Ben-10: The One True Monster
Second part of "Konoha Crush/ Konoha's Monster" Arc. Thanks for your support.
Imagine you were a superhero with a secret identity. You have worked behind the scenes for years… ever since you were 10. You have a really amazing superpower; I'm not sure if I would call it convenient, since it involves transforming into inhuman, monster-like extraterrestrial living things just so you can tap into more superpowers. It sounds convenient that you might have a superpower for literally anything, but at the same time, the price is you transform.
So here's the catch: not everyone is cheering for you. Public opinion? Yeah, it's a mixed bag. Humans, bless their hearts, can be a tad gullible and, let's face it, entitled. And then there are those moments when their bright ideas are anything but stellar. There exist the "unnecessary" technological advancements of mankind, for example, the nukes, that were looked down upon by the intergalactic society solely because how dumb humans were, and how easily they could have misused the tech.
So of course, humans weren't the brightest when it came to accepting my heroings. I'm not being particularly cynical about it, but hold on… there were like tens of thousands of articles about me online, just soon after my publicity. Good or bad, with some of them being negatively subjective opinions…
"The Shapeshifting Teen from Bellwood: A Hero or A Foe?"
"B. Tennyson: A Satanic Entity Unleashed From Hell?"
"Superpowers Weren't Just Fantasy After All"
"The Teen Boy B. T.: The Emissary of Hell?"
And people like Will Harangue, who viewed me as a menace, a villain overall, existed. It would have taken years for me… just to have a proper, decent reputation among the older generations. People who believed the evil was rooted from witchcraft and satanism, couldn't believe I saved their planet multiple times.
Well, that might be arrogant of me to wish for their acknowledgements yet. But who cares? I didn't become a hero for the pats on the back.
Thing is, deep down, I'm still human. I probably hated the people I needed to save. And on the other hand, I wasn't capable of putting out the flame within me.
And I was a coward. Azmuth wouldn't care if I used the Omnitrix to save more of mankind. But the earth's problems weren't simple; not just that, I ignored it rightout… I didn't make an effort to save them. Till today I couldn't understand that part of me. Why didn't I?
I know that at the end of the day, I truly was a monster, and a sinful liar.
Chapter 10: With Great Power…
There really was a lot of fighting everywhere in the village today.
I had been warned two days prior to the "war," apparently between Konoha and Suna. But I wasn't sure if it was just that, since I could see some Otogakure's ninja fighting our platoons. Thankfully, the Anbu Black Ops and the adult shinobi seemed to be prepared to fight back. I was sure civilians would be safe with Konoha's guidelines of evacuation.
I was ashamed I couldn't prepare much, despite knowing about two days prior. It was kind of pitiful. The best I could think of was cloning myself with Sonorosian ability and building an army made of myself and myself… I mean, my clones. But Sonorosian cloning is strictly risky, and I wasn't sure about the outcome at all. So scrap it!
The best I could do was keep this little monster occupied…
Gaara of the Desert. A 12-year-old boy with an immense amount of chakra. He could freely control the sand to some extent. But… Right now, it seemed to me that he was halfway in the process of some sort of transformation.
I've heard a glimpse from Kiba's team about his kill records. For a kid, he didn't seem to hesitate to kill… but I'm not sure if he was unusual, given the fact that "kids" in this world are trained to be soldiers. As far as I know, just looking at the examples of Naruto and such, I'm pretty sure Konoha's kids weren't that ruthless. But it might just be Gaara was raised differently.
"Sabaku… Kyū…" (砂縛柩)
Sand Coffin.
He tried his best to say it out loud as the sand from his body lunged toward me. I pretended to get caught off-guard on a whim, and let the sand crush into bits. Well, at least that was what supposedly happened; but just not right.
That was a quick mental command that transformed me out of human form, just before the sand crushed my body. In fact, the Omnitrix would've protected me if I hadn't manually transformed, too. Yet part of me wanted to fool around a bit.
Most of my alien forms would've survived that, too, given that Gaara had apparently ever used the jutsu on humans. Trust me, I've seen worse.
"Goooooop!"
My goofy, weirdly filtered voice came out of a small, space metallic, UFO-like device that flew past Gaara, bruising his face and bleeding it.
"Arghhh… what is this!?" Once again he screeched, almost annoyingly.
I acknowledged he was a weird guy, that is, he seemed to enjoy hurting others, yet he's never experienced the pain himself– at least physically. His mental health is questionable.
I don't want to pry into someone's personal matters. If I did, however, I would probably punch his teammates and the guy in charge for their negligence.
Enough monologuing.
"Sorry, does it hurt?" I asked, mockingly.
"What have you…" Gaara tried to catch my UFO-like thingy with his weirdly mutated hand. "... turned into this time… freak…?"
"Talk about yourself, ningen."
The miniscule unidentified flying object either slipped between his unnaturally large fingers or outright cut through them to escape, though they tended to regenerate quickly in seconds.
Meanwhile as he was distracted successfully, a weird green liquid body made its way out of his coffin, then crawled toward him, slowly binding his legs.
"!?... Grr what is this!"
"My body has a lime taste," I said, wrapping around his legs then crawling up to his body. "Be careful not to get burned."
"Get off!" He tried wiping my slime off of his body, but it only got worse over time. "Get off of me!"
"Hmph."
In the meantime, my UFO-like thingy, which was the anti-gravity projector that allowed Goop to move freely, flew around his body and cut through his sand-encased hand, to remove the sand.
Gaara is not right in the head, now… So I need to stop his transformation. Even though it wasn't clear what it was, I figured he was turning into some kind of monster.
It wasn't mine to say, since I transform on a daily basis. But I don't lose my mind, at least most of the time.
"Arghhh… heheheh, it won't work!"
Well, of course, I figured. Then this is going to hurt…
During his maniacal laughter, my slime had reached his shoulder and started covering his monstrous arm.
"Alright, this gonna hurt," I warned calmly. "Brace yourself."
"Wha, get off! Arghh, my arm's burning!"
Oh, that was quick. Maybe the acid was too strong.
One of Goop's abilities is secreting acids of desired strength. They are bio-organic, but rare chemical substances, some of which could only be produced by polymorphs, Goop's species.
"Stop!" Kankuro shouted. "You're angering him!"
"Just look away for a while," I said. "I will get this off his body real fast."
"You won't stop anything like that!" Temari said. "The real monster is inside Gaara…"
"I don't know what you're talking about–"
"Grr!"
His sand is… regenerating against my acid!? Impossible. No, wait, he is using the sand underneath to replace his own…
"I will kill you…"
I knew that wasn't going to work so for now, I decided to retreat. The anti-gravity projector pulled myself back and recollected my body into a humanoid shape. During that time, Gaara's transformation went on, growing a large tail made out of sand just below his gourd.
"This is troublesome," I commented.
Normally, I would be pretending to have exhausted my chakra and turned back to human form, but seeing Gaara could maintain his transformation for a long time, I decided to play along.
"What even are you, man?" I inquired.
