The Wanderers
Chapter 41 – Kakashi – Inevitability Incarnate
A/N: Same as last week. Read Chapter 615. DO IT! The NaruHina gods command you!
A/N2: This chapter does get pretty grim dark. I kind of felt depressed writing it, if that's an indication.
Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto. If I did, resurrection wouldn't happen so damn often.
***Previously-On***
After escaping the Hidden Village of Sound, the group was accosted by a warrior covered in white armour, bearing a frightening resemblance to the warrior from Kakashi's memories. After a short monologue, in which he confessed to compliance in the destruction of Konoha, the warrior dispersed the Konoha shinobi under orders from a mysterious leader, causing all of them to be sent to different parts of the world. Now, separated from their friends and comrades, each of the surviving Konoha shinobi are struggling to find each other again before they are found again by the group that had caused them so much grief.
Having ended up in Amegakure unintentionally, Kakashi aimed to drink himself into a stupor after failing to find any of his previous companions. On the verge of giving up, Kakashi spends a drunken night with an Amegakure shinobi who introduced herself as Konan in the morning. To his horror, he discovers that she is a leading member of Akatsuki, and she nearly kills him in battle before he was able to talk her down. Konan took him to meet the friend she was previously trying to kill Kakashi for, revealing him to be Nagato, the leader of both Akatsuki and Amegakure. On his last legs after the destruction of the Gedou Mazou a year ago, Nagato implored Kakashi to spend some time with his village while he sorted out his affairs before his death. Kakashi was unsure of what to do, but with nothing else to do he agreed to at least try it out, if nothing else but to spend more time with Konan, who drew his attention for reasons he couldn't quite understand. Trying to make himself useful, he moved out with Konan to take care of an enemy scout group and killed a commander who gave him no reason to doubt the fact that he thought he was the last survivor from Konoha. With nothing else but his growing friendship with Amegakure, Kakashi returned to the village.
***End Summary***
***Two Months after Separation***
Kakashi frowned as he looked over the board. He identified the strategy, but had no means to counter-attack it without heavy losses on his side.
"Well?"
He looked up to the origin of the voice, frowning when he saw the look on Nagato's face. "It's a difficult situation. I want to take my time."
Nagato chuckled, and then grimaced at the pain in his shoulders. He wasn't able to move his arms very far, and his hands were covered by gauntlets that prevented them from atrophying completely like the rest of his body.
After nearly a minute, Kakashi nodded to himself. "Okay."
Reaching to the table in front of him, Kakashi picked up one of the strategic pieces.
"Pawn to E8"
His white haired companion chuckled again, "All that posturing, to move a pawn?"
"It was a very strategic manoeuvre that required extensive thought."
Nagato gave him a look that was easy to identify even with his ringed eyes. "No doubt. Queen to E8."
Kakashi moved the piece since Nagato wasn't able to move, taking his black pawn from the table and replacing it with Nagato's white queen.
Damn. I didn't see his queen. Now I'm down to only three pawns.
He looked out at the rain beside them. A week ago they had moved Nagato to the roof section of the building created by Konan's technique. He claimed to prefer the view, and safety was less of a concern these days.
"I thought I would get sick of the rain. But after a month, I find myself oddly intrigued. Rook to D6."
Nagato twisted his head slightly so that he was looking at the same area of the city that Kakashi was. "Having spent my entire life in this area, I can tell you that the rain here takes a mind of its own. I can cancel the rainfall for short periods of time, but even someone like me can't stop nature. Pawn to E5."
Kakashi turned back and moved the pieces, remarking on the makeshift pieces they had scrapped together on the board. "Remarkably like shougi, this game. I would never have thought something like this would have been here."
"We were introduced to it by Jiraiya-sensei. He said he found it in one of his travels. It's a shame I never got to speak to him again after he left." Nagato stared at the board for a few seconds before his pupils dilated slightly, a habit he had adopted when he was making a decision. "Knight to B2."
"I didn't know him, but Shizune said he died with honour." Kakashi moved his rook to capture one of Nagato's pawns, though he knew he was fighting an uphill battle.
The leader of Amegakure smiled slowly, "Knowing him, I don't doubt it. He was a good man, although he had some questionable habits. Move my bishop to take your rook."
Kakashi complied, quickly moving his queen to take Nagato's bishop. The battlefield was opening up, and he could smell victory.
They could hear the sounds of shinobi training beneath them, a testament to how hard working Nagato's shinobi were.
"Pawn to you come to a decision yet?"
Kakashi moved the pieces and leaned back on the chair he had brought up to play with Nagato. "It hasn't been easy. I know I'm not much older than the two of you, but I've been fighting for so long I can feel it in my bones."
"I know what you mean. Yahiko used to call it 'endless tears'. If you don't move your queen, I'm going to put you in check."
Looking down at the board Kakashi sighed and moved his queen to protect his bishop, which protected his king. "Konan seems adamant about the idea."
Nagato frowned, ignoring the spiking pain through his arms. It was an ongoing battle, one that he knew he wasn't going to win at the end. "She is passionate about her people. Besides, I've seen the changes in her eyes. Knight to D3."
Kakashi took Nagato's bishop with his queen, placing it in the small pile of white pieces at the side of the board. "What changes? What are you talking about?"
"Rook takes knight. Oh no, I'm not going there. You'll have to talk to her about that. Besides, I know the others have been appreciative of your support. Your knowledge of techniques is astonishing."
Picking up his queen, Kakashi went to place it down, but hesitated when he saw it would be opening him up to a check move. He put it back down and moved one of his pawns forward.
"I wasn't called Sharingan Kakashi for nothing. How many people have you got now?"
Nagato hesitated, looking over the whole board with his Rinnegan, analysing every potential move. "About one hundred and fifty. Nowhere near what the Big Four have, but we can hold our own. Hmm…move the king's rook next to your bishop."
Kakashi did as he said, "You are leaving your queen exposed. What are your intentions with the village with those kinds of numbers? What if the people who destroyed Konoha come after you?"
"As I've said before, I don't weep for Konoha. My long term plan including revenge on your previous village, although that is now a moot point."
"I suppose it is." He moved his rook into position. "Check."
"King to A9. So will you accept the position?"
Moving his queen to a space near Nagato's, Kakashi began to see an endgame. "It's been two months. I've resigned myself to the fact that they aren't coming back. Check."
"King to A10. So?"
Kakashi moved his queen, going in for the kill. "Check. I'll do it. But it'll be hard. I'm not that kind of person by nature."
"I'm grateful for your support, Kakashi. You're a breath of fresh air, which is rare around here."
"Are you going to make your move?" asked Kakashi, wondering how he could have gotten Nagato's trust so easily, considering he came from the same village that killed his parents.
Nagato stared at him without saying anything, which used to bug Kakashi but after spending time with the Akatsuki leader he understood that Nagato did much that wasn't physically apparent.
Kakashi raised an eyebrow, "Nagato?"
The white haired shinobi shook his head to regain his senses, "Sorry, my last proxy just collapsed. My queen takes your queen. Checkmate."
