DECLARATION OF WAR – THE NEXT STEP
Central Aturia
Yuuki Terukatsu has been crying out for one thing above all others since he declared war on Furst Jonas. That which he desires most is a work force. The War Council is an illustrious organisation with many representatives from all across Homeworld, but their numbers are limited by design. One person to represent each area that the War Council is drawn from. Alone they lack the power to wage war, even with the warriors they have hidden from the Imperial Guard over the years.
Fortunately recent events have been favourable. He has heard that Uzumaki Naruto has created the experimentally created daughter of Clyde and Lara, who is said to have perfect instincts. This has freed up two new warriors for him to integrate into the ranks of the rebellion. Ming Dai and Shao Chin.
Each has a unique skillset. With time and training, Terukatsu is confident that Ming Dai's skill and power will exceed his own. Sora's student will surely become one of the leaders of the rebellion and one of the most important people in the battle against tyranny. Shao Chin's uses are different. While the hunter is good in a fight, his most valuable skill is his ability to find people across the world. There is nobody who can hide themselves from Shao Chin and that will make him essential in their struggle.
"I want you two to assist with the war of course," Terukatsu tells them, "But training will be an important part of your daily activities. With training you two can stop following my orders and begin to lead this rebellion."
"You want us to lead?"
"From the beginning I have been a placeholder, just as I was in the previous war. I am here to hold the fort until Naruto has accumulated the level of power, he needs to take charge. When that happens, I will pass over command to him."
A runner approaches. Not a member of the War Council but one of the many divine energy users that they hid from the Imperial Guard. She would have been conscripted into the military had they not intervened.
"Commander Yuuki, Uzumaki Naruto has returned," she says, "And he has brought Princess Hinata with him."
Terukatsu examines the runner with his divine ability, observing the heat in her brain. She certainly doesn't believe that she is lying. Unless she is boldly demonstrating her incompetence, the runner truly has seen the return of Princess Endou Hinata.
Terukatsu runs over to see. Ming Dai and Shao Chin follow closely behind him. The Leader of the War Council is stunned. The genetic defect makes it as plain as day that the lady accompanying Naruto really is Endou Hinata. He continues to run forward with the others, excited about this excellent news.
"You're alive!" Ming Dai says to Hinata.
"I'm alive? I suppose you must have known me before my battle with Mars."
"Yes. Yes, I knew you before that. We met in the Academy. I was your uncle's student. Naruto and I are sibling students in that sense."
Naruto steps forward.
"Dai, why didn't you tell me that Hinata was the princess?"
"The princess was gone from this world long before I became Headmaster Sora's student," Ming Dai says. "I just thought the two of them shared a name. I honestly had no idea that your wife was the lost Princess of Homeworld. I promise I would have told had I known."
"Sora must have known!"
"Of course he must have," Dai says. "He must have had his reasons for keeping quiet. I had a feeling back then that he knew why Hinata's power was greater than it should have been, but I never questioned him."
"My uncle wouldn't have kept quiet if he didn't think it was important," Hinata says, "Perhaps if he had spoken up then the power would have disappeared. Perhaps the Hinata you knew before would still be standing here with you. It is possible that with his silence my uncle saved Homeworld."
"He could have told me," Naruto remarks.
"And would you have kept quiet? Would you have allowed me to replace the Hinata you knew?"
"No, I wouldn't."
Terukatsu observes the irritation within Naruto. From what he can gather Hinata must currently be inhabiting the body of a pocket-worlder of the same name. This pocket-worlder seems to have previously been Naruto's wife. While this appears dramatic for them, he can only see this one way.
"This is fantastic news," Terukatsu says. "Think about how this will inspire people. Uzumaki Naruto, the pocket-worlder who stood up to the empire. Endou Hinata, the princess who returned to claim her stolen throne. In time the two of you will become the figureheads the rebellion. Your marriage is excellent news, if we can tell people an inspiring story, they are much more likely to rally to our cause."
"He married the previous inhabitant of this body," Hinata counters. "Uzumaki Naruto and I met just a short while ago. I do not approve of the pocket-worlds' participation in this war. This is an internal issue. Our inability to control our world has brought death and destruction to theirs. We should be resolving these issues unaided, accepting their help is an embarrassment to the empire."
