Sum of our Parts
Stratagems and War
***I do not make any $$$ on Naruto. ***
"Le gasp!" normal talking
'das fuken?' normal thinking
"set-you-on-fire-no-jutsu" Jutsu and other techniques
"I will murder you!" Tailed beast talking
***SooP***
"Welcome fellow Kages. I am pleased that we were all able to assemble here with little difficulty and…"
"Enough of this woman! We have spent enough time going over pleasantries and talk, now is the time for action!" 'A' roared out in annoyance, earning himself a glare from the blonde Hokage.
"No, now is the time for planning and strategizing, unless you wish to take your force and charge headfirst into an enemy of unknown strength and number. In that case you can do so alone." Gaara countered.
"That is the first problem that we need to address. We are all united in opposition to the opposing forces and we need to act like it. I suggest we begin choosing commanders and officers that will be the overall leaders of our army."
"The Hokage is right. If we each try and lead five different armies then we will fall in five different ways." The Mizukage called out in support.
"Then I elect myself 'supreme commander' of all armed forces!"
"Why the hell would we choose some war mongering ass hat for our leader?" the younger woman shot back towards the dark skinned muscled man.
"EXCUSE ME!? GIVE ME ONE REASON WHY I SHOULDN'T…"
It was Tsunade that ended the argument this time, "ENOUGH! We are not getting anywhere by opening old wounds and bickering about them! Despite our differences I believe that Tsuchikage-Sama should be the overall commander. He is by far the most knowledgeable of everyone here and has been shown to be an adept general as well. Plus the 'supreme commander' should not be on the front lines fighting battles, which I suspect you are more than interested in doing 'A'."
The larger man huffed before nodding in acknowledgement.
"I… am surprised that you would recommend me Hokage-Sama, very well I accept. Now then the first thing we need is detailed information concerning our enemy. From there we will be able to choose the battlefield that will most benefit us and hinder them."
"I already have Jiraiya and several of our other top spies working on gathering that information. We should have a fairly accurate picture within the next day or so."
"Splendid! Now then despite the fact that we need to consolidate our forces we also require commanders so that our forces can operate regardless of communications. I would like every Kage here to make a list of those they would entrust to such a role and from there we can divide up the army into individual units. Since 'B' is here and Kazekage-Sama is as well I can assume that they are still in possession of their Biju, what of the Kyuubi's Jinchurikis?"
Tsunade hesitated at this, she wanted to trust her fellow leaders but one could never be too careful with information. Deciding to take the gamble she went with the honest answer.
"The Kyuubi was extracted from Akane Uzumaki several months ago."
"No…."
The blonde Kage turned to the other blonde in the room, Temari. The poor girl looked horrified that something had befallen one of the few Konoha Ninja she had come to trust and appreciate.
Gaara's normal stoic expression seemed on the verge of shattering as well, with rage and despair tugging on the edges of his face.
"It's okay she survived and has recovered quite well."
The news earned a deathly silence from those in the room.
"She… survived her Biju being extracted? But… how?" 'A' muttered out in shock.
"Yo yo yo girls got skills from the hills and luck she can't chuck. Gotta say I would like to ask 'hey any way' she can spread some love like a dove and share some secrets that I could request?"
The Senju stared blankly at the other Jinchuriki for a moment, trying to process what had just been rapped to her, when his leader clarified.
"What he means is 'is there any chance she could share with us how she survived'? I would be very interested in applying the same process to 'B' just in case."
"Hey get in line you over muscled creep, our brother comes first!" Kankuro spat out, earning glares from those present at interrupting.
"Unfortunately it wouldn't work on anyone else. Akane is an extremely special case in that she slowly separated the Biju from her own body over the course of years growing up. When it was extracted the damage it caused was minimal."
"Why would she do that? I know that Jinchuriki are given hard lives but still… to take away a future advantage you would have seems a bit ridiculous." Mei pondered.
"True, but apparently her situation was even worse than Kazekage-Sama's. Where he was just shouted at and isolated… she was actually mentally tortured by her Biju."
Everyone's eyes widened at that information, Gaara's most of all. Sure it had been terrible being the host of Shukaku but the creature had never done more than shout at him, and keep him up at night. Most of the problems had come from his father trying to turn him into a weapon.
