The Wanderers
Chapter 76 – The Arrival of Allies
A/N: I hope this chapter helps break up the grim darkness of the story a little bit. Not just because I need a break from it, but it's good to have change occasionally.
A/N2: I apologise for the serious lateness of this chapter, once again. University work was piling up and I didn't get the chance to do decent writing like I normally do, most of the time it was awful. The next chapter will likely be a while away too, probably 3-4 weeks. Sorry about this. Once I get back to Australia the schedule should be back on track.
Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto. If I did, there would be parties like in One Piece.
***Previously-On***
With their position in the Land of Fire still shaky at best, Neji sent out a pair of scouting teams in the hope that they'd be able to find the Quiraji main base and bring the information back to him. To that end, Zaku and Kin commanded their squads and discovered a massive chakra-nullifying field that encompassed the entirety of Konoha and the nearby area, not even allowing them to get a glimpse at the destroyed shinobi village. The field was far more powerful than any of them were able to push through, and as they traced around the edges they discovered the field was being powered by five machine nodes that were just in the edge of the field.
After marking down the information gathered, the group went to return to the Fire Temple area, but unfortunately they were ambushed at every step by Quiraji soldiers and specialists that didn't seem to want to let them leave. One by one they fell to the implacable foes, despite rending a terrible toll on the enemy force. Eventually the last person alive was Kin, who just barely got the information in Otogakure hands before succumbing to her wounds and dying.
***End Summary***
For the first time in what felt like forever, Neji laughed loudly and slapped his legs in pure amusement at what he'd just heard. He bounced little Hizashi on his knee affectionately before handing him to his equally amused wife and watching her take him out to have his bath.
Once they left, Neji pointed at his guest dramatically, "You are not, under any circumstances, to give my son a spandex outfit. I'm serious about this."
Rock Lee laughed loudly and put up his hands defensively, "Alright, alright. But I want to, at least, give him some taijutsu training. If he just learns the Hyuuga style, he won't grow up to be youthful like us."
Neji groaned, but conceded that he would have to give his old friend that much. "I would have thought you'd have gotten here quicker, by the way. Someone with your speed should have made the trip between Suna and here in less than a day."
"I visited Gai-sensei's grave again. I felt it had been too long since my last visit."
"Did he say anything to you this time?"
Lee shrugged, "Nothing I haven't already heard. It did give me some time to think about some things though."
"Like the fact that you are married? Seriously, out of all of us, you were the last person I'd have expected to get married. How you conned her in marrying her is beyond me." Neji understood that he wasn't in much of a position to argue, as he would never have considered himself interested in relationships until he met Yuko.
"Some things can surprise us," said Lee with a surprisingly knowledgeable tone to his voice. "On a different topic, while we are talking, I've been thinking about something for a while."
"That's rare for you. Something to do with the ridiculous amount of Quiraji you've been fighting over the past few months? Word is you've been on quite the war path."
"I have my problems with the Quiraji, same as any shinobi," said Lee quietly, but Neji didn't believe him for a moment. "It's about some of the Quiraji soldiers I've been fighting recently."
Neji's white eyes darkened when he recognised what Lee was alluding to. "You've recognised some people, haven't you?"
Lee shook his head in disbelief at the implication. "Were they brainwashed or something? Some of them were good people."
The Otokage stood up from his chair and glanced out of the Fire Temple window at the patrolling Otogakure shinobi outside. "We've got some understanding on how most of it went down. Lots of civilians had issues with the shinobi villages from the start; look at the situation in the Land of Earth as the best example. Then the Quiraji come into the picture and offer to help them. We had to expect that they might turn on us at some point, we haven't exactly treated them nicely."
"But for the civilians of the world to turn on the shinobi and join the Quiraji? They fight like trained soldiers, the equivalent of lots of Chuunin!"
"It's some part of their science; we don't know how they do it. But from the soldiers we've captured…they aren't the people they were anymore."
Lee shook his head again with his arms across his chest, "I hate the fact that we are fighting against people we used to help. People we were trying to protect."
Neji echoed his sentiment before taking his seat again and placing his hands on his temporary desk, "We're losing this war, Lee. Even if we defeat the Quiraji…things can't go back to the way they were. The world has completely changed and we aren't strong enough to change it back."
"Then maybe we shouldn't try to change it back." Lee smirked at the look his old friend gave him; it brought amusement to his eyes. "I do occasionally have moments of clarity."
Neji replicated his old friend's expression, "Sometimes I forget that you have learned more than just how to beat up things during our travels." He shared a smile with Lee as he remembered some things they had gone through over the years, both together and apart.
A loud knock on the door interrupted their conversation, but before Neji could ask who it was, the door swung open and Karin stomped in with an expression on her face that could only be described as unpleasant.
"You won't believe the shi…" her sentence ran off as she realised they weren't alone in his office.
Neji sighed and indicated to her with his head, "Lee, this is my head scientist, Karin. She used to work for Orochimaru before joining us. Karin, this is Rock Lee, one of my old teammates from Konoha."
"Charmed," she said before stepping forward and pulled out a chart from her side.
"What is it, Karin?" asked Neji shortly, wishing that Karin had more social skills than she actually did.
The red haired scientist ignored his tone for a moment and glanced over at the guest in the room suspiciously, "There are things we should discuss…in private."
Neji waved off her concern, "There is nothing I would not be able to discuss with Lee. We are both survivors from Konoha and have fought countless times together. What is wrong?"
Karin continued to glare the taijutsu master for several more moments before sighing and tossing a chart onto the table in front of her leader. "We've finished our analysis of the converted shinobi recovered from the Kage Summit Battle."
"You were still working on that?" Neji glanced over the numbers on the chart before placing it back onto the table, "We've had more important things to worry about, Karin."
She shook her head quickly before pushing her glasses back on her face, "You don't understand what I mean. We couldn't work out how the Quiraji had removed the ability to use chakra from them. Eventually we gave up, and that's when we discovered that they hadn't removed the ability at all. They removed their chakra entirely. They completely drained them."
"All very interesting, but they haven't used converted shinobi since the Kage Summit," pointed out Neji with a dismissive wave.
Karin snarled and slammed a hand onto his desk, "You're not listening to me! They've been doing that to every shinobi of ours that they kill or capture! Aren't you at least curious as to what they are using that energy for?"
Neji went to say something, but now that he'd heard it from her personally, it became apparent that she was indeed right to be suspicious. Lee hopped up from his chair and placed a hand on his chin, "It generally doesn't kill the shinobi they do that to either. What would they use that much raw chakra for?"
"I have no idea, but if they could utilise it…"
Neji sighed and tapped his fist on the table, "There's nothing we can do about that now. If they bring out something new to fight us with, then we'll face it head-on. Other than that, we can only keep doing what we are doing."