"... a monster…" his voice grew even more terrifying, making a lot of hisses in pause. "... aren't I just like you…"
"Perhaps, you're right…"
I motioned Temari and Kankuro to get out of the way. The anti-gravity projector spun itself over my head while the slime accumulated in one of my arms, building up a fist shape.
"... but you're out of your mind. I need to snap you out of it."
"Heheh, try me! I need more! I need–"
The projector shot toward Gaara, followed by my entire liquid body that was in the shape of a large fist. Before Gaara could dodge, the pressurized slime fist made contact with him, hurtling.
""Gaara!""
As the Suna kid crashed into a wall again, I reverted myself to human form, panting. It was just for my cover-up, but I was really tired. I've never been in such a tricky situation before. But I know that just keeping him occupied was enough to disrupt their entire operation.
His powers can't be natural. I know it as I used to be in a similar situation as his.
"Gaara–"
"No, don't," I stopped the two. "Don't go near him. It's dangerous. You guys know something about it, right?"
Temari and Kankuro stopped in their tracks and averted their gazes away from me. But I wasn't interested in any cliched drama. Just a way to deal with Gaara.
But it seemed to me they didn't know how to deal with it either… I could say as much.
"That's fine. If you don't know how to handle him, get away. I can't guarantee your lives if you stand in the crossfires."
"..."
"... Naze…"
… Why…
Gaara recovered and regenerated his sand armor again.
"... even though you are weaker than me… you are always coming back stronger… Why?!"
お前は俺より弱いくせに、なんでいつも強く戻ってくるんだ！？
I let out a sigh and slid my hands into the pants pockets again, trying to stay cool and calm. I was exhausted on the inside, no joke.
"Oi, don't get ahead of yourself and make assumptions," I retorted. "You know nothing about me."
Okay, this is just getting worse… His transformation progress is still going on, eventually becoming an even more inhuman shape. It has spread to both sides, resembling a tailed monster.
Speaking of the tailed monster… he had animalistic ears and animalistic features overall. What is this… a demon fox? Forget that. Over time, trouble would just keep piling up.
I prepared my hands to weave a sign in time in case he attacked. But the monster Gaara glanced at Genji-san behind me…
And in a split second, I figured out what he was going for, and my body acted on its own. Without my "transformation" jutsu activated, I stood in front of Genji and for another few seconds, I felt a sting in my stomach. I looked down at my abdomen, only to find a sand spear piercing through me.
"Benji!" I could hear Genji-san's scream behind me.
"Ugh, don't worry… this hurts but it's nothing," I took a deep breath.
Yeah, when the last time I got myself stabbed, I returned from death. This should be nothing for me.
"Heh… I finally got you…" Gaara's voice had become even more distorted. "You truly have no fear for me… but your weakness is your friends, right? That's the weakness… of everyone who has loved ones."
I exhaled, vomiting some blood.
"Oi, should I go call Kiriko?" Genji whispered. "Your wound looks terrible."
"No, it's alright," I replied with a confident face to assure him. "You get back and stay somewhere safer."
"... what?"
"It's a request, Genji-san… you'll get in my way if you stick around me."
He paused for a moment before answering with a "Roger!" and left.
"Benji!" It was Naruto's voice… but I instinctively knew to reject his help.
"Stay back!" I said before looking back; it was Naruto and Sasuke, and Sakura a little farther behind them. "This guy is dangerous."
"We know. Jonin sensei are busy fighting the sand and sound ninjas," Naruto explained. "That's why we're here to help."
"I don't need it…"
"We're in the same bracket anyway," Sasuke said. "I was going to have to fight either you or that guy…"
"Shut up!"
With a seemingly annoyed expression, the monster Gaara extended his arms toward Sasuke and Naruto. The black-haired kid cast a lightning jutsu in time and cut through Gaara's sand.
"Naruto!"
Naruto was the one who got caught off-guard and slammed against the wall.
"Arghhh."
"... What are you doing, brat… " I said. "Aren't you petty… A coward? Going after uninvolved people like that."
Sasuke stubbornly stayed next to me while Sakura ran back toward Naruto who had now been restrained in sand, stuck to the wall.
"I… I'm fine," Naruto said. Thankfully, he wasn't knocked out by that attack.
"Uninvolved? Aren't they your friends?" The monster chuckled. "A coward for… going after the enemy's weak points? You have no right… No right to judge me!"
"You're wrong," I said, trying to remain as calm as possible.
"Huh?"
Friends, huh? What even is it? What sets people as friends? What defines a friendship?
"... They're not my friends… they're just my classmates…"
Sasuke shot a glare at me, but I understood it wasn't a glare of disapproval. Sakura was too occupied with saving Naruto to hear my words, thankfully.
Half of it was a bluff, but the other half had me confused what a friendship meant.
"Then why are you protecting them?"
"I'd protect anyone, friend or not," I couldn't help but chuckle, mocking no one but myself. "It's just my belief. Also… It's hard to fight with them around…"
It seemed the Omnitrix had recharged the necessary energy portions… I pressed on the wound to help slow the bleeding.
"... then maybe I shall go after your loved ones," his voice turned really dark. "I want to see you in agony and misery… I'll break your wall so I can proceed with my life."
"Too bad…" I weaved a hand seal, ready to go for it.
I'm all alone in this world, and my only family is Masato-nii, who was a jonin. But I don't really have to worry about it, if I could stop this monster right here and now. Not that I doubted the Tenzaki-style jutsu.
"Hōno no Tsuru." (Swampfire)
The Flaming Vines.
"He changed forms again…" Temari commented.
Sasuke pinched his nose in response. Yep, Swampfire's smell was at it again.
"... I am stronger–!"
Gaara's declaration was cut short as he was greeted by a fast, but powerful punch from Swampfire that sent him flying. The wounds in my abdomen were automatically healed by the methanosapien cells.
"Your injuries…" Sasuke was on the verge of dropping his jaw.
"Don't mind it," I said before taking a quick dash to the wall where Naruto was restrained.
But the sand was too tough for me to pull it apart just yet.
"Sakura, step back," I said. "This is going to be hard!"
Swampfire the methanosapien. A green-skinned humanoid alien that has abilities to produce methane, ignite fire and control certain vine plants. This guy stands quite high in my brute strength roster, though his fists have never been as powerful as Humungousaur and likes.
Cracks appeared in the wall as soon as my punch landed on it; then shattered part of the wall. It didn't take me more minutes to get Naruto off the wall, but I couldn't pull him out of the sand.
"Behind you!"
With Naruto's warning, I rolled to the side and put him down. When I looked back, Gaara's monstrous hand towered over us.
"Sorry, I can't get you out," I said. "You guys must run."
"I'm not gonna run," Sasuke said, destroying Gaara's hand with his lightning jutsu, though it was in vain, considering it grew back right away.
"It's not the time to be stubborn," I raised my tone and motioned Sakura to take Naruto away.
With the girl giving me a nod, I quickly dropped some vine seeds onto the ground. The vines grew rapidly; some of them carried Naruto and Sakura away and the rest tried to restrain Gaara before he could harm Sasuke.
"Leave."
"... tch," the black-haired kid clicked his tongue before leaving with a bitter expression.
"Grrrr!"
