Alright, sorry for the wait. Here's the next chapter guys, hope you enjoy. Be sure to pay attention cuz a lot of stuff is going to be happening.
Broken Angel
Chapter 59
Cold, lifeless, and frozen with a look of shock on it's face. That's what the body of Albus Dumbledore looked like.
Riley stood on the opposite side of the room, eying the body from a distance while Aurors scurried about.
She had been allowed passage due to her status as a military commander and renowned hero. The commander of the present Aurors, Rufus Scrimgeour, quickly approached her, having been informed of her presence by one of his men.
"Lady Slytherin, Gryffindor, Uchiwa." He greeted as he approached her.
"Chief Auror Scrimgeour." Riley replied with a glance as her attention remained focused on the corpse of the once great man.
"How did he die?" Riley asked after a moment.
"According to our examinations, it wasn't the Killing Curse, and there are no signs of spell damage or residue. It's almost like he died of fright. His heart simply stopped." The Auror replied.
"Was anyone seen entering or leaving?" Riley asked the obvious question.
"No. The office's security wards were active, and the Paintings said that no one had entered before their activation. They did mentions something of note however. The headmaster received a package about ten minutes before he finished with today's work." Scrimgeour informed her.
"What was it?" Riley inquired.
"A snake. An eight foot long, white boa." Scrimgeour replied.
"A white snake? Did the headmaster check it for magic, make sure it wasn't dangerous?" Riley asked.
"According to the paintings the package passed through the security wards and the headmaster did check to make sure it wasn't dangerous. He then conjured a cage for the creature and locked it in his room for the night. They heard him say something about investigating it's appearance in the morning, but with no magical signature, and the fact that it wasn't a poisonous snake, led him to lower his guard. We haven't found the snake and the conjured cage would have vanished with his death. The paintings were asleep for most of the night, but the office remained sealed, and we still haven't found the snake yet." Scrimgeour explained to her.
Riley nodded in understanding and activated her Byakugan. She did a quick scan of the room, seeing if she could locate the snake in question. She found nothing.
With a sigh, Riley deactivated her Byakugan and turned to head off. She left the Aurors to their investigation while she headed out to speak with the Minister. With Dumbledore dead, any chance of getting the Light to bow out of any sort of conflict their takeover could bring, was lost.
She quickly sent a mental message through The Gravemind, to Itachi and Voldemort. Both were just as shocked to hear the news as she had been.
This turn of events put all of their plans on hold. They needed to get a proper baring on what was going on, before they could begin moving forward. And the first place to start, was finding the murderer.
She quickly made her way to the Ministry and got a meeting with Fudge. He had already been informed of Dumbledore's death and was trying to keep it quiet for now. While Fudge was actually happy to no longer have the Headmaster around to spout on about Voldemort, and undermine him, Fudge knew he had to handle this situation delicately. A meeting with someone as influential and notable as Riley would definitely make it seem like he was doing something about this.
"Minister." Riley greeted the man when she arrived.
"Lady Slytherin, Gryffindor. It's good to see you again. I assume you're here about the tragedy at Hogwarts?" Fudge inquired as he greeted her.
"Yes. I assume you've been informed of the situation? I suspect foul play." Riley informed him.
"Yes, I have been informed about his manner of death. It does sound incredibly odd to me. Do you have any ideas who could have done this?" Fudge asked her.
"A white Boa constrictor was sent to him, I know for a fact that the white snake was taken as a symbol of a very specific Missing ninja. Orochimaru. The Snake Sanin." Riley informed him.
"Orochimaru? While I don't doubt that he would want the headmaster dead, the question is how? I mean, with how much he's been sputtering on about this Dark Lord nonsense, you'd think he'd be more paranoid. So then how did Orochimaru get to him?" Fudge wondered aloud.
"I don't know. But if it is Orochimaru whom planned out the attack, then this is just another casualty in our war with Iwa and Oto. I think it wise to call a meeting with the Wizengamot, there are things we need to discuss. The death of Dumbledore leaves us in a very vulnerable position, and if this was Orochimaru's doing, then we can expect follow-up attacks in the near future." Riley explained to him.
"Yes. Yes. Once the Auror's make it through their preliminary investigation, we'll call for a meeting. We should probably have some answers before we decide on what to do." Fudge agreed.
"Alright. Also… I need your permission for the Legion to perform a mind walk on Dumbledore?" Riley asked him.
"A mind walk? I thought you couldn't enter the mind of a dead person?" Fudge replied curiously.
"Legilimency cannot be used on a dead person. But the Yamanaka clan, whom have just recently joined the legion, can enter the mind of a dead person and view some of their last memories. Luckily Dumbledore's body is in stasis right now, but I still need your permission to carry out the mind walk." Riley explained to him.
Fudge actually looked surprised to hear the extent of the Yamanaka's bloodline. It took him a few moments but eventually he nodded and fished out a piece of paper.
"Also… may I inquire as to the location of Madam Umbridge? I didn't see her at Hogwarts." Riley inquired while Fudge wrote out a quick document.
"She was recalled to the Ministry when Dumbledore's body was found. We need her here right now, but she'll return to Hogwarts soon, to finish out the year and keep things in order." Fudge replied as he finished up with the document and then passed it to Riley.
"There. That is your expressed permission to do what needs to be done to find Dumbledore's killer. I want the Auror's and the legion working in tandem on this. If Orochimaru is involved then this is also a military matter, and thus the Auror's aren't enough to handle the threat. I'll await your results before calling a meeting. For now we'll try to keep this quiet." Fudge ordered her. Riley nodded and quickly headed from the room. She made her way to the village where Voldemort and Itachi were waiting for her.