Karin wasn't satisfied with his answer, but it was the best she knew she was going to get. She sighed and motioned to his stump with her hand, "The offer is still there to regenerate your hand, by the way."
"For the last time, I'm not interested," said the Otokage, glancing down at the chart once again. "Stop offering."
"That sounds like a good idea," said Lee from the side. "Maybe then you'd be better suited to getting on the front lines." He said it with amusement in his eyes, though to his credit Neji didn't bite.
"Tell my old friend what the chance of the procedure killing me," he ordered to Karin.
"Only 40 percent, now that we've gotten some more trained medical shinobi," said the red haired scientist confidently.
Neji gestured towards her, "That's why."
Rock Lee smirked back at his old friend, "Fair enough. If there's nothing else you want to talk about, I have a few things around the village to attend to."
"How far away are the Sunagakure forces?" asked Neji as his old friend turned to leave.
"They should arrive tomorrow, assuming they weren't delayed significantly."
The Otokage nodded in response and the green-clad shinobi disappeared with his trademark speed out of the room. Karin turned with amazement at how fast he moved, while Neji turned his attention back to his head scientist.
"How dangerous could this raw chakra be to us?" he asked her with a serious expression on his face.
"Are you asking me what I would do with it?"
Neji considered her question for a moment before shaking his head slowly, "I see your point."
She stared at him knowingly before walking out of his office and leaving him to contemplate what she'd brought to him. Once he knew she was gone, Neji sighed softly and glanced down at his stump.
I couldn't replace this hand even if I wanted to. It's the most important lesson I had to learn.
Neji wasn't sure how one was meant to embrace an ally into his midst, but once word came down the grapevine that the Sunagakure contingent was coming into range; he took a deep breath and stepped out into the main Fire Temple area in his full Otokage attire.
At the head of the army of masked Sunagakure ANBU shinobi was the Kazekage, similarly attired as he came up to the Otokage and gave his compatriot a short nod; as one equal to another.
"It is good to see that you were able to join us," said Neji respectfully. "We're deep in it now."
"Indeed," said Gaara back to him. His eyes looked around the Fire Temple with knowing appraisal before turning back to the Otokage. "Is there a place we can stay during this time?"
"Of course. We have accommodations for the numbers Lee gave us when he arrived ahead of you."
Gaara turned to his older brother behind him, but Kankuro was already giving out the orders to the ANBU to muster out. The Konoha shinobi that had joined them each greeted Neji as they went past and he would have liked to speak with them a bit more, but he had things he had to speak to Gaara about that couldn't wait.
"Would you like to get something to eat and drink? I have some things in my office," offered Neji.
Gaara glanced slightly upwards at his taller equal for a moment before breathing out slowly and raising a hand towards him. "I'd rather do this instead."
Neji looked down at the hand and tried to conceal his excitement as he grasped the younger Kage's hand and shook it tightly.
"Sunagakure accepts your proposal for allegiance. We will gladly work together to defeat our mutual foes. It is a great privilege to be here."
Their hands came apart and Neji caught a glance at the shinobi that had stopped doing what they doing just to watch the agreement take place.
It was a historic moment. They just hoped they would survive long enough to tell people about it.
After a few minutes of discussing a few details for the sake of appearances, the two Kages were distracted from their talks as a small hawk flew through the sky towards them. Gaara slowly drew out a line of sand cautiously, but Neji put up his hand to reassure him as the small brown hawk landed on his shoulder. In one of its talons it held a small scroll that Neji went to take off before remembering that his hand was already occupied. The Otokage motioned to Gaara with his stump, to which the Kazekage removed the scroll without comment. Once its delivery was made, the hawk bobbed its head to the two leaders and disappeared in a small puff of smoke.
Gaara read the information quickly before handing it back to the Otokage, "You have been busy, it seems."
Neji gave him a look that told him he was not sorry at all, but when he read the information a shadow of a smile appeared on his face. He gave his compatriot a nod to excuse himself, to which Gaara turned away without a word and began walking back to the Sunagakure forces that were setting themselves up.
Neji activated his Byakugan for a moment before turning it off and calling for a nearby Otogakure shinobi. The female Chuunin bounded up to him and bowed slightly in respect, "Something I can do for you, sir?"
"Gather three of your team and report to the Kazekage. You're there to keep an eye on him and his shinobi and make sure that they are given whatever they request." He gave her a look that should have been impossible with his white eyes, but the young woman understood it immediately. She smirked knowingly and disappeared off to her duties.
Knowing that his shinobi wouldn't fail him, Neji began walking to the edge of the Fire Temple area, seeing the sender of the message walking towards his stronghold.
Sasuke and Fiore walked through the Otogakure guards with their heads held up high, while the Mizukage and her four hundred Kirigakure shinobi walked behind them. They'd come to the area as quickly as they could, but they'd made sure to clean themselves up so they didn't look like they'd just lost over half their company in a few attacks. The remaining four Swordsmen stood on either side of the Mizukage as her dedicated bodyguards, while Ao walked slowly behind them.
There was no cheering or fanfare for the entrance of the Kirigakure forces into their alliance, like there had been when the Sunagakure ANBU had arrived. The grim nature of their arrival was beginning to get to the shinobi already present, and once they were settled in their designated area it really hit the Otogakure shinobi that it was really entering the end game of the war.
They weren't here to break bread and share stories. They were here to fight their mutual foe for their continued survival.
The Land of Fire's weather was generally pleasant, but today was particularly cloudy and miserable. A pair of Otogakure shinobi had been stuck with the midday shift of watching the east side of the Fire Temple, while most of the other Otogakure shinobi were assisting in getting the Sunagakure and Kirigakure forces settled and rearmed.
"You catch a glimpse of the Mizukage today?" asked one of the guards to his compatriot.
The other guard turned to him with a glare, "She's the leader of one of our allies. You shouldn't be talking about her like that."
His compatriot smirked and turned back to the endless forest in front of them, "That's a yes." He leaned forward over the defensive wall and stared out at a section to the far east. "Is there a patrol due back now?"
"Not for a few hours…why, what do you see?"
The guard didn't reply back for a few moments before his eyes widened and he turned to the other guard, "We need to get the Otokage."
"He's already here," came a voice behind the two guards. They turned to see the robed leader walking towards them with his hand in his pocket. "What is happening?"
The two guards saluted him quickly, before the first speaker stuttered, "We thought you were with the other Kages, sir. We weren't expecting you here."
"I am in talks with the Kazekage and Mizukage as we speak," clarified Neji quickly. "This is a Kage Bunshin. Is there a large group approaching us?"