Gaara broke himself free out of the binds again and lunged toward me. In the meantime before he reached me, I generated some methane gas his way and ignited it as soon as he arrived in the range, exploding it right at his face.
"Boom!"
"Heh… so weak…"
As expected, fire did little to the sand.
"You can't get that brat out of the sand, right?" He said. "Fight me. Show your strongest extents. If not… I'll kill him."
Is that a jutsu, too? Well, I can find ways to free Naruto anyway… but I feel like I need to kick a butt now.
"Overconfident, are we? Like I said, you don't know a thing about me!"
"Grrrr!" The monster Gaara charged toward me again, running on all four.
I could list several dozens of aliens that could take him down, but at the same time, I didn't know how to hold back. He was just a kid inside.
"Hoono no Tsuru no Jutsu!"
The Flaming Vines Technique.
I produced a few vine seeds on the ground and methane gas continuously before igniting it. In a small time frame as the gas started burning explosively, the vines grew tall and strong, pushing Gaara back.
I'm gonna be a little more serious this time.
Without wasting any second, I transformed into Water Hazard briefly and cast another ability out of my memory while Gaara was being stalled.
"Suiton: Daibakufu no Jutsu!"
Water Style: Great Waterfall Technique.
With that, I pushed myself to limits and generated a large amount of water, alongside droplets I created out of moisture in the surroundings, and imitated the water-release technique I had seen back in Land of Waves. The result was a freakishly large amount of water gushing toward my opponent in a rapid, terrifying fashion, washing him away and forcing his sand to absorb the water at the same time.
"Arghh… this is heavy…" he groaned.
Alright, this is what I needed. Meanwhile, Kankuro and Temari could only retreat further to stay out of my effective range while watching the fight with a concerned look.
I pressed the Omnitrix symbol to transform again, this time assuming the form of Terraspin, a large turtle-like humanoid alien. Without rest, I turned my limbs into fanblades and hovered toward the nearly immobile Gaara.
"Harikēn no Kaze."
Winds of the Storm.
I calmly chanted, creating a tornado with my windbending techniques. Then the winds cooled down the wet Gaara, freezing the water inside the sand, thus effectively petrifying him.
"I… I can't move! Grr!" Gaara screeched with unidentifiable, disturbing hisses, struggling in the iced sand.
"Just how many elements could he use, jeez…" I could faintly hear Temari's comment. "But it's almost like…"
"He's deliberately avoiding hurting Gaara…" Kankuro noted. "But…"
But what? There's more?
I restored my human form again and cautiously walked up to the restrained monster. Even now, I'm recounting my deeds. I'm still confused if my way of doing things is right. So I wanted to end it as peacefully as possible.
"Now I've beaten you, right? How about lending me an ear now?" I said. "Do me a favor and cancel the jutsu on Naruto."
"That's not enough… I will not lose to someone like you!"
"Temari, let's get outta here! He's going to do it!" Kankuro said, dragging his teammate away.
Okay, I'm not sure what's going to happen, but my best guess is Gaara's gonna use some large-scale attack.
"Sorry, Omnitrix," I muttered to my partner as a large amount of sand towered over me like an ocean wave. "I'm using you too much today. But I need you again–"
It wasn't soon before I was buried under the sand.
I didn't know what happened, but it was all dark and quiet. It reminded me of the times I actually died. But at least I'm still alive and fine this time somehow, in spite of the large volume of sand crushing me.
"Time to get out," I chuckled and generated a small amount of explosive energy below my legs, pushing myself upward, and finally out of the thick body of sand in a few minutes.
"Chromastone! No, huh… what the heck is this?!"
Flying out of the binds, I was greeted by a bizarre sight.
Firstly, Gaara was nowhere to be seen. Instead, there was a giant monster made entirely out of sand. Thankfully, the arena was large enough, although his size wouldn't be hidden behind its tall walls. It wasn't just giant, it was freaking colossal, almost cosmically gigantic!
"What the heck, am I gonna fight kaiju now?" I muttered to myself.
I looked back at Masato-nii who then asked, "you've still got a way to deal with him now?"
"Yeah, I guess," I replied dryly.
He scanned the surroundings before responding with a shrug. He didn't even look surprised.
"Now what're you going to do, Tenzaki Benji?!" The gigantic monster said. "You look so weak to me now."
It seems it's still Gaara on the inside, thankfully…
"I trust you," Masato-nii said, "but you need to bring him out of the village… otherwise…"
I quickly calculated the distance in my mind to make sure Masato-nii and the stadium were safe. Thankfully, Gaara's destruction didn't hurt the audiences. Now that I noticed it… they all were unconscious, except for the jonins that were facing enemy shinobi.
Alright, it's certainly safe to use him now…
"I know," I let out a sigh and pressed the Omnitrix symbol.
Following that, in an instant, I completely disappeared in a bright green light, which grew bigger and bigger until it stood at a size rivaling Gaara's Suna kaiju…
"Way Big!"
Of To'kustars, a species born in cosmic storms, in other words, a species of natural phenomena themselves… Way Big is a colossal humanoid alien with a red, white coloring, sporting a large fin on his head and blade-like fins on his elbows. In my general roster, Way Big is the only form that could match Gaara's kaiju in terms of size. Way Big had the Konoha symbol on an armband on his left arm.
"I see… Tenzaki Benji! You never fail to amuse me, heh…" the monster said.
This form has but one downside, that is, the number of witnesses would be out of control. Covering this up as a jutsu was going to be a pain…
Ah, yes, I could see the horrified expression of Masato-nii in the corner of my eye.
"... for now, I will get you out of the village. We'll battle somewhere empty."
All right, Way Big. You could even lift something as heavy as the moon, right? Now shall we try carrying this guy…
"Why, destroying this village would add to my entertainment—"
[Transition]
"What the hell is that?" Kakashi muttered, his jaw dropping under the mask.
Gaara's kaiju was one thing, that brat seemed to host Suna's Shukaku, one of the tailed beasts. Till just now, that Tenzaki kid had done a lot of amazing things, and he had heard from the Hokage that the kid could wield all five elements, at this age, no less.
Tenzaki Benji was definitely a prodigy… But transforming into a colossal Ultraman knock-off however is something else… A terrifying feat for him to accomplish!
"You didn't know about that, Kakashi?" Guy asked, to which Kakashi could only shake his head in response. "It's a shame Lee can't see it."
"You can just wake him up," the copy ninja reminded him. "Though, I'd rather have fewer witnesses."
Guy paused for a moment before agreeing with his friend. "Yeah, you're right."
"Benji is so awesome," Naruto remarked, Sakura agreed with a nod. Sasuke however had a different idea in his mind.
He gritted his teeth and watched the scene in silence.
Masato honestly didn't know how to react to it. Firstly, he was the one who had irresponsibly allowed the kid to handle it instead of taking over the task himself. Not that any jonin came to help anyway, but that's besides the point. Secondly, he felt helpless– in the sense that now he was going to face trouble explaining Benji to Konoha's residents and even the outside world.
But he had ways to deal with it. He took a mental note to thank Hiruzen in advance after this mess.