"What?" Kakashi quickly moved the queens, his eyes running across the board for a long moment before he sighed and knocked over his king. "Well played. Lure me in by exposing your king…I never was much of a shougi player. I guess chess is no different."
"Don't put yourself down too much. It was a good game."
Kakashi got up from his chair and walked over to the nearby edge, leaning on the guard with his hands. Down in the city depths he could see Konan commanding a small group of Amegakure Genin on walking on water training.
You know, I don't think I ever taught the three of them that. I wasn't much a teacher after all.
He turned back to Nagato, watching as he held in what would have been a violent cough. When he'd met him Nagato had had red hair, though it had been fading. Since that time it had been drawn into a full white, which was apparently indicative of how precarious his condition was.
It was a difficult question, but it was one that he had to ask. Walking around the area so that Nagato wouldn't have to bend his head, Kakashi put a hand on the chair he'd been sitting on.
"How much longer have you got?"
Shifting his shoulders in a vain attempt to get more comfortable, Nagato coughed several times before looking back up at Kakashi. "A few days, a week at most."
Kakashi shook his head; it was difficult even for him to watch someone as powerful as Nagato slip away. "Is there anything you need?"
His companion pulled his head up, looking at the rain falling down behind Kakashi. "No. It sounds strange, but I have everything I need. Tell Konan…well I'm sure we'll speak before that time comes."
Kakashi nodded slowly before walking up to pack up the chess set.
"Leave it. I like looking at the pieces."
The ex-Konoha Jounin stared at the leader for a second before shrugging and stepping back from the board. "If you want…"
Nagato grinned in thanks, "I'd like my last vision to be of a victory, if nothing else."
"I think I'll go get a drink to celebrate such a victory then," said Kakashi with a similar grin.
"Good luck, Kakashi. I'm sure we shall speak again."
With a long sigh, Kakashi dried his head with a towel while looking into the mirror in the apartment he had been living in. As he put the towel over the shower he had just come out of, he smiled when his silver hair perked up as it always did. Gai would often speak of how much hair gel he used to go through to get his bowl-cut exactly how he liked it.
He grabbed a second towel and put it around his shoulders before pulling on his pants and looked back in the mirror. Usually after a shower the scar over Obito's eye would itch, but since it had reverted to a regular eye it hadn't bothered him as much since.
Are you still watching me, Obito? I know I've messed things up a bit, but at least I'm trying to make up for it. As I always seem to be, I suppose.
A loud knock came through his apartment, causing him to jump slightly since the front door was so close to the bathroom. He walked up to the front door and opened it with his usual uninterested gaze.
Konan pushed straight past him in her Akatsuki robe, moving into the apartment.
"By all means…come in…" he mumbled, closing the door behind her.
She sat down at the single table in his apartment, putting the large bottle of sake she brought down before staring at him with her usual stoic expression. "Do you generally answer the door without clothes on?"
Kakashi looked down with his hands on the towel around his shoulders. "I think you are overestimating the number of people who show up at my door."
"Maybe."
He walked over to the kitchen and removed two small cups, coming back and sitting opposite Konan, sliding them over. "Are we going to just do this every night?"
Konan bit off the lip of the sake bottle and spat it away, pouring a cup before sliding it over to him. Seeing no reason to stand on ceremony, she took a long swig of the bottle before putting it back down on the table. "You have a problem with that?"
Kakashi chuckled, taking a sip from his cup. "Just thought I'd ask." He threw down the rest and pushed over his cup, "Pour me another."
"Nagato told me you made a decision," said Konan as she filled up his cup.
Kakashi nodded, watching as the blue haired girl threw back the bottle with the skill of a construction worker. For someone who looked like her, it was quite a confusing scene, though Kakashi found himself more amused than confused.
Konan gave a long sigh as she put down the bottle, unbuttoning the top part of her robe and leaning back in her chair. "Gods, I am so tired. I feel like my arms just want to fall off."
"I don't blame you. You take on a lot of responsibility for one person."
She stared at him for a few moments before laughing sadly and taking another slug of the bottle, not bothering to use the cup at all. "I don't want to hear that coming from you."
She took another drink before sliding it over to Kakashi and walking over to his window. He had a habit of always leaving the window open so that he could listen to the rain, and so he could also make a quick escape, and that allowed Konan to wet her hands on the rain outside.
Kakashi stood up slowly, leaving the bottle on the table half-finished. "Something wrong?"
For nearly a minute she ignored him, merely standing at his window with her hands in the rain. Eventually she turned around and walked towards him, reaching out to dry her hands on the towel around his neck. She moved towards the bed and sat down, unbuttoning the rest of her robe.
"Konan, what are you doing?"
Throwing her robe on the side of the bed, Konan indicated to him with her chin, "Take off your pants."
"Konan, wait. You don't have to do this…"
She stood up from the bed and stared at him expressionless, "You've never complained in the past."
Kakashi batted down one of her outreaching hands, "Enough. I don't know why you keep doing this."
Sitting back down on his bed, the blue haired woman stared up at him, "Why does there have to be meaning? Can't it just be meaningless fun?"
"Konan, I've seen your eyes when we do it."
She continued to stare at him stubbornly, but when he failed to relent she sighed and stared at the ground, mumbling something he couldn't hear.
Kakashi leaned closer to her, "What was that?"
She looked back up at him, with all the life seemingly gone from her eyes. "I'm…lonely."
Her companion smiled, reaching out to lightly touch her face just below her hair, "Why don't we talk?"
With care he passed her the Akatsuki robe, but Konan just pushed it away, preferring to sit without any clothes on. He'd been suspicious the first time he'd seen it, but she told him one night that when she came over she only wore her robe and nothing else for her visits.
She smiled sadly and put up a hand, letting the blue paper sheets from her hair float around before settling into her hand in a neat stack. "I travel all around this village, wearing that robe and this flower. They call me 'God's Angel'."
She scoffed loudly, "What a joke."
"I believe it's a sign of affection," said Kakashi quietly.
"Please," she snorted. "Most of them don't even know my name. If I'm not wearing that robe or the flower in my hair, none of them even recognise me."
Kakashi had noticed that over the past month, and it boggled his mind considering how striking she was. "You are going to be their leader, Konan. They'll come around."
"What if I don't want them to? What if I just want to run away and not look back?" Her voice was course, like she was trying not to be emotional and failing.
"Konan, look at me." He used his hand to push her face up to him. There was something in her gaze that reminded of when Rin was struggling with Obito's death.
"You are the strongest woman I've ever met, and that's saying something. Nagato is giving you this burden because he knows you can handle it. And you aren't alone in this."
"I'm not?"
He gave her a semi-serious frown, "Konan, I agreed to being your second. Why do you think I'm still here?"
"It's not the sex?"
Kakashi grinned widely, "Well…maybe a little."
She cocked her head slightly, her mood changing instantly. Without him noticing, her arms were on either side of his neck. "I'm…grateful that you are here."
He simply continued grinning in response.
Looking him dead in the eyes, Konan became serious for a moment. "I don't love you though."