"Itachi, call Inoichi up here, I just got permission from Fudge to perform a mind walk on Dumbledore. That should allow us to see who his killer possibly was." Riley ordered.
With a quick nod, Itachi headed off. Meanwhile Riley and Voldemort held looks of concern.
"This is a surprising turn of events." Voldemort commented.
"Yeah… I never thought the old man would go down so quietly. Sadly he's been dead too long. I can't bring him back. At the very least, we'll see what happened once we get a Yamanaka to search through his mind." Riley replied with a thoughtful look.
"Without Dumbledore, any chance of getting the Light to bow out of this, peacefully, just went out the window." Voldemort stated.
"Maybe. Then again… perhaps we can turn this to our advantage." Riley trailed off at the end as a plan formed in her mind.
"What are you thinking?" Voldemort inquired as he noticed the look on her face. The one that said that Riley was thinking of a way to turn this whole thing around.
"Well… we can launch our plans into action quickly, in a few days. Without Dumbledore, there's no point in wasting time with the Order. If we take the country legally and then deal with Voldemort, they'll probably just go away." Riley explained to him.
Voldemort nodded in agreement with the idea, chances were good that once they completed their plans, The Order of the Phoenix wouldn't be needed anymore.
By that point Itachi and Inoichi appeared and Riley quickly filled the two in with what they were going to do.
Once that was done, Itachi and Inoichi headed out to Hogwarts with a contingent of Legionnaires.
Riley simply sat and meditated while she waited for Inoichi to finish with Dumbledore. She was busy thinking of how close they were to finally having Britain under their control when she remembered something. The school year was almost over. She was supposed to get married to Daphne this summer.
"Crap… I completely forgot about that!" Riley shouted as she shot to her feet in a panic. She knew she'd need to apologize to Daphne as soon as they were finished with this crap. Hopefully her beautiful fiance had been working on the details.
Around this time, Itachi gave her a call, and asked her to meet with them. It seemed that Inoichi was finished with his work.
She quickly returned and found Tom, Itachi, Kakashi, Shikaku, Lucius, Bellatrix, Snape, and Inoichi gathered together. Inoichi was clutching an ice pack to his head, and looked to have a massive headache.
"You alright?" Riley inquired upon seeing him.
"Yeah… just some minor issues, nothing to concern yourself with." Inoichi replied.
"Alright. What did we find?" Riley asked after a moment.
"It was a basilisk's eye, sealed into the snake's mouth. As long as magic isn't flowing through it, the eye is inert, but it must have been sealed with magic in it, since as soon as it appeared in the snake's mouth, and Dumbledore looked over, he dropped dead." Voldemort replied earning a nod of agreement from Inoichi and Snape, whom had viewed Inoichi's memory of the incident.
"A basilisk's eye. So… someone sealed the eye into the snake's mouth. That would have gotten it past the security wards, as most magical wards and barriers are meant to scan for active dangerous magic. Dumbledore would have known about seals, but if the seal was in the Snake's mouth, then I doubt he saw it, and he was probably tired and planned to investigate in the morning. Since it wasn't a venomous or magical snake, he just put it in a cage, thinking it couldn't get out. Then the snake opens it's mouth and a seal activates, and releases a basilisk's eye, Dumbledore hears the sound of it appearing, turns to look, and drops dead." Riley guessed. Again she earned a nod from Inoichi.
"Also… the eye… it was large. Almost the exact same size as the one's we split from the Basilisk's corpse in the chamber of secrets. I still have mine in stasis, yours however..." Snape informed her and trailed off at the end.
"I sold mine to the goblins, since it was the quickest way to get rid of it. Chances are good they put it up for sale to someones else. Probably in auction. I think I read about a large basilisk eye being on auction in the paper, a while back." Riley answered.
"You think Orochimaru bought it?" Itachi inquired.
"No. I think Orochimaru killed who did buy it and took it for himself. It takes Basilisk a long time to grow that big. If professor Snape says that it looks like the one he has, then it's probably the one I sold. Which means that not only did Orochimaru get his hands on it, but he's probably looking for a way to acquire a basilisk or make one. And out in the elemental nations, there is no group to help track the items necessary to make a basilisk." Riley replied with a grimace.
"So… we'll need to be prepared for that man to have multiple Basilisk when we confront him." Itachi noted.
"Yes. Luckily they wont be that big, so we only need to worry about their killing gaze." Voldemort stated.
"Plus, Itachi, as long as you have your Sharingan active, you should only feel a minor amount of pain from a basilisk's killing gaze. I don't know how well the Byakugan will take it, but it's probably the same. Also, since Tom is my familiar as well, and thus has many demonic characteristics I doubt a basilisk's gaze will affect you either." Riley stated to the two, earning nods from both.
"Okay… so… a white snake, meaning it's probably Orochimaru. A basilisk's eye, which is a snake, and we all know how much Orochimaru loves them, and it was a quick and easy assassination of a powerful wizard… are we all of the same mind that this was Orochimaru?" Kakashi inquired.
He earned a chorus of nods and agreements.
"The only thing that doesn't fit Orochimaru's usual schemes, is he didn't take the body. But to be fair I doubt he could have, since it was locked in Dumbledore's office. And while a non magical snake, could be reverse summoned from the office, I doubt someone as powerful as Orochimaru could get in and then out, without being detected by the Hogwarts wards." Voldemort noted, earning more nods of agreement.
"Alright. I'll deliver this information to Fudge. He's probably going to call a meeting of the Wizengamot. I say we use this as our opportunity to get our law passed." Riley stated.