"Ah…yes, sir. From the look of it, they appear to be shinobi."
Neji frowned and pulled a small clock from his pocket, "It's earlier than I was expecting."
"Sir?"
The Otokage put his clock back and leapt over the guards in a small burst of chakra, "Tell the other guards to open the east gate. We have more allies approaching."
The guards glanced at each other for a moment, but the Otokage's Kage Bunshin was already out of earshot. He shot through the distance rapidly before skidding to a halt in front of the approaching shinobi. He was greeted with a nod of respect by the leading shinobi, while one of them called for the others to lower their weapons.
"We thought we'd find you here," said the lead shinobi with a grim expression on his scarred face.
The Kage Bunshin of Neji nodded back quickly, "I suspected you'd be able to join us, Kakashi. You've brought friends too, it seems."
The silver-haired Jounin shrugged and gestured to the pair of shinobi at his side, "These are…"
"There's no need for introductions," said the female shinobi, stepping forward with an outstretched hand, "I've met the Otokage before."
"The Two-Tails container," noted the Otokage's clone, shaking her hand quickly. He glanced at her companion and figured from his sunglasses and tattoos that he must be the other Tailed Beast container from the same village. Walking behind the two of them were a large group of Kumogakure shinobi that looked armed to the teeth and ready for a fight, while his white eyes just made out the flying image of Kakashi's known partner in the air.
"How did you come to meet these shinobi?" he asked to Kakashi.
The old Konoha Jounin shrugged, "Just a matter of circumstance. We were following a group of Quiraji soldiers that ran into their ambush. Thankfully they decided not to kill us…"
"After the paper-user threatened to blow us all up, you mean," said Killer Bee in a surprising moment of clarity. It was enough to cause Yugito to turn to him with a raised eyebrow. "She ripped up my notebook."
"I warned you she was sensitive about her cloak," said Kakashi with a sigh.
"Anyway, after we tortured a Quiraji soldier we discovered your position here and figured it would be best for us to join forces."
"The Raikage didn't join you?" asked the clone of Neji, already knowing the answer.
From behind the pair of Kumogakure Tailed Beast containers came the sword wielding Darui who sighed loudly and rubbed at the back of his neck, "He sent us out to kill Quiraji, while he keeps a lid on the situation at the village. His exact words were: 'Help that white-eyed bastard however you can, kill as many of the Quiraji bastards for as many of us they took down, then get your asses back here.'"
"Charming," said the clone of Neji. "Well you are most certainly welcome. You're more likely to encounter Quiraji with us."
"Then take us to the real Otokage and we'll make an alliance," said Yugito knowingly. "We're here for our own reasons and no more."
Killer Bee burst out into laughter for evidently no reason. While everyone present gave him the most suspicious of looks, the Eight-Tails container pulled out his pen and began writing on the inside of his scarf.
"You had to put up with that?" asked the clone of Neji to Kakashi.
"You have no idea…" said the Konoha Jounin with a groan.
oOoOoOo
A few hours after the entrance of the Kumogakure allies, Neji was staring up at the dark night with his wife at his side when he saw an odd black shape moving rapidly against the wind. Initially he turned to tell Yuko to go back inside, but one look with his Byakugan caused him to relax his guard and tell the surrounding Otogakure to stand down.
"Something I should know about?" asked Yuko with a curious look on her face.
Neji shook his head and kissed her on the top of her head, "Just another piece of the puzzle coming back into place."
His silver-haired wife placed a hand on his chest with concern in her eyes, "You don't have to be here for everything, dear. There are plenty of competent shinobi that can handle people reporting in."
The Otokage didn't smile at her even though he appreciated her concern, "I'm the leader; I have to be here for things like this. My shinobi need to know I'm going to be here for them and am prioritising their safety."
"You already have their respect," reminded Yuko, before kissing him again and going back into their apartment. Neji watched her leave for a time with his Byakugan before sighing and turning back and watching the dark cloud descending towards him.
It took the form of a murder of cawing crows that gathered together as they came together and transformed back into their original form. The oldest Uchiha survivor cracked his neck loudly, indicating to Neji that he must have been flying for a long time, before watching up to the Otokage and nodded respectfully.
"There is a force on its…" started Itachi, but Neji stopped him quickly.
"I know," he said, rather forcefully. He wasn't naïve enough to believe that he could intimidate the demon-eyed Uchiha, but thankfully Itachi understood his tone and kept the information to himself.
He pulled back his hood and turned his head as if using his false eyes to look around, even though it was an entirely unnecessary action, "You've gathered a great many people."
"We're looking to make a push tomorrow," said Neji back. "Assuming you were successful…"
Itachi nodded with a grim expression on the part of his face that wasn't covered by his eye-cloth, "It was worse than you anticipated."
"How many?"
"Hundreds. Each could carry nearly two hundred. There were five ports in total."
Neji swore loudly and tried to work out the math in his head. "That means they've got significantly more boots on the ground than we first thought." He glanced back at the Uchiha shinobi, "Were you able to destroy them all?"
Even without eyes, Neji could tell that Itachi was giving him an are-you-kidding-me look. "They won't be leaving this land. You're taking a big risk by doing this, Hyuuga."
"Yet you agreed with my plan, Uchiha," shot back Neji.
"It will go horribly wrong for us shinobi if your plan doesn't work though. Remember you are a Kage, you hold many more lives than just your shinobi in your hands." Itachi put up a hand to stop the retort that Neji was about to fire back, recognising that the Otogakure leader was clearly tired and stressed. "Regardless, the Quiraji boats have all been destroyed. If they have more troops that are going to come to reinforce them, we won't be able to stop them."
Neji took a long breath to calm himself down and nodded grimly, "We'll face that hurdle if it comes up. For now, I am about to hold a meeting to discuss the plan we have come up with to strike at the heart of the Quiraji army."
Itachi nodded and began walking towards the mess to get himself rejuvenated before his presence was required. Neji watched him leave with a shiver; ever since he'd returned from his imprisonment in the Land of Fire, the elder Uchiha just had an eerie aura that was impossible to ignore.
The eyes certainly didn't help.
Setting up the room for the meeting, Neji tried to think if there was anything he'd missed. It was pretty intimidating to consider what they were about to plan and execute, but they couldn't afford to mess this up. Their forces were all gathered as much as he could have hoped, though the missing presence of his cousin and her blonde partner was still a cause for concern.
Suddenly, as if hearing his thoughts out loud, Naruto and Hinata walked into the hall and gave him a casual wave. The elder Hyuuga glared at the two of them acting like nothing had happened, as Otogakure shinobi raced around the room preparing it for the coming meeting.
"You're late," he said shortly.
