Chapter 16: To Fix Your Problems Before Acknowledging Them

"having nothing to struggle

against

they have nothing to struggle

for."

― Charles Bukowski

Kabuto knew he was coming before his subordinate came into his room to tell him. He was surprised for a moment as he realized his guest was coming alone, but he couldn't help but grin after his follower had left. He relished how nicely his plans were coming to fruition. He had been manipulated most of his life, and while he had been satisfied with that, he understood now how enjoyable it was to watch others fall into the places he wanted them to because even if matters changed, which they tended to do, he could shift to alternative measures and still reach the same relative conclusion without too much trouble.

He had a little time before his guest arrived, so he left his room and stepped into the passageway. The cave system was vast and could harbor every one of his followers with plenty of room left over. Initially, one might think that was the only reason he picked the system as their refuge, but there was more to it than that. There were many more practical reasons, of course; the labyrinthian network of tunnels and passages interwoven above and below, the dark, foreboding nature to interlopers, and the fact that his followers seemed to enjoy it were all factors. Kabuto's main reason, however, was simply that caves were familiar to him. He had known them for a long time.

He turned into a tunnel and nodded toward a follower who bowed silently to him. Kabuto regarded the follower with a nod and a soft smile as he strolled by. Loyalty had many facets to it: this was something Kabuto had learned over time with his people. When they had initially come to him, tired and fearful, he wasn't sure what he saw in them at the time. The destiny was more obscure then, as if a milky drape had been placed in front of them and he couldn't quite see where the paths were headed—only now did he see that their faith and steadfastness were the only path. He had never really seen that before the miracle had happened. They all saw they could come together for their inevitable, unyielding purpose, and it was clear the end of the path would bring a great climax, an awakening unlike anything seen before. Kabuto felt a great rush of adrenaline as he knew his guest was on his way to give them the time they would need. He was fairly certain what their discussion would consist of, but his anticipation still energized him.

Kabuto strode farther down the tunnel until he reached a large, rectangular-shaped chamber where many of his followers created their homes. There were many other chambers like it. When he approached them, he was met with greetings and bows. He smiled and thanked them as he moved his way along. The youngest followers, barely past their teens, extended their hands to clutch his robe in gratitude. One woman with a pitcher of water ran up to him and asked to wash his feet. He politely declined the request and cradled her chin in his fingers as he said it. Her eyes glistened and he continued past, taking careful time to acknowledge everyone who came up to him.

At the end of the chamber, he reached one of his main subordinates: a tall former shinobi by the name of Kouji.

"Kabuto-sama," he said as he bowed deeply, "One of our dearest friends wishes to speak with you."

A short man with a long, gray beard came forward and bowed even lower than Kouji had, his beard brushing the ground. "Kabuto-sama, please, I have an urgent matter to discuss with you."

"Of course, Murata-san, I'd be happy to speak with such a loyal friend." Kabuto waved to Kouji to come with and the three of them moved into a smaller alcove away from the larger chamber.

Murata used to be a wealthy merchant from Takigakure who had donated almost all of his belongings to the congregation, and he was well-liked among many of the followers ever since.

He appeared slightly frantic at that moment; however, so Kabuto quickly deduced the issue was going to be troublesome.

"Now, Murata-san, what can I do for you?"

Murata's hands clasped together as he lowered his head to him. "Kabuto-sama, I ask for your permission to leave here immediately. I've been told my daughter may be alive, and I must go find her."

Kabuto was suddenly more intrigued than bothered at hearing that. There was no chance any child had survived the virus—the medical notes written by Orochimaru had proved it, but if there really was an exception then that could be problematic for him. For now, he couldn't have anybody leaving to begin with.

"Murata-san, while it would be a gracious miracle for your daughter to be with us all, surely you know that's impossible." Kabuto smiled warmly as he laid his hand on the short man's shoulder.

Murata looked up at him with a look that angered Kabuto immediately: it bore insolence. "I know it's unlikely, Kabuto-sama, but one of our patrolling parties saw a young girl in the woods earlier this week. They swore she resembled me."

Despite Kabuto's frustration, he kept his smile wide and understanding. "Ah, well, we must speak with this party then." He turned to his subordinate. "Kouji-san, could you please bring me the patrol who spoke to Murata-san? I must calm our friend's worries for the moment in the chamber over there."