"I agree." Voldemort stated earning several nods.
"You ready Luci? Ready to sit in the big chair?" Bellatrix inquired to Lucius with a chuckle.
"I'm ready. Soon this country will be ours, and then we can focus on Iwa and Oto." Lucius replied with confidence.
"Right." Riley nodded in agreement and quickly departed.
It was less then two hours after that, that the meeting with the Wizengamot was held. They were informed of Dumbledore's death and all hell literally broke loose. While the Light families were terrified and frantic about the who's and why's the Neutrals were more worried about the attack itself and the loss of the Chief Warlock and Supreme Mugwump. The Dark families however, had to try their hardest to keep from breaking into song and dance. While Dumbledore was a powerful symbol and served to elevate Britain in the eyes of the world, his service to the Light and hampering of the Dark led to many in the Dark seeing him as a political enemy.
Riley, Itachi, and Tom were called upon to explain their findings to the Wizengamot. Needless to say, many were furious that once again those from the Elemental Nations had launched another attack. It was right about now that Riley made her move.
"My fellow members of the Wizengamot… if I may speak for a moment. I think now would be the time to speak of something of grave importance." Riley addressed those around her. Without Dumbledore, it was left up to Fudge to guide these proceedings and he quickly called upon her to speak. Her status as a high lord, commander of their military and legendary hero, caused the whole room to silence in an instant.
"Thank you Minister. I wish to address an issue my fellow commanders and I have been fretting over, due to this recent attack. As sad as the loss of Albus Dumbledore is, there are systems in place to keep the country going. His position at Hogwarts, will be filled. His position here, as Chief Warlock, will be filled. And the ICW will elect a new Supreme Mugwump. His death is a tragedy… but we will survive it. But… his very sudden and shocking death has left us questioning our stability in other areas." Riley spoke to the crowd. Her Charisma was at it's peek as she spoke, drawing everyone in with her words.
"What other areas are you referring too, Lord Slytherin, Gryffindor?" Amos Diggory, inquired. In the Wizengamot meetings Riley was known by her lordship titles, and it would be another year or so, before she gained another seat for the Uchiwa name. And it hadn't become public knowledge yet, that she was now the head of the Uzumaki clan, with Minato's death, and she was heir to the Senju clan, due to the title passing to Kushina upon Tsunade's death, since Kushina was the oldest living descendant of Hashirama.
"Well… my own to be blunt. The Legion was tasked by the minister to assist the Auror force in finding Dumbledore's killer. We did that. But the Aurors cant hunt down Orochimaru since he'll most likely be out of the country by now. It falls to the legion to hunt him down." Riley explained.
"Okay… but I'm not seeing the problem." Amos Diggory noted.
"The problem Lord Diggory, is that while the Wizengamot can give orders to the Legion it can only do so when those orders are unanimous. Otherwise, the Minister gives us our orders. Orochimaru has boldly and brazenly attacked and killed one of the strongest Wizards in the world. What happens when he decides to go after Madam Bones? Or what about the Minister? What happens to our command structure if someone takes out the minister? As sad as I am to say it, even if Britain were in dire straights I doubt the Wizengamot could unanimously agree on a course of action, as proven during You-Know-Who's last uprising." Riley explained the issue to them, earning several thoughtful or slightly affronted looks.
"You think Orochimaru might go after the Minister or some other government official next?" Sirius inquired.
"Absolutely. It's what I'd do. Cut off the head and the body can't react. Without the Minister, the Legion has to wait for the Wizengamot to either elect a new minister which could take days, or even weeks, or they have to unanimously agree to a course of action. Who knows what kind of chaos could erupt during that time." Riley replied.
This earned a great deal of chatter from those around, as many whispered to themselves, and Fudge himself actually looked fearful of a possible attempt on his life.
"So what are you suggesting be done about this loophole in our laws? I assume you have an idea?" Madam bones inquired.
"Well… we need our own system in place so that the Legion can continue running, in case something happens to the Minister. The Wizengamot is to variant in it's beliefs to run a military. Some are more militant others more passive. Nothing would get done, and in a crisis, we need to be able to react. Either an official in the ministry must be given the power to run the Legion, should anything happen to the Minister, or the Legion must be able to run itself. I know how this sounds, but picture this… let's say that the Minister is attacked, and ends up in the hospital, and is unable to act as Minister. The Wizengamot is going to immediately devote all of it's energy into electing a new Minister. Control over the Aurors will pass to Scrimgeour while Madam Bones is here. So even while the leader of the Aurors is here, they're still out there working, and hunting down the criminals responsible. The legion cannot legally go out hunting, unless ordered to by the Wizengamot at that point. And you'll all be busy electing a new minister. What we need is a back-up, either control over the legion falls temporarily into someone's hands or the Legion operates on it's own to better the country. Normally I would suggest someone like Madam Bones for this, but she'll be trapped at the Wizengamot." Riley explained her idea to them all. Many looked thoughtful and curious to hear about this. She was right though. Legally there wasn't anything the Legion could do unless they gave the order, if something happened to Fudge.
"You and Lord Gaunt also wouldn't be able to do anything, as you'd be here as well." Lucius noted.
"Yes, that's true. It'd be up to Itachi to run the Legion in our absence. Luckily Tom and I have our subordinates ready to take our places if we're occupied here." Riley replied, earning a nod from Tom.
This earned several curious nods from those around, as it was interesting to here that the commanders of the Legion already had their second-in-commands ready to take their places should the need arise. For Riley, it was Madara, and Tom had Chosen Shikaku, for his brilliance as a strategist. Itachi had chosen Kakashi, since many looked up to the legendary copycat ninja, and they respected him.
