Author's Note: Welcome back everyone! Hard to believe I've been writing this fanfic for almost a year. I'd like to thank every last one of you who took time out of our lives to read my first story. At the time of posting this chapter, there're 492 favorites and 612 followers. Once again, thank you all. Very soon, I'll be cross-posting this story to AO3. So if for any reason it gets taken down here (such as the lemons that will happen down the road after Naruto/Sasuke/other characters get married), you can keep reading it over there. The author and story names will be the same. I know this site's admins are very inconsistent about enforcing their sexual content policy, but better to have a backup on another site than risk the story getting obliterated without a trace.
In particular, I'd like to shout out some people who gave me story/character suggestions and/or particularly useful constructive criticism. Alphaprince0, book lover reader, Marsuvees Black the Dark Lord, and savitarsurffer. Your comments and suggestions have made me a better writer, and while not everything you had to say will make it into this story down the road, quite a bit of it will.
After posting this chapter, I am taking a 2-3 month hiatus. There are some other hobby-related projects that I've been neglecting to focus on Naruto Daiyoukai Namikaze, but most of all I need to do some serious brainstorming to nail down exactly how the story will go from here. Up til now, I've been able to use the canon storyline as a roadmap for how I wanted to change things, and that will remain true to a certain extent down the road, but after this chapter I'll be delving into completely unexplored territory for an unknown amount of time.
After building up the war with Iwa since Chapter 9, there's no way in Hell that I'd gloss over it and have Chapter 34 pick up at the end of the time skip. The war won't take the entire 2.5 years that the time skip launches over, it will take up a substantial chunk of that time and what occurs during the war will ripple through at least the next few arcs of the story.
As I've never written a war before, I'd welcome any suggestions about how to make a 3v1 (Konoha, Kiri, and Kumo vs. Iwa) war compelling. I don't want the war to be a complete stomp where Iwa loses in a month or two, especially when I established in Chapter 15 that Iwa has the highest population out of the Shinobi villages. Having said that, there are certain things I don't want to be factors during the war, so the following three ground rules apply.
No Akatsuki (Except for Hidan): For reasons that will be given in this chapter, the Akatsuki as a whole will be taking a "wait and see" approach to the war. Hidan's exclusion from that policy will also be explained.
Little or No Orochimaru: Orochimaru is going to be very busy during the span of years glossed over by the time-skip. Right now, he doesn't know that the Sharingan he took from Kakashi has already evolved into an MS, but it won't take him long to find out. Once he does, he's going to be experimenting like crazy with it whenever he's not practicing the perfected version of Edo Tensei, cloning a perfect body to transfer himself to once his three years are up, or whatever other horrors he can dream up. He'll notice very quickly that using Kamui causes blindness, however gradually, so he'll be working on ways to delay, stop, or reverse that.
I could see him offering to help Iwa at or near the end of the war to test an experimental weapon or Jutsu, but other than that he's going to take full advantage of the war to get as much research done as possible while the Elemental Nations are preoccupied.
No Iwa Genocide: As was hinted at in Chapter 9, not all of Iwa's Shinobi are willing to renew hostilities with Konoha. Even less so now that Konoha is allied with both Kiri and Kumo. Iwa itself will be wiped off the map by the end of the war, but I'd like there to be at least one or two clans that survive to be absorbed into Konoha, Kiri, or Kumo. Naturally, Naruto will be very interested in sparing any Uzumaki Clan survivors captured by Iwa and undoing whatever brainwashing/conditioning was done to keep them loyal.
More than anything, I could really use some help coming up with clans for Iwa. The only named clan we have from Iwa is the Kamizuru Clan from the anime. Since Iwa's Explosion Corps is implied to have several members capable of Explosion Release, which is a Kekkei Genkai, we can infer that all or most of their members come from the same clan. Onoki's Dust Release is also a Kekkei Genkai, meaning that his family likely hails from a clan as well. That's three clans; since I'm going with the idea that Iwa is the most populous Shinobi village, it should have at least as many clans as Konoha.
