Report to Old Man Third
It was clear to everyone that Naruto felt on top of the world. Admittedly his entire team was, but Naruto was the most open about it. As they were let into the Hokage's Office, the grizzled old leader that was Hiruzen saw this change in Naruto. Externally he didn't show anything, but inside he was wondering what in the hell happened that got Naruto in this mood.
"Well Old Man Hokage, we did it!" Naruto triumphantly said.
Sakura frowned at her blonde teammate's improper conduct. "Naruto, show some respect!" She snapped at him.
The aged Hokage merely chuckled at his favorite Genin's way of greeting him. "It's quite alright, my girl. I can tell that Naruto is just over excited about the aftermath of the mission. So how did it go?" He replied, curious about the events that took place.
Putting away his book, Kakashi looked at his superior to address him. "I can explain that Hokage-sama."
"Proceed then, Kakashi-san." Hiruzen said, though what Kakashi said next sort of surprised him.
"We had to tangle with A-Rank missing nin from Kirigakure and his accomplices who were trying to kill Tazuna-san on the orders of a crime boss who had a stranglehold on the Land of Waves." Kakashi explained, being blunt and to the point about the bullshit they'd had to put up with at first.
"I don't recall any of those details in the initial mission request." Hiruzen said, raising an eyebrow, and now knowing they got shortchanged on a mission.
"It's… complicated…" Kakashi admitted reluctantly.
"We…" Naruto tried to say, before Sakura covered his mouth, and shook her head.
"Maybe we should let Kakashi handle this. How about we go get some ramen or something?" Sasuke suggested, surprising his teammates.
"Hell yes!" Naruto yelled, grabbing his two teammates, and began dragging them away.
"Naruto, we have to wait to be dismissed! And Sasuke, are you high? Did you hit your head on the way back?" Sakura replied in disbelief.
To their shock, the Hokage gave a small smile. "You three are dismissed. Have a good lunch. Sounds like you three have earned it. Your master will fill me in."
Sakura then looked at Sasuke. "Are you sure you're okay? Don't you want to go to a training ground or something to work off some stress like you usually do after a mission?" She asked in concern as Naruto dragged them both out of the room.
"After what we went through on this mission, I don't even want to LOOK at a training ground for the next week." Sasuke replied, sounding a bit tired.
"Oh god, he IS high! Or brain damaged or something!" Sakura yelled out as the door shut behind them.
"Now then Kakashi, please continue. It sounds like this mission was more than what was initially sold to us." Hiruzen said simply.
"Well, first, we encountered two chūnin ranked missing nin who tried to kill me to get to Tazuna. After we took care of them, their boss Zabuza Momochi showed up. I fought and beat him but ended up bedridden for about a week from overusing my Sharingan. A young man posing as a Hunter Nin from Kiri saved Zabuza by faking his death and tricking us into letting him leave with Zabuza." The cycloptic jōnin began explaining.
"This is already at the level of an A-rank mission. That is a lot of income we have lost from this…" Hiruzen sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose.
"Oh, don't worry. Tazuna-san and Gatō are willing to work out a payment plan to compensate us for the extra trouble." Kakashi offhandedly added.
"Did you just say 'Gatō'? As in the shipping magnate?" Hiruzen asked, a hint surprised at hearing that name come up.
"As it turns out, he's also secretly a crime lord and is the one who hired Zabuza and his subordinates to kill Tazuna-san." Kakashi elaborated.
Hiruzen sighed and layed a bit back in his chair. This all was a bit more complex than he expected. Yet looking at Kakashi's face, despite its near inscrutability to figure out anything from the man, he just knew he had far more to tell him. With a heavy sigh, he leaned forward again.
"Proceed, Kakashi." Hiruzen said, looking at the man intently.
"While Zabuza was recovering, I started training my team to prepare for the next battle. They all grew and advanced surprisingly quickly, especially Naruto. Unfortunately, we then got attacked by vampires of all things before Zabuza could show up. It turns out they were exploiting Gatō for their own ends and hiding out in the Land of Waves." The scarecrow jōnin continued.
"... Kakashi. Have you begun entertaining some substance that I should be concerned about? Because, for a second there, I thought you said you fought vampires." Hiruzen asked him, his face as deadpan as you could get, and boring into the man's very soul.
"Oh no, you heard me right, Sandaime-sama. And they weren't alone." The cycloptic former Anbu replied.
"Am I going to get context for this, or do I have to relieve you on the grounds of insanity?" Hiruzen asked seriously.
"You can ask Sakura, Sasuke, and Naruto. They fought them too. Or even have a messenger hawk deliver a letter to Tazuna-san and Gatō asking for their confirmation." Kakashi replied with a shrug.
"Kakashi, I am not asking them, I am asking you. So back up your story and provide that context before I send you for interrogation. Followed up by having your mind delved into. I am not here to play games." Hiruzen sternly said, surprising Kakashi a bit at how not dealing with shit he is getting.
