Thank you for the support. I really appreciate it.
I'm posting this chapter earlier than planned as a special thanks to all my readers for helping this story cross the 1K review milestone. It took longer than I expected but somehow it's fitting we reach it at this point.
Music Recommendation: Naruto Shippuden - Yogensha [Extended] (Available on Youtube)
Chapter 30
World of Lies
(Land of Fire)
Mangetsu carefully walked through the dense forests of the Land of Fire, even if he was surrounded by his fellow swordsmen and the rest of the 501st- he still didn't want to let his guard down for a second. Certainly not after they had lost 30 of their men in that ambush at Nagi Island two days ago.
They had survived the conflict when the enemy had mysteriously vanished making Mangetsu and his comrades believe that there was an ulterior motive behind the attack, one that wasn't known to them.
That incident had also led to another disturbing outcome.
Their once calm and reliable General had barely spoken more than a few necessary orders ever since they left Nagi Island. Even when the linked up with their escort group from Konoha led by Hiro Hyuga-the head of the prestigious clan, the blonde had merely exchanged a simple nod and a brief greeting before asking the man to hurry up in escorting them to the Leaf.
All the while he had never once spoken to Tobirama and had actually gone to great lengths to maintain a distance from the Senju whereas previously they both were on friendly terms.
"Something's not right" he whispered,
"Keep quiet. Whatever it is, the General doesn't want us to know" warned Haku, having personally witnessed some of that wrath not very long ago.
"We could be walking into a trap" he suggested, earning a glare from his childhood friend.
"Shut your conspiracy theories. Konoha needs allies just like we do" denied Haku,
"Treachery is a shinobi's main weapon, Haku. We are not the Samurai" warned Kisame with a crooked smile,
"He's right. All bets are off if the tree huggers try something funny" promised Ameyuri with a grin,
"That's more like it. My blade's been itching for some fun" said Zabuza with an evil smile, making one of the Konoha Jounin to back away from the infamous Swordsmen.
"You do remember we are here to sign a peace treaty? Not start another war!" deadpanned Jinpachi, making Zabuza's eyebrows twitch in annoyance and the others to chuckle.
They stopped their conversation when Naruto glanced back at them and while he didn't say anything, the look in his eye made it perfectly clear that he didn't appreciate such statements being made publicly, especially when the Konoha ninjas were nearby.
The 501st was strong but they were entering the lion's den and it was better not to poke the beast.
Tobirama hesitantly glanced at his son who solemnly walked in the front, away from everyone else in their large group. He could feel the turmoil raging deep within the boy's heart ever since the events of Nagi Island. Seeing his brother like that and learning the dark truth of the past had shaken him. The fact that Uzu continued using the ones closest to him like Kushina despite his wishes in order to protect its self interest or that of its Kage had rattled his trust.
He may have told Nagato that the village still mattered over anything else, but Tobirama had seen the heartbreak in those eyes.
This was a man who lost his family, friends, his future and sacrificed even his memory for the sake of his village's future.
Only to be betrayed again and again.
His son was strong and a true ninja but there were limits to what a man could endure, it was what made the Hokage nervous. The way in which Madara seemed so interested in the boy and was so sure of the future.
It was the second instance when the traitorous Uchiha leader had met Naruto in battle and hand't killed the boy despite him choosing to oppose his plans.
"I'll have to ask Saru to arrange a meeting between him and Ino quickly" thought Tobirama seriously, his prized student currently serving as the Third Hokage would have taken care of Tobirama's daughter-in-law and unborn grandchild without fail once Sakumo brought her home.
He remembered the night when Sakumo Hatake, the leader of Konoha spies in Kiri had brought in a badly wounded Ino to him. There was another spy named Mikoto Uchiha who was also there with minor injuries. Her cover had been blown and a Kiri Hunter unit had went to capture her where Ino had intervened to save her life. A conflict had ensued in which Ino had sustained grievous injuries while trying to protect the younger girl.
Sakumo had ordered all spies from Konoha to abandon their posts and return to their homeland immediately for fear of Kiri discovering even one of them afterwards and what it could mean for the captive Tobirama held in the Mist.
Tobirama had seen how badly charred one of Ino's arms had been from the battle, they had decided to discard it and use it as evidence of her passing so that Kiri forces considered her as a martyr alongside her entire unit who perished while trying to capture an enemy spy. In that way, Naruto's cover could also be protected in the Mist.
She had been slipping in and out of consciousness repeatedly that night and had lost a lot of blood, sometimes whispering out for Naruto in her hallucinated state.
There had been traces of poison in her system courtesy of being hit by two senbon laced with poison from her unit when they discovered she had also been a Konoha spy when she tried to save Mikoto.
