Chapter 59
I walked past the one-way windows powered by chakra, seeing the exhausted shinobi at the other end of the interrogation room. Even if these genin were only teenagers, they were a part of the war and Konoha was never kind to those intending to harm.
"They don't know anything important." I heard a voice behind me. I turned around and saw Morino Ibiki standing by the wall, a cigarette stuck out of his mouth, but it wasn't lit. The ventilation wasn't that great here, so no smoking was allowed.
"Morino-san," I greeted the man with a nod, before turning my attention to the Otogakure genin in the room. Desperation and hopelessness filled their face, quite a contrast compared to the first day we threw them in, where they still hoped with determination and defiance that Orochimaru would come and save them.
"They are throwaway pieces," I said. Their Jonin-sensei had been missing since the second stage and in all likelihood, his corpse was already rotting. Orochimaru meant for the Otogakure team to be a disguise for him from the start and these genin were nothing more than an experiment, a passing distraction.
"That one, however, knows more than he lets on." Morino pointed at one of the cells down the hall, where Yakushi Kabuto was kept in confinement. "However, we can't get him to crack, not even Yamanaka's mind-reading. His mind is tough, it's been reinforced like steel."
"Well, he is trained by Root," I said, remembering the files we had uncovered about him. Technically, there wasn't much left for him, not even in Root. His traces in that organization had been cleaned up, whether by Danzō, by Orochimaru, or by himself.
Yakushi Nōno, however, was a medical-nin and a spy known since the era of the Sandaime. The official records had it that she retired from Anbu and started running an orphanage. However, a more careful look revealed that every time subsidiaries were given to the orphanage by the Konoha government, Elder Shimura would hold it for a certain period of time for 'inspections' before it was released to Yakushi.
It wasn't hard to speculate that perhaps Yakushi Nōno was coerced by Danzō to continue to work for Root. At some point, Kabuto's life at the orphanages became as fabricated as his adoptive mother's and it was obvious that he too, became a Root Operative under Danzō.
The Root overhaul a year ago did not pin him as one of the Root agents, meaning that by then, he had already left Root and probably started to work for Orochimaru as well. As for how that happened, we didn't know and the only person who knew was not willing to speak.
"Can Inoichi-san crack through him?" I asked, seeing the grey-haired man sitting on the ground with a sereness that was in sharp contrast to his teammates in the neighbouring cells - two more throwaway pieces.
"He might, but not any time soon, and sure as hell not today," Morino said, throwing the unlit cigarette into the trash can.
"No, definitely not today," I agreed. As the head of the Yamanaka Clan and the best practitioner of the Mind-Body jutsu, Inoichi-san had an important role elsewhere.
"You think Orochimaru will care enough about Suna to let them know that their little plan has been discovered?" Morino asked as we walked towards the exit. With Kabuto and his team being captured, chances were, Orochimaru already knew that the plan of the Suna-Oto invasion had been intercepted.
"This is Orochimaru," I replied and it seemed to answer just about everything. "Suna, Otogakure, they are all just throwaway pieces." Whether the invasion was successful or not, it still served as a distraction, a divergence of Konoha's resources.
Therefore, thinking that Suna would get a heads up from the Snake Sannin and somehow halt their attack was delusional, even if it might be the safest outcome for Konoha.
Morino nodded at me as I exited the Anbu headquarters. The moment I stepped above ground again, I heard Inoichi-san's voice penetrating directly into my head, "Area 14 cleared and secured. Area 15 to 18 about 70% done, Area 19 to 20 at 50% right now."
I stood on the streets that would be considered Area 12. Civilians were evacuated from the streets about ten minutes ago and escorted into the underground shelter behind the Hokage Tower and under the Northern Cemetery - the old Root base was converted to an emergency shelter after it had been combed through.
Instead, teams of shinobi - whether Anbu or not - loitered behind the shops and hid around the corner. One of them looked at me as I made my way across the street, but the glance was short-lived as I disappeared and zoomed towards my destination.
In contrast to the quiet streets where the sound of a pin drop was crystal clear, the Arena was in its own little microcosm.
"How's it going?" I asked Kakashi as I slid myself into the space next to him. In the arena underneath, a match had just finished as the shinobi cleaned up the battlefield in preparation for the next match.
I looked up and saw the giant diagram outlining the matches. Just then, someone drew a line, connecting Sasuke's name to the next stage. "Ah, never mind." It seemed that my little brother just won his match.
Eighteen genin had advanced to the third stage. A preliminary stage was conducted right after the second round that produced eight winners and one draw. Eight genins were thus allowed to advance - five from Konoha and three from Suna.
Somewhere in the private viewing area, sat the Hokage and Kazekage, along with the Daimyo of nearby countries. Funny, despite all the displeasure and blame Iwagakure put out about our change of schedule, none of their genin even made it to the third sound, thus making it unnecessary for their Tsuchikage to even be here.
"Young Sasuke-kun had a great show of youthful spirit and fought passionately against Kankuro-kun's puppets!" I didn't expect Gai to be the one who answered me. As usual, his sentence had a tendency to contain quite a bit of unnecessary words.
"Sasuke exploded the puppets using a combination of fire and lightning jutsu." Kakashi translated for me and I understood immediately.
"Sounds like his training with you worked out then," I said, remembering the times Sasuke ran out to ask Kakashi for training sessions.
"I would much rather he leaves me alone and asks you instead. I don't think he's lacking in teachers," Kakashi answered, not even bothering to change his expression with the dead-fish eyes.
"But you're the best at it, Kakashi-senpai," I said, seeing him letting out a shiver out of disgust. Before he could say anything back, I turned my eyes to the arena. "Anyways, the next match is ready."
It was the match between Rock Lee and Gaara, the Jinchuuriki of the Sand. Behind us, Owl tensed up a little. I didn't need to turn on the sharingan to feel his agitated chakra.
"Relax, this whole arena is a stage, not just the ones fighting under there," I whispered to Yūichi, Slowly, his clenched hands loosened and we readjusted our gaze towards the arena.
"The boy was told, right? What he is fighting against," I asked Gai. Kakashi and I briefed all the Jonin in the village on measures against the One-Tail Jinchuuriki. For once, the Jonin who was always energetic turned serious.
"Lee knows, but even then, he is not backing down," Gai answered with pride seeping through his voice. "Uchiha-san, you said that to best Sabaku no Gaara, one had to pierce the shield. Lee is prepared and trained to do that."
Underneath, after a few rounds of taijutsu with no avail, Lee didn't hesitate to take off his ankle weights, letting them drop into the dirt ground with a big impact.
"That's a little excessive," Sarutobi Asuma commented.
"It's the passion of youth, Asuma!" Gai explained while not really explaining.
Still, with the restraints gone, the boy in the green jumpsuit zoomed towards his opponent, making his strikes before the sand shield could fully form. Gaara faltered back in disbelief when Lee finally kicked him on the head.
