Prelude II
d4 cxd4
The Elemental Nations consist of five major countries. These five have always had an interesting dynamic.
Ever since the First Great Shinobi War, Iwagakure and Konohagakure have always been at each others' throats. It began with Ōnoki and his teacher's refusal to bow to Uchiha Madara, which continued into the Second Great War, and was finally punctuated by Namikaze Minato, the Yondaime Hokage and Yellow Flash, who handed Iwagakure their most shameful defeat of all time.
Along with such a long time rivalry, came with long-time allies. Iwa always allied with Kumo and Mizugakure (before Mizugakure's eventually break off and civil war), and Suna and Konoha were always allies as well.
So it would be quite an event if any of these long standing relationships were to change, wouldn't it?
Kumogakure no Sato
High in the northern mountains of Kaminari no Kuni, the Land of Lightning, a village was neatly nestled within the steep rock. It sat around the waist of the tall mountains, and peak of shorter ones, and due to the elevation, was wreathed in an ethereal layer of misty clouds.
This was Kumogakure no Sato, the Village Hidden in the Clouds.
The clouds were thicker than usual on this day, completely obscuring any sunlight from view, creating a downcast gloom that hung over the entire town.
A large, rough hand slapped down on a table, generating a light gust that lifted all the documents upon the desk airborne. Another hand held Hiruzen's letter, or at least what remained of it after it was burnt to ashes from the heat of electricity.
"That geezer!" A, the Yondaime Raikage growled, his dark skin darkening even more with frustration and anger. Anger that was only half directed at the aged Kage, with the other half reserved for the stupitidy of his ambassador team. "So, he believes in Konoha's military strength that he would risk war? Well, I'll be calling your bluff." He turned to his a woman awaiting patiently by his desk, her brown skin contrasting smoothly with her snow-white hair. "Mabui! Write a response, and alert the shinobi outside. We're going to war!"
Mabui could only nod, with a bewildered look on her face, and did as told. A breathed out deeply, and set off to find his brother.
Strolling (stomping may be a better word for it) through the village, the Raikage took a good look at everything and everyone around him. Though he may be brash, he was no fool. This war, despite going up against a village at its weakest, was going to be no easy feat. Age may have dulled the blade known as the God of Shinobi, but his two remaining loyal students are no pushovers, each being easily worth an entire army. Add that to the fact that the there were no reported sightings of the Kyūbi after the fiasco that ended the life of his fellow fourth-generation Kage, it was safe to say that Konoha had themselves a powerful asset for the war. Although, with Iwa as an ally, the problems Konoha pose even with their ally Sunagakure combined should be manageable. Now, to convince the old fence-sitter to help is a different matter entire.
His brows furrowed. There was a racket ahead, and he hastened his footsteps to catch the culprit in action.
It was a young chūnin, brown-haired and fiery-eyed. His whole body shook from rage as he socked the main ambassador to Konoha hard enough to knock out his front teeth.
"Why the hell would you do such an idiotic thing? You caused my brother to die!" The chūnin pushed forward, seizing the collar of the ambassador, who struggled in his grip. The held man's face contorted in pain, anger, and defiance.
A frowned and stepped forward. Both men paused and looked at him. The defiance leaked right out of the ambassador's eyes, replaced by an amalgamation of shame, guilt, and fear. The chūnin, however, simply possessed a look of sheer defiance and anger. A silently commended him on his nerve, sticking to his feeling even in front of the highest figure authority of the village, and one of the most powerful men alive.
"So, is either of you going to explain what you two brats were doing, duking it out in the middle of the street and causing civil unrest?"
The chūnin lashed out in a verbal fit, "He ignited a war and caused my brother to die for no reason!"
The ambassador snarled, "It was to gain us power! Imagine what kind of an asset the Hyūga heir would've been if we actually caught her!"
The Yondaime Raikage rumbled in all his righteous fury, "And who gave you this command? Who gave you permission to ignite a war when you are nothing but a mere representation of my will? You do realize this was a completely unsanctioned action, and what reason is there for me to not kill you where you stand for treason?"
The ambassador gulped nervously, and under the immense pressure and killing intent emanating from the leader, he was rendered silent, unable to utter a single word.
And then, following a pain akin to being electrocuted with a hammer upon his neck, his world faded to black.
A grumbled to one of the jōnin nearby to take the unconscious and treacherous shinobi to the Torture and Interrogation headquarters. "Tell them to do whatever seems fit," he added, and the jōnin nodded in compliance.
"Now," A turned to the young chūnin. "What gave you the right to cause civil unrest?"
The man (boy, really. In A's eyes, the chūnin was but a mere boy.) gulped. "You said it yourself, he's a trai-"
His voice was cut short, as an iron fist slammed into his stomach, sending him into the ground. "I can say that because I'm the leader! I am the authority who deals with such things, not you! Civil arrest is not something we allow, and for good reason! Now," A bent down, his voice turning almost imperceptibly gentler, "I understand your grief for your brother, but channel that anger into strength that is used for something worthwhile, such as defending and fighting Konoha."
The chūnin nodded fervently. "And have some respect by the next time I see you, brat!" The Raikage roared, and continued on his stroll.
The chūnin could only nod more, and as A walked farther away, he was able to catch a quiet "Raikage-sama" uttered from his lips. He chuckled, but grew solemn once more.
Despite the fact that it was them who had initiated the war, Konoha still killed one of their shinobi. And an innocent one, at that. Regardless of their intent, this is enough reason to fight.
"And whoever wins," muttered A to no-one in particular, "Can immediately jump to the position of the strongest shinobi village."