For her to stay sane, while going through that as well…
***SooP***
"Congratulations Shikamaru, you are now the lieutenant of the First Division under the Kazekage." His father happily proclaimed.
The boy in question just groaned in aggravation, before banging his head down onto the table he was sitting at.
"Oh come on now son, I know that you wanted to work with me but we can't always…"
"No, I didn't want any type of command position at all. Why was I chosen for this?"
"The Hokage highly recommended you and the Kazekage has faith in your tactical abilities."
"Shouldn't he have just chosen one of the Uchiha, or the Uzumaki instead? Surely they are stronger and better suited for…"
"He doesn't trust the Uchiha, and if the Hokage had recommended one of the Uzumaki sisters I am sure he would have immediately chosen them. But she did not, thus he did not."
That statement earned curious glances from the other members of the 'Konoha 13'.
"Why didn't she recommend them? Obviously they are some of the strongest…" Ino was interrupted once more by the Nara clan leader.
"We are well aware of their abilities in fact I have some suspicion that even I do not know what they are truly capable of. But the Hokage has other plans for them in this conflict. In fact she explicitly stated that they would not be placed under anyone's command save for her own."
"Ugh this is all so…"
"Troublesome, yes I know. But quite frankly I think you are an excellent choice for the position. Besides I hear that Temari will be serving as one of Gaara's personal guard so you will probably end up spending a lot of time together." The older man hinted with a smirk.
This seemed to perk up the usually lazy boy considerably.
"Well I guess it won't be too bad…"
Laughter filled the room from the other Konoha Ninja.
"What about the rest of us Nara-Sama?" The Inuzuka boy inquired.
"Well most of you will be placed in teams that you already have worked with before, to keep retraining as minimal as possible. I know that Shizune-San is being put in charge of the Medical Brigade, and Kakashi is commander of the Fourth Division. I believe he requested your brother as his lieutenant Sasuke."
The Uchiha boy nodded in confirmation. His brother would be an excellent choice for any type of leadership role.
"As for the rest of you, expect a scroll pertaining to what Division you will be placed in and where to assemble. Come along now son, all officers are required to attend the meetings concerning the intel that Jiraiya-Sama managed to obtain."
Once again the Nara heir let out a groan.
Hopefully Temari would be at the meetings as well.
***SooP***
"My fellow commanders, we have been chosen by the Kage to lead the 'Grand Shinobi Alliance'. As such it has been decided that the bulk of the army will be split into five divisions. Each of these will have a commander, a lieutenant, and any other officers that they choose. Generally we will keep the divisions separated based on one of the villages but there may be times where…"
"I don't mean to interrupt but might I make a suggestion?" Itachi gently interrupted, while giving a slight bow to show he meant no disrespect.
"If it pertains to the discussion then by all means" Kitsuchi finished.
"I have seen the results of 'keeping forces separate' before. In Konoha my clan was isolated much the same way. However I feel as though it might be a better choice to build the divisions out of soldiers from all of the villages."
"Hmm not a bad idea Itachi-san, but I am curious if you have a reason besides just your experience in Konoha." Darui remarked.
The Uchiha nodded before continuing on, "If our enemy is as informed as we believe they are, then they will see the separation between the divisions and each ones specialization. All this is going to do is all them to target certain units with specialized tactics. I agree that some emphasis is needed between different regiments but to specialize an entire division of the army to just one element and one goal is just painting a target on them."
"I agree with the Uchiha. Not only that, but there is no hiding the fact that animosity still exists between the five villages. If an entire group is made up of soldiers from just one village then they might be reluctant to provide aid to another from a rival. If we combine the soldiers together rather than keeping these distinctions it might even help relations between us after the war is over." Gaara proclaimed, earning a nod of thanks from the Sharingan wielder.
"I believe I can speak for my village and Kage when I agree with both Itachi-San and Kazekage-Sama. Certain villages specialize in various traits even beyond our elemental affinities. I know that I would feel better having a few medical Ninja from Konoha in our division and some long ranged specialists from Kumo." Chojuro commented.
