Devil From The Heavens
Chapter 14: Out of The Dust
Insanity. That was what the injured woman on the cot was telling. It had to be. They had just received news of Takigakure's total destruction from it's Kage. Only he and his guards remained after that. One of the Five Great Shinobi Villages being annihilated right afterwards was...horrifying.
"Do you think there might be more survivors?"
The former Kazekage glared at her though her anger wasn't towards the Hokage and shook her head. Her voice, hoarse from burnt lungs, came out as little more than a whisper. It was a testament to the woman's will to live that she was this functional even with Tsunade's legendary skills on hand.
"Suna..." Coughs racked her body but she waved away the nurse who stepped closer out of concern. She was too prideful for that. "Gone...only...survivor."
This wasn't a coincidence and she suspected who was responsible but she had to be sure. She gestured to Inoichi who made his way to Temari's side.
"Inoichi is going to probe your mind so we can get a better picture of what happened." Temari gave her an almost betrayed look but Tsunade held up a reassuring hand. "I've given him strict instructions to only focus on the assault. You'll know if he goes anywhere else."
"Just to make this easier for me, and to prevent any accidental stumbling of private memories, think only of Suna and its destruction. I know it'll be hard but this will help-"
"Just do it."
Inoichi nodded and began to work on the injured Kage. It was a quick process when it was all said and done. It was only a few seconds before Inoichi separated from the Kazekage, a thin sheen of sweat on his forehead. He stood too quickly and his stool was knocked to the ground. Tsunade put a firm hand on his shoulder and the man looked at her with panic stricken eyes. Uncharacteristic for the normally calm clan head.
"We need to talk privately, Lady Tsunade."
The existential nature of the crisis they were facing truly settled within her mind when Inoichi described what he saw with as much detail he could manage. From the description of the one Akatsuki member in the assault and previous reports from Kakashi, they were able to determine it was Broly who was responsible. The question she had now was how they had no information regarding the man.
It was originally assumed he was another S-Rank missing nin but there was nothing anywhere that described any shinobi like him. As far as they knew, Broly just popped into existence right before the failed Kazekage retrieval mission. A mission where he fought toe to toe with a Four-Tailed Naruto.
That was when she connected the dots. Or at least thought she did given how speculative it was.
The Akatsuki had been collecting Tailed Beasts for years now. This man was supposedly under Genjutsu if his testimony to Kakashi was to be believed. They had no records for a shinobi with his name. She'd wager he wasn't the greatest fighter either; just absurdly strong and near impossible to kill. Was this just some poor bastard the Akatsuki was stuffing Tailed Beasts into? Were the Akatsuki trying to make some super jinchuriki?
It would explain why they did what they did and it made some twisted form of sense. Sealing a Tailed Beast was risky business but sealing more than one inside a person was suicidal. If their leader could make a multi-beast Jinchuriki (and if he had a Rinnegan like rumors suggested it wasn't out of the realm of possibility), they wouldn't potentially waste one of their members if the sealing failed. They'd want a nobody for a guinea pig.
But if they succeeded, it'd be child's play to keep a citizen or a low level shinobi permanently under Genjutsu. It'd be a perfect weapon. Hell, their leader might transfer all the beasts to himself if a super jinchuriki ultimately proves successful.
The biggest question now was how did they defend against that. This was a threat to the world at large now as far as she was concerned. As much as she wanted to avoid potentially exposing Konoha to a back stab, there was no question.
The other villages were needed for this.
The two flew around each other in a brutally graceful dance. Hinata's strikes were lightning bolts, never striking the same place twice, while Naruto's were akin to a landslide in that they were devastating and over a wide area.
The Hyuga flipped away as Naruto dropped an axe kick from above. The ground shook under the earth shattering blow. Hinata ran towards the blond as claws of red chakra arced downwards after her. Her Byakugan proved invaluable as she jumped over and inbetween the uncountable limbs in her pursuit. Throughout all this, she focused on Naruto's face. The smile on it should have made her heart skip a beat but she could not miss the desire in them.
For pain. Not hers; just...pain.
She was ready when he rocketed towards her. She leaned back, nearly horizontal at the hip, to avoid the hand that threatened to rip her face. Chakra raced from her fingers into his body as she hit him between the ribs while they passed by each other. He turned around instantly and his shin smashed into her face faster than she could react.
The Jinchuriki stumbled and hit the ground hard as she bounced. Naruto quickly stood up, pain etched on his face, and a good chunk of his chakra cloak was missing where she hit him. Hinata held a hand near her nose as she struggled to her feet. She instinctively wanted to cradle it but that would only make it worse.
She didn't miss the smirk on his face when she jabbed him. Did he take the hit just to get in a blow of his own?
With a grunt, a burst of chakra shot out of his ribs and the cloak closed up. Hinata had long since learned that being a Jinchuriki was practically cheating in their fights. She could hit his chakra points all day long and the stupid fox would just fix it up in moments! Ten clones popped into existence already running after her. Her hands erupted in fiery blue chakra that took the shape of lion's heads.
