I don't own Naruto, or any of the characters from the Manga or Anime.
A Price for Peace
Chapter 45: So What Happens Next?
"Well... now that was certainly an interesting exam this year," A hooded figure spoke to a dark room lit only by the glow of a screen holding the image of Naruto in his Bijuu cloak, the image had been frozen after he had used his Bijuudama.
"That's one way to put it, another would be... a complete and utter disaster, more than three quarters of the empire were watching as that... that thing, dismantled two of our strongest warriors and the large group of soldiers under their command," a second hooded figure spoke, dim lights slowly sprung to life showing a table with fifteen seats, four of which were not currently filled.
"Well there's not much we can do about that now is there. But at least on a positive note, it wasn't boring, these exams are so often a bore," the first figure spoke in a calm manner.
"I have to agree, Gouhara promised everyone excitement and she delivered, I'm sure they will be speaking of these events for years," a third figure chuckled finding the entire situation quite amusing.
"Somehow I don't think that what we just witnessed was what she had in mind. But it looks like her relentless ambition has finally come back to bite her in the ass. What a foolish woman... Still I do hope she's not dead," the first figure to speak replied.
"What!? Could it be that you're feeling sympathy for our dear cousin? I would have thought her passing would be good news for you. After all it's likely that you would have been her first target when she decided to make a play for more power," a new voice declared with some taunting.
It seemed that had been a sore spot for the first speaker who stood up threateningly, sharingan eyes glaring at the figure that had just spoken. "Do you want to repeat that, I think I must have misheard you."
"I would have thought you would have understood, I mean the answer is simple. She would go for the weakest amongst us, it was only a matter of time. She was always determined to be the best, even if she was far from it," the other man replied in an almost taunting manner, he seemed to revel in Gouhara's plight.
The first speaker scoffed at the insinuation, "Gouhara's flaws are her own. And as for being concerned for her wellbeing... Hardly, I was more concerned with the fact that should Gouhara have perished in that last attack, the responsibility of informing the emperor and crown prince of the events that transpired at the exams will then fall on one of our shoulders."
"Do you really think thats wise?" a new voice questioned, this time a feminine one. "We go to the emperor like this... empty handed? We should really resolve the situation first, kill that young man and take his head to the Emperor as both a prize and deterrent to anyone who thinks they can stand against us. We can't let a potential uprising go, they need to be crushed immediately."
"So do I take it that you are volunteering to take that freak on? He killed over three hundred of our men without even breaking a sweat," The second hooded figure to speak replied.
"He's also not alone, it seems little Shougo has been playing all of us for fools for quite awhile," another man added, voicing his opinion. He was clearly agitated by the betrayal of one of his clan members, such a thing was unheard of in the royal family. "As much as it pains me to say this... we have no idea how strong that little sneak really is, he kept his sharingan hidden from us for years, even without it he was... capable."
"So what, we just do nothing? We are the members of our clan eligible to be considered the next in line for the throne... and everyone of you is a coward!?" the woman spat incredulously.
"Don't think you can speak to us in such a manner, we know they have to be dealt with. But running in blind is what put Gouhara and Joli in their current situation. It would be more prudent to pool our resources, wait, and prepare for their next move. Then we might have a better idea of what we are dealing with," A much shorter hooded figure declared.
"There is another issue, that requires our attention, "That giant creature made of sand," The woman replied, a little sourly. "I have never seen anything like it before in my life."
"It may be a summons from the blond man as there has been no reports of further fighting since Gouhara's defeat," the short figure reasoned.
"I don't think so, that boy seemed to be just as surprised as the rest of us at seeing that creature. If they are indeed allies, that could be a problem," the first hooded figure to speak declared.
"All the more reason why we should act, strike them down before they have a chance to regroup," The woman said firmly.
"Again with this, even if we wanted to, it would take us at least two weeks to reach their current location, and that is if we didn't rest, by that time we will be tired and easy pickings for someone like him," another man said derisively.
