Hey there everyone and Happy New year!
I am so excited to finally get back into the swing of writing chapters
now that the holidays are over; that means more time for me to write
than work my ass off trying to make money lmfao
So yeah; now you know why I've been so inactive when it comes to fanficiton
either way!
Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or League of Legends
Chapter 10: The Humble Beginnings
The trees had finally blended into one, collapsing and bleeding together forming a never ending sea. It stretched across the land, coloring the horizon. They ran, they jumped and they burst through the ever thickening canopy of thick branches and leaves. But it meant nothing in the end; no village in sight, no structures in any direction from hundreds of miles; they were in the middle of nowhere. With great towering peaks to the east and to the North, to growing sea of green to the West, ending with Konoha to the South. As hard as it was to believe, the smoke could still be seen despite how far they'd gone.
Naruto slammed his sandals into the first tree branch he zoomed into. As the collision echoed, Sasuke and Sakura followed suit, sweat dripping from their brows. Their clothing was definitely drenched from all the perspiration, and the humidity of this summer day wasn't treating the trio any kinder. Hair stuck to their skin and their clothing, damp and practically glued to their flesh, making it impossible for their body to breath.
Despite it all, they knew the stakes, they knew they had to keep running. They'd seen their enemy not too long before. Those masks the Foundation wore was burned into their memories. Sasuke hadn't forgotten the ANBU on Danzo's side and he sure as hell wouldn't forget the carnage they'd caused during the Fall of Konoha. But to see them so soon on their tails echoed within Sasuke, reminding him that he is nothing but a child in a world of darkness. Resting his palm against the trunk of the great tree, he clenched his fist. Teeth gritting, his thoughts swirled to the first real battle they'd fought in Konoha; to his brother. Everything he'd done up until now; Zabuza, learning the Chidori, fighting and defending Konoha twice, he'd realized means nothing.
Across the branch, Sakura knelt, placing her palm on the branch below. She didn't know what to think of the situation. Her blood was running cold but ran nonetheless. While the humidity was warm, like a damp breath of air, her skin had never felt so frozen. The sweat cascaded down her back, darkening her clothing in its moisture. She'd never seen Jiraiya so angry before; she'd never seen him act so quickly before and she never thought she'd see the sight of blood so soon after the Fall. The sparks flying off clashing blades and the song the screeching metal made, were sights and sounds that haunted her.
But next to her, Naruto's right arm had begun to twitch, shaking with a deep resonating vibration. He ignored it, doing his best to look strong for his friends and team. Gripping the handle of his kunai sword, the growing shake had been halted just enough. Releasing a soft sigh, he relented once the muscles ceased. He turned back, cerulean eyes glaring into the distant conflict. Fire shot into the sky, lightning burst through trees and the earth itself rose as golems and walls. While the genin of Team Seven had fled the scene, per Jiraiya's orders, the three couldn't help but wait to see the results. After all, Jiraiya was their sensei for the time being, and it was he that told them to flee when the Foundation ANBU arrived.
Sasuke growled as he too turned to the explosive battle behind them. The Uchiha's tri-tomoe Sharingan had already awoken, spinning wildly. He had half a mind to run back there, kunai and chidori ready and activated. He'd already lost so much in his life, he wasn't about to lose another teacher. But there were just so many ANBU. Almost ten had arrived on the scene and surrounded them, tanto drawn and ninjutsu already activated. He hadn't seen a buildup of ANBU that large since the Konoha Crush.
Naruto drew his kunai sword, shaking with anger and rage. His whisker marks had darkened gaining a wilder appearance. His hair had fallen, unkempt and sticky. But his once cerulean eyes had darkened and bled into a bright vicious red. His canine teeth had extended poking from underneath his upper lip.
"Sasuke. Sakura." Naruto spoke, voice raspy. "We have to go now."
"You got it." Sasuke responded. "But what about Jiraiya-sama?"
"Sensei will be fine." The blond said in an almost shaky voice. Even he had to admit, despite the Sannin and his world-renowned skills, fighting that many ANBU would still be suicide. Confidence and ability were different than confidence in ability. Naruto would learn the hard truth sometimes but thankfully, he didn't have to take long to let the message stick. Jiraiya was risking himself to help he and the rest of Team 7 escape from the reaches of Danzo and his Foundation forces.
But before fear could continue to hold and mold him to its will, he paused. Jiraiya was far beyond just a Shinobi that fought impossible odds and won; he was more than just a legendary warrior and writer; he was all of that and then some. He created and ran the largest spy network in the entirety of the Five Great Nations. With men sprawling from the most remote and mountainous regions of Tsuchi no Kuni to the drowning depths and isolated archipelagos of Mizu no Kuni. All the information and the hype everyone held for the old, white haired geezer must have been lies if he couldn't handle such a meager challenge. Jiraiya would definitely have tricks up his sleeves to last him days if not weeks.
The fact that the old man knew so much about all the inner workings, the oil that greased the Konoha Military Machine, to the dark crevices in the creases and fine print, had begun to fill the blond with much needed confidence. Jiraiya wouldn't lose to these chumps. It would be a hoot if the ANBU managed to defeat a man who probably knew more about them than they knew about themselves. Such knowledge wouldn't be thrown away to be useless in the dark unrefined recesses of the mind. The old man was many things; a pervert, a genius, a legend; but he was sure as hell never regarded as a wastrel. He used every bit of information he could get his hands on, even the bits that seemed unimportant. Naruto did stalk the man a few times, thanks to Ahri's special training.
That attention to detail will solidify his victory. The slightest hair out of place, the smallest blink too soon; the outline of a taut nipple a hundred feet away; Jiraiya would know and use that information to build his next set of steps in the ever changing and ever dynamic plan. These ANBU were methodical, vicious and cruel. With each strike bringing nothing but savagery and brutality. They weren't reckless, nor were they wild in their attacks. They were beyond skilled, far more skilled than most of the Shinobi Naruto had killed during the Konoha Crush. They beat him and his friends to the ground, fully intend to shove their flat headed tanto knives into the three children.
Jiraiya can beat them; Jiraiya knows how to beat them.
"I never thought I'd be agreeing with you on the point." Ahri's voice sounded for the first time in a while.
Same. Naruto sighed. I didn't think it would be possible. Jiraiya-sensei gets on your nerves, doesn't he?
"Whatever! You know where to go, yes?" Ahri asked caringly. "Tell Sasuke to lead us to where we need to be."
"Hey, Sasuke, get in front of Sakura and I. You're the one who can lead us to where we need to go."
But before Sasuke could even grunt a response, a great explosion of fire and wind rocked the horizon behind the three. A beautiful and magnificent plume of red and orange rose into the sky, almost evaporating the rain and the darkened clouds. Sasuke froze in his steps, hand shaking against the hilt of his sheathed blade. His Sharingan eyes shook in his eye sockets. Whatever happened was far beyond any of them. Running a hand through his spiked hair, his shoulders fell slack at the sudden hand on his shoulder.