"I don't think you should disregard them princess."
"You presume to command me Yuuki Terukatsu?"
"The throne is your right, but commanding the rebellion is not. I am willing to hand control of our forces over to you but only when your strength exceeds my own. Until then, I believe we should accept the pocket-worlds help."
"Why do you believe that, Leader of the War Council?"
"I've seen this man in action. I've seen on battlefields physical, mental, and emotional. He has something that cannot be taught, a resolve that even the fires of war cannot build. He is a freak and one day he will become one of the most powerful warriors to have ever lived. I don't think we can free ourselves without his help."
Hinata nods. "You can tell people he and I are married if you think that will help morale. You may continue to command the forces of the rebellion for now. It is my family who raised Furst to the heights he has now reached though, and when it comes time to fight him, I will be the one to tear him from the throne. Is that understood, Yuuki Terukatsu?"
"Understood, Princess Endou."
Terukatsu parts for a moment to inform the other members of the War Council that Princess Hinata has returned. Although her desire to wage war without the pocket-worlders is not ideal, her return, and the circumstances surrounding it, could not be better from a political point of view. He relays the information to them, and they are all delighted. Homeworld is now fertile for a war.
Terukatsu returns and says he wishes to run through some details with the two of them. He sits Naruto and Hinata down in front of a map. The three of them around the table, they gaze down on the enormous land that they hope to reclaim one day. This is a map of Okarin, Aturia, Ewoa, Gavaria, Seblix, Cheqitori and Fayoth, the seven nations of Homeworld.
"I would like to suggest that the two of you head North into Fayoth. We need to start making some friends up there, winning people around to the resistance. Eventually we will need people from every nation, but this will be a big first step."
"Fayoth is not densely populated, I think I would be better heading south to Ewoa," Hinata argues. "I know that this will cause complications for each of our groups so we could make a trade in personnel. Mana could travel with you guys, she knows Homeworld's geography and history well. In exchange Himawari could come with me, and she could learn about the empire to which she is a princess."
Hinata's plan is sound from a tactical viewpoint. All Naruto's group truly lacks is someone who can point them in the right direction. From a technical standpoint, Naruto and Hannah have almost everything covered between the two of them. Hinata has enough strength and sensory prowess to take care of Himawari and Michel. However, this plan is not agreeable to everyone, and to Uzumaki Naruto her true intention is transparent.
"You're trying to separate from me, aren't you?"
"Not at all, it's just the best move tactically."
"We talked about this before, when things happen you can't explain you will need a chakra expert nearby."
"That's why I would be taking Himawari with me. Do you not consider our daughter to be an expert on chakra?"
"Himawari is strong, but she never wanted to be a warrior. If you want to know about the details of chakra you would be better off asking a Hokage. That means you have to be with someone from the pocket-world."
"Could you not teach Himawari the particulars of chakra that she would need to know about?"
"It would make no difference either way. I am not separating from Himawari. I've already seen too much death since I came to this place and I won't let it happen to anyone else. I'm going to keep her safe."
"Do you not believe that I am capable of keeping Himawari safe?" Hinata asks.
"I believe that together we definitely are. We proved it in the tower, didn't we? You and I make a good team Hinata. If we work together, I think that we can recruit more people to our cause than we ever could separately. I can't think of any way to keep her safer than for both of us to look after her."
Terukatsu rolls his eyes. They may function effectively as a team but that doesn't come across when they are bickering like this. He didn't expect to have to employ his hands-on management skills during this conflict, but it seems that's what he is going to have to do. He slams his palm into the table, silencing them with the loud thud as the top layer of wood splinters.
"Would you mind being quiet for a moment?"
They both shut up.
"As it stands, I am the leader of the rebellion," Terukatsu tells them. "I don't know much about your pasts, but I briefly met your daughter, I believe that she is a capable warrior. So protecting her is not on my list of priorities, because I think she can look after herself. Now, will you drop that subject?"
"Fine," Hinata accepts the decision.
"OK," Naruto says.
Terukatsu continues. "I have decided to send the two of you North together, and until you are ready to take over the rebellion you will respect that decision, that is an order. You will work together; you will take your relations with you and you will try to learn to stop bickering. What I need from you is teamwork, understood?"
"I will comply," Hinata says.
"I will do my best," Naruto says.