"Well we were given authorization to create our divisions however we want so I suppose it might not annoy our leaders too terribly much. Alright then as long as everyone is in agreement let's move on to the next order of business. Kitsuchi would you like to take the reins once more?" Kakashi inquired, gesturing for the man to continue his original speech.
"Thank you Kakashi-San, since the makeup of our army has now changed I believe we will need to change the original plan we had for the war as well. As the spy networks have ascertained we are heavily outnumbered by our enemy. Reports show anywhere from three to four times our number. The original idea was to hold the front line with two of the divisions and having the other three in support. Since this will most likely change I would like to see if anyone else has a better idea."
The cyclopean Ninja gave a slight glance over to the Nara genius, who sighed in response.
"Yeah I guess I have one. Since they outnumber us by this much it would be the most logical to find a choke point and hold that with one to two different divisions. Then once they start to take casualties or get tired we swap them out with two of the rested divisions to continue the fight and allow the other to rest and recuperate. This also leaves the fifth division in reserve for protection against flanking and such."
The others conversed with themselves for a few minutes before nodding in agreement.
"Seems like a good plan to all of us Nara-San, well then all we need to do is begin picking out soldiers, so start sorting your best into categories and skill levels and we can get this underway." The Iwa Shinobi finished, before mentally going over his own forces.
***SooP***
"SOLDIERS OF THE GRAND SHINOBI ALLIANCE, WE HAVE GATHERED HERE TODAY TO FIGHT BACK AGAINST AN ENEMY THAT THREATENS OUR VERY EXISTENCE!" 'A' roared out as the army stood in formation. "BUT FEAR NOT MY FELLOW SOLDIERS, FOR WE SHALL PREVAIL AGAINST ALL TYRANNY, AGAINST ALL EVIL, AND AGAINST ALL FOES!"
At this the army gave a loud call of acknowledgement, their combined voice echoing through the valley where they gathered.
"Sir, the 'white army' draws near, we estimate that we will be able to spot them within the hour." A nearby runner whispered to the large general.
"Very good, prepare the front line troops and get everyone into position. Make sure that the other commanders and their officers are alerted as well."
The messenger nodded, before springing off with his orders.
***SooP***
The White Zetsu army began their approach onto where the allied camp had been setup. The route first took them through a heavily forested area, and then into a narrow valley which lead between two mountains. The Shinobi had setup in the valley just beyond that entrance.
As the soldiers began making their way, looking more like an endless river than an army, their voyage was suddenly interrupted by the sound of popping from the nearby trees.
Hundreds of kunai rained down upon them from every conceivable angle, and although they had been created to be considerably more resistant than the average human being they still lost nearly a hundred in the ambush.
Immediately the mutated men retaliated, diving towards the sources of the assault. Instead of finding an ambush party they located only various types of traps that had been sprung by the approach.
The mindless soldiers went back to their ranks, continuing on with expressionless faces until the ground underneath them erupted in fire and concussive blasts.
The first twenty or so of them were immediately destroyed, with the follow ups taking severe damage as well.
Still they continued on. A few dozen, hell even a few hundred, casualties would make no difference in the long run.
So they continued, occasionally losing small groups as they proceeded along the trapped road.
***SooP***
"That was a pretty good idea Shikamaru, putting traps along their few axis of approach." Temari complimented as she stood by her two brothers.
"Eh I guess so, less work for us then. Your brother was the one who you should praise though he did volunteer to lead the unit that placed them after all."
The Kunoichi's brother blushed slightly, not used to the praise that he was receiving for once, "Nah it was no big deal, besides I figure this was the least I can do for Konoha giving us access to all of Sasori's puppets. They could have just as easily taken them back to your village for study."
The genius waved him off absentmindedly, "I doubt it we don't really have any puppet users to speak of. It was your criminal in the first place."
The boy nodded, along with Gaara, in appreciation.
"You know after this is all over you should come by Suna for a visit, I have my own apartment now…" the blonde nonchalantly mentioned, earning glares from her brothers. Meanwhile the Nara developed a massive blush at the innuendo.
***SooP***
When the enemy army finally made it to the allied forces they found that the natural choke point had been narrowed even further, making it impossible for more than a few of their soldiers to progress through the gap.