Baki was terrified and speechless, especially because his body was buried in the ground, making his sightline lower; the view of Gaara's shukaku and the Konoha kid's kaiju looked especially gigantic to him than anyone else.
"Oh, damn, Benji, I knew you were amazing but… this is so out of the world," Genji remarked, regretting that he had ever treated Benji as his level. He couldn't imagine what would happen if this kid went evil…
More or less the mastermind who planned the grand scheme of this war, Orochimaru, was overcome with awe and astonishment, even getting distracted for a brief moment, at the sight of the colossal humanoid – "Way Big" facing Shukaku, a formidable tailed beast.
Even though the transformation seemed to be incomplete, tailed beasts aren't to be underestimated, and Orochimaru of all people would understand that. The sight of this "Way Big" creature lifting the tailed beast off the ground just excited him more. It was a gracious sight, indeed. Orochimaru considered himself lucky to witness that, even for a brief moment.
"What in the world is that? What kind of jutsu is this!?" He couldn't hide his bewilderment.
"Orochimaru, even without me… The village has found its protectors. Konoha won't crumble that easily, heh…" smirked the weary Old Man Hiruzen.
Exhaustion weighed heavily on Hiruzen, a sword piercing his abdomen, yet he refused to succumb to defeat. Orochimaru had a point; things might have been easier if he were a decade younger. But clinging to that hope was now an unnecessary luxury.
Surveying the scene, Orochimaru muttered, "such a powerful summon… No, is that just a transformation of that kid?"
"But as long as I draw breath…" Hiruzen declared. "I'll have to do these youngsters a favor. I'll eliminate you once and for all!"
Meanwhile… Kiriko teleported to where Genji was to deliver a report. But she was also taken aback, greeted by the sight of two colossal creatures.
"What in the world…"
"The one made of sand is that Gaara kid," Genji explained. "And the white giant is Benji."
"Benji transformed into this! Does he have infinite chakra or something…" Kiriko clicked her tongue. "Tch, oh, I almost forgot. Enemies near the border summoned giant snakes."
"How big?"
"Probably half as big as these guys," Kiriko replied and turned her gaze toward Kakashi and Guy. "I would want some jonin backup."
"Konoha border guards can't do as much?" Genji asked in disbelief.
"... no, it's just, I'm being impatient, okay? You injured? By the way…"
"No, I'm not. He took the blow for me," Genji said, staring at Way Big who lifted Gaara's monster, showing an ultimate strength feat. "I'll tell him about the snakes."
"Alright…"
With that, Kiriko disappeared, teleporting out of sight.
[Transition]
Before the giant Gaara could finish his bluff, I lifted him off the ground almost effortlessly. Well, I'd be lying if I said it was an effortless lift, but Way Big was unnaturally strong for its size and weight.
Alien physiology, let's fricking go!
"Put me down! What are you doing!?"
Sorry, I almost goofed off. So I decided to carry and bring him into the forest nearby, instead of fighting in the village. Considering our size, just a little movement could kill anyone. At this point, I couldn't care about being seen, just keeping everyone safe took priority.
"Oi, Benji!"
Genji-san called out my name, though his voice was incredibly tiny.
"What's it, Genji-san?"
"Kiriko gave me a report a moment ago!" he yelled out. "Enemies are using giant summons! She wants some backup!"
"Hmm… Thanks for informing me. Don't worry."
He only responded with a nod.
Giant summons, huh… I wouldn't underestimate Konoha's shinobi, but some guy named Orochimaru is involved in the schemes this time. Just in case… I guess I can find the summons and defeat them on my way.
"Let me down, arghh!"
"Can you, like, shut up for a while!? You are fricking annoying, dumbass!"
The giant Gaara was effectively immobilized since I carried him upside down. I felt it would have been much harder to bring him away if I had carried him the other way around.
Okay, we're causing a scene, now… Not to mention our size… We must be sticking out like sore thumbs if we were shouting at each other.
"Then how about I fight right here and now!"
"Shut up!"
Oh, I think I can see the summons… The gigantic weirdly colored snakes destroying Konoha's border walls…
I guess I will go that way–
"Oi, what are you?"
A male voice stopped me in my tracks. Mainly because it was louder than a normal human voice, well it didn't sound as loud to me though.
I turned around, still carrying the giant captive over my head… only to find a giant man standing in a street between the buildings. He didn't look inhuman like me and Gaara… He was just giant, and plump, though not as huge as us. Clad in battle armor adorned with a Konoha headband, his strikingly lengthy, disheveled red hair cascaded down his back.
This man is… Akimichi Chōza-san! Choji's father and the current head of Akimichi Clan!
But it wasn't just him. On the roof beside him stood two more people, normal-sized, and they were his companions, Nara Shikaku-san and Yamanaka Inoichi-san! Damn, I am meeting the great men today. Nara-san is Shikamaru's father as well as the current head of the Nara Clan, and Yamanaka-san being Ino's father as well as Yamanaka Clan's head!
"Oh… Um, nice to meet you. I'm a Konoha's ninja… As you can see on my… armband."
"Huh, how is that possible!?"
"By any chance… Is your name Tenzaki Benji?" Yamanaka-san asked calmly, in contrast to Akimichi-san.
Okay, I need to be somewhere else really fast, but now I'm being interviewed!? I must finish this quickly.
"Yes! Yes, I'm Tenzaki, a former classmate of your sons and daughter…"
"Oh, that kid," Nara-san rubbed the back of his head. "I heard about you having some amazing powers… But what is this?"
"My daughter told me about it," Yamanaka-san admitted.
"What, that kind of child was in the same class as my son's?" Akimichi-san asked the other two.
Ino-Shika-Cho is in fact a legendary trio, each member being the head of a renowned ninja clan in Konoha now.
"Time-out, time-out, can I explain to you later?!" I said. "I have to bring this thing out of the village, alright? See ya."
"Wait–"
I decided to ignore Akimichi-san for now and took a nearby road to go toward the border being attacked by the giant summons.
Hmm… the closer I got to them, the smaller they looked, and finally in fact they were a lot smaller than I initially thought.
"Oi, what are you–"
Coming from a shinobi, it was probably the same question as Akimichi-san's but I had no time to answer for now.
Without a second thought, I channeled some cosmic energy into my leg and pulled a move I had never done before: the Cosmic Kick. There were like three or four giant summoned snakes. But I delivered the cosmic kick really fast, without even pausing in my tracks.
The single cosmic kick I launched destroyed all the summons in an explosive fashion, hence making way to the outskirts of the village.
Finally, my awkward job was done as I put him down on the ground, followed by a small tremor in the area. We were then in the middle of the forest, with nothing but trees and mountains around us; which means, collateral damage wouldn't be a concern.
"What even are you, Gaara?"
"Just like you… a monster…"
He answered with a chuckle, but I knew we were different categories of "monster." Since he doesn't transform using the Omnitrix, lol, obviously.
"You fight for others… and your loved ones… right? I fight for myself. Everyone should just… fight for themselves, instead of embracing the weakness!"
"Who even asked? I don't care about that."
"Huh?"
