Chapter 35
Welcome back- part two is here, now that my internet has become less troublesome. It seems that updating my internet explorer has also fixed whatever was wrong with ? I'm not sure, but thanks for being patient! By the way, discord link:
discord .gg / K5C8SYh
(take out the spaces, if you still need help, just PM me and I'll help you out!)
With Jiraiya…
Jiraiya, despite what the kunoichi population and his godson would say, did not only think about perverse pleasures. In actuality, his mind was a torrent of past regrets, mistakes, and heartbreaks crashing into one another so that only alcohol or writing could stop them. His past always haunted him and his decisions never left him satisfied.
Today was the worst. Worse than the day he left the orphans in Ame; worse than the day Orochimaru left and Tsunade turned him down; worse than the day Minato died and he declined his duty to look over his precious godson.
None of those days compared to how unsatisfied he felt with himself as Gamabunta stabbed Manda's second in command straight through the eye, dispelling the vile creature instantly. It wasn't satisfying, however, because he wasn't there.
He wasn't next to his sensei like planned, leaving his father figure to face the deranged psychopath known as Orochimaru with little backup (could any backup compare to a Sanin?). He wasn't helping Naruto seal the Shukaku like he secretly petitioned for months, being turned down at every corner. That inability led to him 'accidentally' forgetting to set more traps in the forests, having Naruto do it the day before the invasion so that the boy would know every inch of where he would be fighting.
Not being near his two most precious people in the village was difficult, but Jiraiya continued to smile. The chunin at the walls behind him gasped in awe as he used his needle hair to take down a young jonin, and cheered as Gamabunta dispelled yet another summons, though this one was a nasty three headed viper intent on eating through the shinobi population it was ordered to attack. While they cheered, Jiraiya would look back and give a reassuring smile or commanding order, knowing that the quicker he destroyed the main front, the sooner he'd be next to Sarutobi-sensei or Naruto, keeping them from becoming yet another ghost in his mind.
"Remember, no prisoners!" The Toad Sage bellowed once more as the survivors from their trapped forests and preliminary takedowns attempted to bypass Konoha's gates. Jiraiya nodded down towards Ibiki, who smirked viciously.
"You heard him, let's show these maggots why Konoha is still undefeated." The scarred interrogator ordered, helping take out the trash and erecting the shock tags on a hole Gamabunta accidentally caused; the five Oto shinobi who tried getting through there found themselves shocked to death, their screams shrill yet musical to Ibiki's ears.
Yes, Jiraiya decided, he would show these maggots the power of a Sanin, forcing himself to ignore the large purple enclosure at the stadium and the Bijuu chakra suffocating the air.
With The Hokage…
Sarutobi stared at his former student, sadness and fury evident in his eyes. The ANBU by his side were poised to fight to the death; their loyalty strengthened him.
"My old student… how far have you fallen?" He murmured in sorrow, the flakes of skin peeling off Orochimaru's face, set in a smirk.
"Why, whatever do you mean, sensei? I thought you'd be proud, seeing your favorite student achieve so much!"
"If you can call looking like a doll and growing your tongue 'achieving so much', then sure." One of the ANBU, Hikaru if he wasn't mistaken, quipped. Despite himself, Sarutobi snorted in amusement. As his former pride and joy hissed, Sarutobi prepared his best jutsus; it was time to fix his past mistakes.
With Shisui…
Dragon couldn't help but wonder if just recording Danzo's face at the moment he realized just who 'that blasted Dragon' was all this time would be enough.
"Th-that's impossible! You died- if not from my poison then by killing yourself in the Naka River. My agents"
"Were placed under my genjutsu, much like the eye I gave Itachi" Dragon cut in with a drawl. "Really, Danzo-chan, did you actually think I'd kill myself over a lost eye, leaving you free reign with said eye and no way to tell the Hokage what actually happened? I'll admit it almost killed me, but in the end you failed. Like always."
Danzo seemed to twist in rage before calming once more. The man, now at eight- no seven- eyes, held up his hands, going through hand seals.
