Naruto - Warlord
AN:
Hey guys! I'm back! As some of you may have noticed, i ended up taking quite a lot of time off. It wasnt actually until just recently when someone gave me a poke and i realized that shit, i had completely forgotten about the story at all. In my defense, life's been difficult lately, so i have spent most of my time just getting through my days.
So a lot of you guys decided to answer my query in the previous AN, and it proved to be a quite enlightening read, so thanks! I did discuss with some of you guys the things i've believed to be some issues that i could have done better with the story, and while it's too late to fix now, it's going to make me a better writer in the long run. Also, very happy you guys liked the new name of the Rangers!
I'll be trying to keep this AN short, as i'm quite frankly exhausted after work today, but i really felt like i just HAD to get this chapter out today. Didnt want to wait any longer, so i hope you guys like it.
Chapter 26, ENJOY!
Chapter 26
In an open field in Wave, hundreds of Naruto's men and women trained, filling the air with shouts and angry grunts. They were equipped with wooden staffs as they fought one another in a minimal state of dress, doing their best to bash each others heads in.
Naruto's clones could be seen walking around the field, calmly observing and giving pointers, while some clones were engaged in combat with the soldiers themselves. Rangers, Spearmen, Iron Guard or Archers; It did not matter. They all trained now as one, while a considerable contingent trained with bows and arrows at the outskirts of the clearing.
A clone of Naruto swiped the feet from under a spearman, another was dispelled by an Iron Guard while a Ranger was locked in a standstill against another clone...
There were hundreds of his soldiers and hundreds of his clones. After weeks of training them all personally, it had given Naruto the chance to know his men and women at a more intimate level, which Naruto suspected would make it twice as hard and painful when they actually bit the dust, as many would eventually do before the end. It spurred his motivation to train them even harder.
The more they sweated during training, they less they would bleed in combat.
Blow for blow, his soldiers would meet his strikes with their own, their chakra enhanced strength forcing the very air around them to move as they did. Their faces no longer carried the expressions of fearful peasants as those from Kisara had once had when the Daimyo's men rode down the Vein towards the village. They now bore the expressions of warriors and soldiers, either grim or savage snarls as they fought to impress him, their Warlord, as he trained and guided them.
Every words was accepted with rapt attention, every gesticulation studied as if there was something to be learned in his every move...
It was unnerving.
Naruto had done nothing but what was necessary for their continued survival, and his legend had continued to do naught but grow. His soldiers barely dared to look him in the eye now, despite how he always tried to be nothing but polite and down to earth. If anything, it only seemed to strengthen their resolve that he was someone to be admired.
But as his clones were stuck with training his army, the original was nowhere to be seen.
"If you drop me, I'm going to fucking murder you.", Kurotsuchi hissed, her eyes wide and fearful as she stood on unsteady legs. Her arms was clasped tightly around one of Naruto's for balance as he stood halfway behind her, holding her up with the other arm around her midsection.
Naruto couldn't help but snicker as she cursed him within the confines of her own tent. She'd finally been allowed to start walking again and would have to exercise regularly if she ever hoped to achieve full mobility once again.
He was dressed in his armor now, as he always were nowadays, but it didn't seem to put Kurotsuchi off anymore. She'd grown used to it after the weeks they had talked together.
"You're half my size; I'm not going to drop you.", Naruto drawled while he patiently waited for Kurotsuchi to move on her own terms.
She'd been given new clothes, something more fit of a kunoichi heiress than the rags she'd been wearing in the beginning. She wore some short pants, brown and made of simple linen that stopped at the middle of her shins. Her top was a red vest that left her arms bare and would have showed an indecent amount of cleavage if not for the bindings around her chest. It was a servants vest from the Ivory Docks, but it was one of the finer clothes they had left.
"You sure?", Kurotsuchi snarked back at him, a smile playing at her lips despite the involuntary spasm of her facial muscles which flexed together in obvious pain and discomfort. She was still healing from the injury to her spine. "You're a vile man; How can I be sure you won't throw me to the ground and have your way with me?"