After that the hooded figures continued to bicker for what seemed like hours. In the end the only thing that they could agree on, was the fact that none of them were all that fond of one another. Mostly because they had no trust in the others, they knew that at any point they could be stabbed in the back by someone attempting to remove an obstacle that stood between them and the position as the next emperor.
(Meanwhile)
Naruto stood next to the much smaller version of Shukaku, truth was he was still the size of a large horse, but that was much more manageable than the massive full sized Bijuu he had been just a few moments earlier. In every direction the devastation that Naruto wrought during the so called trials was on show, dead imperial shinobi were scattered around him a few still groaning, their final breaths in agony.
"Are you going to do anything about the survivors Naruto-sama?" Shukaku asked, his head tilted to the side like an inquisitive puppy as he sat back on his haunches.
"I should probably put those who won't survive out of their misery. They shouldn't have to suffer any more than necessary," Naruto answered forlornly in a grimace. He was certainly not looking forward to what he had to do next, it was one thing killing someone in an even contest, but this felt wrong, even if it was as a kindness.
"Just the one's who wont survive? Forgive me Naruto-sama, but wouldn't it be smarter to kill everyone, are they not your enemies?" Shukaku queried. "Or if you prefer, I could blanket the area in my sand, there should be no survivors after that."
Naruto had to admit he found the proposition tempting, if he did that he wouldn't have to directly deliver the final blow, but at the same time it would kill more than was necessary. "I can't let you do that Shukaku, thank you for the offer, but I will only finish off those who will not survive their injuries," he answered.
'That's foolish Naruto, you should turn this arena to glass... Make sure nothing is left alive!' Kurama spoke up in Naruto's mind.
"As loathed as I am to admit it, I agree with Kurama. Allowing any of these men to live is an incredible risk, they could come after you and threaten your life again," Shukaku added urgently indicating that the presence of Shukaku's chakra in Naruto's system had reopened the link with the Ichibi.
He quickly filed the information away for later with the intention to test long distance communication at a later date. He sadly shook his head, "Your right, both of you. But I can't do that, I need to believe that we can come to an understanding. If I show mercy here, then the survivors might remember that. That is the path Ero-sennin would want me to take," he answered.
'You can't afford to be restricted by your perverted masters teachings here Naruto. You have seen how these Uchiha operate, they do not share power! Letting any of these men live will only mean there will be that many more opponents you will have to compete with later. Any one of these men could potentially end your life, even if they are significantly weaker than you are. The point of a kunai does not discriminate between strong and weak, even a Genin can kill a Kage if the situation is in their favour!' Kurama warned despite knowing that Naruto's mind was already made up.
Naruto couldn't help but chuckle at the end, knowing full well that officially he was still ranked as a Genin, yet he could easily take on any of the five Kage should he need. "Sorry Kurama, but I can't just change who I am. I know it's risky, but this is my answer to Rikudou-Jiji's, and Jiraiya-sensei's dream. I know peace can't be achieved through words alone anymore, but neither can it be found using solely violence and power. The truth is I think both Asura and Indra were wrong in their answer. So I will forge my own way," Naruto declared.
A new sense of determination sweeping over him as a large group of clones appeared around the blond and instantly set to work checking on his fallen adversaries. A few minutes later most of the clones had dispelled, the truth was that not many of those that had decided to face him and still drew breath were at all likely to survive, you could count the final number on both hands.
"Now that's done we should get out of here, I'm guessing Karin-chan and the others will be wondering where I am, and it could be a little tense if Shougo and his men get to them before me," Naruto sighed, thinking out loud.
"If you would like I can take you there Naruto-sama, it will be much faster than a normal shinobi running," Shukaku suggested.
"Uh yeah that sounds good I could use a bit of a rest. By the way, you don't need to call me Sama, as far as I'm concerned we're equals. So just call me Naruto okay?" Naruto asked with a friendly smile.
The Tanuki paused in thought for a moment before nodding. "Very well, I will try and remember that Naruto."