"If only Fugaku had let me draft you into ROOT when you were five, instead of insisting the Uchiha were above such things, you'd have made a fine shinobi for the great tree." Danzo seemed almost regretful at this admission. "Nevertheless it's time I destroy the last rebellious seeds in your cursed clan and make Konoha great again."
"You and what army, Danzo?" Shisui mocked, his Susanoo already drawing its energy for an attack. The war hawk sent out his roots, still writhing. Shisui directed his Susanoo, which sliced through them with ease, taking a swing at Danzo, who used another eye to get away.
"I have no need for an army to cleanse this village of you! Wind Style: Vacuum spheres!" The wind itself compressed before attacking in a sphere like pattern. The Susanoo was protecting them, but the sheer amount of chakra was hell on the Sharingan.
Shisui silently willed his Susanoo to unleash its Tsukumo. It was his most powerful attack with the chakra construct, the same attack that he used all those months ago on the Iwa Jinchuuriki. The long green poles bore into the war hawk, who blocked most of them by will large Mokuton trees to spontaneously rise.
Shisui smirked as another eye closed after his attack managed to hit, knowing that he was winning.
"Kakashi, Tiger… take the children to the drop off point and go help the Hokage." Shisui ordered. He glanced back, seeing them nod.
"Good luck, Dragon-sama." The pair intoned, disappearing in quick flicks.
"Sending your dogs away wasn't wise, Shisui" Danzo said neutrally while still sounding mocking. Shisui released his Susanoo, and shot forward, his tanto meeting Danzo's own sword.
Metal met metal, Uchiha anger and determination boring down upon a traitor's misguided notion of the greater good. A young man too loyal to be swayed by power fighting against an old war hawk too engulfed in his desires to seek repentance. Shisui channeled his chakra into his lungs without seals, expelling a great torrent of flames point blank into his opponent's widening eyes. Using the man's own sword as a launching point, the Uchiha pushed off and used a shunshin, letting his chakra flicker out.
The flames died quickly once the chakra was cut off, and Shisui once more maneuvered into Danzo's guard, slicing off his Mokuton arm. Another several shunshins and abrasions across the war hawk's body. Danzo let out a quick, pained gasp, and looked up, grimacing when he noticed that the infamous 'mirage clones' were flickering about, a testament to Shisui's immense skills. Trying for one last move as his arm with the Sharingans was burned to a crisp and thrown far out of his grasp, Danzo made a single hand seal and let himself smirk when Shisui was stopped in his tracks, black ink appearing on his mask and exposed skin from various wounds during the battle.
"You may… be strong, Shisui Uchiha… but you… can't fight the 'Self Cursing Seal. You Uchiha are excellent Shinobi, but your chakra levels are easily depleted by your dojutsu; There's… no way… you'll muster up the chakra to break my seal in time." Danzo painted, slightly light headed from blood loss.
Forcing himself to stand up straight the older male stalked to the struggling Shisui who was kneeling, trying to get up. Danzo picked up his sword that had fallen and got closer.
"For the good of Konoha, you must whither." He gasped. Raising his blade, Danzo looked right into the blank mask that haunted him for the last five years.
Shisui struggled more, then calmed as the blade rose. Taking a deep breath in, he snapped his chakra, it expanding through the air in compressed waves. Potent chakra, almost visible, exploded out and pushed Danzo back. With shaky limbs, Shisui stood up.
"No, for the good of Konoha, YOU must be the one to die." The commander's voice whispered, lifting up his own sword.
Then for the first time since his sacrifice, Shisui Uchiha lifted his mask while out in the field, looking his old enemy in the eye. Danzo's eyes widened once more before Shisui used his signature shunshin, appearing over the now fallen man.
A quick jab to the throat and Konoha's worst traitor was dead.
Now he just had to get to the Hokage and his men.
With Naruto…
Naruto stumbled slightly at the roar of Shukaku, giving the Kaguya time to get into his defenses, bones protruding from his ribs.