Naruto turned to his wife with a grin, "I don't think he's happy to see us."
"Clearly we're intruding," said Hinata with a sly grin that caused her cousin's heart to sink. "Perhaps we should go back to Suna and get him another army to use."
Her husband nodded and turned back to the Otokage, "We'll be back in a week, depending on traffic."
Neji gritted his teeth and bit the bullet, "It's good to see you are okay. Thank you for bringing Gaara and his shinobi here."
Naruto chuckled and walked around the table to clap his old friend on the shoulder, "See? That wasn't so hard. Similar to pulling teeth, but still."
Hinata smiled and moved her hair out of her face to gently kiss her cousin on his cheek, "It's good to see you again, Neji-niisan."
Around the three of them, several of the Otogakure stifled laughs and tried to hide it from their leader, but Neji's strict gaze caught them anyway. He activated his Byakugan to emphasise his point, "Everyone out. Now."
He would have liked them to flee in fear of his retribution, but the Otogakure shinobi merely finished up their duties and left the hall while catching several amused looks from the amusing couple.
"You weren't with the Kazekage's group," said Neji once they were the only people in the hall. "I was contemplating sending a group out after you."
Naruto waved off his concern, "Just dealing with some internal stuff. We used Hiraishin to get here as soon as we could. We saw all the people you've gathered here."
"It's very impressive," added Hinata with a smile. "It's good to see everyone again."
"Still can't get used to seeing Kakashi-sensei like that though…" said Naruto. "We spent ages trying to get him to remove that damn mask…"
With his Byakugan still active, Neji could see that the leaders of the other shinobi forces were approaching the hall, as it was close to the designated time. He cut off Naruto and Hinata's reminiscing with his hand, "Well, regardless, you have come at an opportune time. We're about to have a meeting to discuss our plan to remove the Quiraji from the Land of Fire and turn the war in our favour. You're welcome to stay and contribute."
"Can we grab something to eat first?" asked Naruto while clutching at his stomach. "I haven't had ramen in AGES."
"We don't have any ramen," said Neji with a smirk.
Naruto tried not to overreact, but he started to feel weak in the knees. Before he could fall to the floor, his wife held him up by his shoulders and pulled out a cup from her pack. She showed the instant ramen to him with a knowing smile, perking him right up.
He reached up and gently kissed her on the lips, "That's why I married you. You always know what I need."
Next to the main table in the hall, Neji was trying his best to scratch his eyes out with his hand.
oOoOoOo
Once he confirmed that everyone was present, Neji called them over to the large round table in the Fire Temple hall and ordered his assistant to roll out the map for them to see. It had been a work in progress for years, with each Quiraji outpost and stronghold indicated with symbols that denoted strength and numbers, with red crossed through the ones that they had destroyed.
"Is this all the information you have on their positions?" asked the Mizukage with her eyes running over the map quickly. "You seem to think they are everywhere."
"We've been making good progress on their positions," replied Neji, waving over his other assistant to cross out the weapons facility near the Land of Lightning border. He turned to his old Uchiha companion, "Did you leave anything left?"
Sasuke shrugged and glanced over at his partner, "Did you?"
Fiore tried to count on her fingers and gave up after a few moments, turning her attention to the Otokage, "Doesn't matter, the place was wrecked. What does it matter?"
Neji nodded and looked over at his cousin and her 'husband', "Do you know what this marking means?" he asked, pointing to the centre of the map.
The married couple looked at each other for a moment before Naruto nodded slowly, "Home."
"That's right," said Neji with a sigh. He still thought of Konoha as his old home, though he'd chosen his new home at Otogakure and he had never looked back. "We have enough information to make the conclusion that the Quiraji main base is in the rumble of Konoha."
He waited a moment to let that information sink in, though from the gathered expressions it became obvious that most of them had already come to that conclusion. Not only was it symbolic of the enemy to do, it was one of the most defensible locations in the whole Land of Fire.
"What is this shaded out area around Konoha?" asked Gaara. He and Kankuro were the only Sunagakure representatives at the meeting, yet as one of the three Kages present he knew he was an equal in their eyes and felt compelled to have his voice heard.
"That, is an extremely powerful chakra nullifying field that is completely covering the Quiraji base and the old village of Konoha. There is no way to get through it with any force of shinobi in fighting condition."
At the opposite side of the table, both the Kumogakure Tailed Beast containers snorted in tandem. "You make it sound like we aren't pushing the Quiraji back at every turn," said Yugito with a scoff. "They haven't broken through any of the villages."
"Don't underestimate them," said Gaara quickly. "They've won far more battles than they've lost. We're outnumbered, outmatched and running out of time. Every day we lose more and more people."
"Nobody is disputing the danger," said Naruto diplomatically. He motioned to the group gathered in the hall, "but look at what is happening here. We have the some of the strongest shinobi from Sunagakure, Kumogakure and Otogakure. We have the survivors from Konoha and FIVE Tailed Beast containers." He turned to Neji with a confident smirk, "If this isn't an auspicious moment, I don't know what is."
The Otokage gave him a rare smile and turned back to the map, while Sasuke leaned over to his old Team 7 teammate with a raised eyebrow. "Auspicious?" he whispered quietly. "Do you know what that means?"
"Of course I do," whispered Naruto back fiercely. "I know how to use complex words!"
"Uhuh," replied Sasuke with zero faith in his old teammate. He turned his attention back to the meeting where the Mizukage was asking Neji what the dots around the chakra nullifying area were.
Neji drew everyone's attention to her question and moved several assigned pieces next to the dots, "These are the machines that are powering the chakra nullifying field. Our scouts paid dearly for this information, but we are fairly certain that these are the things we need to take out. They are heavily guarded and inside the field."
"So what, we destroy those and we win? Seems too easy," said Fiore with a frown. "If you were my enemy that would be the trap to split you apart and then the army takes you apart bit by bit."
The Otokage frowned at her boiling it down to such simple points, but nodded in agreement. "When analysing the information, we think you are correct. Since Konoha is at the centre of the field, we can assume that's where the leaders of the Quiraji are waiting for us."
Mei leaned over the table towards the map, "So we are going to spring the trap anyway? Seems dangerous."
"That's why we are all here," said Gaara coldly. "If you aren't here to risk your life, then you shouldn't be here."
The Mizukage shot her counterpart a glare before turning back to the Otokage, "I assume you have some sort of plan you want to tell us? Otherwise you wouldn't have called us all here."
Neji nodded and brought everyone's attention back to the map as he manipulated the pieces on the board. The strategy had been ironed out since he'd gotten the information, but now that he was presenting it he was trying to see if there were any holes in it.