Sakumo and Tobirama had done their best to heal her injuries while treating the poison and Mikoto had readily given her own blood which had been a match with the blonde Yamanaka's to replenish all that she had lost.
Sakumo had then taken both the kunoichi's back to Konoha by himself all the while requesting Tobirama to assure Naruto that they would do everything in their power to protect his wife and child.
That was the last time he had seen that man and had only received a cryptic message during the subsequent weeks that Ino had been safely brought back to Konoha by Sakumo and was gradually recovering.
He had dutifully passed on this information to his son who was relieved immensely to learn of her safety. It had not only increased his faith in Tobirama and Konoha but also made him push the Mizukage for an alliance with the Leaf making the Hozuki clan head relent in the end.
As the silhouette of the Leaf Village's main entrance drew near, the Hokage dearly hoped to forge this alliance in order to bring peace to this war torn world.
He watched Hiro Hyuga march forward and greet Hiruzen Sarutobi-The Third Hokage who was standing at the main gate alongside all of Tobirama's other students such as Danzo Shimura, Koharu, Homura, and Torifu Akimichi.
The absence of Kagami Uchiha among the group hit Tobirama hard as he was reminded of his student's martyrdom in this war leaving the leadership of the Uchiha clan to his young son, Shisui who was currently fighting on the frontlines.
Even so, he maintained his composure and watched Naruto look at his men. In an instant, the remaining 501st formed a guard of honor as the blonde gestured for the remaining Seven Ninja Swordsmen to carry out their task.
They nodded dutifully at their General's Command and formally gathered around Tobirama and escorted him towards his village and its new Hokage.
The Namikaze warrior appeared in front of Hiruzen as well earning a respectful nod from the young Hokage.
"It's a great honor to finally meet you in person, General Namikaze. We have heard quite a lot of your exploits" said Hiruzen respectfully with a friendly smile,
"The honor is mine, Lord Hokage. On behalf of the Second Mizukage-Gengetsu Hozuki, I return your former Hokage honorably to its nation as a sign of friendship between our two great nations" replied Naruto calmly with a respectful nod,
He narrowed his eyes slightly when he saw a dark haired shinobi looking at him suspiciously.
"Danzo!" chided Koharu with a hiss, finally making the Shimura heir stop his staring.
"Forgive our manners, you must have been quite tired from your journey. Please allow us to extend you our hospitality" proposed Hiruzen with a friendly smile,
Naruto wanted to get straight to the negotiations and more importantly wanted to meet his beloved wife, but when he looked back he only saw for the first time how tired his men were. To their credit, not a single one of them had complained when he had made them march towards the Land of Fire without stopping for a second.
It was time he acknowledged that loyalty by doing what was right for everyone instead of his personal desires.
"We are in your debt" he relented with a grateful short bow,
Before Hiruzen could say anything, they heard shocked gasps from the back of the Konoha group as a redheaded woman burst forward and embraced Tobirama in a fierce hug.
"Mito!" exclaimed Tobirama with a happy smile, as he returned the hug.
Soon enough almost the entire Senju clan arrived at the main entrance of the village to greet their patriarch. In them was a beautiful teenaged blonde girl and a young boy that rushed forward and joined Mito in embracing the Senju leader who had returned to them after months of captivity.
"Tsunade! Nawaki!"
A part of Naruto's heart was saddened on seeing Tobirama bend down and lift his overjoyed grand-nephew in one arm as he embraced Tsunade and Mito with the other. The sight reminding the Namikaze of the family he had lost.
Deciding to give the family some privacy, he was about to step to the side when Tobirama broke the embrace and looked at him. It made his family look at him for the first time...
"I wouldn't be here if not for him. He saved me. Naruto, I want you to meet my family" said Tobirama with an honest smile,
Naruto saw Mito smile at him as she walked towards him with Tsunade and Nawaki in tow.
"We are in your debt, General Namikaze" she thanked him sincerely,
"It was my duty, Lady Mito. It was also a way of expressing my gratitude for you and your people saving my life ten years ago" said Naruto respectfully, whispering the last part loud enough only for the Senju matriarch to hear.
"Family. Duty. Honor"
The Uzumaki's clan words recited by the blonde made her take a step back as she remembered the Spartan Captain who had saved her deceased husband's life all those years ago. A boy they had then saved from death's doorstep...
"You..." she whispered in shock,
Mito watched in stunned silence as Naruto knelt and extended a hand towards both Tsunade and Nawaki respectively. Tobirama had told him about these two who were his niece and nephew by blood, their parents who would have been Naruto's cousins having long since perished in the initial days of the Second Great Ninja war much to Mito's grief.
Tsunade shook his hand confidently with a curious look in her eyes while Nawaki smiled shyly but did reciprocate the gesture.
