Nalya: il n'y a pas de quoi, de rien? I hope that was right. Random web translations aren't always the best. Sorry, I don't speak French.
serialkeller: I'll just leave it at - this chapter should answer your questions. At least partially.
jeannette: Thanks. He isn't actually physically similar to Orochimaru. Those were just phantom sensations.
Foxstar: Circumstances sort of forced him to, but he'll use it to his advantage. No, you can't vote again, heh. I've already got you marked for Tayuya.
StlAjax: He'll be dealt with a little bit later. This chapter starts setting things up, though.
alex: Got'cha. Another for Tayuya.
somedayisours: She's only got one right now. If you don't want her to win submit a name.
GEDOMAZO: Glad you're enjoying it. I'll mark down your vote for Karin.
shadowmaster: Glad you enjoy it. Hopefully it won't be too long before you're caught up.
Chapter 17
(Hidden Sound Base)
"Shimura Danzō," Menma spat out upon seeing his guest. "What brings you here?"
"I thought we might be able to work out a deal for when you attack Konoha again."
'He would have sent a messenger if that were the case. Was he forced out of the village like Orochimaru was?' Menma peered at him silently for a minute. "Kukuku. They caught you with dirty little secrets, just like they did me, didn't they? So tell me, what did you do?"
Danzō frowned. "You know what we did. You're the one that transplanted the Sharingan in my arm."
"They wouldn't chase you out just for that. Kakashi has a transplanted Sharingan and he's one of their best ninja." Menma looked at him curiously. "Unless you stole what you have."
Danzō shifted ever so slightly.
"You did! Kukuku. I wonder, if I offer Konoha your head will they leave me alone for awhile?"
Danzō scowled. "Konoha would never form an alliance with you."
"I don't want an alliance. I just want them to leave me alone so I can deal with Akatsuki." Menma said as he stared at the ring on his hand. "I will deal with Konoha after."
Danzō stood silently for a minute. "I have 50 of my Root agents that escaped with me. If you leave Konoha intact when you attack it, we will join you and help you deal with Akatsuki."
Menma looked at him curiously. "If you were forced out why would you want it to remain intact?"
"Konoha needs a strong Hokage to raise her above the other villages."
"And you would be that Hokage?" Danzō nodded. "Very well. You have my word that I will not destroy Konoha. You and your men will report to me as long as you're here, however." Menma instructed the messenger to escort Danzō and his men to some rooms.
'I won't destroy it because I never planned to attack it, fool.'
He quickly left to track down Kin to give her instructions to spy on Danzō.
(Mindscape)
Menma had just left Kurama's cage. He had finally gotten around to asking him where the memories he had blocked were stored. He had learned that he also had some of Orochimaru's memories floating around from when Kurama bit him in half during the ritual.
Walking through the sewers he came to a part that was in far worse condition than the rest. The walls were decaying and crumbling revealing inky black beyond. Eventually he reached the location Kurama had told him about. It was a small side tunnel with walkways on both sides and a little gate, cutting off the water behind from the rest of his mind. Climbing up on the walkway revealed the 'water' behind the gate was anything but. It was a thick, almost sludge-like fluid. He knew it was black, he could see it sticking to walls and occasionally on the walkways on the side, but when he looked down at the fluid it was bright and shifting colors, almost like a rainbow.(1)
Approaching the edge carefully, he dipped his hand into the fluid. He immediately jerked backwards and vomited all over the walkway. It felt like hundreds of memories had just flashed through his brain. Memories of dark rooms with figures chained to the walls. People groaning and wailing as he cut into them, stabbed them, burned them. Memories that made him feel like he was being crushed and his eyes torn out. Feelings of being inferior to a friend despite having a name known around the Elemental Nations. Feelings of a girl-
He shook his head and wiped the fluid off on a relatively clean portion of the wall. He took a moment to calm down and looked back at the fluid. The rainbow-like colors giving the corridor a strange and otherworldly feel.