As far as we know, Konoha has at least ten founding clans: Aburame, Akimichi, Hyuuga, Inuzuka, Nara, Sarutobi, Senju, Uchiha, Uzumaki, and Yamanaka. While the Uzumaki Clan had its own country and village, Konoha is the OG Shinobi village and the countries other than Hi no Kuni founded their villages in direct response to the creation of Konoha. The presence of the Uzumaki Clan symbol on Konoha's combat uniform highly suggests that they were founding members of Konoha, not just allies of Konoha. While most of the clan moved to Uzushiogakure once it was founded it's likely that, at the very least, Mito Uzumaki and her immediate family/retainers stayed in Konoha.
Chapter 33 – Part 1 Finale: The Scarecrow's Requiem
Konoha Cemetery – 10:00 AM
"Today, we lay one of Konoha's greatest heroes to rest." Hiruzen's words drowned out the thunderstorm that dominated the sky. Under normal circumstances, he would have postponed the funeral until more clement weather presented itself, but they had already delayed two weeks and Medusa had assured him that her Mana could shield all present at the funeral from the worst of the storm. As many of Kakashi's comrades as could be spared from the war effort were among the mourners present today. Most of his former Anbu associates could not be recalled, and the same held true for Jiraiya and Tsunade. The Toad Sage needed to be in the field constantly to coordinate his spy network with those of Kiri and Kumo, and Tsunade was attending a summit with her fellow Kage. Teams Seven, Eight, and Nine were in full attendance, and Guy, Anko, Ibiki, and several Clan Heads were also present.
Everyone that could be here was seated in front of Kakashi's gravesite. His casket, still open, had already been laid within the earth. A large mound of dirt stood to its immediate left; once the service was complete, Hiruzen would use a Doton Jutsu to bury the coffin.
Hiruzen looked past his podium and paused his eulogy to permit the mourners one last opportunity to gaze upon their fallen friend before he was buried. His casket was devoid of any ornamentation, as is befitting a former Anbu Commander. Tsunade had used some very advanced Medical Ninjutsu to reattach his severed head, and his uniform had been cleansed of the blood and gore that accompanied his decapitation. If his eye had not been removed, his Hitai-ate would have been placed in his hands. As things stood, it remained where it had almost always been since Kakashi had been gifted his Sharingan.
Most of the mourners walked up to the coffin and spoke their final farewells to Kakashi in brief whispers, but there was one major exception.
"We always joked that you would be late to your own funeral. Now, of all times, you choose to be punctual for a change?!" Guy wept. "Come back, my rival! C-C-C-COOOMMEE BBAAAACKK"
No one berated Guy for his lack of decorum. They all felt his pain, albeit to a lesser degree in most cases. Team 7 in particular felt like the earth had opened up and swallowed them whole, but they were able, barely, to control their emotions. They would grieve much more freely in their own time.
It took nearly an hour for Guy to collect himself. "B-Be well, Kakashi, I'll carry your torch of youth for the rest of my days!"
"Kakashi Hatake, last of his clan, was a deeply troubled man." Hiruzen continued after Guy returned to his seat. "In the Third Shinobi World War, his teammate and closest friend died before his eyes. Soon after, he was forced to kill his other teammate for the good of Konoha. To say that those experiences broke him would be an understatement. He joined the Anbu almost immediately afterward and took suicide mission after suicide mission. Unfortunately for Kakashi-kun, he was an extraordinarily gifted Shinobi even before he obtained his Sharingan. The worst of the worst missions meant almost nothing to him.
When he was promoted to Anbu Commander, he did his best to make his subordinates as strong as possible. If he could help it, no subordinate of his would ever be forced to suffer as he did. When he believed he had accomplished his goal, he resigned from his Anbu post and became one of Konoha's conventional Jonin. This meant that he would be required to test Academy Graduates.
With the exception of our current Team 7, every. Last. Team he tested was dropped from the Shinobi program entirely. Kakashi-kun believed that only those who truly understood the value of teamwork were worthy to inherit the Will of Fire. Were I in his shoes, I may have been somewhat more forgiving in my assessments than Kakashi-kun, but I wholly agree with his sentiment. Team 7 stands as living proof that his philosophy is sound. Naruto-kun and Hinata-hime, among others, risked everything to save Sasuke-kun. All members of the Sasuke Retrieval Team embody the comradery Kakashi cherished above all else.
If nothing else, all here should remember Kakashi-kun's creed: those who break the rules are scum, but those who abandon their friends are even worse than scum!"
