The reunion between Kisame and Itachi was much more than just heart-warming. It was explosive, quite literally.
Kisame's shark summons dove out from the sea, nipping with jaws wide open as Itachi skillfully dodged and threw his shuriken, its trajectory ricocheted off each other and simultaneously unsummoned them all in one fell swoop.
"Itachi!" Kisame laughed, Samehada's jaws wide open as he slashed forward. "You've gotten stronger!"
His red Susanoo erupted and grabbed onto the monster blade, its fingers digging into the wide jaws and pushed him back. "Of course."
Tamako sat up on the cliff with Deidara, braiding his hair against the salty breeze that caressed her hair. Yes, this was healing.
No more edgy Uchiha throwing himself into suicide missions and worked her like a dog. Here, these people actually liked her. Who would've thought that the Akatsuki, well former Akatsuki, would be the better ideal workplace.
Deidara gnawed on his lips as he watched the two fight, his feet tapping against the cliff and his mechanical eye bouncing back and forth. "Damn Uchiha, I thought I saw enough of his stupid eyes." His pupil seem to blow out, "Is he really stronger?" At the sight of a complete and perfect Susanoo who took to the sky before raining down blast over blast coated with Amaterasu, he sighed, "Dammit he did."
Tamako finished the braid and tied it all together with a red elastic, humming all the while. "You wanna fight him?"
His head swiveled to the side, his braid following his movement and he grinned, "Hell yeah I do! Hm!"
She laughed at his signature grunt and narrowed her eyes, "Let's team up against them. Itachi and Kisame against us. Let's show them who's the better duo!"
He grinned so hard at her words, his fingers molding his signature clay bird and threw it out before landing on it, taking to the sky and bombing down at his wake. Tamako stretched against the blue sky and sighed in content. The area was littered with seals that hid this large outdoor space of the sea. As long as they didn't go too crazy, and didn't draw too much attention with flashy jutsu, they should be fine.
Probably.
In any case, she threw herself off the cliff, a crystal dragon catching herself and formed hand-signs, catching Kisame by surprise when his own suiton backfired and crystalized before homing back to him. He caught her crystal formations with Samehada, the sword eating her crystals and flailing in glee.
It must've like her chakra.
Deidara and Itachi were off to the side, duking it out as Deidara's explosions smacked against Itachi's ultimate defense. His Susanoo brandished a large katana, swinging and absolutely decimating Deidara's bird, but the man seemed unharmed when he poofed to the side on top of another bird. "You won't get me so easily, yeah!"
Tamako rolled her eyes and settled for Kisame, the infamous Tailless Tailed Beast. No matter how much suiton she spat out, how many structures she crystallized and struck back, Samehada ate up her chakra with a satisfied huff, always moving its own body towards her chakra.
That means she'll have to go in herself.
She diverged her chakra to the side, two spheres growing beneath the sea and rose, water dripping past its sides and splattered against the sea. Then, they instantly darted towards Kisame and Samehada followed. With the sword semi-distracted, she flickered to Kisame's side and threw a fist.
Kisame easily caught her with a smirk before retracting with a shout, his skin crystallization at her touch. "I may be the youngest, but I still have tricks up my sleeves!" She cried out, grinning all the same.
The blue-toned man shared her grin, using Samehada gnawing on her crystal treat and pivoting his feet to twist his legs around her head. With a backbend, she hooked her feet around his and propelled her chakra, inserting the chakra into his tenketsu and watched as his own chakra circular system fed into the infestation of crystal.
Slowly, his lower half crystalized as Samehada ate the damage.
Kisame chuckled, resting on his sword. "I didn't know you could do that."
Tamako shrugged, "There's a lot of things I keep secret. I didn't know when Madara would turn on me."
She signed half of rat, disabling the growth before returning his skin back to normal. Kisame watched with rapt attention before glancing at the fight ahead of them. "Are you able to use that technique just by skin contact?"
She shook her head, "There has to be intent and I need to set aside a pool of chakra."
He pondered quietly, eyes glinting at each explosion. "If you coated your entire skin with chakra, you could theoretically use that jutsu to counterattack against hits."
Tamako froze, contemplating on the idea before slowly nodding. "Hm, hey Kisame do me a favor and punch me." She circulated her chakra in her core and spread it out softly in a thin web-like structure across her skin.
He raised an eyebrow before nodding. "Alright." With a raised fist, he punched forward his fist landing at her shoulder and froze.
Between her skin and his fist was a crater of crystal, cradling his fist that soon spread across his skin like a virus. Her face beamed before releasing, waiting for Kisame's response.
"You're smarter than I gave you credit for." Then he raised a palm and patted her head like a dog.
