Chapter 41: The Beasts Within
…
"Before we go after Naruto, we'll need to extract chakra from the Juubi," I said as Madara and I raced toward the writhing mass of gray flesh. "And it looks like that's not going to be easy."
In the brief time I'd spent talking with Madara, Hashirama had managed to pin down the Juubi with dozens of giant torii-gate barrier seals. Against anything weaker, that would have been the end of the battle. But against the Juubi, the seals were, at most, a temporary inconvenience. Even as we approached, hundreds of wart-like growths began appearing all over its body. The growths swelled outward, distending and taking shape until, one by one, an army of miniature Juubi-clones detached, ready to attack.
Those were going to be a bit of a problem. While they were miniature versions of the Juubi, that didn't make them small. Sure, some of them were only slightly larger than an average human, but many more were easily the size of a bijuu.
"What happened to your bold claims of not being weak?" Madara asked, taunting.
That was hardly fair, but…
"I never said I couldn't handle it," I countered.
'Not Easy' was not the same as 'Impossible'.
"Show me," said Madara.
Technically, as his summoner, I should be the one giving him orders, but I could understand why he would want to see me in action. And I was hardly going to turn down an opportunity to prevent the Juubi from causing more damage.
"Leave them to me," I said, making the hand sign to produce a pair of shadow clones and wrapping them both in a set of chakra chains, one to add lightning and the other wind. I then spread out dozens of additional chains into the immediate area even as the fastest of the Juubi clones bore down on me.
They didn't live long enough to regret it.
My chains practically dissolved them to dust on contact. Some of the Juubi clones were sturdier than others, but that simply meant that they required a few extra moments of my violent attention. I raced through the inhuman army sealing, paralyzing, and obliterating everything in my way, carving out wide swathes of battlefield and leaving nothing but ash in my wake. Absolutely everything that came within my considerable range was simply…gone.
Seeming to realize the futility of close combat, some of the clones retreated and threw spears at me instead, but their weapons were vaporized just as easily as the rest of them. Still, there were so many. I couldn't risk any of them escaping, so I extended my chains further outward, expanding my range of destruction. It was tempting to create more shadow clones to completely dominate the battlefield, but I had to be careful. I couldn't waste chakra here, not when the real battle was still to come.
So I kept on slowly and methodically eliminating all who stood against me.
Once the immediate area was mostly cleared, I paused for a moment to evaluate the remaining targets spread out at the far edges of the battlefield. I was just tracking the most efficient path to removing them when Madara appeared at my side. Bold of him considering what I'd just done to the Juubi clones, but I supposed that he didn't really have to worry about that with his Edo Tensei body.
"So, you are not completely helpless," he said. "Good. I need you alive for now, and I am not accustomed to playing the role of bodyguard."
I didn't rise to his bait.
"I've seen what Nagato was able to accomplish with your eyes," I said instead, seeing a way of preserving my chakra for better use. "But I admit that I'm curious to see the extent of your abilities. Show me."
Madara bristled, but he wasn't the type of man to turn down a chance to display his power.
"Very well," he said, shifting his Mangekyou into the Rinnegan before releasing a monumental amount of chakra. At first I couldn't see exactly what he'd done.
And then the clouds parted.
Oh.
Wow.
The meteor was even larger than I'd been expecting. And it was directly above us, descending slowly at first but accelerating with each passing moment. It would certainly clear out the remaining Juubi clones, but it would also take us with them. At least, it would if I didn't have the Hiraishin.
Well, now was as good a time as any to meet up with Haku for the next stage of the war…
"Impressive," I said. "You'll be fine with your Edo Tensei body, but I'll—"
Madara cut me off by abruptly manifesting a skeletal Susanoo arm and using the hand to scoop me up. I resisted the urge to dodge or Hiraishin away, instead allowing it to deposit me at Madara's side. He then summoned a Susanoo torso, shielding both of us from the incoming attack.
"You think that your Susanoo can withstand that?" I asked curiously. Susanoos were certainly powerful, but they did have limits, and Madara hadn't bothered with a more complete form.
"Hmm, I wonder," he said with a small smile. "For your own sake, you should certainly hope so."
He was trying to intimidate me. I turned my head to make sure he could fully appreciate my flat look.