A furious round of applause greeted Hiruzen's last statement. The Sandaime Hokage left his podium to grant the mourners a chance to speak. At first, no one stood up; many felt that they had nothing noteworthy to say, and Guy had already spoken his piece. Just as Hiruzen was about to declare the ceremony over and bury Kakashi, Naruto walked to the podium with shivering steps.
"Kakashi-sensei was more than just a teacher." Naruto's voice was even, but tears were flooding down his face. "He was the last living disciple of my father, Minato Namikaze. Along with Sasuke, he was the brother I never had. I never told him; I thought I'd have all the time in the world to let him know. I'm sure he knew on some level, but it's not the same as hearing it straight from my mouth."
Many of the mourners nodded in understanding.
"Apart from Guy-san, I don't think anyone here really knew Kakashi-sensei." Naruto continued. "He kept to himself as much as possible after he lost his friends. On one hand, all those suicide missions he walked away from made him a terror to Konoha's enemies, but, on the other hand, I know the last thing Kakashi-sensei wanted was to be famous for surviving where others died. He achieved that during the Third Shinobi World War, and it broke him. I don't know how he kept going after surviving all those suicide missions. Maybe he became numb to the loss of life after so many battles and assassinations. At the very least, I know not telling me about Minato being my dad was one of the hardest things he ever did. Even if it was for my protection. Now, all we have left is his example. It will have to be enough."
Another thunderous round of applause roared across the cemetery as Naruto returned to his seat. Hinata clasped his hand in hers after he sat down, and Naruto smiled in gratitude. Asuma and Kurenai, inspired by Naruto's eulogy, gave their own speeches, but Naruto tuned them out. It had taken everything he had to not become a gibbering mess during his oration. Now, staying conscious was all he could manage.
After what seemed like hours one of the mourners began singing. Naruto raised his head to see Medusa standing at the podium. The Gorgon was emulating an entire choir with her own voice and the myriad tones of her snake-hair. She knew next to nothing about Kakashi, but Zabuza spoke very highly of him; that was more than enough for Medusa to grant Kakashi the same funeral rite as the most decorated of Ceto's warriors.
"Today, a battle fought; today, a battle lost.
A hero lies slain, a great evil wrought.
His name shall be treasured beyond the Sun's dying breath.
Honor unending, we can never forget.
The shadows have lengthened, but Hope burns eternal.
Each ember he cherished becomes an inferno.
Through these righteous flames, the darkness shall perish.
We shall see our baneful enemy vanquished!
Sharpen your blades, and ready your magics.
Then, we shall taste our most glorious vengeance.
Yet in pursuit of victory, a warning most dire:
Become not that which our champion reviled!
Today, a battle fought; today, a battle won.
Rest easy, brave hero, in our hearts you live on!
Today, a battle won; tomorrow, a war to win.
Despair shall never conquer the blazing spirit within!
Today, Kakashi smiles, his soul now avenged.
For upon our blades, his murderer lies dead!"
The crying mourners were stunned to silence by Medusa's requiem. For a full minute, not a single sound echoed across the cemetery. Then, in unison, everyone present stood up and threw the black mourning cloaks they'd been provided for the service into the air, exposing their more colorful normal attire beneath as they cheered loud enough to shake the heavens.
"T-That was incredible; I've never heard such a beautiful song." Hiruzen exclaimed after the cheering subsided.
The Gorgon bowed in appreciation and rejoined her team. Hiruzen flashed through three hand seals and buried Kakashi.
"Team 7, report to my office as soon as you have collected yourselves." With Tsunade abroad, Hiruzen was Acting Hokage until she returned. Team 7 saluted him and retreated to Naruto's mansion to grieve in a far less restrained manner than they felt was appropriate at the funeral.
Five Hours Later
"Team 7, reporting in Hiruzen-sama." Naruto declared. After the funeral ended there'd been quite a bit of sobbing at the mansion, but the bathrooms in the Namikaze's ancestral home had several products that could be used to make mourners presentable in less than an hour.
"Very good." Hiruzen motioned one of his Anbu bodyguards to leave the room. He returned moments later with Guy and Ibiki. Once everyone requested for this meeting was in attendance, Hiruzen gestured toward the abnormally large scroll on his desk.
"That scroll contains the Hokage's copy of Kakashi Hatake's Last Will and Testament. All five of you are addressed in the will, and I'll deliver the copies of the will Kakashi intended for each of you later today. As Acting Hokage, I shall read the will to those mentioned within it here and now."