There was a thoughtful silence in the room, as those who would be against such an idea, only had one reason as to why, and that was that Riley was giving herself power. But of course, she had just specified that such emergency power would only be needed in a crisis, and of course she said nothing about preventing the Wizengamot from maintaining command, just that someone needed to be chosen to give the legion basic orders, rather then having everything passed through the Wizengamot.
It was during this time the Arturia rose to her feet. The mere action drew everyone's attention, as this was the first time since she had come to the Wizengamot that she would address the room.
"Lady Pendragon? You have something to say?" Fudge inquired.
"Yes. I must admit that the formation of Magical Britain's new military and the new war with Iwa and Oto, is what drew me to reclaim my ancestral seat. It is for that reason, that I must agree with Lady Slytherin, Gryffindor. The Legion must be able to react in emergencies. Only a handful of people in this room have combat or law enforcement experience. In a crisis, the legion must be able to hit the streets and keep order. We can expect that when the news of Albus Dumbledore's death hits the streets there will be panic. Especially since he's spent the last few months trying to convince everyone of the Dark Lord's return. People will assume, and I can guarantee you will all be happy to have the Legion's support on the streets when the people become worried. The same must be true in case of other emergencies. I believe that emergency powers should be granted to the Legion's commanders during a crisis. Absolute power will remain in the hands of the Wizengamot. But they must be allowed to operate autonomously, without our guiding of their every action. We are at war. And while the Legion's purpose is to face our enemies abroad. They will be an invaluable asset to use at home as well. We simply have to ensure that all systems are in place for them to react in a moments notice, without the need for us to hold their hands for everything." Arturia stated to the crowd. Everyone in the room was mesmerized by the commanding tone of her voice. Only a few like Riley and Voldemort, could detect the ancient magic tied to her words. It wasn't a conscious thing, Arturia just held the natural gift of command. She was a king after all.
While it was spoken like a request, to many, it felt like a command given to them by their ruler.
"With that being said. I believe a vote should be made. Here and now." Arturia finished up, her piercing green eyes, almost glowing with power and authority.
"I agree. All those in favor of granting the Legion emergency powers in case of a breakdown in current command? And with the added notes, that while the Legion will be able to act on their own during a moment of crisis all actions are subject to review by the Wizengamot, upon crisis's passing, and that if any unanimous decision on actions is reached, they still represent complete authority, say I." Fudge ordered. The vote was very much in the positive. With Arturia and Riley voting in favor, even if more people had voted against, it wouldn't have mattered. No one voted against the idea, as that would be a very suspicious act. So the few that didn't favor it, just didn't vote.
With that being said, all the details were quickly hammered out. If current leadership was broken, the legion could react on it's own, until new leadership was established. They were allowed to react to any attacks, carry out investigations, or questionings and basically keep the peace or continue military operations without the consent of the minister. All their actions during this time would be subject to review upon a new minister being chosen, and all that good stuff. At the end of the day, the dark had gotten what they wanted and so many of them quickly descended upon Malfoy manor to celebrate, once the news had spread.
-Malfoy Manor-
"Well… that's one issue out of the way. Now we just need to deal with the Ministry and get rid of Fudge." Riley stated, as she stood with Tom, Itachi, Madara, Hashirama, Arturia, Shikaku, Bellatrix, Lucius, Sirius and Snape.
"Yes… Everything is set up for tomorrow. Lord Voldemort will enter the Ministry to try and retrieve the prophecy, get caught and Fudge will be thrown out." Snape informed them, earning a nod for those gathered.
"Ah… I love it when a plan comes together." Riley said with a happy sigh.
Right about then, a house elf appeared next to Lucius, who was quick to kneel down next to the creature so it could whisper something in his ear.
A moment passed before he nodded and with a wave of his wand, all of the music in the room stopped. He then turned to Voldemort.
"My Lord, five individuals bearing a sound note on metal headbands, are here, wishing to speak with you. They must believe I know of your location." Lucius informed the Dark Lord.
Tom gave Riley a look, to which Riley simply grinned in response. With a quick flourish Tom took his snake-like form and marched towards the main chamber. All of the Death Eaters quickly threw on their masks and robes and followed after. Riley and her fellow ninja transformed to look the same.
A few moments after the Dark lord was settled on his thrown, the Sound ninja were escorted in.
Four of them were dressed much like the typical Sound Jonin, while the fifth, and the leader of the group was dressed in a light purple Kimono and dark pants. He had white hair, and had red markings on his face.
"Five sound ninja, come to the Home of Lucius Malfoy looking for me. You must be very well informed." Voldemort stated as the five were led up to him. The four Jonin had their eyes peeled and were watching the large crowd of Death Eater's for sudden movements. The leader, simply looked stoic and focused.
"I am Kimimaro Kaguya. I was sent here with word from my Lord Orochimaru. He wishes to offer this to you as a gift of his service to your cause." Kimimaro stated to Voldemort as he pulled a wand out from his belt. This wand was recognized as Dumbledore's. It was surprising to see it, as Riley hadn't heard that Dumbledore was missing his wand when found. Then again, it wouldn't have surprised her to hear that he carried more then one. So the Aurors probably thought the other one was his actual wand.
A house elf retrieved the wand and carried it up to Voldemort who stared at it for a moment, before taking it. "This… is the wand of Albus Dumbledore. How did you acquire such a thing?" Voldemort asked as he eyed the wand curiously.