"Let's take our meeting to a more comfortable place" suggested Hiruzen gently,
Naruto nodded as he got back on his feet and saw Mito was yet to get over her shock after realizing his true identity. He idly wondered what she would think on learning the whole truth.
Of all the things he had expected, a bone crushing hug was not something Naruto had expected from Mito Uzumaki as a pleased Tobirama looked at the exchange with an embarrassed look on his usually stoic face.
"Your son? The gods have truly blessed us, blessed our clan!" said Mito happily, as she looked at her brother-in-law.
Hiruzen Sarutobi who was also present at this private meeting in the Senju manor was also left speechless by the revelation. Sakumo had told him that Naruto was an Uzu spy but not the fact that he was a lost son of Tobirama Senju, it was not something he could have predicted even in his wildest dreams. Looking at his teacher made Hiruzen guess it was perhaps done on Tobirama's instructions to protect the blonde.
"You have more family, Lady Mito. I have a wife from this village who worked as a fellow spy with me in Kiri, we are going to have a child together" said Naruto with a gentle smile,
Mito smiled happily at that before hugging him again but his heart sank a little when he saw Hiruzen develop an uncertain look in his eyes on that revelation.
He gently broke the hug and walked towards the young man and looked directly into his eyes.
"Where is my wife? Where is Ino, I would like to meet her!" demanded Naruto,
"Yes, Saru. The negotiations won't start till tomorrow, we would like to meet our daughter-in-law privately at this residence tonight. Can you arrange for that?" asked Tobirama, earning an encouraging nod from Mito as well.
Hiruzen looked at the three members of the Senju family and the nervous look in his eyes made Naruto take a step back.
"I'm truly sorry but that won't be possible" apologized Hiruzen profusely,
"What did you say?" asked Naruto, with barely restrained anger visible in his eyes.
Hiruzen truly didn't want to be in this room when both Tobirama and Mito flanked him, their serious eyes boring into his very soul itself.
"Saru, this is my family we are talking about" warned Tobirama tersely,
"Hiruzen, we can trust Naruto! He's the Spartan Captain that sacrificed everything to save Hashirama's life ten years ago, I'll vouch for him personally" guaranteed Mito without hesitation,
The Third Hokage really didn't want to be in the room, but he steeled himself and looked directly at all three members of the Senju family.
"Ino Yamanaka never reached the Leaf. She succumbed to her poisonous wounds while being evacuated from Kirigakure by Sakumo Hatake. I'm truly sorry, she was killed in the line of duty"
Tobirama's eyes widened in horror and Mito gasped in shock as the two of them just stared at the young Hokage in front of them who lowered his gaze after revealing that dark truth.
Not a moment later they were both pushed aside violently as a blonde blur charged forward and grabbed Hiruzen by the throat and lifted him high in the air.
The young Hokage found himself facing a pair of murderous red eyes and a killing intent that wanted to destroy his very existence itself.
"You're lying! Sakumo sent us a message stating she was ALIVE!" yelled Naruto murderously, his hand squeezing the young Hokage's neck even more painfully.
"Naruto!"
He couldn't hear either of Tobirama or Mito's pleas for him to stop. his very fabric of existence lying upon the man currently in his grasp. His heart was hammering painfully in his chest, his blood was boiling, and he felt tears prickle at the corner of his eyes.
The despair that he had fought his entire life, the despair Ino had helped eradicate by becoming his light...was arriving back into his soul with every passing moment.
"One day, the darkness inside the hidden villages will consume that lone light of yours. Just as it did mine!"
Madara's fateful words on that battlefield crushed his heart mercilessly, even so he still didn't want to believe them. He squeezed Hiruzen's neck harder to make him tell that this was all a cruel joke, that he was mistaken...
"Sakumo...lied...she's...truly...dead...we...had...to...keep...this...a...secret...in...order...to...get...Tobirama-sensei...back...to...the...Leaf...safely" wheezed Hiruzen in agony, he wanted to fight back but the grip was too strong and he didn't know how his mentor and Lady Mito who had paled horribly now would react.
Thankfully, the gods finally had mercy upon him as he was released and collapsed to the floor as Naruto sank to his knees.
"Ninjas are nothing but disposable tools in the eyes of their nations. There is no honor, no light...and no hope in this dark world"
Tears were freely falling from his eyes as those dreaded words became reality once more. He never wanted to believe them no matter how true they were. He had been willing to sacrifice his own life and future to not let them become real...
He barely registered Mito arriving beside him and embracing him in a fierce hug from behind or Tobirama yanking his student back on his feet and shouting at him.
All he felt was nothing but despair and unbearable pain that threatened to consume his empty heart as all the dreams he had hoped of living turned to ashes. He barely heard Hiruzen whispering of someone named Danzo recommending the Leaf keep this secret until Tobirama was returned back safely...