"Alright, alright, Lord Third. No need to get testy." The jōnin replied placatingly.
"Then please explain, Kakashi." Hiruzen simply answered, brushing off the comment for expediency.
"Right. So, as it turns out, all those myths and legends about gods and things that go bump in the night… aren't actually myths…." Kakashi began explaining.
"You're doing a good job at adding to the list of things I want answers to, and not very good at giving me the answers." Hiruzen said, putting his hands together.
"Believe me, sir. I'm still processing all of this myself." Kakashi sighed, preparing to continue.
"Very well. Get to the points you wish to make." Hiruzen said bluntly.
"These vampires, I know that's still hard to believe but bear with me on this, had been around and building up their numbers for over the last thousand years because a new ally we made on this mission failed to kill their future leader back then. Impatient to get what they wanted; they attacked us on the bridge that Tazuna-san was building to connect the nation to the mainland. We had to fight them off and, short of burning them alive or destroying their heart and brain, they were difficult to take down. And they had a multitude of different minions with them, ranging from ghouls and beasts to a giant bat monster." Kakashi continued, his exhaustion from the mission beginning to leak into his voice.
"Deep breaths, Kakashi. Who is this new ally you speak of?" Hiruzen asked, picking out that in particular as a way to try to make sense of the insanity.
"You know the Mountain of Death?" Kakashi asked back, sitting down to avoid his legs giving out from under him.
"I have lost many friends to that horrid mountain. Why?" Hiruzen answered simply.
"As it turns out, there's an entire ancient kingdom called 'Seaheart' in that mountain who put themselves into some kind of stasis to survive a cataclysmic event. The reason why no one has come back alive is because the death traps in there kept killing them off. But, somehow, someone has woken them up." Kakashi elaborated.
"If they were sealed away all these years… then how is that mountain so deadly?" Hiruzen asked, a hint of concern leaking out into his voice.
"Because the death traps they set up to protect that mountain use a power that predates even the Sage of the Six Paths and the origin of chakra in this world. The only way you could hope to survive them without that power is through sheer dumb luck." The scarecrow ninja explained.
"And what fools got that kind of improbable luck?" Hiruzen asked, beginning to rub his temples.
"That, we don't know. But what we do know is that their king, a redheaded man who looks much like an older Naruto, left their mountain to see how the world has changed. He is the one who aided us against the undead plague we faced on this mission side by side with Gatō, his men, and Zabuza by helping us to ally with them against the vampires." The cycloptic jōnin continued.
Without another word the Hokage laid back in his chair. Clasping his hands together and closing his eyes, it was quickly apparent the old man was trying to process all of this. Kakashi knew this sounded insane, he didn't entirely believe it happened himself. Yet his fate as a shinobi hung in the balance on his ability to convince Hiruzen of the truth. A rare problem for a Shinobi to have. Finally, he spoke.
"What is the name of this unnamed Uzumaki?" Hiruzen asked, his eyes still closed.
"He's… not an Uzumaki. He is something much older. Much greater. Something even I don't fully understand." Kakashi tried to explain.
"How powerful is this 'King' then?" Hiruzen asked, still keeping his eyes closed to help him process this all.
"His name is Oda Shang, Lord Third. As for how powerful he is… I'm not certain even you or one of the Sannin could defeat him in single combat without a pyrrhic victory." Kakashi answered, trying to carefully choose his words while remaining honest.
"... This is a lot for me to believe, Kakashi. I do not believe you are lying to me. Describe this man to me, and do you believe him to be a threat?" Hiruzen asked, homing in on his apparent new peer.
"He is a tall, strongly built redheaded man with blue eyes. One who looks incredibly like Naruto minus the birth marks. His personality is… quite unique, to say the least. He's a bit eccentric, but a capable leader, a loyal ally, and not a threat so long as you aren't his enemy." Kakashi replied, answering to the best of his ability.
"How does one make an ally of such a man and keep his allegiance then?" Hiruzen said, opening his eyes again and leaning forward.
"From what I can tell, so long as you don't threaten harm upon his people, he's about as easy to get along with as Naruto. He has even declared that my team is always welcomed in his kingdom." The cycloptic ninja answered honestly.
"That is all fine and good, Kakashi. But I still feel like there is something you're not telling me." Hiruzen said, then leaned forward even more, "What is it you wish to tell me?"
"Due to… an enemy's technique that was used on Naruto in one of the battles… he tapped into the Kyūbi's chakra in front of myself, Oda-sama, Sakura, and Sasuke. Due to that enemy technique, he lost control of it and went on a rampage before we managed to stop him. Thankfully, he seemingly had enough sense of self to only target the enemy." Kakashi carefully explained to his leader.
"The Kyūbi… leaked out?" Hiruzen asked, simply stunned to horror at the mere thought of it.
Kakashi nodded. "Yes, it did. Thankfully, Oda-sama helped Naruto regain control using a technique he described as a 'spell' that could break the hold the enemy had on Naruto. A 'counter spell', to be specific…" He continued.
