Disclaimer: Don't own Naruto. Wouldn't want to, really. Seems like a lot of work.
Rivers of Hades
Chapter 18
The assembled crowd watched in silence as Sai walked out of the arena under his own power. His match with Tenten had been extremely hard-fought, and only got harder seeing how evenly matched the two combatants were. In the end, Tenten had been able to keep him at a distance, forcing him to waste chakra on his ink beasts, which were promptly dispelled.
"Will Nara Shikamaru and Hyuuga Hinata please make their way to the arena? The second match is about to start."
Naruto gripped the railing of the combatants box. He was incredibly nervous about what was going to happen to his fellow Konoha genin. None of them knew about the invasion. Sarutobi, sensing his unease, had explained why they were not to be told. In order for their counter-plan to work, they had to give the appearance that they did not know about the invasion. The other genin lacked the experience needed to hold back and at the same time appear to be giving it their all. Sarutobi had slightly calmed Naruto's fears by reassuring him that his fellow genin were to be evacuated to various secured locations, such as the hospital and civilian shelters. With any luck, only a few genin, himself included, would see combat today.
Looking down, he saw Hinata and Shikamaru's fight begin. At first, it started out like one would expect from a fight between a close-range fighter and a mid- to long- range fighter, with Shikamaru doing his best to keep Hinata from getting close to him and Hinata looking for an opening while avoiding his attacks. Eventually, Hinata resorted to shuriken and kunai in an attempt to distract him and create the opening she needed. Shikamaru, however, moved only enough to avoid being hit, never taking his eyes off Hinata. As the match went on, Hinata eventually let her guard down, and was caught by Shikamaru's shadow.
Hinata, however, was not going down without a fight. Struggling against the Nara's jutsu, she attempted to make Shikamaru imitate her movement instead of the other way around. With a great effort, she managed to make Shikamaru open his kunai holster and pull one out. She tried to make Shikamaru hold it to his own neck so he would drop the Kage Mane, but the crafty Nara was able to reassert control, ending the match in his favor.
--
In between the second and third matches, the Kazekage turned to face Sarutobi.
"Well, I must admit, it seems the next generation of Konoha shinobi has a great amount of potential. I can only hope my three children can prove themselves a worthy match."
"I have no doubt your three genin will make an impressive showing."
"I am especially looking forward to the final match, my son Gaara versus your newest student, Uzumaki Naruto. After all, from what I understand, they are considered the two most powerful genin competing today."
"Naruto-kun is talented, I freely admit that. However, he does have his weak points, as do we all."
"So you are saying the rumors of his skill are overrated?"
"He is skilled, but his field experience is lacking compared to that of some of the others, most notably your genin. One of the disadvantages of having a Kage for a sensei."
"Surely you could have sent him on missions with another genin team."
"I could have, and I have done just that on numerous occasions, but I still feel that there are certain things that I, as his official sensei, need to be there for, so his combat experience is not what it should be, considering his abilities. Unfortunately, there are certain roadblocks to allowing a village leader to go on a mission, or to take his student on a training trip to an undisclosed location for an unspecified amount of time."
The Kazekage let out a barking laugh. "True, very true. I would love to go on a combat mission at times, just for a change."
Sarutobi smiled and turned to face the arena. "Ah, the third match is about to begin."
Unseen by the Kazekage, Sarutobi gave a secret signal to the proctor, instructing him to call an intermission after the fight. Orochimaru had just given himself up, and he probably wasn't even aware of it.
--
It was the unspoken opinion of most of the observers that Lee did not stand a chance. A ninja capable of using only taijutsu moves winning against a long-range specialist was not even a consideration in their minds. Which was why many jaws fell open when the match got underway.
The instant the proctor said 'Hajime', Lee was gone, dashing towards Temari. Lee apparently hadn't even bothered to put on his weights,and Naruto could see why. That way, he wouldn't have to waste precious time removing them, leaving him vulnerable to attack.
Lee's speed enabled him to avoid most of Temari's wind attacks, as well as make some attacks of his own, until Temari began anticipating where Lee would move. Then, her attacks began making contact more often. She was grinding her teeth together all the while.
