Chapter Forty-Two - The War Begins
"Naruto."
He looked around for the voice but nothing beyond his body can be seen within a world filled with eigenlicht. "Who's there?"
"Who I am does not matter. My questions do."
Silence. Naruto decided that at this point he will not say anything until he knows the intentions of whoever occupies the world surrounding him. He had no choice with these limitations, and he didn't doubt a god was wanting to test or mess with him for his adolescence in the Divine circles. They still looked at him like he was a child, after all, so it was not that outstanding of an assumption.
"What do you plan to create? What is your end goal?"
Naruto is silent as he contemplates the question and a proper answer. "I plan to create a large family with my loves. I wish to create a world free of war, and I will achieve that even if I have to keep a blade brandished at the throats of others. Metaphorically, of course."
"Of course," the voice repeated monotonously. "Is that your only end goal?"
"For now," Naruto answered simply. "Until I know my family is in a safe world, and my children and any future generations do not have to face what I and so many others had to, I will not think solely for myself.
The voice did not make any sound that would show approval or not. "There are many enemies between now and then. You will face a lot. What will you do when you face them, pursuing your dream, but also maintaining not just your position as Prince but the divine Prince Who Mantles Heaven's Will?"
"It is not hard to do both," Naruto answered but he was now much more wary of the voice. "To be the Prince of Uzumaki is to be responsible for my people and for my allies. To be the Prince Who Mantles the Will of the Heavens is to maintain the balance of life and death, rebirth, balance, and continuation of life. My responsibilities as Prince of Uzumaki are now for the whole world and then some."
"A nice perception, but life can be very different. I wish you luck, young Prince, and hope to see you succeed in your endeavours."
Amegakure, Land of Rain
Pein sat alone in silence, staring blankly at his desk. His other Paths were asleep as he no longer needed them, and Yahiko's body would be too if it weren't for his inability to detach from his old friend. He knows that his attachment is purely sentimental, to see his friend live and achieve their dreams, if only symbolically.
He knows his friend has been long dead in this world, dying at the hands of Hanzo the Salamander and Danzo Shimura and his organisation. But inside his body is created as a Path by the Statue, he felt like his friend could continue living with him and Konan. He wanted so badly to get revenge, only achieving one of the two deaths that he held responsible.
He was surprised when he learned that the old veteran was killed by none other than a squad sent by his clan's old home, on orders by his blonde kin. The next Prince and the one responsible for the rebuilding of Uzushio. It was a mixed bag of feelings for the man as he was silently proud to hear of his family living but there was also a threat left on the table.
He learned of multiple distant relatives being kidnapped and brought to Uzushio, taken from their homes involuntarily and without a trace. He was expecting it to be tried on him as well, keeping his Paths on standby for countless nights through many month. But it never came. There was no attempt.
A part of him wanted to sneer and say his cousin was a coward and feared facing him, but even his mind knew that was not true. There was no attempt not due to fear but because the Prince knew of his true body. The letter from a week ago just solidified that thought. So it was due to intelligence that an attempt was not made.
But, Pein clenched his hand as his eyes narrowed further in thought.
They will never have to face each other, Pein was sure of it. Uzushio will go back to being a footnote in history and Akatsuki's plans will continue unhindered once more.
"Lord Pein."
The man looked up to see Zetsu's partial body sticking out of the ground. "What is it, Zetsu?"
"A problem. With the attack on Uzushio!"
Pein gave no outward indication of his inner feelings but he waved his hand. "What happened?"
"There seems to have been an issue-" White Zetsu gave a nervous and stuttering explanation but Black Zetsu sighed. "It failed horribly and we lost contact with everyone involved."
Pein's eyes widened only a fraction before turning to the plant being. "Do you mean to tell me that everyone died?!"
The White Zetsu cowered but the Black Zetsu did not flinch as he answered. "We could not see it for ourselves but only a fragment of the Wandenreich that invaded made it out. Our people did not."
"The invasion was cut short because of another group attacking the Wandenreich support camp!" White Zetsu shouted in clear panic.
"The ones involved were two different groups but their objective was the same."