"Sasuke…are you alright?" Naruto worried. "We have to go!"
Naruto turned his head back to find the once green and brown beauty of the lush forest to be blackened with ash and clouds of growing soot. The flames spread jumping from tree to tree and eating at the away at the foliage of the forest floor. But one thing was for certain; he couldn't see Jiraiya or the Foundation agents on their tails. Groaning in frustration, he grabbed Sasuke and Sakura, pulling them close to his body.
Before the two, his cerulean eyes bled into crimson. His pupils elongated into slits. His whisker marks turned jagged and defined, darkening like deep black gashes in his cheeks. With chakra and strength burning in his arms and legs, he and his team burst through the forest canopy once again, breaking twigs and rustling leaves through the rushing winds. Behind him a small trail of blood red charka residue grew in his wake.
"Naruto." Ahri's voice echoed in his mind. "Watch yourself. There are many things that could lead to failure right now. Once you land, cancel your channeling of my chakra to conserve it for later. I don't believe for a second that we're done here. Our powers may have doubled since we first met, it still won't be enough against men who're significantly more skilled than you. Trust me, we need to get to the hideout that Sasuke spoke of."
"Sasuke…I'm probably dumb for asking this but did you tell everyone else where to go?"
"Of course!" The Uchiha dashed ahead. "Who do you think brought it up in the first place dobe!"
"Naruto!"
"By the gods; Naruto!"
"He's here!"
"I knew it wasn't the end for you!"
"YOSH! Naruto-kun!"
Silence.
Naruto stood in the midst of his comrades and friends, each one beaming smiles and even tears in their eyes. Each one grabbed for him, reaching in for a hug, almost desperate. But it all calmed down when a dark aura grabbed the crowd freezing them in their steps. Almost as if they were struggling, their arms creaked to their sides. Parting ways, the dark aura was revealed to be none other than Shikamaru Nara with his shadow possession activated. Each one of the genin present backed away revealing the young shinobi with his chunin flak jacket with a hand behind his head and a hand behind him.
"Seems you leave yours open." Shika said with a lazy look on his face. "The flak jacket works to its highest potential when it's closed, baka."
The blond looked down, hands gripping the zipper and jacket with a raised brow. But before he could look up and respond, Shikamaru wrapped his arms around his shoulders, quickly pulling the blond into a hug. If Naruto wasn't so surprised, he could have heard the Nara sniffling.
"Damn it Naruto…" He hugged tighter. "I thought we'd lose you…but shit…here you are!"
The two pulled away with beaming smiles on their faces. "I'm not dying any time soon all of you! Not until I become Hokage!"
Suddenly, almost like the floodgates had been opened, the genin rushed forward once again, crying and cheering him on. Their hands clapped onto his back, and some threw their arms over his shoulders to pull him through the camp. But as the genin ran off with the blond in the epicenter of their small parade, jōnin and chunin loyal to the rebels after the Fall, watched with small smiles spread on their faces.
At the rear of the cheering children and heroes, two girls watched with small smiles. One held her arm with hot cheeks and the other seemed like a proud woman. The blond pulled her pinkette friend close with a near teary eyed smile, whispered softly.
"I told you he'd be shouting about becoming Hokage again…"
And with that, the pair rushed forward to join their friends. But as the genin disappeared into the camp, bursting over crates and barrels, the remaining shinobi went back to work. Fires were put out and tents were packed up. Men and women walked back and forth through the tent, grabbing their teams and clansmen and clanswomen preparing for the inevitable move into wherever Sasuke had planned for them. But before the children could begin to ask questions and start a wild party in the forest clearing, a man grabbed the blond haired Uzumaki and his dark haired Uchiha friend from the fray.
Aside from the collective gasp and sighs coming from kunoichi and a few sheathing blades and sharpening kunai knives, all sound had disappeared. Cloth rustled and the children present almost fell to their knees. Naruto could see their eyes mixed with both fear and respect, almost in perfect proportions. Never had he seen such glimmering amorous emotion beam in their eyes. He could swear Ino and Tenten were blushing. Sakura was holding back a giggle and a few of the kunoichi, chunin and jōnin stood just behind the group of genin with what he swears were hearts in their eyes.
The Uzumaki and young Uchiha both whipped their heads back to see none other than Uchiha Itachi. Upon his face was a simple, emotionless thin line for lips. His eyes were dark, bearing nothing, not even the glittering reflection of the sun's rays. Now that Naruto was looking at him without his mind racing back and forth from information overload, Itachi had killer eyelashes. He was taller, almost two whole feet taller than he and Sasuke were. Now, for a moment, he could have sworn he heard Ahri licking her lips.
"Naruto." Itachi spoke, getting his attention. "Now is not the time to have a celebration. While you haven't seen your friends, or been able to move or walk for over two weeks, we have a lot of plans to make. Sasuke, I need you to open the gates."
"Gates?" Naruto looked in confusion. "I don't see any gates."
For a moment, the old Sasuke returned. "Just wait and see, dobe."
There was a soft spike of chakra coming from the last two Uchiha. Within seconds, their sharingan glowed a menacing crimson, shooting off a powerful wave towards the thick and overgrown shrubbery. Almost like snails, the vines, branches and bushes bent back, withering away. Behind the foliage, a large and ever extending dirt pathway was revealed, cutting through the forest. Shinobi gasped and a few jōnin jumped from their seats on crates and weapon racks.
"We checked the entire forest!" One shouted in awe.
Another one walked up to the pair of Uchiha. "There was no dirt path! We came from that direction!"
Itachi smiled softly before making a simple move of his hands. "Never underestimate the power of Uchiha genjutsu."
Naruto stood with his arms crossed over his chest. Gone was his obnoxious orange and blue jumpsuit. Now it was replaced with a thick, near skin tight black jumpsuit top with baggy pants. The difference between his original jumpsuit – aside from the obvious coloration – upon closer inspection, instead of simple sewing patterns, the cloth and elastic material was imbued with a plethora steel hexagonal shinobi plate, almost invisible to the naked eye. Thanks to fuinjutsu and very precise measurements, honors belong to a few of the Hyuuga present, each hexagon was an individual piece of armor that dipped into the center, creating a near hollow core with raised edges.
With each raised edge, kunai and swords would have a hard time slashing and cutting against the jumpsuit. The dips were to disperse each lunge and successful stab that manages to connect with his body. Given his new aptitude for kenjutsu and all manners of swordplay, in the last two weeks of being at the Uchiha Hideout, Tenten and a few jōnin and loyal ANBU had given him and Sasuke many pointers and a few training sessions in preparation. Now at most recent count, Naruto had almost two thousand of these near microscopic armor plates. Thanks to his growing knowledge of fuinjutsu, weight was inconsequential while at the same time, not once defeating the purpose of the metal plates.