"Our plan is this: we attack each node with a significant shinobi force and try to destroy the machines to bring down the field. Once the field is down, a strike force charges towards Konoha and takes out the Quiraji leaders. They're the ones that are winning the war for the Quiraji, and this is our one chance to take them out."
He let the others take in the information, watching their expressions with interest. It was clear that there were several that were sceptical of his plan, but they all seemed to be thinking the same thing.
They had to do this.
"Who would be part of this strike team?" asked Sasuke finally, breaking the silence in the room.
"Our best fighters would have to go" said Neji, looking around the room. "I would expect my fellow Kages to accompany me on this final push." He glanced at the Kazekage and Mizukage, seeing them both nodding as if it were obvious. "I doubt I could stop my fellow Konoha shinobi from coming either."
Naruto nodded and slammed a fist into his open palm, "Damn straight. I've got an ass-whooping with Benkei's name on it."
Neji smirked as the other Konoha shinobi present echoed Naruto's sentiment. "That's what I thought. I'm sure our Tailed Beast companions would also want to get some revenge as well," he said, indicating to the Kumogakure shinobi present at the meeting.
Yugito looked at Killer Bee for a moment before coming to a decision and turning back to him, "We will join you. Shall we direct our shinobi to take out one of these nodes you spoke about?"
Neji nodded and pulled out a piece to place next to the most north eastern node, "They can take this one, closer to your village. Your group is the fastest and you can get reinforcements from your village."
"We only have our elite shinobi with us," said Yugito cautiously. "How strong are the Quiraji defences at these nodes?"
"Very strong," said Neji grimly. "We'll have to throw everything we have at them, except for those in the strike team, and those defending our position here." He turned to the Mizukage, "Would your subordinates be able to take out the node closest to your border?"
Mei considered his proposition for a time before uncrossing her arms and nodding slowly. "I will leave some shinobi here to enhance your defences as well, since some of them are defensive specialists. The Seven Swordsmen will make short work of this 'machine'."
Pre-empting the Otokage's request, Gaara motioned to the node close to the Land of Wind, "My ANBU will take care of this one." He knew that it was a dangerous mission, but with his older brother at the head he was confident they would succeed. "That leaves two nodes to your forces, Hyuuga."
Neji nodded and moved his two pieces to cover those areas, "We have a large force here, so that is within our strength." He took in a long breath, "This is what we have to do. Does anyone have anything to add?"
Beside her husband, Hinata did a mental count of those present and the ones he had mentioned being part of the strike team, before confirming her suspicion. "So the strike team will only be fifteen of us? Those of us present here, Kiba and his cousin, right?"
"Shouldn't we take some other troops with us?" asked Konan from the side of the room. "If the enemy is ready for us, then we should hit them as strong as we can."
Neji shook his head and motioned back to the map with the strategic pieces, "If the strike team can't kill the Quiraji leaders, then nobody can. We're the strongest shinobi that are left…" He left out the fact that the Raikage wasn't present; he could see that the Kumogakure shinobi wished that he was but weren't going to bring it up as a point of concern. "…and as Naruto pointed out, we have a lot of power on our side. The Quiraji aren't foes we can overwhelm with numbers." He pointed to the nodes on the map, "Besides, once they take down the field, our forces can come in and reinforce us."
They discussed the details of the mission for several hours following, with each of them agreeing that it was the only way they were going to be able to turn the war into their favour. The Kages left the meeting and gave their orders to their subordinates, while Naruto and Hinata went to tell Kiba and his cousin what they were going to do. Neji decided to talk to Ino personally, as he had no intention of having her accompany the strike team with her child in tow. His plan was to have her set up a medical facility for injured shinobi that would likely turn up as the Quiraji army turned its focus on their position.
If there was one thing he could guarantee, it was that the moment they departed for their mission, the Fire Temple would come under terrible attack. He trusted his people to be able to handle the attacks, but regardless of outcome, he knew one definite thing.
In about a week, they would either all be dead, or only some of them would be dead.
After dressing his hand as was his ritual, Neji stepped out into the main area of the Fire Temple to get some fresh air before retiring to spend some time with his wife and sleeping children. He expected to see a nice clear black sky with the Otogakure scouts standing at their posts and it being a relatively quiet night.
Instead, he simply stood in a complete stupor at the scene in front of him.
The lights that were normally pointed away from the Fire Temple to light up the surrounding area were directed into the main centre area. Loud music blared all around him with some obnoxious dance music that was all the rage in the civilian towns they had occasionally visited before setting up their own village. There were tables of food and drink with people from underground serving and cooking all ranges of different types of things.
But the strangest thing was all the shinobi, from Otogakure to the Konoha Survivors to the others three villagers represented, dancing and singing like they didn't have a care in the world. The shinobi that, at one point would be trying to kill each other seemed to be partying together without a care in the world.
Before he could say anything, he was blindsided by his cousin, who had seemingly changed into a long flowing light blue dress and had absolute joy in her white eyes. She reached out and grasped his arm, hauling him into the area where the other shinobi were and began dancing with him. Initially the Otokage wanted to balk her outrageous action and demand an explanation as to what was going on, but once he got a look at the relaxed looks on his shinobi's faces his brain figured it out. Despite himself, he began dancing with his cousin in a manner he hadn't thought himself capable of.
At the area where Neji had emerged, Naruto chuckled and turned to his old friend's assistant, placing a group of bills into his hand. "Thanks for sound-proofing his office. The look on his face was totally worth it."
Kazuha nodded and pocketed the bills. "Don't forget our deal."
The blonde shinobi rolled his eyes and clapped the Otogakure shinobi on the shoulder with his hand, "I was always going to keep an eye on him and make sure he comes back in one piece. Even though he'd never admit it, he and I are family." Naruto watched the normally serious Neji dancing awkwardly with his cousin with pure amusement in his eyes. "It's good to hear that you all care about him so much."
"He's the Otokage," said Kazuha matter-of-factly, but Naruto could tell how much respect and admiration the young man held for the Hyuuga leader. He didn't know all the details behind Neji's bizarre creation of the shinobi village and rise to the same level as he had once aspired to obtain, but he could admire the sheer amount of work that it would have required.
Clearly the old Neji that had tried kill him and Hinata during the Chuunin Exams in Suna was completely gone. And Naruto, for one, was glad to see the troubled Hyuuga had found his place.
"Are you going to enjoy the festivities?" came a female voice behind him. He turned to see the Otokage's wife walking towards him with a bright look in her eyes that mirrored her silver hair.
Naruto gave her a short bow in respect and nodded, "Was all this your idea?"
Yuko smiled and gestured to the dancing shinobi, "Everyone needs to let down their hair every once in a while. Even my stoic husband."