Ignoring this, the endless hoard charged forward, and was met with a massive barrage of Jutsu and projectiles.
Yet still they pressed on, and eventually forced the Ninja to engage them in close combat, where their unique biology began to truly make up the difference.
Even unarmed the Zetsu were dangerous, being able to shape their limbs into various improvised weapons. Furthermore they were highly resistant to damage and lacking more than a few of the internal organs that a standard Ninja would target in a battle.
They felt no fear and no remorse. They did not suffer from morale losses or confusion. They were the perfect soldiers.
***SooP***
"Hey teme what's your count at? I bet you I'm winning though ass hat. I am already at thirteen so suck it you…"
"Sixteen" the boy's teammate replied, after cutting through another enemy soldier.
The Inuzuka's eye began to twitch in annoyance at his teammate, once again, showing him up.
"Not bad Sasuke, but I am at twenty three."
It was the younger Uchiha's turn to develop an eye twitch as his older brother announced his 'count'.
"You know what screw you guys, Akamaru time for our newest technique!"
The large dog promptly took up position next to the boy, who immediately created a Kage Bunshin. The three figures then disappeared in a cloud of smoke, reemerging as a mass three headed dog.
"Inuzuka Secret Technique: Human Beast Fusion"
The voice that growled out seemed to come from all three heads at once, which then proceeded to take a deep breath, and breathe out fire onto thee different groups of White Zetsu. The fire spread, before eventually culminating in a massive pillar, engulfing well over a dozen more enemies.
Afterwards the transformation ended, revealing a panting boy and his companion.
"I… call that… the… Inuzuka Flame Barrage…"
"You couldn't come up with a better name than that?" Sasuke questioned, turning slightly so that his teammate missed the smirk on his face.
"I… hate you… so… much…"
"Let me show you how a real clan heir fights kibbles, Amaterasu."
The boy focused the black inferno up into the air, slowly accumulating storm clouds due to the heat and cloaking the land in an ominous shadow.
"Sasuke what are you…" Itachi began, before his younger brother interrupted him.
"Kirin"
With that a massive lightning dragon descended from the clouds, slamming into the ground below and vaporizing a large group of enemies.
"Sasuke-kun that was amazing!" Ino shouted in joy.
"She's right Sasuke-kun you could win the entire war by yourself with that technique! Why don't you just use it all the time?" The pinkette chimed in, focusing most of the attention onto the boy.
"Uhh… well the funny thing is… I can only use it once a day…"
Everyone in the area sweat dropped from his statement.
"And you decided to use it… when we really didn't need the assistance… just to show off?" The older Uchiha questioned, in a mixture of monotone and annoyance.
"Uhhhhhh yes?"
Itachi held back the face palm with all of his might.
***SooP***
The battle continued on, as the White Zetsu army fought back and forth with the allies.
Soldiers on both sides continued to fall. Despite the fact that the casualties favored the Shinobi they were already heavily outnumbered, meaning that they simply could not afford to take heavy losses.
"Choji, get ready to throw him!" Hinata called out, before her lightning-enhanced hands struck one of the enemy soldiers a dozen times.
The Akimichi nodded, before enlarging his own body and tossing the struck soldier far back into the enemy ranks.
Seconds later it exploded, taking out another group of soldiers in the process.
"Wow Hinata that was awesome, where did you learn that?" A certain pinkette inquired, after bashing another Zetsu's head in.
She and Ino had received quite a bit of training from Gai and his team before the war, thus strengthening them in case an enemy would be resistant against Genjutsu.
"I created it myself I call it Rolling Thunder: Twelve Degrees of Overload."
"Damn Hinata-chan you make the rest of us girls look like slackers." Ino called out from nearby, having jammed a kunai into one of her opponents.
"Speak for yourself… slackers." The Kunoichi of Team nine muttered before raining down projectiles on a group of adversaries, destroying many and allowing the remaining to be picked off by nearby soldiers.
***SooP***
"This isn't good man I knew I shouldn't have accepted this position." A certain genius Nara muttered to himself as he went over the newest information with his companions.