Eyes trailing below, he was greeted with the sight of hundreds of tents wrapping around the lower terraces. There were hundreds if not thousands of them, spreading in every direction around the base of the Uchiha Hideout; a large jutting castle in the middle of a great mountain range, sitting on a terraced plateau. Now that he thought of it, the hideout was literally carved from the plateau itself. It was a remarkable thing, impervious, impossible to find without the Sharingan and best of all, massive. There were easily a thousand refugees and shinobi gathered within the base and in the growing camp at the lower terraces.
Behind him, in the Grand Hall of the hideout, the well-known jōnin and clan heads were gathered around a large three-dimensional war map of the Elemental Nations, displaying forests, mountains, caverns, caves, roads and even rivers and lakes in pure detail. One of the perks apparently of the Sharingan was photographic memory. The map was ancient and probably carved by Sasuke and Itachi's ancestors. After all, there were no denoting areas displaying where the hidden villages or the borders of the Land of Fire were. All he saw were arbitrary lines drawn along rivers and mountain ranges rising and dipping through and from the war table surface.
Itachi stood at the head of the table with Shikaku, Inoichi, Asuma and Chōza standing beside one another along the length of the table. Sadly, Kakashi was nowhere to be found and not a word from the clan heads or comrades of what happened to the Copy-Cat shinobi. Turning his head from the gathered commanders, his cerulean eyes trailed below to the trees being cut and removed from the scenery to build palisades and impromptu traps and defenses. While shinobi were resourceful and incredibly smart, he doubted their ability to create walls tall enough, strong enough and thick enough to hold back the Foundation agents already on everyone's asses.
But of course, the Uzumaki wasn't someone who'd destroy their hopes and dreams. If building palisades and wooden walls brings everyone at least a small sense of peace of mind, then he was willing to take that small chance and work it to the end. Resting his palms against the railing of the balcony he populated his mind spun. Releasing his held breath, he ran a hand through his hair, struggling with the inner battle within himself. Ahri was silent, too busy plotting their next move and not once has he seen Jiraiya in the forests, bath house or anywhere on base.
If he already didn't have so much on his place, Naruto was absolutely certain there was something waiting to blow. Hyuuga were present, but not every Hyuuga. Hinata was on base, somewhere, but Neji wasn't seen. The rest of his team was apprehensive to speak of what happened to the prodigy adding more mystery to the already ambiguous air resting on his comrades and friends. But of course, he'd learned of what happened to Sakura in great detail not too long before. It broke his heart and as time went and the story progressed, his romantic view of the pinkette disappeared and was replaced with something akin to a brotherly love – he wanted to protect her.
He clenched the railing, feeling chakra rush to his palms and fingers, bending the steel pipe to his grip. His teeth barred for a moment feeling his canine teeth elongate beyond his lips. Winds picked up, causing the trees and natures foliage to sing and rustle. Slowly but surely, his cerulean eyes bled into crimson, glowing with a soft dark hue. Taking labored and deep breaths to calm down, Ahri's chakra disappeared and his features reverted to normal. He released the railing, deadpanning at the imprints of his fingers. He backed away from the balcony, eyes watching the setting sun with slight apprehension. There was a feeling in his stomach that wouldn't go away, and no, it was not Ahri.
Beyond the forests and mountains, over rivers and deeper than lakes, there was a man that stood with two purple arms hanging limp at his sides. He was hunched over, each moment spent standing, was in suffering. Every breath he made and even the smallest move was insurmountable in pain. His thin, slithering eyes glowed like soft burning embers. Upon his head, long and thin yet flowing black hair fell to his mid back, dancing in the soft breeze rushing from the many generators and air conditioning vents. He shouldn't be standing or plotting or anything; he should be in bed, wrapped in bandages and recovering from the failed invasion of Konoha.
But even at Kabuto's behest, Orochimaru ignored the medic's request and commands. He had vengeance to complete and allies to appease. Danzo was his ally in the invasion and now, only one half of the deal had been completed. The Shimura slime had gained the Hokage hat and control of the village, but in his uprising and subsequent destruction of the village to a scale that not even the Konoha Crush had created, both of his test subjects had escaped and were nowhere to be found. Now that Jiraiya had his hands on the two boys, Orochimaru knew it would only be a matter of time before the white-haired moron would break the algorithms.
He stood before his secret weapon, eyeing the tube of healing water. A teenage man was within the glass tank with tubes inserted into his body and torso at various places. Near him, more tubes were filled with the same healing water and fetuses. Orochimaru felt his smile grow slightly at the success of his first major experiment but the smile only spread so far before falling down to thin line of indifference. This man was simply designated as Shin. A teen born with a strange kekkei genkai that allowed him to use and safely use any other bloodline or kekkei genkai, should he have the DNA of said shinobi. Orochimaru watched the many glass tanks and tubes glow from the soft lights within.
At most, there were no more than eighty tanks, but only four of the tanks had full grown teens as well. They had similar body structure, similar muscle mass, but the best feature, these clones were lacking the debilitating cancer that the original had contracted. Originally, Orochimaru saved him a few years ago, after failing to capture Uchiha Itachi for his Sharingan. But like Kimimaro, who had cancer as well, Shin was no longer suitable to be the snake's next host. Thankfully, also like Kimimaro, Shin was too useful to simply throw away. With a kekkei genkai as precious and rare as his, it would be wasteful to dispose of him.
And Orochimaru never wasted anything.
Walking closer to the glass tank, the teen looked at ease and harmony with himself and his current status. But Orochimaru knew better. The cancer he had was new and there were no known medications or processes to help ease his suffering. Kabuto, despite all he knew and researched couldn't come up with anything. Books, scrolls and even the darker side of fuinjutsu was dabbled, but nothing was found to save Shin aside from doing something that seemed nothing more than pipe-dream. But in a last-ditch effort, just some time before the Konoha Crush, Orochimaru instructed Kabuto to remove Shin's teeth and begin to extract DNA samples and begin to cultivate them within the glass tanks.
From each major tooth, tanks were filled with healing water that was illegally obtained from Tonika Village, and The Hole. Orochimaru had his ways in obtaining what he needed and the water from The Hole was known for accelerating cell regrowth. If given enough time, the snake was certain the genetic sample could be grown into new life. It was then that the old Sannin found the truth and a new perfect plaything. While he wanted to wait to use Shin for anything more than a tool to grow and learn from, Danzo seizing control so soon and so successfully, Orochimaru had no choice but to speed his plans forward.