Then both their eyes widen at his actions. He awkwardly coughed and retracted his palm.
[+20 Relationship with Hoshigaki Kisame!]
A grin warmed up her face, "Thanks senpai."
[+20 Relationship with Hoshigaki Kisame!]
"Senpai?" He roared with laughter and smacked his knees, "I haven't heard that in ages."
His laughter was infectious and soon she grinned and cackled the same, "You would make a good Jounin Instructor, you know?"
Now that got Kisame rolling on his knees, his face pulled into a snicker, "Me? A Jounin Sensei? You must be out of your mind."
"Once your kids get over your blue skin and gills, they'll love you."
Yes, the Akatsuki was a much more healthy working environment than she gave credit, especially without Obito's influence.
She narrowed her eyes at the thought of Obito.
It was about time he'll try to extract the Rinnegan from Nagato's dead body, protected by Konan.
She should move out now.
. . .
For ten minutes, six-hundred-billion paper explosions sounded in the sea. Tamako was approximately a kilometer away from the battle, hidden deep beneath the sea and manipulated the ocean around her to form a bubble of air. The water around her rumbled around her, she could feel it deep in her bones.
She has always admired Konan to the highest degree, there weren't many role models to choose from but Konan always resonated to her. A fellow orphan of a different war.
As soon as the last shockwave sounded out, she moved. Swimming past the algae and dodging the scattered fish, she felt the two chakra signatures, both incredibly weak. It was at that moment she realized she could try to kill Obito.
Stop the Fourth Shinobi War from ever starting, root out the disease.
Then her thoughts swam back to Black Zetsu, that thing would go back to planning, scheming for the next one-hundred years to try it all over again. With her hands balled into a fist, she diminished her inner thoughts of blatant murder and peaked her head from the ocean.
Obito had Konan in a tight grip, his one last hand around her neck as she felt him pulse out chakra from his Sharingan in waves. They seeped into Konan, blood dripping down her chest where she was impaled.
"North-east hallway of the Akatsuki Tower." Konan spoke monotonously, her mind warped in his genjutsu. "Beneath the three stairs lies a rose-handled knob." Then her eyes closed.
Obito tsked, and dropped her body haphazardly onto the ground, Konan bobbed up and down from the water, sinking as she struggled to breath. Without a moment of hesitation, he kamui-ed away and Tamako waited three-bated breaths before rising from the water's surface. There, she crouched low beside Konan, seeping chakra into her wound and closing it with crystal before taping a seal on the woman's forehead, sealing her chakra and placing her into a stasis.
With Konan now out of danger, for now, her hands reached into her inventory and pulled out the body of a similarly built woman. Freshly killed by blocking her airflow with crystal. Tamako placed the body onto the water, watching it float by the current. With quick hands, she rapidly stroked a brush the woman's body, infusing her chakra at each character and drew extravagant circles, swirls and matched its intricacy with chakra. Soon enough, she ran out of space and she threw her brush into her inventory before signing rigorously.
It was one of Karin's pet-project, one where the user's chakra could encompass a dead body and rewrite its structure to the exact copy of the user. Karin's seal was much more detailed where the body could then be controlled, and depending on the chakra, could even imitate signature jutsu's but Tamako was no miracle worker, she was just good at memorizing the basics.
Tamako placed a palm onto the body's death chakra pathway core, and her other on Konan's and siphoned the woman's chakra. She didn't have much left after her fight with Obito, one that she would've won if Obito hadn't used the Izanagi cheat.
Stupid Uchiha.
After extracting enough chakra and siphoning it to the corpse, it's features soon took on Konan's, and Tamako added her piercing beneath her lips and painted her eyelids lilac. Taking out one of her last Akatsuki cloaks from her inventory, she dressed the corpse and took a step back. It was near impossible to think this was a fake. Tamako then seeped her own chakra into the seal for endurance, hopefully it would last well after until the sea-life began to eat at the corpse.
[Seal Successful!]
[Dynamic Seal Successful!]
[+1050 EXP!]
With a good nod, she stabbed the body with a large pole, similar in diameter to those black receivers and she grabbed Konan's prone body over her shoulders and swam away,
. . .
There were three men peering at the door as she worked on Konan.
At this point, her base had turned into an Akatsuki daycare.
The three stood silently and didn't dare to take a step inside, pondering what Konan would do once she woke up. Internally, Tamako thought that Konan would be relieved they were alive. Konan was the co-leader after all, she had mourned their death.
Slowly, her lilac eyelids fluttered open, squinting at the fluorescent light she had installed earlier. Her glazed eyes traced Tamako's features before eyeing the three men by the door. With a soft rasp, "Is this the afterlife?"