They attacked her on all sides but between the two of them, she was the far superior taijutsu user. The lions drained whatever they touched of chakra so it was with simple taps that she popped the shadow clones. Nartuo sent twenty more as the original group was decimated by Hinata. They jumped at her with Rasengans in hand that took extra care to avoid.
Jiraiya observed from the edges of the training field with a slight downturn to his lips. Naruto's fighting style was always that of a powerhouse with little in the way of subtlety but ever since the Kyubi decided to 'help' him, its gained a more barbaric edge. He left himself purposefully open to some of Hinata's strikes with the knowledge that she held back and wouldn't permanently harm him to get in hits of his own.
The thought that he'd use Rasengans against her like this made the Sannin uneasy but he allowed it so far. A simple Rasengan, even enhanced with natural energy, wouldn't be enough to seriously hurt a Sage and the Byakugan made her a harder target to hit than most. As if his thoughts jinxed the Hyuga, a clone managed to come into her Byakugan's blind spot and, for an instant, its rasengan ground against her back.
She gasped and instinctively spun around in place. Great bouts of Sage chakra were expelled from her body as she went into Rotation. Behind them all, the original molded chakra in the palm of his hand. The remaining clones were tossed away and popped by Hinata's technique as the original Naruto finished forming a Rasengan.
You'd think the kid would do something other than use that-
"Naruto!" Jiraiya screamed as he saw the tell tale blades of wind form. What the hell was that little runt thinking? A Rasenshuriken in a spar?!
Hinata stopped; her form already in a defensive stance pointed towards Naruto. It looked like her heart threatened to burst out of her chest at the sight of the technique that had disintegrated an S-Rank missing nin. Naruto had been pushing it for a while but this was one step too far. Even enhanced by Sage chakra, that jutsu was lethal to her.
Naruto leapt forward, unaware or uncaring of Jiraiya's scream, with his Rasenshuriken poised for a direct hit.
"Protective Eight Trigrams Sixty Four Palms!"
Hinata's hands became blurs as she created a defensive grid of thin blade like chakra. The construct of wind screeched a horrible sound not unlike nails on a chalkboard as it crashed against her hastily created shield. Minute cuts appeared on her skin as the edges of the justu reached her. She made it as strong as she could in the half second she had but her defenses were already being worn away.
Jiraiya appeared by the blond an instant later, his own Sage Mode fully active, and slammed a paper seal on the Uzumaki's back. In an instant, the Kyubi's power left the young shinobi and his attack destabilized at the sudden loss of the fox's chakra. His Rasenshuriken disappeared not a moment later and he fell forward with a shocked look on his face.
The Toad Sage tossed his godson to the side as Hinata's jutsu fell way. "You alright?" She nodded though her shaking hands betrayed her. As much as he wanted to help her out, Naruto was a priority at the moment. Speaking of which, the brat jumped to his feet with an indignant expression on his face.
"What the hell, Pervy Sage?! I was winning!"
Jiraiya grabbed the kid, turned him around, and pushed him forward. "You and I need to talk. Now." He glanced at the toads on his shoulders and gestured to Hinata with his head. They got the silent message and leapt to tend to the girl.
Once the Sannin was confident no one was listening, he laid into his godson. "That jutsu could have killed her! Would have if I didn't intervene!" He wasn't loud but he didn't need to be. The way Naruto flinched told him all he needed to know.
"I wouldn't let that happen! I was going to pull back!"
"Really? And I'm supposed to believe that?"
"Yeah!" He almost yelled. The offense at Jiraiya's lack of trust was clear to them both. "The last thing I want to do is hurt Hinata!"
Jiraiya shook his head. "That's not what I saw; I saw you use a jutsu meant only to kill against your training partner in a spar! As far as I'm concerned, it was the first thing you wanted to do." He put his hands on the blonde's shoulders. He tried to squirm his way out but the elder didn't let him. "I see how you revel in its power. The fox is manipulating you and you're letting it."
Naruto looked away. "Kurama's not manipulating me; he's helping me. It's because of him that I've gotten Sage Mode down."
"Kurama?" The Sannin asked with a slight catch to his voice. How deep did the fox's machinations go?
"That's his name."
He let go of the kid and put a hand to his forehead. "Damn it kid, are you saying you're actively talking to the fox?" This wasn't something out of the blue. This had to have been going on for a while but when did it start? After the failed retrieval of Sasuke? Or was it Gaara that pushed his godson to the Tailed Beast?
Naruto's fists clenched as his head fell. It was very clear from his body language that the Toad Sage wouldn't like what he had to say.
"And if I am?"
"What makes a man do such things? Horrendous, pointless loss." Hagoromo laid a hand on a dead shinobi's shoulders and recited a silent prayer for the village. It might have been a mere illusion but no one survived the devastation in the real world. There were no parting words to be had for any of the dead. He could give them that at least.
Broly sat on a chunk of a house a ways away from the Sage. He made it a point to not look at the man with his face. This was another guilt trip session and he wasn't going to deal with it if he could. Why bring the Saiyan to the point right before he glassed the village if not to make him feel bad for it? It was so obvious, it was almost laughable and he knew the Sage knew what he thought of the whole thing.