The crowd let out a cheer at the progress the boy was able to make. However, it was merely the beginning. The full extent of Gaara's sand manipulation had just started to be revealed.
The tendrils of sands crashed down on Lee, once again pushing him back to a position at the start of the battle. Except, the boy covered in the sand was more aggressive than ever. His chakra built more and more vigorously, surging wildly with every hit of the sand. Control was being ceded for more power, the question was, how much control was left in the boy.
When Lee got slammed into the arena wall, I looked towards his Jonin sensei. Gai crossed his arms in front of his chest. He didn't say anything, not moving down to stop the fight nor telling his student to surrender, however, I could see clearly that his knuckles were pale from clenching his hands too hard.
I looked at Kakashi for an answer, but all he did was shake his head at me.
Back when I had my chunin exam, I surrendered to Itachi without bothering to fight. I couldn't remember exactly what fueled that decision, rationality, inferiority, or maybe just a lack of care towards the results.
Nobody would blame me - I had done my parts in the battles before - just like nobody would blame Lee if he were to just take one extra breath, letting Hayate announce the results, instead of pulling himself up again with a broken body and bloodied limbs.
I sucked in a breath when I saw the burst of vitality from the boy's body as his skin burned red from the excessive energy. "You taught him how to open the gates," Kakashi said in the background. If I didn't know him so well, I might not have picked out the judgmental tone underneath.
Gai however, clearly fell into the category of people that could hear the undertone. "Everyone deserves the chance to chase their dreams, Kakashi. You have no idea how much this means to Lee."
What was the boy reaching for, when he was burning his body and lifespan just to land a hit on his opponent? However, I had no doubt that his ideal reached far and clear when he broke through Gaara's defence once again and kicked him into the arena wall, returning the hit from before.
The boy wasn't finished. Kicking Gaara into the air, the string of attacks followed, each one stronger than the one before. With a final blow, Lee kicked the Suna genin down to the arena, sending a sandstorm outward from where the red-haired boy had landed.
"Oh no …" I saw it through the dust, even before Lee had landed his kick. Sure enough, when the smoke cleared, Lee struggled to stand up in his broken body, strained after opening the gates. However, his opponent who was supposed to be unconscious due to the impact rested in a shell of thick sand formed by his gourd.
Like I said, fighting the One-Tail Jinchuuriki was like fighting a force of nature. The dessert was vast and never-ending.
Gaara let out a growl of rage. He probably had never been pushed this far by a child, never mind a genin who could only do taijutsu. It was humiliating when his mask of sand was cracked in front of everyone in this arena
Within the blink of an eye, a whip of sand smacked Lee to the ground before he could react. I could hear the cracks of his leg bone, already weakened due to his own techniques earlier. It was likely fractured into pieces now.
The impact finally knocked the boy unconscious, but Gaara wasn't finished. A wave of sand crashed down onto the fallen boy before the referee could stop him. Rage coloured his pupils, clouded with a vengeful aura that aimed to kill and destroy.
I moved without hesitation, flickering down to the arena in front of the fallen boy. Gai landed behind me, standing protectively over his student while Kakashi stood a little to my left. He slapped his hand on the ground and five earth walls rose up in an instant.
The earth walls cushioned the tsunami of sand, slowing it down little by little as it crumbled one by one. By the time the sand reached us, I already had a screen of red barrier up in front of us.
Every speck of sand that touched the Uchiha Kaenjin got incinerated into a mass of black and brown. I kept the barrier steady despite the black goo that ran down its surface and pooled up by the ground.
When the attack was over, a shell of glassy brown crystals gathered in front of us. The red-haired boy stared at me from the other side of the arena, his gaze full of murderous intent, angry at the fact that my flame stopped his waterfall of sand.
I looked back at him without fear. Perhaps he was used to eliciting fear from every passerby in Suna and being unstoppable in his rampage save for the Kazekage. But not here, not in Konoha, not in front of me, or even the unconscious boy behind me, whose body locked in the battle position because of sheer habit and determination.
Gaara let out a growl of irritation as he broke our gaze and turned around, but I could see the aura of menace being pulled back into his body.
A team of medical-nin arrived as the result was announced. The moment Jonin stepped down to stop the fight, victory for Suna had been decided.
I looked back at the boy in his battered green jumpsuit. He probably couldn't hear me, but I still said to him, "All of these cheers are for you. Your ideals of being a shinobi are being seen and admired by everyone."
Everyone in the audience was a shinobi at Konohagakure. Chunin, Jonin, or Anbu, no matter who they were, the preparation for the Suna-Oto invasion clawed at the back of their heads. Still, even in this high-strung state, they found the time to genuinely applaud the boy, to recognize what he wanted to show.
When the next match began, Naruto walked into the arena with an uncharacteristic seriousness on his face, facing a boy with pearly white eyes on the other side.
"What happened?" I asked. I wasn't there for the preliminary matches, nor had I seen the boys much during the week before the final. Moving up the timeline from a month to a week also meant that Konoha had some serious preparation to do in the face of one confirmed attack and plenty of unknown enemies.
"Neji … critically injured Hinata in the preliminary, and he said something along the line that fate is predetermined upon birth, and that includes failures," Kakashi replied with a sigh, "You know how Naruto is, he'd never accept that."
"So that's the pride of your Branch House," I said to Yūichi, seeing his Byakugan eyeing the boy nervously.
"It's difficult, being a branch member and a genius," he told me. No doubt, Neji's show of strength would always be a trigger for conflicts between the Main and Branch House of Hyūga Clan, especially that he had brutally shown his superiority over Hinata. "Pride or not, nobody struggles more than him knowing that he would forever be bound to the Main House as a servant."
"So do you believe that fate is predetermined upon birth as he does?" I asked and for once, Yūichi didn't banter with me. He merely fell in silence, telling me that yes, at least, some part of him believed that there was nothing a branch member, like him, like Neji, could do against the fate that was inscribed upon them at birth, literally, in the form of a seal on their forehead.
In the short span of our conversation, Naruto and Neji had already started their attacks. Neji's taijutsu was precise and fast, a light tap of the Gentle Fist could very well disable a limb and it was clear that the young Hyūga had mastered the art.
Naruto's taijutsu wasn't bad by all means, but facing against the Gentle Fist meant that no mistakes could be made. To increase the margin of error, Naruto went for a mass of shadow clones right at the beginning.
Neji's feet glided forward as he thrust his palm right at Naruto No.1's chest, who ducked his body and swiped his leg at his opponent. Neji side-stepped without looking down, rotating his body as smooth as the flowing river and striking Naruto's shoulder again.
Naruto No.2 parried with his arm, trying to push Neji's hand to the other side, leaving room for Naruto No.1 to attack. However, Neji's avoided him and struck his stomach in fluid motion, dispelling No.2 with a puff of smoke.