Pein clenched his hand tightly, but Nagato himself was at a loss of breath at the revelation. He just lost his last friend at the hand of his kin. His own choice made him lose her. He chose to instigate a war and he sent her to fight for him. If only he went-
No, Nagato told himself with a steeled resolve. It is the Prince's fault for being greedy. He made the choice to make enemies. I will avenge her and make him suffer.
"What do you order, Lord Pein?"
"For now, get in contact with Daimyo Ichijo and update him on the events. Until we hear from the Emperor and meet with him we do not do anything that can set the world's eyes on us. Tell Sasori and Deidara to go back to bounty hunting. I will find more recruits."
"Understood."
Two hours ago
Memorial Park
"This is a first," Jugram grunted as he got up from his kneeling position. "No one has ever been able to overwhelm Freund like this before. It is quite chilling, if I am honest."
Naruto said nothing as he suffered more consequences for his last attacks on the man. A bright, hot liquid leaked from his wounds and his crown was chipped and fractured due to his excessive injuries. He was surprised that someone would be able to take every divine-enhanced attack he has delivered as no mere mortal can do so. Only those with the blood or blessings of divines can do such a feat.
Divines are on a completely different level as it stands, as they are quite literally the rulers of their existences, and to compare them to the Father and Mother's Angels was an even bigger chasm. Demigods have the blood of divines and even if it can be considered "muddy" compared to their divine parent it is only a fraction of a difference depending on how much the blood and powers are nurtured.
That left Naruto with the assumption that the Emperor that the Wandenreich follow must be a very powerful demigod who has trained and honed his divine blood heritage to the point that those bestowed with blessings can stand up against other divines. He didn't like it and it only made him more concerned for his people.
"I guess you are realising that you are poorly matched against my Emperor," Jugram stated exhaustedly, now standing tall to stare down the Prince. "I tried to convey that with words, but for twisted individuals such as you and your people you only understand action and violence. If it means anything, you are a respectable opponent even for a heretic. I wish your family a quick and painless death."
"If you do anything to my family," Naruto stood to his feet and was letting his wounds rapidly heal. "I will make your afterlife filled with misery. I will tear your soul apart until not even the Father and Mother can repair you."
Jugram sighed and shook his head. "Defiant to the last. You can't do anything in your state!"
Naruto took deep breaths as he finished healing and he was about to attack the man once more when a new burst of power appeared within his sensing range. These powers are familiar, however, and he couldn't hold back the devilish smirk on his twisted face. "Just in time!"
That's when Jugram finally felt the spiking powers coming from the Enforcers Headquarters building that he sent five of the Sternritter to handle. Did the Captains finally come out to fight or did something else get summoned? He could only assume how many abominable tricks the Uzumaki had up their sleeve and he wouldn't doubt they would call for the help of demons like the Konoha-nin are utilizing.
"I guess this is as good as any time to demand your surrender one last time," Naruto spoke and gained the man's attention once more. "You do not want to find out how angry my Fourth Division Captain and officers can get."
Jugram was about to scoff at the horrible threat and shoot back a retort but he was stopped by a shout.
"Lord Haschwalt!" A soldat scout came running through the blue portal, his uniformed messed up and blood leaking from his busted eyebrow. "Lord Haschwalt! We are being attacked!"
Jugram looked at the scout in surprise. "What do you mean?"
"We were protecting the ritual circles when we were suddenly bombarded with some kind of magical artillery! We hard holding the line but we can't guarantee the safety of the rituals. They can be shut down and you'll be cut off here!"
Naruto was listening to the report, wanting to find as much information as he can on how his enemy was transporting the invasion force as well as who they were upset to cause so much concern. He didn't have anyone that would help in such short notice; Konoha would have to mobilize the moment they realised and he doubted they had investigated the buildup on their coast. Suna is too far away and handling politics with Roran. Kiri was in no position to assist in such a large-scale invasion.
"Legion."
"Signal the retreat, it seems the Prince had more than a few surprises for us," Jugram commanded the scout with a brief stare at Naruto. "This will not be the last you see of us, Prince Uzumaki. We were only the start to a greater war. You will die, that much is inevitable."
