"Yes." Naruto nodded. "Bring him in, then."
Kabuto was pulled out of the darkness by the woman he knew to be Uzumaki Karin.
"You know." She said. "If it weren't, well… you. I'd feel a bit bad about this."
"Wha—" Kabuto rasped out weakly. He had been left here alone for a while.
Karin made sure he was bound entirely. Then she threw him over her shoulder like a sack of potatoes and carried him away, out of the spire. He was blinded by the sunlight.
"You can take a look if you want." She said. "It's probably one of the last things you're going to see."
Kabuto tried to move, desperately.
She shook her head and continued to walk.
They passed through… something that gave him an odd sense of vertigo. Then he felt pressure. For his body, weakened by imprisonment, it was almost too much.
"What… is… this?"
"Nothing to concern yourself with."
Kabuto was thrown to the floor unceremoniously. Then somebody flipped him over. There were about a dozen people around him.
Uzumaki Naruto, he recognized. Haruno Sakura. Mitarashi Anko. Yamanaka Ino. Hyūga Neji's younger cousin.
Oh, no.
Uchiha Shisui. Uchiha Fugaku's two sons, each of them looking distinctly pissed off.
"Ino-san." Uchiha Itachi asked. "…Could you please ensure he truly is the one who killed our father, before anything?"
"Of course." She nodded, before putting her hand to his forehead.
The memories of that day came back to Kabuto, unbidden. How did she bypass the defenses Nagato himself—
"Yes." Ino nodded, linking Itachi and herself together. No lie would be spoken. "He was the one to do it. And to make it look like the next person who came by the Hokage's room did. Me."
Kabuto was starting to panic.
Ino continued. "Sasori was the one to supply the poison, as we thought previously."
"I see." Uchiha Itachi said slowly. "Any… particular reason?"
"It's pretty straightforward. Uchiha Fugaku could not be controlled by Akatsuki. Killing him would also weaken one of the strongest villages. Danzo was the likely successor, and that means war was all but guaranteed to break out. That's what Obito and Sasori decided, at least."
"Thank you, Ino-san." Itachi said, in clipped tones. The Human Path chakra faded away.
"Don't worry about it."
"Will you need his mind to be intact?" He whispered softly.
"No." She said evenly. "Not this time. Only his soul."
"Good."
"We took care of Danzo, so we're going to leave him to your tender care." Naruto said.
Uchiha Itachi forced Kabuto's eyes open. Three pairs of red eyes stared at him, almost hungrily.
"No, please—"
"Tsukuyomi."
None of them, besides Ino, were sure what the three Uchiha did to him exactly, but there was nothing left of Kabuto, besides an empty husk.
And she didn't bother speaking about it.
"Huh." Naruto said. "I didn't take you three for the vengeful sort."
"We can make exceptions." Shisui said flatly.
...Actually, no. Shisui definitely was.
"Well, I'll spare you the moralistic drivel about vengeance." Naruto shrugged. "It can feel pretty cathartic."
Sasuke breathed out. "…This will be the only time."
Itachi said nothing at all. He nodded and went away silently.
Ino placed her hand on Kabuto's forehead, and then pulled on his chakra. She wondered if Nagato would be able to locate Umi if he did the same thing to them, or if the memory wipe would prove to be enough. The memories came to her as though they were her own.
Kabuto's childhood in Konoha. The orphanage and its matron, every painful and private experience he ever had. Everything that he knew about the Akatsuki, of Nagato's secrets, Sasori's plans and where his loyalties really lay. He had been a shy kid, happy to hide in the shadows of people more powerful than he was. He was a coward and he knew it, and hated himself for it, deep down.
"Man, he really was a bastard, that one." Ino muttered.
"See…?" Naruto whispered to Hanabi. "Now that she has Kabuto's life experience, is she suddenly forty years old magically?"
Hanabi pretended to think about it. Naruto began to nod slowly.
"I guess she is, then." Hanabi finally decided.
He growled, and she just stuck her tongue out.
"Did you learn anything important?" Naruto asked Ino, instead.
"Not much we didn't know, honestly. Nagato does have an army of… Zetsu that he plans to use to weaken the villages, as we thought. And he really intends to wait until the last day to attack."