There was a tinge of flirt in her tone and mannerism, which made Naruto chuckle with amusement.
"I think you're projecting now darling. Keep your fantasies to yourself."
Bantering back and forth, Naruto allowed himself to worry. While they had certainly grown companionable with one another, her flirting worried him. He sincerely doubted that the girl of which he'd injured and falsely threatened to rape would be in ANY way interested in him either sexually or romantically, which meant that she was trying to seduce him again for one reason or another.
They were still enemies, as her 'flirting' so eerily reminded him off. At the very least she'd made no attempts to escape, none which he knew of.
As they made their way outside, slowly to allow her to walk under her own power as much as possible, he could see that she'd made leaps in her returning health. The gauntness of her figure from her self-imposed starvation was all but gone now. She was still a bit thin as a result of muscle atrophy, but the medics had assured him it was nothing a little food, training and exercise couldn't fix.
Besides, she'd already been a scrawny girl to begin with.
Eventually, they finally made their way outside of the tent, allowing Kurotsuchi her first breath of fresh air since they arrived at Wave.
"...That feels good...", Kurotsuchi sighed, leaning unto Naruto's arms for support as she closed her eyes.
A breeze wafted through the busy camp, dancing through her hair that had grown quite a bit since her capture. Naruto eyed her face and the way her lips quirked up into a small, content smile. Her smile made his stomach churn a little.
He quickly cursed himself within his mind, forcing himself to look away with self-loathing thoughts.
'You're enemies boy. Don't forget that.', the Kyuubi growled within the confines of his mind. It made his emotions and expression darken even further.
'I won't.', he thought back at it with a frown. Asuka had been bad enough. 'I'm still committed; If she does anything deserving suspicion, I'll make her regret it.'
'You sure about that?', the beast scoffed back tauntingly. 'Then why haven't you stopped her sorry attempts at courtship?'
He closed his eyes and pushed away the connection between himself and the Kyuubi. While he appreciated it's newfound helpfulness and their partnership, he really wished for some privacy every now and again.
Even so, the Kyuubi had a point. He didn't know why he didn't stop her, but he honestly did not want to think about it.
"...Are you alright?", Kurotsuchi suddenly asked him with worry.
Opening his eyes quickly, he smiled disarmingly at the girl and nodded.
"Aye, just thinking about our journey onward." Seeing the girl nod her acceptance on his diversion, he gently pulled her along for a short walk around the camp. He made sure to keep a good grip around her midriff to prevent her from falling over.
"Alright, so where are you taking me then?", she smirked, though her eyes remained on the path before her. She was still concentrating on where she put her feet. "I warn you, I'm a picky girl. It better be somewhere good."
"I'll take your word for it.", he snorted. She was persistent, he'd give her that. "For now, our only goal is to make our way towards the uncharted islands north from here. As I doubt the Fire's army will try and follow us there, we're going to be staying there for some time to build our strength. Some of us have had little to no rest ever since we packed up and made our escape from Fire."
"Yeah, I know.", Kurotsuchi pursed her lips distastefully. "That journey sucked. I was bound at my hands and feet and thrown unto a cart. I thought my back would kill me throughout that entire march; Felt like I couldn't even breathe."
Naruto winced at that. He'd completely forgotten about her during those days, but he'd had other things on his mind. That journey surely hadn't helped much in her recovery.
"...I'm sorry about that...", he apologized sheepishly, yet honestly.
"It's alright.", Kurotsuchi giggled, before she cursed sharply as her feet stumbled a bit. Naruto caught her quickly. "I forgive you, but I expect you to make it up to me."
"You poisoned me.", Naruto deadpanned in return, raising a brow at her. "And then you tried to stab me."
To her credit, she seemed to take his words seriously. Her expression became dour and somber, eyes falling to the ground with a shameful expression.
He didn't buy it for a single second.