"Good I don't want to have to remind you again," The jinchuuriki said happily as he swiftly jumped upon the Bijuu's back.
The sensation was something new for Naruto, He had moved significantly faster than Shukaku could travel before, but it was an odd sensation as he was expending any effort. The Bijuu moved like wind through the air, its feet barely touching the ground as it bounded towards the side of the arena, effortlessly leaping over the massive walls without breaking stride.
In the distance he could see Shougo and his group hastily heading south in the same direction that Karin and the other forced exam participants had gone. One of Naruto's cones was at their head leading the way but dispelled upon Naruto and Shukaku's arrival. "Yo!" Naruto said casually from astride the shrunken tailed beast.
Shougo and the others were understandably cautious at seeing the creature. "Um Naruto, is that uh... the giant creature that appeared in the stadium?" the calculative Uchiha asked careful not to get to close as despite being much smaller in stature, Shukaku still possessed immensely powerful chakra.
"Oh yeah, don't worry he won't hurt anyone. This is Shukaku he's the Ichibi and one of my partners," Naruto replied happily.
"Speak for yourself, I'm not against killing an Uchiha or two," Shukaku added with a scowl, it was clear that the Ichibi had not forgotten or forgiven the Uchiha after what Madara and Obito had done by reviving the Juubi and Kaguya.
"I..it can ta-lk!?" Shougo stammered in surprise.
"Yeah the Bijuu are actually really smart, but the truth is I don't really know most of them all that well," Naruto replied rubbing the back of his head almost apologetically.
"Bijuu?" Shougo queried.
Realisation struck Naruto, "That's right, you guys aren't from the elemental Nations... I guess I forgot this place is completely different than where I'm from," he chuckled getting a look of disbelief and a few people shaking their heads questioning whether it was smart to be following him. Ignoring these looks Naruto decided on a very quick explanation. "The Bijuu are nine beings of concentrated Chakra, each one is incredibly powerful, they sometimes get a bad reputation for destroying things, but it must be hard not too when they're the size of a small mountain," he finished with a small laugh.
This information seemed to leave Shougo and his men stunned. Once more it was their leader who asked the unspoken question. "You said there is Nine of these things, are you telling me that you have eight more sitting around to use as a weapon?"
"We are not weapons Uchiha! Why is it you see something like us and think just because it is powerful it is nothing but a tool!?" Shukaku raged, sand being flung up around it's feet threateningly.
"I'm sorry I didn't mean to offend," Shougo replied as calmly as possible, however the quickness of the apology showed he was indeed intimidated.
"Ah lay off him Shukaku, he's just interested in you that's all," Naruto said calming the irritated Bijuu. "In any case, to answer your question only Shukaku and Kurama are here with me."
"Kurama? So that's another one of these Bijuu right?" Shougo's question was more of a confirming statement.
"Yeah Kurama's the Kyuubi, the Nine Tailed Fox" The blond explained.
"I... See, So their title refers to the number of tails, I guess," Shougo theorised.
"That's right, from the Ichibi, Shukaku all the way to Kurama," Naruto said happily as if he was talking about a long lost family he had been reunited with.
Shougo nodded in understanding, "Wow that's a lot to take in, and I know they're not supposed to be weapons, but man if you had the other eight we could probably take the empire head on, we wouldn't even need to retreat and make plans,"
"Well that is only a matter of time," Shukaku declared.
"Really?" Naruto asked slightly stunned.
"Of course, you are our fathers legacy and we will protect you. The other Bijuu will be drawn here when it's their turn to re-materialise," the Tanuki said without a doubt.
Naruto beamed at the thought of being able to see all the other Bijuu again, the only exception would have to be Gyuuki, as long as Kirabi lived the Hachibi was going nowhere. "That's awesome I can't wait to see everyone again."
'It will take awhile, it's usually a year per tail, due to the increase in chakra,' Kurama informed the blond.
"Really? Man that sucks," Naruto said his mood slightly dampened.
"What does?" Shougo asked.