It made no difference in the end. Orochimaru would get more information, more ninjutsu and most of all, he will eventually get the Sharingan eyes that were harvested after the Uchiha Massacre. Some were taken by an unknown force, others were taken by his dearest ally, Shimura Danzo. Lucky or divine providence, the Sharingan rejected all the Foundation agents Danzo had tried to place them into. Out of the fifteen pairs of Sharingan eyes, not a single one accepted the new host. Spies in the Foundation were adamant that this was the truth. If their word was anything to be trusted (even after thorough poisoning, torturing and mind probing) this was the most perfect scenario the man could even imagine. There were thirty Sharingan eyes floating around in glass tanks somewhere in Konoha, most likely somewhere close to Danzo.
Gritting his teeth, he turned from the sleeping Shin. Orochimaru's hair fell to cover his face from sight, shadowed in the harsh darkness of the cavernous hideout. If Sasuke and Naruto were in Jiraiya's hands, he would need a way to counteract them and think of how to get them back into his basket of playthings. He was prideful and his ego stood taller than mountains, but he was humble enough to accept and acknowledge when he'd made a mistake. And it was a dire mistake. He trusted too much on what little knowledge he had on both children, relying on his ability to play with their emotions. As traumatized and depressed both boys happened to be, he never took into consideration their friendship. It was something that completely went over his head.
Reports always spoke of how the Uchiha and Uzumaki were against each other right from the get-go. Competing, arguing and even fighting one another, and that was before the Curse Mark. Now that he'd branded both of them, the amount of power the two could gain together would be insurmountable. If the snake could lift his arms, he was certain he'd punch something. Turning his back to the walls, he collapsed against it, sliding to the floor below. There had to be something. His slithering eyes trailed back to the glowing tank holding the young Shin and all of his sudden potential. Tanks filled with other Shin clones glowed as well, shrouded in a soft cloud of steam and mist.
Perfect acceptance, genetic, organic or otherwise… Orochimaru stopped for a moment. Perfect acceptance…
"Kabuto!" Orochimaru hissed.
A series of footsteps and shouts were heard. Suddenly, the door beside him shot open revealing the shinobi in question with a pair of Sound jōnin at his flanks. Immediately, Kabuto's eyes shot from his head and began to shout orders. The two jōnin dropped to their knees and carefully lifted Orochimaru to his feet, apologizing and keeping their heads low. He hissed, his glare deepening as his numb – yet burning – arms swung about. While his Sound shinobi were efficient, they lacked a finesse that made transporting him more difficult than it ever has to be.
"Lord Orochimaru." Kabuto bowed his head in reverence. "What have I said about travelling about the base?"
"You have said nothing that I would listen to." Orochimaru hissed. "Gather your best men and remove the grown Shin clones from their tanks. The original needs to rest."
"What are you intending to do?"
"I intend to build an army." Orochimaru smiled softly.
"Orochimaru-sama!" Kabuto looked at him in confusion. "Why do we need an army?"
Orochimaru raised a brow at the medic ninja. "You must underestimate the power of the Kyuubi and the Cursed Seal of Heaven. Not only that but there are now two Cursed Seal of Heaven users that have incredible power at their disposal. If or when given enough time to recuperate, all of the Sound Five members would be useless against the two of them. Even I would be useless…"
"A miscalculation on my part, but I will fix this mistake in the best way."
Naruto stood before Ahri, arm hanging at his side. He breathed heavily, steam flowing off his now burned arm. But his strength was waning, he collapsed to the floor, splashing his knee as he clashed. His head hung down, blond hair falling to cover his bruised face. After all he'd learned and trained for, Ahri still tossed him around like a small doll. Maybe it was his fault for getting too cocky and confident with his abilities and asking, practically begging, Ahri to give him more of a challenge. Oh, how stupid he'd been.
It didn't take long for him to realize in the fight that the fox had upped her ante and began to show more unknown techniques and fighting style. If Naruto was going to be honest, she was almost as fast as Orochimaru was in the Forest of Death when it came to dispatching him in one-on-one combat. The fist fight felt more like Gaara against Lee. He stood there looking like an idiot as she zipped and zoomed past him, punching, kicking and even slapping the absolute shit out of him with her nine ever swishing tails of definite death. He was certain he'd never look at those fluffy, cuddly tools of death the same ever again. A part of him felt a great shudder rip through his core and spine as he gripped his still steaming arm.
To think I sleep on those things every night!
"Well…" Ahri smirked. "You did beg me to go tougher on you. Beginning to regret that decision?"
Naruto glared, raising his head up in defiance. "You may be a great fox spirit with many, many, many years of experience, but I swear! I will kick your ass some day!"
"That someday not being any day soon, Dong-saeng." Ahri giggled. "Again! Hint, use your shadow clones in conjunction with your attacks!"
Bursting forward, a pair of clones jumped at the women, their fists ready and kicks already cocked back. She bent away, dodging the first barrage, and even managed to weave between the second. Whipping one of her tails around, she popped one immediately leaving behind a kunai with an explosive tag strapped to the handle. Smirking at his strategy, she sped through a quick series of hand seals, all the while jumping away to create distance between herself and her blond assailant.
But instead of a great orange and yellow explosion that was certain to tear the mindscape asunder, a massive plume of smoke rushed out covering her container within. Channeling chakra to her lungs, wind chakra was born as it spun and gathered within her reserves. Landing on a bird hand seal, she took a deep breath, merging the winds with her chakra. The effects were immediate, she released her jutsu, sending forward like an explosive hurricane, blowing the smoke and the debris in every direction, clearing the battlefield. It was so powerful, even water had vanished, taking to the air as mist and steam.
She narrowed her blood-red eyes, scanning the mindscape. Naruto was gone and she sensed a few of his shadow clones popping away in the wake of her attack. Stepping forward, as carefully as possible, the purple haired Gumiho ducked, dodging a large fuma shuriken at just the right moment. Almost in slow motion, she whipped her right hand out, generating a gathering point just a few inches off the open palm. Suddenly, chakra and spiritual energy coalesced at the central point, spinning and rotating within until it exploded into an Orb of Deception. Still in slow motion, she watched the fuma shuriken pop into smoke to reveal a Naruto clone with a kunai in his hand, and just above her, Naruto himself was falling from the air with his sword in hand.
Snapping her arm around, the Orb shot out for the clone. Using sleight of hand, she channeled chakra from her hand to an explosive tag, using a technique that Minato had learned from Kushina's mother's sealing books. The explosive seal had transferred to her flesh, giving her more versatility with the fuinjutsu. Slapping her hand upon the floor, she backed away just in time to dodge the incoming Naruto. Dodging and weaving his almost average sword swings and strikes – compared to her master – she jumped away, slapping him in the face with her tails. He stumbled, missing the explosive seal hidden under the water.
Thankfully, the Orb of Deception smashed into his clone, stealing the spiritual energy, immediately dispersing it. She jumped away, changing the Orb's return path, all the while dodging a flurry of kunai and shuriken. But just as she'd hoped, the Orb burst through Naruto's flesh, absorbing whatever chakra he'd built up to use in a ninjutsu he was charging. He stumbled weakly, mind spinning and vision growing hazy, he didn't look where he stepped.