'How in the hell is this possible? No one should be this fast, it just isn't natural! Damn! Here, I'm confined to the arena, where normally I'd start putting enough distance between us to really let loose. This close together, I could get caught up in my own attack, and that sure as hell would be embarrassing.'
Eventually, Lee's speed caught up to him. He got too close to Temari, who collapsed her fan and swung it as hard as she could at Lee's head, connecting solidly. Lee crumpled, and Temari won, though not without some damage to her fan. Once she was back in the competitor's booth, she pulled out a tool kit and set to work fixing the large dent made when she hit Lee, as well as checking for additional damage. Without her fan, she would be at an even bigger disadvantage than she was during her fight with Lee.
--
Sarutobi stood and stretched after the proctor made the announcement.
"Ah, I needed that. I will return shortly, Kazekage-sama."
"Very well, Hokage-sama."
Sarutobi made his way to a predetermined spot. Jiraiya and Baki were waiting for him.
"Is everything ready for what is to come?"
"Yep, sensei. We just need to find the snake."
"That won't be necessary. I've already located him. He's sitting next to me in the private booth."
"What?" Baki was confused.
"My former student developed a jutsu which allows him to peel off a person's face and wear it as a mask. He always was a talented impersonator, but this is too much. My guess is that the real Yondaime Kazekage has been dead for some time, and Orochimaru has been leading Sunagakure under his guise."
"What gave him away sensei?"
"Orochimaru made two very small mistakes. Baki-san had informed me previously that the Kazekage would rather eat glass shards that say the name Uzumaki with anything other than anger and loathing. He did just that. In the same sentence, he also acknowledged Gaara as his son, something that based upon what I understand of the history between the two, he would not do."
Baki was beside himself. "I... I don't know how to feel about this. On one hand, I am somewhat relieved, because we are no longer committing treason, and depending on how long this has been going on, we may not have committed it at all. On the other, our leader is dead, murdered and impersonated by a man posing as a potential ally, and apparently no one has noticed. This disturbs me greatly with what that could mean."
"After today, Orochimaru will not be a problem. Jiraiya, do you have that seal we discussed?"
Jiraiya pulled out a small square of paper. "Here you go, sensei. I'm surprised you're taking this route, though. I was sure you would want to face Orochimaru."
"I do want to face him, but in this case, I am willing to trade that for assurance of his death. This village needs a leader more than I need closure."
"Well, this seal will virtually guarantee the death of anyone caught in it, which could include you if you're not careful, sensei."
"I will be careful. I had best be heading back to the arena now."
--
The fourth match was finished. Kankuro and Shino had both made a spectacular showing, employing a wide variety of tactics and tricks. As soon as one had seemed to gain the advantage, the other made it disappear. In the end, Shino's Kikai were able to corner Kankuro, who threw in the towel before he was drained and became useless. Up in a private observation booth separate from the Kage booth, Zabuza made several notes on a scoring sheet. Next to him, a Suna jounin was doing the same. They were judging the matches on how ready each combatant was skill-wise for the chuunin rank.
When he had heard that Naruto would be participating as an alternate, he approached the Hokage about whether or not he would still be one of the judges due to potential accusations of bias, which the Hokage admitted was a valid concern. However, as Naruto's promotion wouldn't depend on his performance in the finals, but on an entirely different set of standards, there wouldn't be any problems as long as Gaara was judged fairly. Later, with the revelation of the invasion, this match was really just for show now. Zabuza honestly pitied the people who had bet on this match. Since the match wouldn't be finished uninterrupted, all bets would be void and non refundable, and the odds of there being a rematch were unlikely.
--
"The final match: Uzumaki Naruto of Konoha against Sabaku no Gaara of Suna!"
Loud, raucous cheers erupted from the crowd at the announcement. Although some spectators didn't want to admit it, these two were widely considered the two most powerful genin in the Exams, and the most likely to be promoted.
A hush fell over the crowd as the two ninja faced each other. Killing intent immediately began pouring out of both of them. Some audience members swore they saw lightning bolts jump back and forth between the two.