"Kurama just told me it will be able seven years before all the Bijuu are all going to be alive again. One Bijuu each year... it's a real pain in the ass," Naruto explained.
"You can talk to the other one even when it's not here?" Shougo asked once more stunned by the sudden information.
"Kurama is always with me, he's sealed inside me," Naruto said before going into a brief explanation about Bijuu as well as informing him that he is technically the Jinchuuriki to all nine Bijuu with part of their chakra sealed within him.
He left out the part where most of their chakra sealed within him was still locked away by the Rikudou Sennin after defeating Kaguya. Still what he had not only provided him the ability to communicate with the other Bijuu, but also added a bit of protection from them being sealed into another host, they already had one. With Shukaku's return however he felt access to his chakra once again return. 'Do you think this means once the others are revived I can access the Rikudou Sage mode again?' he asked the fox.
'It's possible, but don't forget Gyuki's chakra has also been sealed, yet the octopus still lives in that poor excuse for a rapper,' Kurama reasoned.
'There's nothing wrong with Bee-Ojisan, Bee and Gyuki are partners, just like us,' Naruto replied defending the man who started the process that lead to him and Kurama being friends.
The conversation was stopped there as they were now quickly approaching Karin and the civilians each being carried by one of Naruto's clones. Once Karin felt the real Naruto approaching she stopped dead in her tracks and all but tackled the blond off the back of Shukaku. "Baka, who do you think you are taking on an army all by yourself," she said trying to disguise how worried she really was by burying her face into his chest. While the rest of the group continued for a short distance to give the two at least some semblance of privacy before stopping to rest.
"Aw come on Karin-chan, it all worked out, besides you had my clones to keep you informed of everything that was going on," Naruto replied with a sheepish laugh but Karin just tightened her grip refusing to let go incase he would suddenly disappear on her.
"That isn't an excuse!" she said violently shaking her head against his chest, her dark blood red hair shaking about in a way that reminded the blond of his mother when she was angry. "You could have been killed, then I would have been all alone, you can't leave me," she all but demanded.
Naruto smiled lovingly down at the hopelessly devoted kunoichi, then he had the pang of realisation that he was just as hopeless as she was, the thought of ever leaving her was unthinkable. "Don't worry Karin-chan, I'm not going anywhere," he said lightly kissing the top of her head.
Karin slowly lifted her head so they could share a quick but loving kiss that helped reassure the both of them. But they were brought out of their own little world when a loud cough drew their attention to Shougo who was standing just a few feet away. "If you're both finished we have something to discuss,"
Naruto nodded knowing already what they needed to talk about. "We need to plan our next move right?"
The Uchiha nodded an affirmative. "We need a base of operations, that is large enough that the empire can't simply just wipe it out with a few Jutsu," he said calmly indicating that the small village that Naruto and Karin had called home would no longer be safe.
"Then it should also be somewhere easily fortified with a clear line of sight in all directions," Naruto said already guessing where Shougo would propose.
"Yes, the first blow has been struck, but they will not sit idle for long, our best bet to buy us time is to capture the southern capital, I believe you are already familiar with the city. The southern capital is in a highly strategic location that would give us control of most of the Gouhara-hime's region, we could effectively operate as a country, supplied by the farm lands around the city and smaller villages in the region," Shougo reasoned.
"The thick walls and sheer size of the city would also be a deterrent to any attacking force as well," Naruto mumbled seeing the logic in the Uchiha's proposal.
Shougo nodded, already plotting their next move. "Exactly, the best option would be to take the capital... and then declare the southern region as a separate country from the empire under your protection. They won't like it but it will buy us some time, a year, maybe even more with the show you put on back at the trials."
Karin didn't like the sound of this, she knew that if they did this then a war with the empire was inevitable, and anyway she looked at it, an army of shinobi against the handful of shinobi on Naruto's side was not good odds. "What if we do nothing? If we just go back to our village and pretend that nothing ever happened?" she asked, all she wanted was to be able to spend her days with Naruto, maybe start a family, a thought that brought a small blush to her cheeks.
