Devil From The Heavens
Chapter 29: The Fire Itself
Broly sucked in a lungful of air as he flinched awake. The phantom pains of a burning chest, unable to breath, quickly faded into a dull ache. A gentle breeze washed over him. All around him were patches of the greenest grass he'd ever seen only interrupted by sand so fine as to be powder. He lifted a hand and the sand flowed through. Calm ocean water washed up on the shore he rested on.
The red had consumed him. He had burned. He drowned. Why was he here? Was he dead? He stood up and more sand fell off of him. No seals, no scars, no pain. It was like the events before he woke up never happened.
The stars above were few and far inbetween. Even now, hundreds of years after the fact, he remembered the rampage he went through across the galaxy. It was a haze of violence and bloodshed that lasted days. The endless bodies in his wake weighed heavy on his mind.
"Would you say you deserved what happened to you?"
"Of course not!"
Hagoromo pointed at the corpses around them with his Shakujo. "Then why did they?"
Broly shook the memory away as he started walking. The old man probably just wanted to talk to him again. He'd fly in time but he wanted to feel the ache in his bones as he trudged through the loose sand that soon gave way to solid stone. He only focused on moving forward, no thoughts in his mind, until he crested a hill.
There was something. A blackened shape that held little in the way of an outline. It moved like a gentle flame yet there was no heat that he could feel.
Broly stayed rooted to his spot, unsure of how to proceed. This was...out of place. Nonsensical. He should have been looking for a way out but...
Something told him that this was inevitable. That he had to face it headfirst.
So he moved.
The closer he got, the more defined it became yet no color appeared. Haze gave way to the solid form of a man. He was down on one knee with his head bowed. A bare torso was punctuated by jewelry that looked ready to fall apart at any moment. It was the same that he had worn when he stood alongside his father. A tail unwrapped from his waist.
Broly held himself at the ready. What the hell was Hagoromo doing now? Where was the old man? He didn't like what was going on. It didn't feel right.
It seemed to notice the Saiyan and turned his head as he started. His own face stared back. Red eyes like an Oozaru pierced through him.
Between the old man and those white clones of his, he was beginning to think this planet had a thing for him. The Saiyan flashed into his golden form but stayed put. He didn't feel safe.
"Something tells me you can explain what's going on here."
It didn't respond. Instead, the copy stood. There was so little color that it was hard to tell where cloth ended and skin began but the ensemble was otherwise identical to the one he had when he first landed. He also noticed that its hair looked like his Super Saiyan form's. When did that happen?
"There's a choice to be made." It spoke with a thousand voices and the echoes ran through his bones. It pointed at its head. "Things left alone rot."
"I'm not dealing with this cryptic bullshit!" Broly growled as he tossed a ki blast at his copy. It slapped away the ki with easy but the blast was a mere distraction for the Saiyan as he followed closed behind for a cross. His blow was deflected by a quick sweep of an elbow and he was force to hold up his forearm against a jab.
An entire city wreathed in flames. Screams were the only things that could be heard. He laughed at the sight.
The Super Saiyan leapt back in a sweat. That was- he- That was one of his first purges. The sheer bloodlust and thoughtless violence wasn't something he could forget. What he hated was the sheer pleasure he felt when the memory played. He loved it.
"What the fuck?" He asked with some disbelief.
"Father robbed us of who we were. Madara did the same." It got ready for another bout. "Our nature is brutality but so was our nurture."
Broly cautiously paced around the thing, fists at the ready. "What are you saying?"
There was no movement; it was simply in front of him a moment later. He dodged away from the kick it launched and brought up a barrier as it launched its own ki blast. The impact rattled him and the black washed over his barrier. With a push, the barrier burst away and dissipated. The hairs on his neck rose but he was slow and the back of his neck exploded in pain.
"We're setting you free if its the last thing I do, Broly. That's my promise, believe it."
He was on all fours. That was the kid, Naruto. He shook his head and swiped at his copy who leaned back just enough out of the way.