Naruto cackled as the blonde man turned his back on him. "I don't know what's funnier. The fact you think I have a plan for everything, even a secret invasion, or the fact that you think your people are leaving this place alive!"
That's when multiple new figures arrived in the Memorial Park, stalling the various fights raging. The pressure made quite a few of the Konoha-nin and invaders begin to sweat, especially when they turned their gazes on the newcomers.
Sasuke's golden gaze turned under his halo to look at the closest man, Ajisai doing the same as she breathed deeply from her tough battle, and the two of them were surprised to see a slender man. He is dark-skinned with plain white glasses over his eyes, but Shikamaru can see that the man is blind despite showing no difficulty seeing. With a long zanpakuto in his hand, and a weird ring connected to the rainguard, Shikamaru was already discerning the dangerous capabilities of the simple weapon.
Shikamaru and his opponent, an exact copy of Asuma but really one of the Wandenreich who shapeshifted, turned to look at the man closest to them. He is a large man with black hair and an eyepatch over his right eye. A pink-haired girl was on his shoulder and was looking down on them with an equally furious look on her childlike face. His sword is massive, being a large war cleaver that was as wide and tall as the man without including the two-foot-long handle.
However, standing on a memorial stone above Konohamaru and his two remaining opponents is the last man and the one producing the most pressure. Despite the calm smile on his face and pristine glasses over his brown eyes, the man stood like an imposing figure above the rest. He was like a punishing god, or a vengeful spirit, to everyone there. And it did not take much for many of them to realise that this man was familiar.
Sasuke and Shikamaru had met this man in passing once, and Jugram knew him as one of the biggest threats loyal to the Uzumaki Prince. This man is Sosuke Aizen, the Captain of the Fourth Division. The Prince's Zealot, is what the soldat and some Sternritter call him.
"About time you arrived, Captain Aizen," Naruto acknowledged the man and he could see the man doing everything he could to not bow in forgiveness. "Handle this for me. Quickly."
Sosuke's eyes opened slowly and his calm gaze turned apathetic, almost condescending as he stared at the blonde leader of the invasion. "As you command, my Prince."
"Shatter."
The whisper was like the cracking of glass, a clap of thunder bouncing in the ears of everyone in the Park, and the world shimmered but only Naruto and Shikamaru had been able to notice the change.
Jugram's eyes widened when he noticed more of the brunette man appearing all around the Park. It was like he was cloning himself without the use of magic or chakra and in a matter of moments he was completely surrounded. Even the soldat that came running through the pillar of blue energy were subsequently killed and replaced with even more clones.
"What's wrong, invader?" Sosuke asked with a smile. "Are you not going to fight anymore?"
Jugram gripped the handle of his longsword and looked at the one that spoke, the original. He was very unsure of what to make of this, as the Fourth Division was the mad dogs of the Prince but was the only ones that he did not account for as they were in Gaal up until this very moment. Even his Emperor did not think they would make it back in time and had not shared any information on the Enforcers' powers and abilities.
Why is everything going wrong? What happened?
"If you will not attack first, then I will," Sosuke told him before one of the clones dashed forward.
Jugram parried the blade and cut the clone in half, watching as blood sprayed out and the two pieces fell to the ground. That was when he noticed that it was like he was fighting a real person. But how? If these are illusions, then it shouldn't feel so real. Unless these are true clones similar to that of the Shadow Clones used by some of the more powerful shinobi of this continent.
"Aizen."
The cold, evil tone sent shivers up and down Jugram's spine and he turned to look at the heathen Prince but found the man's attention was not on him but the Captain.
"You are still holding back. I said quickly!"
The blonde's voice boomed when he shouted at the end, causing the world to shimmer once more but was unnoticeable to the eyes of the Sternritter commander.
Sosuke bowed to his Prince, his face now marred with a frown. "I apologise, my Prince, I didn't mean it in that way. I was underestimating their power still."