"Well the council of twelve will bicker amongst about what they should do, none of them will want to be the one to take responsibility for your extermination. Eventually the Crown prince or the emperor will order one of them to do it. So I would give us three months maximum before they send assassination squads to purge all of the villages in the south. The empire can't accept someone as powerful as Naruto to exist outside of their control, and if he's seen as being inactive they will see it as a sign of weakness," Shougo explained.
The young Uchiha was well versed in the world of the empires politics. Whilst he had spent the best part of his life trying to avoid it, the easiest way to achieve that goal was to become a master of the game.
"Right, so an open challenge to their authority will make them question themselves," Naruto replied. "It seems like a fine line to walk, we have to cause a big enough mess for them that they're intimidated but not enough to force their hand into attacking us before we're ready for them." 'Kami I wish Shikamaru was here, this sounds perfect for him,'
'Then use this will be a learning experience, you may not have your lazy friend, but this Uchiha seems to be quite the tactician, he hid a lot of plans for a long time waiting for the perfect time to act. As much as I hate the Uchiha clan, this one could be useful,' Kurama spoke calmly.
"You're quite right, it will be a massive slap in the face of the empire to lose even a small portion of its land, the only thing that will stave their hand is the fact that the southern outer rim is the poorest part of the empire so they will not be in as much of a hurry to retrieve it." Shougo explained.
"So they will wait a year, by that time Matabi will have reformed, and if Shukaku is right about the other Bijuu coming to me, then we will have three Bijuu, that's enough to defend any city." Naruto said in deep thought.
"Somehow I don't doubt that," Shougo admitted, "However, there are other ways to win a war without attacking directly. They could attack the smaller villages or cut off our supply lines."
Naruto sighed, either way he looked at it, they simply didn't have enough men to just simply repel the enemy when they attacked and live a contented life. "If that's the case, should they use that tactic then we will have to retaliate," Naruto answered, a resigned determination forming.
The slightest of smiles passed Shougos features for a brief moment but it went unnoticed by either Naruto or Karin. "I think that would be the best option. I think we can save the discussion of what comes next until after we claim the souther capital, we have quite a few hours of travel at full speed before we reach our target, it will probably not be until after dark."
"We can save that until tomorrow. You said yourself, even if we do nothing we have three months before any retaliation will come in. I think we should ask the civilians what they want to do, I can have my clones take them home, but they need to be warned that staying there won't be safe," Naruto said, not really wanting to run for the whole day and then have to overthrow a city.
"That is a smart move, perhaps you should recommend they move to the capital for safety," Shougo suggested.
"Why stop there? Each one of the civilians we were able to save is capable of wielding chakra, I know it's only a year, but if we trained them, they could become shinobi, you can't deny we're a little short on man power at the moment." Karin said, there was not much she could do to prevent the cards from falling where they were, but if they were going to war, then she would do everything in her power to make sure they won.
"I can see the merit in that, but it may prove difficult to convince them that fighting is the a wise idea. These people have been looked down on and oppressed their whole lives by what would seem like an unsurmountable force. But perhaps after seeing what Naruto was able to do they will feel empowered," Shougo admitted, slightly impressed by Karin's idea.
They spent the next half an hour explaining the options to the civilians and explaining what they would be doing, most had no desire to join Naruto's militia but knew that they would be hunted for the rest of their lives no matter what they chose. Because of this a large number agreed to join, while the vast majority had decided that the southern capital would be the safest place for them and their families.
So once more Naruto made a large collection of clones that piggybacked each of the civilians back to their respective villages. Soon the only remaining civilians were Rea and Tenji, the weight of the past few days had really hit the usually energetic and happy Tenji, who had barely said a word to Naruto or Karin accept to be the first of the civilians that had offered to join his militia. Rea was dealing with the situation far better, it was as if she had already accepted the fate and now was simply waiting for whatever happened next.
Naruto slowly approached the pair and sat down, knowing that they would soon be making a move, they still had a lot of ground to cover before making camp for the night. "This is all my fault," he sighed.