"I'd be concerned if you did."
Removing the towel around his shoulders, Konan leaned forward so that their foreheads were just barely touching. "This leader has a command for her XO."
Kakashi rolled his eyes as she brought him down to the bed, "Yes, boss…"
Kakashi had only barely made it into his 'office' before an Amegakure shinobi came barging in, breathing heavily. The blonde shinobi immediately frowned upon seeing Kakashi looking over a set of reports on his desk, "Who are you?"
The ex-Konoha Jounin put down the reports and motioned him forward, "I'm the new XO. What do you have to report?"
He was clearly suspicious of Kakashi, but his inherent training kicked in and the Amegakure shinobi stood at attention. "Sir. A strange figure has been seen approaching our border. It has not made any change in direction, it is coming this way."
"Friendly?"
He shook his head, trying to hide his clear disquiet, "No sir. I was sent to report back from my group…but I know they are dead."
Kakashi frowned, "You know?"
"It's one of my skills, sir. I can't quite explain it…but they are gone."
Kakashi thanked him for his report and told him to rest, reminding him that his comrades wouldn't want him to fight fatigued. He put a hand to his waist as he looked out over the rain beyond his window.
First day and already we are being invaded. How tiresome.
He considered finding Konan to inform her, but hesitated when he thought of his new position.
I can't run to her at every problem. She has enough on her plate.
Shutting the door behind him, Kakashi rubbed at his neck sorely. It had been bothering him for a while, but considering the source he didn't mind it so much.
The scout had been the exception as Kakashi discovered when he began giving out orders to the other Amegakure shinobi. They all knew exactly who he was, and obeyed him immediately, although he could sense the resentment in their voices as they went about their duties.
Kakashi was not about to set the whole village on high alert for one intruder, though he had learnt to be cautious when facing unknown enemies. Their village was at full strength due to Nagato's soon-to-be passing and Konan's assumption of leadership, and as he had discovered Amegakure's military structure worked quite differently to Konoha's.
Instead of a single figure passing on missions and orders, they worked in groups of leaders, who controlled the shinobi under their command. It gave the individual shinobi a large amount of freedom, but it also meant that they could all be brought back at a moment's notice if required.
Kakashi sent three teams to investigate the situation, each capable of reporting back quickly to inform him of what had happened to the others. Two more groups set about their defences, in case the enemy got through his other teams, though he didn't expect that to happen.
After organising it all, Kakashi found himself with nothing to do, leaning on an edge on one of the many walkways. The city of Amegakure was expansive to say the least, but having gotten a grasp on the number of people residing in it Kakashi determined that much of the city was designed to be a deception, having been built after their rebellion against Hanzo's forces.
He thought about it for a moment before remembering what time it was. Running through a quick set of handseals he bit at his thumb and placed it on the ground beneath him.
A small cloud of smoke appeared beneath his hand and a small dog slowly walked out of it.
"Yo."
Kakashi grinned, waving back at his trustworthy summon. "Yo, Pakkun."
"That time again?" asked the dog, licking at his paw.
His summoner nodded, pulling out a scroll from his old flak jacket. Since being accepted into the village, he'd taken to wearing his old Konoha uniform again, though he wasn't going to wear his forehead protector again.
Not until there was another Konoha at least.
He knelt down and unravelled the scroll across the ground, showing Pakkun the large map of the country he had drawn on it. The map had dozens of crosses across each area, and Kakashi pulled out a pen before indicating to Pakkun.
The dog stared at the map for a few seconds before indicating with his paw to the top right area. "Urushi checked the north of the Land of Lightning. No sightings."
Kakashi nodded and crossed out the area.
Pakkun moved across and indicated to the Land of Rice Fields, "Bull scoured the area, including around the destroyed Village of Sound. No sightings."
With a sigh, Kakashi reluctantly crossed out that area as well. He pointed to the crater where Konoha once stood, "How about here?"
Pakkun hesitated for a few moments before shaking his head and placing his paw so that it covered the Land of Fire. He looked at Kakashi and shook his head dramatically.
"This whole area is gone, Kakashi."
"Gone? What do you mean?" Pakkun was always a grumpy and dramatic pug, but there was something in his voice that gave Kakashi pause.
The dog stepped back and sat down, staring down at the map. "None of us were able to get into the Land of Fire. It's difficult to explain, but this area is under some kind of severe lockdown, Kakashi. The furthest I was able to get was ten miles in, before I was forced to turn back."
"So what does that mean?" asked Kakashi, wary of what happened to his homeland after they left it.
Pakkun shrugged, "I don't know. But if any of your group was in that land, they aren't anymore."
Kakashi didn't look at Pakkun, still glaring at the map intently. He had already drawn his own conclusion on what had happened, and as painful as it was, Kakashi knew what he had to do.
With a grim expression on his face, Kakashi drew a large cross over his previous homeland.
"Are you sure?" asked Pakkun.
His master nodded and began rolling up the map. "I have no choice."
"I've never known you to give up on your companions."
He could hear the disapproval in the dog's voice, but it was nearly silent compared to the voice in his head. "I have to face reality, Pakkun. I will still look…but I need to move on."
The pug stared at him before huffing and turning around to show him his back. "In a time of war, we would never have left our companions behind."
Placing the map into his pocket, Kakashi stood up and turned around to look out to the city. "But we did, many times. Things are never that simple, Pakkun."
"I'm disappointed in you, Kakashi."
Pakkun disappeared into a small puff of smoke, leaving Kakashi by himself.
The Jounin sighed and leaned on the rail in front of him.
"Not half as much as I am…" he muttered.
It was only after the scouts were late back from reporting by over an hour that Kakashi began to think he had underestimated the situation.
He quickly moved to one of the groups in position near the edge of the city, thankful that they didn't shoot him down with ninjutsu as he climbed the metal tower.
"Sir," saluted the team leader, while the other three continued scanning the area with their techniques.
"Anything?"
"No sir. Were you expecting something?"
Kakashi stood beside one of the Amegakure shinobi, staring out across the massive lake that surrounded their city. There was no evidence of the battle he had had with Konan a month ago, though Kakashi had learnt not to piss her off in a general sense.
"I sent out three teams to investigate a missing scout team. They are yet to report back."
The team leader acknowledged his unspoken order and went to ask him for details, but hesitated when one of his team pointed straight at the single patch of land visible from their position.
"Contact!"
Kakashi moved quickly to the shinobi's side, "What do you see?"
The Amegakure shinobi used his other hand to adjust the goggles on his eyes, zooming in on the location he had noticed. "Single figure, approaching the city at point 322."
His teammates went to focus on that point, but the team leader shouted at them to maintain their vigil elsewhere.
Kakashi squinted, unable to see what the shinobi was pointing at, though he had nothing to enhance his eyesight. "What can you see beyond that?"
"I'm…not sure, sir. All I can see is a single figure in a black cloak walking on the water towards the city. My sensory techniques don't seem to be working properly either."
Kakashi bit at his lip, he had a bad feeling about the situation.