Kouji bowed and dashed to the task without a word. Kabuto motioned for Murata to follow as they walked towards one of the adjacent tunnels. "While I'd normally be happy to let you go search for your daughter, Murata-san," said Kabuto, "it just isn't a good time for anyone to leave right now. We have much to do, you know—so many plans still that need to be fleshed out. You have such a good head for things. I was hoping you could help with some more of the logistics like you did before."

Murata, like all of his followers, believed unquestionably in Kabuto, so there was not one doubt or sense of distrust in him as they disappeared behind a dark corner, leaving the eyes of those he had loved for the last time. "I know, Kabuto-sama, and I'll help once I return with my daughter. Oh, she'll love this place, Kabuto-sama, won't she? It would bring everyone more hope, too, I'm sure."

"Yes," agreed Kabuto as his smile vanished, "it would."

Murata was in front of Kabuto with his back turned, so he didn't see the kunai as it was driven into the nape of his neck. Kabuto sighed as he felt the impulsive jolt of Murata's body as the life swiftly left him. He carried the corpse into a room farther down the tunnel and dropped the body into it. He stood outside the tunnel until Kouji returned with the patrol.

He glared coldly at them and pointed at the room. "In there is the reason why you never speak of your patrols until you consult with me first. It will be all of you next time."

He nodded to Kouji and left them to do the cleaning as he steadily headed upwards towards where he would hold his meeting. His anticipation had not abated, and he knew the state his guest was surely going to be in when he arrived. It would be rude to not be there to greet him.

There was a green haze in the morning as the sunlit treetops with cradled twig-fingers held each other and made a lush canopy of lively creatures and blooming vegetation. Bluebirds popped in and out between the leaves, their puffed chests hopping above as they pecked at ripe, crimson berries. A smooth sway in the branches made them all appear as if they were atop a gentle sea-green wave being carried deeper into an ocean of life and verdurous brush. From below this scene, Naruto gazed up and wondered if anyone else had been there to see it, if this sight had ever received so much admiration before. He breathed in and remained motionless as the clear natural energy seemed to swim through him. There was plenty of it here in a place where humans hadn't come to squander the land. He opened his freshly-turned-yellow eyes and felt the world around him.

He wasn't too far away. An enormous cave system was below him, and it stretched for miles along the southwestern border of Hi no Kuni, snaking its way into thousands of tunnels and caverns carved by the numerous rivers of the bordering Kawa no Kuni eons ago. It was in those chiseled, ancient halls where sunlight had never touched that he felt countless lifeforms. Seeing the vastness of souls there, seeing the number of people he wasn't able to save, brought energy to his legs. He jumped with considerable force toward them, his anger beginning to return. It had died down in the night, but the tension was there.

As he darted toward an entrance to the cave he had sensed, Naruto's mind shifted to memories again. He recalled a time where Hinata had rebuked him for that same anger he was feeling now. They had been arguing over an outcome to one of his earlier missions, long before he had taken over Kakashi's position.

"You can't save everyone," Hinata had said rather pointedly.

"I know that," he had admitted, "but if I don't go in with the expectation that I will save them, then I won't save anyone."

Hinata's frown then had been so unlike her, but Naruto never forgot it. "You do that at the cost of your own self, though. And when you fail, you get that look on your face."

Spending so much time with someone, maturing in love with them, really did reveal a lot of one's self; Naruto had learned that through his marriage. It was like they were a mirror, reflecting the parts of one's real, uncovered qualities, even the parts one had buried deep, so deep they were barely aware of them. Hinata wasn't afraid to raise that mirror up to him, reminding him she was there to help, to raise it even when he refused to.

"What look?" he had asked.

"The one where you get so frustrated because you think you've reached your limit." Her face had softened then, and he never forgot that either—that beautiful smile. "You're so silly sometimes, you know," she had said, her eyes blooming with love. "You keep forgetting that you don't have a limit."

He knew what she had meant, of course. He had a tendency to get carried away and be so driven by his emotions and what he needed to do, that he overlooked things. And as he was thinking of her, of the woman he had loved so dearly, the reminder that the man who took her from him was near, so very near, did not escape him.