No.3 and No.4 appeared from the back, missing Neji at the last second as the boy turned and used the momentum to thrust his palm towards No.1's neck, who had already moved in for an attack. No.1 disappeared with a puff as Neji's hit connected, but No.5 appeared behind No.1 without a pause and punched forward, with a piece of paper in his hand.
Naruto's sequence of attacks was well planned, every clone served its purpose, connecting with one another and fighting as one. Against any other opponent, it might have worked, but Neji had the Byakugan. Visual tricks meant nothing to him.
Neji flipped his palm without any show of surprise, pushing Naruto back with the back of his hand, while his other hand arrived at Naruto's chest in the blink of an eye. By sheer reflex and flexibility, Naruto dodged the critical hit, but Neji's chakra-infused hand still hit a tenketsu in Naruto's arm, sealing the flow of chakra in that arm.
I squinted my eyes at the piece of paper in Naruto's hand, recognizing the sealing pattern on it. Well, some part of it - the kanji for 'suppress' stood out clearly in the center, but the circular pattern outside of it was different from the tailed-beast suppression seal.
"Is that supposed to seal the opponent's chakra?" I asked and Kakashi nodded.
"He learned it over the week. It's always easier when it's made up of something familiar." Kakashi explained to me.
Now, this was getting interesting. Fūinjutsu required chakra to activate and so did Hyūga's Gentle Fist. However, both of them possessed something that could seal an opponent's chakra. Therefore, the first one who managed to seal the other's chakra flow would be the clear winner.
It was interesting, but also worrying.
After the second stage, Jiraiya found traces of Orochimaru's chakra trying to penetrate Naruto's seal, but the contact seemed too short to have a large effect, only able to loosen it a little, resulting in the short bout of chakra leak. However, no matter how much Jiraiya had tried, Orochimaru's chakra couldn't be dispelled. Something was holding onto its existence in Naruto's body and even Jiraiya couldn't find it, nor did we know its purpose.
Fūinjutsu and jujutsu were always mysterious even to its users, let alone to an outsider. It was a form of creation and thus, much of its secrets would only be privy to those who were involved in its making.
At this point, we had no choice but to keep a close watch on Naruto. But if we had to guess, then whatever Orochimaru had left behind, it probably had something to do with the Nine-Tail chakra.
God knows what would happen if Naruto's chakra was sealed, leaving him no choice but to use the Nine-Tail's chakra in a moment of fury.
Below, the battle of 'the first hit' continued. Naruto quickly multiplied, bringing out even more shadow clones despite the wacky control of his chakra. Many of them had the paper seal clutched in their fist.
Neji narrowed his eyes at the seal in Naruto's hand. He could tell that he shouldn't give Naruto a chance to activate the seal on him, just by how hard Naruto was trying to paste it on him earlier.
It was the clones of Naruto that moved first, rushing into the older boy with fierce determination. Neji let a dome of chakra expand from his body, shaving off the clones without any hesitation.
The Revolving Palm was a technique that was passed onto the Main House only. However, that didn't stop Neji and Yūichi from trying to learn it by pure observation. Even now, Yūichi couldn't keep the dome staple, only managing to maintain it for a moment. However, Neji could maintain the dome with perfection, giving him much more flexibility and margin of error.
For someone who said that they believed fate was predetermined, I found it ironic that he mastered such a technique. For a technique as complicated as this, even geniuses like Neji would need to practice endlessly to perfect it. The act of learning itself, against all odds, was already a rebellion against fate.
Behind me, Yūichi tightened his fists. This battle must have been hard to watch. The Revolving Palm was a mockery to the Main House, but it also was a mockery to Neji and the Branch House.
Even with all this talent and hard work, Neji's place wouldn't change. Futile efforts, I was sure the thought crossed the boy's head whenever he practiced it and the same held true for Yūichi.
Between Neji's Gentle Fist and the Revolving Palm, Naruto was on the losing side. After all, with a simple tap of his fingers, Neji could dispel a shadow clone. Pages of seals littered on the floor, dropped from the dispelled clones.
For a single moment, there was only one Naruto in the training ground and Neji's eyes locked on him and bolted forward without hesitation. Pushing through the shadow clones that dropped in his path, Neji broke Naruto's defence and struck Naruto's other shoulder, sealing his chakra in the other hand.
I heard Yūichi letting out a sigh. The match seemed to be over now that Naruto lost both of his arms in terms of chakra flow, ridding him of the means to activate his seal.
However, Naruto grabbed onto Neji's arm the moment his strike landed. Despite the soreness on his arms, the boy dug his nails into his opponent's wrist. Neji, being caught in a moment of surprise when he thought that the end was already determined, didn't manage to shake off Naruto immediately.
Naruto kicked up, revealing a piece of seal stuck to his shoe, and he plummeted his foot into Neji's stomach, injecting a torrent of wild chakra into the seal through his foot while he still could. Black lines extended from the paper, wrapping around Neji's body like a spider web, binding his chakra, making it halt like a frozen river in the winter.
Naruto's chakra flow slowly halted as well, the disruption of tenketsu in his upper body had finally accumulated to the point that he couldn't move his chakra anymore. I watched on with care, preparing to deal with any situation that arose if the Nine-Tail chakra had broken through.
However, all Naruto did was look at Neji with smugness. "Rule number something of being a Shinobi, don't look down on others, especially me! Did your Jonin sensei not teach you that?"
Gai laughed when he heard that, slapping Kakashi on the back and said, "He sounds just like you when you're younger, saying things that made everyone want to hit you."
Shock only lasted a moment on Neji before he raised his hands and readied his battle stance. In his eyes, determination shined brightly. Whether or not he had chakra, he was going to finish it. Naruto turned serious as well, readying his body for the battle.
Then, the two boys ran at each other and held nothing back. Naruto punched Neji in the face in exchange for a hit to his chest, making him cough violently. Even without the chakra component, Hyūga Taijutsu was not to be underestimated.
However, if there was one thing that Naruto was undeniably good at, it was taking punches and outlasting his opponent through stamina.
Neji yelled as he kicked Naruto back and slammed his elbow down on the boy's head, but Naruto held on like steel, grabbing his shoulder and throwing him down to the ground.
Neji crawled up from the ground as he spat out some blood and saw Naruto standing in front of him, bleeding, wheezing, but nevertheless, still standing. How many minutes had it been, he probably lost count. But every passing second, every passing strike, his advantage against Naruto disappeared little by little until the younger boy stood like a mountain in front of him.
Letting out a laugh mixed with pain, Neji charged in again.
Hyūga Neji hadn't realized it yet, but when you had decided not to give up in the face of adversity, you had already chosen to fight against fate.
"Do you still believe that there's no point fighting against fate?" I asked Yūichi. He was moved by the fight in front of him, I could tell. Neji seemed to have sealed Naruto's fate by sealing his chakra, and a moment later, Naruto did the same to Neji by bringing him down to equal ground. However, none of them accepted their sealed fate, the thought probably never even crossed their mind.