Just as he expected. A brilliant flash of power burst from his hand and it was sent rolling away back to the coast. Broly jumped and shot down boots first at the blackened thing beneath him. The sand below erupted into a gargantuan cloud and the very ocean was pushed back at the impact.
Broly reached down to grab at his replica but it was gone. From the left, the sand shifted ever so slightly. The Super Saiyan twisted and swung a clothesline at the movement but it spun out of the way. A shin crashed into his face.
"Well, I still owe you my side of our bargain so...y'know," Broly looked forward. Away from her. "Don't die on me."
"I don't plan on it."
Konan. She was still out there. She...fought him? But she pulled him from the water. The Saiyan grabbed at his face as he tried to will the pain away. This was all so confusing. What did this thing want?
He snapped back and he went nearly elbow deep into the thing's torso. It bent over his arm but there was no pain, no emotion on its face. It gripped his arm in a vice.
It was the warm embrace of a loving parent.
"I love you."
He was ripped from the memory and from the ground he stood on. As it swung him over his head, he roared. His aura expanded threefold and the beach was turned to glass under the heat. He tore himself from his copy and hammered his knee into the top of its head. The beach shattered as the replica sunk to its chest into it.
Even now, it remained stone faced.
"Stop showing me these things!" He yelled at it, his voice nearly cracking. "What does it mean?!"
"You know the answer."
"Ragh!" He cried as he viciously stomped on its face. Its head cracked against the fracture glass. "NO, I DON'T! WHY DO YOU THINK I'M DEMANDING?!"
Its head rose back up. "It's one or the other. Who you think you should be or who you want to be."
It exploded and he could only see the void. A hand grasped his head.
"If you had just let me kill you all before, you wouldn't be dealing with this pain now. You're all complete and utter wastes of Saiyan blood!"
He was in the air now, his legs dangling uselessly below. It dwarfed him now in its own mockery of his Legendary form.
"You're free to make a choice." It dropped him. "So make it!"
And a hammer of a blow crashed against him.
"And, suddenly, I was free." The raven haired man looked at the construct of chakra in his eyes. "You know what freed me? My power. It just needed the right trigger and it exploded. It wasn't some kindhearted fool or my father turning over a new leaf. It was me."
The scene of his escape flashed before his eyes. The power that coursed through him threatened to consume him but the euphoria of release kept him there in that second. It was a high like nothing else.
"In that moment, I knew my power was the only thing I could rely on and that no one would ever come to help me."
He blinked into the dirt. He'd tried so hard to break his chains that he never put a thought into what he'd do afterwards. He just assumed he'd destroy this planet and move on. Do what he did before.
But could he? After what he'd been through? Did he want that? The slaughters he'd been forced into, there was no pleasure to be found. The thought of a planet turned to ash...he felt no desire. Not anymore.
He'd been through the hell of bring utterly helpless. He couldn't shake it off; it would always stick with him.
But then, could he call himself the Legendary Super Saiyan? It was what he was. What he was born to be. The perfect Saiyan. A unstoppable warrior, the strongest in the universe! All would fear him, all would tremble at the utterance of his name. That meant something to him.
Or it did. Kakarot didn't care what he was. The low class nearly killed him regardless. He was crushing him with ease and Kakarot turned it around in an instant. Who's to say there weren't others that could do the same? He couldn't see a defeat coming.
He pulled himself out of his trench. It approached him.
"I...I think I get it now."
The first sign of emotion was shown on its face in a smirk. with a wave of it hand, the beach disappeared and it was replaced by a void of nothing. Around them, flames as tall as a mountain roared.
"On the other side of these flames is your true self. You must burn whatever holds you back." It moved out of his way and pointed at the edge. "Ignite. Be free."
The flames danced in his eyes. "Says who?"
"You."
He should've guessed that. Broly closed his eyes and took a deep breath as he stepped forward. Already, the temperature was unbearable. He opened his eyes and looked up at his doppelganger. A thankful smile crossed his lips before his hand shot forward and its chest split open with little resistance. Shock and horror played out across its face as acrid tar poured out of the wound.