That was when the world seemed to change once more. The countless clones around him faded until only two remained, the both of them pulling out the zanpakuto in their sheathe, and everyone else other than the Prince and original Captain disappeared from his senses as if being washed away in the sea. He could not hear or feel anything different, nothing to tell him that a technique casted an illusion over him or got rid of his soldiers. As far as he could tell, everything was exactly the same as before.
He moved his Freund on instinct to block the sudden attack from one of the clones, gritting his teeth as the force pushed him back slightly, before swinging his longsword at the next clone to appear next to him. He was able to score a shallow slash across the man but he watched as not only the balance from his shield was ignored but the sword slash healed rapidly before his very eyes. He felt his stomach drop.
"Disappointing." The clone that was unbothered by the power of the Balance said with a smirk and sent another slash at the man. "I expected more. To think that such a small fry like you would cause my god so many problems. I will rid him of you and the other ants that dare to invade his home."
Jugram felt a cut across his cheek as he barely dodged a slash aimed for his head and he dashed backwards to get some distance between him and the clone. The cut healed easily, helped by the Balance, but the clone continued to ignore the punishment he should be facing from the Freund. This is such a pain. What is the trick of his sword?
Jugram's eyes looked at the original Sosuke, seeing the man looking down on them with cold apathetic eyes that glinted with a sick enjoyment. That's when he decided to take a gamble and sent two quick slashes at the two clones, beheading them, and he dashed towards the true Fourth Division Captain without letting the clones recover. His sword thrust forward through the chest of the surprised man, spraying blood violently.
"You lose," Jugram told the man with a narrowed gaze and twisted his sword.
Sosuke gasped briefly as blood dribbled from the corner of his mouth, before a smirk grew across his bloodied lips.
That was when Jugram felt everything change in his senses. The newfound smell of blood, and taste of copper, invaded him the most and he was not prepared for the sight that befell him. No longer did he have Sosuke impaled on his longsword but he was now staring into the eyes of the Akatsuki woman. Her eyes were wide and looked at him in betrayal.
"Y-you bastard." Ajisai gasped as she pushed herself off of the man's sword.
No longer was the Park empty but now filled by countless dead bodies of his soldat, drenching the ground in blood and their mutilation staining the air with the taste of metal. Royd Loyd lay on the ground in a puddle of his blood where one of the clones once were and BG9 was now completely destroyed without his head where the other clone should have been.
"Tsk tsk tsk," Sosuke shook his head and dropped down from the monument a few yards away from the blonde man. "Here, I was hoping to eliminate all of you together."
Jugram stepped back and looked around as he tried to regain his senses of what had just happened. How was he tricked? Why did he not notice anything even with the blessings of his Emperor?
He grit his teeth and turned to glare at the Prince. This isn't over.
Jugram disappeared forward into the pillar of flame before any of the people could stop him.
Sosuke was about to pursue the retreating man when his Prince commanded him to stop.
"Let him go. We won and the invaders are in retreat, so we will take this time to take care of our people. They come first."
Sosuke gave a glance at the blue pillar of flame just as a loud whistle began sounding all around the city before nodding his head to his leader. "As you command, Prince-sama."
Naruto watched as Sosuke got on his knees and bowed to him deeply, causing the other three Division Four Enforcers to do the same.
"I am sorry for not arriving earlier and killing the invader."
"Do not be sorry,," Naruto smiled softly at the Captain and put a hand on his shoulder. "They are strong. So we will have to get stronger. Learn from this instead of punishing yourself. That goes for all of you."
"Prince-sama is so kind!" Yachiru giggled.
Naruto nodded his head before turning to look at his companions that were fighting their own battles until the Fourth Division's arrival. Shikamaru looked haggard from his fight with the copycat, taking off the mask and powering down to his normal state. Konohamaru was reigning in the powers that ripped the two of the four Akatsuki members apart, fighting back the possible rampage he could enter if he lost control. His Visored squad lost a few members in their fight with the polymorph machine-man.
"Naruto." Sasuke approached with the severely wounded and unconscious body of Ajisai, dropping her on the ground in front of the transformed man. "I recognized her from the Chunin Exams years ago. I kept her as alive as I could with the little healing techniques I know but she will need medical attention if she is to survive."