"Even then, some things are too great of a restraint for us to fight against. You can't fight against your lineage, and I can't fight against mine," Yūichi whispered with a bitter laugh. He was right in that regard, some things are just too big that it seemed impossible to move. Witnessing the unrelenting spirits of two young boys might change his mindset and help with the despair, but the physical restraints placed on his forehead still existed.
I never told Yūichi this, but the Hyūga Clan Head already knew about his incomplete Revolving Palm. Even if I tried to hide it for him, it was unlikely that the Hyūga would let him join Anbu without constant surveillance, given how likely it was for our bodies to rot in the enemy field.
Still, the Hyūga Clan Head only met with me once to confirm and nothing else was done. At the very end, Hyūga Hiashi asked me not to tell Yūichi that he knew. As the Clan Head and the representative of the Main House, he turned a blind eye to Neji learning the jutsu privy only to the Main House, and he did the same for Yūichi, who was neither his nephew nor someone whose talent was irreplaceable.
So, the situation between the Main and Branch House might not be irredeemable. But then again, Hiashi was merely one man, a small fraction of everything this whole complicated ordeal involved.
The Cursed Seal of the Caged Bird, it caged a bird's wings and spirit. Eventually, even without the cage, the bird lost the will to fly, the will to see the blue sky. So unless the bird itself found the wish to fly again, even at the cost of its life, it would be forever caged.
The match had gone on for fifteen more minutes and the judge was forced to call a draw because the thirty-minute time limit had passed. The two boys looked at each other, not turning away their gaze for a second, even if both of them were on the verge of falling.
"In the very end, he didn't use Nine-Tail's chakra," I muttered. Surely, the battle would probably end in a second, if only Naruto had that chakra, if only he had decided to risk it.
"We must have really scared him, telling him that he'd get disqualified if he lost control," Kakashi said with a laugh. In the arena, Neji and Naruto's teammates rushed in and caught them before they could fall. Naruto leaned on Sasuke's shoulder as he complained loud and clear that he would definitely win if there were more time.
As soon as Neji heard that, he shouted back, saying that he could go eat his words because that wouldn't happen. Tenten patted him on the back, not giving a damn as she moved her teammate to the resting area, just like how Sasuke turned off his ears as he threw Naruto into the exit.
Since it ended in a draw, neither of them would continue to the next round. However, despite the long battle of stamina and will, the tournament had to continue. The next pair was the kunoichi from Suna and Aburame Shino from Konoha.
The Suna kunoichi was in no way weak with her mastery over wind jutsu, but Aburame's jutsu was just too out of the ordinary and too hard to defend. Still, she made a show of her ability by fending off the bugs bravely, before finally succumbing to paralysis.
"Area 15 to 20 fully cleared. I repeat, all battle-incompatible individuals are fully evacuated. The village is really for battle." Inoichi-san's voice rang loud in our heads as the match advanced into the second round.
Even with mental preparation beforehand, my heart still stopped for a beat when I saw the announcement of the next match. My fingers dug into my palm when I saw my brother walking into the arena, standing opposite to the red-haired boy, sand levitating around his gourd, like his lingering anger from the match before.
"Don't worry," Kakashi told me as I forced my hands to relax. "I taught it to him, the spear that can pierce the shield."
"You taught him Chidori?" I said with a hint of surprise. "And he learned it, over a week."
"I don't know why you're surprised. It's not like he's foreign to manipulating lightning chakra. But yes, he learned it in a week." Kakashi said as our gaze fell on the battle below, The automatic sand defence was already up as Sasuke examined his openings, sharingan swirling in anticipation. "Besides, he may have his own spears already."
Perhaps this was how Gai had felt when he allowed his own prized student to battle against Sabaku no Gaara. The village had been readied as a battleground, but the arena was no less of a little world itself. Everyone had their own fights that they couldn't run from.
(づ｡◕‿‿◕｡)づ fuwa~fuwa~desu~~~
Sasuke sent Narukami down from the sky, straight into a fireball that was about to crash into Gaara's shield of sand.
His opponent probably had a look of arrogance behind the sand, knowing from experience that Sasuke's fire alone couldn't do anything against his sand,
"Your fire is weak, only hers is worthy. If I kill you, will she come down again?" His opponent - Gaara - had the guts to say before this.
Ugh, tell me something I don't know already. Maiko-nee's Inkaton was special and it was something he could never do. However, did he give a damn right now? No. Gaara could say that again to his face when Sasuke exploded his stupid sand vase into pieces.
Lightning struck the flame and the fire exploded in front of Gaara's face, blowing through his shield of sand and knocking him back. Sasuke was in front of him in an instant, red sharingan spinning furiously as he thrust his hand forward.
A wave of sand rushed up to block and Sasuke saw its intention before it could even materialize. Pivoting around his leg, Sasuke turned, letting both gravity and momentum gather as he slammed his leg down on his opponent's back.
There was a loud cracking sound when Gaara staggered forward. Patches of sand peeled off of his body as the boy gasped in pain. Sasuke had long discovered that Gaara's taijutsu was weak because he never had a need to use it. Moreover, his body was not used to being hit over and over again because sand always protected him.
Therefore, as soon as Sasuke broke through his defence, he needed to overwhelm Gaara with hard hits that made his mind pause while also being careful of any replacements, so that Gaara didn't have a chance to manually control his sand.
Sasuke followed up with the attack, swinging his leg towards Gaara's stomach. But clearly, he had underestimated the connection between his opponent and the sand.
Tendrils of sand rushed up from the ground, wanting to catch Sasuke and crush him. Only by the warning of the sharingan did Sasuke react fast enough to replace himself with one of the fallen kunai.
Sasuke landed a few meters away and saw the kunai getting buried by the crushing sand. Sand gathered around Gaara again as the boy stared at him with more rage than ever.
"Aghh! Those red eyes! I hate them! Shut up! Shut up!" Gaara yelled, grabbing his head in a fit of anger as he looked at Sasuke's eyes with a gaze full of poison.
First of all, Sasuke had no idea what the hell was Gaara high on this time. It was a shame that despite his opponent looking straight into his sharingan that he couldn't use genjutsu. Kakashi-sensei had warned him about using the genjutsu on the Jinchuuriki - a combination of two entities - right after explaining that Sabaku no Gaara housed the One-Tail Sand Demon.
Second, it was clear that Gaara was riled up more quickly. The anger he had felt from the previous battle with Lee probably had not dissipated yet, fueling his rage even more now that Sasuke also stepped on his prized sand defence.
Oh well, not like Sasuke cared.
Sand swirled around Gaara, shielding him in a cage as whips of sand flew out to attack Sasuke. Sasuke dodged meticulously, calming down his breath as rageful sand crashed down at where he had stood a second ago.
Making the hand seals, three chains of fire dragon flew towards Gaara, wrapping itself tightly around Gaara's shell. Immediately, the boy summoned up a spiky ceiling of sand to ward off any Narukami that would come down.