'Good.', the Kyuubi suddenly groused out irritably. 'We'll both be dead if you lose your wits every time a pair of pretty eyes bats their lashes at you. I swear, if she appears in your tent one night, it would not surprise me if you'd lose your pants and have your cock up quicker than a-'
'That's more than enough out of you.', Naruto cut the beast off, forcefully breaking the connection yet again. The beast could open it again as it had before, but Naruto would fight it for this. He didn't need shit from his own mind right now.
"...I'm sorry for that...", Kurotsuchi muttered, drawing Naruto out of his inner turmoil.
"Don't worry about it. Let's call it even, shall we?"
Kurotsuchi sighed and nodded, looking a little bit lighter in her posture. Even so, Naruto would remain alert for anything suspicious.
"So, how are the boats looking?", Kurotsuchi fired off a question as they walked throughout the busy camp. People milled about and some of the families were readying campfires to prepare dinner for those who would be returning from either working the boats or training. "Are we heading out soon?"
"As soon as the boats are ready, yes, which should be in just a couple of more days.", Naruto began. He didn't really see any reasons to withhold the current information regarding their direction from her; Everybody of their flock knew and there was no way that any spy with a sliver of worth wouldn't be able to find out for themselves. "The Fire's army is just a little more than a week off, so time is running out. We're going to have to transport people out of here very soon. It should only take us a day or so to reach the closest island, which is also the largest out of the many between here and Lightning Country."
"Hoh...?", Kurotsuchi hummed, glancing at him curiously. "And after that? What comes after?"
So obvious.
"Come now darling.", Naruto chuckled, giving the girl a sly and sardonic grin. "You're still an enemy kunoichi. I'll not be giving you information before it's public knowledge." The pout she gave him as an answer was cute enough, but didn't sway him in the slightest.
They came upon the bonfire in the middle of the camp. There was a small clearing around it, filled with benches made out of simple logs; Easy and quick to make. Kurotsuchi lead them towards one of these and seated herself with a tired huff. They were alone in the clearing, for the moment, but people could still be heard and seen around them. Naruto remained standing next to her, calmly allowing her to rest.
Kurotsuchi's expression suddenly turned somber as her eyes gazed off into the distance, glazed as if lost in her memories.
"...You must think badly of my skills of a kunoichi, right?"
The question made Naruto blink as he looked down at her. Her question caught him by surprise and he took a moment to collect his thoughts before he answered.
"...Where's this coming from?", he frowned at her, even if she didn't meet his gaze.
"I'm the heiress of a Hidden Village, who was going to succeed my grandfather for the position of Tsuchikage..." She laughed weakly, a derisive expression upon her otherwise somber features. "You, a man who has lived a life of peace until just recently, was able to overcome me so easily. I know you didn't use the Kyuubi to overpower me; that was all you, and I didn't even stand a chance."
Naruto's frown deepened and he allowed his gaze to wander away from Kurotsuchi thoughtfully. He supposed she had a point. Compared to him, she'd been through a war and probably countless of missions before and after it too. It didn't quite make sense that he'd been able to disable her as easily as he had, something of which he'd already wondered about.
"I did wonder about that.", he began carefully. "If you're going to succeed your grandfather, I would expect you to be much, much stronger." Kurotsuchi snorted bitterly at that, but didn't respond further. "You did participate in the war, right? The big war all of you shinobi folks were involved in?"
"I did.", Kurotsuchi retorted somberly, her eyes closing in a pained expression. "But not as ANBU."
A moment of silence grew between them where Naruto eyed her curiously. Seeing as she wasn't going to elaborate, Naruto allowed his curiosity to get the better of him.
"Why did you join the ANBU?", he pressed. "You mention during your interrogation that you were a combat specialist, not assassination. Why the change of heart?"
More silence was his answer, but Naruto could see her tensing her shoulders. She was arguing with herself over something, probably on whether or not she would tell him.
