Continuation of Chapter 31
xxX With Orochimaru Xxx
'I should have done the procedure and removed the child as soon as I had the chance' Orochimaru berated himself as he ran for the border, his own over-confidence came to bite him in the ass.
He suddenly moved his head to the side as a kunai grazed him across his cheek and landed behind.
"You are not going anyway" Kakashi announced as he jumped down from the tree.
"And who is gonna stop me-" Orochimaru couldn't finish as the kunai behind him suddenly exploded, launching him towards Kakashi who was ready for him with his katana. With a swift swing, he sliced off Orochimaru's head off of his shoulder.
With the help of his dog summons, Kakashi was able to track down Orochimaru and prepare several traps for him in advance but he didn't expect his very first trap to finish Orochimaru off.
'He got overconfident' Kakashi thought as he turned away and was about to run in Mikoto's direction when a sword suddenly pierced his abdomen. Turning back, he saw Orochimaru slither up from the mouth of his dead body and ran away.
"I'll be damned if I let my overconfidence get the better of me twice in a day" he muttered, "Goodluck with that wound, if the blood loss doesn't kill you then the poison surely will", with that Orochimaru vanished into the tress as Kakashi fell face-first on the ground.
"Shit!" He cursed out loud as his vision began to get blurry.
'I can't die here!' Kakashi screamed to himself and he got back on his feet, 'I still have to save Mikoto-nee-san'.
Pushing through the pain and lightheadedness Kakashi took few steps but ultimately the blood loss made him collapse once again. Though this time, he didn't fall on the ground but instead in the arms of Naruto.
"Why do you always have to over-do yourself" Naruto chastised as he began to heal him.
"Mikoto-"
"Shh," Naruto cut him off, "She is safe, my summons are protecting her".
Only after hearing that his sister was safe did Kakashi finally closed his eyes.
" You are too much sometimes" Naruto muttered as he finished healing him and made a shadow clone to take him to the hospital, "Now to deal with Danzo...".
Walking into the secret root hide-out, Naruto ignored the screams and pleas for help of the several root ninjas who were now being eaten alive by his wolves.
Entering the room where Danzou was being held, Naruto gave a nod of acknowledgement and thanks to the wolf sitting beside Mikoto. He quickly walked towards her ignoring Danzo for now.
"Are you ok?" He asked in a soft voice as he held her in his embrace. Mikoto nodded silently, "Just a little tired" she replied, "Thanks to Kira-san, I was saved before anything dangerous could happen to the baby".
"No need to thank me, we are all part of the same pack, and packs protect each other no matter what"
Naruto gave another nod to Kira, the black wolf and turned his attention towards Danzo.
"I told you I wanted him unharmed" Naruto spoke as he walked forward and noticed his mangled and missing fingers.
"He was trying to blow himself up, I stopped it the only way I could".
Naruto nodded in understanding as he bent down to and looked Danzo in the eyes, "I knew you would mess up one day and get caught, but I didn't think you would mess up so spectacularly".
"I did what I had to-" He couldn't continue as Naruto suddenly kicked him in the stomach, blasting him to other side of the room where he collapsed in a heap.
"Dragon!" He called out.
A dragon faced Anbu appeared from the shadows and knelt before him.
"Hai Hokage-sama".
"Collect every root ninja and bring them to the village, both dead and alive."
Dragon gave a curt nod and disappeared back into the shadows.
"Bring him to Konoha as well" Naruto motioned towards Danzo as he went ahead and picked up Mikoto in his arms and left the room, two wolves emerged from shadows and with a low snarl latched onto Danzo's arms and dragged him away.
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
The sun had just risen over the horizon when loud howls from the wolves filled the silent morning sky.
Villagers gathered in groups outside their houses to see what the commotion was all about.
Seeing the Hokage and his wife standing beside a shackled Danzo raised many questions in their minds.
Sandaime, along with a heavily injured Jiraiya and some village elders quickly came to Naruto to find out what he was doing.
Naruto didn't answer any of their questions as he kept ignoring them and kept on looking ahead.
The murmur suddenly came to an end as a Dragon masked anbu suddenly appeared before him.
"It is done" Dragon informed.
Naruto nodded and stepped ahead.
"I have gathered you all here expose the traitor amongst us" Naruto started as he kicked Danzo in the back, hurling him forward.
"Danzo Shimura, the advisor of the Sandaime Hokage, founder and leader of Root, an organisation under his personal command with no oversight whatsoever from the Hokage, the leader of the village he stays in." after a brief pause Naruto continued, "You might be wondering how did such an organisation came to be, an army of ninjas who don't take any orders from the Hokage himself, It's all thanks to the benevolence of our Sandaime, Sarutobi Hiruzen." he pointed towards the Sandaime, "He let Danzo create an army right under his nose with the pretence of helping Konoha in the war using some rather underhanded methods, but, Alas!, everything is fair in love and war, so I don't blame him for not wanting to associate himself with the horrendous atrocities committed by the root during the war. But, even as Danzo began to undermine his authority and began to sanction missions for his personal gain, The Sandaime chose not to persecute him and instead sent numerous ninjas to their untimely death. His inaction led to several lives being lost!" Naruto exclaimed as he pointed a finger at the Sandaime again, who looked like he wanted to refuse the statement but instead held his head down in shame, "Even after Danzo's crime came to light, all he did was let him off with a warning and the order to disband the Root organisation, which Danzo chose not to follow".