He turned to the team leader, "I need you to assemble a strike force, now. Whoever that figure is, it's the reason our teams never returned."
The Amegakure shinobi saluted and disappeared down the tower, with the other three shinobi wondering what was such a big deal.
Kakashi indicated to the youngest of the team, "Move as fast as you can to the nearest statue. The Angel must be informed. Tell her to put the village on high alert."
The Genin looked at him suspiciously, but moved out regardless, while Kakashi regarded the other two.
"What is going on, sir?"
"Are we under attack?"
Kakashi wasn't sure what to tell them, so he just told them to stay in their current position while he organised a defence. When he'd first heard of the missing scout he'd set up a small group to maintain a vigil, but if his suspicions were correct they would need everyone that could fight.
It was to the credit of the shinobi of Amegakure that they were prepared so quickly. By the time Kakashi had prepared himself for battle, thirty shinobi were waiting at the front of the city for him.
The team leader was nowhere to be found, but Kakashi assumed that he had resumed his post at the top of the tower.
"What are your orders?" asked one of the shinobi.
Looking over the faces of the shinobi, Kakashi noted to himself that most of them were Chuunin level, but with their numbers he hoped that they wouldn't encounter too many issues.
"An enemy is approaching the city. We do not know what their abilities are, or their purpose, but they must not be allowed to enter the city."
With two hand signals they all moved out towards the solitary figure moving towards the city. Kakashi quietly hoped that this wasn't what he feared it could be.
oOoOoOo
Amegakure Shinobi = One Hundred and Fifty Two
It didn't take them long to find the figure moving towards the city, though it wasn't what Kakashi was expecting.
The figure was walking casually towards the city in a straight line across the water, unflinching even as thirty one shinobi surrounded it. It was cloaked in a pitch black robe that seemed to suck all the light out of the area around it.
It slowed to a stop as they moved to stand in its way, with Kakashi at the front. He couldn't see its face hidden beneath a dark hood.
"Who are you? What do you want?"
The figure made no large movements, but shifted its head up so that its hood fell back. To their surprise it was a young woman, with long dark hair and pale-looking skin.
However her face was expressionless and none of them could see her eyes as they were closed.
After a few seconds of her not saying anything, Kakashi shook his head and indicated to a shinobi to his right. "Throw a kunai just next to her head as a warning."
The Amegakure shinobi nodded and quickly flicked a kunai towards her, which sailed just past her hood and past where another shinobi caught it.
Kakashi frowned in suspicion; she hadn't even moved an inch at the attack. He didn't think she was blind since she surely heard the attack, but to not even flinch was impressive.
"This is your last warning! Get off our land or we will attack!"
The woman made no motions at all, forcing Kakashi's hand. He motioned to the shinobi around him, "Take her out!"
True to their training, the shinobi obeyed his order immediately, a large group of them leaping towards her immediately. Two shinobi pulled out large swords and swung at her head while several others moved around to strike at her from behind.
To their surprise their swords met no resistance as they were driving into her neck. The shinobi supporting them held back in amazement, though it became clear that their hesitation was in error. Where the swords had been driven through her skin there was no blood seeping down her front. Her head cocked slightly as both her hands slowly reached out and she lightly tapped the shinobi on their faces.
The two shinobi's eyes rolled into the back of their heads and they fell to the ground, their hands letting go of their swords. Kakashi quickly shot forward and grabbed the two of them, dragging them away from her as the other shinobi maintained a circle around the woman.
Feeling at their necks with a gloved hand, Kakashi stared at the woman with an angry stare.
They are both dead. She barely touched them…and how is she still alive?
Amegakure Shinobi = One Hundred and Fifty
With extremely slow movements, the cloaked woman reached up and pulled the swords out of her neck, letting the clean blades fall to the ground. There was no blood on them at all, and no mark was evident on her skin.
"Get her!" yelled one of the Amegakure shinobi, grabbing two kunai in his hands.
The others roared in agreement and leapt to attack her, as Kakashi observed from his backward position. She didn't flinch at all when four of them slashed at her face and throat with their kunai, while others clapped their hands together to activate their individual ninjutsu.
Three large streaks of water shot towards and consumed her position, as the shinobi that struck at her at short range jumped back to avoid the attack.
"Yeah!"
"We got her!"
From his position Kakashi was forced to disagree. If it was this easy, his scouts would have killed her and reported back. He couldn't help a sinking feeling that sat in his gut, and when the water died down his fears were confirmed.
Standing as still as she had when they had surrounded her was the cloaked woman, without a scratch on her. Her eyes were still closed, but her face was pointing towards one of the shinobi that had stabbed her.
She slowly walked towards him, prompting him to yell in frustration and try to slice at her face with his kunai. The woman easily shifted her head out of the way of the strike and lightly brushed his hand, letting his body fall to the floor before turning around with a hand raised to catch the wrist of another shinobi trying to attack her from behind.
They both hit the water and began to sink as four others began hurling projectiles at her. The kunai and shuriken peppered her body, but that didn't stop her as she continued to walk towards another group of shinobi.
Amegakure Shinobi = One Hundred and Forty Eight
A group of shinobi leapt back and clapped their hands together simultaneously, a swirling whirlpool forming under her feet as the others jumped back to avoid the attack.
"This isn't going to work…" muttered Kakashi, watching as the woman fell into the whirlpool, her unchanging expression haunting Kakashi as she disappeared.
For a few seconds after the water settled back down, they all breathed out sighs of relief, but Kakashi wasn't so convinced. Without his Sharingan he was forced to use other methods to detect chakra, and it was a very large concern to him that he couldn't sense chakra from the woman before she disappeared.
In fact he hadn't sensed anything from her, not even the resemblance of a pulse.
He spun around on a suspicion, which was quickly confirmed when he saw the cloaked woman standing behind the five shinobi that had made the whirlpool, her arms hidden within her robe.
Kakashi went to warn them, but as they fell to the water he saw that it was a pointless task.
Amegakure Shinobi = One Hundred and Forty Three
"What are we going to do?" demanded one of his subordinates.
Kakashi bit at his lip, wary of the fact that they were being slaughtered. He ran through a quick set of handseals and yelled for the others to stand back.
"Katon: Haisekishou!" (Fire Element: Ash Pile Burning)
A large cloud of grey ash shot through towards the woman, while Kakashi jumped back to formulate a plan.
Close combat is clearly out of the question…this is not a battle that could be won easily.
"We have to retreat."
"What?! We can't do that!" yelled one of his subordinates.
"We have no choice. She's too dangerous an enemy for us to defeat here." Kakashi gave several hand signals to the others, who all indicated back to him a similar motive to their companion.
Kakashi swore when he saw the others preparing themselves for battle, "Damnit, we have to retreat!"
The smoke cleared, and as he had suspected the woman was still standing there without a mark on her. A hail of projectiles and ninjutsu were sent towards her, but unlike before she seemed to simply vanish and let the attacks fall away.
"Everyone be on your guard!"
It was clearly a futile command, as she appeared in front of one of the Amegakure shinobi, tapping him lightly on the forehead before disappearing again.