"Why is that? Any particular reason?"
"No." Ino shook her head. "He truly believes himself to be invincible. That's his way of offering mercy, and a chance for the jinchuuriki to give themselves up."
Naruto shook his head.
"Well, he would have been right, in normal circumstances." He muttered. "But we're here."
"Yes." Ino smiled at him brightly. "We are."
"What else did you get from him?"
"A lot of information about Konoha — at least Danzo's — and Sasori's spy networks. Lots of medical knowledge, which Karin might find more useful than I. More info about Akatsuki's inner workings, but Nagato has never been too forthcoming with this guy."
"That's good enough anyway." Naruto nodded.
The sound of steel hitting steel.
Followed by a grunt. And a shout.
Sasuke thrust his sword forward, and Naruto deflected it with his own. There was a grinding sound and sparks flew.
Naruto slashed up with his left hand, and a pink spectral arm shimmered into existence to stop it.
Behind Naruto, five swords shaped themselves out of chakra and fired off toward Sasuke.
Sasuke dashed away to dodge them. One twisted in midair and grazed him, though.
"And that concludes it." Naruto laughed. "You lose this one."
"What?!" Sasuke growled angrily. "How does this even count?"
"First blood is first blood." Naruto shrugged, sitting down. "You accepted the conditions."
"You—" Sasuke grunted but admitted defeat. This time.
Naruto paused.
"There's something I need to give you." He said.
"Huh…?" Sasuke frowned. "What do you mean?"
Naruto summoned a glass dagger.
Sasuke stiffened immediately, reaching for his sword on instinct. Naruto noticed it.
"I can't blame you, really." Naruto chuckled.
Then he stabbed himself in the gut.
"What the hell?! Are you still fucking insane?!" Sasuke roared.
"No." Naruto grunted. "I awakened the Rinnegan when I used the dagger, full of your chakra and blood... on myself."
Chakra was pumping into the weapon at a quick pace. There was only so much it could handle, though, and soon enough, it was full. With a grunt, he pulled it out.
"Are you out of your fucking mind? What's the point of this?!"
"Take it." Naruto breathed out.
"Why the hell would I take it?!"
"You've seen why. Stab yourself. It should make you stronger. Our chakra mixing together is supposed to bring us closer to the Sage." Naruto explained. "Or something."
"Which part of this makes sense?! Are you all this crazy in Umi?"
"It worked for me."
"I'm not fucking stabbing myself with a dagger covered in your blood."
Naruto frowned. "And why not?"
"Because — Gods…" Sasuke palmed his face and let out a frustrated noise.
"Well… You decide." Naruto stood up, leaving the dagger next to him. "I thought it would even things out, somewhat."
He couldn't do much about the people he had killed, though.
Sasuke just grunted something rude after him. Well, the rest was up to him.
"Oh, yeah. Aim for the gut, if you choose to do it."
"..."
Once Naruto understood more about natural energy, courtesy of Sasuke, he understood why Orochimaru had told him it was a risky idea to have clones siphon natural energy.
At some point, knowing himself, he was bound to have ended up as a stone statue.
Even though he could not really use it himself… it gave him an idea. A few of them, really. Hopefully, it wouldn't come to that, but…
Preparing for the worst, Naruto began drafting plans for nine swords.
He would Create them as soon as they were ready.
"…What are you working on, exactly?" Ino asked Naruto. "A… metal ball?"
Naruto smiled. "That's what it is, basically."
"Is there any point to it, or is it just to throw at the back of Sakura's head?"
"Why not both?"
Ino laughed. "It doesn't feel like anything special, though."
"Because it's not. It's soulforged to be lighter and more supple than metal, but it's mostly for experimental purposes."
"Give me some space." Ino called, climbing into his lap like a particularly long cat. He chuckled, burying his head into her neck. "Start from the beginning, then."
"Sure thing." Naruto nodded with a smile that she felt in her hair. "Alright. You know how I can manipulate gravity now?"
"Yeah. Of all the things that come with the Rinnegan..."
"Well, in simple terms, electromagnetic forces are way stronger than gravity."