She eventually took a deep and resigned breath as she opened her eyes. Her eyes looked dim and sad, gazing off as if lost in thought. As if she was somewhere else entirely.
"...During the war...", Kurotsuchi began, her tone quiet and hollow. "...I was promoted to lead a full unit of different teams. We were tasked to-" Suddenly, Kurotsuchi sucked in a sharp breath, shaking her head as she stopped herself, much to Naruto's disappointment. "Doesn't matter. In any case, we were up against an enemy that outclassed us. Minutes passed as we fought and our enemy never seemed to waver, while we tired ourselves out more and more. We were growing desperate." She paused for a moment, snorting derisively with what Naruto could easily recognize as self-loathing. "I, I was growing desperate."
She fell silent after that, but Naruto didn't press her as he needed a moment to collect his thoughts. It was... disconcerting to see the amount of self-loathing in the young woman, as it was an emotion he just realized he was intimately familiar with himself.
"...And so you made a decision...", Naruto murmured softly, feeling his heart go out for the girl. Kurotsuchi merely nodded with the same hollow expression.
"Yeah... I made a decision alright.", she sighed, taking another deep breath. "I have a bloodline... One that gives me very destructive capabilities." She leaned unto her knees now, hiding her face from view as her chin lowered. It was a gesture of shame, if Naruto had ever seen one. "I managed to destroy our target... Along with whoever was left of those under my command..."
Her admission made Naruto sigh. Their situations were a bit similar, not a lot, but enough for him to sympathize. While she'd directly and accidentally killed her men, Naruto's negligence had been just as fatal.
After all, Asuka was on his consciousness, there was no escaping that.
"...Is that why you joined your ANBU then?", Naruto pressed after a minute of silence. "To work alone, without having to bear command?"
"I suppose.", she muttered, head still lowered. "That, and to learn to do things differently. I was a combat specialist for all of my years up until that point. I wanted to learn how to do things quietly and professionally." She scoffed at herself. "Look where that got me."
Her words confirmed a lot of thoughts Naruto had already had, but her willingness to share that surprised him.
"...You're surprisingly forthcoming.", Naruto said after a little while. He smirked a little when Kurotsuchi giggled in response, finally lifting her head as she seemed a bit more spirited.
"Truth be told, it feels good to get it off my chest." She eyed him quickly, her lips quirking slightly. "...All things considered."
"Hm.", Naruto hummed non-committed, unwilling to comment on what was left unsaid. They both knew what she was talking about anyway. "While I'm curious for more details surrounding your bloodline and your part in the war... Why are you telling me this?"
"You told me where you've come from. Why you do the things you do.", she began with a wry smile. "It's only fair I do the same. You're also a commander of countless men and women who are willing to follow you even if it costs them their lives. I know for a fact that you know most of your people somewhat personally; I've seen your clones and I've heard your people talk. You're practically adored throughout your entire horde. How do you do it?"
By the end, her gaze had shifted to him with a calculative stare. He felt oddly uncomfortable with her current attention. What was she playing at?
"You're being awfully inquisitive today.", Naruto retorted a bit snarky.
"And you're being surprisingly paranoid today.", she grinned wickedly at him, her eyes filled with mirth. There was still a tinge of curiosity in her expression though, so Naruto knew it to be genuine. "Afraid the enemy kunoichi will use it against you or something?"
He snorted, unable to hide his amused grin. Shaking his head in mock-exasperation, he smiled wistfully as he considered his answer. Naruto didn't doubt for a single second that she was still 'working' as a kunoichi despite her capture, looking for information that could be of use to her mission, compromised as it was.
"You know how we started out.", Naruto began carefully, rubbing the back of his neck with some discomfort. "Truth be told, at the beginning, I had plans to flee and go elsewhere, leaving Kisara and the Earth to fix it's own troubles."
"Really?", Kurotsuchi muttered with disbelief, her eyebrows rising and eyes wide. "That... That sounds so unlike you."