Ten shinobi fell in quick succession, which only served to incise the others further. They all roared in outrage, but after seeing Kakashi furiously try to get them to retreat they understood that this wasn't a foe they could defeat one their own.
Amegakure Shinobi = One Hundred and Thirty Three
"To the city!" yelled Kakashi, feeling immensely thankful that they were finally listening and falling back.
Once he was sure that they were all retreating he followed them, wary of the fact that he was almost positive that the woman was following them.
A Jounin came up beside him, "What are we going to…"
Kakashi turned at the odd way he ended his sentence and nearly leapt back when he saw the cloaked woman standing behind the shinobi as he fell into the water.
Her closed eyes seemed to stare at his face, and Kakashi felt like there was nothing he could do to stop her. However to his surprise, she allowed him to join the rest of the remnants of his squad as they fled back to Amegakure, though during his retreat he could see that she was still walking slowly towards the city as if nothing had changed.
Amegakure Shinobi = One Hundred and Thirty Two
It was only a short journey back to Amegakure, but to Kakashi it felt like an age. He'd lost men under his command before, but even in his immense library of experience he could not think of a way to counterattack against such a foe.
By the time he passed the border of the city as the last of his group, he could see a massive army of shinobi standing ready to accept them, with Konan standing at the front with her full robe and a fierce look in her eyes.
"What is the situation?" she asked as he joined her side.
Kakashi breathed out heavily and stared out at the water. He could barely make out the woman coming towards the city, which only served to fill him with an unnatural dread. He was used to difficult opponents, but such an enemy was something he had only ever encountered once before.
And he had only survived the encounter because of luck, nothing more.
"It's…difficult to explain. There is a single enemy coming here but…"
"I see her." Konan motioned to a large group of shinobi at an elevated position. "Ninth squad, take her out!"
Twenty shinobi nodded in acknowledgement and clapped their hands together in perfect synchronisation. Beneath them Kakashi could feel the massive amounts of chakra being moulded as the water in front of the city began to writhe and form into a large dragon-like creature.
The rain that constantly fell on the area only served to increase the attack's size, and once they had aimed it properly the dragon opened its mouth and fired a highly concentrated beam straight at the approaching enemy.
Kakashi could barely keep track of its movements; the attack was so fast he couldn't think of anyone that could avoid it.
The enemy was no exception.
She took the strike head-on and disappeared from sight by the sheer force of the water. Kakashi's eyes widened, surely nothing could survive that.
Beside him Konan snarled and began collecting paper sheets around her body. "That can't be it."
"Are all the civilians evacuated?" asked Kakashi, not wanting any innocents to be killed.
She indicated with a robed hand to the army around them, "We have no civilians. Everyone who lives in Amegakure is a shinobi in their own right."
Kakashi looked around, seeing the bartender standing beside the young girl who organised some of the village's washing.
So none of them are easy prey. Wise…
"Look! Up there!"
Most of the army looked up to where the shinobi was pointing, but Kakashi already knew what had happened. Above the army where the long ranged shinobi had been stationed they could see the single black robed figure, standing over them like a dark reaper of childhood tales.
Amegakure Shinobi = One Hundred and Twelve
"Everyone back!" ordered Konan as she began to rise into air on paper wings.
As the army moved further into the city away from the figure, Kakashi swore and sped through a set of handseals, using the water beneath to propel himself up to Konan's position. The water fountain sustained him as he saw Konan preparing a familiar looking set of chakrams.
They could see the bodies on the ninth squad littered around the enemy, again without any indication as to what killed them, though they were clearly dead.
"What the hell is she?" asked Konan.
"I don't know. By all accounts she seems to be immortal."
She turned to him with her usual stoic expression, "There is no such thing. If we fight her enough, we will discover the trick to her abilities."
Kakashi shook his head when he saw her send two chakrams straight into the enemy who seemed content to ignore them and go after the main bulk of the shinobi force.
But at what cost?
Her attacks slashed straight through the woman and through into the building behind her as she fell towards the ground; though the attack didn't halt her descend at all. The building was slashed in half and collapsed into the water beneath it as she began to move with purpose towards the shinobi army.
The Amegakure shinobi were furious at their comrades' deaths and roared as they moved to attack her all at once.
"That attack went straight through her…" said Konan in surprise.
Kakashi looked over at her as his water pillar began to waver. "Konan, snap out of it! Your people are being slaughtered!"
She looked down, watching helplessly as the black robed woman merely stood still and let the shinobi fall against her. As each close combat shinobi reached her she brought them low with a single touch, despite their best efforts there appeared to be no way to stop her, or even slow her down.
Amegakure Shinobi = Ninety Three
There is nowhere to retreat from here, thought Kakashi as he descended towards the ground level. By his reckoning they had lost nearly a third of their force with nothing to show for it, and they had only discovered her less than thirty minutes ago.
"Katon: Goukakyuu no Jutsu!"
He shot a fireball straight into her, and again she simply walked out of the fire and towards the nearest shinobi. The Amegakure shinobi had learnt quickly to not get within her reach and attack her from a distance, but that quickly became pointless as she appeared to glide across the water faster than they could react, her movements shifting from a ponderous killing machine to something of an elegant dancer, though Kakashi couldn't feel any feeling in her movements.
Amegakure Shinobi = Eighty Eight
"Everyone fall back to the tower!" yelled Konan, hovering over the woman with her hands busy at work.
Kakashi wasn't initially sure of what she was doing, but his eyes widened when he saw what she was making out of the blue paper in her hands.
Surely she wouldn't…
Amegakure Shinobi = Eighty Five
Having dispatched all the shinobi within range, the woman looked up to see two paper birds floating down towards her. Despite her eyes still being closed, there was an odd expression on her face, one that would have piqued Kakashi's interest had he not been fleeing for his life with the rest of the Amegakure army.
Unlike his previous battle with Konan, there was no delay with these two attacks. The moment they were close to the enemy they both exploded with deafening sounds, sending massive waves of water away from the blasts as well as rubble from the destroyed buildings.
Being the closest to the explosions, Konan was forced to shield her eyes as almost a quarter of Amegakure was destroyed in the blasts.
"If that doesn't kill you…" she said dryly, hovering in the air.
She turned to look at her shinobi that had escaped the blast radius, doing a quick count while feeling relief when she saw Kakashi in the crowd giving out orders. She'd made sure that none of her own were caught in the explosion, but the sheer losses they had suffered were staggering.
A chill ran down her spine, forcing her to look down at the devastation beneath her. The Amegakure leader's heart sank as she saw the robed woman walk out of the area like she was in the middle of a stroll.
She doesn't seem to be weak to anything. This doesn't make any sense!
The blue haired shinobi blinked twice, and in that time her enemy appeared in front of her, hovering by some unknown power. With no malice evident in her movements the enemy reached with one hand, to dispatch her as she had with her subordinates.
Before Konan could do anything about it however, an Amegakure Jounin leapt up from the water beneath her and interposed himself between her and the enemy, taking the touch on his chest.
