WAR NEVER ENDS – RELIEF
The Battlefield
Hashirama runs the analysis through in his head. Before he can even look at the one who stopped him he is certain of who it is. The slim fingers with an arm just reaching past the cuff of an obnoxious orange and black tracksuit. Without looking he can already see the blonde hair in his mind, the disappointed expression and the disappointment hidden behind those deep blue eyes. Besides that, there is the power issue to consider. Not even Tao Ma would be able to move that quickly; perhaps not even Boruto would.
With many considerations in mind, he confidently speaks the name of the one who has arrived to stop him.
"So, you have come, Uzumaki Naruto".
There is a delay a moment of pure silence while everyone let's their brain process what has just happened. It's like lag, the captains who screamed for their general are still gathering air to their lungs. The crying shinobi are still looking on in disbelief at their fallen idle. The families of those involved are still racking their brains for what to do. Amongst these groups there is not a single one who doesn't have the same incomparable feeling of relief.
One of them finally reacts, prompting the others to follow.
"It's Lord 7th!".
As the cheer resounds around the battlefield, Hashirama is surprised by the reaction. For Clyde's group he can understand their elation, for they have perhaps just evaded certain death. The shinobi, in part, may be feeling betrayed and while he disagrees with their logic he can understand it. Lara's group he doesn't understand though. They have only just laid eyes on the 7th Hokage for the first time, yet they act like children whose parent has come to save them.
This is an effect Hashirama used to have on people, an effect he has no longer.
Minato smiles knowingly in the direction of his son. Naruto is what Naruto has been since coming to the future. Their hero, someone who arrives just in time.
Himawari allows herself to fall to her knees. The tears blurring her normally-augmented vision, she raises her head and painfully calls out, a child to her father.
"Dad…".
"Thank goodness" Kushina adds while resting her head in her hands. "Thank you… thank you Naruto…".
Peterson realises that he has been holding his breath for almost a minute and finally exhales. He remembers the shock of his first fight with Uzumaki Naruto. Never before had he met a local so strong, one who actually posed a genuine threat to him. With help, Naruto had defeated him, the first local to do so.
"Of all the times to show up".
Peterson recalls that occasion when he first met Naruto, he fought against three locals by himself. All three people have been so important to him today. Tobirama has made peace with him, demonstrating a reconciliation that may have changed the course of the battle. Hashirama showed up, showing him what he had believed to be certain doom, offering a final retribution for his former sins. Now Naruto, the saviour even for those who have considered him an enemy in the past. An instant hero to military followers of Clyde and Lara alike.
"That's lord 7th for you" Mitsuki grins, "His timing couldn't be any better".
There is an exception to the almost universal gratitude. Lara looks on in awe.
"What is going on?". Her fiercely land on Naruto, looking for something unique about him but finding nothing. "What is this power, who is this man?".
"You're free" Clyde notes, "And you arrived now of all times… thank god…".
Naruto looks into the darkened eyes of his friend, still gripping his wrist tightly to prevent him from moving.
"So, you're alive, Hashirama".
"Yeah, this is no illusion".
"But I saw your body".
"It was a fake so convincing that even you would not notice it".
Naruto's teeth grind together as he listens to the replies to his comments. This is a tone of voice that he has heard too many times during his life. Too many people end up venturing down the wrong path, finding ridiculous and deluded ways to justify their own philosophy. Once they get too deep into it, they become lost to their own delusions, they become so convinced that they are right that they refuse to place anybody else in their eyes. He has heard it in many people, but it has only hurt like this once before, when he heard it in Sasuke. After all, just like Sasuke, he thought that Hashirama understood him.
"What will you do now, Naruto, will you help them live, or will you see them die?".
With a sudden jolt of speed, Hashirama once more tries to throw his fist forward. This time Lara is his target. He is convinced that Naruto is unconcentrated, that he isn't prepared for a fight and that Lara is the last life he is considering protecting.
He is shocked though.
Just as his fist is about to reach Lara's face, Naruto's grip on the Senju clansman's wrist tightens once again. The blonde shinobi throws his arm out to the outside of his body, releasing his grip just as his arm reaches full speed. As Naruto's arm draws parallel with his chest, Hashirama's wraps around his own body, having been driven to the side of Lara's head.
The burst of wind bombards Lara's face, deforming it. The crazed general almost ignores it entirely though, instead focusing on the man who attempted to kill her and the man who just saved her. One of them had just tried a casual surprise punch, convinced that such a trivial attack could kill her. The other had reacted so quickly and casually, sampling tossing the attack aside to save her life. It is not something she can imagine though. She is the mightiest warrior in the history of the military, yet two locals from this world have so completely outclassed her.
Naruto projects his voice to those behind him.
"Everyone, well done holding until now".
"I can see that you have all fought hard to make it here. You can all be proud of yourselves for what you have done".
