Chapter 76 The Aftermath

A heavy rain was falling over the battlefield as Sakura Namikaze stood in the doorway of the largest standing building in what remained in the village. She looked out into the rain where the Leaf and other minor nations which they had joined the mostly Leaf force. The Leaf forces had been set out in the a park their hands and legs bound and forced to sit in the pouring rain. Part of her was upset about doing that to prisoners but there was simply too many of them and too many of the buildings in the village had been damaged in the battle. Those who were not damaged had been filled up by the either the defenders or the local villagers themselves. Then she remembered that even though she saw faces she remembered these where the same people who would have gladly killed her family and friends.

"Do we have anything to get them out of the rain?" inquired Sakura to an nearby ANBU

"Not really, we were moving too fast to bring much of anything besides what we really needed." explained the ANBU "It is only a few hours until the trains come and we can bring them to the camps or get them paroled and heading back to the Leaf."

"There was a hardware store a couple streets over, they may have some tarps." offered another ANBU as Sakura nodded her head.

"Go check and if they do set them up over the Genin and Chunin first, the Jonnin and ANBU can sit in the rain," ordered Sakura as the ANBU moved off. Sakura looked down the road toward the black mountains which dominated the horizon, only an hour ago black flames could be seen dancing around the bottom of those massive mountains. If they could see the flames at this distance she didn't even want to think about what it would have been like on the field. The sound of running feet caused her head to snap around as Hinata bolted from the building across the road from her. She stopped right beside her.

"You do know you get just as wet running in the rain as you do walking right?" inquired Sakura to her sister wife.

"I always thought that was an urban legend." explained Hinata "I called Naruto, and while I couldn't talk to him Shikamaru said they took no casualties."

"I wish we could say the same here," explained Sakura, but she knew it could have been a lot worse in fact most of the bodies bags they brought had been used for the enemy dead not theirs. "How about Ino?"

"Well from what I have heard they already are planning another party in the village." explained Hinata "Personally I would rather go back on our honeymoon."

"Yes, this would have been a great day." Confirmed Sakura as Hinata raised an eyebrow and looked out at the heavy rain.

"A great day?" inquired Hinata

"Yes, a perfect excuse to stay inside and in bed." explained Sakura as Hinata smiled, understanding the point. "If you're looking for Mirai Sarutobi she is in the corner, I had to restrain her since she is a Leaf ninja but other than that her wounds should heal in time."

"What does she have?" inquired Hinata

"In truth she is almost totally fine, only a few stitches above her eyebrow and a grade two concession." explained Sakura "If what she is told me is true then she got a the backside of a spear staff, luckily the man at arms who hit her decided not to kill a child. If he hadn't then she would be one of those."

Sakura and Hinata turned their heads toward where a group of Leaf ninjas where carrying the bodies of the dead toward a single spot.

"So did she know who you where?" inquired Hinata

"No, I was just another doctor treating the wounded." explained Sakura before shrugging "But her mother wasn't my genin instructor and I only saw her time to time when she was very little."

"I am just not sure how to talk to her." Explained Hinata

"Well just don't pass out." Laughed Sakura as Hinata glared at her for a moment before playfully slapping her shoulder. Hinata moved forward until she was behind the black haired girl, she had gotten a lot older since the last time she had seen her but it was clearly her sensie's daughter.

"Hello Mirai." Said Hinata as the girl turned around and looked at her confused.

"Do I know you?" inquired Mirai

"Sort of I know your mother very well and I babysit you a few times when I was still in the Leaf." Explained Hinata the girl raised an eyebrow then slowly a look of recognition came across her face.

"Hinata Hyuga, you where my mother's student." stated Mirai as Hinata smiled.

"Yes, she was basically a mother to me." explained Hinata with a smile, "How is she?"

"Good." stated Mirai as she took a breath and looked around at the other Leaf ninjas in the room. "I am sorry but I can't talk to you, if they see that then it will do even more harm to my mother and to me."

"I see."

"Sorry, I am sure my mom would love to know what is happening with you but…" stated Mirai

"Don't talk to the demon scum!" yelled a nearby Leaf ninja as Hinata let out a sig before moving away.

"Just tell your mom, I am happy and I hope to talk to her someday soon," explained Hinata as she moved away and headed back to stand beside Sakura watching the rain fall.

While it was pouring down rain in the nearby village, it was only slightly misting on the field where the Leaf army had been turned into ash at the gates of Black Snake pass. Shikamaru Nara was on horseback along with a small column of riders as they moved through the remains of the leaf ninja. It was impossible to tell if the rain was natural or it was the justu to put the fires out, likely a combination of both as the fires had gone out. As the horses moved through the ash, the sound of crushing bone could be heard whenever one of the beasts stepped on a body of the dead and there was a lot of bodies to step on.