"That is enough Naruto, you've made your point. Danzo and I have served this village for several decades, we don't deserve this humiliation" Sandaime tried to end the fiasco before it could get more out of hand.
Ignoring him, Naruto continued "He even had the audacity to kidnap my pregnant wife and use her as leverage against me to appoint himself as the Hokage".
There was an uproar from the villagers, most of the hatred was coming from the Uchiha clan since Mikoto was their beloved princess, any act of aggression against her was not taken kindly.
"Kill him!" one of them shouted, causing others to join in as well.
Raising his hand, Naruto immediately silenced the commotion. "As I said earlier, I am here to expose the traitors. Dragon!" he called out, causing the Dragon masked Anbu to step ahead, "Dragon is the vice-commander of the Anbu" Naruto introduced him, "Inform them of Orochimaru's betrayal".
Dragon nodded as he stepped forward and began, "Orochimaru, one of the three legendary Sanins has fled Konoha after his involvement was revealed in the kidnapping of Mikoto-sama, besides that, it was also discovered that he, along with Danzo Shimura, were kidnapping orphans from Konoha and performing illegal experiments on them. In a recently discovered laboratory, 60 children were found dead with unspeakable experiments performed on them. Jiraiya-sama fought him at the border of the land of fire but he managed to escape" with his part said, Dragon stepped back and behind Naruto.
"What do you want to say in your defence?" Naruto asked.
Jiraiya kept quiet as he too held his head down in shame.
"Just as I thought" Naruto commented, "Moving on" he continued, "Bring in the Hokage advisors" he ordered.
A grey-haired man and a woman were escorted near Naruto, both were around the same age as Danzo and the Sandaime.
"What is the meaning of this, Hiruzen?" the woman, Koharu Utatane questioned.
"We are the village elders and the advisors of the Sandaime Hokage, we will not be humiliated like this!, Why did you bring us here like this boy?!" the elder man, Homura Mitokado exclaimed.
"You are not the ones asking questions here" Naruto firmly stated. "Your position as advisors mean nothing now".
"Naruto, there is no need to drag them into this mess, they have no part in it" Hiruzen spoke.
"Now that is not true, is it?" Naruto asked, it was a rhetorical question, "I've been doing some digging and have found lots of evidence to suggest otherwise".
Walking in front of them, Naruto questioned, " Did you have any prior knowledge that Danzo was collaborating with the enemy and sending false information to us to further his personal goal of becoming a Hokage?" Naruto asked.
Both of them remained silent.
"If you don't speak up, I'll have the Yamanaka scan your memories, there is no telling how many more secrets that will reveal".
"You can't do that!" they exclaimed.
"I am the Hokage!" Naruto yelled, "I can do whatever the fuck I want!".
"Hiruzen.." they looked at him for help but Naruto blocked him from their view.
"Sandaime is not going to help you out this time" Naruto stated.
Getting irritated by their lack of cooperation, Naruto threatened, "Your fate is already sealed, you will die a swift death if you tell the truth now, else, both of you will join Danzo for what I have in store for him. And let me tell you, it's not going to be pretty..."
"I'll ask you this last time" Naruto gave them an ultimatum, "Did you have any prior knowledge that Danzo was collaborating with the enemy and sending false information to us to further his personal goal of becoming a Hokage?"
After a brief moment of silence, they nodded to each other and answered.
"Yes"
There were loud murmuring and whispers in the crowd as their truth was revealed, Hiruzen looked at them with shocked eyes.
"Did you knowingly send Konoha ninjas into battle even though they were already comprised"
"Yes"
"Did you also know that Danzo was going to kidnap Mikoto and was going to stage a coup against me?"
"Yes"
"What did he offer you in return?"
"More power within the village when he becomes the Hokage"
"There you have it" Naruto stated to the shocked Sandaime, "I had warned you several times of their betrayal but you just didn't believe me".
Handing the Sandaime a kunai, Naruto nudged him ahead "Go and kill them".
Jiraiya suddenly walked forward in anger, "No way I'm letting you do that!".
Before he could take another step ahead, a katana was suddenly pointed at his throat, several other weapons were also pointed at him as the Anbu surrounded him.
"Take another step and I'll kill you right here" Sakumo, whom Naruto had bought along with him from Tetsu no Kuni, warned Jiraiya with a cold look in his eyes.
"Don't do this Naruto, Please" Tsunade also pleaded, "This is comparable to asking a brother to kill his sibling, it's too cruel. I am asking this to you as your teacher, please don't make him do this".