"Do your best," I said dryly before returning my attention to the meteor.
Madara still needed me alive, and he knew his own strength. If he thought that his Susanoo would be enough, then it would be enough. And if he was wrong, I could always leave. I didn't even need to worry about taking him with me since his body would reform after any amount of damage. If he ended up squashed, that would be his problem.
Madara frowned at my blasé attitude and watched me as we fell into the shadow of the meteor. The impact hit hard, the sound deafening as it plunged us both into total darkness. But as expected, Madara's Susanoo held strong and remained undamaged from the onslaught. Eventually the various booms and rumblings of shifting earth quieted, leaving us entombed within the stone.
I was just about to ask how he intended to free himself when he released another massive burst of chakra from his Mangekyou, and we were suddenly moving upward at incredible speed, erupting from the ground and emerging into blue-tinted moonlight. It took a moment after we stopped moving for me to realize that we were now within the crest of Madara's colossal full-body Susanoo.
"Hashirama approaches," said Madara, grinning as he bled Killing Intent. "He is mine alone. Stay here and do not interfere with our battle."
"No," I said. "There are things I need to take care of before we proceed. My brothers are busy handling Naruto, and they'll likely bring him to you soon. So don't play with Hashirama for too long and remember to get a chakra sample from the Juubi."
Madara cast me a sidelong glance.
"You think that I'll just allow you to leave?" he asked.
I gave him my best smile.
"You can't stop me," I said as I Hiraishined to Haku.
I blinked as the world abruptly switched from an open, chaotic battlefield to a large, quiet room dimly lit by hundreds of candles. Karin and Haku were already waiting for me on the edges of a vast seal, one I had drawn within the Kamui dimension and had given to Itachi to plant somewhere safe in the real world. It was similar in design to the seal I'd used for my Hiraishin healing ritual back in Ame. But while that seal had possessed an impressive 1000 nodes, this one boasted 100,000.
"Kiyo-sama," Haku greeted with a reverent bow. "The seal is ready. Itachi-sama was able to place all 100,000 seals within the White Zetsu army."
Wow, really?
I'd diligently created all 100,000 seals, but I'd told Itachi that I would be happy if he could manage to implant even a fraction of them into the White Zetsus. I'd been cautiously hoping that he would be able to tag about half of them. But I couldn't say that I was too surprised that he'd managed every single one. This was Itachi, after all. He was not a man known for doing things halfway.
"You're sure that this won't interfere with your Edo Tensei summons?" Karin asked. "They were created using White Zetsus."
"No, the nexuses only latch onto living hosts," I said. "The Edo Tensei summons aren't actually alive, so they won't be affected. The same is true for the White Zetsu that have been killed in battle."
Since casting a jutsu on 100,000 targets would require a phenomenal amount of chakra, I could only hope that the Alliance had managed to defeat a large portion of them. That would allow us to focus more chakra on the remaining ones.
"If you're ready, let's take our places," I said, leading Karin and Haku into the center of the seal where three evenly spaced circles surrounded a massive pillar of ice. According to Haku, the crystal created by his technique was not entirely dissimilar to the healing nexus that I'd used in Ame. Only instead of converting the target's chakra into healing chakra, it converted their chakra into ice, freezing them from the inside out.
We each joined our hands in the seal of confrontation, exactly as I'd seen Genma, Iwashi, and Raido do when they'd given me a demonstration of the Hiraishin for the first time years ago. I'd never attempted a collaborative jutsu before, but the concept wasn't difficult.
Power.
Shape.
Seal.
Simple, right?
It began when Karin flared her chakra, pushing it through her hand to Haku, who shaped it with Ice Release before passing it to me. I then directed it into the pillar of ice, which shattered into 100,000 pieces, each one pulled to a separate node on the seal.
Beads of sweat were already appearing on Haku's brow from the strain of channeling so much chakra, and I wondered if this was going to work. We hadn't even really started, and we probably wouldn't get a second chance if the effort proved to be too much. If there were too many Zetsus still alive…
"Haku…" I said, but Haku simply nodded.
"I am ready, Kiyo-sama," he said. "Please send the shards."
I only hesitated a moment before nodding in return and Hiraishining the shards to the White Zetsus on the battlefield. A moment later, approximately 16,000 nodes closed, indicating that their associated White Zetsus were already dead.
