AN: Gets kinda dark and bloody at the end.
Naruto stirred slowly. He felt heavy and his muscles were stiff. He groaned and willed his eyelids to open, to no avail. He tried once more, twice, thrice before he suddenly was successful.
The bright, pale light of a cloudless afternoon of October hurt his eyes and the blond immediately regretted his eagerness to open them. He groaned and tried to shield his eyes from the offending light. His arm refused to answer his command. His joints felt like rusty cogs and there was an overall sluggishness keeping him from moving as he wanted. With a sigh, he remembered to simply close his eyes.
With excruciating efforts, he turned his head away from the window and opened his eyes. He immediately regretted his decision. Again.
Anko was giving him a glare, harsh and worried and reproachful and angry, the confused kind.
He rasped something but his throat was dry. Of course. The purple-haired woman offered him a large glass of water with a straw and Naruto promptly sucked on it. Fresh, delicious water, flowed down his gullet and he sighed in satisfaction.
"Hello Anko," he whispered shakily.
"Hello my ass, Kiddo. What the hell was that?" The woman groused in a tone that betrayed how little patience she had at the moment, her arms crossed on her chest and eyeing him darkly.
"What was what?" Naruto smiled weakly.
Anko carefully pinched his cheek and pulled. "Throwing yourself at the enemy regardless of your safety and teamwork and exploding your hand in the process."
As soon as she mentioned it, Naruto felt a pulsating sensation of pain, dulled by a generous amount of drug.
"That's why I'm so sluggish," he groaned.
"Don't change the subject."
Naruto attempted to shrug, found he couldn't and shook his head slightly. "He was dangerous, I took care of it," he said, his voice betraying mild irritation. "How is… Genma? Was that it?"
"He is still critical, losing half of your intestines will do that. Don't try to change the subject. Why did you do it?"
Naruto answered Anko's question with an annoyed look. "He was too strong," said the boy after a few moments. "A sacrifice had to be made to achieve victory. If I learned one thing from Kakashi-sensei, it is that. I was willing to make this sacrifice."
"Why?"
Naruto's look turned into a glare. "Because I didn't want you to make it!" He spat suddenly and angrily. "Alright?! I was dead-afraid he'd just kill you as he did Genma! So I just did what was necessary!"
Anko was reduced to silence for a few seconds before she sighed. She freed the blond's cheek and slowly, she hugged the boy. "And you thought I'd be okay with that? I was dead-afraid too you know?" Anko whispered, her voice cracked with anguish.
Naruto tried to return the hug and found his arms to be useless. Instead, he nuzzled his cheek against the woman as best as he could. His throat suddenly felt tight. "Sorry, Anko-chan," he muttered. "I… I didn't think about that."
"No, no obviously you didn't," groused the purple-haired woman. "Please don't do it again."
Naruto took a breath, ready to give his word before he stopped. Slowly, he shook his head. "No, sorry Anko-Nee. I can't promise you that. I healed. You wouldn't have." He said in a tone that allowed no argument.
Anko broke the hug and looked at the blond's face. His azure eyes were burning with a fire that told her he would not back down on this subject. Still, she had to try, to say something. He wasn't an expendable resource, a thing to be sacrificed when others were in danger.
"We work in teams Naru-chan, it's for a good reason. We could have taken him, all four of us together and you wouldn't have to be wounded like that."
Resolutely, Naruto shook his head. "Then why didn't we? No, Anko-Nee, he was too strong."
"That didn't mean you had to jump at him like that!" The woman shouted angrily.
"It worked! I'm alive, the bastard is dead and more importantly, you're fine!" Naruto rasped out as loud and furiously as he could with his sore throat. "So what more do you want?!"
"I'm not fine! I thought you were going to die! And exactly for the reason, I suspected! Your life is precious Naruto! You can't just play with it like that!"
"If it's for someone I love I will!" The blond screamed fiercely, his eyes daring Anko to say anything to that. Suddenly, a coughing fit shook him. The shouting match had greatly irritated his airways.
Anko looked struck.
"When I'm with you…" The blond breathed deeply. "When I'm with you, I like to think having a big sister is like that." Naruto felt heat creep in his cheeks. "I know we don't know each other since long but… You're precious to me, Anko." He swallowed thickly and looked down. "I couldn't lose you," he whispered shakily.
The young woman engulfed him in another hug.
"I couldn't either, Naru-chan." She muttered in his ear. "You don't get to… You can't die for me."
Naruto chuckled a little. "I can't? Is that an order, Anko-chan?"