The resulting explosion sent him flying away, jumpsuit ripped down the middle and pants shredded from the ankle to his knees with a few rough patches along the hips and mid-thigh. He clashed with the watery floor, kicking up a large cloud of steam and mist. He coughed heavily, almost numb to the world around him. He'd lost feeling in his arms and legs and his core was on literal fire. How he didn't see an explosive tag was beyond him, but he had a feeling that what happened was just another one of Ahri's secret tricks that she kept in her sleeves. Probable answer too, given the woman had incredibly large sleeves – and they didn't even cover her shoulders!
As he coughed out his defeat, he carefully opened one cerulean eye to meet with her crimson. "Fine…you win…again…"
"You cannot beat a master; at least not yet, Dong-saeng." She knelt down to meet him face to face.
She pulled him to his feet, but before he could even fancy the thought of standing, he collapsed into her arms, knees like jelly. His hands had fallen wherever, grabbing whatever. One hand fell to her waist, the other fell a little higher. They stood like that, in silence and honest disbelief – more so her. The boy had fallen asleep with his head between her breasts, a hand on one of them and the other resting against her bare thigh. Heat rushed to her cheeks garnering a soft growl from her thick, yet pursed lips. Laughing softly to herself, she bent her head down to kiss his cheek, ever so softly, so as to make sure she didn't wake him.
She could only imagine what screams of surprise would come from his mouth.
Orochimaru walked with the Sound Four in tow. Each one of them slightly healed from the Konoha Crush and the subsequent battles and skirmishes they had with Sand patrols throughout the border between the Land of Fire and the Land of Wind. Each one was exhausted but each one was ready to spill blood at a moment's notice. They followed their crippled lord and despite each one wanting to strike out against their owner like angry slaves; they knew they were nothing but pets for the Sannin. And Orochimaru was never too shy to beat a dog to make it comply.
Even in his weakened state, they watched him strike down a jōnin and his team of chunin for failing to protect one of his bases in the Land of Wind. How vicious he was, far more vicious than when he did have his arms. It terrified the four of them, despite how loyal they are. A part of them knew that it would only be a matter of time before he tossed them aside like broken toys, but there was that sliver of hope in their black hearts that they were useful to Orochimaru. Death would be a godsend for others under the Snake's employ, but as his most trusted guards and most useful operatives, they knew that he'd make their deaths as painful as possible to make their last moments nothing but unadulterated suffering.
No. They collectively shook their heads, memories of their old lives before falling into Orochimaru's employ flashed into their minds. The same thoughts rushed through their heads as they walked through the ever-winding halls of the hideout. It was an almost certainty that they were going to die at his hands at this point. He was never a kind leader but one that gave you what you wanted to hear as long as you gave him what he wanted to see – and what he wanted was power and strength. They knew they weren't the best and even with the Level Two Curse Marks already well underway to being mastered onto the yet undiscovered Level Three. They didn't know if he'd already found a new host or even stronger toys to break and mold into an image he found fit.
Never being much of a talker, Orochimaru walked forward in silence, sandals being the only sound he made. His mouther never once opened but he knew what they thought. Their fear gave him sustenance. Their terror filled him with more pride than them being successful Curse Mark recipients. As they should know by now, a pet should know its place at the side of the owner, or behind the owner – depending on their behavior. There was no point in differentiating slave from pet, one was somehow evil and the other was adored and preferred. He wouldn't dare to look back, no matter how hilarious their faces must have been.
Stopping mid-step, his pets stopped as well, their breaths held in their lungs. Sighing to himself he continued walking, allowing the four to breathe once again. Cruelty and hilarity fell hand in hand if done right, after all. Orochimaru was a master at it, amusing and entertaining himself through the torment he put the Sound Four through. Sure, they weren't the smartest lot but they were incredibly strong and were incredibly close to unlocking the third level of the Curse Mark with only two more levels to go until they unlock the full potential of the seal. A part of him hoped they'd never do it because if they did, he knew there would be few beings left in the world who could even hope to defeat that kind of power.
If there was one that could hold their own with that kind of power, it would have to be Sakon and Ukon. The conjoined twins would probably stay loyal to Orochimaru and serve him well, but the rest, the pitiful lot would use their powers haphazardly and end up destroying the world the Orochimaru wanted to rule and study. Tayuya was talented but listened to no one but himself and begrudgingly, Sakon. Kidomaru cared too much about his spiders and webs, he'd more likely cover the entire continent in webs and spiders than give a rat's ass about anything with that power. And last, Orochimaru still cringes every time he looked upon the unruly sight of the burly Jirobo. His least favorite of the Sound Four, he had suspicions that the fatass probably only survived because of his large size and burly bone structure.
If he had that kind of unlimited power at his disposal, Orochimaru could only count on one hand the amount of people who could have even a sliver of chance at defeating the man. Sadly, in his current state and the severity of his debilitation, he was not on that list. But hopefully, the entire situation could be rectified and any thoughts and doubts in the backs of his lackeys and their ever so supple minds would be washed out in a bath of fire and blood. Now, if his theory was anything to merit and garnered success, he'd have little to no use of the Sound Four.
After all, why have four when you can have a thousand. Orochimaru smirked as he came to a steel door.
Within seconds, the door slid open revealing a giant atrium, the very same filled with the eighty glass tanks. Already a few of the fetuses had grown into the full-term stage and were ready to begin their development as newborn children. Orochimaru smiled at the success and the speed of which the clones were growing. And if the current clones were a success to his current hypothesis, the army he intends to have would come to fruition.
"Lord Orochimaru!" Kabuto bowed. "The test subjects have been sedated. We are awaiting your next order."
"Send your best men to all corners of the Elemental Nations and find me Senju Tsunade." Orochimaru ordered. "Tsunade will be needed if our plans are to proceed smoothly."
"Understood, Orochimaru-sama!"
A series of wisps were heard as almost twenty shinobi dashed from the atrium and out the door, leaving the Sound Four, Orochimaru and Kabuto and his plethora of medic ninja and doctors. There were consoles with glowing buttons and screens that held numbers and arbitrary measurements that for all they knew, meant nothing to begin with. But their eyes trailed back to their leader and dictator. Orochimaru walked towards the four clones strapped to the operating tables, with nothing but the white medical lights for illumination.
"I have developed a new Cursed Seal." Orochimaru spoke out to Kabuto, catching the man's attention. "It is a Cursed Seal that cannot function without its direct inverse, or else there will be chaos. I could not separate the two powers enough to create a balance without the other. I gift this clone, the Cursed Seal of Conflict."
He bent down, sinking his teeth into the bare nape of the neck. The clone winced at the pain but immediately fell slack. Once the Snake removed his teeth, a new design was revealed; a deep outline of a circle with a black tomoe within. But the tomoe had a single circle in the central bulb. Dark power rushed from the clone like a fountain but immediately calmed down, leaving the clone unharmed and vitals still stable. Kabuto's pen fell from his hand and if it weren't for his trained composure, he would have dropped his notebook.