"You're certainly right. If you'll excuse me…"
"Of course," said Yuko, watching the blonde shinobi bound off towards his dark haired wife and whisk her away from her older cousin. She turned to Kazuha, "Are the borders still secure?"
"Yes madam, we've doubled the guard."
Yuko thanked him for his efforts and told him he could enjoy the party with everyone else, but the Otokage's assistant politely declined. His job was to make sure that his leader was safe, and with all these different shinobi nearby he had to keep a strict vigil.
Though those ramen noodles did smell particularly nice.
oOoOoOo
Not one for embracing fervour like his fellow shinobi, the Kazekage stood to the side of the party with his arms crossed over his chest as he watched the others with interest. He had had an interesting discussion with Naruto earlier about their role in the coming battle and the blonde shinobi had left him with several thoughts to ponder, but Gaara was not one to be hasty about these types of things.
After years of working with her, he was able to sense his personal bodyguard long before she came into contact with him, but Gaara still acted like she wasn't there until Matsuri revealed herself at his side and stood with a wide smile on her young face.
"Are you enjoying the festivities, Gaara-sama?" she asked innocently, though even without looking at her he could sense her probing for information.
"They're adequate for the purpose they serve," he said dryly. At first she wasn't sure whether he was intentionally being diplomatic or not, but when he turned to her and the smallest of smirks rose on his face, she chuckled in response and leaned against the same wall beside him.
"It's nice that we get to relax a bit before tomorrow. Almost makes you forget what's going on around us."
Gaara didn't give her a response, but internally he agreed with her for the most part. The ANBU shinobi he had brought with him were the best of the best from Sunagakure, but they were also family men and women and needed downtime as much as anyone. He hated that he had to throw them into the fires of war in the knowledge that many of them would likely die, but in doing so he hoped that they'd be able to save their people from a worse fate.
In his mind, they deserved a bit of drink and dancing, even if just to distract themselves for a night. There would be plenty of serious work to be done in the morning.
"Oh, I almost forget…" muttered Matsuri, flicking a hand towards a nearby table. With her control of wind chakra that was more precise than even the Kazekage's sister would muster, she carried a bowl over to her outstretched hand and offered it to her leader. "Would you like some soup, Gaara-sama? I made it especially for you, since I know you don't like spicy foods."
Gaara slowly turned to her with the same neutral look in his eyes that he always had before turning to her offering. As soon as she'd brought it to him he could smell how delicious it was, but Gaara was also suspicious due to past experiences with Matsuri's cooking. It wasn't that she was bad; quite the opposite in fact.
"What type of soup is it?" he asked slowly keeping his tone at a steady pace.
Matsuri's eyes flickered for a moment and Gaara knew his suspicion was correct. "It's…um…ox-tail soup? Don't worry, I've tried it myself and it tastes really good. You'll like it."
"Ox-tail soup, you say?" Gaara slowly procured it from her hand and took the spoon she offered to him, taking a small sip and letting the liquid sit in mouth for a moment as an array of flavours struck him at once.
After swallowing he turned to her with the bowl and spoon in hand, "Are you making a proposal to me, Matsuri?"
The young Jounin cocked her head for a moment in feigned ignorance, "Sir? It's just soup; nothing nefarious. Honestly!"
"So the fact that ox-tail soup is a well-known aphrodisiac isn't a factor then?" Gaara made sure he wasn't using his Kage voice when speaking to her, as he shared a fairly close bond with his personal bodyguard and didn't wish for her to think he was chastising her. In truth, he was seeking something from her.
"I…uh…" Matsuri eventually gave up and threw her hands into the air with an exasperated sigh. "It's too much! I can't handle it!" She looked straight into his pale blue-green eyes for what felt like the first time since she'd seen him at the Chuunin Exams before the whole world had turned upside down. "Sir, I have feelings for you that I can't hold in anymore. We might not come back tomorrow and I don't want to…"
She tried to say more, but Gaara silenced her with a hand. He placed the bowl of soup with the spoon down on the floor beside him and crossed his arms over his chest again. "You are aware that it would be inappropriate for a superior and a subordinate to become involved, correct?"
Matsuri's eyes shot to the floor, she knew she'd blown it. "I know…sir. It's just…I can't help how I feel and I just…" She shook her head rapidly, "It's stupid of me, I know. I'm just going to go and drown my embarrassment in a bottle of sake."
She turned to leave, but Gaara reached forward and touched her shoulder to stop her. In all the time she had worked for him they had never made personal contact like that; it broke almost every protocol that existed between the two of them.
"Matsuri…" started Gaara as she turned around to look at him again with an oddly hopeful look in her dark eyes. "It is inappropriate, but that does not matter anymore. I'm not…entirely against the notion. As you know, I'm not a very emotive person…but that doesn't mean I don't feel things. Over the years I've been very impressed with you and I've come to rely on your work."
"Gaara-sama…what are you saying…"
The Kazekage did his best to keep himself calm, but something about the situation seemed to break through his usual stoic visage. "There are times when I turn to see if you are there, just for the sake of knowing that you are. I'm not against…what this is…"
Just as she was before, Gaara found himself cut off as his bodyguard threw her arms around his neck and planted her lips onto his in a passionate kiss. Gaara tried to keep his emotions steady, but as he felt her body pressed into his he could feel his heart racing to lengths it would normally only reach during the height of battle. He knew some things about this experience from books he'd read and conversations with his old friend earlier, but he couldn't think of anything while she was kissing him.
Eventually they broke apart and he felt his heart racing even faster at the longing look in her dark eyes. He considered the situation for a moment before reaching into his pouch and producing a small scroll that he handed to her quietly.
"What is this?" she asked with a confused look on her face. She knew she was probably blushing terribly and didn't care as she opened up the scroll and glanced at its contents.
"This is a list of things I'm willing to do at this stage," said Gaara matter-of-factly.
Matsuri's eyes widened at the list as she went down the items, feeling her blush deepen at the sheer number of things on the scroll. She looked up at her leader with new respect in her eyes.
"So…what would you like to do now?" asked Gaara with genuine amusement in his eyes.
Matsuri glanced around the area for a moment before unceremoniously grabbing Gaara by the strap across his shirt and dragging him away from the party. While normally the stoic Kage wouldn't be so easily moved by his subordinate, but the determination in Matsuri's eyes was strong enough to move a mountain.
With a completely different look on her face than when they'd started talking earlier, Matsuri threw her superior into an empty room and shut the door behind them, locking the door and glaring at Gaara intently.
Out of the corner of her eye she noticed the time on the clock and felt her chest tighten. "We've only got a short amount of time."