"Our Lord took it upon himself to see the man killed. He was a major threat to your uprising. With him gone, you will now have a much easier time capturing this pathetic nation." Kimimaro replied. Hearing him call their nation pathetic, drew a tense shift from the crowd. While the four Sound jonin noticed it, Kimimaro didn't seem to care.
"Orochimaru killed Dumbledore? Now why would he do something like that?" Voldemort inquired, leaning forward in his throne.
"You have plans for this nation. Plans that involve it falling under your command. You also have several things of great value here, that our lord desires. He offers Dumbledore's death as… 'a gesture' of his support to your cause. He has also expressed his desire to assist your takeover of this land, in exchange for certain things. With the help of my Lord Orochimaru, nothing in this land will be able to stop you." Kimimaro stated, speaking reverently about his lord. It was only in those moments did he actually sound alive. Other then that, he sounded bored. Like this was all beneath him.
While most didn't notice it, a few could just barely pick up the scent of death emanating from the Kaguya. He smelled like a rotting corpse.
"And what are these things your Lord desires?" Voldemort inquired with a hum of amusement. These little insects thought they were doing him a favor. He wanted to just laugh outright, but first he wanted for them to dig themselves deeper.
"Firstly… one of the Uchiha. Namely Sasuke Uchiha." At hearing that, Itachi bristled but remained quiet. "Then, genetic samples from any clan ninja you may capture, during your conquest of Britain and your fight against the Shadow Legion. Thirdly, access to the Nine tails. And finally, Naruko Namikaze. In exchange for these things, our lord will provide you with access to his Curse Mark, to enhance your forces. An array of debilitating poisons and diseases that would be useful in taking down the Hero of the Burning Leaf. And access to an array of Ninjutsu, Dark Rituals, and Dark and Black magic our lord has gathered in recent months from all over the world. As well as our peripheral support in taking down the Ministry, the Shadow Legion, and the Auror corp."
Riley had to actually stop herself from bursting out into laughter. People back in the Elemental nations were honestly calling her the 'Hero of the Burning Leaf'? That was awesome. Not only did it announce her as a hero, but it made sure to recognize that Konoha had been fucked. God's she was so going to get that name in the paper and make it official, that was great. And on top of it all… this motherfucker, was a Kaguya. Sometimes… life was just too good to her.
"That is quite the offer. I must say, Orochimaru's assistance would prove invaluable to us. Or it would have in the last war." Voldemort noted as he felt Lucius activate his home's defensive wards. Namely the anti-apparition and portkey wards.
"I do not follow." Kimimaro stated as Voldemort rose from his chair.
"Well you see… this time around, we had certain plans in place. Plans that involved taking over, politically. Plans that have so far only seen two people die. Plans that your Lord's actions threw out of order. You see… we didn't want Dumbledore dead. In fact… he would have been instrumental in keeping the Light faction in order, once we took over. Now though… there's a good chance we'll be dealing with dissidence and disputes for years. Dumbledore was a symbol to the Light side. And without him for them to rally behind… any chance of us getting them to work for Britain's betterment and not their own personal vendetta's is now ruined." Voldemort stated to them, all the while slowly descending from his throne.
"You showed no qualms about using force the last time. With our Lord's help, and without Dumbledore, you will find no issue in conquering this land." Kimimaro stated stoically while his men slowly shifted into battle stances.
"Well… you see… there is a few issues with accepting your lord's help." Voldemort stated as he stood in front of the five.
"Perhaps you can clarify." Kimimaro inquired.
"Well… Firstly..." Voldemort began and then gestured towards Itachi whom removed the transformation and stepped forward. His presence actually caused one of the sound ninja to swear loudly, and Kimimaro's eyes to widen.
"Then… well..." Voldemort continued as all of the Death eaters released the seals on their bodies that held their Legionnaire armor. Seeing that caused all four of the Sound jonin to curse and turn back to back with each other.
"And of course we can't forget..." Voldemort then gestured to Riley whom also removed her transformation and stepped up next to Tom.
"So… as you can see… we don't really need your help." Voldemort finished with a chuckle.
"I see." Kimimaro stated quietly as he glanced around the room. He then let out a sigh. "My Lord will be most displeased." And with that he grabbed a pendant attached to his belt and tried to activate it. His comrades did the same. They all must have had Portkeys. It seemed that Orochimaru really liked that form of magic. Must have seemed like a holy grail for the mother of all cowards.
Sadly for the five Oto nin, with the anti-portkey wards up, they weren't going anywhere.
Shock was apparent on all five of their faces as the room burst with laughter. Condescending cackles of glee filled the room. They all laughed at the five for their blunder. Any magical worth their salt knew that you didn't walk into someones ancient home without showing the utmost of respect. Unless you were vastly more powerful then the homeowner, they could activate defensive wards, that would see you unable to flee, and then you were stuck fighting your way out. It's why magicals never entered into their rivals homes. That was tantamount to suicide.
"You like portkeys don't you? Nice tool to escape with. Gotta watch out for wards that block them though… kinda sucks when you get trapped." Riley stated with a chuckle as she stepped forward.
"I am Lord Orochimaru's most powerful servant. I will kill you and everyone here in his name." Kimimaro growled as bones burst from his arms. Even as they did, Riley could see that his body was barely being held together as is. This guy was a walking corpse. He was quite literally on death's doorstep.
Riley just stared at him for a moment. Then another. Then she giggled. And then she let her demonic features shine through. Jet black wings shot from her back. Jagged teeth filled her mouth. Fire burst forth in her veins, and six tails appeared behind her, swaying menacingly back and forth.