Down in the arena, Naruto was straining. He was still a novice when it came to generating killing intent. He needed to build up a head of steam before he could even make the attempt, as opposed to people like Gaara and his various teachers, who were able to do it at will. This whole idea of putting everyone on edge before the match had been Gaara's idea. According to him, at the first move, someone would place the entire stadium under a sleep genjutsu, with the invaders being ready for it. However, if the two of them were to generate enough killing intent to put the audience on edge, it would be harder for the genjutsu, which was meant to soothe everyone until they fell asleep, to take effect, not to mention easier to detect and break.
"Combatants ready? Hajime!"
With arms crossed, sand began to flow from Gaara's gourd, forming into a giant fist. As if it had a mind of its own, the fist rose into air, high above the walls of the stadium. It came down with a mighty surge towards Naruto, who dodged the attack neatly. Cries could be heard from all areas. The invasion had begun.
--
In the Kage's box,the Kazekage turned to Sarutobi.
"Time to die, old man!"
"Yes, it is time for you to die, Orochimaru," replied the Sandaime, without even turning to face the other man.
Steel shutters slammed down over the open air window and the only door, followed by a blue glow encasing the entire booth.
"What kind of joke is this, sensei? You are trapped in here with me!"
"Only you have been caught. I have not. This room will be the last thing you ever see. Goodbye, foolish apprentice." With that, Sarutobi dispersed in a puff of smoke.
"A Kage Bunshin! Very well!" Turning to his guards, he shouted, "Break down the walls!"
Their reply was, "We've been trying, Orochimaru-sama! When we mold chakra, it gets sucked away."
Orochimaru paused, noting the drain on his chakra, even though he wasn't molding it. "I see. A containment seal combined with a chakra-draining seal. My idiot former teammate's work, no doubt."
One of his guards began to spasm violently, collapsing to the floor, where he continued to flail his arms and legs uselessly. Then, he stopped.
Orochimaru stepped over to the body and knelt down, removing the guards disguise. What he saw sent a chill down his spine. The skin had taken on an ashen color, with the veins standing out.
"Damn! He's had his chakra completely drained away. Jiraiya deliberately removed the safety setting that prevents it from killing those under the effect of the seal!"
Behind him, he heard another of the Sound Four succumb to the seal, noting that the drain on his chakra had intensified. As the strongest ninja in the room, it would take him the longest to be drained dry. He tried to contact Kabuto through a radio handset, but found his signal blocked. Beginning to feel frustrated (and dare he say it, scared), he finally noticed that he couldn't hear what was happening outside. That could mean either a soundproofing jutsu or seal too. Sensei was sparing no expense for this, it seemed. Knowing him and Jiraiya, the room was probably airtight too. They had completely cut him off, he was now deaf, blind, and mute, isolated from his allies, his jutsu unusable. All they had to do was wait, and he would die. He had been beaten.
"Nooooooooooooooooo!" He screamed, though no one outside could hear it.
--
Outside, it was hell. The Suna forces had attacked Oto from the rear, while Konoha attacked from the front. Trapped between the two villages, Oto nin were being slaughtered. The invasion plan had hinged on Suna's aid and the element of surprise. Without one, it meant trouble. Without both, Oto was doomed.
Naruto was hyperventilating, half out of his mind and covered in blood. He had finally taken a life, five to be exact, and was in shock at what he had done. If it hadn't been for Zabuza giving him a crash course in the Kiri Academy's conditioning exercises, he'd have been a sitting duck. Zabuza had conditioned him to be able to move through crippling fear and pain, as well as the disgust at killing, while Sarutobi, Gai, and Kakashi worked to help him be better able to deal with the inevitable aftermath of his particpation in the invasion. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw sensei showing next to no mercy, moving in ways that, in Naruto's mind, no man in his sixties should be able to. A cry caught Naruto's attention, and he flung two kunai at an Oto nin charging him. They caught him in the torso and neck, taking him down.
