WAR NEVER ENDS – WHY ARE YOU HERE?
Sarada's House
Silence possess the room. Of all the things to do, Boruto has done this. For so long now, he has avoided speaking to his parents about his relationship, he has vehemently tried to keep it a secret from the entire world. Now, in the quiet broken room, he kneels before Sarada, on one knee, asking the most important question he has ever asked.
"Uchiha Sarada, will you marry me?".
Sarada's head falls into her own hands, overcome with emotion in a moment where everything falls into place for her. After all the hiding, this is what Boruto has to say, this is where they have been going all this time. For a second she allows the feelings to pour out, to overwhelm her. It has been so long since she has felt that she could truly let her guard down in front of someone. For her Boruto is that person.
She removes her glasses to wipe away a single tear before replacing them and raising her head up again. "This is what you were asking my master about?".
"Yes" Boruto smiles, finally reassured that she won't be angry with him.
"Of course" Sarada answers with a gentle shake of her head. She sniffles as the tears continue to pour from her eyes, "Of course I will marry you".
As the couple embrace, time stands still for them. It doesn't matter what the world throws at them now, they have one another. It doesn't matter if the all the heavens and the earth overheard their discussion. This moment is an alleviation of all their fears, of all their worries.
The silence is disrupted when the door flies open off of its hinges. In comes the first person to see them in this regard, the first person to see them as a couple. It's Himawari, Boruto's sister, Sarada's future sister-in-law.
Initially, Sarada moves to separate from Boruto. It is a force of habit from spending so much time together but always going to great lengths to not be seen. Boruto clings to Sarada tightly, reminding her that they don't need to be afraid anymore, that they will never need to worry about these things again.
"Himawari" he says with a smile on his face.
"Brother" she replies, "Sarada". Her breath is ragged, she has run all the way here in a great hurry.
"So dad told you about us, right?" Boruto asks as he gestures between himself and his new fiancée. "She said yes, we're going to get married".
"Congratulations" Himawari replies snappily, "But we have bigger issues than your love life right now, Lord Shadow 9th".
As soon as Himawari begins to use titles, Boruto and Sarada know that something is wrong, something is very wrong. She habitually refers to them by their names, or as her brother/friend.
"Bigger issues?" Sarada says as she separates from Boruto and mentally prepares herself for any potential danger.
"A group of people have arrived in long black coats" Himawari explains. "They have the village completely surrounded".
"Who are they?" her brother questions.
"I have no idea but I can only assume one thing" she continues, "They are from their world".
Just as Sarada thought this was going to be one of the best days of her life it looks like her village is going to be hit with a crisis. She knows that she has a duty though and refuses to neglect it even in these circumstances. She runs to the wall and picks up a kunai and her Hokage's haori.
"Boruto, get your weapons ready, we may need them" she yells as she runs out of the door.
"Yes" the shadow Hokage accepts his order and activates his byakugan, scanning for any kunai that he has left scattered around the house. He had hoped to be relaxing in this moment, sharing his day's story with Sarada or maybe even telling his family that she had said yes. Instead here he is, preparing to defend the village again.
"Brother, you've only just got engaged" Himawari reminds him, "Don't let anything happen to her, OK".
"Of course" he picks up the last kunai he can find before making for the exit. "I'm not only her fiancé, I'm also her Shadow Hokage, right?".
As he leaves the house, Himawari smiles, he moves so quickly, so efficiently and doesn't hold back from his duty. When the village is in danger, he throws himself against the threat, just like their father always did. "That's right" she whispers, as if the wind will carry her words to her brother, "Go, Boruto".
At the Village Walls
A few cautious shinobi stare at the visitors, their weapons drawn as they hold their ground on the village walls. They have no authority, no great power, they are just the first responders to this incident. What are they supposed to do, in the past these threats have been tackled by military leaders, by Hokage and Shadow Hokage, by heroes. What can they possibly do against people from the other world.
Just as they are feeling lost, someone arrives to help them. Nara Shikamaru, someone who has led shinobi in war before, has come.
"What's going on? Who are these people?" he asks.
"We don't know sir" one of the shinobi answers. "They just came, seemingly out of nowhere. They don't look like they have had a long journey. They've brought no resources, they arrived as if they had just taken a short walk".
The other is less calm than her friend. "He died" she explains about their comrade. "He went down to speak to them, to ask them what they wanted but they killed him".
Shikamaru nods. "They haven't attacked you guys, have tried speaking to them".
"We haven't dared".
"Hey, you" Shikamaru bravely shouts to the warriors below, "What do you want, why have you come here?".
They do not answer.
Shikamaru is dumbfounded for a moment, his eyes fixed firmly on these newcomers as he ponders all the possible reasons for their being here. They have no problem with you speaking to them unless you try to approach them. 'Unless you try to approach them, why would they have a problem with that?' Shikamaru asks himself. 'It makes no sense, if they were afraid of proximity they wouldn't be here in the first place'.