"So many bright colors, but the memories are all so dark." He walked back to the beginning of the hallway and turned back to the gate holding it all back. "Direct contact with that stuff is out so maybe..."
The gate changed. Rather than a gate, now it was a sort of valve with several tubes connected to it. The tubes each connected to vast tanks that lined the walls.
"That should at least separate them. I'll worry about how I'll look through them later."
Menma woke up in Orochimaru's quarters and groaned. The memories were nasty enough to make him physically puke all over himself as he slept.
(Outside Konoha)
Sasuke stood in front of a tombstone looking at the name on it. A name that had been on the stone for 16 years now even though the boy it belonged to had only died about a year ago.
Uzumaki Naruto.
The grave was located in a desolate area outside of Konoha, with only a single other grave next to it.
Uzumaki Kushina.
Jiraiya had told him of the graves. He told him this was the place they had believed both had died that night, all those years ago.
When he had asked why they were buried alone in the middle of nowhere and not next to the Yondaime he had been told that Minato and Kushina had married in secret and that they couldn't locate the marriage certificate. Even though Jiraiya and Hiruzen had been witnesses, without the certificate, it wasn't legal.
When he had asked why they weren't on the Memorial Stone he had been asked in turn "For what? Giving birth to a child? Being born?" When he had told them for being jinchūriki he had been told that Kushina's status was kept a secret. If the village were told she contained Kyūbi the night of the attack their names would be dishonored and reviled. The village would most certainly blame them for the attack.
In the end, he had let it drop. They were both gone now, and one of them was his fault. If he hadn't panicked and acted without thinking or talking to anyone Menma would never have ended up with Orochimaru.
Sasuke clenched his fists tightly. He wanted to go rushing off to kill the bastard. He shook his head after remembering Menma's last 'words' to him. "I'll be patient, just like you asked, Menma. Orochimaru failed to destroy Konoha the first time and nearly died for it. I'll make sure he dies the next time he tries."
He turned to head back to Konoha and briefly wondered if the Hokage had Itachi's missing-nin status revoked yet. It would be nice if he could return home soon. He then thought of the reason his brother had to flee Konoha in the first place.
"Shimura Danzō," he growled. He had heard how the man had fled to join Orochimaru. How convenient that all his enemies were gathering together and would attack Konoha sooner or later.
"Be patient indeed."
(Hidden Sound Base)
Menma was sitting in Orochimaru's chambers meditating and absorbing small important bits of memory from Tobi and Orochimaru. It was the middle of the night when he suddenly felt a presence behind him. He dove to the side and grabbed the closest weapon nearby, narrowly avoiding an attack.
A man wearing a black cloak with red clouds stepped out of the shadows. His black eyes gazed sternly at Menma.
"You must be... Itachi?" Menma asked, eyeing the Akatsuki cloak.
"Your speed has improved. The perks of an Uchiha body?"
Menma frowned. "What do you want?"
"I was relieved when I heard another Uchiha survived. I was happy when I heard he and Sasuke had become friends. They were going to rebuild a better Uchiha clan. You ruined that and soiled his body."
"What do you care about the Uchiha clan? You killed them all," Menma growled.
"Yes, I did," he replied. "But I didn't want to." Itachi ran at him with a katana poised to strike.
Menma blocked the attack and glanced down to see what he had grabbed when he dove out of the way. Seeing the blade nearly made him relax his grip in shock. 'Kusanagi?! I've been looking everywhere for this damn thing!' His brain then registered he was blocking another weapon with the blade. 'But it's not cutting through his sword? What?' The Kusanagi in his hands shattered, allowing Itachi's sword to impale him through his chest. Itachi then forced him back and stuck him to the wall with the sword.
Itachi then stepped back and activated his Mangekyō.
"I'm not Orochimaru." Menma coughed out, blood seeping down his chin. He activated his Sharingan and showed Itachi the results of his fight with Orochimaru.