"You are the strongest servant of a coward that is so afraid to die, he'd rape an unborn fetus if it added a day to his life. He's the lowest form of scum in the world, and when I'm done with him, he'll have wished for a natural death. The Shinigami would be a kindness, compared to the hell I'll put him through." Riley snarled out, in a voice that caused many to grin viciously. Her tone of voice, and her Youki released the darkest parts of those around her, and the desire for bloodshed and carnage began to fester and grow. Only two weren't affected. Arturia, due to Excalibur's light, and Hashirama due to his demonic suppressing nature energy.
Seeing her change, all five of the sound ninja felt their jaws drop. They had all heard of her defeat of the Angel of Carnage, and they had assumed that due to her month long coma, she'd still be weak from the fight. Seeing this however, made them realize their mistake.
Even so… Kimimaro would not stand for anyone insulting his lord. He'd fight for Orochimaru's honor, even to the death.
"You will not speak of Lord Orochimaru that way you wretched monster!" Kimimaro yelled as he activated his curse mark and rushed forward. The other four sound nin, moved to also attack, but were almost instantly cut down by Arturia, Hashirama, Voldemort, and Itachi. Four S-Ranked warriors against four Oto Jonin… yeah… it was almost instantaneous. Arturia cut off one of their heads. Voldemort hit one with the killing curse. Hashirama caught one with wood style and broke his neck, and Itachi, in a burst of speed, appeared behind the last and stabbed him in the back.
"Die!" Kimimaro screamed as he entered his second-state curse mark form, formed a massive bone like drill on his arm and stabbed it into Riley's chest. She didn't even bother dodging. She just took the hit, and laughed in his face.
"Did you really think that would work? Bitch… I train with two god-like ninja, and a fucking Archdemon, every day of my fucking life. Did you really think rushing forward and hitting me with all you've got, would work? You've got one foot in the fucking grave already. Once upon a time you might have been a great warrior, but now… you're nothing more then a corpse, just waiting to die." Riley cackled at him. Kimimaro glared at her and began to try and pull his arm out, but Riley held it in place.
Kimimaro soon started to punch Riley in the face, trying to get her to release him. It was about now that he began to hear a sizzling noise. He glanced down at the bone sticking out of her chest, and saw smoke rising from it. Another moment went by and he started to feel heat around his hand. He had shoved his bone-drill so deeply into her chest, that his actual hand was also in her chest as well.
"Release me!" He shouted as he punched her again, and tried to pull away. Riley didn't reply, she just kept smiling. It was then that Kimimaro felt a liquid hit his hand, and then… nothing but searing pain. He grit his teeth as pain wracked through his hand. He felt burning unlike anything he had endured before.
With a roar of anger Kimimaro ripped his arm back, and this time, he actually pulled away. However… he left something behind. He watched in disbelief as his bone-drill melted away in her body and the wound quickly healed. The pain in his hand had diminished, and it was now only a strong burning pain in his wrist. He glanced down at his hand and his eyes widened in disbelief. His hand was gone, a puddle of boiling goo, was on the floor beneath him.
He glanced up at Riley and found her slowly approaching him, the massive hole he had punched through her chest, had completely healed. "My Chakra is poisonous and highly acidic. My Blood is on fire. What else do you have?" Riley inquired with a smirk.
Kimimaro stared for a moment then another then he flashed through handsigns and slammed his remaining hand onto the ground.
A sea of bone spikes shot out of the ground and rushed in every direction. Everyone in the room shot back in surprise as the attack rushed towards them. Before it could reach them however, Riley made an upward motion with her hand that sent Kimimaro flying into the ceiling. She then made a downward motion and he slammed into the ground.
Kimimaro was quickly back to his feet but Riley was on him in a flash, using her tails to spear through his arms and legs, and hold him in place, a Chakra Disruption Rod Shot from her palm and she slammed it into his chest, effectively cutting him off from his chakra, and causing the curse mark to recede.
"Don't worry, Kaguya… your master will be joining you soon." Riley stated with a smile.
"You'll never defeat Lord Orochimaru, Monster!" Kimimaro spat as he struggled to escape.
"Defiant to the end. I'll be sure to tell your master that when I kill him. Goodbye Kimimaro Kaguya… and thank you for bringing me one step closer to my grandmother." And with that, she placed her hand on his chest, and pulled his soul out.
She felt his powers flow into hers, and just like before, with the Uchiha/Hyuuga root hybrids, she felt her power change. She felt her skin ripple and her bones ache. The pain only lasted a few moments, but it finally ceased and she allowed Kimimaro's corpse to fall to the ground. She had been correct about how close he was to death. He had a month, probably less, to live. Orochimaru had sent him here, because he was expendable.
While Riley began to sift through the knowledge she had gained from the Kaguya, she found bits of Orochimaru's memories as well. It took her only a few moments to realize that the curse mark, held a bit of Orochimaru's soul. She quickly set about separating Orochimaru's soul fragment from Kimimaro, once separated, she stopped herself from fully absorbing it, as she'd learned some interesting things from Soul Magic, that she could do with a piece of someones soul.
While that was going on, those around her were staring at the changes to her body. She hadn't yet seemed to notice them, but they did.
"So that's new." Madara commented.
Riley glanced over at him and he gestured to her tails. She looked down and found them to be different. Where once they were skin colored, and whip-like, now they were covered with some sort of murky blackish, scales. She reached out and touched one, and instantly recognized the feeling. It was rubbery, and smooth. She recognized it as cartilage.