"Now, before the body explodes, I gift this clone the power of the Cursed Seal of Peace."
Doing the same as the clone before, the clone this time, looked at peace. Not even a wince of pain was seen on the clone's face. It remained calm in its anesthetic induced sleep. He was laid peacefully into the pillows and blankets almost enjoying where he was. Suddenly, a bright white energy exploded from the clone, practically blinding everyone present in its light. But once it died down, the clone was resting like nothing had happened before and dare the Sound Four say, it even smiled in its sleep. Turning their heads to the other, the clone was frowning, almost scowling in pain.
"Kabuto, the Cursed Seal of Conflict is pure Yin chakra that I've managed to split from Yang. This clone, when he reaches physical maturity, he will have access to shadows and the darker side of ninjutsu. This clone, when he reaches physical maturity, he will have access to light and the calmer side of ninjutsu. The Sound Four are powerful but they have no way to heal after a battle, as shown by their current weakness."
Jirobo visibly scowled.
"Only a healer can heal; having nothing but destructive forces at your disposal leaves little left to use and learn from." Orochimaru spoke. "Keep Yin and Yang close, if one loses the other, chaos and imbalance of their chakra will ensue."
"Orochimaru-sama, what do we do for now?" Kabuto asked worriedly. "And what of the other clones you removed from the tanks?"
"I want them prepared for combat and given proper armament." Orochimaru ordered. "Shin is special in that each clone is a perfect replication of him, meaning, each clone also has his kekkei genkai to a Tee. Merge weapons to their flesh and they'll be able to do more than just grow and multiply. Turn these clones into living weapons. As for the rest of the clones, continue growing them and if possible accelerate the process; we lost many resources during the failed invasion, most paramount, manpower. I wish to replenish that as soon as possible."
"And when word of Tsunade is heard, you and I will head out to where ever my old teammate decided to waste her life away in."
Naruto's head was spinning, almost as if he was running at thousand miles an hour. But instead of discomfort or a stiff back like he normally would get from sleeping om the stone floors of the Uchiha Hideout, he felt nothing but the fluffiness of pillows. But these pillows were great compared to the ones he normally had; they were even warm and he swears he could hear…a…heartbeat.
With cheeks, as red as roses and burning rubies, his cerulean eyes trailed over to see that his pillows were none other than the buxom breasts that Ahri happened to have. He wanted to shout but on her fluffy white tails shot down to cover his mouth, silencing him. For a moment, he thought Ahri was awake, but her closed eyes and dopey looking expression said otherwise. He struggled to loosen himself from her vice-like grasp, but he failed miserably. Her arms were wrapped around his body, clamping him to her chest and toned abdomen. It was so tight in her embrace, he couldn't even pop the boner he knew he was growing.
Almost accepting his face, Ahri began to smack her lips and turn over to her side, bringing the terrified boy with her. Now, instead of shutting his face from talking, the tails wrapped around him and her, protecting his face from the water and floor. He wasn't entirely sure if he wanted to thank the gods or curse them for the predicament he was in. It took every ounce of his willpower (which was slowly waning with each passing moment) to not accept his fate and embrace the Gumiho back like the closet pervert he was.
Her warmth was intoxicating; her figure was carved out of porcelain; her body was probably Kurenai-sensei's dream.
But just as all hope seemed lost; a great and powerful pull was felt. Almost as if he was yanked from his mindscape, darkness disappeared and the steel walls were replaced with stone walls. Ahri was gone and he was in the real world, confused and honestly at odds with himself. He didn't know if he should be mad or glad that he was woken up. Shooting from the stone floor, he slipped his sandals on at the sound of knocking. Careful, even in friendly territory, he already had a shadow clone holding his sword in case of an assassin.
"Who is it?" Naruto called.
The voice that responded was calm. "It's Itachi. Your presence is requested in the Main hall. Sakura and Sasuke are already there."
"What's wrong?" The blond asked worriedly as he unhooked the locks. "Did something happen?"
"We finally have an idea of our next move."
Naruto slipped into his chunin vest and quickly followed after the elder Uchiha, who had now removed his cloak and donned the armor of ANBU loyal to Konoha. His katana was now strapped to his shoulder like most ANBU. His face was calmer, more serene than before and lacked the years of wear and tear as a mercenary and criminal in hiding. He was of course, a man of fewer words than his little brother, who was king broody. But Naruto couldn't help but respect the man with all his heart and felt that Itachi could even make a good Hokage. Sadly, the Hokage seat was for himself.
They walked at a steady pace, nodding their heads at the shinobi they passed by and shared very short words with those who wanted conversation. But it wasn't a long trek as they arrived in the Main Hall only to be greeted with the sound of arguing shinobi. Without saying a word, Itachi dashed forward, getting between the clan heads who were about to butt heads like rabid animals. Shikaku stood with Chōza and Inoichi with a palm to his face while Asuma did his best to hold back one of the clan heads. There were many clans that sided with Kakashi and his rebellion against Danzo, but not every clan agreed with each other.
It was to be expected; with no figure head to look up to for answers and direction, the clans fell to disarray. Some found it unfair that only the noble clans were asked and invited to the rebellion and others – the majority – did not trust the rebellion falling to the shoulders of Uchiha. Many distrusted Itachi and Sasuke, finding both to be blotches in Konoha history with many of these minor clans having lost someone to an Uchiha in the past. Tension was high in the council, almost sending the rebellion into its first schism. If they didn't find a way to merge everyone under one cause, under someone they all respected, the rebellion was as good as done.
"We are fighting for the same goals are we not?" A familiar voice sounded. "Defeat Danzo and retake Konoha, right?"
Silence was the man's response. "Who will be in power when you do take Konoha back?"
"First we'll have to retake Konoha." Asuma responded as he pried the clan head away. "Shikaku-dono is the jōnin commander and the most qualified to be the acting Hokage of Konoha until a proper candidate could be found."
"Well let me stop you there." The man walked past the members of Team Seven giving them a quick wink. "I've already fund the candidate."
Everyone froze for a moment, their eyes bulging from their heads. A few looked at the man with hope in their eyes, wondering if he was speaking of himself; after all he was regarded as one of the most successful and powerful shinobi in recent history. Jiraiya was no joke and he was beyond qualified to be Hokage. Being the student of the previous Hokage who was also the student of the ones before him, the line of succession continued on.
"And no, I'm not talking about myself." Jiraiya gave himself a moment to laugh. "I'm talking about the only one who could possibly do the job; after all, it is her heritage. I feel she just needs the right amount of persuasion to get on it."
"Jiraiya-sama…" Itachi gave the old man a look of confusion. "Are you talking about, Tsunade-sama?"