"But-!"
It fell to its knees and Broly gripped its heart. The fire approached.
"You're me. This farce is me. This is all me. There are no flames to burn me."
He ripped its heart out and its body fell away into dust. He crushed its still beating heart. Tar dripped from his arm to the ground and it boiled. The ring of flames collapsed on him.
"I am the fire itself."
"Danzo, what is the meaning of this?" Tsunade demanded once they were 'alone'. There were Root hidden all over and there was no way Danzo didn't think she wouldn't notice. He wanted her to know she was outnumbered.
"No pleasantries?" Danzo said with an uncharacteristic smugness. The man had an arrogance to him but this was a step farther and it left her seething. "Ah, straight to the point I suppose."
He stabbed his cane into the ground between them and rested his hands over it. "I wish to discuss your position as Hokage of this village."
Tsunade was bewildered to say the least. He was bringing this up now? A week after she, along with Jiraiya, personally faced down the man responsible for razing the village? Her already short temper had been eaten away to its last desperate inch and it took an immense will to not punch right through the man.
"Excuse me?" Her words were ice and the casual air that Danzo had was swept away. The man knew he was in the lion's den but his arrogance didn't waver.
"Your failure to lead the village has led to its destruction." The Hokage flinched back as if struck by the sheer gall. "Luckily, I had the foresight to hold my forces back-"
"You mean you hid yourself like a damn coward!" She practically screamed as the anger boiled over. The shadows around her sharpened as Danzo's hidden guard readied themselves to step in. "It was your duty- everyone's duty here- to protect the village from any invaders. A duty you shirked. All your talk about doing what's best for your village and when it came time to hold true to your words, you hide like the scared rat you are."
"Sending all our forces forward without competent reserves would always be a foolish gambit." Danzo replied coolly as he rested his hands on his cane. "As long as the roots live, the tree can grow once more."
Tsunade grabbed his robes and pulled the old man to her. She'd personally witnessed her forces decimated. Her village collapsed beneath her. Good friends dead. All without a moment to process because what was left needed her to lead. This treacherous rat wouldn't be the one to take it away.
"I ought to have you hanged."
A dozen sharp edges touched her. She squeezed her fist and the blades pushed deeper. Tsunade wasn't a fool; every single one of them was poised for a lethal blow. Even if she killed them, the Root held the civilians in their grasp.
Danzo seemingly read her thoughts and pushed her hand away. "I see I'll have to be concise lest I hear you moralize some more. I will be stripping you of your duties as Hokage while a more viable candidate is found. In the meantime, I'll be taking responsibility to ensure our village has a future and that starts with that prisoner of yours. The Root will be taking him into our custody."
"You're a fool if you try to make him another weapon of yours."
He shrugged off her words. "There is no fool greater than one who doesn't use all the tools at their disposal."
The old bastard was going to get them all killed! "How do you even expect to do it?"
"Oh," He lifted the bandage on his head and a Sharingan peered out. "I have my ways."
He opened his eyes. Eye. He could only see out of one. Where was he? Why was it so dark? What was all this stuff attached to him? Why was he so itchy?
He blinked some more and the fog that clouded his mind cleared some more. He was covered in a lot of gauze and casts and countless tubes had him hooked up to what he assumed was medical equipment.
"Target is awake."
Beyond the two guards, he spotted her in the distance. Konan.
He closed his right fist. The cast around it shattered.
Danzo's eye widened imperceptibly and he shot a displeased scowl at the Hokage. "I was under the impression you merely stabilized him."
Confusion reigned. "Of course that's all I did. We've been keeping an eye on him to keep him alive but that's it."
"Then why is he awake and standing up?"
It was like the floor dropped out from beneath her. As much of a fool he was, she knew that Danzo saw the danger as well.
"I want every available agent focused on the target. Bring Jiraiya as well as any available Leaf Jonin." Danzo commanded as he gestured for Tsunade to follow. "While I trust Jiraiya's competency with his seals, you will provide adequate shielding for my men if the worst is to come."