Amegakure Shinobi = Eighty Four
Konan was unable to do anything to stop his death, and for a second she found herself unable to move as his body fell towards the ground. The woman cocked her head slightly at the intrusion but nevertheless reached out again to kill Konan.
Unlike the other shinobi, Kakashi didn't interpose himself between the two of them. Rather he chose to grab at Konan's legs with a water technique and drag her away from the enemy, holding out his hands to catch her as she slammed into him.
"What the hell are you doing?"
Despite her struggles in his hands, Kakashi refused to let her go, "Saving your life."
She continued to struggle, but her resolve wavered when she saw her subordinates form a protective circle around the two of them with their weapons raised.
"Protect the Angel!" yelled several of the shinobi, throwing shuriken and kunai at their enemy, and when they ran out of those they began throwing anything they could at the descending woman.
"Put me down," asked Konan calmly, not bothering to give him any thanks since she knew he knew her feelings already.
She motioned at the cloaked woman, sending hundreds of paper shurikens at her in conjunction with the other Amegakure shinobi attacks.
"We won't be able to defeat her by conventional means," she observed, as another group fell under her touch.
Amegakure Shinobi = Seventy Two
They weren't sure whether she was changing her methods or something else entirely, but the black robed woman was now moving extremely quickly, dispatching one shinobi after the other without any signs of slowing down.
Amegakure Shinobi = Sixty Nine
"Is there no place for us to retreat to?" asked Kakashi, adding his own long ranged techniques to the fray, wary of the fact that he was merely wasting chakra.
Creating a large spear of paper to throw, Konan swore as another group of shinobi fell under the enemies touch. "This is our home. We will not abandon it!"
Amegakure Shinobi = Fifty Nine
Kakashi snarled and ran his hands though a set of handseals before biting at his thumb and placing in on the water beneath him. "Kuchiyose no Jutsu!"
Nothing happened.
The Jounin swore and attempted to activate the technique again, but still nothing happened.
Of all the times…damnit…
Amegakure Shinobi = Fifty One
He turned to Konan, "We need to fall back!"
The blue haired shinobi shook her head as their attacks continued to do no damage to their enemy. "If this is where we die…so be it."
He reached out and grabbed her by the collar of her robe, "There is no noble death here! Only slaughter!"
Amegakure Shinobi = Thirty Three
It was to their credit that none of the Amegakure shinobi even considered retreat while their comrades fell to the implacable enemy; they kept throwing themselves at her without any regard for their own personal safety.
Amegakure Shinobi = Twenty Six
Kakashi pushed one of his hands towards the ground, trying to think of ways to protect the group from the woman's touch. However even his strongest water techniques did little but shower her in water, which seemed to slip away from her black robes as she rapidly appeared in front of individual shinobi and gave them the touch of her pale hands.
Amegakure Shinobi = Nineteen
Wait…I have an idea.
Kakashi turned to Konan and the others, "Cover me!"
They nodded and continued their assault as Kakashi sped towards the black robed woman, his hands speeding through a set of handseals he had copied over two years ago. She seemed aware of his presence as she removed her hand from the face of an Amegakure Genin she had just killed.
Amegakure Shinobi = Eighteen
Kakashi disappeared just as he approached her, wary that a frontal assault was suicide. He appeared behind her and placed one of his hands just behind her head.
"Suiton: Suiro no Jutsu!"
A large collection of water shot up from beneath the woman and covered her completely in a perfect sphere, which was connected to Kakashi only until he released his hand from inside so that he wasn't susceptible to her touch from within.
"You did it!" proclaimed one of the few remaining shinobi, all of them including Konan running up to him.
I should have thought of that earlier. If I had…they would still be alive…
When Zabuza had trapped him in a similar water prison years ago, Kakashi had struggled to hold his breath within, it took most of his strength to keep himself conscious under the immense pressure of the water contained within.
The enemy seemed to have no issue within the sphere; she maintained the small emotionless expression she had held since he had first seen her.
There were only seventeen of them left on the battlefield, so when they closed in around the sphere they didn't take up much room.
Konan seemed to be unable to stop her head from shaking as she looked around at the faces surrounding her. Most of the survivors were Genin, some of them barely able to perform more than a few techniques without exhausting themselves. She was grateful that they hadn't fled as she might have at their age, but there was no way to revive their village with such numbers.
Such as it was, Amegakure was not going to recover from the day's events.
The woman turned around within the prison, facing Konan with her eyes still closed. As if sensing that the battle had come to an end, the woman visibly relaxed within her black robe.
In turn the shinobi around her relaxed, thankful that no more of them were going to be killed by such a foe. However Kakashi was not so convinced and neither was Konan.
The blue haired shinobi went to order the others to move back, but the enemy didn't give her a chance to do so as she vanished from within the sphere.
"Be on your guard!" yelled Kakashi, holding a kunai in one hand defensively.
Two of the Genin fell on their faces into the water as the woman appeared only for a second before disappearing again.
Amegakure Shinobi = Fifteen
"What are we going to do?" asked Konan, feeling more helpless now than when she'd been forced to watch Yahiko die for her sake.
A Jounin went to give her an idea, but he felt a tap on an exposed piece of flesh at the side of his neck, causing his eyes to roll back into his head and he fell into the water.
Amegakure Shinobi = Fourteen
Four Genin that had trained together since they were small children charged past Kakashi and Konan at her, their kunai raised high in a foolhardy attempt to avenge their friends, but in a quick spin they each fell to her touch.
Amegakure Shinobi = Ten
Seeing no other option, Konan yelled at the remaining shinobi to disperse as she ripped off the flower in her hair and jumped back to fold it as quickly as possible.
Kakashi tried to think of another technique to keep them alive, but everything he could think of had already been shot at her to no effect.
She moved with purposeful through their scattered ranks, tapped the shinobi on either their faces or their arms, whatever she could get a hold of. Regardless of how far away they were from her, she seemed to catch up with them and take them out.
Amegakure Shinobi = Six
One of the Jounin roared out and summoned up a massive creature from underneath the water, but as the creature came near the enemy it disappeared in a large cloud of smoke. In response she moved across the water and lightly touched him on his cheek, killing him instantly.
Amegakure Shinobi = Five
The last Genin turned to Konan with despair written over his face, "What are we to do, Angel?"
Beside him the last Chuunin fell just as he drove a kunai into the woman's face. She easily pulled out the knife with no marks remaining on her face.
Amegakure Shinobi = Four
"I don't know…I don't know!"
Konan tried to shield him with her paper techniques, but to no avail as the woman slowly pushed him down into the water beneath the city.
"NO!" she screamed, but he was already dead.
Amegakure Shinobi = Three
Seeing no-one else at her side besides Kakashi, Konan threw caution to the wind and let her blue paper birds litter the sky.
"This is my home! If you want my life, come and take it you BITCH!"
She went to detonate the birds, but hesitated slightly when she saw Kakashi trying to activate a technique in the corner of her eyes. In that moment of hesitation, the enemy struck.