"Sure, so…?"
"Well, that's the thing. Technically, gravity doesn't push or pull, not really. To simplify, we say that gravity's effect is a pull, but it's a bit trickier, really. It does so in one direction only, because that's where the mass is. Like Earth pulls you toward itself. It doesn't push, though."
"But…"
"Yeah, exactly." Naruto nodded with a grin. "I can push things away. Which likely means the Rinnegan itself doesn't just influence gravity, likely."
Ino mulled it over.
"Electromagnetic forces, then?"
"I would assume so, yes. But I don't really know, honestly. That's how I picture it, at least. If I think of my affinity to Lightning during a pull or a push — Let me show you, instead."
Naruto extended his hand and the ball rose above it.
"This is only using the Rinnegan's ability."
He moved it up and down, back and forth.
"If I focus a small amount of force, using Lightning with it…"
There was a spark and suddenly the ball was flying through the air much faster, in a way that looked entirely too natural... for a steel ball that was hanging in midair. Naruto made it loop around, twist and turn, as easily as breathing.
"That's… huh." Ino blinked. "So anything metallic…?"
"Yes." Naruto nodded. "Better if it's infused with my chakra… or chakra connected to mine." He gave her a pointed look.
"Where are you going with this…?" Ino smiled. She thought he could be a bit dramatic, when it came to revealing things, really.
"Well, right now, I am the only one who can do so. But we should be able to devise a way for all of you to use it without me being around. Armor would be a good option. So, tell me, Ino…?" Naruto began.
"You like surprises way too much, now." Ino grinned.
"How do you feel about flying…?" Naruto grinned in answer.
Pretty enthusiastic, apparently.
The soaked sheets underneath her probably cared less for for her enthusiasm, though.
Ino moaned wantonly and —
She stopped when she felt somebody enter the room. She groaned. Who else would even…
"My, my… In the middle of the day. Aren't we supposed to be training?" Karin asked.
"I'm sure we can take a little break." Naruto grinned at her. "Besides, this is part of training, too."
"It is." Karin nodded sagely. "I could hear it did sound pretty enthusiastic."
"Karin…" Ino groaned, pulling the sheets over them.
Karin grinned. "And who told you to stop…?"
Ino blushed a bit, hesitating. She then rolled her eyes.
What does it matter, by now…? We might well be dead in just a few more...
"Why don't you come over here instead of playing voyeur…?" Ino gave her a long look.
"Sure thing."
Karin's clothes were soon on the floor with theirs. Ino found that she really didn't mind the extra pair of hands and lips, hot on her flesh.
"…That was my bed, you—!" Sakura raged.
"...And that's why I created these self-cleaning beds." Naruto nodded wisely.
"I don't care." Sakura shook her head angrily. "Some sins can't be washed away."
"Then I'll replace it. How many times do you want me to apologize, Sakura?" He wrapped an arm around her shoulders.
"At least once would be nice!" She shot back.
Naruto cackled.
"Why are you not looking at me?" Naruto asked, entirely too amused. "Are you mad that we didn't invite you?"
"No!"
"You can join next time."
"Fuck you!"
Naruto nodded. "Sure."
Sakura crashed into the lake.
"…Alright, what are you doing this time?" Sasuke, who was supposed to be training with his brother and cousin, ended up coming closer. All four women were wearing battle armor.
"We're learning how to fly." Karin explained. "Since we can use all five elements now, — although not necessarily that well — we're practicing electromagnetic flight."
"…You can do that?"
"Well, Sakura can't, at least."
"Shut up!" Sakura shouted, once she surfaced from the water. "It was my first try!"
It wasn't.
Ino landed on top of the water with only a bit of a stumble.
Hanabi flew with relative ease.
"Yeah." Karin nodded. "She's a natural at this."
"…Sakura has great chakra control, though, doesn't she?"
"Sure, but we all do, by now. And this is Lightning manipulation, more than anything else. Both Wind and Fire are closer to it than Water."
"I see…"
"Do you want to learn, too?" Karin asked. "I'm sure we could get Naruto to make you some armor."