One could only voice their opinion only when they have enough power. Only people with enough power could fight for themselves. But just look at everyone else. Humans are a weak species. The majority of us can't fight to save themselves, let alone protect others.
But this is why we shinobi exist. We are the "strong" that the "weak" could deploy to help themselves. Well, at least in this world, it is how the weak could be protected.
Back in my world, I had fought for a lot of people, even those from different species in the universe. But I wasn't a mercenary; I was a superhero, kinda. So I felt it was wrong to push my ideals on anyone in this world.
No one here, maybe except the Hokage, isn't obliged to fight for others unless they are hired and paid. So I wouldn't judge the people of this world in my small frame of sight.
"I mean, who would even care about it?" I said. "You can fight for yourself. You know what, you're not special; there may be a lot of people out there, who are selfish, those who only fight others for their own wealth and entertainment."
Especially when you have no company, when you are alone in this world, when you have no one to care about. I'm pretty sure that's the case with this kid. He's still 12 years old, yet already wielding this much power. I mean, of course, I exist, but I'm not a good example.
When I lost my family, too, I wanted to turn the government upside down, I wanted to wipe out the military. I wanted to punch the president at least a dozen times.
"Spare me your stupid lectures!"
"Yeah, like I don't understand you, you don't understand me. Maybe let's just exchange emotions through this fight!"
"I don't know what you're talking— gasps…"
A single punch landed on the monster's body, sending shockwaves through the ground. He then reacted with a furious swipe of his colossal tail, which I blocked with my forearm. But the impact alone echoed across the battlefield as if an earthquake was rampaging across the earth.
"Grrr!" The monster roared.
At that precise moment, Gaara surfaced from the colossal creature, his upper body partially submerged within its massive forehead.
"Heh, there you are, brat…"
"In gratitude for giving me such a good time so far," he said, weaving a hand sign. "... I'll show you the true strength of the sand spirit."
Sand spirit? What does he mean by that?
"Tanuki Neiri no Jutsu!" (狸寝入りの術)
The Technique of Playing Possum.
I instinctively stepped back as he cast the jutsu, but nothing really happened, except he was somehow knocked out. I looked around in confusion, but there wasn't really. Until…
"Whahahaha! Free! I'm! Finally Free!"
This tone… doesn't sound like Gaara's. What is going on again?!
"Yeah!" The monster said, looking at me. "Ooh, straight out the gate, I see someone I wanna slaughter!"
"Hold on, who are you? What happened to Gaara?!"
"Does it matter? Well, since you're going to die anyway… I guess I could tell you my name at least. I am Shukaku! The sand spirit sealed in Gaara. Since he fell asleep, I took over his body!"
Hmm, this is what Gaara meant by the "Sand Spirit." Sealed in Gaara… sealed in a human kid… Wait, isn't that the same as Naruto?!
"Fūton: Renkūdan!" (風遁・練空弾)
Wind Release: Drilling Air Bullet.
The sand spirit, Shukaku, pounded his stomach with one hand, producing a loud sound, followed by a ball of wind coming out his mouth and flying toward me like a cannonball. In fact, it was a huge ball of air. And though it was quite fast, it wasn't unavoidable for Way Big. The trees nearby became a necessary sacrifice as I dodged to the side, his air bullet hitting elsewhere and exploding.
I see, from my guess, it must have been packed with compressed chakra so it would explode upon impact.
"Aren't you fast… how about this!?"
He then hit his stomach multiple times rapidly, firing air bullets again in my direction, which I could dodge with such ease. It even looked kind of funny to me that he had to pound his stomach to shoot them, almost like a gun.
I decided to throw some bluff. "Too slow yet–"
Thinking he was going to catch me off-guard, Shukaku unleashed another round of those air bullets, this time with me deciding to face it to experience the impact. So, I squared up and took them head-on, bracing myself for the impact, though with each explosion I was significantly pushed back. I couldn't guess the exact amount of chakra in each air bullet, but it was impressively enormous for sure.
"Im-Impossible! You're unscathed!"
"Good eyes you've got there," I chuckled mockingly in response.
Way Big's body was also made of some sorta bio-metallic space substance amidst the cosmic storms. Without a doubt, I'm one of the toughest guys in the universe right now.
"You! You must be cheating—"
Ignoring his comment, I lunged toward him and punched him in the guts, causing him to gasp and vomit sand mixed with air.
"This is! Benji-style! Special punch! Machine Gun! Cosmic Blows! Rwrrr!"
"Grrr!"
In another moment, the Sand Spirit Shukaku was now in the air, off the ground. For the finishing blow… it's gotta be…
"Uchū Kikku Doroppu" (宇宙キックドロップ)
Cosmic Ax Kick.
A dynamic leg movement packed with cosmic energy, instead of chakra (lol), swiftly delivered an ax kick on his belly, violently bringing him to the ground, leaving the entire terrain trembling.
"... you're too strong…"
"That means you yield, right?" I smirked. "You said you took over because the kid's asleep, right?"
"... correct…"
"Then if I wake him up, you'll go…" I subconsciously weaved a hand sign.
"N-no, wait, I still want to–"
"I hope there'll be a time you can be free, but it's not now… Shukaku."
Seeing him hastily rise to his feet, I backed away with caution and pressed the Omnitrix, disappearing from his sight in a flash of green light.
"Grr! I can't let this happen!"
It was around that moment when they appeared: a pair of semi-transparent, blue dragons…
"Hanzo… -san?"
I was flying around as Jetray, waiting for a chance to somehow wake up Gaara - the host of Shukaku – who deliberately gave up control to the sand spirit.
But these dragons… they must be Kusa's Hanzo-san's devouring dragons.
"Sorry for keeping you waiting, Benji!" Genji-san shouted from the ground.
"Ah… it's also fine, I guess."
Technically, the battle has already ended. I even forgot that I hired them as my guards…
Since Shukaku began moving around too much so I couldn't approach the kid, Hanzo's dragons flew around the giant and apparently drained his chakra. Then Shukaku was bound in place for a moment by the dragons that materialized more and more over time.
Oh, I could see Hanzo in the forest.
"Benji! You'll have to wake up the Suna kid, right?!" Genji-san shouted.
"Yeah!" The communication was quite inconvenient. "You heard it?!"
"Then we've got something planned! Just get close to him!"
I don't know what their plan is, but… "Got it!"
In fact, I didn't know how to wake him up without hurting him somehow, so it better be something painless, Kusa team!
While Hanzo kept Shukaku distracted, I got close to Gaara, cautiously and as quietly as possible, given that he was on Shukaku's forehead. Now what does Kusa team have in store—
Magnificently appearing right next to me was…
"Kamori Kiriko… -san?!"
I don't know how her teleportation works, but it's kinda amazing that she could just come here in an instant. Is it a body flicker technique?
Kiriko-san quietly landed right on the sand spirit's forehead, alerting him, unavoidably.
"What, get off my face—"
"Shugo no Suzu!" (守護の鈴)
The Bell of Protection.
She quickly dropped something onto Gaara, which exploded forming a transparent blossoming animation. She then silently gave me a hand sign, which I couldn't understand anyway, and left from the scene, teleporting away, as the sand spirit started moving chaotically again.