Tamako gently grabbed Konan's shoulders and helped her sit up, propping her against the bed frame. "No." She handed her a glass of water and a pill. "I found you floating in the water. Half-dead."
[+200 Relationship with Konan!]
Konan took the pills and downed it with the water, then blinked. "I feel my chakra returning already."
"It's Little Miss's chakra capsules, I have no idea where she gets them." Kisame spoke, his large frame leaning on the doorframe.
She waved off the blue-skinned man and turned back to Konan. "Madara took Nagato's eyes." Her eyes hardened at that fact and clasped her hands. "I need your help." Then, she added a little more quietly, "I know who Madara is... what he's done. His schemes."
Konan closed her eyes painfully, recalling Madara's words. He had manipulated the three like a game, and they all fell for it. Paid the price for it. She opened her eyes with renewed emotions, "Let me in. I have to protect Naruto's dream."
[+100 Relationship with Konan!]
Finally, Tamako grinned and crossed her arms with a hum, "We all want peace."
And finally, the remaining members of the Akatsuki convened at Konan's bed as she recovered from her impalement. It was almost hilariously silly in how they all sat in small stools around Konan, the most dangerous S-Ranks the world ever produced— reduced to squeezing on chairs meant for much younger and smaller framed people.
Tamako hid her smile with her oversized sleeves, her crescent eyes did nothing to hide what she felt and glanced away with Itachi's eyes and found hers.
For six hours straight, they converged on their next plans for the six months that led up to the Fourth Shinobi War. Tamako began first with a gentle cough into her sleeve, "Itachi has gained his surpassed his stamina from before and nearly mastered his new eyes, meaning that we no longer have to worry about personal safety." It was a well-known fact that Tamako went into deep lengths to recover Itachi, that she stayed by Madara's side for so long to grasp Shisui's Mangekyou Sharingan from Danzo with his help, alongside Sasuke. She played them like a fiddle. "I say we lay low and collect information. Train ourselves to peak performance, sabotage his war efforts if possible and strategies where to put our manpower."
Kisame nodded, "His goals, routines, who he keeps in contact besides Zetsu, weakness and any past we can exploit. Hell, the color of his underwear— we need everything."
Itachi raised a fine eyebrow before adding his own opinion. "... right." He began dully. "Uchiha Madara is not actually Madara." He casted a genjutsu onto the wall beside them. "Tamako has discovered he is, in actuality, Uchiha Obito, a thirty-one year old who unlocked the Mangekyou Sharingan capable of Kamui, his spacial-time jutsu."
Deidara's blond hair swished as he shook his head, "I'm still confused how someone like Tobi was actually the master-mind of this all."
"It was a cover." Itachi offered. "An act."
"Well no shit." Deidara huffed, "I got that down already, it's just how someone who claims to be Madara has enough pride to act like... that."
Tamako crossed her arms and sighed, "Obito, believe it or not, was actually emulating his old personality before he went off to the deep end. Extremely exaggerated no doubt, but a semblance of his old self." She paused just for a moment, eyeing Konan who nodded in her direction. "Just like how Obito manipulated the first-gen Akatsuki, Obito himself is being manipulated by the real Uchiha Madara."
"So this is actually a Madara plan we're up against."
Tamako nodded back gravely, "Yes. And there's more." She sipped her hot tea and grabbed a stick of dango Itachi offered her, "Unfortunately, Uchiha Madara has also been duped by none other than Zetsu." She chewed on the sweet treat and washed it down with the bold bitter tea.
"Wait wait wait." Deidara's hands wildly move to stop her. "Zetsu? We're being played by a plant?"
"So you know how Zetsu is actually comprised of two people? White Zetsu and Black Zetsu? The main problem is Black Zetsu, he's been around since the age of the first Sage of Six Paths. The inventor of Ninshu, which gave rise to Ninjutus, Genjutsu and Taijutsu." In all honesty, this was a far catch than anyone in their right mind wouldn't believe. The words she said were completely insane, in fact the popular belief is that Hagoromo didn't even exist, just a folk tale.
So when all four members collectively nodded in understanding, she dropped her dango stick. "Y... you believe me?"
Itachi nodded as if she stupid. "You saved my life, you have nothing to gain to lie."
Kisame shared a grin with Deidara, "Little Miss's been scheming since she was toddling around."
"It'll take a lot more than craziness to make me run off, ya know? You're stuck with me." Deidara said with his chest puffed up. He said it like it was natural to have this conviction to believe her and follow her. He did choose her over death, after all.
Tamako beamed, her face warm and eyes glistening, a look she'd never let her face have because of the continuous responsibilities she put upon herself. "Black Zetsu is the manifestation of a dying will of the Rabbit Goddess. He aims to revive her using the Rinnegan Juubi."