After staring at Menma for a moment Itachi nodded and the world around them shattered and fell away like glass. Menma found himself back where he was previously, after he had jumped out of the way of the first attack.
"Tch. Genjutsu."
"Why are you posing as Orochimaru?"
Menma straightened up and checked the weapon he was holding and sighed, just an ordinary kunai. "I was weakened after the fight and was surrounded by people loyal to Orochimaru. I would have been killed. It's not all bad though, I get an army to deal with Akatsuki this way. An army of mostly scum that are probably better off dead."
"You plan on attacking Akatsuki?" Menma nodded. "Then you may want to start with Sasori and Deidara. They're about to attack the Kazekage."
Menma frowned in thought. "I was going to declare war on Rain."
"It would serve no purpose. The important members are out searching for their targets. You would be better off hunting them down while they're in pairs."
Menma nodded. "One thing before you go. Why did you kill the clan?"
"I was tricked. I thought I received orders from the Hokage to kill them, but it turns out it was an order by a man named Shimura Danzō."
Menma blinked. "So that's why he has all those Sharingan implants and was forced to flee Konoha."
"He is no longer in Konoha? Do you know where he is?"
Menma nodded. "I do. Do you want to kill him?"
Itachi shook his head. "Justice is Sasuke's right, not mine."
Menma shrugged. "Your choice. I need to get some planning done if I want to hunt down your organization."
The man in front of him simply nodded before bursting into crows.
Menma frowned. "Maybe I should see about absorbing their memories concerning genjutsu..."
(Hokage's Office)
Tsunade was staring out the window of her office lost in thought. She was thinking back to the night on top of the Hokage monument with a certain brat.
'I don't think it was sacrifice, brat. I think it was protecting what you treasure.' Her hand gripped the necklace around her neck.
A ninja burst into the office at that moment. "Hokage-sama! The Kazekage was kidnapped by Akatsuki! Suna is requesting help!"
'I wonder if your teammates share your beliefs. At least this will distract them from Orochimaru for a bit.' Tsunade frowned. "Bring me Team 7."
(Hidden Sound Base)
Menma was surrounded by his group he had plotted against Orochimaru with. Kimimaro, Karin, Tayuya, and Kin stood at attention around him. The five of them stood in front of a decent sized army of Sound ninja. Each one of them held a book.
Menma held up his book and spoke to them. "Each one of you should have one of these, an Akatsuki bingo book. You should each have noticed by now that their bounties are double what their home villages are offering. You bring me one of their bodies as proof they are dead and you get that bounty, plus a single favor from myself."
The army of ninja started whispering excitedly. He held up his hand showing the ring on his finger. "Each member of their organization wears a ring similar to this one. It, along with their body, will be used to identify them. Make sure you bring both to claim your bounty."
With a wave of his hand he shouted. "The Akatsuki hunt is now officially underway! Go! Kill them and bring me their heads!"
After the army had run off after their bounties Tayuya turned to him. "You don't think any of that trash will actually kill any of them, do you?"
Menma shook his head. "No, but you never know, someone could get a lucky shot in. It was more to harass them and tire them out for us."
He turned to the four people standing around him. "I know the other three are still alive, but you are now the new Sound Four." He looked at Karin. "Even if you're not all fighters, you're people I can trust."
The four of them straightened, obviously pleased.
Menma turned towards the exit. "Now, let's go. We have some vermin to kill out in the desert."
The hunt for Akatsuki had begun.
End Chapter 17
A/N:
(1) - Think oil.
I suppose you could say this is the start of a new arc even though it sort of overlaps with the Sound stuff. The Hunt for Akatsuki arc maybe?
As for the girls:
Tayuya - 2
Karin - 2
Ino -1
You're not restricted to those, remember that. Any Konoha girl(excluding Hinata) or Sound girl. A couple of people have suggested multiple women, but the ending I have in mind fits better with just one. I'll let people continue to throw in their suggestions for now. The point where it gets decided is still a ways off.