"Good, then I have some exciting news for you princess, I'm sending you North for more than a recruitment drive."
"There is something to be found to the North?"
"I have a lead coming from Fayoth. We are pushing our forces north because we believe that we have a lead on the Foundry."
Hinata gets to her feet and leaves the table. She walks away in a rush to find Michel and Mana, knowing that their knowledge of Homeworld's history will be of benefit here. Michel is older than she and Mana, always a recipient of the latest news and one of the closest allies of her father. Mana has spent here entire life learning as much as she can about the empire, an unneeded attempt to earn her place in the imperial household. Hinata has told her many times that she is part of her family, but that has done nothing to diminish Mana's will to be useful.
Hinata returns not only with Mana and Michel, but with everyone else who has been working with Naruto. She draws them back so they can discuss what she has just heard, this unbelievable claim from Yuuki Terukatsu.
"What is it that requires our input?" Michel asks.
"Mr Yuuki claims that he has a lead on the Foundry."
"No-no, that is not possible Mr Yuuki," Michel replies. "The Foundry is the best kept secret in the empire. There is no way that any information slipped with regards to it's location. Most of the royals don't even know where it is. Surely the emperor allows nobody who has worked in the Foundry to leave with their lives intact. No, there is no way that the Foundry can be found."
"I have to agree," Mana says. "I would love to help with an attack on the Foundry, but that is simply impossible. Your source is probably feeding you bad information on purpose, you should ignore them."
"I won't ignore them, even if they are leaking bad information," Terukatsu replies.
"Why?"
"Bad information is almost as useful as good information," the Leader of the Council remarks. "You can tell what your enemy wants you to think. I admit, it can be costly to walk deliberately into a trap, but that is sometimes a price worth paying. Eventually, they will send you towards the biggest trap of all, one that all of Furst's effort has been thrown behind, that is when we finally dodge a trap. We let the enemy stare into our faces and then we attack them from behind."
"Regardless of your tactics, I think you should tell your contact that you have no interest in the Foundry," Michel says. "The Foundry's defences are exceptional, probably the best in all of Homeworld. I remember once Akashi went to inspect the Foundry with Jonas. None of us were allowed to go with them, not even Sora. When Akashi returned, he said that he had no doubt that it would be safe for all eternity."
"If Furst is putting his best defences there we won't be able to overcome them," Mana adds. "By the time we have the power to overwhelm the Foundry, we would have enough power to attack Furst head-on. Michel is right, I wholeheartedly believe that attacking the Foundry is just a dream."
"What is this place, the Foundy?" Naruto asks.
"Foundry," Hinata corrects him.
"Well what is it?"
"You are aware that the people of our world have little variety in our fighting styles," Michel explains, "There is only one exception to that. That exception is divine abilities. They were a creation of Furst Jonas, an energy source that not only boosts our battle class by one level, but it also gives a strange power to use in combat."
"I know about divine abilities," Naruto says.
"The Foundry is where divine abilities are manufactured. It seems that nobody knows where it is, or how it works. Only one man knows for certain and that is the emperor himself. He invented divine abilities; the Foundry was his creation. Back then it was all endorsed by Akashi, we were at war of course. He didn't realise what the Foundry would become."
"It's always a thorn in our sides now," Mana explains. "Take the military. I believe from what your family told me they fight for Homeworld's freedom now. It would be great if we could get a divine ability for everyone in the military, but that's not possible. The only way we get hold of divine abilities is by finding them in old tombs are in the wake of an expert's death. The Imperial Guard produces them on mass, that is how they are so much stronger than the military. That's what happens in the Foundry. That's why it's more trouble than it's worth for us."
"Destroying the Foundry would be difficult, none of us are disputing that," Hinata says, "But this war was going to be difficult from the very beginning. We can't run away from a challenge because we think it is impossible."
"I agree," Naruto says, "If I had given up every time someone told me something couldn't be done so much would have been different. There are too many people who others told me I should kill who went on to help me. They are the reason we got this far, they're the reason that Hinata and I are still alive. We shouldn't let fear dictate our next move."
"That's exactly right," Terukatsu says. "Truth be told if I were fighting this war conventionally, I would have agreed with you Michel the Horse, but this is different. We are fighting a war based on the actions of this man, Uzumaki Naruto. I have seen the impossible happen already around him. I also believe that Princess Hinata may too be able to change how events would have transpired. So much has already defied expectations, let's keep going as we have been."