Yeah, nice try. Even academy students know that the same trick doesn't work twice. Okay, Sasuke couldn't say for certain if the last part was true, but he knew that when he was an academy student.
Sasuke jumped over one of the sand whips and made the hand seals in midair. The moment he landed on the ground again, he slapped his palm into the ground, ejecting lightning chakra from his body.
Lines of electricity raced towards Gaara before his sand could react. As Kakashi-sensei had told him, when using lightning chakra, the scaling time unit was in the milliseconds.
The wild electricity crawled onto the fire dragons in an instant and a loud explosion reverberated across the arena, sending sand and dust everywhere, occluding everyone's visibility.
But not for him.
Sasuke could see clearly through the polluted air that the sand shield around Gaara had already cracked and thinned, but it wasn't broken. However, the speed at which sand repaired itself had slowed down greatly, telling him that it took Gaara a lot of energy to maintain the shell.
It's now or never. Sasuke thought as he kicked the wall and propelled himself forward. Lightning gathered at his hand, letting out the violent cry of a thousand birds.
A few years ago, Sasuke would be dying to learn it, to learn the famed Chidori that had never failed in killing its enemy.
"Chidori is not any special, Sasuke," Kakashi-sensei had told him a week ago when he just casually mentioned that he would be teaching him Chidori, in preparation for his potential fight against the Suna Jinchuuriki. "Like your Uchiha Fire Jutsu or Narukami, It's just a jutsu, a tool that helps you fight against the right opponent."
"To fight against the Suna Jinchuuriki, you need a spear strong enough to pierce its shield. Be it Chidori, or something else, find it and learn it, so that you can win."
So he learned Chidori, training his guts out so he could get it ready in a week. Sasuke never said no to the chance of adding something to his arsenal, but as Kakashi-sensei told him, Chidori was not a miracle, it was not a fix-all solution that he could bet his entire dream and life on.
It was one spear, laying on Sasuke's metaphorical weapon rack, waiting for him to pick it up against the right opponent and at the right moment.
Against Gaara's sand that continued to evolve and strengthen, Sasuke couldn't pierce the shield with just one spear. But that's fine, if one couldn't do it, then he would just use two.
The Sharingan heightened his senses as Sasuke weaved himself around the flailing sand and thrust his arm forward, avoiding the spikes that started to grow out of the shell in a panic. His opponent shouldn't have done that - manipulating the sand to attack Sasuke would thin the already weakened sand dome around Gaara.
Chidori pierced through the barrier of sand, shattering the battered shell as lightning ran across its surface.
Sasuke's hand grazed Gaara's shoulder, leaving a scorch mark on the boy's skin. Gaara stood in shock as blood flowed out of the cuts on his shoulder.
It couldn't be helped, even Sharingan couldn't predict where exactly Gaara was with how densely the chakra filled his dome of sand. Moreover, the bulk of his Chidori was negated when it pierced through the sand shell.
That was when the air in the Arena changed.
"Gaara, what are you waiting for?" Someone said the words before Sasuke could understand what was about to happen.
Before he could react, someone already scooped him up and jumped away just as Gaara screamed in pain, expanding a cloud of chakra so thick and evil that it felt suffocating.
"Breathe, Sasuke," Sasuke didn't even realize that he stopped his breath until Kakashi-sensei's voice reminded him.
"The Jinchuuriki …" Sasuke muttered, wanting to ask if this was what he thought it was - a tailed-beast rampage. However, before he could, he heard another scream from the other side of the arena.
It was Naruto.
Sasuke wrenched his neck to see past Kakashi-sensei. Naruto, who was just cheering him on at the edge of the arena a moment ago, screamed in pain as he scratched his neck. Sasuke saw the black mark that crawled across his face. The seal screwed around with Naruto's chakra system, poisoned his body, overpowering his unconsciousness.
Suddenly, Sasuke remembered the words that Kakashi-sensei had told him. The tailed-beast couldn't and wouldn't fight against their instinct. So if Sasuke ever beat Gaara to the point of unconsciousness, he should run, for his sake, and for his family's sake.
Because the chances of the tailed-beast taking over to fight against the danger that threatened its host was too great to risk it.
But it's not fair. Naruto fought so hard to control the Nine-Tail Chakra, even though he wanted to win his match more than anything.
Kakashi-sensei must have felt Sasuke clutching onto his jacket. He gave him a pat on the back as he dropped Sasuke by the Arena exit, where the team of chunin was already ushering the genin participants to get to safety.
Kakashi-sensei said to him, "You did well. You're already a chunin in my standard. Now, as a shinobi of Konoha, go report under Asuma at the East Gate and protect Konoha against the invaders. As for Naruto, I will bring him back to you in no time."
There were so many things happening, and so many things to do. Maiko-nee and Lee's Jonin sensei dropped down to the arena, circling the transforming One-Tail along with teams of Anbu and Jonin.
On the opposite side, wooden columns rose up from the ground, circling Naruto as dark red chakra covered his body and face, changing him into a humanoid creature with two tails waving behind. The next moment, Jiraiya the Sannin appeared in front of Naruto.
Sasuke nodded. Without wasting a second, Kakashi-sensei left for Maiko-nee's direction. Sasuke turned around and ran towards the Arena exit.
(づ｡◕‿‿◕｡)づ fuwa~fuwa~desu~~~
In the past few minutes, Kakashi's head was filled with voices as Inoichi-san relayed the array of information about the state of the village.
Groups of Suna-nin and Oto-nin appeared in the forest outskirts as smoke filled the VIP booth where the Kage and the Daimyo sat.
As the Jonin Commander, Kakashi gave out a series of orders for the nearby teams to engage the intruders and before Inoichi-san could relay it out, Kazekage's voice flowed to the Suna boy as he let his control over the tailed-beast snap.
Even if Kakashi was prepared for the worst, it never ceased to shock him when the worst actually occurred. Orochimaru's chakra gathered to the boy's face and started to poison him from the inside and out.
It was pure destruction, to hurt the boy to the point that the Nine-Tail had to come out. It happened so fast that not even Tenzō and Jiraiya, who were tasked with watching him, could stop it from spreading.
Tenzō didn't hesitate to push the boy into the open space in the arena, away from his fellow genin watching the match.
A lot of things happened at once. Kakashi jumped down and fished Sasuke out of the way. Maiko and Gai came face to face with the One-Tail as teams of Anbu and Jonin with barrier seals and suppression seals moved to their position.
As for the signal that started the attack, the Kazekage - probably disguised by Orochimaru, given the situation at this point - held a kunai to Sandaime's neck as he jumped out of the booth, running across the roof towards the clearing on the Hokage Rock. Tsunade-sama followed behind, catching up to the two figures in white robes.
Despite the inappropriate time, Kakashi had the urge to laugh because it was kind of funny from his perspective. But oh well, Whether it was the Kazekage or Orochimaru, they would find out the 'surprise' soon.