But above everything, her jutsu awakened Gaara. I didn't get what happened, but perhaps she cleansed the jutsu cast by Gaara on himself.
"Benji! We won't be able to keep him under control!" I could hear Genji-san yelling.
Gaara groaned as he awoke. "Ugh, you awakened me..." He struggled to reach out, frustration etched across his face. "Don't look down on me!"
I couldn't be certain if Shukaku had been sealed, but now Gaara was the one controlling the sand of the monster's body. Sand appendages shot towards me, transforming into deadly spears in mid-air. In response, I assumed the form of Big Chill, phasing through the incoming attacks effortlessly.
"You and… your ugly, disturbing shapes… I hate them!" Gaara spat out.
I recall facing a fair share of folks who despised my… alien forms, too. You're no different, Gaara. The complaints come from within, part and parcel of being human. The unfortunate reality of racism and discrimination only emphasizes that humans have a knack for complaining and discriminating against others, regardless.
"If you promise me to be a human again, you can hate me all you want."
My voice was chilling and scary, but composed and serious. Gaara paused, absorbing my words.
"… You know what, I can't save everyone. So I want to save you, a kid… It will make a difference, so I'm fine being your enemy…"
"Don't mock me!"
There were more sand spears passing through my body. He still wanted to fight? But at this rate, Genji-san and his team wouldn't be able to stop the giant.
"Alright, if a fight is what you want, I shall put an end to it, all madness."
I pressed the Omnitrix once again, transforming. In a blink, I became a cosmic giant again and landed on the ground, leaving the entire forest shaking.
"Way Big! Brace yourself, kiddo!"
"There you are!"
The sand giant spun around and struck me with its tail, which I blocked with my forearm and punched its stomach in response. Apparently, Gaara used his remaining chakra and tried to stab me with spikes built out of sand. Unfortunately for him, my tough skin left unscathed as the fist landed on the giant's stomach pushing it back.
"This will end it all!"
Uchūken. (Cosmic Punch)
My fist swiftly obliterated the giant's hand attempting to block, and upon connecting with the sand giant's torso, a burst of cosmic energy erupted, shattering the colossal form into countless fragments.
"What?!"
Left in the aftermath was only Gaara, teetering on the brink of collapse. With precision, I intercepted his descent, preventing him from hitting the ground. But he looked exhausted, probably having spent all his chakra. He could barely stand on his own feet, panting as he glared right up at me.
"You're not like other kids…" he said, panting. "Like how you try to protect others. Does the world even deserve you?"
I maintained my calm demeanor. "But you're not one to judge. Humans are unique, each of them different from another."
"They don't deserve help."
"You're wrong. Some may not be deserving of a helping hand, but not everyone's the same. What matters for me is to protect what I can. If, in doing so, I ever lend a hand to those who don't deserve it, then it's my own sin to bear."
He silently fell over on my palm, as his knees gave out.
I looked down at the ground to check on the Kusa team. Genji-san was covered in sand, shaking off the sand that got under his mask, and his brother was calmly meditating atop a sand hill, with his eyes closed.
"So it'll be your sin if you let me go… Right?" Gaara murmured.
"No, it'd be a bigger sin if I killed you," I gently put him down on the ground.
"Gaara!" "Go, go!"
As soon as he was let down, his companions, Kankuro and Temari rushed to the spot to check on him. These two must have followed us and been watching it all along…
Now, it's a happy ending, right?
I don't think I could do this anymore. I pushed myself to limits, I could only hope the war had ended.
"Remember. Don't call yourself a monster again," I gave him a final speech. "I'm a monster more than you ten times, no, a million times over. If you feel like hating someone, pack all that hatred in your fist and come to me."
I wouldn't want to be poetic about it, but kids are like a white flag. Can be colored freely by their environment. But it's hard to wash off the dirt without sacrifice.
"... Don't… Mock me!" Gaara said, while being supported by Kankuro and Temari, to stand up. "You're… a kid, too…"
"Gaara, you can stop talking," Kankuro reminded him before shooting me a glare. I could only shrug in response.
I weaved a fake hand seal and reverted back to human form.
"... So I quit," he muttered. "Let's go home… Kankuro, Temari."
Only when the trio departed did I finally release a breath I didn't know I was holding. The forest surrounding me bore the scars of the intense skirmish. The aftermath of such a battle was downright terrifying, and I couldn't help but shudder at the thought of what would have happened had we fought in the village.
"Benji!"
It's Genji-san's voice. Oh… I'm feeling dizzy. My heartbeats and breathing were out of control.
"... Genji-san… huff."
Just before I fell over, he swiftly reached out and hoisted me up by my arm.
"... I'm sorry…"
"Keep yourself together!" He shook me for some reason.
"Benji! You alright?"
This voice. Naruto? True, it was him and his team.
"You broke free of his jutsu?" I asked.
"Yeah, somehow, believe it!"
Or did Gaara cancel it? At any rate…
"I see… Thank goodness…"
Suddenly, I got dizzier and my vision became blurry soon enough, I couldn't see anything clearly anymore.
"... Put me down…"
"Oi, Benji, pull yourself together!" Genji-san shouted.
"No, he's worked enough," Hanzo-san said. "Let him rest."
After his voice, my world grew dark, taken over by the complete darkness, yet again. Soon, the sounds went quiet too. I was alone, cold, silent… lonely and unconscious.
[Transition]
"Did I die again?"
I muttered, as soon as a glimpse of light entered my eye, recognizing where I was. It was just a void of space, but I knew I was again wandering in the back of my mind.
"No, this time, you're just knocked out," replied a very familiar voice – my own, from a past life. Ben Tennyson, facing away, struck a random pose.
Just seeing him look all lonely pained me, admittedly.
"I feel like I'm not being myself lately…" I said, walking up to him. "It's just something's weird about me. I don't know why. But only I know it."
Silence from him, so I decided to continue my speech to avoid making it unnecessarily awkward.
"… you see, it was kinda lame, right? I tried to lecture a kid I barely knew about… I'm such a pain."
"It's just a small inconvenience, really," he replied. "Ignore it. It'll sort itself out... eventually."
"Tell me what's going on."
A brief silence hung before he spoke.
"Why didn't you just ditch me? You understand it'll cause more pain than reward if you let me hang around."
His voice was serious and cold. Was Ben Tennyson I know… Was I like that, too?
"Why? Why are you even telling me that?"
"I wanted you to lead a new life without worries, man," he said. "It was a second chance. Not a second chance as Ben. Now you're torn apart between who you are and who you wanna be – Tenzaki Benji and hero Ben Tennyson."
"…"
"You never moved on. You're stuck in the past, drowning in regrets and past screw-ups. Being a hero has become just a way to justify your miserable decisions."
"Then what am I supposed to do?! You want me to lead my life the way I want, right?"
"With that miserable way of living?"
I wanted to sock him one, but what's good about punching a dead man…
"What you're dealing with right now is similar to sensory overload," he explained. "It's basically an identity crisis. In short, you crammed your head with past examples of mistakes and overloaded your brain with regretful emotions. You're confused at who you're again. Look at yourself…"
He finally turned around… revealing that he didn't have a face. Where a face should be, where a set of eyes, nose and mouth should sit, was empty. It was borderline nightmarish.