Naruto nodded his head before motioning to Zaraki and Yachiru. "Bring her to the prison cells. After that, go help clear the village of any stragglers."
"What about your family?" Sasuke asked, mostly out of concern for his sister.
"Lieutenant Ichimaru is already handling them right now," Sosuke told the smaller boy with a respectful smile. "The Fourth Division isn't the Prince's most loyal for nothing. He and his family are our priority even above our own lives."
With that said, Zaraki and his daughter left with Ajisai to carry out their orders while Sosuke left with Kaname to kill the straggler invaders.
It was quiet for a bit as Naruto simply felt his Souls consume more and grow from the retreating soldat while Sasuke was still stunned with how convicted the Captain and his Lieutenants were.
"Are all of your Enforcers this loyal?"
"The Fourth Division is filled with fanatic believers," Naruto answered simply and quickly.
"Right," Sasuke sweatdropped but accepted the explanation.
Royal Compound
Karin was healing Tayuya of the constant strain put on her body from maintaining the summoning technique. She was just grateful that the A-rank Akatsuki squad was wiped out quickly from Kushala Daora as she was sure that she would not be able to focus on healing her while also fighting them off. Why couldn't I have better control of my Divine powers?
Retsu sent another blood slash at the masked Wandenreich man, her eyes cold and dead as she focused on nothing but killing her enemy. She would never admit it, not to herself or to others, but something inside her was screaming at her to lose herself. Consume the area with her bankai and torture the man in front of her. She held herself back.
"Fear."
Retsu ignored the coming manifestation that wracked her subconscious. She understood his power after the first manifestation caught her off guard; seeing her dead daughters gave her a lot of pause but now that she broke out of it, fighting off the tiny creatures created by his powers.
Tsunade smashed the swarm of papers, coating her body and fists with chakra to prevent any more thin cuts from the surprisingly sharp papers. She wasn't sure what kind of lesser wood style this is, but she wanted to incapacitate the young woman. It wasn't often people came back from the grave let alone give you the fight of your life.
Tssss!
Tsunade held her arms over her chest and face and jumped back in time to avoid the exploding tags mixed with the other papers. There were little other types of attacks against her but she doubted there was much you could do with paper control.
"Give up, Tsunade," Konan stated from her position in the air. Half of her body is missing as it formed into the countless swarms of papers. "You have no hope of defeating me with brute strength."
"One of us will tire out quicker than the other," Tsunade smirked at the young woman. "I am a Legendary Sannin. I have gained my powers not from my blood of Uzumaki and Senju but from hard work. I am a field doctor first and foremost, but these hands also know destruction!"
Suddenly, a loud whistling can be heard from the blue teleportation pillar. The soldat whipped around at the sound and without pause they turned tail and ran away.
Konan was shocked by the sudden turn of events and turned to As and Loyd. "What's going on?!"
"Jugram called for a retreat," As mumbled as he turned back to his opponent. "We will be leaving."
Retsu sent three rapid blood slashes at that statement. "No you are not!"
Kushala Daora roared a blue flame in the retreating men and while most of the soldat were burned the two Sternritter protected themselves.
Konan summoned her paper back to her and was about to retreat as well but she was suddenly surrounded by dark purple cherry blossoms. She felt dizzy as she stumbled forward, falling on the ground with a loud thud, and she looked around with unfocused eyes. She was blinking slowly and the last thing she saw was a silver-haired man glaring down at her with a dark smile.
Retsu was surprised with the appearance with Fourth Division's second-in-command and his utilisation of the Hakufuku Kido technique. "Ichimaru! Has the Fourth Division finally arrived?"
"Indeed," Gin smiled and bowed to the elder. "Just in time too, huh?"
"You can say that," Retsu answered as she turned to Isane and Izumi and their children.
She was relieved to see them safe and with that relief her adrenaline came crashing down and she collapsed on the ground. The fight took a lot out of her compared to back when she was the Captain of Ashina's Fourth Division. Maybe she had lost her touch all these years later but she knew that was only part of the problem. This new generation is dangerous. Are we prepared?
