A/N: I've got a surprise for you.
At this point, you'll have realized that Sage of Fists has been reposted without notice.
That's because I've decided to really rework and remix it.
The problem with the last version was that it was moving rather slowly.
There will be differences for sure; mostly to explore what'd happen if the Uchiha Clan were not wiped out, and Danzo were more careful with his movements.
…
[Somewhere in Hi no Kuni]
The night was silent as Hiruzen walked down the road with a pair of ANBU escorts quietly following him warily down the road.
Secrecy was paramount here, which explained the light guard detail. There was no way in any level of Hell that they were going to risk anyone learning where they were…especially not Danzo and his cabal of fanatics.
"Where are we going, Hokage-sama?" asked the ANBU in a bull mask.
"To meet an acquaintance of mine," Hiruzen answered simply, "One that I've been trying to track down for the past few days."
"An acquaintance?" asked a horse-masked ANBU.
"After that nurse's attempt to kill him, I have little faith in the village where Naruto safety is concerned," replied the old Kage, "I'm taking him to someone I know he'll be safe with."
Indeed, the boy was barely left in the orphanage for a few hours when some fool nurse decided to make an attempt to kill him. It was fortunate that Hiruzen was going to the hospital to check up on the boy at the time…if he'd put off on his visit any later, that nurse would have succeeded and potentially put the village in jeopardy. In all honesty, he didn't want to have to do this, but if this was how bad things were going to be for young Naruto, then it would have been better if he were somewhere more secure so as to minimize any collateral damage.
Before leaving the village, he was able to get his most trusted Shinobi on the job to ensure the boy's safety.
"Who is he, anyway?" asked Bull.
"A man I encountered when I was a Genin," Hiruzen explained.
Horse looked to Hiruzen as though he'd sprouted a second head, the disbelief clear in his voice. "I don't get it, what's so special about this man?"
"I can assure you that he is not to be trifled with," warned the Hokage, "The first time I encountered him was on a mission to clear out a bandit gang that was terrorizing a nearby village; we were almost at the mission area when we saw him coming towards us. He was a big fellow, bulky too…like a Kongorikishi in the shape of a human, and I'm pretty sure he could've crushed my skull in one hand if he so wanted. Anyway, we ignored him, and so my team and I continued on down to the gang's hideout…but by the time we got there, the bandits were already dead; I swear Koharu nearly emptied her stomach at the sight. All the bandits were killed with some kind of jutsu that violently detonated all of their tenketsu points; it was as if someone placed extremely powerful explosive tags into their bodies. I was quick to realize that the wanderer we ran into had something to do with the deaths of those bandits…I didn't know how, but I had a feeling he was involved.
"The second encounter came a few years later, when I was a Chūnin; we were hired to rescue hostages that were abducted by another gang, this one led by the infamous Kage-level nuke-nin Ishikawa Sazaemon. We saw the man again, this time he was walking into Ishikawa's camp…we watched from afar as he spoke with Sazaemon, apparently hoping to reason with him in hopes of rescuing the hostages. From what we saw, Ishikawa had no intention of honoring anything he said to the wanderer, and had his men prepared to stab the wanderer in the back…a mistake that would be his last, when his men were killed with a single punch and kick each. He would kill more than half the bandits that day with his bare hands, the rest of them having already run away; when he took on Ishikawa himself, the wanderer hit him in all his tenketsu points, which caused him to explode messily a few seconds later. Once the camp was clear of all hostiles, the wanderer escorted the hostages and we did nothing, though I'm pretty sure even Tobirama-sensei was soiling himself after seeing what the wanderer did. The only thing I can think of that'd explain what we'd just seen was that the wanderer wielded an Ansatsuken."
Ansatsuken; its meaning of 'assassination fist' was well-earned…it was a category of ancient martial arts so deadly that the wielders were practically one-man armies. There were too few of them around for a proper census, but the ones that have been discovered were usually put on the Bingo Book due to the danger they posed, and because they generally had no loyalty to any village. The most dangerous Ansatsuken practitioners however, were assigned a "flee-on-sight" order by the Bingo Book committee.
"And you think it's a good idea to entrust Naruto's safety to such a dangerous man?"
