A/N: Apologies for the prolonged delay. I'll explain things in the author's note at the end of this chapter.
Somewhere in the sands of the desert, a woman swung her giant fan, unleashing a deadly torrent and sweeping the remains of her opponents aside, into the sand dunes. They perished in a volatile whirlwind.
A giant racoon with a sandy pelt, coated in atavistic patterns and inscriptions that harkened back to an era where the Sage of Sixth Paths roamed the earth, grinned triumphantly: "We did it!"
"Yup Shukaku, you're free," Temari said emotionally, remembering her younger brother who did not survive the last war. Gaara would have been happy to know that his tailed-beast, a foe turned friend, was finally liberated from his sealed shackles.
"A troublesome effort, that was," Shikamaru remarked as he lit a cigarette.
One down, eight more to go.
Kiba gazed with awe at the spectacle in front of him. Something stirred through the crevices. He was in the midst of the rocky mountain ranges of the Land of Lightning.
The chakra ritual he performed with Akamaru had unleashed something, some primal force. He was sure of it.
He leaped away from a dangerous cluster of lightning.
The ANBU.
This fight was not going to be easy.
Kakashi and his group of shinobi approached the marshes of the Land of Water after a day's journey, which involved traversing a vast array of land and sea, keeping their profile low whilst traveling in a fisherman's boat that just so happened to be on its way to Kirigakure for business. The humidity of their surroundings bore an inexplicable oppressiveness.
"Are we any closer?" One of his companions asked.
"Not yet," Kakashi replied with professional curtness.
Boruto had reached the suburbs of Konoha. It was a reassuringly mundane place, with families, young children and teenagers laughing about in the park, seeping coffee in snug cafes and gossiping in the streets. It was just so, so ordinary; so out of place in this world.
Boruto wondered if any of these people he witnessed cared about who was in charge of running things or what sort of system they lived in at all. Then again, it seemed that all the vast majority of people anywhere really wanted was to go about their daily lives unperturbed. It didn't matter if the secret police arrested anyone, even if it was somebody they knew, for so long as they were safe, so long as they had a place in the world, nothing else mattered.
"Papers!" A gruff police officer interrupted his stream of consciousness.
'What?" Boruto asked in confusion.
"I said, papers. Your identification papers? You know… the stuff you're meant to carry all the time…?" The man asked again, irritated.
"Eh… I left them in my house," Boruto said, hanging his head in pretense.
"I'll let you off this time," the man growled, whipping out a small camera to take a snapshot of Boruto. "This is going in the records. Name?"
"Kenkou," Boruto blurted out the first name he could think of.
"Don't let this happen again Kenkou."
"Right, sir."
Boruto turned a corner, walked down a street, turned another and took a detour down an alley, venturing into a narrower street lined with small boutique shops and quaint cafes. This is where the bohemian teenagers and intellectuals go, having their erudite conversations, often foraying into the forbidden and political. But nothing ever comes out of here; it all stays safe within the confines of this corner.
He walked past another coffee shop: it was filled with youngsters chattering excitedly.
"So you came back," a grave, familiar voice sounded behind him.
Sasuke.
Boruto froze, holding his ground, his internals heaving up and down. Truly, he hadn't expected this. He mentally cursed.
Sasuke took his time and slowly, almost tauntingly, approached Boruto, placing his left hand on the boy's right shoulder. It felt heavy, Boruto acknowledged with discomfort.
"I do recall saying that I will kill you if you stayed in this world," Sasuke turned to Boruto with a fixed gaze, eyelids unflinching. "Or came back."
"I…"
"Go on, tell me why. You're running out of time," Sasuke threatened. He didn't need to brandish his kunai or give any indication of unleashing a jutsu. His glare was enough, as was the fear constructed by one's imagination of his powers.
Boruto gulped.
Sasuke chuckled slightly: "Feeling intimidated?"
Still no reply. Seeing Sasuke bemused expressions felt strange.
"I came back to get my friends, okay?!" Boruto gasped, flummoxed. "How on earth did you find-"
"Your chakra signature is fairly recognisable," Sasuke said, shrugging.
Boruto took a step back and surveyed the man. He no longer had his Hokage robes with him and was donned in a simple black T-shirt, wearing plain sandles and combat gloves, being rather indistinguishable from your average shinobi. The Uchiha fan was decidedly missing, which Boruto found rather peculiar; perhaps he wanted to blend in with the crowd better while he-
"I followed you from Takashi's place. Poor guy, lost his parents to the secret police when he was 15. Still fairly loyal to the regime though, surprisingly. Though perhaps not to the extent where he'd turn you over immediately," Sasuke explained with an eerie nonchalance, as if he didn't mind his role in all of this. "It's amazing how compliant your average man can be isn't it?"