That's what a Kaguya can do, slaughter you with their bones; extremely blood thirsty. Kurama chimed in as Naruto felt his arm guard sliced in half by the Kaguya's bone sword, blood splattering them both. Clones appeared as a buffer between them, only to be instantly taken out by Guren's crystals.
'How do I stop them, though?!' The ANBU thought to his partner in exasperation while frantically looking for places to set his barrier tags and letting the third tail grow. He just wanted to block these two and get on with his mission and stop this invasion, damn it! Kurama didn't reply, instead enhancing his host's senses more to prevent an impaling through his stomach. Naruto summoned his chains once more, letting them join his tails in blocking the crystals and bones.
"It would be in your best interests to surrender; Orochimaru-sama always gets what he desires, and your pointless struggling is most selfish. Give up."
Crystals covered the trees and debris around, creating a sort of dome, encasing him and his assailants.
"You know, Kimimaro, for a guy wanting to catch the little fox, you're sure enjoying talking to him." Guren said suggestively, appearing out of a crystal.
"Silence, Guren; did you disable the traps?" The now identified Kimimaro rebuked. Guren smirked as Naruto stiffened.
"All done and we're shielded from the little Tanuki's temper tantrum." Kimimaro didn't answer and instead vaulted forward with his bones melding together into a drill, its path halted by Naruto instinctively using his chains.
Dull eyes met fiery red ones, slitted like a fox. Naruto's mask was tinted red by the visible chakra, giving his mouse mask a vicious make over. Naruto, his kunai bathed in wind and Kyuubi chakra, embedded it until the hilt in Kimimaro's free arm, his hidden smirk at its success cut off when Guren mercessly side swiped his legs before kicking him into a tree.
Naruto grunted, and blocked Guren's 'Crystal Needles', though one struck his mask, cracking it. The ANBU pulled it out, somersaulting to the ground in crouch.
"Maybe you think you got rid of the traps, but a Konoha ANBU agent always sets contingencies!" He yelled out Dragon-sama's teachings. Little did his attackers know, but Naruto had used his abilities with clones and transformations wisely. Deidara had spent countless hours teaching him the exploding clone technique. Naruto wrapped himself in chakra and his chains, smirking. When he felt his enemies get close, the random rocks, flies in the air- all of them transformed into Naruto clones and exploded in sharp bursts of chakra.
Kimimaro, who had been hoping to attack from above, instantly switched with the fleeing Guren, the woman being blown into the roof of her mini dome. Naruto wasted no time, conjuring four clones and sending them off to the designated spots to place the barrier tags.
'Kurama, I think we'll need more chakra. I can see the Bijuu chakra eating away at the crystals and bone, but it's not enough!' Naruto growled, the chakra clouding his calm state of mind somewhat. Kurama wordlessly released the fourth tail, their current top. Naruto, through training, was able to keep his mind in the fourth tail, but barely. The chakra began eating away at his skin, and he knew he had to end this fast.
"Wind style: air bullets!" The Kyuubi-fied Naruto growled and misshapen bursts of air not at Kimimaro or the now falling and barely conscious Guren, but at the side wall. It cracked under the assault. Naruto instantly formed a dark purple rasengan. Leaping at the wall, rasengan in one hand and tag in the other, Naruto broke through, Kimimaro following suit.
However this Kimimaro was...beastly. The infamous curse seal was unlocked on him. Naruto's eyes widened, but refused to panic. He turned around, facing Kimimaro as they fled through the opening. His clones had burst, letting him know the four tags were in place; only the one in his hand was needed.
Naruto felt his bloodlust rising, so instinct he let chakra build in his lungs and mouth. A sphere of the tainted chakra charged forward and into Kimimaro's torso, kicking the now mutated shinobi back through the hole, into the forest floor, and skidding long after Naruto lost sight of him. Blinking, the blond tried to ponder what he just did, even as his throat bled from the chakra.
I'll explain later, but now you have to block them in! Shukaku has been unleashed! Sure enough, the sand demon was a bit to the west of him, and Naruto could feel its beady eyes on him, Deidara furiously dodging the sand tail.