Wandenreich Invasion Camp
Jugram had gone from one hell to another the moment he exited the teleportation pillar. The camp that was maintaining the invasion was in chaos as fire raged and turned the night sky orange and the soldat auxiliary and main forces were trying to combat a prepared enemy. He noticed heavy metal bullets arcing through the air and impacting the camp in a fiery explosion, but he could feel the magic in these attacks and knew this was no ordinary artillery.
"Lord Haschwalth!" A soldat saluted the man. "Most of the invasion team has returned, but a large number of the soldat were trapped on Uzushio the moment the ritual portals failed. We are also missing BG9, Giselle, Jerome, Mask, and Berenice. The Akatsuki mercenaries are all unaccounted for."
"Forget them. The weak will die to make room for the strong and we gain strength for it. Prepare the evacuation talismans. Anyone not with the squads will be left behind and assumed deceased."
"Yes, Lord Haschwalth!"
The blonde man watched the soldat leave before turning his head over his shoulder to look at the blaze inferno consuming his military camp. "Come out now."
There wasn't a sound for a moment and he almost thought he was hearing things when movement could be seen from the other side of the flames. A young woman walked through it calmly, her apathetic one-eyed gaze turning looking at him but also beyond him.
The black eyepatch over her left eye is obscured by her light blue hair but he can see the emotionless full of her other eye that looked golden in the firelight. She wore a medical gown that was accented and designed with golden ribbons along her arms and black wrappings covered both of her forearms. She carried a large notebook filled with various artworks that ranged from one colour to the other.
"Are you here to fight me as well?"
"Hecate isn't much of a fighter, that's usually my shtick," Jugram shivered as the amused voice startled him and he whipped around to see who snuck up on him.
Zoya grinned as she dropped the body of the soldat she was dragging by their head, her fingertip daggers having punctured and crushed the mask they wore. "So it wasn't just a weird flux in the sensors that caused the amassing of power on the coast. Judging by the cracked shield, your invasion did not go smoothly."
"Zoya Senju," Jugram stated distastefully as he realised the woman he was talking to. "I didn't think you would have arrived this quickly. I should have prepared for that possibility."
"Oh, did your Emperor not foresee that?" Zoya was enjoying teasing the man in front of her. "You know, when I was approached all those years ago by one of his messengers, I took it as another person playing god. But to think not only is he actually of Divine descent but also after the remnant Uzumaki, I would have done more than send the messenger's head back."
Jugram gave no outward reaction but he was really panicking over this situation. His Emperor had warned him that fighting Zoya or her Legion is not productive to their plans, especially now that the Uzumaki Prince has his claws in her. She is a strong fighter and powerful enough to face nearly all of the sternritter in battle but that was from data collected half a decade ago. He is unsure if the Prince had blessed her or if he used Uzumaki seals to transfer unique abilities to make her even more powerful.
Including the fact that his Emperor warned him if anything were to happen to her… all he had to know was that his Emperor wanted to avoid that future at all costs. But he also wanted to try to bring her to his side if possible-
"Stop thinking so hard, you are not omniscient and you sure as hell can't solve this with words alone," Zoya told the man calmly while tapping her daggers together. "You invaded my husband's home, threatened the life of my mother and family, and nothing you say will hold me back."
"Zoya-sama," Hecate interrupted the woman softly. "He's activating a talisman."
Jugram's eyes widened a fraction at being exposed and raised his hands placatingly when he saw the woman's face twist angrily. "We do not need to be enemies. Legion can benefit by allying with Wandenreich and the Emperor would be honoured to have your organisations help."
Freund blocked the furious strike from the woman, sending chips of the shield flying from the sheer force that had Jugram concerned. The woman did not give any indication that she felt the rebound of the shield and instead proceeded with going in for another attack. This one was coated in chakra and the man knew that this strike alone would shatter his Freund.
He jumped back to avoid the attack, landing a few yards away from the blonde woman, but he was surprised to see a purple glow among the orange and red of the firelight. Turning to look over his shoulder as the ominous dread creeped up his spine, his eyes widened when he saw what had appeared. A large skeletal spectre twice the size of a house was looming over him like a ghastly poltergeist.