"As your student, I hold you in high regards and will always fulfil your request no matter what," Naruto replied, "But I am not your student right now, I am the Hokage of Konohagakure and as the Hokage, I have to lead by example, something which the Sandaime failed to do in this regard. If my ninjas start to think that they can get away with treachery just because someone I respect is telling me to let it go, then this village's future is doomed and as a Hokage, I can't let that happen. So I request you, as your student to not interfere in this matter anymore" with that he gave her a small bow of apology and turned towards the Sandaime.
"I can't do this!", Sarutobi exclaimed, "I grew up with them, I don't have the heart to kill them".
"Are you telling me that the shinobi who died under your command because of the leaked information they sold to the enemy deserved their horrible fate and they don't deserve any justice for laying down their lives for the village?" Naruto continued, "If you won't do it then I'll have no choice but to declare you a traitor as well since you are knowingly supporting other traitors"
Sarutobi looked at him in shock, he, a former Hokage, will go down in history books as a traitor, how will he face his predecessor in the afterlife if he besmirches the title of the Hokage like this.
Steeling his resolver, Sarutobi tightly clutched the kunai in his hand and walked in front of them, "I should have stopped you when I got wind of what you three had been up to but my love for you all had blinded me from the truth. And now it has come to this".
"I am sorry-"
He didn't let the other two speak as he suddenly slashed the Kunai forward and sliced it through their throats.
"I should be the one to apologise since I let you three stray away from the righteous path" He bent down and closed their eyelids, "May you rest in peace".
Naruto gave the old man a few minutes to grieve then continued, "And now, It's time for the root to turn into ashes".
At his command, The ditch filled with the bodies of root ninja was lit ablaze. Some were fortunate to be dead while the others were burnt alive.
"Those who had surrendered will go through rigorous therapy and reform programs to help them lead a happier life while those who didn't, have met their fate".
There were loud screams of pain for several minutes as they were burnt alive, no one dared to make a sound as they listened to the last of the survivor take his final breath as he joined the other in the afterlife.
"This is the fate of traitors, no one to console them, no one to avenge them, Dying in a ditch with nothing to remember them by. And your fate will be worse than them" he continued as he turned to face Danzo, who was being held down by the Anbu. He had tried to commit suicide by biting his tongue but the Anbu present had immediately stopped him.
"Mikoto" He turned towards her and gave her a small peck on her lips, "I would prefer If you don't watch what I'm about to do to Danzo. I don't want you or our baby to be anywhere near the violence I am about to commit".
"He was going to kill me and use our baby against you, there is no way I won't watch him suffer as you make him pay for that".
Naruto kissed her forehead and turned away from her, "Kakashi" He called out, Kakashi was now completely healed as Tsunade and Naruto's clone had patched him up in no time. Walking near Mikoto, he stood by her side, "Take her back to our house after 5 minutes, no matter what she says, don't allow her to stay here and don't come back for me either".
Naruto announced the same to the villagers as well, "Anyone below the age of 15 is requested to return to their houses and not to exit until given an all-clear, this applies to the ninjas under 15 as well. I would prefer if our future generation is not mentally scarred by the torture I am about to commit."
After giving them a few minutes to return to their houses, Naruto approached Danzo.
"Everything I did till now I did it as the Hokage, it was not personal and I didn't get any satisfaction doing it, but now..." Naruto drifted off as he removed a kunai from his pouch with a sinister smile on his face, "What I'm about to do to you, I am going to enjoy it, very very much."
With that, he stabbed the Kunai into Danzo's mouth and began to remove his teeth, scraping and cutting them away from his gums, all the while Danzo screamed.
After the first five minutes passed, Danzo was left screaming with no teeth. Next, Naruto took his individual finger in his hand, or whatever was left of them after the wolves bit off a few of the fingers, and began pulling out his nail, The screaming never stopped.
(Note:- The torture was originally quite grotesque and full of gore, I didn't feel comfortable publishing it so I had to scrap several paragraphs, unfortunately, some of the material was deleted as well, sorry for the inconvenience.)
By now, Kakashi was thoroughly horrified of Danzo's condition, without wasting even a single moment, he took Mikoto's hand and guided her away from the terrible scene, she didn't protest one bit.
The torture went on for several days, every time Danzo would pass out Naruto would revive him and continue to torture him till his heart gave out then would revive him and continue torturing him again.
Danzo was left hanging on a pole all night, that was the only time Naruto allowed him to rest. His torture would continue again at the daybreak.
After 7 days of torture, Mikoto and the recently returned Kushina finally begged him to stop and put Danzo out of his misery. It was only because of the two that he finally relented, though he still didn't kill him. Danzo was handed over to the torture and interrogation division where he stayed for 2 months.
It was only in Mikoto's final month of pregnancy did Naruto finally kill him and dump his body in the forest of death for the creatures there to eat him.
As the news of the incident spread, the message in it to the world was loud and clear, "You mess with Uchiha Naruto's family, you die a terrible death".