A screaming shinobi interrupts his thoughts, jumping from the wall as she screams something about killing her husband. Shikamaru quickly realises that she must be the wife of the deceased shinobi and then he realises why they are here.
"WAIT" he shouts at the screaming shinobi but it is no use.
She is incensed, she is beyond reasoning with. As she leaps down to attack the black coated warriors, she is defeated instantly, not even getting in an attack of her own.
Shikamaru grits his teeth as he hears another good person die. "They're not here to attack us" he explains, "They're here to keep us in".
"But why?" the first shinobi asks him, "Why bother with us?".
"That's what I want to know".
Atop the Hokage Monument
The stone faces are now a monument to far more than the Hokage who have saved this village, they are a monument to the resilience of the village itself. They were destroyed previously by bomb detonated under the village. Ironically in the years long war, it is not the enemy that destroyed the stone monument but a Hokage, Sarutobi Konohamaru. With the time that the 8th Hokage bought the villagers that day, they have clawed their way back from the edge of defeat. They have risen so high again that they have been able to rebuild these stone faces again.
Sarutobi Konohamaru is no longer here. He is dead. One Hokage who is still here though, is Senju Hashirama. He stands atop his own stone face as he looks down on the ring of steel that has surrounded his village. With Naruto gone, defending this village is his chief priority, or so many believed it would be. After all the threats that Tao Ma made to him, after all the talk of death and destruction, they are not attacking, they are just stopping people from leaving.
'So you've come' Hashirama notes to himself. 'Mito, it looks like a disaster has come to the village at last'.
'Tao Ma, it doesn't matter what threats you make, it doesn't matter how strong you are' he explains in his mind, 'I am the 1st Hokage of the Hidden Leaf Village'.
"And I won't let you harm my village".
With those final words, he disappears.
Atop a Tall Building
This is the tallest building in the entire village, a perfect vantage point for sensory shinobi. Two mighty warriors have naturally gravitated to this point, the 9th generation of the villages leaders. Sarada and Boruto.
On one side is the only man to have ever unlocked the Tenseigan naturally. With his enhanced eye activated he scans the village for any sign of activity. Surely these people have not come here just to keep them inside the village walls, that would be a futile and pointless exercise.
On the other side is the last Uchiha. One of three Uchiha to have mastered the use of the rinnegan. Her eyes dart to and thro between any and all movement that she sees. Her vision isn't as all-encompassing as her partners but it is better for detecting specific things, locking in on motion or chakra patterns as soon as they occur. She too is contemplating how this situation has arisen, given that Naruto left the village earlier, surely the timing of this incident is no coincidence. Surely, they cannot wait forever to carry out their plan.
"Martin warned us three years ago that others would be coming for General Clyde" Boruto recalls, "Could this be them?".
"I thought Martin might have connections within their military" Sarada postulates. "It looked like was entitled to his position within it, that he received no shortage of favours".
"That's true" Boruto nods.
There are two sort of people born into the right place in this world. There are those who take full advantage of their situation, who grasp at every unfair advantage they are given, Martin is such a person. Then there are people like Sarada and Boruto. Born to the Shadow 7th Hokage and 7th Hokage respectively, they didn't take advantage of their names. They saw their names as a marker, something they had to surpass to consider themselves successful.
"These people don't look like they come from the military" Sarada notes, her rinnegan fixing on a couple of warriors near the village gates. "Their uniform is nothing like Clyde's group".
"Then who do you they could be?".
"I have no idea".
THUD.
THUD.
A heavy landing. Two feet one after the other, as if a giant was stepping behind them. Someone has landed behind the 9th generation leaders.
The landing isn't unaccompanied, the second the feet of the intruder touch down, two pieces of debris fly squarely towards the rear of the duo's heads. The speed of the debris isn't natural, the sort of speed that could only be achieved by a Hokage or someone even mightier using their full power and this intruder has managed it just by landing.
Sarada and Boruto are not normal, even by the incredible standards of the Hokage, they are some of the strongest people to have ever graced this world. At the last second, their visual powers do not let them down, they wait until the debris is about to hit their skulls before spinning on their heels, perfectly dodging the incoming projectile. As they turn, they both draw kunai to their hands and for the first-time lay eyes on their assailant.
They don't know this man but have been very near to him previously.
This is Tao Ma.
Tao Ma smiles as his head moves to the left and then to the right, looking between two of the most gifted children of the village.
"Be careful Boruto" Sarada instructs her Shadow Hokage, "This one looks different from the others".
She is not incorrect, the warriors surrounding the village have set a low standard for tidiness and cleanliness but this man is even worse. His unkempt appearance is hard to appreciate given his absurd display of strength from moments prior. Anyone with that sort of strength would be able to live like a king in any society.
"It's not just his appearance" Boruto remarks as he winces, "I feel… I feel something unusual… some strange energy flowing from him".
"Strange energy?" Sarada is surprised. She cannot feel any such energy flowing from this man.
"I don't know but watch out, he's dangerous, very dangerous".
"Yeah".