The woman bopped him on his head with one hand as she wiped her eyes with the other. "Definitely kiddo."
The blond nodded slowly. "Guess I'll have to be strong enough to save your sorry ass and not die in the process then," he said lightly.
Anko didn't say anything. His blue eyes were burning with so much determination it was almost sparking lightning. So she nodded and smirked. "Guess I'll have to get better too then. Can't let my little brother save me."
Naruto looked surprised for a second before he offered her an absolutely delighted smile, so wide it lidded his eyes. The pale light of the October afternoon bathing the hospital room brightened to a warm yellow and Anko felt her lips arch in a smile.
The heads of the clans of Konoha, great and small, were assembled somewhere under the Hokage Tower. The room was little more than a large bunker with a large, semi-circular table throning in its centre. The various chieftains were seated around the circular side of the table while the Hogatana, the commanding officers of Konoha military machine, sat next to each other along the straight edge.
One large seat, the largest actually, was conspicuously empty. To the right sat Homura Mitokado, a tall old man with greying hair and beard and glasses and next to him was Koharu Utatane, an old woman with her white hair done in a high bun, a pin going straight through it.
To the left sat Danzo Shimura, his prosthetic arm removed, the bandages around his face undone and replaced by a strange half-mask of porcelain. One could discern, at the edge of the mask, the minute beginning of scar tissue.
The man, leaning as ever on his cane, struck the floor three times with it, calling for silence and attention. The clan heads quickly settled and turned their gaze towards Shimura, who nodded his thanks and rose from his seat.
"Thank you for answering so promptly. We are here to discuss several things but first, I think it important that everyone here is made aware of the damages Konoha suffered. Nara-dono." Danzo invited, motioning to a man to his left.
The man rose from his seat. His black hair was done up in a spiky ponytail and the left side of his angular face was marred by two scars. "I'm Shikaku Nara, head of the strategic bureau and hogatana." He introduced himself, sweeping the assembled people with a sharp glance, causing a few heads to nod. "Final casualty report indicates we lost thirty-seven shinobi to the attack. Fifty-five are still in the hospital, seventeen of them in a critical state with their life on the line. Eight are stabilized but will have to be put on reduced service for a long period of time. Recovery is not a guarantee. We mourn no non-combattant. Considering a bijuu was once again nearly unleashed within Konoha, I would like to underline how extraordinary this is."
The clan heads nodded and whispered their assent. So little death was, in fact, incredible.
"Early reports of our confrontation with Suna indicates Jiraiya-sama led our troops to victory and grievously wounded the Yondaime Kazekage. The troops from Sunagakure were dispersed back to River and a few were captured. The fact we were waiting for them allowed to ambush them, limiting our own losses. Two hundred and sixty-nine of our own fell." The man breathed out. "Iryo-nins were dispatched a few days before the attack to fort Hashima. A field hospital should be ready to take care of the wounded there. That is all."
Shikaku sat back down and Danzo nodded in thanks before he rose. "As for me, I'll inform you that black ops have been greenlit out-of-border to our south and east. The operation to our south is a complete success. The operation to our east is still ongoing but no hostiles have been allowed in Fire Country." The Shimura informed tersely.
No one around the table protested the lack of detail. Mission labelled black weren't discussed and that was it.
Danzo nodded, satisfied, before gesturing to a heavy-set man sitting left of Shikaku.
The man, a hulking tower of muscle, an unusual bulk for a shinobi, rose from his seat and combed the mane of his brown - almost auburn - hair with a large hand. "I'm Choza Akimichi, head of the business bureau and hogatana." He bowed very slightly to the assembled people. "Business was, of course, entirely paralyzed in the western segment of Fire Country for the past month to prepare for the assault, which mobilized a quarter of our forces, including those already posted in the advanced forts. Sandaime-sama, in his wisdom, informed the Daimyo of the incoming danger. As such, his ministry of the left will not allow any legal pursuit to happen for any delayed or unfulfilled business. Soldiers from the ministry of the right are currently policing the western segment until we are ready to take up the load again. The financial loss was minimal. The problem is Konoha proper. The Ichibi destroyed a large amount of infrastructure. Nothing vitally important for our war effort but a number of people find themselves without a roof above their head as of now. As per the charter, Konoha will finance fifty per cent of the reconstruction. We have already informed the Daimyo and as per our pledge, his Lordship will finance thirty per cent. Shinobi will finance the rest according to their personal treasury. The clans will obviously be expected to provide a little more."