"So, from this point forward, leave everything to me".
Hearing those words instils a sense of confidence in the locals.
Tsunade is very keen to refocus on one of the many snippets of information she just had to absorb. Hashirama kept everything a secret from her because she may have done one thing to stop him. She may have spoken to Uzumaki Naruto. This tells her all that she needs to know, that there if there is anyone who can salvage this situation, he is the one trying to do so at this very moment.
Himawari contemplates Boruto's words. If Sarada had not brought Naruto forward into the future, Sheer would have revived him, and Naruto would have been using the power of 'death'. Instead, here he is, using the power of 'life' to protect three armies from a mad man who wants to kill two.
'Thank you Sarada. Seeing him in front of me now is everything I need' she says in her mind. 'This is my father. This is the one who should defend the Hidden Leaf'.
Kakashi looks on. 'Naruto; Sasuke and Sakura would be proud of you. So, don't lose… don't lose Naruto'.
Tobirama echoes the sentiments, along with everyone else. 'Beat him Naruto. Just win!'.
Hashirama takes a deep breath, finally daring to look his opponent in the eyes now that they are disconnected. This is regrettable to him and he isn't particularly confident about this fight, but he is certain of what he must do. If he is to protect the village in the long run, he must defeat Naruto here and kill the invaders.
He flexes his five fingers, rolling them one after another. He does this twice or thrice before summoning 'death' divine energy to his hand. The murmur that passes through the nearest captains and even the two generals make it feel like the energy itself has its own little noises. It seems to chill people in a way that not even Elliot's 'cold' compares to. People just feel as they look at it that they should run away. They feel that if they go close enough to Hashirama's hand they are going to die; a feeling shared by shinobi and captains alike.
"Are you sure this is what you want, Naruto? You haven't even heard my peaceful offer yet".
Offering peace while sharpening a blade, it is not an offer of peace at all but a demand of it. Hashirama's tactic is one of intimidation, with energy that terrifies those around him and a power that nobody else would be able to compare to. Except for one person who is not afraid of him, and one person whose power can compare to his.
While Hashirama's eyes have a vicious look in them, Naruto's eyes appear relatively serene. Clyde wonders if this is a result of their elements and whether this difference can be seen between he and Lara as well.
In an instant, a far more gentle and calming power is summoned to Naruto's hand. For many on the battlefield, they have never sensed 'life' before, for some it has been three years since they sensed it and for the others it feels like a lifetime ago. The feel of it is warming and calming, an immediate clash with Hashirama's. One moment everyone felt terrified, the next they felt overjoyed and now they only feel calm. The two elements appear to have equal strength.
"If your offer includes killing Clyde, killing my ally, then it is not peaceful at all".
"Father!" Boruto calls. "Must you be stubborn even now?".
Hashirama is quick to warn his student off, raising an open palm in a 'stop' gesture. "Boruto, don't get involved in this fight. This is between Naruto and I".
The shadow Hokage can't help but sigh. It is demoralising to spend so much of his life chasing after his father, getting so far and hearing that he is still not on the same level as him.
"I understand. I can't compete with the two of you. However, father if you would just listen, I am sure that I could convince you that…".
Naruto points at his son, silencing him. "You shut up!".
Boruto stops in his tracks, momentarily reverting to a child being yelled at by his father.
Naruto continues. "Any other day I would be teaching you a lesson as your father but today that responsibility lies with somebody else".
Tao Ma drops to his knees and laughs. This is Naruto's first time seeing him, but he instantly recognises his authority and the matching description. This is the man who took Boruto in the first place, clearly the previous leader of the little group of caped madmen and madwomen.
"You are going to have somebody else fight your son, but none of them could even beat me" Tao Ma begins to laugh once again. His craziness is already irritating Naruto. "Your son has potential, Uzumaki, potential to surpass even you. There is no way that he would…".
He is interrupted by the same sound as before. The unmistakable sound of air being pushed out of the way. The sound of someone moving incredibly fast.
He tries to turn but before he can it is too late. Tao Ma is hit solidly in the side of his face. While Shikadai and Shinki have spent an entire day trying to work out how to hurt him, this newcomer has done it in an instant. Following her fist through, the newcomer lands on the ground, arriving at the perfect moment to save her teacher from a most irritating speech.
Boruto catches her eye instantly. 'Sarada…'.
"It's the Hokage" many of the shinobi cheer.
"Thank god you are here" Mitsuki smiles.
One of the captains calls to Peterson. "Colonel, did you see that?".
"Yeah. That was unbelievable".
Shinki's thoughts are similar. "Shikadai?".
"Yeah, I saw it. She defeated him in a single hit".
Clyde smiles. 'She got a lot stronger very suddenly'. He then looks to her teacher. 'She must have been the one who freed Naruto'.