Retreating all but a tail of chakra into his body was near impossible, but with Kurama being his partner they managed, and the Jinchuriki landed next to the opening, slapping the final tag down and pulsating large puddles of his Bijuu chakra through it. A pentagram formed through the crystal dome, before a large red barrier was erected. If Naruto did it right- and he knew he did- the two inside would be unable to leave until the chakra drained in an hour or they overpowered it. And overpowering it would be nigh impossible.
'There, now… ready to kick some Shukaku ass?' Naruto smirked evilly, and set off through the trees, chains poised.
Heh, finally my puny brother will see why he shouldn't mess with my territory. Kurama laughed. That gave Naruto a sweat drop while dodging a stray sand bullet that uprooted an ancient tree he used to nap in.
'Your territory? I thought the 'oh so mighty' Kurama didn't need any 'human' territory?' The ANBU teased. He was enjoying the feeling of power coursing through his body, the chakra already having healed the damage from the fourth tail save some muscle soreness. Laughing a bit, Naruto kept his mind off of Deidara even as he used repetitive shunshins to speed up the trek. Kurama snorted.
Keep opening your trap and I'll unleash a Bijuu dama up your skinny little hide.
'A… A what?' Naruto could feel Kurama mentally face palm.
Why is my vessal so stupid? The Bijuu Dama- what you used just now brat! It's the most powerful of our attacks, and your idiot fleshbag of a father based that pathetic 'rasengan' off of it!'
Naruto meant to respond, but the sight of Deidara being thrown from his bird as a clay explosive made half of Shukaku fall apart stopped all thought but instinctive movements.
"DEIDARA!" Naruto's scream bubbled out, seeing his comrade and friend fall, only to be wrapped in sand, the familiar crunch echoed in his ears.
Hundreds of chains flew forward, severing the connection the sand had to the main body. The part containing Deidara fell through the air, though no bloody body of his friend emerged, making him fear the worst. Naruto and Kurama, as one, roared in the sky, three and four tails coming out together, their combined rage getting over the hesitence they once had to employ the fourth tail. The blond and his Bijuu stared up at Shukaku in hate, Kurama roaring insults.
Shukaku, now fully formed once more, peered down at the pair. Chuckling, the madness could be heard for miles.
"Well well, my 'big brother' and his little vessel- how pathetic. Big brother is trapped by the chains again! HAHAHAH!" Shukaku reared his head back and laughed, his Jinchuriki flopping uselessly on his head. "Well you're too late! The little fleshbag finally let me out to play and I'M NEVER GOING BACK! BLOOD. BLOOD. BLOOD. SHOW ME YOUR BLOOD!"
"You… you killed my teammate! YOU KILLED MY COMRADE! You… YOU MURDERED MY FRIEND YOU SON OF A BITCH" Emotion fueled Naruto's lust for death.
Naruto… Naruto! Kurama snapped, finally getting his human to listen.
'What, Kurama? Send me as much chakra as you can, I'm killing this bastard.' All rational battle plans were forgotten, until his supply of chakra was ruthlessly ripped away.
No you listen here! I'm supposed to be the killing machine, not you. Stop acting like a wild animal and fight like… ugh it hurts to say it, but fight like a shinobi! Shinobi, no matter how much it pisses me off to admit, have defeated my brethren before: now do the same, or our- I mean your- village will be wiped out. Naruto calmed down, but felt a stray tear fall down his cheek despite his training. Then, Kurama stopped his tears with a final sentence before flowing his chakra back through his core. The other blondie is still alive, but caught in the sand; defeat Shukaku and we get him back. Just… make sure Shukaku bleeds.
"No problem" Naruto spoke aloud. His mask, still cracked, fell away as he dodged the onslaught of sand. Chakra chains wrapped around the countless trendles, making them useless.
Shukaku screamed in protest, whining about not playing fair; Naruto just shook his head, glad that it was now clear. Jumping off trees that had started exploding while falling from the various trap seals, the blond ANBU whipped out his sealed water.