"Aye, well...", he chuckled in response. "It feels like a whole lifetime ago, despite this happening less than a year ago. However, when the hundreds of familiar faces that I'd grown to care for looked up at me, expecting me to give them the answer to their troubles..." He grew silent for a moment as he reminisced, thinking back on the memory that was still as clear as glass.
"What should we do!?"
"What about our homes!?"
"My family!"
"Our livelihood!"
Louder and louder they yelled, eyes fixated upon Naruto as if he had the solutions to all of their problems. His eyes were widened in shock as the people, HIS people, were screaming at him for a solution.
This was not what he had in mind at all. Why did they expect him to have the solution to their problems?
The thought and doubts made him nearly panic, but Shou eventually managed to calm the crowd. As they quieted down, Shou walked closer to Naruto, worry in his eyes.
"What should we do?"
Naruto nearly snapped at him due to stress and the fact that yet another voice asked him to help them. It wasn't why he was there, he simply wanted to warn them!
As Naruto turned however, he saw the look in Shou's eyes as he stared at him.
Trust.
"When I was younger and still a shinobi, I had dreams of becoming Hokage. That dream died when I was exiled.", Naruto continued, pushing away the memory. "Seeing them put their trust in me like that woke something in me I suppose, something I thought I had lost long ago."
Kurotsuchi hummed to herself, before nodding.
"We heard about that; with Danzo and the Leaf's civil war. Ugly business all of that."
"Whatever it is, it's history.", Naruto snorted derisively, yet clearly not aimed at her and she didn't take it as such. "Ever since then, I've just done as best as I could." He grimaced as his thoughts turned dark. "And it's never been close to good enough."
Seeing her curious look, Naruto ignored her and she was wise enough to take the hint as she remained quiet. Last thing he wanted was to talk about Asuka. Besides, she was still an enemy. No sense giving her anything that she could actually use against him.
Eventually, Kurotsuchi demurely informed him that she was tired. They didn't speak further as Naruto led her back to her tent.
The day when the boats were finished had finally arrived, and just in time too. His rangers had informed him that the Fire's Army was no more than 3 days away now, so they needed to get out on the water as quickly as they could.
The day of their departure began with stormy weather and heavy rain, but a surprising amount of locals had decided to join them; young and hopeful who didn't have a place to call their own in Wave. There were at least a hundred or so, many of them sailors and fishermen with seafaring experience, so Naruto made sure to spread them out across their boats to aid the rest with their experience. They were welcomed with open arms, just as he expected of his people.
They spent an entire day loading the boats and the locals aided them wherever they could. They would part on good terms and Naruto hoped they'd be able to keep good relations with Wave in the far future, but for now it was time to say their goodbyes.
They were ready to leave just as night had set in, but Naruto had already decided to leave as quickly as they could instead of waiting until the morning. Naruto had no idea who took command of the Fire's Royal forces after he dispatched its predecessor, but chances were that they might launch a preemptive attack to halt their escape.
Naruto and Tazuna parted as friendly as they had met and Tazuna promised him that they would rough up their town a little bit, just for show when the Army finally got there. Naruto hoped with all of his heart that they fell for it; The consequences of their new commander not believing it was unpleasant to consider.
And so, finally, in the middle of the night, they cast anchor. His whole people and army moved out to sea, their big, wooden ships straining and groaning against the storm, the strong winds pushing them away from Wave faster than the Fire's Army would ever be able to follow.
For now, they were in the clear and his people could finally sleep soundly as they had their first taste of safety and security in a long, long time.
Naruto however, in his own private quarters, did not rest just yet.
"Can it be done?", Naruto muttered lowly, just as much to himself as to the Kyuubi. He sat by the small table along the edge of the wall in the narrow room, his bed just a couple of feet away, untouched as Naruto had been seated. He'd been thinking for hours since they left wave in his small room, the surrounding wood groaning as the boat lurched upon the waves.