Oh no….
That still left us with about 84,000 White Zetsus to deal with. I wasn't sure if Karin had enough chakra for that, and even if she did, Haku might not be able to handle it all. I cast a worried look at Karin, who must have realized the problem, but her grip on my hand tightened, not letting go. She pushed more chakra to Haku, who dutifully shaped it with Ice Release and continued to pass it to me so that I could use it to power the shards.
Alright then.
I focused on sending the Ice Release chakra through the seal. And I sent more. And More. And more. It was impossible for me to tell whether or not it was working. We'd only know when the nodes began to close. Haku's breathing became heavier as he pulled in more and more chakra from Karin. The skin on his hands began to burn and crack, an early sign of acute chakra poisoning, the kind typically only seen with jinchuurikis using their bijuu chakra cloaks.
But we couldn't stop yet. A few of the seals were beginning to close, though whether it was due to the Ice or the Alliance, I couldn't tell.
Haku's hands trembled, and his breathing was labored. Karin's face was scrunched in concentration as she pushed more and more chakra to Haku. Connected as we were, I could sense that over half of her reserves were already gone.
Was it too much? Should I shut down some of the nodes and focus on eliminating fewer Zetsus? There was no way to know which ones to prioritize.
The chakra between Karin and Haku flickered. I couldn't run a diagnostic jutsu while funneling Haku's Ice Release chakra through the seals, but I didn't need to. I could sense Haku's chakra pathways starting to burn.
"It's not working," I said. "We'll have to try something else. I'm going to–"
"No!" shouted Karin, turning to glare at me. She was sweating now too. She had less than a quarter of her chakra left. "It's working. My sensing range is greater than yours. Just a little more…"
"Yes…Kiyo-sama," Haku panted. "Do not…underestimate us. We are…vassals of the Uchiha clan!"
And Haku attempted to draw even more chakra from Karin. It seemed to work, but only for a moment. The chakra pathways in his hand and arm were deteriorating fast, and the sudden influx of chakra was practically cauterizing them shut. The chakra flow flickered again as Haku's arms began to bleed.
"Itachi-sama and Sasuke-sama told us to do this, so we're going to do it!" shouted Karin.
Chakra chains suddenly sprouted from her back. The barbed tips launched toward Haku, piercing his chest and infusing him with chakra, before continuing on to stab me as well, bypassing Haku's damaged arms completely.
Haku accepted and shaped Karin's chakra with renewed vigor, practically shoving it toward me through Karin's chain. But despite their resolve, I could see the chakra burns appearing on his skin where he connected to the chains. And I knew what that amount of chakra would do to his internal organs. It was just like Nagato's chakra receiver rods, but Haku was not an Uzumaki. He wasn't meant to channel this much power.
If we kept going…
Haku's whole body was shaking now, but when he looked up at me, there was no doubt in his gaze. No desire to back down.
"Almost…," panted Karin, now down to 5% of her reserves and dropping fast. If she used too much of her chakra, she could die of chakra exhaustion, but I couldn't send chakra to her and the seal at the same time.
4%
A thousand nodes suddenly closed in quick succession, as their associated Zetsus succumbed to the ice. It wasn't enough.
3%.
Another five thousand. This was a race, and I wasn't sure if it was one we could win.
2%.
Ten thousand more. It was getting faster now as I directed more chakra to the remaining Zetsus.
1%.
"Karin!" I shouted.
"Keep going!" Karin shouted back. "They're almost…!"
Like a cascade of shadow, the remaining nodes on the seal went dark one after another. Twenty thousand one instant, thirty thousand the next until the last ones were snuffed out all at once.
And Karin collapsed, her chakra chains vanishing, pulling that vital bit of power back into her body. I knelt beside her, but Karin swatted my hands away.
"I'm…not the one who needs you most right now," she said.
Right.
Haku was still standing, but he swayed as I stood again and ran a diagnostic jutsu on him. Oh, this was bad. He had stage 4 chakra poisoning all along his arms and his chest. I cycled healing chakra through him, but this would take time to heal. Time that I didn't have right now. Thankfully, I'd be able to stabilize him at least. We'd have to deal with the rest later.