"What's wrong Shikamaru? I thought we had all the advantages right now." Ino interrupted, confusion lacing her tone.
"Yes, but the problem is that the enemy still outnumbers us by a considerable amount. They are moving a massive portion of troops along the western side, behind the mountains. The forces there were pulled back due to communication problems with the other generals and now our flank is exposed."
The boy continued racking his brain for a solution. If they tried to setup a chokepoint it was doubtful that they could secure it with enough forces in time to repel the attack. Any attempt at counter attacking would be likewise delayed and thus earn far more casualties for their own side.
The only solution that he could see would be to set up a temporary defensive position to slow them down, hopefully buying enough time to finish the primary battle and then shift their forces to counter the new threat.
The problem was that this would be a suicide mission for anyone he would send.
"Damnit…" the boy swore, realizing that no matter what choice he made the casualties would be high, and it would be his fault.
"Is there anything we can do to help Shika-kun?" a feminine voice called out as the two Uzumaki sisters arrived into the command tent.
"A bit late aren't we?" Kankuro shot back in annoyance.
Luckily the two girls merely ignored the man, keeping their attention focused on the 'genius'.
The lazy boy merely chuckled, "Yeah sure, if you think you can get rid of over twenty thousand enemy soldiers that would be great."
The blonde took on a 'cute' thinking pose, as if considering the situation, before nodding excitedly.
"Okay!"
The two then turned and hastily left the tent.
The Konoha Ninja stared dumbfounded for a few moments, before promptly running after the two girls.
***SooP***
"Uh Natsuko-chan, no offense but they are on the other side of that mountain range, also I don't know if you quite understand the meaning of 'twenty thousand' but it's… well that's a lot of soldiers."
"Don't worry Sakura-chan, we got this! Alright Akane-chan you ready for the 'Uzumaki Grand Finale'?"
The redhead merely nodded, before unsealing a large container from her arm.
Kiba waited for a few moments, noticing that hundreds of other soldiers had now taken notice of the two girls.
"OH COME ON, NO ONE IS GONNA CALL THEM OUT FOR THAT?! Man this is such bullshit…"
"Still adorable…" the pinkette muttered out.
They turned their attention back to the two sisters, at which Akane promptly threw the large container up into the air, which poured a thick black pool onto the ground.
"Uh… what is…"
Kankuro was interrupted when the blonde girl started flowing through dozens of hand signs.
"Life Release: Last Avatar"
"Wait what did she just say?" Choji called out from nearby.
Suddenly the ground began to shake, as once more a massive soldier rose from the ground, this time directly from the area covered in the black substance.
Those who had never seen this technique before, and even the ones who had, stared slack jawed at the massive creature that had been summoned, who head parted the clouds.
For that brief moment the fighting seemed to halt, as all stood witness to the creature brought forth into creation.
Even Gaara's normally stoic expression turned to one of shock and awe.
"Wh-wha… WHAT IN THE HELL IS THAT!?" A nearby soldier roared out in shock, before his bewildered shout was joined by hundreds, and then thousands, of others.
A split second later the creature began walking towards the mountains that separated the 'flanking force' from the allied encampment.
Even more strange was the fact that the 'soldier' was now covered in what appeared to be black tattoos, created from the pool that the redhead had made.
"I withdraw all comments about whatever Natsuko wants to name her techniques forever…" The Inuzuka muttered out, earning nods from the other Ninja who could hear him.
"Oh man… THAT'S SO COOL! IT EVEN HAS WAR PAINT!" Choji loudly exclaimed.
"Oh what the hell. So they can use war paint but I can't?" The Suna sibling shouted in annoyance.
"Well yeah, that thing look's badass, you look like a clown."
"AND YOU SMELL LIKE WET DOG!"
"WHAT WAS THAT ASSHOLE!?"
"YEAH YOU HEARD ME, YOU WANT TO TAKE THIS OUTSIDE MUTT?"
"YEAH LET'S DO IT!"
Temari began wondering if either of the idiots realized that they were already outside.
"So… what's with the markings Natsuko-chan?" Anko inquired from nearby.
"Oh that? That's the 'Grand' part that Akane-chan came up with." The blonde happily replied.