Along a rocky outcrop, there was a hole, a natural entrance that descended down into the channels of the unknowable, the deep reaches of something sinister. Naruto found it and seemed to stare at it for a moment. He wanted the man lurking in there to suffer, if he were to be honest. He wanted to strangle the man, but he had dealt with hate long ago in front of a waterfall, and he knew where that would inevitably take someone. He took a deep breath, got his emotions under control, and stepped into the cave.

Due to his Sage Mode, his eyesight didn't really need to adjust to the lack of light, but it did change slightly when the walls around began to glitter after he had descended down considerably. He smiled at the fluorescent mushrooms around his feet, their dim green light glowed up to the petty gems in the rock, making their glassy surface glimmer and shine amid the emptiness. As he traveled farther down, deeper into the cave, the air thickened—its cooled dampness sticking to his skin. The earth above him grew as well. With every step, he knew there was more above him: more rock, more dirt, more life, more thoughts and guilt and worry and death; and it burdened him.

Separate passages would break off as he moved farther, and he would turn and crouch at times as the natural ceiling lowered and rose. Every once in a while, Naruto would stop to absorb more natural energy to navigate the winding depths. There was less of it down there than above among the trees, but there was plenty for him to work with. There were less of many things here, he thought grimly. The words he remembered from his late wife earlier seemed to fade and grow dimmer, like the underground eerie light around him.

It didn't take long for Naruto to focus on his target after he had delved deep enough. Kabuto was easily the biggest source of chakra out of all the energy signatures he felt in the caves, and he wasn't too far away. It was evident to Naruto after a few more minutes of moving towards him that his target was waiting for him, standing alone in a large cavern directly ahead of his position. Under most circumstances, it would be standard shinobi practice to proceed with caution and make an attempt to find an alternative route to the target, but Naruto knew the futility in that. He also didn't want to be cautious. He wanted to rush in there, fully cloaked in Kurama's golden chakra, and send his fist into the murderer's face. He wanted to let his rage thrash and bang against his enemy, but he knew he couldn't. Kabuto wasn't the first person he had wanted to hurt like that. He had wanted to do something similar to Nagato once upon a time, and Naruto had learned and grown a lot since then. Despite this, he wasn't going to be cautious. He wanted that much at least.

You're so silly sometimes, you know.

He almost choked as her words rang brightly, like a chime in the morning, and he leaned against the limestone wall of the cave, his fingers scratching the rough texture there. He had spent so much time in grief, feeling that pain for so many lost ones throughout his life, and her death had hit the worst. But he had been saved by the living, by the ones still in his life pulling him along. And if Hinata was there right now, he knew she would tell him he was there for the living and not her. So he composed himself, and kept his pace steady as he got closer.

The air was cooler in the chamber than it had been in the tunnels. From the opening Naruto entered, the limestone cave expanded suddenly into a giant room with stalactites hanging above at varying lengths. In the center of the natural room, there was a raised platform carved from smooth stone that seemed like the only part of the cave that wasn't natural. Standing atop that platform was Kabuto, his frame standing directly of Naruto when he had entered.

Kabuto's face was solemn and neutral. It made Naruto feel uneasy. He had expected some kind of crooked grin from him or something that was more indicative of the Kabuto he had known in his younger years. Naruto didn't lower his guard regardless and sensed there was no else in the chamber or in any adjacent tunnels, so he calmly walked towards the platform.

Kabuto was silent as Naruto approached, his face remaining stoic and focused as if he were cut from the same stone as the platform he stood on. Once Naruto stopped a few meters in front of the platform, Kabuto's stone mask broke.

"Welcome, Hokage-sama," Kabuto greeted with a polite smile. "I hope the climb down wasn't too difficult for you."

Somehow, even though seeing Kabuto begin with an expected attempt at polite yet barbed banter should have felt more organic to him, Naruto's unease didn't subside, so he kept his own face neutral and didn't say anything back..

Kabuto was unfazed. "I'm sure it was a simple stroll for you, but you didn't need to use your Sage Mode, you know. I would have sent an escort up if you had only messaged ahead of time."

"You knew I was coming," Naruto stated plainly.

Kabuto chuckled. "Ah, yes, I suppose I did. Of course, I'm not trying to be rude. I assumed you knew I could sense natural energy too."

Naruto's brow creased slightly. "You knew even before I left Konoha that I was coming, didn't you?"