"Sir, what are we doing?" inquired an aid as Shikamaru pushed deeper into the heart of what used to be a division of ninjas. Ninjas that had once been his comrades, his friends and his family now they where nothing but ash, even the side which hadn't been hit totally by Sasuke's fire was ash. They had been hit by the Kyuubi's beam of chakra energy and most had been vaporized into dust. They were likely breathing in countless numbers of vaporized people.

"We are looking for someone." answered Shikamaru as he rode on. Finally they came upon what he was looking for. He knew that he had found what remained of the command center when he found the remains of large portable radios. He stepped off his horse and stood in the remains of the ash, he kicked it up until he found something hard. He brushed the ash off the object with his hand only to find an ANBU member.

"Sir if there was anyone here you knew they are long gone." said the aid who had remained on horseback. It did not stop Shikamaru and on the fifth body, he found who he was looking for.

"Hello father." said Shikamaru sadly as he looked at what remained of his father, Shikaku Nara. It was not much to look at only a the burned remains of a hand and the clan thumb ring which he and every leader of the Nara clan had worn since the founding of the clan. It was the badge of office and was made out of onyx, the black stone ring had made it through the fire. As Shikamaru picked up the ring, ash fell out, all that remained of the man who had worn it for decades. Shikamaru stood up and looked at the pile of ash around the ring had been found. "I am sorry it came to this father, I am sorry that you will never get to hold your grandson but you left me no choice. I will make sure the ring gets back to the clan in the village where it belongs."

With that Shikamaru turned and walked toward his horse, as he got on he tapped his vest to double check that the ring was there. Once done he turned his horse's head to the south and headed back to his own command center.

A dull pain filled her world as Hanabi Hyuuga regained her thoughts, she tried to open her eyes only to see a blurry version of a ceiling in one eye and a nothing in her other eye.

"Lady Hokage please, do not move." ordered a doctor's voice "You are just coming out of surgery and you need your rest."

"What happened?" inquired Hanabi

"You did battle with your sister, and just after you ordered the retreat you passed out. The medics in the field did their best but this was a horrible wound." explained the doctor's voice from somewhere in the darkness. "Do you know how it happened?"

"Blade ran across my face, from eyebrow to shoulder." explained Hanabi as she tried to lift her right hand to her face only to find that she couldn't feel it. "I can't feel my hand? Did I loss my hand?"

"No…calm down Lady Hokage everything is fine." explained the doctor in a kindly understanding voice "Your hand is still there I promise you but I am afraid that the blade cut very deep, we were afraid you may not be able to move it at all. However it seems that you can."

"But I can't feel it." snapped Hanabi as pain began to fill her world.

"Yes, which means while you can move it you just can't feel it." Explained the doctor "The sword cut through bone and cut the control nerves which run across your shoulder, it was the best we could have hoped for there."

"The best." snapped Hanabi as she noticed that her voice was off. "My voice?"

"Yes, the sword did a real number on your face Lady Hokage. It was the best we could do to save your life but once in the Leaf I recommend some plastic surgery at once." explained the Doctor "I would do it here but your body needs some time to heal and we don't have the supplies needed for such a change."

"How bad?" inquired Hanabi "Why is one eye blurry and I can't see out of the other."

"Well Lady Hokage, we had to take one eye, it was torn apart by the blade and the other burly got away without any major damage. The blurriness is likely from the drugs we had to put you under for the surgery." Explained the Doctor as Hanabi heart rate picked up.

"Get me a mirror." ordered Hanabi

"Lady Hokage I don't believe…"

"Mirror!" yelled Hanabi the sound of footsteps on a metal floor told Hanabi that she had back on one of their ships off shore. The footsteps came back and almost on que her version began to improve as she began to make out the image of the ceiling of the ship.

"Here lady Hokage." said the doctor as he handed the mirror to the hand which Hanabi still had feeling it. She slowly lifted the mirror, her eye widened at the sight of her face, her hair on one side had been shaven off and a thick layer of wrapping covered a third of her face, only her eye and her mouth where really clear. The thing that stood out to her even through all that binding was that her face structure seamed different, it was off.

"We had to cut away some of the bone and replace it with plastic, the sword had cut through it and it is amazing you didn't die." Explained the Doctor "You also lost a fourth of your teeth when it passed through the back left side of your mouth. Reconstructive surgery should solve most of the issues but you will always have scars and your eye…maybe we can replace it once a clan member dies but your true eye is gone."