"Yeah it is," Rea said firmly, as Naruto's shoulders sagged in depression. "But it's alright, you just have to make sure we win," she added a small smirk playing on her face showing that she really didn't blame him for anything. "The truth is, even if I was one tenth as strong as you are, I would have been fighting against the empire years ago... I hate the way they treat people, but I have never been able to do anything about it, I'd always thought we just had to accept, that to them we were trash. You changed that."
The spiky haired blond looked up in mild shock, this was so unlike Rea, she had always been so careful and keen to follow the rules, but then here was admitting that it was only because she had felt helpless to change anything. The anger he felt for the empire spiked yet again. 'It's just like all those years ago in wave country, they feel so helpless that they cant even fathom real freedom. It has to stop!'
(Later that Day)
Back at the arena a bloody and utterly defeated man clawed his way out of a deep crack in the earth, his rust coloured hair stained with his own blood, and deep cuts were shown on his skin but the blood was being held back, if not for his unique bloodline he would most certainly have died of blood loss. Tetsu's eyes were clouded over as if he was moving on auto pilot.
"And here I thought I looked bad," a woman's voice called out to him slightly weakly.
Tetsu robotically turned his head to the somewhat familiar voice, his eyes widened when he saw Gouhara laying on her back propped up against a large rock, "H-how?" he asked as the full extent of his surroundings began to set in.
"Well the short answer is... we got our asses kicked," Gouhara chuckled weakly. "I only survived by using my wind blades to cut a hole in the ground to avoid that jutsu, it took all of my chakra to avoid a single attack and he wasn't even trying," she sighed almost longingly.
"Are you serious?" Tetsu stammered, thinking he may have misheard due to exhaustion and pain from his injuries.
Gouhara chuckled lightly, her breath shallow from both physical and chakra exhaustion. "Nope, I doubt he showed us anywhere near his full strength... and then there was his chakra," She paused biting her bottom lip as she thought about the confrontation with Naruto. "It was an endless expanse there was so much and so oppressive. It was hard to even breath in his presence," she admitted. "It was... exhilarating, I've never felt my heart beat so fast!" She panted, slowly licking her lips almost hungrily.
Tetsu knew that Gouhara was, unstable to say the least, but she had always had a knack for judging the strength of others, she had hand picked both himself and Shougo when they were young and others thought they wouldn't make it. She was also considered a genius despite what most Uchiha considered the weakness of her elemental affinity.
So for her to react like this after facing Naruto he knew that their troubles were far from over. "What happened to Joli-sama?" he asked eventually.
"Dead," Gouhara admitted passively, seemingly uncaring that her daughter had been killed. "The jutsu that almost killed me vaporised her, no matter how hard anyone looks they won't find a body. "A jutsu of such destructive power, it was truly a thing of beauty, I wonder how it works," she added longingly.
"If it was that powerful, it's probably best we never see it again. With that said, I am sure the emperor will eventually order you to deal with Naruto, he lives in our region after all. So it will fall to you to organise an assassination," Tetsu guessed.
"Kill him? oh no that can't happen, Naruto-kun is precious. I can't let anything bad happen to him," Gouhara said chewing on her bottom lip.
Tetsu's eyes widened hoping to see that she was joking and his blood ran cold to see just how serious she was. 'Oh this can't be good.'
End Chapter!
And I'm Back, both stories are back in production. I also have an idea for a Fairy Tail fiction but I'm not quite ready to start it yet. Maybe in a few weeks if I can finish a few more chapters of this and Nightfall.
I apologised for my long absence in my last chapter of Nightfall but for those who have not read that fic I would like to officially apologise for the Hiatus, I had other commitments that had me preoccupied. Also I was not all that inspired by the Naruto-gaiden chapters, it really put me off the series for awhile. I've already expressed many of these thoughts before so I won't bore you with them again.
Anyway I hope you liked the chapter, And I hope to have a chapter of Nightfall out next week. Until next time keep reading!