She shot forward and grabbed Konan's face with her whole hand, forcing Kakashi to watch as the blue haired leader didn't even get a chance to struggle before she fell to the water, as dead as the rest of her people.
Amegakure Shinobi = Two
Kakashi screamed out in fury and dove forward to catch her body before it could fall into the water, staring up at the black robed woman with pure hatred in his eyes.
She stared down at him, and for the first time since seeing her, she opened her eyes.
Kakashi would never forget the look she gave him, even on the verge of his death.
Instead of a normal gaze, her eyes could not even be considered black by normal standards. Her dark orbs had no irises and seemed to pierce straight through him while consuming the light around them.
In them, Kakashi saw his death.
A death that never came.
Despite being completely at her mercy, the enemy did not kill him. She barely gave him the slightest stare before turning her face to the tallest tower in the now-ruined city of Amegakure.
He knew that she was likely sensing lingering Nagato's presence at the top of the tower, but after a few seconds she turned back and closed her eyes again.
Placing her arms above her head, the woman covered her face completely with her black hood before disappearing into a visible tear in the air beside her.
Using a tiny bit of chakra to keep himself afloat, Kakashi roared out in frustration as he held Konan's lifeless body in his arms. There was nothing he could do for her.
But there was someone who would want to see her, if nothing else than to say goodbye.
Even before Kakashi set her body down at the top of the tower, Nagato knew that she was dead. His strength was so faded that he couldn't do anything except weep.
Kakashi fell to his knees, feeling more helpless than when he had discovered his father's body. He'd lost his father, he'd lost his teammates, he'd lost his companions, and now he had lost her.
"What happened?"
"I…can't even begin to explain it. Everyone…"
Nagato coughed violently, ignoring the blood falling down his front as he looked at Konan's face. Kakashi had closed her eyes when he'd picked up her body, but it was impossible to make her look peaceful.
"I'm sorry, Nagato. I…failed you."
The white haired leader struggled for a moment before clearing his throat and struggling with his arms. With a not-so-inconsiderable effort, he wrenched his hands out of the gauntlets and let the metal break apart to reveal his weak-looking hands.
"What are you doing?"
Nagato grimaced as he put his hands together and slowly moved through a long set of handseals. "Bring me a blank scroll and place it in front of me."
Kakashi stared up at him suspiciously, but opened one of the pockets on his flak jacket and opened one of his scrolls, letting it fold out in front of Nagato.
"What are you going to do?"
Lines of text began to move from Nagato's hand down his body into the scroll, forming an elaborate seal that Kakashi didn't recognise. He could sense the immense amount of chakra being transferred into the seal, but to what purpose he had no clue.
What he did know is that at the end of the technique, Nagato wouldn't have enough chakra to sustain himself for much longer. He'd been hanging on a thread for weeks now, and as the scroll was completely filled he was panting heavily.
Kakashi rolled up the scroll and tied it up, "What is this?"
Looking at his eyes through heavy breaths, Nagato struggled to keep his eyes open. "A failsafe. I was planning on doing this for her, but I don't believe she would accept it anyway. So I'm entrusting them to you."
"What are you giving me?" asked Kakashi, putting the scroll back into his flak jacket.
"The Rinnegan."
Out of all the things he had been thinking, that was so far removed he nearly fell to the ground in surprise. "That's…I…don't know what to say."
Nagato shook his head, "It's not like that. The Rinnegan is a heavy burden, and I'm not giving it to you just because I will soon be dead."
"I don't understand…"
Nagato placed his hands back into a handseal, "I…don't have the strength to save them all. But Konan…I can still save her."
Looking down at the body between them, Kakashi still didn't know what was going on. "Nagato…she's dead. I know it's hard to accept…"
The Amegakure leader concentrated, his white hair beginning to flail behind him. "The Rinnegan gives the user limited control over death. I can't bring everyone back…but Konan…I can do at least this much."
Kakashi turned back to him, "You'll die…you know that."
Nagato nodded, motioning with his head to the scroll in Kakashi's flak jacket. "I can bring her back…but only you can keep her safe. Kakashi…if you use the Rinnegan it will eventually kill you. You must understand this."
The Jounin finally understood why Nagato was entrusting such a thing to him. He still wasn't sure why he was still alive, but he knew what he had to do. "I understand, Nagato. I promise I'll keep her safe."
"You are not like the others from Konoha, Kakashi. While you likely would have done the same as they did, I trust your judgement. She…trusts your judgement."
"Nagato…"
The Amegakure leader heaved loudly, "One final thing before I rest. I don't expect her to forgive me for this…but I doubt Yahiko would if I didn't do it."
His eyes dilated slightly as the ground at the top of the tower trembled, Kakashi jumping back instinctively. A large demonic face shot up from the ground and hovered over Konan's body, struggling as its giant mouth opened slowly.
I know this is a selfish thing to do, Konan. Perhaps one day you will forgive me.
Nagato clapped his hands together, moulding every scrap of chakra he had into the technique.
"Geou: Rinne Tensei no Jutsu!" (Outer Path: Samsara of Heavenly Life Technique)
His eyes flashed as a single green light emerged from the demon's mouth, floating down into Konan's body and forcing its way through her chest.
The demonic face disappeared immediately and Nagato managed a small grin before his eyes dulled to black and his head hung to the ground lifeless.
Amegakure Shinobi = Two
Kakashi watched all of this without comment; he wasn't sure what to make of Nagato's claim that he could bring Konan back from the dead. But when he looked down at the woman's body, he saw that the former Amegakure leader wasn't exaggerating.
The blue haired woman twitched slightly, and Kakashi's heart leapt into his mouth when he heard the slightest groan from her mouth. He immediately fell down beside her and cradled her head in his hands, watching in amazement as the previously dead kunoichi slowly opened her eyes to look straight at him.
"My god…he really did it…"
"Did what?" asked Konan quietly, flexing her hands sorely as she attempted to get up from his hold.
Kakashi carefully eased her to a seated position, trying to think of what he could tell her to explain what had happened, but when she saw Nagato behind him she immediately understood.
"I died…didn't I?"
Her XO nodded slowly, "Everyone did. I'm so sorry, Konan. I should have saved you…"
She grimaced and clutched at her head, feeling the memories of the battle flood through her mind. "Kakashi, I remember what happened. You did everything you could. I'm not some delicate flower that needs to be cradled and cared for."
She looked over Nagato's body, wary of the fact that he wasn't moving and his hair was completely white. "He brought me back, didn't he?'
"I don't know how…but yes."
She smiled tiredly, "That's just like him. Not thinking of himself at all."
Konan had already gone through her grief over Nagato's death. Now that she was faced with it, she didn't feel too sad, or even lonely.
She was just happy he wasn't suffering anymore.
Using Kakashi to pull herself up, Konan was uneasy on her feet but was thankful when Kakashi pulled her arm around his shoulder to support her. The two of them hobbled towards the edge of the tower to look over the mostly demolished city.
The tower was still intact, as were a few of the residential areas, but beyond that everything else had been destroyed in the battle, mostly by her attacks.
"Where are the others? Are they pursuing the enemy?"