"Honestly, I'm not sure it's such a good idea myself," Hiruzen admitted, "To be fair though, dangerous as he'd proven to be, I never pegged the wanderer as a bad man; he seemed more like the type that just wants to be left alone, but hates to see the wicked preying upon decent souls. No, I don't know if it's a good idea to entrust Naruto's safety to such a dangerous man, but I honestly don't think we have a choice when the whole village is practically calling for his blood."
The three of them had crossed the threshold of a torii gate, and into a silent stone garden. Everywhere they went, they saw sculptures of buddhist figures; some were of monks deep in meditation, others were of buddhist deities…all of them hand-carved. Fortunately, whoever made these statues had the foresight to make a path that guided everyone through the aptly-named "Garden of Buddha."
Hiruzen and his escort had come to a stop at a dais with a gigantic Bishamonten sculpture in front, flanked by a pair of Kongorikishi. Sitting in meditation before the statue was a large man with dark brown hair chanting "amida butsu" under his breath with his hands clasped together; there was a serenity to the area that contrasted against the man's physicality. As they approached, they reminded themselves not to look threatening to this man who was supposedly powerful enough to give the Nidaime Hokage pause.
"It has been so long since I've last had contact with other people," said the man, turning to regard the gathering of Shinobi, "And to think it was the Hokage himself. I am Sōten Kenshiro, a wandering monk."
Hiruzen watched the man stand to his full height, eyeballing him to be at least 180 centimeters tall. Besides a plain kesa, a pair of trousers and sandals, and his prayer beads, he was shirtless, revealing a battle-scarred, musclebound body that was a veritable tapestry of conflict, the most notable of which were seven scars on his chest resembling some kind of constellation. He looked less like a man, and more like an incarnation of Bishamonten, ready to smite the wicked…and yet, in contrast with his stern, chiseled features, Hiruzen noted a sadness in his blue eyes.
"You're not the person I was looking for," Hiruzen noted.
"No, that was my master, Ryūken," replied the monk, "He was a survivor of the Sengoku Basara."
Hiruzen tipped his hat to the monk in respect. "My condolences."
"No need, he left this world peacefully of old age; but I'm guessing you're not really here to pay respects to my late master, are you?" asked Kenshiro.
"To the point then," Hiruzen sighed, "I am here with a request for you to come to my village to raise an orphan."
Kenshiro raised an eyebrow in curiosity. "I'm a wandering monk, what makes you think I'm qualified to raise a child on my own?"
"No, but I don't have any other choice," Hiruzen countered, "I'm not asking that you become his father, I'm asking that you keep him safe until he is of age to join the Shinobi Forces."
The monk said nothing, his searching gaze peering into Hiruzen's wizened eyes. "And you cannot put the child in a foster home?"
"I can't say much at this point, but I will say that his parents had many enemies," Hiruzen said, "I honestly can't trust the villagers with his safety with those enemies poisoning them against him."
"Let me guess, he's the boy used to seal away the Kyūbi?" Kenshiro asked, Hiruzen flinching at his bluntness, "Don't look so surprised, my uncle once told me about the Bijū; the only way they could be defeated is if they are sealed away into a human vessel. The fact that the Kyūbi nearly destroyed Konoha not too long ago, along with your concern for the child's safety makes it no surprise as to why you're really here."
"Does this affect your decision to come with us?" Hiruzen asked.
"No, it doesn't," admitted the monk, "The welfare of a child is top priority in this case, so I'll accompany you to the village. The local temple will suffice for housing."
"Good, I really didn't trust anyone else with this," Hiruzen said, nodding gratefully, "I'll ensure that you will have adequate housing to raise the child."
…
[Konohagakure no Sato, the next day]
It'd been hours since Kenshiro had put the child to sleep, and he was beginning to appreciate the silence that came with a sleeping, satisfied baby.
In all honesty, this was his first time spending this much time with any children, and young Naruto had proven to be quite the handful. Still, his uncle had taught him to take nothing for granted, and every moment he spent with Naruto was quality time he spent as though the boy were his own son. Every second he spent with the boy gave him the idea that there was a lot of potential in him despite his tenant. Perhaps even a successor.
Kenshiro's thoughts were disturbed when he felt killing intent approaching his temple…he could handle all of them, but he had a feeling they were not here for him. In preparation for the conflict to come, he transitioned from cross-legged meditation, to a battle-ready kiza position as he detected the intruders sneaking through the temple. He was able to pick up eight chakra signatures hiding in the rafters, four of them hiding underground, and one hanging far back at the walls. The fact that they were well above what could be considered normal for any average person told him that they were all Shinobi…and fairly competent ones at that.