"The enemy has summoned a three-headed snake at the Southern clearing. It's been used to transport Suna and Oto reinforcement through its mouth," Inoichi-san briefed. As if confirming his words, a giant creature rose above the walls, screeching simultaneously from its three heads.
"Draw reinforcement from Area 6, 9, and 10, tell them to avoid the giant summon and engage the enemy shinobi," Kakashi said in his head, knowing that Inoichi would relay the words to the team leaders in charge. As for the snake, something of that scale would need a summon of similar power to deal with.
"Commander, Sandaime-sama said that he can hold the snake at bay, with your permission." Kakashi gave his permission immediately. Sandaime's summoning creature, Enma, didn't have the biggest size, but at least the two of them would be able to keep the snake summon occupied.
"All shinobi not assigned to the Arena, stay out of it and do not come near. We have two tailed-beasts losing control here. The same applies to the area near the Hokage Rock," Kakashi ordered in his mind. Normal chunin making up the majority of their forces would not survive what was about to happen here.
In the corner of his eyes, he saw Maiko glancing towards the Hokage Rock, where the battle with Orochimaru would be taking place, by whoever's design. Orochimaru drew two Hokage to a place where no one could disturb them. That spoke of confidence: he had enough up his sleeve that he could fight both Sandaime and Tsunade-sama.
That was beyond worrying.
"Maiko, go help. We got it here," Kakashi said to the girl. She nodded, following his order without a second's delay. After all, she was a Jonin and he was her commander.
As for the two battles here …
"Yamanaka-san, get Nara-san to take over for me for a little bit, I need to deal with our guest from Suna," Kakashi relayed in his mind and Inoichi's confirmation came quickly.
"Barrier team!" Kakashi yelled and the shinobi lining the arena moved simultaneously on the beat. Within a second, pale blue barriers rose from the edge of the arena across its center, separating the two Jinchuuriki from the outside, as well as from each other.
On the other side of the Arena, Jiraiya stood on his giant toad summon as he laid his eyes on Naruto, who was writhing to get out of Tenzō's wooden restraints. With a bitter laugh, he said, "Naruto, when you wake up, you'll probably be worried that you'll get disqualified. But to me, you're already more than qualified to be a Konoha Chunin. So don't you worry."
A whip of sand forced Kakashi's attention back as he flickered away. The sand crashed into the barrier, letting out a giant 'thud' before the sand tanuki retracted it. Not a coat made of chakra, but rather a corporal body made of sand. The Suna Jinchuuriki was at a state between absolutely zero control and the verge of consciousness.
Like Maiko suggested, a stimulation strong enough to pierce through this shell of sand was enough to force the boy to wake up and disrupt this fragile state.
Another claw of sand crashed towards him, but it was met by a strong kick that broke it in half as Gai landed beside him.
"Brings back the memories of youth, Kakashi, when we bravely fought together with passion!" Gai shouted with a voice loud enough to give Kakashi headaches.
"What memories, I don't remember such a thing," Kakashi said with a flat voice. Gai might have challenged him endlessly, but with Kakashi in Anbu and Gai in the normal force, they never saw each other on missions.
"What a mean thing to say, but it's okay, I know you treasure them as much as I do!" Gai said, still in his own fabricated existence. "But let's show our students what the true power of youth looked like!" That, Kakashi could get behind.
Even for a village that greatly valued teamwork like Konoha, individuals with powers and abilities way beyond average were sought after. Jiraiya, Tenzō, Maiko, Itachi … They were all at a different level compared to the rest of the Jonin force.
In a fight against something that required teams and teams of shinobi to work together, like the Sand Demon in front of them, Konoha would rather send one or two people of great power in their place.
It wasn't so much about individual heroism, but a simple count of human lives at risk. A team of twenty shinobi might be able to seal the One-Tail after some struggle, but they'd better be prepared to lose half of them in the process. But here, Kakashi and Gai were only two people.
Anbu with suppression seals were nearby, but they wouldn't move without Kakashi or Jiraiya's order. Their purpose was more to deal with unauthorized individuals that had decided to crash the party and stop them from interfering with the main event.
Kakashi and Gai, as shinobi that had 'spears' strong enough to deal with the One-Tail, were fully expected to handle their own against the giant creature.
"Let's get this over with," Kakashi said as he and Gai dashed out. He had a whole village of shinobi to organize after this.
(づ｡◕‿‿◕｡)づ fuwa~fuwa~desu~~~
Naruto woke up at a place where there was no sunlight.
Coldness smeared across his back as he sat up. He thought that he was in a pool of water, and he was, sort of. The water didn't feel wet, but it still seemed to permeate through his clothes and skin and chilled him to the bones.
"Brat." Naruto heard a voice filled with anger, rage, and hatred, and he came face to face with the orange fox in front of him.
He probably should be surprised, but somehow, the only thought that popped into his head was "Goddamn it, am I gonna get disqualified after all my work?" He had been telling himself that he couldn't let the Nine-Tail Chakra out so many times that the fox itself had lost the factor of shock.
Right now, Naruto was sadder at the prospect of all his work for nothing - that fight with Neji hurt - than being afraid of the very obviously horrible situation he was in.
"Do not ignore me!" The fox yelled in rage when Naruto did not cower in fear. In between his laments, Naruto looked up and spared the fox a glance.
That action seemed to enrage the Nine-Tail even more, as the giant fox roared and shook behind the bars of metal. However, glowing chains rattled in a clear crystal sound as it restricted the fox, preventing it from moving up.
Naruto's attention was attracted to the metallic chains all over the fox, it shined a colour of the moon that spoke of comfort and familiarity. Suddenly, the image in front of him overlapped with the description in his scroll.
"Adamantine sealing chain …" Naruto whispered in awe, recognizing the chakra chains that were supposed to be the Uzumaki clan's secret technique.
"If not for this stupid chain, I'd be ripping you to shreds now, you insolent brat. Look at me when I'm talking to you!" Nine-Tail growled as a mist of orange chakra leaked out of the metal bars. It was the same feeling of menace Naruto had felt in the Forest of Death, where it urged him to suffer, to hate, and to destroy.
Finally, Naruto looked at the Fox, staring him in the eye and saw the hatred overflowing from his red eyes. Ah, his body felt weak in the presence of something so destructive.
That seemed to please the fox, as his mouth widened, showing his sharp teeth. "You messed up, brat. You're here, that means that 'I' am out there. I will kill them all, the people you love. I'll make sure that you see their corpses when you wake up, every single one of them."
Naruto's body shivered as rage and fear filled him. For the first time, the implication of having a demon inside of him felt real. He didn't know how long he had lost control, nor did he know what was going on on the outside.
All he could see was this prison filled with darkness and the beast in front of him that seemed to be made of pure hate.
"Idiot, you're always giving the enemy what they want. Stop and think for once, why Kakashi-sensei said those words." Sasuke's words flowed out of his memory. It was when they were training against Kakashi-sensei in the Land of Waves and Naruto couldn't stop being provoked by the Jonin.