Boruto nodded slowly, afraid to demonstrate unnecessary emotions. He couldn't really disagree with the last point either after witnessing the world around him.
"You're heading off to the bookstore… I presume?"
"What?!"
Boruto was, for a brief moment, speechless. He then swiftly recomposed himself: "I have no idea what you're talking about."
Sasuke leant against the wall of the café, crossed his arms and continued, smirking slightly at Boruto's baffled reaction: "Did you really think I wouldn't have guessed by now? It's been almost 20 years. Hi no Ishi is not as secretive as they'd like to believe."
"Wait, what?!"
"Kakashi, Sakura, Shikamaru, Konohamaru and more – do you really believe I wouldn't notice their chakra signatures flickering and disappearing in this one particular area in the Land of Fire?"
"What?! So-"
"Yes. I knew. I've known for a good 15 years," Sasuke admitted, his gaze still unflinching, stone cold.
"What?!"
"Are you going undergoing some sort of speech impediment? Your vocabulary has been awfully restricted," Sasuke quipped.
"Hey! Okay, what the hell is going on? Also, weren't you going to kill me?" Boruto asked, his muddled thoughts spilling over. Never in his life had he been this confused.
"Would you like me to?" Sasuke said dryly, still fixing his impenetrable eyes on Boruto, who gulped. It felt like another autopsy.
"Not – not particularly, no-"
"Well, who wouldn't have guessed?"
"Shocking, isn't it?" Boruto started laughing nervously. His shoulders were reflexively raised; they have been like that ever since he encountered Sasuke.
"You'd be surprised at how many people have openly begged me to kill them," Sasuke mused.
Not a word from Boruto.
"Let's head inside. I'd very much prefer to discuss things over coffee," Sasuke said as he gestured towards a coffee shop.
Boruto frowned in response. He was still processing the events before him.
"Don't bother running away, kid. If you do, I really will kill you."
"Wait-"
In an instant, Boruto felt cold metal press against his throat. His traced his eyes down the kunai Sasuke held. It was delicately located, close to his vital spots but not yet cutting him – if he moved too quickly, he would have harmed himself.
Calm down, Boruto told himself. He tried to wrench his mind away from the present and into a tranquillizing memory – to little avail.
"Come with me," the man ordered quietly. He didn't need to raise his voice. Sensing Boruto was about to nod or say something in response, he then added: "Don't move. Unless you fancy a wound near your throat. Now, listen. We're going in there and we're going to request a private suite. But before all that…"
Boruto breathed a sigh of relief as Sasuke removed the kunai, pocketed it and snapped his fingers. Boruto could detect an emergence of chakra as it swirled around the air.
Both of them were immediately transformed into teenage boys. Boruto was still a blond, but he no longer possessed his characteristic facial whiskers. A hue of green replaced his clear blue eyes. Sasuke looked younger, had brown hair and his facial features became less sharpened, his nose flatter. His eyes, however, remained the same. They looked normal at first glance, but upon closer inspection, revealed the impenetrable depths of a ruthless killer.
"What is the meaning of this?" Boruto questioned, as he approached the window, looking quizzically at his own reflected. He then surveyed his surroundings, revelling slightly at his newly elevated position.
"They don't like it when non-teenagers go in," Sasuke said matter-of-factly, shrugging his shoulders. "Might I also mentioned I – we, I guess – would have drawn a lot of attention if we went in there as ourselves?"
"Okay, whatever. I was just asking," Boruto muttered.
This will not go well, Boruto told himself, a sense of unease creeping within him as he followed Sasuke into the café.
"A private suite, please," Sasuke asked a waiter, pulling of an impression of courtesy.
It felt unsettling to see him smile so politely, Boruto thought. And say the word "please."
On their way to the private room, Boruto overheard a gang of two boys and two girls discussing politics.
"Oh, we all know it's the regime's fault in Suna. They've been starving that place for ages – it's about time that people started protesting en masse!" A girl with the tips of her red hair dyed blue declared combatively.
"Definitely. Can you believe it? They're blaming the so-called Hi no Ishi for it?! People protesting about food shortages are somehow linked to an invisible, shadowy group that barely exists, come on!" A boy agreed vociferously with her whilst thumping the table.
Boruto shot a look at Sasuke as they approached their room.
As they shut the door and sat down in their quaint little chairs, with a window view overlooking the streets, Boruto anxiously whispered: "Did you hear what they said? Are you going to-"
"Of course I did. Your point?" Sasuke asked.