"I'm pretty bad at using Lightning style. It's not a very Uchiha thing." Sasuke shrugged. "Besides, I can use my Susanoo to fly if needed."
"Suit yourself."
"So do you manage to fly?" He finally asked. "I don't see you in the air."
"Not really, no. Not yet." Karin admitted with a grin. "But I'd be missing out on Sakura messing up if I was up in the air, right now."
"Your form is a bit sloppy." Naruto told Hanabi.
"It works just fine." She retorted.
Naruto chuckled. "Just because it works fine doesn't mean you should stop striving for greater heights. You could be better than I am at this, with more practice."
Damn. He sounded like Sarutobi, right now. Maybe he was an old man, sometimes. Still, she was listening.
"Show me how, then." She said.
"Sure."
Naruto came close to her, close enough to reach for her weapon from behind her. Hanabi stiffened and the bow clattered to the ground.
"My bad." She muttered. "Slippery fingers."
It probably would have fooled him, before, too.
"I'm sure they are." He nodded.
"…What does that mean?" She said flatly. Hanabi likely thought this was some dig at the… somewhat trashy books she was reading. Which it was.
"That performance anxiety happens to everybody, of course." Naruto deflected. She glared at him.
Hanabi bent over to pick the bow up. And he was pretty sure the way her legs brushed against him when she did so was not accidental. She was a bit more forward than he had thought.
"Oh, my bad." She muttered. "Care to help me out, then?"
Ah, yes, to help a student in need…
"Sure." He smiled. His hands grabbed hers and he adjusted their position.
"Ah, yes." She breathed out. "I think I can see how that might be better."
"It should help with the draw." Naruto smiled.
Hanabi did not move his hands away.
"So now you're the expert, huh…?"
"Well, I consider myself decent at a few things." Naruto chuckled, close to her ear.
She pressed herself against him lightly. He was pretty impressed at how she managed to make it look casual. He could see her shudder.
"Such as…?" She asked, a bit more throatily than she would have liked to.
"Sprints, for one." He leaned away from her, hiding a smile. "Time to practice!"
"What!" Hanabi shot him an incredulous, infuriated look.
With a laugh, he started running, without using chakra.
"Hey, wait!" She roared.
Soon after, so did she, shaking her head in befuddled confusion.
He would make her pay for all the old man jokes, one day at a time.
Training with Itachi was pretty much focusing on the few things Naruto still did 'wrong'.
Wasted motions, things that could be more efficient, going for the kill straight away. Shinobi things. And things Naruto already knew from the memories… but a refresher wouldn't hurt. Especially considering he didn't have a Sharingan, this time around.
Especially from a man who was as talented as it got in the art of stealth, deception, and surprise. Things had changed over the centuries. Itachi's sharp eyes and his even sharper mind didn't hurt, of course.
Why was this guy not Hokage, again…?
Training with Shisui was pretty rare, and straight to the point, usually. Not very fun, and a tense affair too, but it got the job done.
Well, it was a working relationship, and neither saw any reason to change the dynamic of it.
Training with Sasuke, of course…
Was like rekindling the flames of an age-old rivalry. There was some bad blood there, but nothing compared to how Shisui felt about him, so it was pretty pleasant, overall.
They had shared trade secrets, and Naruto finally knew how sage mode worked.
Too bad he had no real affinity for it. Sasuke, on the other hand, had apparently taken to it like a fish to water, back then.
Either it was an Asura thing… or Naruto was just pretty bad at it.
More days passed.
"Are you three going on ahead, then?" Naruto asked.
"Yes." Sasuke nodded. "We all hit a plateau. I don't think more training will help us."
"Too rough in here?" Naruto smiled.
"Also that." Sasuke chuckled a bit. "I feel as though we're having trouble seeing things objectively. It's already been too long."
"I can understand." Naruto nodded. If they didn't have such a clear objective as learning how each Path worked…
"And also, I want to spend some time with Hinata; my mother." Sasuke said more somberly. "In case…"
Naruto had no good answer for him. He just nodded.
"A clone will take you close to Konoha, then. We'll meet very soon — Well, soon for you." Naruto said. "We will come find you when it's time."
"Sure."