Kabuto kept the same polite smile. "Well, not alone at least. I am surprised Sasuke-kun didn't come with you."

"Why were you expecting me?" Naruto didn't care for Kabuto's tactics. It would have bored him under any other circumstance.

"I figured Sasuke-kun had told you about us," Kabuto answered. "I've been expecting you for some time now to come and invite all of us to your new village."

Naruto's brow lowered into a confused frown. "That's not why I'm here. I know you know that."

Kabuto sighed. "Yes, well, I believe I did know that. I'm still so surprised you came alone—"

"I want clear answers from you, Kabuto. You killed Orochimaru, right?"

Kabuto's smile changed then, it distorted slightly, as if it was trying to show just a little more of his thoughts. "Orochimaru-sama killed himself, I'm afraid. This is about the virus, isn't it?"

"You know it is," Naruto said with his voice raised. "I want the truth from you. Sasuke wouldn't make a mistake about this, and he knows what you did."

Kabuto raised his arms and shook his head. "I'm sure he knew that Orochimaru-sama was working on a pathogen, a very dangerous one, for years, and that my master was far too cautious to have been so careless as to be infected by it." Kabuto lowered his head a moment. "But he was careless, as surprising as that may sound, it's true."

Naruto was furious. He was confident Kabuto would at least have been upfront about his wrongdoings. Did he really value their intelligence so little that they wouldn't see beyond this lie?

"Tell me exactly how this outbreak happened," Naruto demanded.

"I wasn't really in the room when—"

"Tell me!" Naruto subconsciously flared his chakra, and he could feel the chamber tremble slightly from the burst.

Kabuto remained unperturbed, but he did stop smiling. "Very well. Orochimaru-sama had kept the pathogen sealed safely for the most part. He hadn't really even tampered with it in years, but that day he had decided to look at it. I was busy with another project at the time, but he had told me that morning that he would be doing some research on the virus." Kabuto's eyes turned downwards and his tone sounded grim. "Back then, I had not even a sliver of doubt that I had to worry about him. It's the same as I'm sure Sasuke-kun assumed: Orochimaru-sama wouldn't have made an error. That's why when I heard a crash and ran to his lab, I was shocked. He had been exposed. Naturally, we immediately quarantined, but the damage was already done. You see, Orochimaru-sama had made that virus to be perfect. Once exposed, it cannot be stopped. Not only is it airborne, but it seeks a host. Its very nature is to find humans and eliminate them. We were powerless to do anything."

Naruto didn't want to believe him, but he sensed Kabuto was telling the truth, that it really had been an accident. Still, Naruto knew he was hiding something.

"Then why are some people still alive?" asked Naruto. "Were we not infected?"

Kabuto's eyes narrowed and he shook his head. "I have my own theories, but I don't know for sure. According to Orochimaru-sama's notes, it was supposed to have a one-hundred percent mortality rate. His tests had reflected this as well, although he hadn't tested it on humans prior to the outbreak."

Naruto didn't understand. Had it really been that all along? Just some mistake? A dropped test tube and everyone was supposed to die? He couldn't accept that. He'd rather accept it had been a natural death, that nature was turning the cruel, fortuitous wheel again, but for it to be human error was inconceivable. He couldn't imagine Sasuke and Tsunade both being wrong about this.

"Did he say why he was working on it in the first place?" Naruto was scared he sounded frantic, but he assured himself that his voice was calm. His head felt different though.

"He never told me why he even created it in the first place," Kabuto admitted with a shrug. "He rarely talked about it at all honestly. I don't think he was being secretive or anything. It was simply another project to him. I know that sounds irresponsible, but you must understand: Orochimaru-sama made it a rule to be cautious. He had taken every precaution possible with everything he did. Neither me nor him ever assumed it would be an issue. He might as well have been tinkering with a simple sword, but I suppose that in and of itself was careless. Viewing anything with that much power as anything less was probably the first mistake. Although, that wasn't the only dangerous project of his, so I guess it wasn't too outrageous to assume his handling of it wasn't unwarranted."

The more Naruto heard, the more he realized it was probably true. He wasn't sure why none of them had even seriously assumed the option of it being accidental. Gaara had been open to that idea in their meeting, but Naruto was sure even he hadn't been betting on it. Kabuto was right: Orochimaru was known for his caution. He wouldn't have jeopardized himself at the very least, but that was exactly why he had created the virus to begin with. Naruto knew he couldn't overlook at least the possibility of that. Orochimaru's caution was ultimately his weakness in that case. Somehow, that did make sense. No one, even Orochimaru, was infallible.