The many heads nodded. The autonomy and advantages they enjoyed had to be paid for somehow. Clans were rich for a reason and their revenues were not entirely from ninja missions. All adult members of a clan weren't active shinobi. All were trained and kept themselves up to par as per tradition but only a third pursued a real military career. The rest were put in and out active service according to the needs of Konoha. In the meantime, they made cloths, forged weapons, cultivated crops and raised animals or provided various essential services.
The Hyuuga clan was incredibly rich because they were bankers. After all, in a world of shinobi, who better to keep gold than shinobi who could see through matter itself?
The Akimichi clan was Konoha's first food provider, the Nara specialized in pharmacology, there had been a bitter rivalry between Uchiha and Sarutobi where products of the forge were concerned, something both clans excelled at given their mastery of Katon-natured chakra. So on and so forth.
The clans enjoyed a large advantage in that their members were entirely exempt from taxes, including the non-shinobi. Instead, the clans were treated like large business entities, as many companies that could be taxed on their eventual profits.
In exchange, they were called upon in time of need and overall paid for most of the village D-rank missions.
"That is all for me," informed the tall Akimichi before sitting back down.
"Thank you Akimichi-dono."
Another man with sandy-blond hair done in a long ponytail and light blue eyes set deeply in his square face rose from his seat. "I'm Inoichi Yamanaka, head of the intelligence bureau and hogatana. Intelligence gathering is a slow process, especially actionable intelligence. However, we know for a fact that Kumogakure is eying the regions of Rice and Hot-Water with obvious interest. We do not know of their intentions yet but if any black op is going on there right now, they will certainly discover it." Inoichi said, throwing a marked glance at Danzo.
"Apart from that, counter-intelligence worked overtime to plug any leak we might have had. The relative confusion of the attack was ideal to disappear a few persons and we confirmed all of them were spies. We estimate to eighty-five per cent our success in limiting the spread of our current situation. It should give us enough time to straighten ourselves. That is all."
Danzo rose from his seat again. "Thank you, Yamanaka-dono. As you were saying, intelligence is of the utmost important right now. Hence why what I'm about to tell you is a secret of ultima-level clearance. Am I clear on that, ladies and gentlemen?"
The clan heads nodded, suddenly on edge and wary.
Danzo coughed. "Contrary to what has been announced, Sandaime wasn't merely wounded during his fight against the traitor Orochimaru. It is full of regrets that I must inform you of the passing of Hiruzen Sarutobi, Sandaime Hokage of Konoha."
The assembled people looked down, silently mourning the death of their great leader. A few eyes blinked to smother the tears that wanted to escape. Laments would come later; for now, they had to be shinobi and shinobi had to endure pain and conceal it.
"We kept this information a secret for the sake of appearance but the time will come to select a new leader, hence why I informed you. Sandaime-sama left no recommendations for his successor," said Danzo with a slight sigh. "Hence why, for the first time since the Shodai, the clans and hogatana will be called to nominate candidates, as per the law. This assembly will be held again three days from now to vote and our new Hokage shall then take the hat."
The heads nodded.
"If you have any question for the hogatana, then please," invited the half-masked old man as he sat back down.
One kunoichi immediately shot up from her seat and bowed. She looked feral, with slanted eyes and slit pupils, shaggy brown hair and two red markings on her cheeks akin to fangs. "Honoured clan heads," she all but growled, "honoured hogatana. My question pertains to the shinobi who evacuated most of the civilians in the arena and killed most of the infiltrated hostiles. Who is he?"
Shikaku Nara rose. "Clearance level for the defensive strategy is ultima, Tsume-dono. It isn't lifted in spite of Sandaime-sama's death."
The woman nodded tersely. "Is that so? So you're going to make me figure it out by myself? Remember what my clan is known for, Nara-dono" she chastised, pointing at her nose. "This mysterious shinobi multiplied himself close to three thousand times; you can bet his scent is imprinted in my brain. Even our youngest ones recognized it."
Another ninja, a man with long straight pinkish hair and green eyes, immediately shot up from his seat. "Are you suggesting, Inuzuka-dono, that a shinobi of Konoha used the shadow clones to create thousand of replicas," he asked with a scoff.
"I'm not suggesting, Haruno-dono. Also, I do not like your tone. It's not because you detected nothing that I didn't smell it."
"Haruno-dono, Inuzuka-dono, please, it is not the time to quarrel," interrupted Koharu, leaving her seat too. "Inuzuka-dono, with all due respect, why do you want to know?"