"Very well, I will follow the princess' lead," Michel says.
"I'll always follow Hinata-sis," Mana says.
As expected, the others all follow Naruto without hesitation. Hannah agrees to follow with less consideration than Terukatsu would have expected. As of yet he doesn't fully understand how her divine ability and her instincts work, but he knows that she will surely be useful to the rebellion in the future. She is an excellent companion to the two rebellion figureheads.
Naruto and Hinata travel together with their closest. At Terukatsu's behest they begin to move north towards Fayoth. There they are expecting to find information pertaining to the foundry, but on this journey, they will not find what they were expecting to find.
Moving to the north is predictable. Even if there were no lead on the Foundry, that is where a sensible commander would send Naruto and Hinata based on their current location. That location is known only to a select group in the Imperial Guard. The leader of that faction is awaiting them.
Naruto and Hinata are moving into a trap.
They are moving towards Colonel Zahra.
Battle Classes in this Chapter
Uzumaki Naruto (7) = Life (2) + Transcendent (2) + Shinobi (3)
Hannah (7) = [Light + Darkness] (3) + Transcendent (1) + Combo (1) + Manual (1) + Divine Ability (1)
Namikaze Minato (6) = Wind (3) + Shinobi (3)
Claude (6) = Flight (3) + Manual (3)
Endou Hinata (7) = Fire (3) + Divine Ability (2) + Shinobi (2) - Also has tier 1 water understanding
Yoshida Mana (6) = Lightning (3) + Manual (2) + Divine Ability (1)
Colonel Fadel Zahra (8) = Gale (3) + Transcendent (1) + Manual (3) + Divine Ability (1)
Yuuki Terukatsu (8) = Silver (3) + Transcendent (1) + Manual (3) + Divine Ability (1)
Himawari (?)
Kushina (?)
In Response to SnakethZero's Question
About release schedule plan and the villagers
I intend to keep releasing one chapter every weekday, but this may not be possible.
I've barely got any spare time left to do things and this release rate is beginning to affect my daily routine.
If I can get back into a better routine I will keep releasing at this rate, if I can't then I may have to drop to 3 chapters a week.
As for the villagers, it depends who you are referring to.
If you're referring to the other shinobi like Kakashi, yes they will appear, but obviously in a minor role compared to Naruto.
If you're referring to the non-shinobi villagers, they will appear but I don't have much interesting planned for them to be honest.
Thanks for reading.
In Response to S's Question
Asking hwo many years Furst has held power in Homeworld
I don't want to give an exact answer on this because I would risk creating an inconsistency.
It is in the order of hundreds of years though.
Thanks for reading.
In Response to sarada chan san's Question
About where Tao Ma is
Tao Ma is, as you say, with Hashirama, Tsunade and Mitsuki.
Thanks for reading.
In Response to Guest's Question
About Sakura and Hinata's shinobi skill levels
I would personally have said that Sakura was more skilled than Hinata, but I don't have any evidence for that.
I expect there is no evidence either way, so it's probably a matter of opinon.
The reason I have listed Sakura as higher, other than for my own lazy narrative convenience, is because of training she has done since coming to the future.
Sakura, much like other similar-levelled shinobi did during the first couple of arcs, became stronger through training.
I haven't written anything specific about what this training is, so if you have any ideas about what new techniques you would like her to use let me know.
Thanks for reading.
In Response to Engineer's Question
About Sakura's strength rating
There's nothing too special about it really. Off screen training.
It's a similar thing for Minato, who first moved from shinobi (2) to shinobi (3) during the battle against Lara's generals.
As I've said in my previous answer, if there are any new techniques you would like to see Sakura use now let me know.
I will try and change the narrative from me being lazy to me being open to suggestion.
Thanks for reading.
In Response to Guest's Questions
About Hinata's and Sakura's battle class
So my answer to Sakura is as in my two replies above.
Sakura has done off-screen training. Let me know if you have any new techniques you want her to use going forward let me know.
As for Hinata, you are right, it should have made her class 8, but it didn't.
This was deliberate, but I can't say why at the moment.
Good spot.
Thanks for reading.