"Others?"
She turned her face in her arms to look him directly in the face, "The others Nagato revived. The Rinne Tensei was designed to revive everyone from a certain time period before activation."
Kakashi went to tell her, but hesitated when he thought of how traumatic it would be.
Being the observant type, she immediately noticed his hesitation. "Kakashi…tell me. Where are the others?"
He sighed and pulled her arm off his shoulder, holding her at an arm's length.
"There are no others. He only had enough strength to save you."
She stared at him for an age, trying to sense the falsehood in his gaze, but there was none to be found. All the grief and hatred she had accumulated during the battle slammed into her at once, and it was too much for her to bear.
Konan dropped to her knees and vomited on the ground, not caring that it was hitting Kakashi's feet in front of her.
He felt like he should say something to comfort her as she continued to retch, but nothing came to mind. When he'd lost everyone he'd been unable to do anything. When Rin had died by his hand, his mind had literally broken down. While he had the experience, he certainly didn't have the expertise.
"Am…I the only one left?"
Kakashi leaned down beside her and slowly moved her hair so that it was out of her face. "I'm here too. You aren't alone, Konan."
She turned and stared at him for a few seconds before scoffing and rolling so that she was lying down, away from the spray on the ground. "A whole village…by one person. I…was meant to protect them."
"You did the best you could." Kakashi immediately regretted saying that when he saw the pain in her eyes. He'd never seen her cry before; the liquid seemed to turn a shade of purple as it spoiled her eye liner, which only served to make her look even sadder.
"He told me to protect them. I couldn't save any of them…our people…"
This isn't war, thought Kakashi. In a war there was loss on both sides. The woman had killed every person in the village without prejudice, without as much as a scratch to show for it.
Is that how Konoha went?
It was strange, in that he hadn't felt like she did when he'd found out that Konoha had been destroyed. He'd been devastated to be sure, but without that many attachments to the village beyond those that had survived, it hadn't meant as much to him as some of the others, who had lost family and friends.
Kakashi had learnt not to get attached, but nevertheless he understood Konan's pain.
"It's just an endless cycle…"
"What did you say?" asked Konan, struggling to see him from her position.
"It was something Nagato told me once. In the world there is an endless cycle of pain and death."
Seemingly distracted by his comment, Konan forced herself up and wiped at her eyes, "Yahiko used to speak like that as well. He…they…wanted to break that cycle. We thought by taking out Hanzo we had freed ourselves…but with no one left it seems like a hollow victory now."
Walking back towards her, Kakashi extended a hand to her. "You are still here, Konan. You are their legacy. Not everything is lost."
"Kakashi…I can't do this. Seeing everyone…it won't end. Eventually you'll…I can't do it."
He reached down further and took her hand, holding it tightly as he helped her to her feet. "I've been through the same things you have, Konan. I know how you feel, you know that. When we were playing chess, and Nagato asked me that question, I didn't have a response at the time."
"And now?"
He helped her walk towards Nagato's body, "We should stop. The only way to break the cycle is to not participate in it any longer."
"What…are you suggesting?"
He smiled weakly, feeling a greater weight on his shoulders than just Konan. "I know of a quiet little place. It's out of the way, peaceful…"
"You want to run? Just give up without a fight? She killed our whole village!"
"You asked me for a solution and I gave you one. I know it's not what you want…but if you want to keep the Amegakure legacy alive, you have to stay alive." It wasn't particularly what he wanted either, but he'd been thinking of it since he had been separated from everyone else and come to the conclusion that he was the only one left.
Konan stared at him again before looked away, unable to look him in the eyes. She didn't want to give up…but she didn't feel the urge to seek revenge against the woman who'd killed her and her people. It wasn't just the fact that she wouldn't stand a chance, but also that she would be squandering Nagato's sacrifice. He'd been like a brother to her, and now they were both gone for no good reason.
She knew she shouldn't give in, but his offer had appeal to her, now that there was nothing left to fight for but herself.
She muttered almost unperceivably, but Kakashi heard her as clear as day.
He smiled sadly, "Okay then."
They went to move off the tower, but Konan pulled him back, taking her arm off his shoulder again. "Not yet. I…need to say goodbye."
oOoOoOo
The two of them stood in a small house that was barely standing up as the ravages of time brought it low. Kakashi watched silently as his companion reached out towards three tiles above three sets of names.
Without a word she turned over the tile above Nagato's name and hesitated before reaching out and turning over her own tile, so that all three were flush red.
She stood back and bowed her head, looking over at the three names beneath the tiles. They were meant to turn the tiles to red when they returned home, but Konan figured it more appropriate to do it this way.
I'm not saying goodbye, Yahiko, Nagato…everyone. I hope you can understand. If given the opportunity I will avenge us…but for now…I want to stop fighting. You guys said you wanted to build a home without war…perhaps I can find it for you.
She spoke a few words quietly before turning around to regard her travelling companion. They only had the packs on their backs, but there was a distinct appeal to what they were planning.
"Are you going to be okay?" asked Kakashi as she came out of the house.
"No," she said with a shake of her head. She moved past him and shouldered the pack that he handed to her. It was still pouring down around them, yet despite herself Konan wasn't going to miss the rain.
Kakashi watched her walk, sensing the sadness that kept her shoulders slumped. He wasn't sure what to expect in the months to come, but he made it his personal mission to help her through it.
He felt the weight of the scroll in his flak jacket more than anything else he carried. He hadn't told Konan about it, and wasn't planning to.
But in the same vein, he didn't intend to use it, not unless the circumstances dictated he had to. What he had said to Konan was true; she was the legacy of Amegakure down to its core. There was much about her that he didn't understand, but despite himself he had become attached, and didn't want to see her harmed again.
She can look after herself to be sure; however against such a foe…I am done. I do not ask for forgiveness from my comrades…nor do I seek it for myself. We are only human…and enough is enough. When that woman looked at me…I understood.
He looked up at the sky, feeling the rain fall across his face.
I don't want this life anymore. I've had enough.
Author's Note:
And so, Kakashi and Konan retire. For now. It certainly isn't the end of them let me assure you, but I wanted to give them a little bit of peace before it all goes horribly, horribly wrong. Again. At least three chapters.
It was difficult to convey the reason for them 'retiring', since it's hard to put that kind of feeling into words. I hope it was conveyed properly for you to understand why they were doing it.
Before anyone points it out, I am aware that the enemy in this chapter is absurdly overpowered. It is a key aspect of her character and similar to Madara at the moment, who appears to be unbeatable. I won't say any more than that, but to say that no-one is truly invincible.
I got the idea for the 'death' counter from a Warhammer 40k short story. If anyone has any feedback on this idea I'd love to hear it, since it's a mechanic I may put into my other stories given proper context.
I promise the next chapter will be lighter in tone. I've been laying on the depressing stuff in this story for a while now, and that's not what life is all about. Just mostly.
Please review and tell me what you think. I try to reply to each review, and believe me I read them all. Tell me what can be improved, what you liked, what you didn't, everything. I'm a writer so I'm always open to criticism.