'It doesn't matter who she is' Elliot concludes, 'She has put us in a far better position than we were in a few seconds ago'.
Enraged, Sarada activates her rinnegan, fixing her position and remaining completely still as she gazes unperturbed at her fiancé. Just a short while ago things were so different. She was terrified of the group arriving at her village, terrified that they were taking Boruto away from her. Yet now, against him and his incredible power, and amongst this group who intimidated her before, she shows no fear at all.
The game has changed.
Uchiha Sarada has arrived.
While Hashirama and Naruto are both hyper-sensitive to the changes around them, Boruto and Sarada are different. Unlike their counterparts, they are not thinking of the larger ramifications of the upcoming conflict but instead the personal ramifications. Not so long ago they were plotting to get married, preparing for a happy life in the peaceful village they created. Now they stand opposite one another as enemies, each an adversary of the person in the world they least wish to be.
"Boruto, I need you to tell me the truth, please".
"The truth about why you have done this. Why have you gone so far? I can tell just by looking at you that you have switched side" she says emotionally. "You've abandoned the peace we had to pursue your personal vendetta, to pursue your revenge".
Boruto lambasts his luck, thinking this situation to be typical. He hadn't wanted his dad to oppose him so strongly, but he had been prepared for it. For Sarada to be so fiercely opposed to what he is doing from the outside is painful.
"Sarada, this doesn't need to be difficult".
"Don't you dare give me that. We had three years of peace. We had your families blessing to pursue a relationship. We had my master's permission to get married and you decided to throw it all away".
Sarada will always remember this and teach it to those who rest on their laurels. Within the space of one week she has gone from earth, to heaven and now to hell. Destiny will play with your life, no matter how resolute your morals, no matter how mighty your power, no matter how you try to resist it. Even in her emotional state she can feel the flow of the situation, the foreboding nature of their conversation. If Boruto was thinking rationally, if he were the Boruto of yesterday, he wouldn't be doing this, would he?
"Nothing has changed Sarada. I still want to marry you and live every dream we spoke of before" he says, forcing a smile through his tears. "I want to do so much together with you and we still can. We are on the same side as you, we are here to protect the Hidden Leaf from the invaders".
Sarada curses the logic of it. Even if Boruto were right in the long-term, there is room to discuss things now, there is no need to be so forceful. Right now, all four of the strongest people here are from the Hidden Leaf village, with the fifth being a self-proclaimed ally of the village. Even if they were to just stop fighting nothing bad would happen to the village. However, the shadow Hokage's resolution shines through in his body-language; there is no way he is leaving here without what he believes to be an assurance of safety. While it is the last thing on her mind, one of the people Boruto is most concerned for, is Sarada herself.
"All we need is the Circle's agreement. We can kill the invaders and form an alliance between the leaf and our group".
"But there it is, that condition" she replies, "That condition is too important to both us to budge on".
"The invaders must be killed, that is non-negotiable".
"To hell with that, the Circle voted on this before, we don't want an unnecessary war with them".
Boruto covers his eyes with his hand. He is certain now that she will not understand but what can he say to her? She fought against the invaders, that is true, but she was always the rear-line, the last defence who saved lives. He was the first defence, the one who went out and took the fight to the enemy. Every death suffered under Sarada was because of the initiative of one of the colonels. Every death suffered under Boruto's command was because of his initiative. The responsibility, despite her being Hokage, could never truly fall on Sarada's shoulders, she could never truly bear the burden of death in the same way as he. No, there was nowhere to run for him, every time something went wrong it was his fault and people died. There is nowhere to run from that kind of responsibility, all he can do is look back, listen to the voices of the dead behind him and honour them.
He finally does all he can and makes a threat.
"Do you want an unnecessary war with us, Sarada?"
"No, we do not. It is you who has put the ultimatum un front of us. The Hidden Leaf won't just bow to you because you have more strength than the invaders. We will stand up for what we believe is right, just like we always have done".
"… then I have no choice but to fight you. I'm sorry, Sarada".
The 9th Hokage takes two steps forward, setting a high pace for her opponent to follow. He reacts appropriately at first, positioning himself well to deal with this kind of frontal assault. He has seen how Sarada fights many times and knows exactly how to counter it. That is how he thinks initially, but then Sarada's speed increases. A burst of speed faster than he anticipated, higher than he has ever fought against before. She arrives on the ground before her fiancé and levies a punch into his chest.
Boruto skids back, slowly coming to a halt as he grasps at his chest.
"I see. You two have mastered an element".
"It's not just that" a struggling Tao Ma says from his position on the floor. "She has mastered an element that transcends two levels. Just like you!".
Boruto's outlook changes, he immediately realises that he was being foolish before, that he should have noticed when Sarada defeated Tao Ma. Now the true battle must begin.
Naruto vs Hashirama.
Sarada vs Boruto.
The battle of the transcendent, begins.