Chapter 5 – Strings
oOoOoO Naruto OoOoOo
What do you mean out?
I mean out. As in outside the seal.
How is that even possible?
oOoOoO Sarutobi OoOoOo
He was going to save Minato's legacy, and no ninja would bar his way.
No matter how many of them had to die.
"Ninja style – Monkey Fist!" Sarutobi roared, punching straight ahead. The strange stone-avatar skin the man was using was no defense against his technique. It caused massive reverberations via a burst of chakra over a wide area. The chakra wave went straight through him, turning the unfortunate target's internal organs to jelly in quasi-Gentle Fist style. The Rock Ninja fell with a strangled moan, his eyes already glassing over.
His seven man group had been whittled down to three, including him. Hizashi and one of the Hyuga's branch members were all that accompanied him, the others being lost to enemy traps and soldiers. They continued on, barely pausing to confirm their allies deaths. Sarutobi wrapped his injured hand in a bandage, cursing as he ran.
I'm not as young as I once was, he reflected. My bones are getting awfully brittle.
A change in the lighting up ahead alerted him. They were coming up on a populated room. Without a visible signal, the two Hyuga's moved ahead of their Hokage with a quick burst of speed.
oOoOoO Hinata OoOoOo
Shisui went quiet after he introduced himself. She was worried, but couldn't think of anything to do. The girl peeked at him through her fingers. He was collapsed against the cell wall, his breathing slow but shallow. She wished she could use the Byakugan – maybe his chakra would tell her something.
So occupied was she with her fellow prisoner that she didn't even notice when the situation changed completely.
The first rock ninja was on guard. He'd heard the clashing of weapons, and dispatched one of the three guards to alert Danzo.
His diligence cost him his life when Hizashi Hyuga flashed through the doorway with speed Minato could appreciate and Fugaku would gasp at. Those who sparred with Hyuga clan members often forgot the sheer lethality of the Gentle Fist style. It was generally thought that the Hyuga's Bloodline Limit was inferior to the Sharingan, as the Sharingan allowed the Uchiha to follow the moves of their opponents.
What the sparring partners of the Hyuga failed to recognize was that if a master of Gentle Fist wanted you dead, you only needed to get hit once.
Hizashi simply hit the man. One strike to the center of mass, and he fell. No ninja techniques, no flashy hand signs.
He just dropped dead.
Hinata stared, horrified. Suddenly, she realized the door to her cage was open, and the last member of her guards was holding a knife to her neck.
"Don't even think about it!" He said, plainly terrified as two more men stepped out of the shadows of the tunnel. "I will kill her! Stand back, all of you!"
"No matter where you run, these eyes will follow you," Hizashi said calmly, the veins on his forehead standing out. Sarutobi and the branch member stood behind him, silently regarding the ninja. "No matter where you hide, these eyes will find you. No matter how you struggle, I will kill you to reclaim my niece."
"But you can't now, can you?" The guard said, grinning viciously despite the fear in his eyes. "Make a move, and I'll slit her throat! I swear I will!"
"Hey," a voice said from her right. The man spared a glance, then froze.
"Impossible," he breathed. "The seals - "
"I broke those an hour ago," Shisui said, the Mangekyo flaring in his eyes, "and now, I think its time for you to die. KOTOAMATSUKAMI!"
oOoOoO Naruto OoOoOo
Don't you think that's kind of a bad idea? I mean, aren't you sort of the seal itself?
If I leave, the seal should stay intact. The frameworks in place. Just try not to do anything rash.
Well. . . how do I let you out in the first place?
Simple.The Advocates eyes burned a dull red. You just have to agree.
oOoOoO Shisui OoOoOo
Shisui was in a lot of pain. They'd popped his eye out of his socket! That was mega gross! To top it all off, no painkillers, the cheap bastards. He scowled, willing himself to focus. The Hyuga branch member was supporting him with one arm and guiding Hinata with the other down the long exit tunnel. How embarrassing – lowered to the level of an easily led child.
"Lord Hiashi is most eagerly waiting for your return," the branch member told the kid, smiling down at her. Shisui scowled at him. Normally he wasn't such a downer, but damn, Hyuga ticked him off. They always acted like that – 'oh look, we're in the middle of a battle and we're all horribly wounded or suffering from a severe case of childhood, but lets not worry, at least we're halfway through the minefield!'
"Would it kill you to loosen the mask for a moment?" Shisui asked grumpily. "I mean, the kid can see that you're worried about Hizashi."
"Hizashi is -" The Hyuga began, then stopped and sighed. "Important to the branch family."
"I'm glad we haven't been introduced. I can't stand introverted people like you." Shisui turned his head away in an obvious snub. Hinata chuckled. Both of them turned to look at her. As if realizing what she just did, the girl turned red and hid her face in the Hyuga's coat. Shisui grinned at him. He got a hesitant smile in return. "Well, maybe you Hyuga aren't the worst."
oOoOoO Sarutobi OoOoOo
"It's over Danzo," the former Hokage said, raising a kunai. Hizashi was at his side, bloodied but standing. Naruto was behind them, sitting quietly with his eyes closed. "Your pride has cost us many fine ninja this day, and grievously wounded the village."