Hiruzen paused to give the five beneficiaries in his room time to steel themselves. After two minutes, he proceeded. "I can't believe I'm writing one of these Kami-damned documents at my age, but, after nearly dying in the Land of Waves, having my mind nearly destroyed by Itachi, hearing about Orochimaru's ambush, and watching my comrades get ready for yet another war I'm feeling more than a little insecure about my survival odds. I have no clue if whoever's reading this even can carry out my Will; after all, if I'm dead, there's a good chance at least one of my beneficiaries is too. Well, here goes nothing; between my normal Shinobi career and my Anbu days, I've amassed a fortune in Ryou. I'd like it to be divided equally between Might Guy, Naruto Namikaze-Uzumaki, Sasuke Uchiha, and Hinata Hyuuga – or Hinata Namikaze-Hyuuga if she's married Naruto by the time I'm dead."
Hinata barely suppressed tears upon hearing her Sensei's endorsement of her upcoming marriage. Like so many things, it had never been properly discussed with him.
"To Might Guy specifically, I leave the Hatake Clan compound and all the items contained therein – aside from the items stated within my Last Will and Testament to go the other beneficiaries." Guy barely managed to stammer out an acceptance of Kakashi's will.
"To Naruto Namikaze-Uzumaki, I leave the Hatake Clan's most prized possession: the Hakkou Chakura Tou." (White Light Chakra Sabre) Naruto gasped at this. He'd heard legends of that blade, but he assumed it had been destroyed at some point since Kakashi never used it. 'He must have had it repaired shortly after Tsunade-hime healed him.'
"I know you have Tenseiga and Tokijin, but you never know if you'll fight something resistant or immune to Youki. If you want to fall back on Jutsu and Kurama for that scenario, that's fine too. In that case, though, I'd prefer that you give the sword to Sasuke-kun. Especially if you haven't gotten around to mastering Raiton Chakra by the time you're reading this. Either way, my clan's sword will serve you well." Hiruzen concluded the portion of the will pertaining to Naruto.
"I'm guessing what Kakashi-sensei left for us is sealed into our copies of his will?" Naruto gulped.
"Yes." Hiruzen answered gravely before moving on. "To Sasuke Uchiha, I leave all the Ninjutsu either invented or improved upon by my clan. Use your Sharingan to master them all, and become the shining example of your bloodline that I could never be with my borrowed Sharingan."
"I-I will, Kakashi-sensei. You can count on it!" Sasuke cried.
"To Hinata Namikaze-Hyuuga – or to Hinata Hyuuga if I died way too soon after writing this – I have both a warning and a gift. The Byakugan and the Juuken have become too legendary for the Hyuuga's good. As you saw in the Land of Waves, Iwa has developed Fuinjutsu that can mask Chakra signatures from even the Byakugan, and the Juuken can be countered by Jutsu that alters the composition of the skin to protect the user's Tenketsu." Hiruzen proceeded
'As I learned the hard way during my most recent mission.' Hinata reflected bitterly.
"Over the years, I've analyzed and copied hundreds of Taijutsu techniques with my Sharingan. Most of them were only one or two forms of the enemy's style, but there's quite the variety of styles between them all and a lot of them can be grouped into categories that complement each other. I've spent most of the last month doing exactly that. Hinata, I want you to use these incomplete styles to renew the Juuken. Its main focus should still be to destroy an enemy's internal organs through their Tenketsu, but it desperately needs new techniques to compensate for countermeasures against Tenketsu strikes. With the Hyuuga's Kami-damned Council of Elders gone forever thanks to your father, you shouldn't have any trouble giving the Juuken a fresh coat of paint."
Hinata's eyes all but leaped from her head. This was the second-most important thing she wanted to achieve in her lifetime, right beneath marrying Naruto. "I accept this mission, Kakashi-sensei!" The Hyuuga princess sobbed.
Naruto and Sasuke needed several minutes to console both themselves and Hinata. Once they had calmed down, Hiruzen moved onto the final portion of Kakashi's Will.