"The one and only, Itachi!" Jiraiya flashed him a beaming smile. "My network picked up her trail in the Land of Fire at Tanzaku-gai. It should be easy to find her, talk to her and convince her to come over to our side. But I also suspect that Danzo would be on our tails. So, I will be the new leader of Team Seven and take them with me. I will train them, teach them and mold them into true shinobi."
A series of gasps were heard and before long, every clan head, major or minor, and jōnin present voiced their disagreement and worry for Naruto and Sasuke and even Sakura. Calling them children in the mess of words and arguments. Jiraiya rolled his eyes and nodded at the three young teenagers motioning them to follow.
"Jiraiya-sama." Itachi called. "Keep my brothers and little sister safe. We've lost enough, it's about time we start winning."
"Finally, on the road again!" Jiraiya cried out to the skies. "Alright you three, now that we're a team I think it's safe to assume that you know what's coming next."
"I'd might as well start." Naruto sighed with a soft smile on his face. "I'm Uzumaki Naruto; I like rice, beef stew with Bok Choi and apples. I don't dislike anything, despite everything that's happened. As hard as it is to believe. And my dreams haven't changed much; I dream to be Hokage but I also want to free those bound in chains; mental or literal. There are too many of us worrying about things that don't matter in the end, while there are those who struggle daily just for the things we worry about. Chains bind us all y'know – someday I'll find the master key."
"I am Uchiha Sasuke." The boy started as Naruto finished. "I like tomatoes and…my family and friends." A small smile grew on Sakura and Naruto's faces. The pinkette in question walked closer to the Uchiha, which he gladly accepted her presence with a smile. "I, like Naruto, find it hard to give into hate and dislike anything, even after everything that's happened. I just feel…different about everything. My dreams…after learning the truth about Itachi…and the Uchiha…I don't know if I have one. My whole life, I believed the marvelous lie that everyone spun. It became my life and now, now that I know that everyone was a lie; life for me now…is making sure Sakura and Naruto achieve their goals. So, I guess…my dream is to make sure those close to me have only the best in life…if that makes any sense."
Jiraiya put the boy's outward introspection in his will review later folder in his mind. Finally, all ears were fixated on what Sakura had to say. "I-I'm Haruno Sakura. I like jelly and being with my friends. I…"
She fell silent, almost stopping the team altogether. Her arms shook slightly as her mind grew hot with thoughts of what she liked and disliked. Her hand let go of Sasuke's arm and fell limp. Immediately, the healed flesh disappeared, flayed and bloodied with dirt and rocks imbued with the skin. Her once powerful, confident emerald eyes shrunk at the sight of her fingertips. Her breath grew heavy causing Sasuke to grab her close. Her lips quivered as tears had already begun to fall. The images of her parents faces burned into her memory with the trauma of her first real war.
"I…" She croaked in Sasuke's embrace. "I like my family…r-remembering the life they gave me, and what I took for granted. I dislike conflict and all the violence and wars…I dislike the life we've been forced into…I dislike having to fight…"
Sasuke's eyes trailed up to Naruto then jumped to Jiraiya. The group was silent watching the tears fall silently down Sakura's once pristine porcelain face. Her eyes were bloodshot, clashing with her shimmering emerald irides. She shot her arms around Sasuke, holding him as she struggled to hold herself together.
"My dream…" She said in a near whisper. "My dream is to avoid war, conflict and battle…my dream is to one day face my family without having been turned into a monster like the ones who destroyed Konoha and put them in their graves. I…"
"You don't have to say anymore, Sakura." Jiraiya spoke in a near whisper. "You three are probably the most interesting group of children I've ever had the honor of taking on as personal apprentices. We've got a ways away to go, so now that we're a good distance from the Uchiha Hideout, we can begin to learn of each other's skills."
"I can do the shadow clone technique, fire techniques and wind techniques but my arsenal is limited at the moment since I did only have a month to prepare." Naruto sighed. "I know what's called the rasengan apparently, I don't know how I made it happen, but it happened."
"Show me." Jiraiya looked at Naruto with a wary eye.
Holding out his arm without a word being spoken, great blue energy grew and coalesced into his palm. It spiraled and rotated like a whirlwind of chakra. Soon enough smaller orbs were formed around the central masterpiece before they too were stuffed into the monstrosity now spinning with at least four different rotational patterns creating a rasengan far more volatile and dangerous than the one he or Minato could make, even at their peak. With his jaw loosening and nearly falling to kiss the dirt below them, Jiraiya wiped his face and looked to Sasuke as the rasengan dissipated.
"I have a fully matured Sharingan." Sasuke started. Jiraiya nodded, giving the unspoken command to reveal it. Almost like a mirage, the dark onyx of his irides shimmered and disappeared to reveal the famous crimson irides with three tomoe surrounding the pupil in the center. "I have a large repertoire of fire techniques and the chidori."
"And what of you, Sakura?" Jiraiya stopped with the girl.
Her cheeks were pink with a hint of embarrassment. Tears gone and fear missing, it was replaced with a timid expression. She didn't have an answer to give the Sannin, nearly angering him of her inability to answer, but then it struck him. Kakashi didn't teach her a damn thing because he was too fixated on fixing Sasuke or trying to teach Naruto how not to do something. For a moment, Jiraiya shut his eyes in frustration, mind churning out insults for the Copy-Cat shinobi and his growing list of faults. If he ever saw him again, Jiraiya was certain he'd beat the ninja into the ground; being Minato's favorite student be damned.
"Alright." Jiraiya sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. "Teamwork is essential in a battle, but teamwork is nothing if there is no skill to back the teamwork up. Sakura if I were to strike Naruto in the back of the neck or somehow managed to cut Sasuke's arm to the point he couldn't use it; how would you respond? Your silence gives me your answer. While being textbook smart is useful when lost, textbooks can only teach you so much when it comes to battle."
"From what I was told by my toads and comrades who saw your fight say that your teamwork was superb. So right now, Sasuke, Naruto. The two of you will receive a shadow clone to hone and sharpen the skills you already have, while I will have one-on-one training with Sakura to bring her potential to life. A team is only as strong as its weakest member. Now, it will take us a maximum of no more than four days to reach our destination; hoping that Tsunade doesn't leave to gamble her life away somewhere else."
"Y'know sensei." Naruto piped. "You have some weird friends."
"Go!"
Naruto and Sasuke dashed forward, swords in their hands. Balls of fire rushed at the pair like bullets, whizzing through the air. Leaves that fell from the trees were engulfed in their great wake of dancing flame. But the boys zig-zagged, swinging their swords with a near-professional grace. Both boys were denied using anything but their current perceptive abilities. No Sharingan, no chakra waves to sense when or where the airborne infernos were head.