Kabuto regarded Naruto as he was thinking, his expression changing to a thoughtful smile. "Of course, it all turned out all right in the end, didn't it?"

Naruto's eyes widened suddenly, and he looked up at Kabuto bewildered. "What?"

"I mean, my friends and I began our destiny together because of what happened, and that very destiny will change this world forever."

Naruto noticed then that his Sage Mode had dissipated when Kabuto had been speaking, and he had almost forgotten about Kabuto's followers.

"How can you say that?" Naruto asked.

Kabuto kept smiling, but he raised his hand and waved it apologetically. "I don't mean to be insensitive to all those gone, but my friends and I needed each other. All along we were meant to be together, and we all agree that our work will change everything for the better."

Naruto didn't believe that. He wasn't a skeptical person by nature, but there was something about that he definitely didn't trust. At the very least, if Kabuto was telling the truth, then he wasn't a murderer. Even if Naruto didn't believe him, (and he was sure Sasuke and the others weren't) he had no proof it was Kabuto. If Orochimaru had actually released the virus on purpose, then that settled matters, but Naruto had a harder time believing that than anything else. If that was the case, however, holding Kabuto accountable wouldn't be ethical and out of all the possibilities, Naruto was almost positive Kabuto didn't create the virus himself. Something this potent and dangerous could only have been made by Orochimaru, even Sasuke would agree with that. Either way, Naruto still had no proof otherwise. For now, there was nothing else he could do but ask more questions.

Gaara's warning before Naruto had left Konoha was still something he hadn't forgotten either. It was in Kabuto's best interest to be left alone and even if he wasn't responsible for the outbreak, Naruto still didn't trust he had no malicious intent whatsoever.

"What's your goal exactly?" asked Naruto as he folded his arms, regaining his senses.

Kabuto flashed a grin and opened his arms. "To be free!" He extended his hands and widened his mouth in elation. "And we are free! We can finally do what we wish without anyone's will undermining our own. Does that not sound world-altering?"

Naruto didn't like that wording, but there was something in Kabuto's eyes that made him believe he really had faith in his words. There was a mania in him that he had not seen in him before, not one consisting of misplaced devotion like during the war but one of desire-a very core belief. A belief that typically began as a thought of passion that gained traction from oppression, then was cultivated by rationalization, and ultimately polished by ambition. Maybe all insanity came from such a belief, Naruto thought grimly.

Naruto looked at Kabuto with a sense of concern. "Is that really what your people want? To be free in a cave?"

Kabuto lowered his arms, still smiling. "Where we are doesn't matter. We value our relationships above all else."

"And you're their leader?" Naruto asked.

"You could call me that, but my voice is as equal as everyone else's. We do not decide anything unless we all agree. And if we don't agree, then we do what we individually decide as long as it does not infringe upon another's decision."

Naruto looked unamused. "From what I've heard, they practically worship you. I'm sure they wouldn't dare disagree with you on anything." Naruto waved his hand dismissively. "Blind faith like that can only lead to problems."

All of a sudden, Kabuto's face changed. His smile was gone and replaced with a scowl. He pointed his finger at Naruto. "You have no place to criticize our ways! I won't stand for such disrespect even from the Hokage. Ever since the war, the Great Nations followed you without discretion. How are we different from you?"

Naruto was so surprised by Kabuto's outburst that it took a second for his words to affect him. And they did affect him. Kabuto was right. Everyone in the council, in the village, throughout the Nations, trusted him. Even if they disagreed with him at first, and they certainly did, somehow, he always got them to do what he thought was best. Even before the war, that had been the case. Nagato and Obito had changed because they trusted him, almost blindly. Naruto felt his stomach drop as he had a terrible realization: maybe it had been blind faith all along.

Kabuto seemed to sense his words had reached Naruto because he lifted his hand, his palm facing upwards and said: "You realize, don't you? I won't criticize your methods or your decisions, Hokage-sama. They are yours alone, after all. I think the unified village is not a poor idea, but the reason we are all here is because of you, you know. You are part of this destiny as well."