"To Ibiki Morino, I don't have any gifts; instead, I have an earnest wish. If Team 7 is still whole when I die, I'd like you to be their new commander. Don't give me any crap about the Konoha Intelligence Division needing you at headquarters all the time. You have Anko, along with several talented lieutenants who can take over for you. Aside from Guy and Asuma-san, you're the only Jonin that I couldn't consistently win against in spars. Not even with my Sharingan. Again, don't give me grief about you only being a Tokubetsu Jonin; we both know that's an excuse to keep you out of the field as much as possible."
"Cheeky punk, thinks he can sass me from beyond the grave does he?" Ibiki chuckled. "If the three members of Team 7 will have me, I'll happily accept Kakashi's will."
"Welcome aboard!" Sasuke spoke for his teammates.
"That's it." Hiruzen wrapped up his copy of the will. "In addition to what was stated in the will, I feel the need to give Sasuke-kun additional support due to Orochimaru's interest in the Sharingan. He won't be content with an implant for long!"
"What did you have in mind?" Sasuke asked.
"Effective immediately, Might Guy is your new personal Taijutsu instructor. Guy-san, I want Sasuke-kun to achieve Lee-kun's level of proficiency with the Eight Gates as soon as possible. His Hanyou body can withstand the backlash of the Gates much easier than any human, even you. When you're not training Sasuke-kun or on missions, you'll be helping Hinata-hime renew the Juuken." Hiruzen ordered.
"Yes, Hokage-sama!" Guy replied.
"Wait a minute!" Sasuke shouted. "If I'm being trained by Guy-sensei almost all the time, how can I master the Ninjutsu Kakashi-sensei left for me? I'm sure that a lot of them are for Nature Transformations I don't know. Also, I'd bet all the money I just inherited that Naruto's going to pass the sword he inherited over to me."
"I don't take bets from people who already know the outcome." Naruto grinned.
"There you go;" Sasuke continued, "now, I need a Kenjutsu instructor too!"
"Don't you worry about those." Sasuke took an involuntary step back upon seeing Hiruzen's predatory grin. "Now that I'm retired, nothing's stopping me from taking another apprentice. Get ready boy; the Professor is back and class is in session!"
Inuzuka Clan Compound
"I'm so proud of you!" Tsume squealed while giving Kiba a bear-hug. She wanted to have this conversation immediately after Sasuke had been saved, but Kakashi's death preempted it.
"Okaa-san, c-can't breathe!" Kiba gasped.
"Please," Tsume dropped her daughter, "you have Inuyasha-sama's durability now; a crushing grip of that level can't force a single ounce of air from your lungs now. Getting your mind adjusted to your new body is one of the things we need to work on."
"Just one of the things, huh?" Kiba rubbed her ribs.
"That's right! In case you've forgotten, my sleeps-straight-through-her-clan-history-lessons daughter, there's quite the imbalance of power between you and Akamaru-kun now."
Tsume was right; between her Hanyou physiology and Tessaiga, Kiba was now too powerful for Akamaru to keep up with unless she held back tremendously. "Wasn't there some kinda blood ritual used by the clansman acknowledged by Tessaiga to give their partners Youki so they still fight as one?"
"At least you didn't sleep through that lesson." Tsume thanked Kami for minor miracles. "Yes, if Akamaru-kun drinks blood enriched with your Youki, he'll become a Youkai hound and gain the physical attributes needed to match your newfound might. He may also gain the ability to manipulate Youki. Like most Inuzuka dogs, Akamaru-kun has some wolf blood in him, so the ritual is best done on the night of a full moon. By happy coincidence, tonight is one such night. We'll need to seal your Chakra for the duration of the ritual to ensure that your blood is imbued with Youki only."
Tsume flashed through a series of hand seals, and her right hand glowed royal purple. "This won't hurt, but it will feel very weird. To be safe, we'll do the ritual in three hours to ensure that all the Chakra in your blood has been sealed."
Amagakure – Throne Room
The Deva path of Nagato, more commonly known as Pain, gazed impassively from his throne as Konan unfurled a large storage scroll. With a hand seal, she conjured eight circular stone slabs large enough for an adult to stand on without fear of falling off. The slabs were arranged in a crescent pattern and were divided into sets of four by a ten-foot gap. Soon after she summoned the slabs, aurora-like projections of the other Akatsuki appeared upon them.
Itachi's projection manifested on the farthest slab to Nagato's left. From left to right, Kisame's, Deidara's and Sasori's projections filled out the formation.