It was maybe thirty seconds to get to the improvised cell at the hurried rate they went. It was far away from the civilians but close enough for quick backup. Waking up was expected soon but he shouldn't have been able to move. She only left him stable, not fully healed, so what happened? Jiraiya soon joined them with his own escort of Root and Leaf Jonin.
"How confident are in your seals?"
Jiraiya shook his head. "Not at all. I've been keeping an eye on them and adjusting them as needed but they're a pale copy of whatever's keeping Broly in check. Who knows if they can handle any serious output."
They arrived just as he tore off the last of the tubing attached to him. There was a collectively held breath as he turned his head and his lone eye watched them. He raised his left arm, now with only three fingers, and everyone around readied themselves for another fight against the man.
He touched his throat.
"Water."
"You won't need any." Danzo replied before anyone else could. Broly frowned for a moment as Danzo approached the cell. "You'll be coming with me."
"Says who?"
The old shinobi reached up to his bandages and revealed his Sharingan to the Saiyan. The Saiyan flinched back at the sight of it. The red eye twisted as Danzo launched a Genjutsu. Broly's eyes glazed over.
"Me." Danzo replied smugly as he gestured for his Root to open the cell.
Jiraiya reached out to stop him but a blade across his neck held him in place. "Danzo, you idiot! Don't provoke him!"
Danzo stepped back as his Root opened the cell. He gestured at Tsunade and Jiraiya.
"Now, Broly, rid me of these two."
Broly looked to the Sannin who stood frozen in his gaze. They were exhausted from helping the village over the past week. They were in no condition for a fight against a comparable shinobi much less him. He stepped through the threshold and a heaviness weighed down on the chests of everyone present.
He moved and the Sannin closed their eyes to accept death. Flesh was torn and something hit the ground followed by another thud a moment later at her legs. After some moments, Tsunade realized that she had not been killed and she slowly opened her eyes to see what it was. Danzo's head laid on the ground in front of her. His eyes were gouged out.
"Water." Her eyes snapped up to Broly. He was rubbing at his throat. "Please."
Author's Notes
Happy Halloween, everybody! Hope it's a good one for all of ya.
Apologies for not getting this out sooner, had a big, exhausting move that completely sapped my desire and energy to do anything besides be a vegetable.
Good news is I recovered. lol
I bet y'all were expecting Danzo to be a bigger thing. Nope. No better way to show that Broly is truly free than killing the guy using a Sharingan on him.
Let me know what you guys think.
Ent out.
P.S. check out Phinehas. They're my favorite band and they released a new album that inspire this chapter's title, The Fire Itself. If you like metalcore, it's the peak of the genre in my opinion.
P.P.S. Because I know someone will mention it, Danzo was unprepared/Broly was too fast for him to do his whole extra lives thing with the Sharingan on his arm.
Review Responses!
Abyss Emperor: Danzo saw it the same way. Shame he lost his head right at the finish line.
Guest: I'd say this review aged like milk but I'm sure milk has a better shelf life.
fightingchampion: The villagers wouldn't treat Broly like that, they'd be too pants shittingly terrified to do that.
Primal Warrior: Dude's gonna be unbelievably swole. The kid too.
SilverJoJo: Well, what I have planned won't be worse, I can be sure of that. lol
Jutten: Yeah, just cuz Madara lost Broly doesn't mean things are gonna be smooth sailing now.
DTLA1992: You're welcome. Warning, it may be a bit before he sows back up again. c.c
Dontus -not Donut- Powerus: If, and that's a big IF, I ever bring Goku/Vegeta in here, it wouldn't be anything more than a small cameo with no effect on the story as neat as the idea is. Also, sorry to say but I'm not bringing Kaguya into the story.
The great guest: Glad to hear you liked the arc! This is Sasuke after he gets his brother's eyes so it's EMS.
tsun: Absolute unit of a mess it would be.
Isaiah: I'm definitely planning something similar to happen much later. As a side not, please don't engage with the negative review like that; it's what they want.
freeraynman: Thanks for the kind words!