"Alright, Haku, you're on bed rest until–" I began, but Haku shook his head vehemently.
"No!" he said. "You…are going to war. And I…am a tool of the Uchiha clan. I must…go with you…."
I opened my mouth to tell him that he wasn't a tool. But as I saw his desperate, pleading expression, I suddenly realized that what I wanted to tell him and what he needed to hear were not the same thing.
"Please, Kiyo-sama…" he said, blinking slowly. He wouldn't remain conscious for much longer. "I must…I must be useful…to you…"
I grasped his burnt and bleeding hands.
"Haku," I said. "You have done everything that I needed you to do; and you were everything that I needed you to be. Now all I need is for you to rest. As a vassal of the Uchiha clan, can you do that for me?"
A complicated series of expressions passed across Haku's face before finally landing on relief. He smiled at me, and his eyes were oddly bright.
"Yes…Kiyo-sama," he said, closing his eyes as he began to fall. "I can…do that…"
I caught him and lowered him to the floor beside Karin.
"I'll look after him," she said.
"Just don't forget to look after yourself too," I said, straightening.
"...That's my line," said Karin. "Now get going. There's not much time left…"
True enough.
I nodded and Hiraishined to Naruto.
If the shift from a chaotic battlefield to a quiet room was disorienting, it was nothing compared to the reverse. I was on high-alert when I made the jump, prepared for anything, so in the fraction of a moment when I arrived, I took stock of the situation.
I'd appeared in the middle of a group of people traveling at high speed across the broken landscape toward the Juubi. Itachi and Sasuke were there, neither of them appearing particularly injured, which was good. Jiraiya was there, too, with a pair of toads on his shoulders. Those had to be Ma and Pa, here to help him enter Sage Mode. And of course there was…Naruto.
He was cocooned in a luminous layer of yellow chakra that had to be his Kyuubi cloak. His chakra was warm and so bright it almost hurt. Something in my chest tightened as I looked at him.
Before I could speak, Naruto pivoted, having registered my arrival. His eyes, at first angry and determined, widened with shock and realization when he saw me.
I smiled at him.
"Naru–" I began, but that was all I could get out before he caught me in a flying bear-hug that nearly knocked me off of my feet.
When had he gotten so fast?!
But then Naruto wrapped his arms around me, holding me tight and stealing my breath away.
Never mind his speed. Wow, when had he gotten so strong?
"Kiyo-chan…" Naruto whispered, his voice rough and strained.
I returned his embrace and ran healing chakra through him. He was a little roughed up, but it wasn't terrible.
"I tried to find you, dattebayo!" Naruto continued in a rush, his words stumbling over each other as he tried to explain. "I've been looking for you for so long…"
He must have been so worried.
"I know," I said. "I'm okay, Naruto. I'm okay."
Naruto just held me tighter.
"I promised that I would bring you home," he said, his voice muffled with tears.
"You will," I assured him, stroking his hair comfortingly. "Once this is over, we'll go home together, okay?"
'Once this is over.'
If only it was just that easy.
"Were you able to eliminate all of the Zetsus?" Sasuke asked, interrupting the moment. I felt a tiny flicker of irritation, but I couldn't exactly fault him for his priorities.
"Yes, and Haku and Karin are resting," I said, still holding Naruto tight. He didn't seem to want to let go. That was fine. If he needed to hold on for a little while longer, then he could hold on a little while longer. "What about Shisui-nii-san?"
"Shisui said that he was going to 'persuade' the Kages to withdraw the Alliance from the battlefield," said Jiraiya with a disapproving frown.
Yeah, 'persuade' probably wasn't entirely accurate since the Kages wouldn't really have a choice in the matter. It was slightly surprising that Jiraiya hadn't objected considering his relationship with Tsunade. Then again, since Shisui wasn't limited in the use of his Mangekyou, it wasn't like Jiraiya would be able to do anything to stop him.
It really was a terrifying ability.
"Well, the Alliance seems to have withdrawn, so he should be on his way back then," I said, stretching out my senses and registering only an empty battlefield. "The first, second, and third Hokages are keeping Madara distracted. Kakashi-sensei, and the Fourth are dealing with Obito, but he should be back soon. Just remember that the Juubi jinchuuriki can only be harmed by Sage Mode."