"You don't need to act all mature to be a hero," he continued. "You of all people will know that, right? I mean, we. We became a superhero at 10, and protected the earth fine. You don't need to act tough and bossy, you don't need to stand alone from others, you don't need to wear unnecessary facades…"
He then patted on my shoulders. He didn't even have a face, but I could tell his facial expression. Maybe because he was… just me.
Then the facial features gradually returned to his face. This was… what I looked like. Now I remember…
"Yeah… Now it's time to go back, Tenzaki Benji. Your friends are waiting."
"Friends?…
…. Thanks for your advice, me…"
[Transition]
I felt like I had been sleeping for too long, when I tried to open my eyes. My eyelids felt super heavy, and my entire body was stiff, and painful.
"Tenzaki Benji, you are awake?"
A woman's voice was what first greeted me as soon as I opened my eyes, albeit barely.
"... Kamori Kiriko-san…"
My own voice was weak, and kind of weird, to be honest.
"Where am I?"
"Konoha hospital," she said calmly.
This is a hospital room, alright. I don't know how many days I was out.
I took a better look at her as my eyes grew adjusted to the light. She wasn't wearing a ninja outfit. Instead, her attire was a shrine maiden (Miko) costume, red and white, with a red headband with animalistic ears on her forehead.
"What is that? Your outfit…"
I held back the urge to laugh. She's hated me enough, I couldn't possibly start a fight, right?
"Do you have a problem with it?" She replied coldly, almost intimidating.
"N-no, madam… what happened to the… war?"
"It ended by the time you were knocked out," she grinned mischievously. "Quite regretful, right?"
"As long as the village is all right."
Her smile vanished. She then stood up and weaved a hand seal all of a sudden.
"There's someone who wants to meet you. Make sure you treat her with respect."
"O-oh, roger."
An important person is going to meet me? Is it a Princess? The Princess of Land of Fire?!
But I was wrong.
For a moment, she emitted a radiant glow so intense I had to cover my eyes. Following that radiant moment, her eyes retained a vibrant shade of blue, else she looked normal and fine. I wasn't sure what happened.
"Hello, nice to meet you."
"... h-hello?."
Why is she suddenly saying "Nice to meet you"?!
"I embody the fox spirit, bound by a contract with Kusagakure's Fox Shrine Maiden, Kamori Kiriko-chan."
"O-oh, I see. Nice to meet you."
Kiriko's fox spirit, huh… Hold on, Kiriko is also a spirit host like Naruto and Gaara? Is this going to be a Shukaku situation all over again?!
"Worry not, Tenzaki Benji," she said. "I differ from Shukaku, the Sand Spirit—a tailed beast of distinct nature. I, on the other hand, am but a noble spirit, protecting Kiriko."
"A tailed beast?"
"Ah, were you not aware? Tailed beasts are beings comprised of vast reservoirs of chakra. They have been around for nearly a millennium. Alas, I cannot precisely recount the time, but perchance, it was amidst my one-thousandth birthday celebration?"
One thousandth birthday!? Just how old is this spirit?!
"... That's amazing," was all I could say in response.
But come to think of it, Azmuth was like a thousand years old, too.
"That aside, Tenzaki Benji, I have news to deliver to you."
"... please do tell me."
I sweatdropped, the atmosphere growing intense because of the change in her tone.
"I may lack the prescient talents akin to Ōgama Sennin's, but I know what I do. You came from another world, correct?"
Okay, this is totally unexpected. I was totally speechless, unable to find words to respond with. How did she find it out in the first place?
"Worry not, your secret is safe with me. My promise is absolute," she claimed.
"O-oh… sorry, it's true. I don't know how you…"
"I, too, originated from another world. Millennia past, humans summoned me to this world, and I assumed the mantle of a fox spirit. However, with the advent of chakra and humanity's strides in the ninja arts, I became a lesser known deity. Now, after the passage of countless centuries, I have chosen to conceal myself from the outside world."
Okay, Ben, with respect, with respect, respectfully…
"Wow, that's amazing—"
I flinched, seeing her glare at me in response. It wasn't a wise choice of words.
"Ahem, well, let's just talk about the main reason why I am here. I do not have the ability to see prophecies by any means, but let me tell you this; Tenzaki Benji, you are a major harbinger of discord in this world. However, you also bear the crucial key to keep said chaos under control. Remember that."
"What do you mean?"
"You will find out yourself soon enough," she then looked around cautiously. "For the present, I shall depart. Kiriko-chan's friends are coming."
"I-I see. See ya. Goodbye."
Kamori Kiriko-san's eyes returned to normal. Soon enough, Shimada brothers and Masato-nii walked into the room. The brothers were in their ninja costumes, albeit all clean and neat. Masato-nii wore an all-black suit. It was kind of weird to see him in all black, instead of his floral-patterned shirt.
"Oh, Benji! You're already up!" Genji-san greeted me.
"Y-yeah, I just woke up. How long have I been unconscious?"
Masato-nii helped me sit up on the bed so I could talk to them probably.
"About three days, I guess," he answered. "You feeling okay?"
"I think I'm fine and healthy."
"How about your head? Any pain or distress there?"
"Nah."
"Did you maybe give it a good bump?"
"No! What's with the questions about my head suddenly!?"
"Sorry, I'm just making sure you didn't lose any memory."
"You're making fun of me, right?!"
Kiriko-san and Genji-san were interested in another matter. They stared at my abdomen, looking all puzzled. It was obvious in their facial expressions.
"How about your stomach?" Genji-san asked with concern in his voice. "You took those sand… spikes there."
"I'm all fine, really," I said, looking down at myself. "Somehow. Don't worry, Genji-san."
"Even my healing jutsu wouldn't be that effective," Kiriko-san commented.
"Ah, thanks for your compliment?"
Everyone went silent after my response, staring at me like I was some weird creature. What did I even do wrong?
"Um, ahem, so Genji-san and your team, when are you going back?"
"We decided to stay here and take a break for a few weeks," answered Hanzo, "after that war, we were exhausted. So it wouldn't hurt to take a rest."
"Huh, you want us to go back already?" Kiriko-san said with a scowl.
"N-no, that's not what I meant. I'm just relieved I have the chance to bid farewell to all of you. It's just... I'd be sad if I didn't get to say my goodbyes. That's all."
"Well, we haven't collected the reward from you after all," Genji-san jokingly said. "... It's a joke. For now, make sure you get a proper rest. You did great, really impressive, really."
"Arigatou…"
"... Um, Benji," Masato-nii interrupted, "I have something to tell you."
"Yeah?"
Everyone's got something to tell me today, I guess? But his tone was also serious, it got me worried.
"We have somewhere to be," Hanzo-san said. "So please excuse us."
After the three left, Masato-nii informed me of some bitter news.
"Lord Third has passed away…"
I blinked, processing what I just heard. Then I needed to recompose myself quietly.