"And you let them?" Boruto said incredulously. "I mean, you hate dissent and-"
"Be honest, Boruto, tell me what do you think a group of harmless teenagers can actually do?"
"Uh…"
"Let me tell you something, Boruto. These kids are from middle-income to well-off families. Some of their parents even work for me. They love to fulminate about the injustices of this world, rage against its problems. But at the end of the day, they never do anything. They grow up and they start accepting the way things are. Indeed, just wait till they start selling each other out to informants…"
"They sound pretty angry to me. Maybe their grievances are real – I mean, all the stuff about a food crisis in Suna-"
"I didn't call you here to talk about current affairs, Boruto. But just to answer your question, yes, there problems over there. I'm getting it sorted – the incompetent administrator's position is being reconsidered. You can't help it sometimes. Incompetent people exist everywhere."
"And here, they just happen to be the administrator of Sunagakure?"
"I must confess, I did not appoint him. My … underlings did. Enough of this talk."
"Wait, hang on – what is-"
"I need you, Boruto, for my plans," Sasuke's voice lowered, before noticing: "You're awfully jittery since we've met. Is there anything wrong?"
Boruto couldn't stand this anymore: "You? You're asking me what is wrong?! Everything! Everything! That's what!"
"Well, it would help if you were less unspecific," Sasuke pointed out, completely unbothered by Boruto's outburst.
"Okay, for starters, you," Boruto said with a hint of accusation. He couldn't hide all this rising scepticism and revulsion anymore. "You caused all of this. You screwed this world up. And you're blaming it on anyone but yourself. Your incompetent administrators, your 'underlings' – who even uses the word underlings? Out-of-touch teenagers? Pesky rebels? What even?!"
It felt good for all of this to pour out of his mind. Boruto was, for a brief moment, however instantaneous, no longer terrified.
Sasuke simply listened, not betraying an ounce of emotion. This infuriated Boruto even more: "This is what I hate about people like you. You think you know what's best for everyone – well, news flash, you don't! You're allowing a secret police to exist, for god's sake! One that frequently arrests and terrorises innocent people – yes, innocent, because people complaining about the government or voicing independent opinions about it aren't always out to destroy it! How arrogant can you be?! Self-righteousness. Your self-righteousness, your twisted ideas it's… it's destroying everyone! Can't you see it?!"
Silence descended upon the room.
"Are you done with your ranting yet?" Sasuke finally spoke; Boruto couldn't discern his emotions. "You'll find that I'm not the most self-righteous person in this world – far from it. You haven't seen the worst." He sounded almost tauntingly, almost slicing through Boruto's confidence. "Moreover, if I really am so terrible, then why did I tolerate so much opposition?"
"I'm not sure 'tolerate' is the correct word, Hokage-sama." The sardonic disdain was emphasised in the last words.
Sasuke ignored Boruto's response and proceded: "I've known, kid. I've known all along that there will be those who hate me, who oppose me. I knew it since the day I killed your father in this world and since the day I united the continent under a single regime. But being Hokage means taking all the pain yourself and allowing everyone to concentrate their hate on you." He paused for a second and for an infinitesimally brief moment, his cold and nonchalant mask slipped, giving way to a soft, vulnerable fragility that Boruto could not comprehend. "That... That is the only way we will all have peace." His voice re-stabilised itself as he continued resolutely, "You cannot unite men under hope or love or compassion – none of that nonsense your father believed in! You can only unite them under fear and hatred."
"Utter horseshit," Boruto answered. "In my-"
"You see Boruto," Sasuke continued his explanation, resuming his composure and reverting back to his methodological manners. "There are those who are united in their fear of me: all my surrounding sycophants, that idiot administrator in Suna, the Hyuuga, perhaps even folk like Ayame and Takashi. Then there are those who are united in their hatred of me. Hi no Ishi and their affiliates in their safe enclave known as Mount Myoboku. They want to decimate me into a million pieces and in the process, they've united ninjas all across the continent into the cause, formed some spirit of camaraderie. I can appreciate that. I almost feel bad for them. Don't you? They actually believe they have a chance. This way, there are nuisances here and there, but we haven't had a war for nearly 20 years. Even disputes between minor villages have ceased. Look at the bigger picture, Boruto."
"No. You're making everything worse," Boruto rebutted. "There is tension simmering below the surface and the longer the repression is, the worse it gets. One day, things will erupt as volcanoes long dormant do – they'll catch you by surprise and you'll be powerless to stop it."