Torrents of water- over a thousand gallons- spilled out into the air, glistening in the sunlight. Naruto ran through hand seals faster than ever before, letting his chains keep him steady.
"Water style: Water Dragon Jutsu!" His most powerful water attack, fueled by his focused anger, went straight to the head of Shukaku, turning most of the body to mud. Not stopping there, the ANBU continued wrapping the chains up the arms and tail, stopping the sand from reforming.
However, it was proving to be a never ending battle, with Shukaku forming in places Naruto's chains moved from.
With a frustrated sigh across his masked face, he dodged the ginormous bullets of air Shukaku expelled. A trendle of sand the size of a tree wrapped around his ankle. With slight panic, Naruto switched with a falling rock, landing on the upper right arm. He gulped while looking up, just then realizing that Gaara was completely asleep, just like the legends of past hosts.
The host… Kurama observed. Naruto nodded absently.
'Kurama, how would we wake him up? Much less get up there?" He mused. His partner snorted.
A good bump to the head should do it. That or blow them both up. Naruto sweat dropped, and started using multiple shunshins across the body of Shukaku, jumping off the limbs of a frustrated Bijuu.
"Hold...STILL! I WANT YOUR BLOOD" Shukaku whined. The blonde Jinchuriki casually noted that Shukaku was a thousand year old child, as the beast proceed to stomp the ground. The fact that the ground broke up from the impact did not make it any less ridiculous.
Hundreds of clones exploded in the air, covering Shukaku who started batting them away. Their purpose was to distract him, and they did, as the beast released a Bijuu Dama into the sky. The real Naruto landed by the ears and grinned, unsealing more water.
Make sure you hit him good, fleshbag! Kurama cheered, knowing what was to come.
"Water style: Water bullet" He screamed and six bullets of water shot straight at the snout. Shukaku roared in pain and clutched his snout. Using the opportunity, Naruto wrapped the entire upper body of the sand demon up, feeling its chakra being forced to retreat. He used a shunshin, appearing next to the sleeping Gaara.
Channeling chakra to his fists, the blond Jinchuriki pounded the redhead, and grinned when the boy snapped awake.
"NOOOO! I just got out! I'LL KILL YOU NEXT TIME KURAMA! AND YOU TOO, YOU FILTHY UZUMAKI!"
Instantly the sand fell, like puppets without strings, Gaara starting to fall with it. Naruto anchored a chain to one of the few trees standing as they fell side by side, Gaara looking wiped out with scorch marks- likely from Deidara's art- littering his body. Catching the slightly smaller boy, Naruto lit his fingers in the way Jiraiya-sama had taught him. He didn't want to do this, didn't want to complete the capture, but Gaara had started gathering Bijuu chakra once more, and Deidara had yet to be spotted.
With the fumblings of a novice, Naruto slammed his fingers over the Jinchuriki seal, knowing he hit the right spots when the last remnants of Bijuu chakra filed away. Gaara hissed, falling unconscious once more, letting the ANBU collapse tiredly on a tree branch, breathing heavily. That last water jutsu had been risky, draining most of his chakra as keeping control of water while in his chakra cloak was...messy.
Oi. Don't fall asleep now! Kurama barked, already sensing his host's fatigue. He snapped awake, letting Kurama spread out their senses now that Bijuu chakra wasn't choking it out. With lead legs, Naruto and the sleeping Gaara followed to a downed tree in the direction of the village, and the sight made his heart seize.
Deidara, his explosion happy friend, sat heaving blood onto the ground, clutching a mangled arm. Sand, which had obviously been crushing his body, was scattered.
"D-FOX!" Naruto remembered at the last moment, as his friend still had his mask on. Deidara's head shot up, pain glazing his eyes but managing a nod.
"M-Mouse. You did it?" He asked with a slur. When Naruto nodded, he sighed in relief. "Good. I got the jonin- Baki, was it? Yeah, I blew him up good. But the girl, she disappeared. Maybe I was too soft, but the red brat, Gaara? What happened again? Why is everything fuzzy."