Naruto felt the blood leave his head. "What do you mean?"

"You neglected us, Hokage-sama," said Kabuto. "We are the remnants of the lesser nations. The ones you all forgot about. None of you, not one of the Kage or their people, ever reached out to us. My friends loved and trusted you once, too. You were their hero, and they believed in who you were as much as everyone else, but they had no one during the outbreak. So I came and now we are here, beginning the work to change this world into a new one." Naruto's eyes were downcast as he absorbed Kabuto's words. Kabuto gave him a merciful smile. "Of course, it all turned out for the best. I'm not trying to be harsh. You wanted the truth, didn't you?"

Naruto frowned then and turned to Kabuto. "I didn't mean to. I didn't directly help the other nations in the beginning either. Why didn't your people come to me like the other Nations did? Did they not hear about us?"

Kabuto grimaced slightly. "That's a little arrogant of you, don't you think, Hokage-sama? Do you think your way is the only one? Are they not free humans capable of thought and reason who deserve to make their own decisions? They simply wanted to come here instead. They wanted nothing more to do with you."

Naruto didn't see how that was his fault then, but somehow he still felt guilty. He was responsible for everyone now.

You can't save everyone.

Naruto knew Hinata had been right, but he couldn't stand that. He had assumed too much all along and taken his friends' trust for granted. He had always been doing this, and while many times it had worked out, it's not like it always would. After all, no one was infallible.

"But no one here has any more grievances with you, Hokage-sama. We've all forgiven you." Kabuto's smile was different this time: it was forced. "And in the end, you and I are not so different."

Naruto could feel his entire body tighten. He wanted to deny it. He wanted to deny the fact that Kabuto and his followers were completely different, that order and reason were part of the Nations, but Naruto knew he couldn't really pull Kabuto's words away. They had all been clinging to him and he had been happy to let them do it; it had been something he had always wanted.

At that moment, Kabuto stepped down from the platform and met Naruto at eye-level. Naruto looked back at him, and he suddenly felt that tension return.

Kabuto's grin appeared more sinister then, like he had driven him into a corner. "I'm sure it's difficult to believe me about all this. There's a lot to think about, I know, and I'm sure you want me to come with you and repeat all of this to the other Kage, right? That's why you came here?"

Naruto nodded. His instincts were telling him to fight then. No matter what Kabuto did, Naruto was sure he could defeat him. Not only were his chakra levels higher, he was much faster. It would be over in a second, but Naruto knew it wouldn't come to that.

After a long pause. Kabuto nodded back. "I can't go with you, I'm afraid. I'm sure you'd even love to have those medical notes I spoke of, but I can't do that either. I have much to do here, and now that your curiosities are satisfied—"

"Did you really not do it?" asked Naruto staring straight into his eyes, his tone level with his fists closed. "Was it really all an accident?"

For a moment, Naruto saw something in Kabuto's eyes, a glimmer of glee, and then Kabuto's polite smile returned.

"What would you do if I did do it, Hokage-sama? Would you kill me?" Kabuto's face was placid without a betrayal of emotion. "You'd have to kill everyone here if you did that. Could you really do that?"

Naruto's body was frozen in place. It had all been decided already, he realized. He had come here to satisfy his own wishes, but doing so had trapped him. Kabuto knew Naruto wouldn't kill anyone. Naruto had never really killed anyone before, and he wasn't going to start today. Kabuto had all the advantage, too. It would be reckless to make a move against him now. He needed to reassess and speak with the others. Even if he could subdue Kabuto and drag him back to Konoha, his followers would come for him. It would be the beginning of war and someone eventually would have to die. The cruel cycle that he had so painstakingly fought against would come back, and all their sacrifices would have met nothing. To see that, to see all of their work, the deaths of his friends and family, be only another part of the never-ending conflict of this world would end him and his hope. And in the depth of all his doubts, hope was the last thing he really had.

"I have to go," Naruto said finally as he turned to leave.

He heard Kabuto's voice behind him as he marched towards the tunnel. "You're welcome any time to join us, Hokage-sama! All of you are!"

As Naruto escaped into the tunnel, back into the deep darkness, this time without activating Sage Mode, Hinata's words came back with full force. She had been right about so much then, but he knew now that she was wrong on one thing: he did have a limit.

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