The stakes at here were not mere resources, money, or anything like that. No, the final deciding factors will be the tailed beasts, sealed within their vessels. Each is worth more than their titanic weight in gold, and the victor shall have control over three of the nine bijū (including the two strongest) will no doubt exert the most power and influence, even if their infrastructure and economy are in shambles.
"This guy! This fool! I float like a butterfly, and sting like a bee! That's me, the mighty Killer B!"
A sighed. There goes the quiet. Not that he was very quiet himself, but Killer B's raps make his own furious shouting seem tame in comparison.
"Yo! Bro!"
A greeted his sworn brother, Killer B, with a fist to the head. "Idiot! Don't go around introducing yourself when everyone here already knows you!"
The crowd quickly dispersed; the duo was known for their destructive capabilities, after all, and no-one wanted to be caught up in one of their bouts if one occurred.
Killer B simply grinned, "Bro, I'm just practicing my rap, alright?"
"Haven't I said before not to practice them in my prescence?"
Killer B put up his hands placatingly, and asked in a more sober manner (as sober as the man-child was capable of being), "What's the plan?"
A sighed, and his lips and eyes pulled back into a scowl. "We strike quick and fast. We give Konoha's jinchūriki no time to learn of their power, and hopefully crush them before we sustain any long-lasting damage."
Killer B was silent for a moment (which was truly a rare sight). "Can we, though? I'm not sure if we can overpower them with Jiraiya, Tsunade, and that White Fang's son in the battlefield."
"So? Without Orochimaru, the power of the Sannin have been greatly cut. With you and I as a tag team and our overall more powerful shinobi force, simple guerilla tactics should do them in."
Killer B nodded, albeit with light wariness. "If you say so, bro."
Iwagakure no Sato
*Rustle*
A page flips.
*Rustle* *Rustle*
The hand turning the pages clench a bit.
*Rustle* *Rustle* *Rustle*
Ōnoki the Fence Sitter grinned. He did not gain his title for nothing; the brash fool of a Raikage probably assumed that Iwa will help Kumo if necessary, and thus doesn't consider the Village Hidden in Stone an enemy. Oh, how wrong he will be.
The Sandaime Tsuchikage lightly grimaced. Despite Iwa's obvious advantage, it would be tough to exploit this war. Sarutobi will be as crafty as always, and pulling a bag over his head will be nigh-on impossible. Both he and Ōnoki are hardened war veterans, and of all the Kages, they knew each other the best. Kumo's military strength, despite being lead by that meathead, is still formidable. However, Iwa is no pushover either, so only time will tell who the victor will be.
But, if those two were here... things would be a lot different.
"Akatsuchi!"
"Here!"
Ōnoki's most trusted shinobi appeared, his rotund figure seemingly appearing out of nowhere.
"I have a mission for you..."
Akatsuchi nodded, "Hai!" and went on his way.
After all, the real deciding factor of this war would not be sheer numbers, but rather the jinchūriki of each village.
Ōnoki looked out the window of his office, peering past the village and beyond onto the horizon. The tides of war were approaching, and nothing could stop them.
Konohagakure no Sato
"Are you sure?"
Kakashi's originally monotonous tone and carefully blank composure began to crumble as Hiruzen nodded.
"So, war?"
Kakashi began to tremble a bit, although not out of fear, but rather anxiety at the thought of waging war again. The last war he had been in saw the death of his father and two closest friends and had left a nearly irreparable emotional scar upon the young Kakashi's mind. Though he was more mature now, he was still only 18, and to go to war again...
Hiruzen's face morphed into one of both understanding and resolve. "I understand your hesitance, Kakashi, but I know that you understand the necessity of you re-joining the main shinobi forces. It's the only choice to ensure the survival of our village, as you are one of our most powerful shinobi, behind only me and the sannin, after all."
Kakashi sighed, a long and weary sigh, and resigned himself to his fate. It seemed that no matter what he does, he can never escape the cruel, brutal bloodshed known as war.
"Alright. Fine. Is that all?" he grumbled.
Hiruzen donned a look of sadness. "Unfortunately, yes. While you do have to return to active duty on the battlefront, you will be pulled back later. Starting in 3 years' time, you will begin personally training Uzumaki Naruto."
Kakashi's head of silver hair snapped up so fast that Hiruzen felt a small breeze. "Why? You're already making me go onto the battlefield, why this as well?"
"I can't do this! You know I can't!" Kakashi's voice grew more and more desperate, and Hiruzen felt his heart sink a little.
"Kakashi..."
The Hokage's gaze sharpened and focused upon Kakashi's now dull and panicked ones.
"Get a hold of yourself!"
Kakashi visibly retreated at these words, yet he offered no reply.
"You're grieving, I know. And you will be, for a long time. However, don't let it get into your head! Would you really abandon your late sensei's son just to wallow in your own self-pity and deprecation? Would you?" By now the aged Hokage's voice had raised to the point where he's almost shouting. Each word struck a deep chord within Kakashi's heart. He trembled more.
"Don't live the past, live the present, and fight for the future, Kakashi. I can't bear to see you like this any longer."
Tears finally dropped, and they flew in a steady torrent into his black mask. Hiruzen stood up, and gentle pulled the boy into his arms one last time. He was not a therapist by any means, nor was he the most capable person for such a job. However, Kakashi needed someone, and he had a feeling making him go to Yamanaka Inoichi wouldn't really work out.
"Minato and Kushina may be gone, but others are still here, Kakashi," he murmured. "So keep an eye on what you have, okay?"
The man known as Kakashi nodded, gratefulness and sadness entwined within his eyes, and left while mumbling a quiet apology.
Hiruzen sighed. That's one problem taken care of. Now for the bigger one, convincing his student to come back.
It was about time for the Slug Princess to return home.