Finally, after what Naruto now considered to be the most horrific, nightmarish two hours of his life, the last Oto nin fell. Cheers came up from Suna and Konoha nin alike. A soon as it died down, the senior nin fell to what they knew were their tasks following an invasion. Chuunin began to head into the village, to analyze property damage and loss of life within the village walls. The jounin followed suit, but to scour the village for hidden Oto nin. ANBU were to dispose of the Oto nin after scavenging their corpses for any useful or important items, not to mention seeing to the Konoha dead. The Suna contingent would carry the wounded to the hospital and aid stations, as well as prisoners to interrogation. They would also see to the dead from Suna.
Naruto fell to his hands and knees on the bloody ground and began to wretch, wishing he had something in his stomach just so he could throw up. He felt a hand on his back and looked up to see Sarutobi, with a look that held both pride and sorrow on his face.
"Come, Naruto, let's get out of here."
Helping him to stand, Sarutobi formed a quick, familiar set of seals, and they were gone.
--
They reappeared on an undamaged roof in the village. Sarutobi motioned for Naruto to sit, which the boy did, as if he were in a trance.
Sarutobi heaved a great sigh. "Naruto, I'm truly sorry you had to go through that. It's something I don't want anyone to ever have to go though if it can be avoided.
"Most sensei have a speech or lecture that they have prepared for the occasion of their student's first taking of a life. Personally, I always found such things rather dry and useless. Instead, I'd like to tell you a story."
"Sensei, no offense, but I'm not really in the mood."
"I know you aren't, but please listen anyway. This story is rather important to me, and I hope it might help you. It's the story of the first time I took the life of another human being."
Naruto's head snapped up.
"I was about Konohamaru's age. The village was still taking shape then. The only defensive fortification we had was a fence encircling everything. The walls you see surrounding the village now were just starting to be built. One night, a bunch of bandits and ninja slipped past the watch and into the village, intent on putting an end to Konoha before it even started.
"I was woken up by my mother's scream from downstairs. I rushed down to see her on the floor, a bandit standing over her with a knife in his hand. I grabbed the nearest thing I could could, a lamp of some sort, and threw it at the man. I missed him completely, alerting him to my presence. He grabbed me and threw me into our kitchen. He followed me in, intent on killing me. I saw a knife on the counter and grasped it. He laughed at me, standing there, trying to defend myself as best a scared eight year old could. He had a longer reach than I, and he struck. He laid my left arm open to the bone from the shoulder to my elbow." At this, Sarutobi rolled up his sleeve to show the scar, long since healed.
"He moved in close to kill me, while I was stunned by the pain. Right as he was about to deal the final blow, I swung my knife. I caught him in the neck, right across the jugular. He fell on top of me and bled out all over me. I was as covered in blood as you are now, and just as horrified. In a panic, I pushed him off and ran out the door, screaming my head off."
Sarutobi paused, remembering that night in vivid detail. "That was when I met the Brothers, as the Shodai and Nidaime were known back then, for the first time. They stopped me, dressed my wounds, and found out what happened. They calmed me down from my hysteria, and in the middle of the street, in front of everyone, they told me that I had done the right thing in acting as I did. That no one would think poorly of my killing the bandit because I did it to save the lives of myself, my family, and everything I held dear.
I didn't believe it at first, and didn't eat or sleep for almost two weeks afterwards. I was almost admitted to the hospital to keep me from killing myself one way or another, when they paid me another visit. They walked with me through the village, and made me look at the reactions I got. They were absolutely right. They all looked sorry for what I had gone through, but not one of them looked down on me. The other children were a little more wary of me, but not too badly. Once again, they told me that I had been in the right, and that if anyone spoke ill of me for taking a life in direct defense of what mattered most to me, then their opinion was worthless.
"It was a life changing realization, that it was possible to take a life and still be a good person. Up to that point, I had never considered becoming a ninja. I didn't want to be a killer, someone who took lives without hesitation or mercy. I made an almost instantaneous recovery, and the Brothers continued to visit, taking me under their wings, teaching me, training me, helping me to become the man I am today."
"Does... does it ever go away?"