"...Yeah," said Naruto, finally pulling away and rubbing his eyes. He didn't seem entirely happy to be letting me go, but we were still in the middle of a war. He gave me a bright grin and a thumbs up. "Just leave Obito to us, Kiyo-chan!"
No sooner had those words left his mouth than I felt Obito's return. He fell, badly wounded, from the Kamui dimension right beside the Juubi. So his fight with Kakashi had gone about as well as expected. A moment later, I felt the Rinnegan spikes sprout from the White Zetsu material on his side. So Madara had taken note of his return as well and was attempting to force Obito to use the Rinne Rebirth.
Then the Juubi shrieked, twisting in on itself before seeming to vanish.
What was…?!
Oh…
It took a moment for me to realize that the blue-green humanoid was supposed to be Obito.
"He's become the Juubi jinchuuriki," I said.
Okay, that was my cue.
The Hiraishin marks that Itachi had embedded into the White Zetsus were designed to be used with the seal, but they were still fundamentally part of my Hiraishin network, so I had no problem finding and summoning Shisui, Tobirama, and Minato to my side. I tried to summon Kakashi as well, but that summoning failed, most likely because he was still in the Kamui dimension. I debated momentarily on whether or not to summon Hiruzen and Hashirama but Hiruzen wouldn't be able to do much in this fight, and Hashirama was still busy distracting Madara.
No, we'd have to make do with the people we had now.
Thankfully, no one needed any explanation as everyone spread out to assess this new threat.
"Let's go!" shouted Naruto.
But before any of us could move, Obito blitzed forward, grabbing both Sasuke and Naruto by their faces.
Fast!
But this was also my best chance.
I activated my Hiraishin in an instant, pulling Naruto through his mark back to my side before infusing my body with lightning chakra and swapping places with Sasuke. I barely had a fraction of a moment to dodge as the space once occupied by Sasuke's head was pierced with a spike of truth seeking orb. I reached out and grabbed Obito's wrist, planting my Hiraishin formula before teleporting back to Sasuke's side.
I marveled at the fact that I'd managed even that much, but the reason soon became obvious as Obito's body bloated, growing larger and bulging outward as if it was ready to explode. And then it pulled inward, collapsing in on itself. Obito was fighting an internal battle as much as an external one. But then an explosion of energy burst forth, kicking up dust and dirt, and when the clouds parted, they revealed Obito floating before us. He was no longer twisted and malformed.
He was the fully realized form of the Juubi jinchuuriki.
Undeterred, Sasuke and Naruto sprinted forward, matching one another step for step while combining Sasuke's Amaterasu with Naruto's Rasenshuriken. Obito readied his defense, but Minato appeared between them suddenly, taking the attack. Or at least he appeared to. Tobirama teleported behind Obito, and he swapped places with Minato, forcing Obito to take the attack instead.
It wasn't enough, and the others realized that too.
"We'll distract him," said Sasuke aloud. "Nii-san, Shisui."
"Yeah," said Itachi and Shisui together.
The three of them activated their full-body Susanoos and attacked as one, combining an Amaterasu arrow from Sasuke's Susanoo, a set of Amaterasu Yasaka beads from Itachi's, and a barrage of Tsukumo needles from Shisui's before hurling it at Obito, who responded by forming a shell of truth seeking orb to hide within.
Meanwhile, Naruto, Jiraiya, and Minato fell back, using Sage charka to create an absolutely colossal Rasengan between them, easily a thousand times larger than anything I'd ever seen Naruto create alone. But it would be useless if it couldn't get through Obito's shield.
I created two clones, and the three of us placed our hands on Naruto, Jiraiya, and Minato. Now we just needed...
As the dust of the previous attack settled, Obito dropped his shield, and I Hiraishined Naruto, Jiraiya, and Minato behind him. They all slammed the giant Rasengan into Obito with a shout of defiance, driving it deeper and crushing Obito into the ground. Minato took the opportunity to replace the Hiraishin mark that had vanished during Obito's transformation.
Beneath us, Obito's body caved to the pressure. But we barely had a few seconds of contact before the truth seeking orbs shot up to attack us, and we were forced to retreat. Obito staggered to his feet as one of his orbs healed his wounds.
