearing of unrest within the Uchiha clan," Tobirama commented. I nodded.
"History often repeats itself. When Itachi massacred his clan, they were plotting against Hiruzen. They felt that they weren't getting the proper recognition for helping to found Konoha. Itachi had the worst hand to play; when he heard of the revolt, he informed the Elders. He was currently an ANBU captain, and Danzo decided to use that to his advantage."
"Danzo? Is he still alive?" Tobirama asked, remembering his student. Kyuu growled.
"That war hawk lives on out of spite, nothing more. If I were you, Naruto, I'd-"
"It's a good thing you aren't me, Kyuu. Otherwise a third of Konoha would be dead," I pointed out. Kyuubi grumbled, laying down. "Ever since you died, Tobirama-sama, Danzo has become…. totalitarian. Even if everything he does benefits Konoha, it benefits him just a little bit more. ROOT is completely under his sole control, all of it's shinobi only puppets on his political chessboard. He is the head of Konoha's Council and, until I took my seat, he was not afraid to attempt to intimidate or extort the council members into voting his way. Of course, I might be a little unfair to him; he's wanted me in ROOT since the day I turned six."
"Actually, that was when he started asking me. He's been asking Kakashi since you were two," Hiruzen corrected. I growled. "You were attracting attention to yourself; not many two year olds can walk on water or outrun ANBU."
We continued going back and forth until Hashirama cleared his throat.
"What happens now? Tobirama and I don't belong in this world anymore." I held back a shudder from the similar words. I smiled sadly.
"I learned a lot about this technique when I thought Hebi-teme was the biggest threat. According to my information, there are only a few ways to send you back."
"How?" Tobirama asked, glancing at his brother.
"The first would be for your summoner to dismiss you. Seeing as that won't be happening," I drifted off, glancing at what was left of Orochimaru. "The second is to seal your souls away so that you can't be summoned again. The last is to…" my voice died as I glanced at Hiruzen. Hashirama nodded understandingly.
"To kill us again?" he guessed. I nodded sadly. Hashirama glanced at his brother before shrugging. "All right, let's get this over with."
"What?" Hiruzen asked, his eyes wide. I put a hand on his shoulder.
"It's okay, Saru. We've died before," Hashirama said quietly. "We've had our time here, it's time for us to go."
"You'll see us again, just not here. I left Konoha to you for a reason, Sarutobi. Make sure you leave it to someone who will take care of it," Tobirama smiled. I glanced at Hiruzen and he turned away as I drew Mizuchi. "Naruto? You can take Raijin no Ken. Mizuchi is a fine blade but it never hurts to have another on hand."
"Say hello to Tsunade for me," Hashirama added, thinking of his granddaughter, still in Konoha.
I smiled at the Shodai and Nidaime, almost numb to what I was about to do. I nodded slowly to the two Hokage and brought Mizuchi down in a lethal arc. Hiruzen jumped as the bodies hit the ground.