"Damn it Hinata." cursed Hanabi as she slammed her fist on a the bed. "Leave!"

The doctor bowed as he walked out the door closing the hatch behind him, as he did Hanabi saw an object on the wall. It was a large spider, suddenly the body of the spider began to glow and in a puff of white smoke a figure appeared. Hanabi's eye widened as she saw the tall man dressed in a high color jacket and sunglasses.

"Hello old Friend, it has been so long since we last talked in private." Explained the man

"Shino?" inquired Hanabi surprised to see a demon on the ship.

"Hanabi, yes you can call your guards and arrest me but I must remind you that it because of the deal that you and I made all those years ago that the demons made it down here in the first place." Explained Shino
"Like anyone would believe what you say, you're a demon." countered Hanabi as Shino lifted up a small recorder. He hit the play button as Hanabi's voice played from years ago.

"So we have an arrangement?" inquired Younger Shino's voice

"Yes, I will get everything in place and we will start a riot which will force the demons to leave the village." answered younger Hanabi's voice.

"Is that enough?" inquired Shino as he hit the stop button on the player "I have video of it as well, but with your eye the way it is you will not be able to see it all. But the people in the Leaf and around the world will be."

"And what will Naruto do to you for making a deal with me all those years ago?" inquired Hanabi with a smirk.

"Remove me from command of course, arrest me more than likely but not kill me," explained Shino calmly. "You on the other hand would be killed by your own people, if this got out."

"Why are you here?" inquired Hanabi

"Just to touch bases and I wanted to inform you personally that because of your actions a whole division was totally destroyed in what some have already started calling the Battle of the Black Flames," explained Shino as Hanabi hand balled into a fist. "Let's see by my estimates we have destroyed four divisions from the other ninja nations, at the cost of less than a hundred of our own."

"Why are you telling me this?" inquired Hanabi "Your just going to kill me aren't you?"

"Why would I do that? If I did that then they may replace you with someone actually capable of leading." explained Shino "Which is why I am really here, when we come to remove you from our land. Run as fast as you can and don't worry about waiting for Shikaku's forces because none of them will be coming."

Before Hanabi could say anything Shino disappeared in a puff of smoke, judging from the smoke it had to be a summoning justu of some kind.

"Damn him." cursed Hanabi

A gentle rain began to fall over the remains of the battlefield as the black fires of hell went out under the gentle pressure of a mist, in the looming over what remained of the field was the towering black mountains which formed the border between the land of Granite and the outside world. Ash had begun to fall from the sky coming to rest on the summer ground, standing in the remains of that battleground was a man dressed in black. Slowly he extended his hand opening it up so some ash fell into it, within moments his hand was covered in ash.

"How many dead people am I holding right now?" inquired Naruto to himself as an ANBU appeared behind him.

"The battle is over." reported the ANBU captain.

"I can see that." said Naruto as he looked at the ash in his hand. "How many did we lose?"

"Early estimates are sixty two casualties and a hundred and twenty wounded," explained Sasuke as he stood behind Naruto.

"And the invasion force?" inquired Naruto both of them already knew how many had died here, there was no way anyone could have made it through the firestorm which they had unleashed only an hour ago.

"Over six hundred." confirmed Sasuke

"Over 10,600 people of a total invasion force of around 12,000 people." Thought Naruto that meant the invading forces most Leaf ninjas had about, 1400 fighters and they were split between the force of about 400 guarding the landing point on the shore and the other thousand running for their lives back toward them.

"This isn't war it's slaughter," stated Naruto as he took a breath, maybe it was the rain or the air still so thick with smoke but he didn't smell the cook remains of the dead as much as he thought he would. Then a strong stench of the cooked human flesh filled his nose. "All they did was destroy a small outlining village and get their own ninjas killed."

"You're always worried about them." Countered Sasuke with a roll of his eyes as he crossed his hands over his chest, his duel swords had returned to his sides for the moment. "They were the ones who attacked us, if I had my way then we would casing their retreating army down and destroying it outright. End them now."

"Then it is a good thing you are not in command." explained Naruto as he bent down and moved some the ash away from one of the fallen leaf ninjas. He was in a better state then most only his lower body was burned down to the bone, somehow the flames had not touched his young 19 year old face. This deep brown eyes looked at Naruto and Sasuke from beyond the grave, for a moment Naruto thought he saw the image of flames burned into the eyes but it was just his mind playing a trick on him. Then he remembered where he had seen those eyes and that face before all those years ago.

"You knew him?" inquired Sasuke

"I had a few missions with him during the last war, he was a chunin back then." explained Naruto as he looked at the broken ANBU mask, the heat from the fire had split it into multiple pieces but the image of a cat was still visible.