"Don't fear this power, Naruto." Maiko-nee's voice sounded next, from that time above the Hokage Rock.
"This seal is strong, Naruto, it's made out of all the knowledge your parents had." Ero-sannin had told him when he patted his stomach, tickling him until he was laughing on the ground.
"Don't stress your little brain too hard, Naruto," Kakashi-sensei had told him before sending them into the arena, when he was worried that he wouldn't be able to control the Nine-Tail chakra if his battle plan against Neji were to fail.
"No, you wouldn't," Naruto pushed the words out of his mouth. "The people outside will stop you." The Adamantine Sealing Chains bound the fox tightly and the metallic bars still looked strong. The seal wasn't broken, so whatever happened, it was just a leakage of chakra.
Maiko-nee had once told him, he was not alone in controlling the Nine-Tail. Everyone around him would help and he was sure that they were helping him right now.
The fox thrust his head forward in rage, bearing his fang at him as his nozzle squeezed through the metal bars. The fox was mad, but he couldn't do anything except curse at him before the chains dragged him back.
"Now, give me back my body. I have a Chunin Exam to go to," Naruto said, standing up from the freezing floor.
Somehow, the fox stopped cursing and started laughing, as if Naruto was saying something hilarious.
"They must have told you that when I'm sealed, I only take over your body because your body is in danger. Right now, poisonous chakra courses through your body, destroying you from the inside. My chakra is the only thing keeping you alive and cleansing you, fighting poison with poison," The fox explained with a glint of mischievousness in his red eyes.
Naruto furrowed his brows at the fox's words. To be honest, he couldn't remember what had happened. One moment, he was cheering Sasuke on because goddamn, his jutsu were cool. The next, all he could think of was pain. Then, he was here.
"You know what that means. If I rescind, then you will be dying again." The fox laughed like a maniac as the tip of his claws shook from the movement. "Are you ready to die, brat?"
Naruto didn't want to die. There was still so much he hadn't done. Ero-sannin promised that he would teach him a new jutsu - a really cool one, he said - after the Chunin Exam. It would be Sasuke's birthday soon, so he wanted to take him to Ichiraku's ramen. He had just found Karin, whom he had only met once after the second stage because the third stage was starting. He promised that he'll show her around the village.
He still hadn't passed the Chunin exam, which at the rate things were looking, he'd probably been disqualified already. How could he become the Hokage if he couldn't even pass the Chunin Exam?
"Even then, I still want to go back." Naruto wanted to continue living, but not at the cost of those around him. He believed that the people outside were working hard to get the Nine-Tail to recede, so he had to do his part.
"Give me back my body, Nine-Tail!" Naruto shouted with determination. Whether or not he would die, he could find out about that - as well as the result of the Chunin Exam - after he got back to reality.
"Don't call me Nine-Tail! Only you humans call me that because of your insufferable arrogance and ignorance!" Somehow, that was the part the fox decided to focus on.
"Then what's your real name?" Naruto asked.
"Why would I tell you that?" The fox shot back.
"Okay then, Nine-Tail it is." Naruto heard another growl of anger. "What else am I supposed to call you then, if you don't tell me your name?"
"You can stop calling me, you insolent brat!"
"No, not before you give me back my body!"
To no one's surprise, another roar rang loud across the space covered by darkness.
(づ｡◕‿‿◕｡)づ fuwa~fuwa~desu~~~
Tsunade would have been having a good day. As Konoha's Hokage, her genin were fighting admirably in front of the Daimyo from many countries and that was something she took pride in. Sasuke, Lee, Naruto, Neji, and Shino, whether they won or lost, had already left a mark of their bravery and intelligence in their audience's minds.
Konoha's next generation was prospering, she had no doubt.
Again, she would have been having a good day, if the Kazekage hadn't decided to put a kunai to Sarutobi-sensei's neck and ordered the Suna Jinchuuriki to go berserk.
It was quite a genius move, to think that Orochimaru had disguised at the Kazekage. It would have fooled Tsunade for longer if he didn't decide to go for Sarutobi-sensei first. With the element of surprise, the real Kazekage would have been able to land a hit on Tsunade, truly putting a dent in Konoha's confidence.
Instead, he went for a retired Hokage, who, in his straw hat and long robe, was just here as a guest.
"Hokage-dono, would I interest you with a talk in private, Sandaime as well," Orochimaru said in Kazekage's voice, which Tsunade supposed, worked in their favour. The Daimyo here - the ones that had not fainted from the shock, anyway - could be the witness of a Suna attack on Konoha.
All that property damage that was about to happen, someone needed to pay for that and Tsunade knew exactly who to bill it to after this was over.
"What are you proposing, Kazekage-dono?" Tsunade asked with chakra gathered in her fist. Yes, this was somehow part of the plan, but like many plans before this, there were always things to ruin them.
"Just the three of us, somewhere quiet and alone, no Anbu or anyone else," Orochimaru said, the tip of the kunai digging into his hostage's neck.
"Fine by me, lead the way." Tsunade didn't bother arguing. Orochimaru wanted to settle some old business alone, that was fine, Tsunade wanted some personal space as well.
The fight with Orochimaru was not something that the normal shinobi force could step into and survive. As the Hokage, Tsunade needed to pull her weight.
"It's not too late to stop it, Kazekage-dono," Orochimaru must have heard Sarutobi-sensei's voice. All he did was let out a cold laugh and said, "Some things are too late, Sandaime-dono."
Tsunade followed Orochimaru to the top of the Hokage Rock and suddenly, Orochimaru pushed the kunai into Sarutobi-sensei's neck and let go of his hostage as if merely touching him was poisonous.
In some way, Tsunade supposed that it must have felt like touching poison for Orochimaru.
The straw hat and the fabric dropped in Orochimaru's arm, as crows fluttered by, eventually gathering by Tsunade's side and forming the shape of one Uchiha Itachi.
"When did you make the switch? I was sure Sarutobi-sensei was there when I walked in." Orochimaru asked in a fit of laughter as he peeled off his disguised face.
"Take a guess," Itachi said. As if mocking Orochimaru, Enma appeared in the distance, jumping onto the giant snake summon as he slammed one of its heads onto the ground.
"I suppose it doesn't matter. I lost this one, Itachi-kun, I'm truly amazed. However, you being here doesn't change anything." Before Orochimaru's words had ended, four Oto-nin appeared out of nowhere and pressed their hands on the ground.
Immediately, a barrier of purple flames enveloped them, sealing them into a space of isolation. However, before the barrier could converge on the ceiling, a flash of lightning dashed through the opening and landed on Itachi's left.
"I see that I'm not late to the party," Maiko chimed and the smile on Orochimaru's face cracked a little. Still, Orochimaru didn't order his lackeys to drop the barrier, choosing to enclose himself in this isolated arena along with the three of them.