The kunoichi quirked her eyebrow. "Isn't it obvious? Someone who can create shadow clones in the thousand ought to be powerful. My real question, if you want, is this: whoever it is, are they any competent to take the hat?"
Danzo couldn't help it. He laughed. He leashed his amusement promptly and his outburst was more akin to a dog's bark than a laugh but all the same, Tsume Inuzuka turned to look at him.
"Share the joke, Shimura-dono." She challenged with a smirk.
The Shimura rose from his seat. "Sorry, Inuzuka-dono. All I can say is that, while the shinobi who made this strategy possible in the first place is talented, he is in no way ready for the hat. Though he could certainly beneficiate from a bit of acknowledgement for his actions during the attack. I will recommend him for a medal as soon as Godaime-sama is in office."
The woman took a deep breath, as if ready to argue more but instead, she sat back down. "Very well, Shimura-dono. I'll figure it out soon enough anyway."
"You understand, Inuzuka-dono, why his identity is ultima-clearance?"
The woman nodded. "Of course, I won't shout it on the roofs."
"Good. Anything else?"
Jiraya of the Sannin combed his mane of white hair with a weary hand and rose from a crouch to his feet. Distractedly, he looked once more upon one of the battlefields that now littered the border of Fire and River. Around him, the trees weren't as tall as the one that obscured the core of Fire Country. They were young, their bark was a light brown and their leaves would have been a bright green had it been spring. But it was October and their leaves were burnt orange and dark brown and deep red. Red as the blood that fed the soil. Red as the gaping wound of the Suna-nin laying dead at his feet.
The nearly three thousand troops under his command had repeatedly ambushed those dispatched by Suna. Jiraiya had battled against the Yondaime Kazekage, teaching the young man to respect his betters and elders with a flurry of strikes enhanced with Sage chakra and a Rasengan that had reduced the man's left arm to minced flesh.
He wasn't especially proud of it. Bloodshed called for more bloodshed and now that Sunagakure had so blatantly broken their alliance, they would likely turn to Iwagakure for help. And Iwa would not miss an opportunity to shed some more blood of the "tree-huggers" and avoid Fire Country finally annexing River Country. Oonoki, the Tsuchikage, would not officially involve his village or compromise the Daimyo of Earth Country, not yet at least, but dispatching a few black ops to the northern border of Fire through Grass and Waterfall to relieve the pressure on Suna was entirely possible.
It always began like this. Skirmishes in satellite countries caused needless death by the dozen and slow escalation until a casus belli was finally found. It could be anything, from the wrong person being killed to grand ideals like freedom or accusation of aggressive expansion. It didn't matter. What mattered was that, when this point would be reached, large and powerful countries would gear up for war and skirmishes would turn into battle and Death would once again reap lives by the thousands.
Jiraiya sighed. He was part of the machine, the system that wanted that. He was a shinobi from a powerful hidden village, serving a powerful country, serving men of ambition who regarded war as just another mean to further their politics; just another business venture which had to be paid with blood. He mentally snorted. Officially, he was defending his village and living by the Will of Fire but it was a lie. He had believed that in the past. He still wanted to believe in it.
But the Will of Fire spoke of life, understanding and peace when the shinobi way was about death, strife and war. The Shodai Hokage failed in his dream of peace when he pledged himself and the shinobi under his command to the Fire Lord rather than teach them how to use their kunai to work the fields.
Yet, the ambitions of another would have put the village in harm's way and then, who would have defended it?
Was it simply impossible to achieve peace? Was War a part so essential to human nature that it was a pipe dream?
Jiraiya looked down at the innards of an eviscerated Suna-nin. The boy seemed to be barely seventeen. Death had glazed his eyes over and stolen his body warmth. His skin was already white and rotting, covered in dirt and speck of blood and crawling with carrion-eaters. Jiraiya crouched and ignored the pungent smell of decay, his features hard and his thoughts focused.
Did the boy have a girlfriend? What had been his dreams? Did he have a mother waiting for him in Suna?
Delicately, Jiraiya closed the young man's eyes. "May the Water of Oblivion taste sweet to your parched lips. May Samsara favour your soul in your rebirth."
The Konoha shinobi looked around him. Only three hundred corpses more to go.
AN: Some worldbuilding and War. The quarantine in my country is slowly being lifted which means updates will become less frequent. All "good" things must end. Best,
AN2: I modified the discussion between Hiruzen and Ibiki in chapter 19 very slightly. It modifies its meaning a little.