THE FOUNDRY – BATTLE FOR HINATA
Rara Prison
There is a tremendous bang as Naruto uses his divine oddity to smash his way inside Hinata's cell. Restraints for class 7s exist, that is how they were able to contain her, but they are rare. Restraints that can withstand Uzumaki Naruto, they are even rarer still, especially when he is using his divine oddity. As Naruto strikes his wife's restraints they don't break instantly, instead resisting his fist, dragging Hinata's wrists down painfully. The 7th Hokage just drives harder though, and Hinata endures the pain by pushing the restraints up into Naruto's fist.
'Fire' and 'water' energy explode from the cell, knocking down all the restraints in the duos way. This place was made to secure high-profile prisoners, the greatest criminals in Homeworld. Naruto and Hinata are no ordinary prisoners though, they are the greatest threat to the emperor and his throne.
Outside the Walls
Yasmine and the others stop fighting momentarily as they see the cell at the top of the wall explode.
"She is free!" Claude reports joyfully as he flies down from above.
Michel and Mana knew that Hinata was stubborn about accepting Naruto's help in this war. However, they have also come to understand the way that the 7th Hokage works. He is just as stubborn as the true empress has ever been. The only way that cell would have opened is if the two of them came to some sort of understanding. However it happened, the student of Muto Sora and the daughter of Endou Akashi are more in sync than before.
Himawari is delighted to see that her mother is free. That is the first key part of their plan executed successfully. Seeing her mother's attempts to distance herself from her father have been painful, but it feels like something just changed. Now they have to focus on the second key part of their plan, they have to get everyone back through Sasuke's portal without Yasmine killing any of them.
Rara Prison
"You remembered something, didn't you?" Naruto asks.
"A few flashes that's all."
"Don't tell me that those memories aren't important to you Hinata. I've known you for too long."
"We don't have time to discuss this now, do we?"
"No, we should go."
What Hinata has remembered is more important than just the flew flashes she has described. She has remembered what she felt in those moments. In her life as the princess she was often told of her father's heroism in the last war, events that inspired her greatly, that made her recognise her duty to protect people. In her life as a shinobi she found someone who inspired her elsewhere. In her life as a shinobi it was Naruto who inspired this strength in her, the strength to protect others. If she is going to become the great empress she wants to be, she still needs someone like that, she needs Uzumaki Naruto.
"We can't go yet," Hinata says.
"What are you talking about? The others are going to die if we don't get out of here soon, they can't hold forever against a general."
"The Sacred Sword, it's in one of the armouries below. That sword might be the key to defeating the emperor. We can't leave without it!"
"Then let's go get it."
Naruto and Hinata rush down the wall, encountering a resistance mostly of captains. Easy opposition for such a powerful pair of warriors. They defeat each of them with minimal effort. In this series of skirmishes Hinata takes the lead, having greater energy reserves available and having a stronger grip on the regulation battle principle. They fight their way down the stairs, they keep moving until Hinata is able to sense the Sacred Sword near, calling to her, its latest master.
Hinata leads Naruto into the armoury where they each spot the Sacred Sword across the room. It rests on a wooden stand made specially for this sword. Clearly someone recognised it as the sword from the legends and decided it would be put to good use in the future. Standing between the two shinobi and the sword are two colonels and dozens of captains. Presumably the two senior members of the Imperial Guard realised that Hinata would head here after she was freed and saw it as an opportunity to recapture her.
"Do you reckon they have optical skills?" Hinata asks.
"The colonels, probably part of standard training," Naruto answers.
"Maybe, but not for the captains."
Hinata floods the room with 'water'. Using her energy to manifest the real thing. Her 'water' powers are weak in comparison to her others, but that doesn't mean they are without their uses. Next the true empress uses her 'fire' powers to evaporate the water on mass, filling the room with a thick cloud of steam.
The two of them were right, the colonels did have optical skills at their disposal. They were able to block the attacks that Naruto and Hinata tried under the cover of the steam. However, as the steam clears the colonels' morale follows when they realise that under the cover of the steam Naruto and Hinata eliminated each of the captains under their command.
Naruto dives past the colonel, resting between the two on all fours like an animal ready to pounce. In reality he is a springboard. Hinata runs around the colonel she tried to attack under the steam cover and leaps off Naruto's back to attack the other colonel, flying through the air and taking him down with a swift knee to the head. As she looks around, she creates a 'fire' kunai in her hand, throwing it towards the colonel she attacked initially.
Naruto anticipated that Hinata would use this attack, a diversionary tactic. One that she has used when fighting with him in the past. She may not have remembered it, but if her instincts are the same as Hyuuga Hinata's then Naruto knew she would do this. The kunai distracts the colonel for a brief moment, just long enough for Naruto to drive a 'life' enhanced rasengan into the colonels gut.
A smile comes to the 7th Hokage's face. Just then he didn't feel like he was fighting with the heir to the throne of Homeworld. He felt like he was fighting with his wife from back home.