The slab array to Nagato's right was occupied first by Hidan's image in the right-most slab. To his immediate left, Kakazu's projection appeared. Zetsu materialized through the floor to stand upon the slab to Kakazu's left. Though Orochimaru was no longer a member, his slab was retained in the formation for the rare occasions that Zetsu felt the need to split into his two halves during a meeting.
"Zetsu, what news have you of the upcoming war?" Nagato inquired.
"The initial battle lines have more or less been drawn, but aside from some minor skirmishes, the fighting hasn't begun yet." Black Zetsu, the half currently in control, replied.
"Have all the participating nations been verified?" Kakuzu asked.
"Yes; Konoha, Kiri, and Kumo are allied against Iwa. Suna is pleading neutrality citing the disastrous consequences of the Konoha invasion. For its part, Konoha seems to have forgiven Suna's role in Orochimaru's plan and has renewed their alliance."
"Hah! That basically means that Iwa is all alone against the other four huge Elemental Nations! That old fart Onoki must be shitting bricks; how long do ya think it'll be before he's begging us to help?" Deidara cackled.
"We have already received several missives from Iwa requesting aid. Per Pain-sama, I have denied all of them."
Kakuzu's eyes narrowed. "Iwa is in no position to negotiate; we could name our price and Onoki-san would have no choice but to accept. This is a financial opportunity we cannot ignore!"
"While I agree that substantial funds are essential to the success of our mission, there is much more to consider before we intervene in such a lopsided war." Itachi sighed. Kakuzu meant well, but he should know better! "The creature that foiled our capture of the Kyuubi Jinchuriki was a complete surprise. We cannot discount the possibility that the other villages are harboring similar monsters."
"Got that right!" Kisame agreed. "Poor Samehada has been switching between more bloodlust than I've ever seen out of him and shriveling up like a shrimp in the desert since we fought that bitch!"
"There's also the fact that we don't yet know who all nine Jinchuriki are." Sasori added. "The last thing we need is to be embroiled in a prolonged battle while our prey is lurking just out of sight!"
"Precisely;" Nagato affirmed, "for the reasons given by Itachi-san and Sasori-san, the Akatsuki – with one exception – will stay out of this war so that we may ascertain the full combat potential of all the major villages. To that end, it is in our best interest that this war lasts as long as possible."
The leader of Akatsuki turned to the only member of his organization that had yet to speak. "Hidan-dono, are your Cardinals ready?"
"Fuck yeah they are, Leader-san!" Hidan laughed. "After all, I've kept them on a short leash long enough since joining this group!"
"Then turn them loose, High Priest of Jashin-sama. The world shall bask in the Death Eater's wisdom! May the chaos they spread in this war, and beyond, bring glory to Jashin-sama!"
Hidan's maniacal laughter tore through the room as his projection disappeared.
"This meeting is adjourned." Konan declared. "If you have any concerns in the near future, inform us through the usual channels."
The Akatsuki members' projections winked out of existence, and Zetsu vanished back into the floor. After Konan resealed the stone slabs Nagato used his other five Paths to ascertain that none of their Chakra signatures were anywhere within Amagakure's palace. He waited several more seconds to be sure before using an incredibly weak Shinra Tensei to leave a tiny crack on the floor in the space that had separated the two slab arrays.
The air above the crack shimmered and seemed to spiral into itself as a man wearing a simple white tunic, matching pants and sandals, and an orange spiral mask with only one eyehole twisted into the room from the distorted airspace.
"You're taking an enormous risk." The masked man growled.
"A necessary risk, as you well know, Obito-san." Nagato retorted. "Jashin-san and his ilk pose far too great a threat to Madara-sama's ambitions to be left unchecked. Not even Zetsu could breach the security of their hidden compounds, nor could he find them all. No, the Cult of Jashin must be drawn out, cut asunder, and burned at the root.
"And this is your solution? Jashin-san's disciples do not call him 'Death Eater' out of affection alone. Every murder committed in his name erodes the seal Gaia placed upon him!" Obito countered.
"Perhaps, but with each disciple killed, his influence upon this world wanes." Nagato replied coolly. "If all of his disciples are slain, Jashin-san will be rendered an impotent god."
"Very well; we'll play it your way for now." Obito surrendered. With another spiraling ripple, he vanished from the room.