Before we could regroup, Obito slammed his hand into the ground, and the God Tree emerged, its tendrils reaching out to grasp at all of us. Or…almost all of us. The tendrils chased after everyone else, but they twisted away from me. So, even in this state, he was still under the influence of Kotoamatuskami.
"Onii-chan, Second-sama, help Jiraiya-sama!" I said, pointing to Jiraiya because Tobirama had never met him. "Nii-chan, help Naruto! Shisui-nii-san, help Fourth-sama!"
They all understood.
Itachi and Tobirama landed beside Jiraiya and Itachi activated his Susanoo. Itachi and Jiraiya then locked hands in a seal, and Itachi's Susanoo held up a swirling sage-mode Rasengan on the tip of its Totsuka blade. Beside them, Naruto created an enormous Kurama avatar, which Sasuke coated in his own Susanoo. Minato did the same with Shisui. I used my Hiraishin to teleport inside of Naruto's avatar and placed my hands on Sasuke's and Naruto's backs.
Ready?
They were. We moved in a basic pincer attack, Minato and Jiraiya on either side while Naruto charged from the front. Obito swung at Jiraiya with his double-helix-shaped weapon, but Itachi's Yata mirror absorbed the attack, allowing him to go on the offensive with the Rasengan and the Totsuka blade while Naruto attacked head-on and Minato attacked from behind.
Obito threw up his shield, but although it stopped the Rasengans, it couldn't stop the Totsuka blade and the twin Kuramas' Susanoo swords. Obito's chakra faltered, and in that moment, the power of the tailed beasts burst forth. Naruto swung around and grabbed the tail of one, but the others began slipping away.
My chakra chains burst from Naruto's Kurama avatar, piercing the tailed beast chakra and dragging it out. It felt strange, not quite real, like grasping at solid flames. But I dug hooks of my own chakra into it and pulled. And pulled.
Obito's chakra writhed in distress, like he was under a genjutsu.
Slowly, very, very slowly, the chakra of the tailed beasts began to move, dragged out of Obito by sheer force of will until all at once they burst forth. And Obito fell, hitting the ground hard, a mere human once more.
The chakra whipped around, taking shape and becoming the eight tailed beasts.
We…did it?
I kept my guard up, somehow expecting more. But Obito remained motionless on the ground, still alive but only just. Beside me, Naruto cheered. He was the first to drop the Kurama avatar, with Minato following suit moments later and Itachi releasing his Susanoo last. Naruto went over to talk to the tailed beasts while Minato went to speak with Obito. I was just about to follow him when Shisui suddenly appeared at my side with Sasuke and Itachi not far behind.
"Kiyo-chan!" Shisui shouted. "Madara has been fully revived."
Wait, what?!
"What did you say?!" Tobirama demanded, echoing my thoughts. And then, without waiting for a response, he vanished with the Hiraishin, most likely to deal with Madara.
I glanced at Obito in confusion, but Black Zetsu wasn't anywhere nearby. Shisui shook his head.
"Nagato was with the Five Kages when I went to meet them," he explained. "Right before you summoned me here, Black Zetsu appeared and took control of Nagato's body. He forced Nagato to perform the Rinne-Rebirth, and there's only one person he would want to bring back."
Oh, that…made sense. And if Black Zetsu had taken control of Nagato, then Madara now had his Rinnegan as well.
I stretched out my senses but I couldn't detect any massive jutsus being thrown around. That was a pretty clear sign that Hashirama had been defeated. If that was the case, Tobirama wouldn't last very long either. Also, with Madara fully revived, any small hint of influence I might have had over him was effectively gone.
Not good.
We hadn't given him Kurama yet, and if he had no reason to spare Naruto…
"Shisui-nii-san, I need you to go with Naruto to find Madara in case something goes wrong," I said.
Shisui blinked before nodding in grim understanding. Kotoamatsukami probably wouldn't work, but if Madara did decide to betray us, there was no harm in trying.
"We should go quickly before he finds us here," said Itachi. Shisui and Sasuke nodded and went to speak with Naruto.
Yeah, Madara would be here soon if for no other reason than to retrieve the bijuu. But that should be fine. We were all unscathed and had enough chakra to continue the fight, so…oh wait. As I took a moment to assess everyone, I realized that that wasn't quite true.