The lord and master of Root turned to face the old man, his eye still burning a dull blue. "You're a fool if you think I didn't expect this. Then again, you've always been a fool – too afraid to do whats necessary, too weak to see what must be done."
"And this - " Sarutobi gestured to the dead ninja surrounding him, a disturbing number of which were wearing Konoha headbands, " - is your idea of strength?"
"Sacrifices must be made for the greater glory of Konoha," Danzo said, his voice unwavering even as his eye's brightness flickered. "I must seize control of this catastrophe and - "
"You made this catastrophe!" The old man bellowed, furious. "This war started because of you! At this point in time, Konoha is best on all sides by enemies, and is torn apart from within! What has become of you, Danzo?! Is this the man who swore to be the roots that held up the great tree?"
"I – I didn't," Danzo stuttered, his voice suddenly holding doubt. The blue light faded completely. "Sarutobi, I - "
Like a thunderclap without sound, the Third was thrown straight backwards. He collided with the rock wall with a heavy thump and the crack of several ribs. Hizashi, who was next to him, had the superb reflexes of his house and moved immediately into a Kaiten at the sudden wave of malevolent energy.
Danzo straightened, his eyes a cold, imperious blue. "I should have known better than to trust this worthless pawn to fulfill his role."
"Impossible," Hizashi said, the Byakugan active. "What are you?"
Danzo smirked, unraveling his bandaged eye. "Your new master. KOTOAMATSUKAMI!"
Sarutobi watched, horrified, as Hizashi stood ramrod still, seeming to fight against the orders rushing through his brain. After a moment, the man slumped.
"Of course," he said, eyes on the floor.
"Danzo," Sarutobi said, his breath coming in wheezes, "what have you done?"
'Danzo' chuckled. "That young man is really something. It took me a decade of scheming to achieve this sort of control via Madara, and even then I needed to take full control in the end. Then along comes Shisui, and he just mentions – mentions! - in one of his mission reports that 'Oh yeah, I can control minds.' I thought it would be hard, but no, Danzo wanted that power for himself. I would have been content to wait, but well, your Fourth was getting uppity."
"You're not Danzo," Sarutobi said, his eyes hardening. There was no question in his tone. "Who are you?"
"I," 'Danzo' said softly, "am this worlds inevitable future. I am the Architect of Higher Thought, ruler of the realms of Intellect, Control, and Machinations. And you will bow, worthless human, before this world ends."
oOoOoO Naruto OoOoOo
I agree.
oOoOoO Sarutobi OoOoOo
For the second time that evening, a wave of energy pushed him against the wall. This time, though, he didn't have much room to build up speed. Unfortunately, his broken ribs protested. Loudly.
The breath wheezed out of him. It was all he could do to stare at what was going on.
Naruto's shirt had ripped open. The seal was flowing out of him – that was the only way to describe it. Inky darkness flowed and gathered, the tendrils questing left and right as if alive. When they met the body of a ninja, the whole thing ripped itself free and flowed into it. Sarutobi watched, horrified, as Naruto hit the ground bonelessly and the corpse began to twitch.
"Ah," the corpse said, stretching. A broken arm snapped into place and healed as Sarutobi watched. "The freedom to move. At last. I thought I'd have to listen to your damn monologue all day, Architect."
"You - " 'Danzo' said, his voice horrified. "You're - "
"I am the Advocate of Destruction," the body said, picking itself up off the floor. Claws exploded from its forearms in grotesque mimicry of the Kaguya's Bone Pulse blood limit. "Master of Entropy, Keeper of the Gates, Lord of Time and Entropy and Ruler of Gehenna."
The body smiled, showing more teeth than strictly necessary. "It's been too long, older brother. Did you miss me?"
oOoOoO Fugaku Uchiha, Uchiha Compound OoOoOo
"My sons are out there somewhere. We have no time to argue about this foolishness!" Fugaku railed, slamming his hand down onto the table. The elders simply stared back, their eyes cold.
"You must put your personal feelings aside, Fugaku, and consider what is best for the clan." Yumi Uchiha. Once a distinguished archer, now an elder. "While the village is distracted, we can assassinate the Hokage and other leadership elements with ease. This is our only chance – Minato will not be expecting it."
"With Minato, Hiashi, and Shikaku out of the way, the Uchiha can begin to crawl out of the shadows at last." Akira Uchiha. A master of Genjutsu and eye-catching diversions.
Finally, the last elder. Ryouji Uchiha, whose chakra reserves rivaled the Senju for potency, and whose swordsmanship exceeded all contenders in his prime. Fugaku regarded him furiously. "I take it you also agree with this. . . madness?"
Ryouji's face was impassive. "We must, as always think of the good of the clan."
"This is the perfect opportunity. We can use Danzo's Root as a decoy perpetrator," Akira said, her eyes narrowed as she stared at the man.
"Is there no way I can convince you?" Fugaku already knew the answer. It was in his tone. When they remained silent, he closed his eyes. "What's your plan?"
Author's Note
So many people wanted a chapter immediately, so thank you, all you desperate reviewers, for getting me off my lazy butt :D