Their blades sliced through the incoming projectiles as they weaved between each other, making sure not to his one another by accident. At the speed they were going at Jiraiya was genuinely worried for them, but inside, he had no fear. Their abilities were growing at a steady rate and with the team as a whole, learning skills were incredibly high for children their age. While they were no Nara, they learned and retained information like sponges.
Naruto jumped, an arm swinging out to grab Sasuke by the shoulder. Shifting his weight ever so slightly, he swung his blade around, slicing an incoming fireball in half, covering Sasuke's view in fire. Shutting his eyes for just a moment brought the downfall. He was struck in his chest with the fireball, exploding on impact. He stumbled, breaking Naruto's grip and strategy. Immediately, the pair fell to the dirt covered in burn marks and dark burn spots on their clothes. With Naruto on top of him, the pair groaned in pain as the hit did more than just disorient the two.
"Sasuke." Jiraiya's face began to form from the groggy darkness. "You need to remember to not close your eyes, no matter how worried you might be for your eyes. The battlefield will change in an instant and the moment your eyes are no longer open to take in the sides and colors, your senses – as they are now – are not enough to pick up the slack."
"Yes, sensei." Sasuke groaned.
"Naruto." Jiraiya lifted the boy from off of his teammate. "You need to be more flexible. The reason why your maneuver didn't go as successfully as you'd planned; you're moving too heavily. To weave between attacks and defend from them at the same time requires instant maneuverability. When you're moving like a rock against coming waves, the waves will crash and beat against you. Be like driftwood and move with the flow, that way, instead of having the battle weigh upon you, you direct the weight away from you."
"So, Sakura." Jiraiya called to the pinkette sitting on a rock. She had a notepad in her hand with a pencil in the other. "What would you say of their movements?"
"They're as swift as you'd honestly expect from chunin leveled shinobi." She smiled. "And despite Sasuke and Naruto not using any of their perception enhancing abilities, they managed to predict and catch most of the fireballs, save for two that passed by them and the remaining six when Sasuke got hit. Their teamwork and synchronization was on par with chunin leveled shinobi, from what I can gather. I'd rate this training session a seven out of ten."
"Oh, Sakura!" Sasuke groaned out. "Now you're being cruel. Ever since Jiraiya-sensei had you examine our fights, you've become such a cynical jerk!"
"I know right!" Naruto added. "It's almost as if you can't be pleased! Why don't you jump in and spar us!"
"No thank you." Sakura rolled her eyes and walked up to their sensei with a growing smirk, the first genuine smile in a while.
"Alrighty, kiddos." Jiraiya stretched and turned his eyes towards the walls towering over the tree line. "Tanzaku-gai is just down the road. One of my toads has told me that we'll find Tsunade in the bar with blue banners. But be careful. My toad said that he saw what looked like Foundation ANBU lurking the crowds populating the streets and alleyways."
The three children paled at the news. "H-How many?" Sakura croaked.
"He wasn't sure." Jiraiya shook his head. "Two, maybe at the most, five."
"F-Five?" Sasuke ran a hand through his black hair, finding the follicles thick with sweat already.
Naruto was about to speak but immediately clenched his teeth, feeling a deep and empty burning feeling coming from his stomach. He winced as the fire and heat grew in strength, burning through his flesh. While he was in pain on the outside, his mindscape was a different story.
Ahri watched with fear as snakes began to slither from the cursed seal floating where the gate used to be. Like abhorrent abominations, they slithered about, splashing into the water, spreading their filth through, poisoning the mindscape. They carried a scent, a powerful stench that reeked of death and decay. While Ahri may have defeated the main snake when she broke through the cage to save her loveable idiot; the snakes weren't done. She could sense their intentions. But just as she prepared to strike a spike in chakra similar to the chakra used in the snakes was sensed from the outside world.
Sasuke had fallen to the dirt, forehead kissing the ground. Sweat had begun to rush from his pores as the Cursed Seal began to pulsate with a cold, yet burning sensation. Images were gone but the pain he received seemingly returned tenfold.
Jiraiya rushed into action, speeding through hand seals, fuinjutsu calligraphy shot from his hands and into the shoulder of Sasuke and the abdomen of Naruto, spreading around their bodies and the epicenter of their discomfort. Their hissing and grunts of pain were quickly replaced with soft heaving breaths as their bodies shuddered in the shadow of that incredible pain. Taking their final struggling breaths, the two rose to sit and face their sensei with fire in their eyes.
He's here.
"Naruto." Ahri responded, her claws extended and eyebrows furrowed. "Keep resisting the will of Orochimaru. His snakes respond to moments of weakness; another moment where you forget yourself and what you have, I might not be able to hold them off without Jiraiya. And this goes without saying; the old hermit won't be with us all the time. There'll be no stopping the Cursed Seal from taking you."
Got it.
"Orochimaru…" Sasuke breathed. "He's here. The Cursed Mark just turned tight and gave me an image of where he was."
"If you can see where he is, I can only assume he sees where you are." Jiraiya frowned. "This isn't good, but we need to get moving and find Tsunade."
I am so sorry for all the POV change, but I felt it was necessary
writing all the talking and political stuff was too much; even for me
now for the good stuff:
Shin is a character in this and I have plans for him because holy
shitcakes; Kishimoto literally created a canon character that's straight up
something out of my deepest dreams for Naruto fanfiction and I intend to use him
but seeing as how he's being used so early in the story, his views and characterization
will be significantly different than from what the Naruto gaiden story portrayed.
Also, in regards to the whole Cursed Seal thing; Shin is known for being able to accept
any and everything and add it to his genetic makeup which is totally freaky and awesome
Why there are two different Cursed Marks; I was struck with the revelation that
Earth is the inverse of Heaven
Can't have too much of the same thing or else I'd be pumping the
mantra of fanfic writers; if it ain't broke, rehash and reuse it like a motherfucker
So I created the Conflict and Peace Cursed Seals
In a way they work in conjunction with one another. If merged together
what basically happens is that they become Juugo and become psycho rage monsters
That is an obvious no-no for Orochimaru - so he split the chakra in two.
So no, the natural energy within the other Cursed Marks is not present within
the individual Cursed Marks; only together can their insane power be tamed and used properly
Think of it being a more refined version of the Cursed Marks I described were used by
the Sound Five and Sasuke and Naruto. While still stupidly powerful, they won't create
unstoppable rage monsters once they continue to unlock more levels
(Which there are few levels on the new curse marks, leaving them kinda weaker
than the other Cursed Seal wielders but more refined and accurate)
Oh and Ahri and Naruto keep getting into very hot situations
Her tits are huge man c'mon
Also, Please Review guys; it really helps me out :D
Next Chapter: The gang arrives in Tanzaku Gai - the blonde bimbo awaits.
But throw in Orochimaru, an angry old man with ambitions as high as the heavens
and a village full of angry shinobi and kunoichi just itching to get even
the Boy had better release his Fox soon because shit's gonna get hairy quick.
Ja ne!
gottahavekyuubi