"So it's some sort of Fuinjutsu then… what exactly does it do?" Shikamaru correctly assumed, keeping his shocked gaze on the giant.
"Watch!"
With that the girl raised her hand into the sky… and the creature copied her moment.
"See that's why she's cooler than you. It even copies her!" Tenten exclaimed in excitement.
"Interesting, but I don't see why that is necessary. It already follows her commands" Itachi pointed out.
"True, but that's not what the seals are for…" the redhead replied, a slight smirk forming on her face.
Before anyone could reply a whirling sound emanated from the girl, as she formed a massive Rasengan in her raised hand.
Then all hell broke loose as what sounded like a hurricane roared into existence.
A Rasengan formed for the giant as well. Except for that it scaled with the warrior's size, thus being the size of over a dozen buildings.
The blonde pulled her arm back, before slamming it down to the ground.
"Odama Rasen..."
"GAAANNNN!"
The last part of the attack was roared out by the creature itself, before slamming its oversized destructive attack into the army on the other side of the mountain range.
Seconds later it began to carve a new valley into existence, using nothing but the sphere it had formed.
The Zetsu army was annihilated by a power on the scale that had not been seen in decades.
A minute later the attack halted, while the entire Shinobi army stood in shock at what had just occurred.
Two Kunoichi had just destroyed one fifth of the entire enemy army in minutes.
"And that… was the 'Finale' part." The 'younger' sister proclaimed, before promptly falling forward in exhaustion.
She was easily caught by her sister, who gently picked her up bridal style and began to walk towards the medical tents.
"I assume that will be sufficient for your strategy?"
The Nara nodded, still dumbstruck at what had just occurred.
***SooP***
"Ino… has it always been like this? Have those two always stood so far in front of us? I mean I always thought that back in the academy they were at the very back but… maybe they were so far ahead that they were ready to lap us like in a race around a track."
The blonde nodded dumbly towards her pink haired friend. The girl did raise a good point, when had the two sisters become so powerful, so confident? Were they always this way? She could remember the two, especially Akane, always winning during their Taijutsu spars. Then there was the fact that they always did well in weapon combat... in fact it seemed like the only reason that they had ever been perceived as weak was due to their test scores, something that was painfully useless now, and their social isolation.
But now, watching those two Kunoichi easily decimate thousands of enemy soldiers while she was struggling to defeat one or two at a time…
They were inspirational.
Hinata just watched on in pride, knowing from the very start that one of those two girls would become Hokage someday. The only questions remaining in the Hyuga's mind were: which one would it be and what would her role be when that future came?
***SooP***
"Hokage-Sama, I have a question for you." Mei inquired from nearby.
"Yes Mizukage-Sama?"
"Where is your other teammate? The one named 'Jiraiya'?"
"Oh that old pervert? He is off on a spy mission at my request. We have heard rumors that Orochimaru is somehow in league with our current enemy and so I wanted him to ascertain if this was in fact true or not. If it should be then we will need to deal with that issue before it becomes an even bigger mess."
"Very wise of you, but why didn't you have those two girls strike earlier on? Surely they could have been useful throughout the fight rather than just at that instance."
"That wasn't entirely my choice. Akane was doing some last minute research for me and had just arrived at that time. Besides taking out an entire flanking army seems like quite the useful trick to me."
"No doubt, I assume that you plan on naming one of those two girls as your successor then?" Onoki called out from nearby, having overheard the conversation.
"That is the plan yes, the only hard part is going to be picking one of them. Both have the qualifications and the power to become Hokage."
The Tsuchikage nodded in understanding, though he would love to have two competent Ninja to compete as successor he had seen the results of such issues before. Konoha itself had a notable tradition of such occurrences going terribly wrong, such as Danzo, Madara, and Orochimaru.
Perhaps it was better to simply have one prominent successor and focus entirely on them. Having to choose between those two girls was something that the old man did not envy the blonde for.
***SooP***
Tobi growled in annoyance as he watched the battle from a nearby precipice. The White Zetsu army was supposed to have done significant damage to the allied forces, not be slaughtered in droves.
They were still doing casualties, of course, just not the kind he was promised. At this rate he would need to unleash his 'trump card' earlier than planned.