"No, Naruto my boy, it never truly goes away. I still have nightmares about that night. Other villages teach their ninja to repress what they feel, to kill their hearts, as it were. Konoha does not encourage thatt, has never encouraged it. We live with what we have done every day of our lives, and because of that, we have a better understanding of the value of a life. Konoha is a vibrant village, full of life, because we teach that a life should not be taken needlessly. That is also a central belief of your clan, I believe, that though on occasion a life must be taken, it should never feel commonplace."
Sarutobi swept his arms out. "I know that right now you're questioning your career choice. Look around, Naruto and see just why we do what we do."
Naruto turned around and looked down. He saw families tearfully reuniting. He watched Hinata and Hanabi rush towards Hiashi, who immediately knelt down and swept them into a tight hug, none of the three caring about the blood and gore on his clothing, none of which was his own. By this point, Naruto had figured out that Hiashi wasn't exactly the type for hugs and kisses, especially in public, so the dramatic change really hammered the Sandaime's point home.
"The feeling that you have become something less than human for killing another person will never truly fade. But it will get better; with time, by talking it out, and with the acceptance of others. I have no doubt that you will be able to get through this. Now, let's be on our way, my boy. I have some long over-due business to attend to."
--
After dropping Naruto off at the Hokage's office and applying a jutsu to induce a deep, dreamless sleep to the boy, Sarutobi made his way back to the arena, joined along the way by Jiraiya, Anko, and two ANBU. Arriving outside the Kage booth, Jiraiya made a few hand seals, and the wall and door stopped glowing blue. Sarutobi then knelt down and pried loose a floor tile near the door. On the underside was a small piece of paper, which he peeled off and handed to Jiraiya. He stood, made hand seals of his own, and the steel shutters retracted.
Everyone braced themselves, not knowing what to expect on the other side. One ANBU opened the door, revealing the corpses of Orochimaru and his guard. Quickly and without hesitation, Sarutobi rushed into the room, a kunai in hand. Moving directly to Orochimaru, he removed the Kazekage disguise and thrust the kunai into Orochimaru's heart, twisted it, and ripped the kunai free. He did the same to the throat. Finally, Sarutobi's hand came to hover over Orochimaru's head. With a mighty downswing, the kunai pierced the skull. The Sandaime wiggled the blade around inside, scrambling the brain, before snapping the kunai at the hilt, leaving the blade inside the skull. Jiraiya silently handed him a large storage scroll, which the body was sealed into.
Sarutobi turned, and after struggling to find his voice, said, "Anko, I am assigning you the duty of performing the autopsy, as well as overseeing the destruction of the body. Jiraiya and I will be there to act as witnesses for the latter."
"Understood, Hokage-sama, though I still wish I had been the one to kill him."
"I know, which is why I am adding this catch. So long as a thorough autopsy is conducted, and everything, every body part and drop of bodily fluid, can be accounted for when the body is destroyed by midnight tonight, you are free to do whatever you wish to him in the time in between."
Anko snapped to attention. "Yes sir, Hokage-sama! I'll get started right away!" She hadn't expected the Sandaime to give her permission to go hog wild on Orochimaru's corpse. Even the limitations he had given her were more than enough for her. Sarutobi had never once doubted her loyalty, and she wasn't about to let him down now. A giddy grin on her face, she took the scroll from the Sandaime's hand and bolted from the room. Jiraiya and Sarutobi silently left, heading back to the office, where they would await the status reports and further comfort Naruto. The ANBU would dispose of the other bodies.
--
That night, Jiraiya and Sarutobi made their way to a secret basement of the Interrogation Department, where the bodies of high-profile ninja were autopsied and destroyed.
They had chosen to not wake Naruto as soon as they got back, and instead began to make preparations for what they would need to do. Sarutobi called Baki to his office, where they contacted both the Wind and Fire daimyo, informing them of their intent to renegotiate the alliance, and asking them for their blessing to continue. Both agreed, and a time was set for the opening of negotiations.
After the two daimyo left, Sarutobi and Baki sat down and began to make plans to build on the new mutual good will between their villages. The terms that were worked out were satisfactory to both sides. Suna would take some of Konoha's missions while the village rebuilt.