Hinata approaches the sword the colonels were gathering, the Sacred Sword, her weapon. As she takes it in hand, she feels its energy combine with hers once again. It is not as dramatic as the first time she grabbed the sword when she felt some permanent changes in her mind, but it does feel right, as if she is whole once again.
The two of them nod to each other and leave the armoury. There are many more captains and colonels to fight through on their way out of the prison. There is also General Yasmine trying to prevent their escape. They have done the first part, but they are not free yet.
Outside the Walls
Yasmine is not done with the others yet. Since it looks like Uzumaki Naruto and Endou Hinata are going to attempt an escape the easiest way to stop them would be to take down her current opponents first. Standard practice would be to take down the weaker opponents first to allow her to concentrate on the most powerful of them. Normally she wouldn't need to consider that with class 7 opponents, but Hannah is an outlier, perfect instinct making for an almost perfect warrior.
Target one, Claude the Owl.
Claude flies over the battle making occasional diving attacks. These dives provide two support functions. For starters it provides openings for the others to exploit, openings that Hannah never seems to miss. The second function is defensive, when it seems that Yasmine has begun to build up some momentum, he interrupts her. High above the battlefield, he should be immune to most attacks. What Claude has failed to respect is that he is now fighting on a different level to his younger days. There is nobody on this level who can't fight at range.
Yasmine takes the incoming attacks well. The most aggressive attackers are Himawari and Michel. The former likely out of inexperience in her judgement, but the latter out of a calculated desire to keep her under pressure for as long as possible. Mana is a more cautious assailant, attacking only when she is sure that she won't get hurt by doing so, a defensive style to keep this fight going as long as possible. Hannah is a completely neutral attacker, attacking only when it is correct to do so, a being who has removed all guesswork from the equation.
Yasmine feels the fight taking place around her. She absorbs the attacks that come against her well, not needing to rely on a concentrated defence. Eventually an opening comes. An opening that is spotted only by Hannah, but even she with perfect instincts cannot react in time to stop the general. Yasmine creates a bolt of golden 'lightning' in her hand. She flips forward a yard and throws it high into the sky, knocking Claude to the ground.
Target one down.
Target two, Yoshida Mana.
Mana is easier to target than Claude, not because of her technique but because of Hannah. Freeing Hannah from her instinct's control may not have dulled those instincts, but in doing so Naruto made her free to follow her emotional impulses. The only person who stayed with Hannah through the darkest days of her life was Claude. It is only natural that she would be angry to see him falling from the sky.
Hannah dashes close to Yasmine and strikes her rapidly. The strikes have no technique behind them, no grace. These attacks are easy for Yasmine to fight through. When the general gets her chance, she sweeps Hannah's legs. She kicks Hannah in the gut, an attack that will keep even someone with her powers down for several seconds.
Yasmine raises golden 'water' up from the ground, creating a line of it between herself and Mana. A perfect conduit for her other energy. Yasmine sends a burst of golden 'lightning' through the water, striking Mana with a speed that she couldn't possibly avoid. Even with Mana's own proficiency for 'lightning' energy this blast gives her severe wounds, burns along the length of her arms.
Kushina does her best to take both Mana and Claude through the portal, but she struggles to stay out of Yasmine's line of sight. Allies are quickly falling around her.
Target two down.
Target three, Michel the Horse.
Michel is different to Claude and Mana, he has a great deal of experience, just like her. However, the difference in power between them is great for the horse is limited by his own element. Once again Yasmine's first task is to fight off the other attackers. This time she fights off tandem attacks from Hannah and Himawari. The former's instinct combines well with the latter's skill making it difficult for Yasmine to find an opening, but this time an opening isn't what she is looking for. She is waiting for Michel to attack.
Eventually Michel does rush towards Yasmine. He attacks the general at an ideal moment, landing a solid blow on her. This is the moment Yasmine uses her concentrated defence, fully absorbing the blow. She knows that it will come at a cost to her energy reserves to do this, but Michel is a rare opponent used to fighting above his level and finding a way to win, it is worth taking him out now. Before Michel can escape again Yasmine attacks his weak spots, his legs, taking them out from under him.
Target three down.
Target four, Uzumaki Himawari.
Things are a lot easier for Yasmine now. Even if Hannah attacks her constantly her speed will allow her to attack Himawari. Himawari is known to a few now as the Blaze Princess of Homeworld. This is because of her elemental powers, one of which is 'fire'. 'Fire' is a bad element to use to tackle Yasmine but eventually Himawari is forced to use it, for that is the only way to draw out her full powers.
As Himawari's elemental powers clash with Yasmine's the general is forced to admire the Blaze Princess. Three elements is unheard of, Himawari is clearly a peak genius in terms of divine energy. If she were allowed time to fully develop her powers then she may one day have qualifications to lead a nation's Imperial Guard, or perhaps even sit on the throne of that nation. That day is not today though; Yasmine's powers completely overcome Himawari's in the clash of elements.
Target four down.
Target five, Hannah.
Yasmine quickly tries to throw a beam of 'water' and 'lightning' at Hannah, but the warrior with perfect instincts dodges out the way. She does not engage in the head-on contest of power; she knows how that would go.