It wouldn't matter at the end of the day, of course, but it was still quite the irritating situation to watch as his plans were thwarted by children and corrupt leaders that should have died years ago.
"Zetsu" the masked man barked out, immediately summoning the creature. "Prepare the second wave and activate the Edo Tensei. It is time to humble these fools with an invincible army. Once there pathetic force is destroyed we will move on Konoha first."
"You are sending them all in at the same time? It would seem like a better plan to stagger them in slowly so that they are not all caught in the same area at once."
"Ah but that would also provide those bastards with time to create some kind of defensive measures. Instead of allowing them to fight small staggered battles we will overwhelm them in one swift attack. They will simply not have the time or forces to deal with that many invulnerable soldiers at once."
"As you command" The plant-like man nodded, before merging back into the ground to fulfill his task.
***SooP***
Meanwhile on the battlefield there seemed to be a lull in combat, which gave the medics time to heal the wounded, soldiers to recover, and even the studying of the enemy fallen to gain a better understanding of their biology.
All in all it was a welcomed break from the constant battle that had been waging for the better part of a day. That is until one of the scouts ran in and shouted the alarm.
Immediately the rested soldiers of the first and second divisions came forward, preparing their defenses behind the reconstructed traps.
Even with all of the planning and training they could not be prepared to witness hundreds of previously fallen warriors from the last century moving forward to engage them.
***Alternate Scene***
Akane Uzumaki had arrived home for less than an hour when there came a knocking on the door to the Senju compound.
Natsuko was not due back for at least an hour or so, having been ordered to report to the Hokage for debriefing.
Otherwise the girl was home alone, and thus immediately on edge.
Taking her mother's katana in her hand she slowly opened the entrance and was immediately taken aback by Itachi Uchiha standing on the other side, looking exhausted and distressed.
"Itachi? What's wrong?"
"You were sent on a false mission, saved Sakura's life, were kidnapped, and almost killed and you ask me 'what's wrong'?"
"I didn't save her life," the girl began, before opening the door and gesturing him to enter the house, "She escaped on her own, I was not kidnapped considering I went willingly to allow her the chance to escape, and finally I was not almost killed."
The man's eye twitched in annoyance at her first two statements, leave it to the redhead to not accept any praise or acknowledgement, but was confused by her last comment.
"The report said that they found you near death after the extraction."
"They must have made that part up. I can assure you I was quite dead when they found me."
The Uchiha blanked, not quite sure how to perceive what the girl had said.
"But…"
"I was revived though, obviously, so no harm done."
This time the Shinobi growled in annoyance, only she would casually ignore the fact that she had died and been brought back to life like it was an everyday occurrence.
"You still saved Sakura, she and my brother and quite adamant about repaying you."
"Then they can buy Natsuko dinner sometime if they are so insistent."
Instantly Itachi moved in front of her, he was tired of her dodgy attitude, of her ignoring things like life or death situations, and making light of anyone trying to help her.
"That's not good enough." The boy replied, before wrapping his arms around her waist and forcibly dragging her into a kiss.
The first kiss they had ever shared.
Akane had gone wide eyed as her body stiffened in response.
A few moments later the boy broke the kiss and moved backwards so that the Kunoichi could recover. His arms stayed around her though.
"I am sorry if that was unwanted, but I feel as though you don't understand how important you are to this village, to everyone around you."
"I…"
"Since you are still not convinced of this… let me show you myself."
He pulled her into a kiss once more, although he noticed that her response was far more pleasant this time, with her returning the gesture and wrapping her arms around his neck as well.
***A/N***
So the war begins with a bang! To be honest I didn't know very much about this part of Naruto so I'm kind of just skimming and making crap up as I go along. Thus this part of the story isn't going to be an exceptionally long arc.
Worry not though, it shall be epic!
I am would like to clarify something now, "Alternate scenes" are not to be considered canon to the story, these are more just for your/my enjoyment and seeing 'what could have been'. "Omakes" are more like the 'filler' arcs in that they can be considered canon, but I couldn't find a good place to put them into the chapter without causing confusion to both myself and the reader.
As always I hope everyone enjoyed reading my work!