Gaara frowned at her sudden confidence and began to wonder what he had agreed to. He'd made sure that she was attacking one of the chakra-nullifying nodes rather than accompanying him on the final battle primarily because he feared for her life.
But things like this…he was far less sure about.
It was a weird situation to be sure, but once Matsuri approached him all thoughts of other things disappeared in favour of his interest in the woman standing in front of him.
And for once, Shukaku was keeping its comments to itself. He doubted that would last very long.
oOoOoOo
While the shinobi around them were dancing wildly to the music, drinking and laughing loudly, Naruto and Hinata slowly danced together in the very middle as if no-one else was around. The music wasn't too appropriate for slow dancing, but neither of them cared as they smiled into each other's eyes and enjoyed the quiet moment for a change. They'd been married for a while now and there were many things that didn't need to be said between the two of them. They shared many thoughts and ideas without ever needing to say a word.
But sometimes there were things that they liked to say to each other just for the sake of it.
Hinata moved one of her hands to the side of his head and whispered softly into his ear, "I love you."
Her husband grinned as he always did and kissed her on her cheek, "And I love you. Very much."
"So I was thinking…" started Hinata as Naruto took her hand into his and began dancing with her with his hand on her hips.
"What were you thinking?" he asked when he noticed her eyes staring at the ground in that amusingly cute shy way she used to be like. Hinata had become a very confident woman over the years, yet there were still times he saw the aspects of her when they were fresh Genin. It was oddly endearing.
The Hyuuga heiress hesitated for a moment before looking into her husband's gleaming blue eyes and asked the question she'd been wondering for a while now.
"After the battle is over…and we have some time…have you thought about if you wanted to have kids?"
She had expected him to recoil back or make a joke of some sort, but to her surprise he simply smiled and lightly brushed a lock of her dark blue hair over her ear. "I've been thinking about that for a while, actually. Once the Quiraji are defeated…"
She silenced him with a finger pressed over his lips, not wanting him to jinx it by saying anymore. Hinata pressed his body closer to hers and hugged him tightly, giving him a soft but affectionate kiss on the lips.
There were things they wanted to talk to their old friends about, but for the night before they embarked on their deadly mission, she only wanted to spend it with one person.
Naruto whispered a suggestion into her ear that caused a knowing smile to emerge on her lips to accompany her slight blush. She nodded in agreement and placed her hands together in a handseal same as he did and a pair of Kage Bunshin appeared at their side. They nodded to their clones and retreated to their temporary living quarters while the clone Naruto and Hinata went about being social with their friends.
Every couple needs some alone time, particularly when they don't want to face the idea that they may not get another chance.
oOoOoOo
Despite the rambunctious nature of the party, most shinobi retreated to their living quarters early in the night, choosing to rest and remind themselves of the details of their mission for the next day. The shinobi that weren't from Otogakure had been placed into their own areas so they didn't have to worry about old grudges causing friction between each other. Every shinobi had their own personal rituals to go through before embarking on the dangerous mission in front of them, even those that had been designated to remain behind and defend the Fire Temple from the seemingly inevitable counter-attack that was sure to come.
Neji had retired early from the party to spend more time with his wife and children, assuring his old friends that they would have time to speak at length on the trip between the Fire Temple and Konoha. He had an obligation to them first.
Eventually the only shinobi still around were the survivors of Konoha; the ones that were participating in the final push to their home. Naruto and Hinata sat on a couch being the insufferable couple that they were, while Sasuke sat beside his old teammate sharpening his katana absentmindedly. Kiba and Nagisa brushed their companion's furs affectionately, while Ino did her best not to get caught glimpsing at her Inuzuka ex-boyfriend. She worried about his safety in the mission as she was staying behind to receive any and all injured shinobi for the mission. Itachi spoke in hushed tones with Kakashi, telling him more details about the item that the Jounin teacher had been keeping hidden for a long time. The Uchiha elder was surprisingly knowledgeable on the subject despite having never come into contact with the doujutsu. At the back of the group, Lee continued his round of single finger push-ups with massively oversized weights on his back, determined to be as fit as possible for the fight to come.
It had been a long time since any of them had seen Konoha, even before its destruction. And now they were coming to it to bring death to the occupants of their former homeland.
The mood was sombre at best, despite the positivity that they had demonstrated earlier.
"It's kind of weird that we're all back here," said Kiba with a long sigh and a pat on Akamaru's back.
"A little bit," came Lee's voice as he hopped up on his feet stared up at the night sky mindfully. "It is a shame not everyone is coming."
Itachi glanced up from his conversation with Kakashi despite the fact that he was blind, "Even those are here in spirit. We represent those who can't."
"At the end of the day, we're all still shinobi of Konoha," added Kakashi with a nod of his head. He thought back to the people he'd lost before Konoha had been destroyed, and even after that he kept losing people. "It isn't just about us."
From the couch they were sitting on, Naruto and Hinata glanced at each other for a moment before the blonde shinobi reached into their mutual pack and pulled out two objects. He handed it to his wife without a word before placing his own back on his forehead where it belonged. The forehead protector was scratched and worn, but the leaf symbol still sad in the centre of the metal without a mark on it.
The others of the group looked at the married couple for a moment, before each reaching into their respective packs and producing their own forehead protectors to place on their heads. Even with their work at Suna, both Kiba and Nagisa still wore their leaf forehead protectors with pride, while Itachi wore his scratched out forehead protector despite the image it conveyed. Even Lee, who normally wore his leaf forehead protector on his arm, wore it on his forehead, reminding himself that now was the time to wear it proudly.
Out of everyone remaining from the party, only Fiore was alone in not wearing a forehead protector, but she had no problem with that as she wasn't a shinobi in the first place. She smiled as she saw the glint in her partner's eyes when he fixed the forehead protector he had kept safe all those years. Only she knew that underneath the metal he kept a lock of his mother's hair as a reminder of the sacrifices she had made for his sake.
At once they had changed from partying adults to shinobi ready to take their revenge on the people that had so thoroughly destroyed their lives.
Tomorrow was going to be an auspicious day.
It was so early in the morning that even the sun didn't have any interest in providing much sunlight for the hours to come.
Despite the dreary start to the day, the shinobi gathered in the Fire Temple area had no complaints to voice. Today was the day they were going to strike at the heart of the enemy that had so deeply affected their lives and slaughtered thousands of their days.
Today was a day they'd been waiting for years to come.
Shinobi from Otogakure stood side by side with their Sunagakure, Kumogakure and Kirigakure compatriots; united in common purpose. The Otogakure shinobi that were remaining behind to defend the Fire Temple had come to support the war effort with their presence, while the separate groups stood behind their respective leaders.