His wife was dead.
Had been dead for months and his unborn child would never see this world.
Tobirama cursed when Naruto teleported away in the blink of an eye making him punch his student.
It was fitting.
Heavy clouds had shrouded the Leaf village in a cover of darkness and soon enough a fierce torrent fell from the skies as a lone blonde was standing alone in the village's cemetery.
His eyes fixated upon the grave in front of him.
Ino Yamanaka.
It was just her name engraved beneath the Leaf's symbol that served as a tombstone. There was no citation, no description of who she truly was or what she had done for the sake of her village and comrades.
Just another forgotten shinobi in a cemetery full of thousands.
Nobody would remember of how she risked her life for years in a hostile nation for the future of her village, of how she gave hope to a lost warrior, of how she was a true ninja who risked everything for the sake of her nation and laid down her life while trying to save a comrade.
His parents, his brother, his Spartan comrades...and now his wife and child.
The last truth made him tear up again for that innocent life was lost before it even entered this world. Sacrificed in the endless conflict between the shinobi nations in their thirst for ever more power and influence.
"Not even a grave for you, my child" he whispered miserably,
He sank to his knees and gingerly touched the tombstone hoping to hear their voice, if only for a second.
Silence was his answer.
He had hoped so desperately for them to be safe, he would happily trade places with them if he was allowed that chance but it would never be so. He had wanted to believe in the current shinobi system no matter how broken or twisted it was.
Anger surged inside of him like never before. A rage that consumed each and every fiber of his being...
No, it wasn't anger.
Hatred.
His eyes turned red as he felt that hatred explode inside his heart. His eyes developed a slit pattern in the middle as he felt a new power arise inside of him.
He grasped the soil in front of his wife's grave and gingery twisted it in his fingers.
"I will destroy this World of Lies!" he swore with heavy tears falling from his eyes,
He got up on his feet and gave one last glance at the grave of his wife and child. Now, he had nothing left to lose...nothing left to hope for.
No matter how honest he was or sacrificed, this world was too far gone.
Madara had been right, it was impossible to trust one another if you couldn't see the other's person heart. He had given everything to Uzu, to Konoha only to be betrayed by them time and again.
"He can bring us back to life"
His eyes widened in shock as he remembered his brother's words and wondered if there was any truth behind it. He didn't want to hope anymore after everything that had happened but if there was a chance...
He would take it for the sake of the ones he loved.
He turned around and walked away from his wife's grave as he made a promise deep within his heart.
"A world of peace...A World of Truth. I will create such a world where we can be together again"
(Kirigakure)
Gengetsu Hozuki had been calmly sipping his coffee while sitting at the dining table of his own home deep inside the Hozuki clan's district. He looked outside and saw it was quite a gloomy weather with dark clouds hovering over the entire village making it appear as if it was night.
He looked at the picture of himself and his wife holding their only son in their arms.
"I hope you have reached Konoha safely, Mangetsu" prayed the proud father,
He knew it was unnecessary considering his son was under the capable command of Naruto Namikaze. That boy had great potential and Gengetsu knew he would one day become a shinobi that the world would remember.
That belief was the reason why he had chosen the boy as his successor over his own son, it was not to say that Mangetsu was not talented but being a Kage required a different kind of inner strength, one which he had seen inside Naruto.
Since he hadn't received any request for help from the blonde, he was assuming their mission at Nagi Island had gone well and they had successfully eliminated the pirates that had terrorized these lands all the while enjoying the protection of their feudal lord.
The sodden old man would not like it and Gengetsu knew there could be some repercussions for the Mist from such an action but it had to be done for the sake of their nation.
His eyes narrowed when a small crack developed in his family photo.
He flared his sensory powers by kneading chakra and was alarmed as he couldn't detect the chakra signatures of the Anbu squads guarding his residence at all times.
His fears became reality when one of the Anbu stationed inside his residence tumbled down the stairs lifelessly with bone shaped spears sticking out of his back.
The front door was blasted open and he came face to face with the ones who had the audacity to launch such an attack.
"You..."
Author's Notes: End of chapter.
Hope you guys liked it.
Now I hope you guys understand that each and every small thing written in the past chapters be it flashbacks or current story line has some impact on the future.
There is no Eye of the Moon plan in this fic, I hated that plot and have already written earlier that Madara is aiming for something different this time in order to prepare the world for what he believes to be the true enemy.
I know some of you want longer chapters, I'll try to provide that when the time is right. Some chapters are good as short ones while some require more length.
I loved how many of you reviewed and shared your thoughts, would request you to keep up the awesome support this chapter as well by sharing your thoughts/predictions.
Until Next Time,
Blackwolf501