"He used magic?" Hiruzen asked before saying, "I apologize for my previous comments, Kakashi. Continue."
"After he saw the power of the Kyūbi on display… I had no choice but to explain to Oda-sama what happened. And he managed to correctly surmise that sensei was Naruto's father and that Kushina was Naruto's mother. After he managed to correctly guess all of that and that Naruto's mother was the previous jinchūriki, our talk… took a turn I did not expect." The cycloptic jōnin continued.
At this, Hiruzen raised an eyebrow to what he was saying and said, "And what kind of twist could possibly happen at this point that you could not expect?" Hiruzen asked, it was so outlandish of a concept at this point he couldn't believe it.
"A theory about the truth behind the Kyūbi's attack on the village the day of Naruto's birth. Who was behind the seal being broken and why did the fox suddenly appeared in the center of the village and attacked. As well as a theory on who could have the power to do all of that and that would have good reason to." Kakashi gravely replied, this part of the story obviously dragging up bad memories.
"Give me a second to let me light my pipe. I feel like I'm going to need it." Hiruzen said, pulling out a wooden pipe and tobacco to smoke, before lighting it with a bit of fire chakra.
"Madara Uchiha, sir. Him… or someone who learned from him how to target a female jinchūriki, remove their Tailed Beast, and control it." Kakashi told his leader, dropping arguably one of the biggest bombshells thus far.
The only thing that Kakashi heard was the pipe the old man just lit hitting the desk. Hiruzen's eyes widened in sheer horror and disbelief. His jaw looked as if it was going to hit the floor. Any and all color had left his face as his mind could barely comprehend, nay didn't want to comprehend what was just said.
"Did you just say Madara Uchiha may be connected to this in some way? That is impossible, the man is dead. No one could live that long to engage in such an elaborate plan." HIruzen stated in sheer disbelief.
"I'll make sure to write down the full details of our discussion in an after-action report, sir." Kakashi replied, feeling that he'd dropped enough into the aged Kage's lap for one day.
"Thank you, Kakashi. Please write out everything in relation to this mission in the after-action report. I will have my aides provide you with extra paper and ink." Hiruzen said simply.
Kakashi nodded, got to his feet, and bowed. "Yes, Lord Third. Is that all you require of me?" He replied, a bit concerned.
"That is. Have a good day Kakashi-san." The old Hokage answered with a simple nod.
Nodding back, Kakashi turned and left, locking the door behind him. Once he left, Hiruzen picked his pipe back up, cleaned off his desk, and sighed as he began to refill it. After relighting it and puffing on it a bit to calm his nerves, the aged Kage sighed as he spoke to no one in particular.
"It appears I have no other choice, then." Hiruzen sighed and reached down to one of his lower desk drawers.
Opening it up, he pulled out a small azure scroll with minimal design. Unfurling it, it revealed ancient lettering and fine penmanship, rivaling that of any master. Using hand seals rarely if ever used, the Hokage soon made the scrolls' letters light up in red light. Soon, an image began to appear before him. The image of a towering, but slightly elderly red-haired man. Standing at six and a half feet tall with a lithe, but powerful frame. A massive ruby red and golden yellow steel bō staff held in his hand. The figure was clad in a robe decorated with images of the rising sun and clouds.
The figure looked at Hiruzen in surprise. "Saru? This is surprising. If you're calling me now, it must be urgent." The figure said to the aged Hokage.
"I have information you would likely wish to know." Hiruzen answered, clasping his hands together.
Setting his staff aside out of image, the figure turned back to face Hiruzen and gazed seriously at him. "And what might that be?"
"Does the name 'Oda Shang of Seaheart' mean anything to you?" Hiruzen asked simply.
Seishin's eyes widened in shock at the mention of that name. "It… it can't be…" He uttered in disbelief.
"If you need further confirmation, I have an entire shinobi team and the entire nation of the Land of Waves that can attest to what I can tell you." Hiruzen said, maintaining the seriousness of his voice most common to those who know him.
Sighing, the man nodded in reply. "Tell me everything." He said, sounding weary.
"I suggest you sit down, Seishin. It will take a while." Hiruzen answered, puffing a bit more at his pipe to prepare himself.
Well after a bit of a late start to today, and a hectic week, we got it done at least. This week for both me and my co-writer has been hectic. Regardless of that, we got an important chapter done, and a good pivot point to springboard into the next phase of this story. Before I get too ahead of myself, a word from my coauthor.
Uzumaki Ricky: Well, this was certainly a productive chapter after a hard day. Sorry it's a little late, everyone. Stuff is going on. But at least it's done and ready. I hope you all enjoyed it. Aloha and good night!
With that level of nonsense week behind us, we can head off to new and better weeks ahead. Hopefully. Continuing with this pivot, we see next time what Oda, Zabuza and Haku are up to in, "Volcanic Return." Thanks again for all you shinobi fans for sticking with us and enjoying the ride.