"I have no idea who you all are, but you are trespassing into the wrong place," Kenshiro warned, "If you value your lives, you will leave now. If you don't, then I will kill all of you and the person who sent you."
The Shinobi made their move, eight of them dropping down from the ceiling around him while four of them made moves towards Naruto's crib. He released his own chakra-laced killing intent, knocking all the intruders into the air before moving in to protect Naruto, punching each of the kidnappers with enough force to destroy their heads. Such was his speed that the intruders were unable to use the Kawarimi no Jutsu to escape, much less take away Naruto. Before the remaining eight could respond, he punched each of them in the chest with enough force to stop their hearts.
With the twelve attackers dealt with, Kenshiro ran after the spy at the wall, jamming his thumbs into the spy's temples. "You really should've taken my offer to leave with your lives when you had the chance. The tenketsu I'm pressing on your skull will not only paralyze you from the neck down, but it will make you answer my questions truthfully. So now you're going to tell me who sent you here."
The Shinobi said nothing. The tenketsu points he pressed only made them more suggestible to interrogation…the second they opened their mouths, they'd be spilling out the truth; it did not, however, stop them from holding their tongue, which was a valiant effort as it were. From the way the intruder twitched as soon as he asked his question, it was clear that he was doing his best to avoid speaking at all.
"He's got you on some kind of loyalty seal, doesn't he?" Kenshiro mused, removing his thumbs from the Shinobi's head, "If that's the case, then what's the point of interrogating someone who doesn't value their own life?"
With his business finished, Kenshiro walked back into the temple. He paused mid-step as soon as he heard the Shinobi approaching him from behind. "I really wouldn't bother…you're already dead."
The Shinobi was silent, until he could hear muffled groans of pain, followed by an explosion. One way or another, Kenshiro had a feeling this was not going to be the last unsanctioned attack on his temple by the coward who sent these soulless abominations his way. Best to nip this problem in the bud.
…
[ROOT Base, somewhere in Konoha]
This was the eighth base that was attacked this week; this one however, was far more critical than other bases, as it was getting dangerously close to his headquarters.
Danzo had a fair idea who had done this: he was very good at covering his tracks, but the elder was more than certain that the monk Hiruzen came back with was responsible. He was able to utilize that Ansatsuken to make short work of the four teams he'd sent, killing them all with nary an effort. Once he'd finished off the teams, he then tried to question the spy in their midst only to wind up killing him as well…the only good news was that the spy didn't talk, but that left him in the dark as to the monk's capabilities.
Since then, the monk had been busy dismantling ROOT bases in the village, killing every single operator within while also taking every asset they held. By the time he was done, no less than twenty ROOT operators would be killed in each location, each of them a victim of whatever Ansatsuken he'd used to destroy their bodies. The sum total of casualties caused by the monk's raids were staggering enough…more than half his manpower had been slaughtered to the last man and woman, each of them an elite fighting force in their own right. All of them had been killed by a monk that could infiltrate their bases, and kill them without much effort.
Even worse was that these massacres had taken place in very public locations, drawing attention to his organization; people were asking questions about the corpses of the shinobi that were found in each. The scrutiny he would likely receive due to the fact that they were all unsanctioned was salt on the wounds the monk had inflicted upon him.
"Danzo-sama," said a ROOT operative, getting his attention, "We've found a note left behind by the attacker."
"Read it," he commanded.
The operator opened the note, and did as he was told. "It says 'dharma is watching, karma is waiting.'"
It was a simple word, but the threat that it implied was more than obvious: the monk was watching and listening to his every move. If Danzo continued to antagonize him, if his agents made any movements, he would raid more ROOT bases, which entailed an even greater loss in both assets and manpower. It may potentially even result in a direct confrontation that he was totally unprepared for.
While Danzo was confident that he could handle a mere monk that used a deadly martial art, he would heed the threat and lay low for now. But when it came time to become Hokage, that monk would be the first of many threats to his power to go.
…
A/N: …and we're done.
Hopefully, this doesn't feel rushed, but I feel that this is a good place to stop.
In any case, I hope it hasn't disappointed.