"Oh you know nothing, Boruto," Sasuke said with a hint of bemusement. "Mass genjutsu is always an option. Not that I'd embrace it wholeheartedly. I did, after all, oppose Obito Uchiha's Moon Eye Plan."
"And when you die?" Boruto pressed on, mentally shuddering at what Sasuke was implying.
"I won't Boruto. Orochimaru has discovered a path to eternal life. That was one of the reasons I raided his lair. I've been examining his studies extensively in the past few days. Imagine, an ancient mask collect amidst the ruins of Uzushiogakure, a mixture of the chakra's of Indra and Ashura and a Hyuuga, a human sacrifice – just one, anyone – and immortality," Sasuke described. He sounded strangely grave and serious and seven soft-spoken, bereaved of the usual morbid fascination that accompanies such talk.
"Wait, you're really crazy enough to believe all of this?!" Boruto sank into deeper incredulity. This Sasuke was truly insane. Too far gone. What's worse is that he appeared to believe every single word that came out of his mouth.
"Oh Boruto," Sasuke said with feigned concern, shaking his head and unclasping his hands. "You know so little."
"More than you do," Boruto snorted.
"On to my main point today: members of Hi no Ishi have been attempting to retrieve the tailed-beasts and transform them into weapons against my regime. Your friends, Sarada and Mitsuki, are helping them. In fact… my sources tell me that Sarada is with Sakura. They're at a secret location in the land of fire – or more precisely, where the nine-tails are located."
"And?"
"You're going to bring both of your friends back to your world. Understand?"
"Why should I help you?"
"Let's look at things another way. They refused to accompany you back to your own world, right?"
Boruto slowly nodded.
"And you decided to come back… to retrieve them. Right?"
"Yes," Boruto concurred. And defeat you and stop all of this, you crazy old man.
Sasuke seemed to notice this flicker of annoyance.
"You don't look happy," he remarked.
"Why should I be?"
"Well, my apologies Boruto. We'll have to change the way we do things," Sasuke said, his eyes piercing through the boy. Boruto couldn't tear his gaze away from them. They began morphing. A blood red stain erupted amidst the coal black irises as three black commas emerged. "It looks like I'll have to stop them personally, with your help of course. That's if he doesn't kill them first."
Boruto felt himself falling through a dark, infinite abyss.
He collapsed onto the table.
Layer after layer of walls, barriers, fell before them as Sakura correctly undid the intricate seals, following the instructions from the scroll, until finally, only one giant stone remained before them. It was inscribed with a symbol of a giant fox with nine tails, coated with a sign that said "forbidden."
"The Kyuubi..." Sarada whispered.
As she was about to approach it, Sakura immediately reached out and grabbed her back.
"Don't touch it yet," Sakura warned. "This scroll said there was something dangerous in stall for trespassers. It didn't specify what. We need to be careful."
Sarada nodded and activated her Sharingan. She could not see beyond the stone – it acted as a barrier that blocked out all indications of chakra from the other side, like all the other layers they had to demolish.
"Still no sign of what's beyond that," Sarada said while frowning.
"Great," Sakura muttered.
"But we have to give it a go," Sarada insisted. "Does your scroll have any information about it?"
"…No," Sakura said uncomfortably. "Looks like this will be a leap into the dark."
"Indeed," Sarada agreed, with trepidation boiling inside her.
"We only need to touch the stone, according to my scroll – that's the last of instructions we have," Sakura said. "You ready?"
"Yes," Sarada declared.
Bright orange chakra flowed through the tracings of the Fox as Sarada placed her palm on the stone. The stone began moving to the right. Moving, moving, moving until an opening large enough to fit a person emerged.
"Let's go," Sakura said before walking in.
Taking a deep breath, Sarada followed suit.
A/N: Right! I'm soooooo sorry for this abysmally late update. BUT I do have a (fairly) good reason: I was on vacation. I first went to Spain with my friends, touring the cities Barcelona, Madrid and Granada. Then, I went to Rome and Florence with my boyfriend :P So there you go, I lost all appetite to write while on holiday and had to wait a few days after I came back for the creative juices to start flowing again.
So, in short, many apologies for the long wait. It'll be much better as the summer progresses. But hey, I (sort of) have a life XD
(Who knew?)
Let me know about your views on this chapter in the reviews.
What are your predictions about the course of this story? Favourite moments? Places where I can improve?
Edit: Added a few lines, corrected a few grammarly errors. Starting from now, I'm probably going to edit my chapters in a non-chronological order - which is to say, I'll do whatever chapter I feel like doing :P