Otogakure
Orochimaru sighed as he returned home. The euphoria from finally obtaining the Sharingan was dimmed as he saw Kimimaro's corpse lying on an operating table. The snake that retrieved it had already banished itself back to its own realm.
"The damage to Kimimaro's heart and surrounding blood vessels is consistent with the Rasengan. Jiraiya is preoccupied with the war effort, so Naruto-kun must have been the one to kill my precious Kimimaro-kun." The Snake Sannin observed. "Two weeks ago, I'd have been furious after seeing this. But, thanks to Kabuto's improvements to Edo Tensei, I'll be able to resurrect Kimimaro-kun at no less than eighty percent of his full power! Couple that with an undying body and near-infinite Chakra and he'll be unstoppable!"
Orochimaru moved to Kabuto's lab and retrieved several surgical tools. "I'll revive you in due time, Kimimaro-kun! First, I need to perfect my control over the upgraded Edo Tensei using some expendable test subjects. And before even that, I need to incorporate your Kekkei Genkai into my body! Kabuto was so close to a breakthrough; completing his research should only take a month or two! The Sharingan and its wonders can wait, for a brief interlude. After all, what kind of king has no knights at his beck and call?!"
Konoha Cemetery – Midnight
Naruto stood in front of Kakashi's grave. He had no more tears that night, but he wished he did. "I'm sorry, Kakashi-sensei, but I don't know if I can do what Medusa-san said earlier. My Daiyoukai blood is boiling over, demanding Orochimaru's head. Lots of people talk about a 'dark side' or a 'bad conscious'. I used to think of it as uneducated nonsense, but, after learning you died, I felt it; something inside me snapped. That 'dark side' people talk about? If I didn't have it before, I certainly have it now."
The young Daiyoukai's eyes were red. Not the scarlet slits that appeared when he used Kurama's Chakra. No, this red was completely different. His pupils and irises were unchanged, but his sclera were now the color of blood.
Naruto shook his head from side to side several times, and his eyes returned to normal. "Orochimaru's dead meat, and Kami have mercy on anyone who gets in my way because I sure as Hell won't!"
Chapter End
With that, Part 1 is done! Originally, I was planning on just killing off Kimimaro for good in Chapter 32, but that would leave Orochimaru without any noteworthy canon servants that he could put in the field. Despite the arrogance that caused them to lose against the Sasuke Retrieval Team, the Sound Four were still Orochimaru's elite guard; he wouldn't have brought them along to help with Hiruzen's assassination unless he had at least some faith in their abilities. To say nothing of how much he relied on Kabuto in canon. He still has Karin, but she's not much in use in combat by herself. If I dip into the filler arcs I could add Guren to the equation, which is a huge boost to Otogakure's war potential, but that's about it.
So yeah, Orochimaru's going to need Edo-Kimimaro down the road, and he's getting him! He won't stop with Kimimaro, but he's going to be much more selective with who he revives with Edo Tensei than Kabuto was; quality over quantity and all that.
I always thought that it was a huge waste of potential that Hidan's religion wasn't explored in depth. Seriously, Jashin can grant you near-absolute immortality if you sacrifice people to him every now and again and Hidan is his only follower? No other psychopaths or sadists that want a piece of that action? I know that other followers are introduced in the light novels and Boruto, but A) I don't give two shits about anything from the Boruto Era and B) even if I did, the grand total of all confirmed followers of Jashin is a whopping THREE FUCKING PEOPLE!
I call bullshit, and thus will be giving Jashin a proper following in this story.
I said on a review reply back on Chapter 7 that Naruto would get a proper character arc in this story. Not that he didn't have any character development in canon; he did, but it was mostly surface-level. His personality or goals never underwent a drastic change, nor did he ever have to take a long, hard look in the mirror and ask himself "Is this who I want to be? If not, how can I change?" Kakashi's murder was Naruto's "Batman moment". He knows that he's got a dark side now, and he's not confident that he can keep it under control, or even if he wants it under control – at least where Orochimaru is concerned.
I'll do my best to get my other projects and the brainstorming needed to continue this story squared away as quickly as possible, but I may not get back to writing this fanfic until next year.
But make no mistake: this story WILL continue! To quote Harry Hart from Kingsman: The Golden Circle – "This is not the end. It is not even the beginning of the end. But it is, perhaps, the end of the beginning."
Thank you all for reading! See you soon!