"Just like how Nagato revived the people of Konoha... but the revival of a goddess?" Konan spoke so softly. "So that's why Obito ordered the capture of all tailed beasts."
Tamako nodded back, "Obito was to use Nagato to revive Madara who would become the Juubi Jinchūriki, then Zetsu would swoop in and use Madara's new Jinchūriki status to revive his Rabbit Goddess." She sighed, rubbing her temples, "It's all very convoluted and strange, I know. The only way to incapacitate him is to seal him using Six Path's power."
"Incapacitate him?" Itachi asked, "Can he not be killed?"
"How do you kill a will?" Tamako questioned, "How do you kill pure chakra?" She shakes her head, "It can only be sealed."
"Then why did you wait this far to recruit Konan? She had the Rinnegan in safekeeping."
"It's not that simple." Tamako groaned into her palm. How the hell was she going to explain to Itachi that his younger brother was actually the incarnate of a demi-god and Naruto was the incarnate of another demi-god making the two brothers, and only the chakra of those two brother could seal Black Zetsu away without sounding like a lunatic?
She sighed and ripped the band-aid, plastering a smile on her face. "Well you see..."
. . .
"... and that's how we'll pull the strings behind the scenes, force the Elemental Nations into harmony— strong enough that they'll think twice about starting a petty war with each other. Once enough time passes, they'll replace the old Kage's with the younger shinobi, whom fought together against the greatest threat of humanity, and they'll be more inclined to keep peace, therefore unity." She huffed out, cheeks red and strings of hair clinging to her face. "And I haven't even gotten to the threats beyond the blue sky."
And in all honesty, she doesn't even know what happens afterwards. Sure, she's read the light-novels and watched that Boruto movie, but after that?
Nothing.
She would be going in blind.
How long was this game? She's never really thought about it before. In the past, she always had goals she needed to cross off. Establish a back up plan, hone her skill, survive the chunin exams, initiate contact with Akatsuki. Leaving the village was just a small hiccup, and that led to development of her spy network, then help Sasuke, convince Deidara, kill Danzo, steal Shisui's eyes, heal Itachi, recruit Kisame, save Konan— now she was in the final arc.
The War Arc.
She never thought she'd get to this point, in all honesty. Like she knew deep down that eventually, yes, that she'll reach the end to this game, but it didn't feel like a game anymore. This was her life, she's forged bonds that have hurt her, warmed her, saved her. The people on screen were no longer just characters she adored, they were real, they had emotions, thoughts, loves and fears.
What awaited her at the end?
Would this world cease to exist and she'll be cast into the next game like a cruel joke by the Game Master? Would it continue beyond until she died of old age, only to prompt her to reload the next save?
There's a cold chill that never left her from the Gokage Summit, it crawled up her spine and attacked her body. Her heart shook, her mind raced and her eyes darted side to side.
Then there was a palm on her shoulder.
Tamako blinked, tracing the arm to owner, Itachi.
Itachi was something she'd thought of on a whim. A maybe.
She wanted to help him, of course, but doing so, dedicating her time, body, energy and focus for all these years, she realized that she couldn't help him with just a fleeting thought and some allocated time. This was an all-hands on deck fight. Countless hours of scheming, training, and finding the solution. And Itachi knew, he offered her his advice, asked her how she was doing, how far along she was with the plan, if she was ready.
If she was okay, if she needed a break. Reassured her. Told her it wasn't her responsibility, that he could do it.
That stupid self-sacrificing fool.
But she was one too.
Character Status
Name: Tamako
Class: The Gamer
Age: 16
Title: Enemy of All
Status: Stressed
Level: 397
HP: 19,100- HP Regen: 4 per 1 seconds
CP: 19,670- CP Regen: 3 per 1 seconds
Strength: 435
Vitality: 426
Wisdom: 466
Intelligence: 427
Dexterity: 429
Agility: 428
Luck: 401
Fame/Infamy: -87200
Sunagakure no Sato is confused
Konohagakure no Sato is suspicious of you
Kirigakure no Sato has named you #1 Public Enemy
Iwagakure no Sato acknowledges you
Kumagakure no Sato has named you #1 Public Enemy
Akatsuki had discovered you are a traitor! (-35/100)
Akasuna no Sasori loves you! (100/100)
Deidara cherishes you! (10/100)
Uchiha Sasuke no longer has faith in you! (-12/100)
Uchiha Itachi holds high faith in you! (25/100)
Uchiha Obito has an unfavorable opinion about you! (-90/100)
Uzumaki Karin idolizes you! (30/100)
Konan follows your will! (10/100)
[DECEASED] Pein Nagato forgives you and understands your intentions! (90/100)
Money: 15,600,270 ryo
Unspent Points: 405