Mission payments were to be divided into two basic categories: the money paid to the ninja who took the mission and the money paid to the village. The Suna nin would get the full mission payment, while Konoha, as the village originally contracted, would take a percentage of the village's cut. Suna would get the rest. Baki and the Sandaime also began discussing the possibility of a joint-village mission to eradicate Oto, based on what the interrogators could get from the prisoners.
Sarutobi had also cleared Zabuza and Haku for active duty, waiving whatever time was left on their confinement to the village under the headings of 'good behavior' and 'service to the village'. Despite the estimated low loss of life count, the village would still need every able-bodied shinobi on active duty for the foreseeable future. He was also highly impressed with how rapidly Haku had improved now that he was no longer on the run with Zabuza and could eat, sleep and train regularly. Some of the preliminary reports had seen Oto nin dead of various cold-related causes. Some had succumbed to extreme hypothermia, others killed directly by the boy's Hyoton jutsu. A few were even frozen solid.
Finally, the two reached their destination. Walking inside, Jiraiya and Sarutobi found Anko sitting on a stool, rubbing her neck over her curse seal, while staring at the autopsy table holding the mutilated and now almost completely unrecognizable body of Orochimaru.
"Something wrong Anko?"
"No, Hokage-sama. I guess I was just hoping that when the bastard died, the seal would disappear. Let's get started, shall we?"
"Alright. Where do you want to start?"
"Well, seeing as how I didn't contact you before I was ready to destroy the body, this is really Orochimaru, not a body double. I compared a blood sample, and it matched, but there were some anomalies, so I tested the summoning tattoo. It was authentic, and while I wouldn't put it past him to let a body double sign the contract just to add to the disguise, it isn't like him."
Jiraya commented, "You have a point. He wouldn't share power or knowledge unless he was damn sure he would be in complete control at all times."
"Speaking of power and knowledge, I found some real goodies hidden on his body." Gesturing to a nearby table, the two men saw a sheathed sword and three scrolls. "The sword was sealed in a summoning tattoo on the inside of his cheek. From what I know about swords, I'm guessing it's the Kusanagi, and is coated in some really nasty poisons."
The men's eyes widened. "The Kusanagi? I wonder where he found that. What about the scrolls?"
"The scrolls are jutsu scrolls for his immortality jutsu, the Edo Tensei, and the curse seal. They were contained in seals hidden in the snake contract tattoo."
Sarutobi sighed and hung his head. "Damn. So he did finish those jutsu."
Anko nodded slowly. "Yeah. I'm guessing he used the immortality technique, and that's what caused the anomalies."
"Jiraiya, take the scroll for the curse seal. I want you to see what new information you can glean from it, then destroy it. I want the other two scrolls destroyed with the body."
"Sensei, are you sure that will do any good?"
"I do. These jutsu were central to Orochimaru's goals. I would be very surprised if he would leave authentic copies of these three jutsu anywhere out of his sight, where someone could take them and use them against him. Maybe bit and pieces, but I doubt that there are other copies of the completed jutsu."
"I see your point. It also gives us more reason to start seeking out his bases immediately, so we can ensure no one picks up where he left off."
"Yes. Anko, start the incinerator. The sooner we destroy his body, the sooner we can start destroying his work."
Once the incinerator reached the hottest temperature it could, the three shinobi most hurt by his betrayal stood around his body, not saying a word. As one, they lifted his body and chucked it into the flames. The two scrolls soon followed, almost instantly reduced to ash. Last, Anko threw in the medical bags containing all the bodily fluids she had drained from him. Shutting the thick door, the three silently watched the fire consume the body.
Finally, Sarutobi spoke. "What a waste. I would suppose that it is fitting that he didn't receive death in combat, but spent his last hours trapped, dying slowly and painfully. Kami only knows how many of his test subjects died that way."
With that, the three left, leaving the incinerator on to ensure the total destruction of one of Konoha's most infamous traitors.
– -
Next Time: Aftermath
AN: I've forgotten how many times I've rewritten this chapter, trying to get it right. I only hope the next one isn't this tough to finish.