"Nightmare, stop him," Hecate commanded monotonously, raising her hand towards Jugram.
"Oooo!"
The creaking gasp of the skeleton echoed into the night sky and moved its arm to swipe at the man.
Jugram moved to avoid the attack while reaching for his talisman and pulled it out to look at its power. It was completely charged!
"No you don't!"
Jugram had barely enough time to shatter the talisman before losing his head to the furious blonde woman that dashed for him.
It was silent outside of the occasional explosion from those magic rifles. Nightmare slowly disappeared, fading away into light purple butterflies, and the two women we left in the ruined clearing.
"He escaped," Hecate commented softly as she approached her boss. "I wonder how the other teams are, or how Dreya and Nox are in Uzushio."
I'm sure those two are fine," Zoya gave a huff and looked around the camp with a scowl. "We will regroup with the teams and our new allies."
"And checking on Naruto-sama?"
"We will need to check in with him, especially since that woman really wants to meet him," Zoya carefully brushed her hair before walking away. "Come, Hecate-chan, we're done here."
Zoya and Hecate cleared through a large bush before appearing on the outskirts of an oval clearing, but it was far from being empty. There were four familiar women, and two additional accomplices. The first four are members of Legion, partially from Hotsprings or Fire branches.
Those chosen by Earl and Langley are two teams of extraordinary capabilities. The first team is Hella and Ninety-Nine, both coming from Hotsprings. The second pair, coming from Fire, is Lady Cabernet Franc and Uni.
Hella is a young girl of seventeen with a pastel purple hair colour that bordered on silver, and similar eye colour. She is relatively short and slim, wearing a simple white dress gown reminiscent of her old hospital gown. She also has an orange jacket and black shoes. She carries an old plumbing pipe as her weapon, reinforced to be able to handle her empowered attacks.
Ninety-Nine, however, is an amnesiac woman who remembers nothing from before her time as an experiment and even her name was the code given to her. The most eye-catching part of this woman is her arms, which are almost reminiscent of magma plates with gliding red crevices. Her fingertips are jagged and sharp, which she keeps covered with black padded gloves outside of combat. She wears a white binding shirt around her chest, and white-black pants held up with a black belt that carries her large sword that almost rivals the size of Kubikirihocho.
These two girls were used as experiments in one of Orochimaru's various underground labs, with Hella being kept from her toddler years. Both of them escaped and were able to live as criminals around Fire and then Hotsprings before being found and taken in by Langley, the Region Leader of Hotsprings. Ever since then, they worked as Legion Associates and took on various missions for the organisation.
Cabernet Franc was born and raised in Fire, the Lady of the Franc Family that owns a patch of fertile land in the central province of the country. She has the unique power to turn the essence of others into an ingredient of her desire, even if it does not truly exist. She has long red hair and golden eyes, and her flawless skin is covered with a beautiful black silk dress as well as a luxurious red jacket.
Uni, however, is a cosmetic surgeon who has performed facial surgery for criminals to start new lives. However, one of the customers she worked on had wronged one of Legion's clients and therefore they were called to handle her and the criminal. While Uni claimed that she never asked for the background or reasons one would want the surgery, she did give up her former client when she was pressured to do so.
Zoya, seeing Uni's skill not only with surgery but also with using chakra to make crystal mirrors that were more durable than chakra-enhanced metal, had decided to recruit her into the Legion. Horo was the one to recruit Cabernet when she was hired by Lord Franc to be a guard for one of his famous banquets. She noticed the unique power in the red haired woman and offered a chance at freedom and to gain all of the ingredients she desired to try.
"You're back," the black-haired woman said with crossed arms. "Almost thought our alliance was going to end prematurely."
Zoya cracked a grin at the woman that she can consider an equal and teased back, "no need to worry, Nobunaga-chan, I am very capable. How about you and your forces?"
Nobunaga shrugged her shoulders. "Not nearly enough of their people died and most of them were able to escape through some kind of teleportation item. We did inflict significant damage both to their lives and to their morale; I'm surprised they had such a small invasion force and thought they could succeed."