I wasn't particularly close with Lord Third — Old Man Hokage. He was a nice old man who watched over for me, but he had also protected the village far longer than my existence. So he was one of the reasons I didn't become a ruthless killing machine but instead a ninja. Nonetheless, the news hit me like a train.
I averted my eyes from Masato-nii, and then I could only swallow my grief in silence. Then I desperately tried my best to not stutter…
"Sorry, I… I don't know what to say. May he rest in peace."
"Yeah…"
Damn. What's going to happen to Konoha now? But inwardly, I had something else that troubled me.
"... it was my fault."
"Huh?"
I gently nodded in silence. "I wanted to save everyone but I couldn't. I could've… I just could've saved him. If I weren't so focused on Gaara…"
"Benji, pull yourself together," he grabbed my shoulders. "We all were there, Kakashi, Guy, and even the other jonins. Even Anbu couldn't do anything! If anything, it'd be our fault. But I'm sure… it's a graceful end for a shinobi. To die fighting for his village and protecting its people…"
I know. I understand that's the Hokage's duty. I know Old Man Hokage would accept his end with a smile. Yet, I still couldn't feel more conflicted. Part of me blamed myself, the other part comforting me.
"Masato-nii… my heart hurts so bad. Even though I'm that powerful, I still couldn't save him. Probably not just him. Even though I'm… I guess I'm still far away from what I want to be."
"..."
"He carried the duties of a Hokage for decades, and I couldn't…"
He sighed. "I have to attend the funeral so I will take my leave. Like Genji-kun said, you should take a proper rest, okay?"
The silence took over in the hospital room. The day was going to be long and I knew it.
I was left alone with myself and my thoughts. I need to become better. I need to become someone better so people can rely more on me. But…
[Transition]
With great power comes great responsibility.
大いなる力には、大いなる責任が伴う。
It was a flashback of my past.
"No. Nooo! This is not my child! I saw… I saw his body! Benji is dead! This is not Benji!"
I was clueless. My memory bank was empty, and I felt essentially emotionless, staring meaninglessly at a grown man who was bawling his eyes out.
I truly had nothing.
The man then ran out of the room. Well, other people followed suit, except for one man…
"Sorry, kid," he said, patting my head, "you had to see that. I'm sorry."
"It's… o… key…" I didn't understand what was going on, anyway.
Heck, I would have to thank gods, disregarding whether they exist or not, for letting me know Japanese, even though it was hard to speak it.
"Aren't you a strong kid…" he smiled. "If your dad and relatives won't take you in, I will take care of you, so don't worry."
"Thank yo…"
"Also, remember… Your name is Tenzaki Benji. Don't forget that. Mine is Tenzaki Masato. I'm your uncle… since your father is my brother. You understand that one?"
I gently shook my head.
"Forget that, let's say we're brothers."
"... brathas?"
He rubbed his head. "Ah, never mind then. Just call me Masato-nii."
I took a deep breath. "... Ma… sato… nii…?"
"... you really had to forget everything, kiddo…" he sighed. "Your mom would be cursing at your dad from the other side… Well, at any rate, from today on, we'll be housemates! Let's get along!"
"... Hai, Masato… nii!"
Guess what? I had amnesia. I had no clue, not even a single thing left in my memories about everything… before that day. According to that man– my "dad,"– I died somehow. It was the first time I returned to life, with a different hair color and eye color somehow– and an unmovable bracelet on my left wrist– which freaked him out.
My father apparently never recovered from his emotional conflicts since that day… till now. And for me, his son, I had no idea what I was supposed to do. I have no memory whatsoever regarding my father. For all I know, I've never addressed him as Dad. Heck, I could count one one hand the number of times I've met him.
"What do you want for dinner today? Hamburg steak? Should we go to ramen? BBQ?"
"... ramen?"
"Oh, don't tell me you don't know what it is, too?!"
For me who had nothing… and had been abandoned by everyone else, Masato-nii was my sole family – and a wonderful housemate– the best one I could ask for.
"... ra… ramen?"
"Ramen? You choose it? Alright, we'll swing by Ichiraku on the way back home, then! I'm sure you'll love it!"
I'm not sure why he wanted me to call him a brother… Perhaps because he didn't want to take over the "father figure" position after what happened with my father? Or perhaps he didn't want people to misunderstand our relationship and think I'm his secret love child from some scandal?
Possible! Both are.
While I think highly of Masato-nii, it's true that he has his flaws. But that's… what makes him human.
Another chapter has come to an end!
Thanks for reading, everyone.
Now comes the A/N: Author's notes. Ore no namae wa… Kurisu Kuronosu.
Ahem, jokes aside, now I shall respond to the comments and reviews. Firstly, thanks for your support, again!
1. I'm actually slowly introducing the roster instead of using them randomly, because it'd be hard to track the appearances along the story, as there are like 70+ alien forms, including the semi-canon aliens that don't appear in official media. I do have a separate doc to keep track of aliens that have appeared in the story, and up to the end of this chapter, we already had 17 aliens.
2. Though I was reluctant, I've prepared for the ultimates to appear in this story, somehow. And yes, some Ben 10 characters will appear in the main story, not just in the flashbacks. But the most prominent appearances will be in the Shippuden phase.
3. This Ben has doubts in himself, so I guess Alien X will wait. Even then, I don't think I would use Alien X against Madara and such, even Otsutsuki. Instead, I would probably introduce Naljians. I have no problem introducing Alien X into the story, but it just feels like overdoing it.
4. Big changes have been set in stone since Ben vs Gaara was decided. And I plan to introduce some more Ben 10 elements into the Naruto universe. You'll be surprised by then, probably xD.
5. If the chakra is abundantly present in the air, or just channeled by shinobi (for instance, casting a fire jutsu), then yes, Feedback and Chromastone should be able to absorb it. Otherwise, they can't directly interact with chakra inside the shinobi. Chromastone, especially, shouldn't be able to do that. Feedback, probably, if he stabbed his plugs into a shinobi, but that's gonna be a grotesque sight.
I regard chakra as a form of energy, but like heat energy and light energy that Chromastone and Feedback don't usually absorb, that's hard to give a definite answer.
6. Sorry that I can't write a hazbin and heluva fanfiction. To be honest, I'm not sure what it is about, and also my apologies that this is the first time ever I've seen the title. So, no, sorry. I really appreciate your suggestion.
Also, just saying though, Naruto (+ Gamabunta) vs Shukaku fight was pretty short and quite straightforward in the manga. I hope you guys dig the Way Big vs Shukaku fight!
I just found a pop-up from DVDs, Water Hazard is still far more powerful than I chose to believe, lol. I think I've talked about their powers, but beyond that they could have complete control over any type of water body, including humidity in the air and even the water inside living things. His powers are even believed to be magical back in their homeplanet.
On an unimportant side-note, Kiriko's Bell of Protection (Protection Suzu) is so powerful that it would have awakened Gaara even if he was in the deepest sleep. But the jutsu could only cleanse other jutsu, and wouldn't wake up someone who fell asleep naturally.
Please do write comments or ask questions! Bit by bit, your support is valuable to me.
クリス・クロノス
Chris Chronos.