"They were too weak. Simple as that." He answered. The question was clearly rhetorical but the dig at the old man presented itself. Hagoromo's fist clenched before the man relaxed. He turned to the Saiyan with a grimace.
"Who are you trying to convince with such callous words? It cannot be myself nor the imagined dead around us."
The Saiyan shrugged. He wouldn't dignify the Sage's words with a proper answer. He knew the old man was a lost cause, his type always were, but that didn't change that fundamental law of reality. What goes up comes down, water is wet, and the weak die. These 'shinobi' had their chance to stop him and they failed. What was annoying is that they've already been through this song and dance.
"Why try this again?" He asked. "It's not like I've wavered in my belief. You're in my head, you should know."
"You wanted to die in Suna."
It was said so plainly, like it was the day's weather, that he almost fell off. The Saiyan closed his eyes and took a deep breath. He couldn't kill the man nor damage the realm. It'd be the equivalent of a child having a tantrum if he just lost it here. Instead, an odd feeling surged in his chest. What would his younger self think of him now? Disgraceful would be a good word. His eyes opened.
"It seems privacy is a lost concept to you."
Hagoromo placed a hand on his shoulder. When did he get so close? "Broly, your life is precious. To try and throw it away so easily is-"
"Would it matter if I did?" The Saiyan looked away as he slapped the Rinnegan wielder's hand from him. "You've seen my memories. I've killed hundreds of billions, if not trillions, of people in my life and wiped out two of your villages in as many days. You expect me to think me living is your preferred option?"
"No more lives should be lost including yours."
Broly glanced at the Sage. What burned him the most was that the old man seemed genuine. It just didn't make sense. He wasn't supposed to be cared about. He thought his fath- Paragus did so long ago but that was a lie. The bastard just wanted his power. Madara was the same but without the pretense of raising him. Konan might care but she might be manipulating him too for all he knew.
He hadn't seen either the blond brat or that silver haired man since they fought. They either forgot him or deemed him just another enemy. No one cared for him; he was an obstacle or a means to an end.
He wiped some wetness from his cheek. Why couldn't things be like when he was young? When he thought his dad loved him; when prisons were a distant concept and not all that he knew anymore.
"Save it for someone who wants it."
The environment shifted and they were on a cliff overlooking an expansive forest. A bright full moon hung overhead with a sky full of stars. Broly idly wondered how many of those stars had since disappeared from the Sage's time given he destroyed most of the South Galaxy. Hagoromo stood beside him but there was some more distance.
"Before our meeting, I had two sons."
"I said save it-"
"Please, allow me to speak. I'll leave you be once I've finished."
The Saiyan grunted but didn't protest further.
"My elder son, Indra, was a prodigy. His strength came to him easily not unlike you. He even created a new school in the art of chakra called ninjutsu. My younger son, Asura, was born with little natural talent. He had to work far harder for less progress than his brother. In time however, with the aid and support of his friends and allies, he grew to equal Indra."
Hagoromo's voice softened. There was something to his voice, not quite regret, but close. "When it came time to choose my successor, I chose Asura."
Curiosity nagged at the Saiyan as he picked up a rock by his foot. The elder son was clearly superior so he should have been chosen; that's how it worked right? He turned the stone over in his hands a few times. "Why?"
"My elder son had more talent and skill perhaps but he had isolated himself as he grew older. He basked in his strength and believed it was all he needed. He even killed his closest friends to evolve his eyes. His hate rolled over this world and now it is embroiled in constant war because of it." The Sage's shoulders sagged as the weight of his son's actions settled on him. "In the end, even as his descendants grew in number, he was alone and angry."
A breezed rolled by and Broly closed his eyes.
"I tell you this because I see my son in you. You've been given a new chance, Broly; don't make his mistakes."
He opened his eyes again and the Saiyan stared at the ceiling of his cell once more.
Author's Note
Sliding this right in on Halloween! Whew!
Y'all have a good time doing it is what you do on this wonderful night, I'm going to bed.
Ent out.
Review Responses!
Jutten: What a twist! I might have to use it...
Greer123: Aww, thank you for reading it!
Abyss Trinity: We'll be finding out soon, hehe.
fightingchampion: If Broly is anything, he's honest...well, to others at the very least. So hypocrisy is a no-no.
ShotoGun: Yes but later in the story.
The awesome one: Glad to see I can surprise my readers, lol. We'll see what Pain can do in the (relatively) near future.
MythAnime: I thought it was consistent. Obito is seeing what he can get away with with a Broly this unrestricted against a target this big. Given Broly's lack of success against Naruto, he's convinced there's still kinks to work out. There's also that Broly can interpret commands to a degree which is why thing went the way they did.
Guest: It's...uh...been started back up for a year and a half I think? I do plan on finishing it.
Janek Gra: Well, it's a good thing Broly's only millions of times stronger then! /s I kid but the seals on Broly bring him down to waaay more manageable levels anyways so that point's moot.
Guest: I only sorta understand your review but are you arguing that nothing in Naruto should affect Broly and that the Saiyan is OP in comparison? I mean, yeah, that's true but we got around that with the seals on the guy's body.