The way it was set up, it almost looked like her tails were covered in scales, as they went from smooth to being covered in inch long, oval shaped bumps that covered her tails from tip to base. While it made her tails thicker, it did nothing to dampen their flexibility, the cartilage like scales, bent and twisted with ease. The five tendrils at the end of each tail, had a row of these scales running along their outside so while together they formed together nicely, but once separated they revealed the skin colored tail beneath. Channeling chakra through her tails, saw all of the scales suddenly stand on end.
With chakra passing through them, all of the scale started to jut out, looking very much like a thinner version of the Samehada. When channeling chakra, Riley realized that she could make the soft rubbery scales flex outward and harden. This caused them to become like spikes, that jutted from her tails, and pointed out towards it's base. And all it took was to relax and the scales would settled back down, and return to their squishy soft forms.
Two thoughts passed through Riley's mind as she examined this new addition. The first was that she could now shred her opponents much like the Samehada could. And the second was that her tails now had a new texture to them, and she was very much looking forward to using them on her mates. Letting out a perverse chuckle she filed that thought away for later. She then noticed everyone staring at her, and those close by were leaning closer almost as it to get a better look at something. She noticed them all staring at her head.
"What?" Riley inquired as she reached up and touched her head. The first thing she felt was a hard bone like structure protruding from just above her hairline. She quickly conjured a mirror in front of her and spotted the new additions.
On top of her head, Riley now sported eight small horns, each was about as thick as a man's thumb. The first two, sat just above her hairline. They were about two inches long and jet black, they jutted out from the top of her head at an angle and curved upward and back.
Then, running along the sides of the top of her head, were three more sets, they all set at about the same height on her head each one sitting at just above the hairline. These six were only about an inch long. The first set was hallway between her forehead and ears. The second was directly above her ears and the final set was at the back of her head. All six jutted out a bit and then curved upward, and to anyone looking, the eight small horns almost formed a crown on top of her head, and with their color they matched her hair color almost perfectly.
"Wicked." Riley muttered as admired her new changes.
"So you grew horns, like Kaguya? Why are they black?" Kurama inquired from her mindscape.
Riley made a face at that, and drawing from Kimimaro's memories she manipulated her bones, and forced one to burst out of her wrist. To her surprise it came out black. She ran her fingers along the bone. It still felt like bone, but it also felt a bit like metal. It took her a moment to realize just why that was. It seems that her bones had fused with the metal in her Chakra Disruption Rods. While her magic flowed freely through them, she felt the ambient magic in the air, flow away from her bone.
"Adaptation of an Archdemon. I now have bones that negate any magic that isn't my own. Awesome." Riley stated aloud as the bone retracted into her arm.
There was silence in the room for a short while before finally Itachi spoke. "What are we going to do with them?" He inquired while gesturing to the five corpses.
"We'll toss their corpses into the sea. Orochimaru will have felt Kimimaro's death through the destruction of the Curse mark." Riley replied earning several nods of agreement.
"Well… now we know for sure who was responsible." Sirius commented as a few Death Eater's carried the bodies out of the room.
"Yeah. Well… we have Britain's takeover in a few days. Once that's out of the way, we can go after that Snake bastard." Riley stated earning some nods and chuckles of agreement.
From there, Riley slipped into Kamui with Hashirama, Madara, and Arturia. Once there she spent the better part of a week, in Kamui training in the use of Dead Bone Pulse. Just as she had guessed, her bones were now made of the same Chakra disrupting materials as the Rods produced by the Rinnegan. All of her Bone release, abilities blocked magic, which actually gave Riley a reliable weapon to use against Excalibur. As the blade's magic wouldn't cut through her bones now. Still would cut her if she got injured, but she now had a way to block the Holy strikes without feeling sick afterward. This of course allowed her to finally practice in combat with Arturia.
Needless to say the two were finally able to bond through training, since Riley actually had a means of avoiding the holy light energy of the blade.
Using Kimimaro's memories, Riley became quite proficient in the use of Dead Bone Pulse and it quickly became something she favored in combat.
Madara and Kurama quickly came to hate her use of the abilities as in Madara's case, a single stab and he was down for count, and Kurama found his form constantly disrupted when he was hit with one of her Bones, as they negated his Youki and would actually cause him to bleed chakra for a short while whenever he was hit. None of them could deny the adaptation had increased the lethality of Riley's abilities, still didn't stop them from being annoyed at having to serve as the test dummies.
While a week passed in Kamui a single night went by in the real world.
-The Next Day-
"I am so sorry." Riley stated on her knees in front of Daphne.
"It's alright. With how busy we've been these last few months I barely remembered either." Daphne replied with a sympathetic smile. Truthfully, Daphne had only half been telling the truth. While her up and coming marriage to Riley had been something that always seemed so far off, and thus something that didn't need to be worried about, Daphne had been feeling the twinge of excitement as the days drifted by and that fateful day approached.
"What are they doing over there?" Katie inquired as she, and Luna, noticed Riley on her knees in front of Daphne, apologizing profusely.
"I think Riley forgot she was supposed to be getting married. Honestly, I think Daphne forgot too." Luna replied.
"Wow… the year is almost over, isn't it?" Katie mused aloud as Riley shot to her feet and scooped Daphne into her arms, earning a yelp of surprise from the Ice Queen.
"Hey! I said I wasn't mad." Daphne yelped out with a blush.
"No! I shouldn't have forgotten, that is unforgivable! I'll make it up to you, I promise. We'll have the best wedding ever! I'll get into contact with your parents tonight and help them plan." Riley stated and she held Daphne in her arms.
"Well… I think my mom got a lot of it planned out already, so there shouldn't be much left to do. And you don't have to keep apologizing, we've both been busy." Daphne tried to argue but Riley wasn't listening.