Mangetsu tapped at one of his sword hilts impatiently, while the remaining three Swordsmen stood at his side in front of the Kirigakure shinobi that had accompanied them to the Land of Fire. He disliked the idea of taking so many shinobi for a single mission and had negotiated to have a selection of shinobi remain at the Fire Temple to keep the area secure. He did appreciate Ao's acceptance of his leadership though, as the two of them had rarely seen eyes-to-eye.
Darui looked around at the faces of the Kumogakure hunter squads that had been placed under his command for the mission, knowing that most of them wouldn't return. He'd told the Raikage that he'd keep his brother and Yugito safe, but now it seemed like they were doing the dangerous work while they got them there. The node they had been assigned to destroy was closer to the Land of Lightning and he planned on sending a pair of shinobi to give the Raikage a report on the situation.
Looking up at the three figures on the higher platform, Kankuro's chest swelled in pride at the image of his younger brother in his full Kazekage outfit standing side by side with the Otokage and Mizukage. It was a gathering of force that had never happened in the past and he was proud to be at the head of the Sunagakure force that would be facilitating the impending victory in the war. He glanced over at the young woman at his side and stared suspiciously at her grinning face. She'd been so vocally opposed to Gaara going on his own with the rest of the middle group that he was sure she'd follow them anyway, but now she was almost too quiet.
Kankuro had a new respect for his little brother.
Unlike the other group, the Otogakure contingent that had been assigned to the closest node was led by the remaining Sound Three, having agreed to work together a final time. Their group was the smallest purely due to the fact that they had the most power combined out of their entire village.
They didn't need any more than the few they had gathered.
The other Otogakure group was the opposite, as Jin preferred to make sure that his mission would be completed and had gathered some of the best Quiraji killers for his group. His students had tried to accompany his group, but Jin had put his foot down and instructed them to defend their people.
That was the important factor right now.
At the front of the gathered shinobi were the group that was going to cut out the heart of the enemy force. The surviving Konoha shinobi had all put their leaf forehead protectors back on and stood side by side with each other. Naruto and Hinata stood with Sasuke and his brother, while Kiba stood next to his cousin Nagisa. Lee stood off to the side, readying himself to charge into battle against the people who had so ruined his wife's life, while Fiore and Konan stood beside their respective shinobi partners. Kakashi felt naked without his mask on in front of so many of his old students, but kept that to himself as he stared up at the three leaders and waited for their speech. On the other side of the group stood the two Kumogakure Tailed Beast containers, itching to get into battle for the lives lost at their village. Yugito and Killer Bee had worked together a long time and doubted it would be the last time they were going to battle against almost certain death.
The three Kages stepped forward on their platform to silence their subordinates and looked over the faces of their people. It was a deadly mission that was clearly a desperate move, but they all knew the stakes at play.
"This is it," began Neji with confidence in his booming voice. "We've all struggled and lost to get to this point, but we aren't done yet. Today we make a bold move that will shake the foundations of this country and strike fear into our foes."
He glanced down at his shinobi standing in ranks and his chest swelled with pride. "Regardless of outcome, you should know that we are proud of each and every one of you. For having the courage to stand against those who would destroy us. For standing for your families and friends. For having the strength to fight at your comrades' sides and protect each other from the fight that is to come."
His eyes traced along the new arrivals before passing over his old Team Gai companion's face. Lee had been scarred badly over the years but still had the spark of youth in his eyes that their old teacher would have been proud of.
"I…I was once a slave to what I thought was my destiny as a member of the Hyuuga Branch Family. It took a good beating from a dear friend and the smack of reality for me to realise that isn't what being a shinobi is all about."
He pulled up his single hand and slowly clenched it into a fist, "We do not live in cages like animals. We are proud shinobi and we will not let the Quiraji beat us down any longer!" He raised his fist into the air to accentuate his point and that brought a loud cheer from not just the Otogakure shinobi but also a large portion of the other village shinobi as well.
Neji planned to end it there, but that clearly wasn't going to happen as the Mizukage stepped forward and pulled back her Kage hat to add her voice to the choir.
"This alliance is proof that we can come together in defence of our people," she said in line with her compatriot Kage's earlier statements. She motioned across the shinobi army gathered in front of them with a wave of her hand, "Not only do we have the force of four shinobi villages, but the strengths of five Tailed Beasts and some of the greatest fighters our people have ever known. No enemy could possibly stand against us!"
That caused a greater cheer than Neji's speech, but Mei quickly silenced them with her hands, "That doesn't mean we should underestimate our enemy! Remember the devastation they have caused! Their existence has ruined so many people's lives, destroyed entire villages." She put up her hand in the same motion as the Otokage, "We fight for the glorious dead!"
Unlike his fellow Kages, Gaara waited for the cheering to die down before stepping forward to speak his piece. He was not a big speech giver like Neji and Mei, but his village had suffered the most out of those represented in front of him, besides the Konoha shinobi that wore the leaf symbol proudly on their foreheads once more. He knew the feeling of every shinobi that had fought the Quiraji and had suffered in war. The two Kages turned to the youngest of them and ceded the floor to him respectfully.
The Kazekage took a long breath and removed the Kage hat from his head, bowing his red-covered head for a moment before looking up at the shinobi gathered. He saw Sunagakure ANBU standing side by side with Kirigakure Swordsmen and Otogakure Jounin and Kumogakure Tailed Beast containers.
It was a proud sight for him to see.
"Our world began with hatred. We were once one people that tore ourselves apart with hatred for each other. Yet despite this, we have come together to face a common enemy. We no longer bear the hatred for each other that we once did. Just as my hatred for the world was quenched at the hands of a Tailed Beast container from another village, we have been able to put aside our past hatreds. There are no villages represented here, no differences between us. We are all shinobi!"
Unlike the previous two speeches, Gaara's speech caused every shinobi present to cheer out in pride at his words. At that moment they were one coherent force, and even though they were about to go their separate ways, they were all fighting for the same reason against the same foe.
It was a proud moment for everyone present.
In the crowd, Naruto smiled slowly and nodded at his friend's grand words. He wanted to stand at his side and clap him on the back for a job well done, but as the shinobi began to disperse to their designated groups for the attack he knew that he would see him in a little bit.
Instead he turned and placed his arm around his wife's shoulder, squeezing it reassuringly and looking out over the horizon.
They were finally going home.
Author's Note:
Yes, I shamelessly took Gaara's speech from the main story. It's so good I felt the compulsion, even though I added bits for Neji and Mei to say. Sometimes a bit of chest-beating is good before the pain starts.
The next chapter will be epic, that I promise you. It's something I've wanted to write for a while. It'll probably be quite long, but I might also split it into two chapters. It'll be fun, trust me.
Please review and tell me what you think. I try to take each review into account, 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.