'Hm...', the Kyuubi rumbled within the confines of his mind. 'It's possible, but mixing chakra from us Tailed Beasts with human chakra has always been a dangerous, risky and volatile art.'
"I don't care about what happens to me.", Naruto spoke, out loud despite there being no need for it. Truth was, he'd find the silence unnerving otherwise. Naruto didn't much like silence anymore as it left room for his thoughts to wander. "If my encounter with the Fire's army thought me anything, it's the fact that if Sasuke and his forces show before we're ready, we're dead. We need an ace in our sleeve, one last defense if all else fails." Naruto grinned to himself. "Unless you'd rather spend an indefinite amount of time imprisoned in a statue, for all we know for all eternity?"
'Hmrf!', the Kyuubi grunted, almost sounding like it was suppressing a chuckle. 'I'd rather not. But I'd rather you didn't kill yourself prematurely and leave me to fend for myself...', the beast rasped at the end, sounding as if the admission made it disgusted with itself. '...I do not wish to be exposed to the accursed eyes of the Uchiha...'
It's admission made Naruto frown, but it didn't come as a surprise; he'd been suspicious of the possible connection for a long time already, ever since he offered his allegiance to the beast.
"Yes...", the creature trailed off, its eyes narrowing into thin slits. "...The 'Uchiha'..."
It hissed Sasuke's family name with such anger that it took Naruto by surprise.
Naruto shook away the memory, mindful of the Kyuubi who might be paying close attention.
"...Sounds like there's a history there...", Naruto muttered, rubbing his chin curiously.
'You could say that.', the Kyuubi growled. Naruto could feel it's reluctance regarding the topic; It welled up in him, a foreign emotion which intruded his senses disturbingly. 'I've been controlled by those eyes before, by very powerful Uchiha. It was the most violating thing I've ever felt.'
Naruto's eyes widened in shock. It's admission was clearly one of a certain amount of trust, which Naruto had not been prepared for. He had half a mind to probe it for more information, but decided not to push it; His relationship with the beast was tenuous enough as it was.
"You're saying that Sasuke can possibly control you?", Naruto questioned, but then narrowed his eyes as the obvious question that needed to be asked formed. "Can he control me?"
'...Possibly...', the beast rumbled, it's hatred for the Uchiha simmering within Naruto. 'But unlikely. The Uchiha whose eyes had evolved to the level of capability of fully controlling other beings were few and far between.'
"That's not a risk we should be willing to take.", Naruto said sternly, as much to himself as to the beast. The Kyuubi quieted in agreement, knowing Naruto to be right. "Thank you for telling me this, but now we need to look ahead. Should it come down to it, I'd rather die than give Sasuke what he wants, whatever it is."
They fell quiet for a while, before the beast suddenly chuckled, it's amusement making Naruto smile himself.
'...Soft-skinned little mongrel you are, but you have the heart of a Tailed Beast...' Before Naruto could process it's compliment and what it meant, the beast pressed on. 'You have my consent. If it comes down to it, I will aid you in sacrificing your own life to ensure the Uchiha's removal. Suppose me reforming in the future won't be your problem then.'
"Aye, you've got a point.", Naruto snorted. "In any case, in theory, it's simple enough; My technique and knowledge regarding both the Rasengan and the Iron Fist should be able to mix and be used with your chakra-"
'To lesser degrees, yes.', the beast interrupted him. 'In practice, you must remember that my chakra is much, much denser and therefor much more volatile and harder to control. The more you draw in, the more explosive the effect will be. We'll have to cooperate to achieve desired effect.'
Naruto couldn't help the vindictive grin that formed at the thought.
"Perfect."
They discussed the topic some more back and forth and agreed to begin experimenting carefully as soon as they could. The beast would finally teach him how to properly use it's powers. Eventually, Naruto tired and went to sleep, but he did so with a light heart and a grin upon his face. He'd be able to protect his people even better soon.
Naruto would finally have an edge.
Poof. Read and review. I'm curious to see what you guys make of it.
MiNdZeRo here, signing out.