Hannah's fighting style changes as she realises that she is the last one left. She switches to a more defensive stance and starts listening only to her instincts about incoming attacks. Like this she manages to evade a series of ten incoming strikes from Yasmine. A miraculous burst of evasions surprising even the general. But she can't keep it up, Yasmine tries two simultaneous strikes, each faster than Hannah can move. Even with Hannah's instincts, she doesn't have the reaction time and speed to avoid both strikes, so she moves to take just one.
Hannah is grazed by the strike and leaps backwards to avoid being attacked again.
Yasmine smirks. She has never battled anyone like Hannah before. She has battled other people on her level, people with more skills than her. She has battled up and coming warriors on lower levels, people like Himawari. She has battled people stronger than her who have gone on to great fame. However, Yasmine has never battled someone weaker than her who is so difficult to kill, who requires such total concentration to even hit.
"What is your name?" Yasmine asks.
Hannah's instincts tell her to speak with Yasmine now that the opportunity has arisen. Any chance to delay the General from defeating her even slightly is welcome in the present circumstances.
"Hannah."
"Hannah. I know who you are Hannah. I'm very curious about why you're doing this," Yasmine says almost sarcastically. "Weiss Max is your creator. Your life belongs to him, you should be doing his bidding. Why don't you obey him? Why aren't you on our side?"
"Isn't it obvious why I'm not on your side? You didn't treat me very well."
"Still, Uzumaki Naruto must have defeated you. If his reputation is anything to go on, he probably gave you the free will to make your own choices, right? In that case I could make you an offer. Join us, you'll be a general very soon. Your life would be a lot comfier than it is now."
"You want me to join you?" Hannah asks.
"Don't do it," Claude says as he flies himself back through the portal, his wounds still holding him back. "The empire doesn't have any respect for you Hannah. Neither does the Imperial Guard. They don't want you to join their ranks, they want you to do their bidding. It would be no different from the days when you had to obey your instincts."
"Hannah is clearly destined for greatness," Yasmine says. "It won't be long before none of us can tell her what to do. I can barely hit her now, imagine when she reaches her full class 9 potential."
"Hannah, listen to me, she is just trying to trick you. Weiss Max created you, he messed with your mind, he made you kill your own mother! If you join them, he will find a way to control you. You can't trust people like that."
"Hannah, this owl is a member of the Beast Kingdom, they hate humans. You cannot trust him."
"You can trust me Hannah because I stayed with you. People of my clan usually don't trust humans, but Uzumaki Naruto is different. He set you free and let you choose what to do next. If there is one human, I would tell you to trust it is him."
"You'll never be a member of the Beast Clan, Hannah," Yasmine continues. "You are human, no matter how much you may hate it. The owl may talk about you like you're one of his but you're not, you're one of ours. Embrace your humanity Hannah, and all the benefits it brings you in Homeworld."
"Hannah, don't listen to her!"
"Tell me Hannah, what do you want?"
Hannah looks down at her feet for a moment. She hasn't really thought about it as much as she should. She had her actions dictated to her for so long that she knew what she didn't want to do. Free will is more than control over your immediate actions though, it is the ability to choose your own long-term goals.
What does Hannah want?
"I want to win," she says.
"Oh?"
"Naruto made me see my abilities as a blessing for the first time in my life. Until I met him, I never wanted to win a fight. He showed me a conviction I had never seen before. What you want doesn't have to change just because things get difficult. I came here with him because I trust him, because I want to learn from him, because I want to be his student. Fighting you here is helping him, so I want to win. No matter how hard it is, I want to find a way to beat you."
Yasmine gives a look of mock disappointment. She wasn't expecting Hannah to switch allegiances, but it was a worthwhile experiment to see what would happen. Even if Hannah has decided to keep fighting it is only a matter of time before the general wins this fight, or so she thought. Something about Hannah's appearance has changed, she looks smug unlike before.
"Something funny?" Yasmine asks.
"My perfect instincts, they help me to sense things that other people cannot. Right now I can sense someone nearby, and you can't."
A rasengan is pressed directly into Yasmine's back. A direct hit pushing Yasmine forward directly to Hannah. This allows Hannah to land another powerful blow to Yasmine. Two direct hits in a short space of time.
Suddenly, Hannah's eyes are drawn to a man with a hand in front of his face, removing an ominous mask.
It is Boruto!
He used his Death Mask divine oddity to approach General Yasmine undetected.
"It looks like we've run into a tough opponent," Boruto says. "Hannah, if you and I work together, I think we might be able to hold her back."
"Yes, I get the same feeling. She's strong though, are you sure you can stay alive long enough for your parents to escape?"
"Don't worry," Boruto says as he puts the Death Mask back on, "She won't see me coming."
In Response to m'j doom's Question
About a potential Hinata divine oddity
Unfortunately it's one of those things I can't confirm or deny.
I'm sure all will be revealed in time though.
Thanks for reading.
In response to sarada chan san's Question
About Boruto's location
I hope this chapter makes it clear, Boruto is back with his family.
Thanks for reading.