That's when Naruto got a good look at the injuries, and set out with his medical kit. A crisscrossed pattern from a blade of some sort on his back and a crushed arm. Those injuries… he pushed them to the back of the mind, figuring they'd worry about the long term later. For now, he had to get his friend to the medical tents.
"Summoning Jutsu" Hisoka appeared, the silent tiger pulled from whatever battle he had been fighting. "Hisoka, I need you to help me carry Gaara- I mean, this prisoner to the village while I carry Deidara." Best to remember all the boy had done to his village. It was proving had now that the lust of battle was gone, however, Naruto knowing that he just made a fellow Jinchuriki a prisoner of war.
Hisoka nodded in assent. Sighing, he put the boy on the tiger's back, and clutched his ribs. Chakra exhaustion and battle made him want to curl up for a nap, but he forced three clones to appear and help him carry his comrade back.
Naruto, I'm going to sleep. We'll talk later. His partner said quietly as they reached the village checkpoint and get accepted by ANBU medics. He nodded while being led to a small tent for a quick check up, being told that the invasion was mostly over, the grim yet hopeful faces of the medics making the day seem not so hopeless. When he informed a captain of the dome and the trapped Kaguya, sharp intakes of breath were inhaled before eight ANBU freshly healed shot through the forest to hopefully capture or at least kill the pair.
Little did he know a certain sand genin had not only escaped, but saw his face and battle. And little did he know that Deidara didn't check to make sure Baki was blown to bits, the man's pain and battle with Shukaku distracting him.
As it was, Naruto wasn't thinking about such things, and instead turned to the medic once his ribs were wrapped and he was given something for chakra exhaustion.
"How is Hokage-sama? And did we kill Orochimaru?" He asked. The medic stiffened mid smile and looked away.
"I think that's a conversation you and I should have after your report, Mouse." Dragon-sama's voice drifted quietly by his ear. Standing behind him, bloody yet relatively unharmed, was his commander. Naruto kept his voice even, but his eyes betrayed his worry.
"Dragon-sama?"
"Just… follow me, Mouse." His commander passed a spare mask to him, and the pair began a slow jog back to the village, a grim commander and worry filled ANBU agent lost in their thoughts.
The invasion was won, but what was the cost? Naruto wondered this and more as his village passed by him, bathed in blood.
What was the cost of victory?
End! Now, know that yes, the ambiguity was planned, as it sets up some foreshadowing. I have planned to have certain characters (Yugao, Hayate, Jiraiya, Team 7, The jonin, ect) recount their dealings in the invasion through snippets next chapter as the village rebuilds and Naruto finds out exactly what victory has cost them!
Sorry for the lateness, but internet is now fixed, as is my account and computer! So yaaay. Just in time for the november writing month thingy. Hopefully I can meet the 50k goal through my stories!
Naruto using 4 tails… remember, even though he's used it before, him and Kurama are working better together now and he's much more experienced. Bijuu chakra in my mind should be able to be harnessed, not just unleashed like a wild animal. Could Naruto have let go and stomped them all like a beast? Yes, but that's not how Naruto is here. While he wants to let his anger go, him and Kurama know that's not the best solution for him, especially with the medical drawbacks. Hence why he dialed it back.
The mission that Hawk gets sent on due to the bet with Ro is in… 2 chapters I think? Hope you guys like it. Additionally, we have the movie plot coming up. It's between the tower movie (Naruto goes back in time), road to ninja, and blood prison it seems, so unless y'all have a preference of the three I'll pick randomly from them. It's so far a close tie between the three.
DANZO IS DEAD! FINALLLYYYY...Oh… and yes, Danzo does use Mokuton in the anime. It wasn't to the extent I had him use it, but he does use it against Sasuke.
Go check out 'Sign here for ANBU' again! I started rereading it and it's awesome as always.
Finally, hope you guys liked this, I worked hard on the invasion. Fight scenes are my weakness but I believe this was acceptable?
Again, a chapter over 4k, so please be happy with the word count.
Have a fantastic week,
Riku.
(ps. Join our discord at the top. Shout out to Dragon my beta- may you be let out of your grounding soon!)