Sasuke hesitated, looking as though he wanted to say more. But he didn't.
They were shinobi. Enemies, friends… that was a shifting notion.
If Senju Hashirama and Uchiha Madara could find it in them to be friends after they had murdered each others' family members for years… Maybe with enough time…
Not that Sasuke had any reason to forgive him.
Well, hopefully, it wouldn't end nearly as bad as the two Konoha founders' story.
"Until next time, then."
A few nights later in Shade's Realm.
Naruto walked close to the lake, once the others were asleep.
Then he stepped on it, walking closer to where he could hear the singing come from. Hanabi sang and danced on top of the pool of water, sending small ripples across it.
She sang softly and she sang firmly. She danced gracefully and she danced violently.
Once he came close enough, she slowed down, progressively. Hanabi watched him.
"Enjoying the show…?" Hanabi asked softly.
"I was, yes. Then it suddenly stopped." Naruto answered easily.
"Hmpf." She smiled. "Maybe if you played something with me…?"
"But of course." Naruto obliged with a grin. He pulled his koto out of nowhere.
It came out of the Mindspace, and as such, he didn't need to bother with tuning it. He played a few notes by way of warming up. Naruto looked at her briefly. What could he play…?
Well, of course, he cheated. He remembered a few songs he was sure the Hyūga clan members usually knew, according to Madara's memories.
Naruto started to play "Lullaby of Miyuki."
A song about a man who had fallen in love with the moon. Knowing the origins of the Hyūga clan, Naruto was not too surprised that even after hundreds of years, this one was still being taught. The version Madara had heard was very different from the one Indra knew, of course.
Hanabi's eyes were bright, and she began to sing.
The words were not the ones Naruto remembered, not exactly. He just sang the harmony, and hoped the melody itself hadn't changed in the last fify years.
"Very nice." Hanabi said at the end of it. "I didn't know you knew this one."
"You never asked." Naruto smiled. "What about this…?"
He played "Fire Dance."
"I don't know the lyrics to this one." Hanabi laughed. Naruto gave her a shrug.
She began dancing and clapping in time. Naruto summoned a clone and wordlessly threw him the instrument. The clone glared at him but resumed playing all the same.
Naruto danced with her, holding her close.
She was lovely, full of joy, her face gleaming in pleasure.
The clone continued playing, but Hanabi was not dancing anymore. She was staring at him, her lips slightly parted, and her face flushed.
She was waiting for him, he knew.
Naruto didn't move.
"How long are you going to make me wait?" Hanabi finally asked.
"I'm not making you wait." He said, staying where he was with a soft smile.
He saw what she wanted in her eyes, had seen it for a long while, really.
"…Is it about…? Is it about the others?" She asked.
"No." He chuckled. Of course they knew. "It's not this kind of relationship. Besides, if it's you… Well, they would maybe moan a bit, but they would accept it. They already did, honestly."
Even Ino. Who had told him to "fix this shit with Hanabi, one way or the other."
"Then is it about me? Do you not find me—"
"No. It's definitely not about you." Naruto cut her off. "But don't feel that you have to. We are not going anywhere without you."
A soft smile spread upon her lips.
"I know."
"Then you know you don't have to do anything you don't want to."
"What if I want to…?" She asked, her eyes fixed on him.
The dress she had been wearing slipped off her shoulders smoothly. It was also the only thing she had been wearing.
Her body was built lithely. From the arch of her back, to her long, shapely legs. Her firm belly and the round fullness of her breasts.
"Well… In that case, that's a bit different." Naruto smiled.
Hanabi smiled back.
Under the light of the moon, their joined chakra was warm in the air.
He pulled her close to him, removing his own clothing, as it was only fair. He kissed her softly. She was a bit shy at first. Then eager.
Bashful, and then brazen.
She writhed under Naruto, lithe and strong. Her legs caressed his own, and her back arched. She moaned and she panted.
Her long hair spooled under her, and the sounds she made were almost musical.
And then she was astride him, slow and languorous; fast and lively.
They sang a wordless song.
Wind-Lightning-Storm-Fire met Wind.
He saw her and she saw him.
What little they didn't know already.