"I wont hear it! I forgot about the upcoming happiest day of our lives together, and I need to properly apologize." Riley argued.
"It's still like three months away. If it had only been a week then I'd be a little mad. Calm down." Daphne got out as Riley held her in her arms.
"But Daphne… I need to apologize. We're going to be married soon. I should be ravishing you endlessly. In fact… I underwent a few changes yesterday, that you may enjoy." Riley whispered in Daphne's ear earning a bright blush from the Slytherin.
"Well… I… I guess I could… deal with a bit of ravishing." Daphne muttered with a crimson blush. Riley smiled brightly and shot a look over at her other mates. The two quickly headed over and Riley pulled them into Kamui intent on taking them back to her house, and gathering up Fleur for a night of enjoyment.
Later that day, news spread that Voldemort himself had been spotted at the Ministry. A Wizengamot meeting was called, and Riley found herself back in those chambers. Everyone was arguing and throwing blame around. Fudge was struggling with damage control and without Lucius, or Riley to guide him, he was floundering.
"How could I have known? Dumbledore seemed like a madman. Dumbledore seemed like he was grasping at straws in his old age. I thought he was just trying to gain attention. How could I have known?" Fudge argued with Lady Longbottom.
"Well… the claims could have at least been investigated." Riley stated loud enough for the room to hear.
"You were one of those that disregarded the claim as falsehood! You're as much to blame as anyone else!" Fudge pointed the finger at her, but Riley quickly turned it around.
"I simply stated that it sounded more like an Iwa ruse to me. I was wrong. And… I'm not the one who spent the last few months slandering Albus Dumbledore as he tried to warn people. I may not have believed him, but all that shows is that I'm not perfect. You, Minister, devoted ministry resources to slandering the man in the paper. You wouldn't even investigate his claims." Riley fired back, causing many eyes to turn towards Fudge. His year long tirade against Dumbledore had finally come back to bite him and Riley was about to place the final nail in the coffin. "And furthermore, I find your attempts to ridicule a deceased man, who turned out to be correct, to be childish and belligerent."
That turned all attention towards Fudge.
By the following morning, news had spread of Voldemort's return and Fudge's reaction. Once people heard that Dumbledore was right and that even now, Fudge thought he was a madman, it pretty much sealed it for the Minister. He was out of office later that day. Most likely terrified of the mob that would form, in case he remained.
Of course, with his impeachment, another meeting of the Wizengamot was called and Riley was forced to attend again.
While that was going on, the Legion took full use of it's new found power. Itachi led Legionnaires into Diagon and Knockturn Alley and began to search every business known to have ever associated with the dark lord or his followers.
News of this strong-armed search hit the Wizengamot a few hours later, and many thought things could spiral out of control if things weren't handled quickly.
Within Eight hours, Lucius was elected as Minister. The Light didn't like it, but they knew that they needed to get the Legion out of Diagon Alley and more into the country-side to search for Voldemort. The Legion was too forceful in their search and while they didn't trample anyone's rights, their presence was scaring the people.
Lucius' first act as Minister was to order the Capture or death of the Dark Lord. The Legion was dispatched to the countryside and the Auror's moved into the Alley to calm the people.
Two days later. The legion commander's entered into the Wizengamot chambers. They stood before the gathered crowd of lords and proclaimed that the dark lord had been found and killed.
He had been found in Riddle Manor. And Riley provided memories of her personal battle with the Dark Lord. He was strong, but against someone who took down the Angel of Carnage, it surprised no one that she could beat Voldemort. When asked how she found him so quickly, Riley explained that she had the ability to sense dark emotions, and once she knew that Voldemort was back, she just targeted the biggest bundle of hate in the country and moved against him.
Once Voldemort was dead, the Dark Mark disappeared and many Death Eaters found themselves in St. Mungos. The army of psychopaths played the parts of broken and terrified people whom were forced against their wills to do what the monster Voldemort commanded. With so many accounts, it didn't take long for people to buy into the story, and plus, Tom made sure to note to people that Dumbledore always believed that the Death Eater's could be redeemed. In death, the old man had been proven right, and that was enough for a lot of people.
Of course, people were terrified of seeing people like the Lestrange's on the streets and fights did break out, but the 'freed' Death Eaters played the part of broken people whom had suffered under the control of a madman, and they played it well.
Later, Riley, Tom, Itachi, Madara, Hashirama, and Lucius sat in the Minister's office all making a cheers to their victory.
The country now belonged to them. And while the Order of the Phoenix was still around and having meetings, they were more just watching to make sure that Voldemort was truly gone. In every way that mattered, the dark had won. They may not have had the easy rode ahead that they had planned on, but regardless. The country was now theirs.
It was a week after the takeover that Riley and Arturia received a royal missive. It seems the queen wanted to meet them both. Obviously… things weren't going to be settling down anytime soon.
It was late at night, the night prior to her meeting, when Riley felt a presence enter her room. Her mates were clustered around her, and she immediately became protective of them. She scanned the room and found nothing. Even with her mighty eyes she couldn't detect anything that could be nearby. Suddenly she heard a whisper in the back of her head… and it said just one word.
"Father."
-To Be Continued-
Alright there you go. Going to meet the Queen next chapter, and intro Alucard. Then we've got the wedding to play with, and finally this mystery voice. Let me know what you think and sorry it took so long, I've been busy and a bit sick. For those that may complain, remember, Kimimaro was still dying of sickness, and was succumbed to his disease during his fight with Lee and Gaara. In this story he wouldn't have been able to stand for even a moment against Riley. I hope you enjoy her new demonic changes with her tails and horns. Look forward to the next chapter. Ja Ne!