"Jiraiya-sama," I said as I approached him.
He was hunched over and breathing hard. Jiraiya's reserves were alarmingly low, and Ma and Pa were no longer sitting on his shoulders. That wasn't surprising. Summons had a time limit based on the quantity of chakra used to summon them, so they'd probably been sent back to Mount Myoboku.
Jiraiya looked up at me with a shaky smile.
"I just need a minute," he said, waving his hand as if to shoo me away.
More like a week. Maybe a month. Either way, he wouldn't be joining the next fight. I doubted that he'd want to hear that, though.
"Tell the Alliance about the situation here and Madara's revival," I said, placing my hand on Jiraiya's shoulder and Hiraishining him away.
I didn't have many options for where to send him. Most of my marks were in Konoha or Ame, too far away to be useful for passing information. But I'd marked Lee in the stadium at the same time I'd marked Naruto and Haku, so I sent Jiraiya to him. At the very least, Lee should be able to contact the commanders and let them know what was going on. I didn't expect much to come from that, but at least they'd know that the fight wasn't over yet.
As I turned back to Obito, I felt a swirl of air nearby. I thought for a moment that Obito was still attempting to fight, but no. It was Kakashi who appeared. He had a large, X-shaped wound on his chest, but his forehead protector was raised, and he was clearly ready for battle.
"...You're late, Kakashi-sensei," I said, placing my hand on his chest. I healed his wounds in moments.
"So it seems," he said, his eyes drawn to Obito.
Yeah, it was about time for that conversation, though I doubted that anyone here was looking forward to it. Had Naruto managed to reach Obito? I'd felt Obito's distress, and I suspected that it was due to Naruto's influence, but I wasn't entirely sure of the outcome.
At least not until Obito raised his hands to form the serpent hand sign.
"What are you doing?" Kakashi asked sharply.
After everything Obito had done, I couldn't blame him for being wary.
"The same thing that Nagato did to betray me," said Obito. "The Gedo Art of Rinne-Rebirth."
"But in your current state, that jutsu will result in your…" Kakashi trailed off. "Are you sure about this? You could live and atone for your sins."
I placed my palms flat on Obito's chest. My hands glowed green with healing chakra, and I wasted no time in permeating every cell of his body, healing his wounds.
"No…that's the easy way out," he said. "Kiyo-chan, there's no need…to save someone like me."
Oh yes there was. We needed him for the fight against Kaguya.
"Atonement is not the easy way out," I said. "Even if you bring back everyone you killed today, the war isn't over yet. If you want to atone, stay until the end. Help us save this world. Despite everything, you're still Uchiha Obito of the Hidden Leaf."
Obito faltered, his grip loosening.
"Why would you trust me to help you after everything I've done?" he asked.
Good question.
Even knowing the future, his change of heart was far from guaranteed. And yet here he was thanks to Kakashi, Naruto, and Minato.
Still, his newfound heroism did nothing to erase everything he'd done. My clan was still dead. My brothers were still criminals. I was…I wasn't even sure what I was anymore. All of my pain, all of my suffering. Everything was because of him and Madara.
"Because I have to believe that those lost in darkness can be brought back to the light," I said.
I had to believe it for Sasuke and Itachi.
…And maybe for me too.
Because hatred was not the only path that led to darkness.
I may have brought about this war to prevent a greater catastrophe in the future. I may have tried to mitigate the damage. I may have had the very best of intentions. But what did that matter to the dead? And there were many, many dead. Because I had deliberately chosen to bring about Kaguya's revival.
"Heh," Obito huffed with a faint smile. "There was a time I would have killed you for standing against me. And yet protecting you is the only worthwhile thing I've done since that day."
He sounded so lost. So broken.
"You're not dead yet," I said. "You still have time to do at least one more thing, and this world still needs you."
…
AN: Ah, it took 19 chapters, but the Hiraishin marks Kiyo placed on Naruto, Haku, and Lee back in chapter 22 finally came into play. Also, I've finished updating the outline to move most of the character moments to the post-war arc and I've done quite a bit of trimming to that arc outline too. There are so many things I want to explore, but it was getting to be a little too much. I don't think anyone will want 15+ chapters of Slice-of-Life Happily Ever After, so I'll do my best to keep it manageable.