"Most died in the invasion attack," Hecate informed softly, turning her lone eye to her boss.
"Of course, Zoya's husband is considered a god by most people," Hella commented teasingly with a smirk on her face.
"That is the likely conclusion, and I'm sure that for every Enforcer those invaders took, they lost a couple of their own," Zoya still remained composed and relaxed of the events that have transpired. "I wonder how Naruto-kun has been handling everything."
"The monks at the Fire Temple have publicly claimed him as the Child of Prophecy, a claim also supported and spread by Jiraiya of the Sannin," Cabernet chuckled as she gracefully tilted her head with the palm of her hand lightly pressed against her cheek. "I'm sure Prince Uzumaki will be just fine."
"If he is like his ancestors my father and grandfather told my brother and I, I expect a people more composed and orderly than any other nation after being attacked," Nobunaga almost sounded certain of the fact as she nodded her head into her crossed arms. "Of course, the Prince is a Deity like those two said, a conclusion I've drawn from the stories I have heard as well. I'm sure things are fine."
"I will have to be assured by my own eyes rather than relying on stories from his lineage," Zoya told the woman with a sigh and turned to Hecate. "Go to the village and find out what happened, and how my love wants to receive our guests."
"Understood, Zoya-sama," Hecate nodded her head before turning to walk away.
"You two," Zoya turned to Hella and Ninety-Nine as she addressed them. "You both will go back to Langley and report the events. Tell her I want her to keep an eye out for the symbol these Wandenreich people had."
"Okay!" Hella smiled and nodded her head. "Come on, Ninety-Nine!"
"Coming," the woman stated softly as she followed the younger woman as she excitedly skipped into the woods.
"As for you two," Zoya's eyes turned to Cabernet and Uni. "I want you two to round up some bodies for Iron and Anne to look at. Find out what type of techniques these guys are using and what they can ascertain from their corpse. I want everything, even if it means mutilating the bodies."
"Understood," the two women nodded.
Cabernet hummed a tune as she walked away, excited to gather the bodies needed as well as turn others into some new ingredients. With the amount of bodies, she was sure she could find something tasty!
After everyone has left, leaving Zoya with the two women, she sighed and ran her hands through her hair. "Here's the deal. Depending on if Naruto is willing to receive guests, you will or will not be allowed to enter the village to meet him when he has the chance. However, your men will either stay here or have to go back to your province. I'm sure you understand why."
"I don't need guards for any mission, let alone for diplomacy," Nobunaga told the woman but then nodded her head. "I understand the reasons and will not raise any complaints. But Ameyuri comes with me."
"Naruto has met me before," the former Kiri swordswoman told Zoya. "If that eases your tension."
"Nothing other than seeing Naruto will ease my tension," the blonde responded.
She looked up at the night sky and stared at the stars sparkling upon the sea of black. I dread what happens next.
Hello again! It's been a while huh? Hope everyone had a good Halloween and did not get sick from eating too much candy xD
So we meet more of the Legion, four new people to be exact, as well as finding out who controls the Hotsprings region! Zoya is still best girl tho ;)
PraetorXyn: Thank you!
Krieger Techpriest: And many more will in the future
TigrezzTail: Religion is the motivation for many people, especially if they have a central deity figure to rally under. We see that in Bleach with the Quincy being die hards for Yhwach. Naruto acknowledges that even he has his own zealots in Fourth Division. Naruto had the power to eventually overcome Jugram's Freund/Balance but because it rebounds with equal power that means that Naruto's own attacks are being used against him. That's the only reason he lost, and because of Sosuke's Complete Hypnosis, he can actually manipulate things to avoid or transfer such an ability. Hope it was good at least!
Primarx: Aizen and the Fourth Division showed up! How was it?
Srecko: Hope it was good :D
redeyehawk23: The problem with that is that Uzushio was not ready. And it is very well one of the places Jiraiya or others would have gone to find him. So the smart thing was to play ninja and wait for the moment when he could go to his home nation. I hope it wasn't the deal breaker for ya!