Tao Ma slowly raises his hand, his long-dishevelled hair rolling up his arm and over his shoulder as he does so. When his arm is parallel to the ground, he extends a solitary finger and points it at Sarada. With a light chuckle he unleashes his power, changing the lives of everyone in the village forever.
A grey substance pours from his body.
Both Sarada and Boruto's eyes widen as terror overcomes their body. It's not the power of the substance that intimidates them, it's the sensation that radiates from it. It's like coming face to face with the end of the world.
Both the Hokage and Shadow Hokage leap backwards to the very edge of the building, creating as much separation between themselves and their opponent as possible.
Clearly unthreatened by this but much to the duos relief, Tao Ma recalls the substance into his body.
"That stuff… Sarada, no matter what, don't let it hit you, it's dangerous" Boruto shouts.
"Boruto, don't you recognise it" she asks.
"Huh?".
"Perhaps you are the only one who has not felt this fear before but that substance strikes a very familiar fear into me" the Hokage explains.
"Boruto, that's the same stuff that pours from your body".
The Uzumaki thinks on this for less than a second before realising it is true. It is the same substance that pours from his body, that he confided in his father about. The same thing that nearly killed Sarada. The same thing which has made him go through agony for years.
Tao Ma chuckles again, watching as Boruto wears his full range of emotions on his face sequentially.
'This guy is too dangerous' Sarada realises, 'Master… where are you… hurry back'.
As Tao Ma takes a single step forwards, Boruto freezes in fear. This ailment of his has been lurking in the background of his life for three years now. The last time it truly influenced him was in the Captained Six contest when it almost killed Sarada. As time has passed the rate at which he suffers attacks has declined to the point where he had hoped that this part of his life was behind him. Now it looks like the opposite is true, it looks like this substance is about to take hold of his life again.
"Boruto, stay focused" the Hokage orders, "We're at a huge disadvantage here so you absolutely can't hold back".
Boruto gulps down a mouthful of saliva before raising his kunai once again. "Yes".
Tao Ma lowers his centre of gravity in preparation to dash towards the 9th generation duo. As his legs bend to propel him, one last bastion of hope arrives.
Landing between Tao Ma and the duo, it's Senju Hashirama.
"I won't let you hurt these two" Hashirama declares as he throws a punch towards Tao Ma.
As the punch connects, Sarada and Boruto are forced to close their eyes. The force of the air against their bodies is tremendous, enough to stun even people as powerful as their selves. Despite their eyes being closed they can tell from the surrounding environment the effect of that single blow, glass shatters on the building behind Hashirama, such is the ferocity of his attack and the movement of the air that it resulted in.
As they open their eyes once again, their hearts sink, Tao Ma caught that punch.
Hashirama is unperturbed, throwing several punches in retaliation as fast as he can. Tao Ma isn't truly hurt by the punches but he is put into a state where he cannot dodge any of them, instead he is forced to block.
In this moment Sarada realises that Hashirama was not boasting to her during their training session. If not for Naruto's power of 'life', the 1st Hokage truly could defeat him.
'This power is incredible' Boruto notes as debris flies past his head, 'The pressure from each and every blow. I thought I was catching up to my master but I knew nothing'.
'His strength is ridiculous'.
The 1st Hokage notices that he has his opponent on the defence and he notices his muscles relax slightly. Tao Ma is lacking for technical experience when compared to Hashirama, or so it seems. He has slipped into a defensive routine.
Hashirama takes this golden opportunity and uses it to create a single wood clone. He follows up immediately by slamming his arms into Tao Ma's as hard as he can. A chakra enhanced strength unrivalled throughout history, even Tao Ma is unable to keep his arms together as Hashirama slams his fists into them. Instead the fly out to his sides, leaving his core wide open.
Hashirama's wood clone steps into this opening and throws a punch towards the now open chest of Tao Ma.
This strategy doesn't work.
Tao Ma coats his hand in the grey substance, the same grey substance that has haunted Hashirama's student for years. He thrusts his hand straight through the chest of the clone but he doesn't stop there. As the clone disappears he continue to push his hand forward.
He pushes his greyed hand straight through the clone into the original Hashirama's chest.
The grey substance grows from Tao Ma's hand, circulating around the body of his latest victim. Semblances of the substance emerge from Hashirama's limbs, through the back of his head and even through his eyes and ears.
As Tao Ma pulls his hand from the wood users chest, he falls down.
Sarada and Boruto are forced to witness a sight that spells calamity for the leaf.
They are forced to watch a prophecy come true.
They are forced to watch Senju Hashirama, die.
"Master…" Boruto whispers as he watches the corpse of his mentor fall to the ground.
Tao Ma once again proceeds to walk towards them.
"Stay focused Boruto!" Sarada shouts at the top of her lungs, "We have to protect the leaf".
Tao Ma laughs this thinking off, "I am not here for the Hidden Leaf Village" he proclaims.
"Bastard, then what are you here for?" Sarada asks.
Tao Ma raises his finger and points it in the direction of destiny.
"I am here…".
"… for Uzumaki Boruto".