"Must have been good to go from a Chunin to an ANBU now," stated Sasuke as he studied the man, he did not know him but he did remind of Azuma, maybe a distance cousin of the dead jonnin.

"Not good enough to save his life." Said Naruto wondering if anyone could have made it through this, not likely. "However I can't for the life of me remember his name."

"Maybe it is for the best that you don't remember his name," countered Sasuke, it did not weigh on his mind that he didn't know the names of the men he killed. It was not his style, but it was Naruto's which is why he knew what was coming next.

"Send a message to the Allied Shinobi force, they can collect their dead but then they must leave or nation or be destroyed." ordered the Onikage as he looked over the battlefield, some of his forces were moving through the ash and smoke like grim reapers collecting whatever they could find. Part of him wanted to stop them from looting from the dead, but some had found wounded ninjas during the battle of Black Snake Pass while looting. He could have ordered a search mission but most of the time would be spend looting the dead, so why waste the time with an order they would not listen to.

"They wouldn't give us the same term." countered Sasuke as Naruto spun around and looked at his friend in the eye.

"Which makes us more human than they are." countered Naruto as Sasuke let a sigh of announce but he titled his head.

"Alright…dead last but you know how I feel." explained Sasuke "They will just keep coming back until they either find a way past our defenses and reach the village and kill every single Jinchuriki. It is either them or us."

"Wars can't go on forever." prayed Naruto as he looked over the battlefield.

"You just don't like the idea of fighting your old allies and the Leaf village," stated Sasuke as Naruto lowered his head a bit, they all knew it. Naruto like most of the ninjas where conflicted about fighting friends and family from their old home village. "You still haven't gotten over the idea that you are technically a missing ninja just like I was. You have to act as the leader of our village not as former ninja of the Leaf."

"I know." admitted Naruto as he looked out the field of dead bodies. "I just wonder how it came to this? I would have expect both of us to be trying to kill each other not standing here as teammates against the Leaf and the other nations."

"You already know that answer," replied Sasuke as he turned and started walking away to carry out his orders. Slowly Naruto took off his forehead protector and simply looked at the symbol, a single solid circle with four small elongated diamonds radiating out in forty five degree angles from the center of the circle. This was his village symbol not the Leaf, it would be the symbol that his son and daughters would look at with respect and pride like he used to look up at the Leaf symbol.

"Sometimes I still think of myself as a Leaf ninja and not the Kage of a whole new ninja village," admitted Naruto to himself as he put the headband back on, still wondering how it ever came to this. Then he realized that it was seeing the horrors of war taking place in his own land, which was striving making him look for peace at all costs. "Sasuke."

"Yes, dead last." said Sasuke as he stopped and turned at Naruto, ash had fallen in his jet black hair turning it a sick grey in some places.

"I have a mission for you to prepare for." started Naruto as he looked at the field. "One that you may be the best suited for."

"What is that Lord Onikage?" inquired Sasuke "You want me to make sure that we save every leaf ninja we can? Maybe waste our time and pack up the dead and send them home to families who already hate us?"

"I deserve all that," admitted Naruto as Sasuke raised an eyebrow "I have been too soft on our enemy, too willing to give mercy to those who wouldn't give us the same."

"You want me to kill the Prisoners from Hinata's battle as sign that if they come down here they die?" inquired Sasuke surprised at Naruto's words. "Because that would work."

"No." said Naruto forcefully as he raised his hand "I will not kill prisoners, unless they kill our prisoners."

"They don't have any of our prisoners we have never attacked them outside of our boarder." countered Sasuke as he thought about it for a moment "Well aside from that little trip to the Land of Water that was fun but aside from myself no one left the ships."

"Then you will enjoy what I want you to do." confirmed Naruto "We are going to take the war to them realize that they can't win this war. We need to talk it over with Shikamaru to make official plans."

The grin on Sasuke's face was enough to cause a strange mix of feelings in Naruto, first sickness that he could love the idea of killing so much, second happiness because once he unleashed Sasuke the war would be over that much sooner. The only question would be how many more ash covered battlefields would their have to be before the end would come.

"It is time to go on the offensive and show the world what we can really do." Finished Naruto

Well I hope you liked this chapter, now I am planning to take the holidays off so I will not post again until early 2016. I hope you all have a Happy Holidays but in the spirit of the season I will announce that I am currently working on the very early stages of a sequel to the Black Fox. Yes, a sequel to my 100 chapter story The Black Fox is in the works. I have had countless PMs asking for a sequel and I am finally doing it. I hope you enjoyed it. Now until 2016 keep reading. Thanks Wilkins75.