So, even in the face of all three of us, he still thinks he's got a chance. That didn't spell good things in Tsunade's mind and provided even more reason that they had to stay here, in this barrier.
Neither Maiko nor Itachi had batted an eye at the flame barrier around them. Shishisenjin was not easily dispelled, especially now that the Oto-nin had hidden themselves inside a second barrier.
However, it was still constructed of flames and all flames had to bow down to Amaterasu, the one descended from Heaven.
They had simply chosen to let the barrier stay because it would minimize the damage from the battle to the rest of the village.
In a split second, they all moved.
Maiko arrived by Orochimaru's side in a flash and her sword glowed the silvery shine of the moon. Orochimaru dodged the slice to his neck, only for Itachi to appear behind him, stabbing a kunai into his heart.
Orochimaru dissolved into a puddle of white snakes before the metal carved itself into his body and slithered around the Uchiha siblings. Poisonous mist sprouted from the snakes' mouths, forcing Maiko and Itachi to step back.
The moment Orochimaru reformed his body, Tsunade jumped forward, punching her fist right towards his face. Tsunade's punch missed Orochimaru by an inch as he flickered away, leaving a crater on the ground.
A barrage of wind slashed out from where Orochimaru was standing, pushing Tsunade back with the force of a tornado. Orochimaru opened his mouth and a stream of fire shot out, fusing with the wind and turning it into a firestorm.
Three water bullets shot out from behind them, where Itachi's Sharingan swirled red. Two of the water bullets pierced the weak point of the firestorm, destroying its integrity in an instant, while the third one rushed in. Maiko and Tsunade moved in at the same time, a crimson red arrow gathered in front of the girl while Tsunade swung her fist with the speed of lightning.
A giant snake occluded their vision as its body blocked their path. The water bullet splashed on the hide, Maiko's Hama Ya burned through the snake's body, and Tsunade's fist split the flesh open. However, the distraction had already been achieved. With the snake's carcass everywhere, they lost sight of Orochimaru for a second.
"Edo Tensei."
Tsunade always wondered what in the world could give Orochimaru enough confidence to fight them one against three.
Well, perhaps he always intended for it to be three against three.
Amidst the smell of burnt flesh mixed with the scent of blood, two coffins stood on the ground, with the words 'One' and 'Two' written on them. Tsunade caught a glimpse of a third coffin, but it rescinded as soon as it appeared.
"You wouldn't dare." Tsunade's voice was filled with seething anger. To think that Orochimaru had experimented with his grandfather's cells, and now this?
"This was supposed to be a gift for Sarutobi-sensei as well, but I supposed your reaction is just as fun to watch, Tsunade," Orochimaru grinned as the coffins opened, revealing none other than the Shodaime Hokage and the Nidaime Hokage - Tsunade's grandfather and granduncle.
"What in the world …" Maiko muttered in disbelief, seeing the figures in her history textbook coming alive in front of her.
"Edo Tensei is a technique that revives the soul and body of the deceased in exchange for the sacrifice of a living," Tsunade explained. Both Itachi and Maiko would have been too young to understand the true horror of this technique, where it was developed in the era of the Nidaime.
"Exactly, what you're seeing here is the Shodaime and Nidaime in the flesh," Orochimaru added with a sense of pride as he jabbed the talisman into the bodies he had summoned. "I usually prefer suppressing their personality entirely, but that puts quite a limit on their battle abilities. So, for the three of you, I relinquished some suppression in change for more power. Am I not nice, Tsunade, for this chance of a reunion?"
"Who the hell even developed this technique?" Maiko commented and Tsunade nodded towards the white-haired Senju on the right. "Oh, never mind."
Nidaime was just animated enough to raise an eyebrow at the girl, however, his attention - both of their attention - soon turned to Tsunade.
"Tsunade," Shodaime called her name with some uncertainty. Much had changed since his death, after all. Tsunade was not a girl anymore, but here, Senju Hashirama was still frozen in time.
"You have grown so much, along with Konoha," her grandfather said, looking around and examining the village below the Hokage Rock with interest.
"Now is not the time to be sightseeing, brother. It seems that we've been summoned to battle Tsunade and …" Senju Tobirama shifted his glance towards Maiko and Itachi, examining their sharingan with a critical gaze.
"Allow me to make an introduction. This is Uchiha Maiko and Uchiha Itachi, they are the last of the three Uchiha that currently exist in the village. And this is Senju Tobirama, our esteemed Nidaime Hokage, also the reason why the Uchiha Clan suffered so much discrimination and hatred." Orochimaru just couldn't stop himself from being dramatic, it seemed.
Maiko and Itachi exchanged a glance with each other. Somehow, Tsunade was able to tell the conversation from their eyes, it was something like 'there he goes again' or 'so predictable'.
"Now, go kill them and destroy Konoha," Orochimaru whispered his orders like the rattle of a snake. The order of the master was absolute, that was the rule of Edo Tensei. While Orochimaru had decided to retain a little of their personalities in exchange for power, he would always clutch the control tight in his hands.
"Grandfather, Granduncle, as the Hokage, I have to protect Konoha, even if it means fighting against you. Forgive me, and these children as well, for they are only loyal shinobi of Konoha," Tsunade said as she raised her fist. The diamond on her forehead expanded into a web of intricate black lines that ran down her body.
To fight against them, Tsunade couldn't afford to hold back.
Behind her, Maiko raised her sword, and Itachi flicked out a kunai. As much as Orochimaru tried to make them relevant in this mess, to these two who had seen and respected death from a young age, the reanimated corpses in front of them were just that, corpses, merely obstacles between them and Orochimaru.
"Hahaha, sounds good, Tsunade. You can tell me all about the changes in the village while we fight." Of course, her grandfather said with a loud laugh. It was just how he was, high-spirited and boisterous. Truly, it made it hard to be emotionally traumatized, despite the situation they were in.
Adding to the insult, the twisted expression on Orochimaru's face said that he was already regretting his decision.
Tobirama actually rolled his eyes at his older brother before nodding towards Tsunade. "I hope you're ready, Tsunade, because we can't disobey the orders. And I hope those Uchiha children live up to the reputation of their clan."
A/N: Naruto skill learned: Trash talk lv1. Sasuke skill learned: Inner sarcasm lv5. I swear this story was meant to be a comedy.
Also Orochimaru teaching us a lesson on self-confidence and finishing what you've started. The hokage summoned through Edo Tensei are definitely not as strong as they as in the fourth shinobi war, so they're not strong enough break out of the control, however that worked. Otherwise, the village would be gone and I won't have a story to write about. Orochimaru is also not going to give up that much control, and look, he's already regretting it. Any bug in Edo Tensei is my fault, I'm skimming through the wiki page and I probably missed stuff, so yeah.
Any inconsistency you see with the original Chunin exam tournament is meant to happen. The ones who advanced to the finals are Sasuke, Kankuro, Lee, Gaara, Neji, Naruto, Shino, and Temari. Similarly, they are matched up in brackets in the elimination round.