Konoha Hospital
Tsunade took a deep breath as she looked at her subordinates. Hands-on hips and head held high, the woman was filled with quiet enthusiasm. Shizune stood at her side, curiously glancing at the medical staff and students. They were nervous to see their new superior, whom they'd never seen before (but had heard about). Tsunade was the first to speak with a commanding tone,
"Alright people, I'm your new supervisor in the Konoha Medical Corps, and I like to keep things straight. Work hard under me and you'll be rewarded, slack off and I will kick you out myself." The older woman was intimidating as some young recruits perspired. Tsunade searched the room when her eyes fell on a redhead girl, clearly younger than all others. Curious, she called her forward.
"What's your name?" The young girl stuttered, struggling to reply. One of the older members came to her rescue,
"She's a refugee from the Grass Village, lady. She was sent here for her 'peculiar' abilities." Tsunade raised a brow,
"And what're those?" Another woman came forward and gently slid back the girl's sleeves. The redhead was startled, Tsunade could only glair. Dozens of bite marks, all over her arms. It must've been torture in Kusagakure.
It didn't take long for the blonde Sannin to realize,
"She's an Uzumaki, with the healing ability. She's suffered in her former home." The others quietly nodded in agreement. Tsunade put a hand on the redhead's shoulders and asked,
"What's your name?"
"K-Karin Uzumaki." The girl was still nervous. The older blonde assured her,
"Don't worry, you won't suffer here. We're better than those petty villages." The words comforted Karin, her expressions told that. Nevertheless, she stayed quiet. Tsunade got back up and commanded,
"It will take her time to adjust here, make sure she feels at home."
"Yes ma'am!" Her subordinates took the order seriously. The spectacled redhead once again retreated into the crowd.
Land of Grass (USC) border
Janus sat on the castle's ramparts, silently watching the soldiers working nearby. It was a pleasant sight, a setting sun, and a flowing river. A fire crackled beside him, but it made no difference to the commander's fixed gaze. The men toiled in the distance, digging through the hard soil and blocking the water, which sometimes reached up to their knees. It was back-breaking work but essential.
A centurion approached Janus from behind and politely announced the progress,
"Four out of the ten canals have been completed, a reservoir is still under construction." Janus quietly nodded. A moment passed in uneasy silence when the centurion opened up about his curiosity,
"May I ask a question, sir?"
"Go on." The commander picked up a glass of water as his subordinate questioned,
"What is the need for these projects, sir? The water level is fine and the river's current is slow." Janus smiled and answered,
"It isn't, but soon will be." The centurion's battle-hardened face was puzzled. His superior elaborated,
"It (almost) never ceases to rain in Ame Country, they have adequate drainage systems to take care of it. However, between June and September, it rains exceptionally hard. The streets overflow and even the sewages can do nothing. All this excess water flows to the Land of Grass, giving life to dozens of seasonal rivers and streams. I'm telling you, once the rains start, this country will look nothing less than a swampy marshland. There's no stopping it, but we can make sure our positions aren't flooded." The centurion seemed worried,
"Then, how will we fight in such torrential rains?" Janus smiled and replied,
"Easy, centurion. War isn't yet certain, and who said we'll attack? Let them come, they'll be buried in the mud and water." The centurion's manner didn't change,
"But sir, the chakra restriction seals will take weeks to arrive. We're vulnerable to shinobi attacks till then." His superiors finally turned to face him,
"This confederation is strong, yes, but its boundaries are overstretched. The USC is on the border of all their enemies, a coordinated attack from all sides will easily destroy them. We only need to hold on, IF war occurs." The centurion nodded and didn't speak further.
Suddenly, there was an uproar near the construction site. Janus turned to see the soldiers throwing away their tools, rushing to get their weapons, and mounting their horses. The commander was alerted and hastened down to the gate alongside his centurion. Reaching the soldiers, Janus could see the reason. A large procession was passing on the other side of the river. It was only made up of samurai and attendants, as Janus could see. A carriage led the way and others followed on foot. The Roman soldiers prepared to cross the stream, no man was allowed to cross from the other side.
"Arrest them, use force if face resistance!" Janus commanded, the soldiers nodded and ran forth. Crossing the narrow bridge, the few Samurai in the procession formed a line and aimed bows at the soldiers, who drew their crossbows and guns. The situation turned into an uneasy standoff, both sides ready to let loose arrows, bolts, or bullets. The samurai were heavily outgunned, but didn't waver,
"Move and the river will flow red!" Janus shouted at the procession, which quickly halted. Soldiers on both sides nervously stared at each other, as an obese man clad in formal robes stepped out of the carriage. Two samurai immediately came to his side, flanking him on either side. The person slowly came forward, taking short strides with his back upright, until he was facing the Roman soldiers. The noble whispered something in his attendant's ear, who shouted back at the Romans,
"Romans! Our master means no harm. He only wishes to talk with your commander so we may reach an agreement." Janus rode his horse forward, then abruptly stopped and replied,
"Talk of what?" The attendant shouted back, after listening to his master,
"That's something to be talked off on a table." The Roman commander smirked and replied,
"There's no table here. Talk to me if you want." The master talked among his men and then walked forward with two samurai at his side. Janus also whipped his horse, the centurion, and another soldier accompanying him. They met on the middle ground, where the sand of the riverbank ended and the grass began. Janus received a courteous bow from the noble, which he acknowledged with a nod.
"My name is Ichigo Sagara, lord of the Sagara clan. We mean no harm to you." Janus narrowed his eyes and stared at the man,
"Your people take one step forward and my men will shoot them for transgression, you do realize that?" Ichigo gave a diplomatic smile and excused,
"We attempted no attack on your men, the bowmen were merely a response to you sending your soldiers after us."
"It's not like you can do anything, anyways." The centurion smirked, and the Sagara lord rolled his eyes due to the bold attitude.
"Leave it. What's your purpose in our territory?" Janus maintained eye contact. Ichigo had a thoughtful expression for a moment, then replied,
"We seek asylum." The general raised a brow,
"Asylum from what?" The noble elaborated,
"From the Village Hidden in the Grass, sire. Ever since the confederation's creation, Kiyomori has begun a political purge. He has other smaller villages to back him, so we're left with no choice but to escape." Janus turned his eyes to see the noble's attendants behind, then back to Ichigo, and replied,
"All right, but your followers must hand over their weapons," Ichigo whispered to his attendant, who returned to the caravan. After that, the noble concluded talks with a peaceful remark,
"Very well, commander. Should we continue our talks at a table?"
Konohagakure
Kakashi was completely focused, on his 'book', as Naruto and Sasuke sparred. It was evening and the weather had cooled, which was a relief for someone training since noon.
Naruto created a handful of shadow clones who surrounded Sasuke and rushed at him, the latter also responded with one clone who watched the other's back. Both shinobi's kunai made contact and the clanging echoed throughout the training ground. It was a purely Taijutsu fight to enhance their physical capabilities. Sasuke landed a kick on one Naruto clone's face, which would've dislocated the jaw if it was the real one. The shadow copy poofed out of existence and the Uchiha shifted his attention elsewhere.
Suddenly, the real Naruto jumped into the air and unleashed a hail of shuriken over the field; Sasuke's clone dispelled and the real one could only escape via substitution jutsu, still getting a cut on his face. All of Naruto's shadow clones were also destroyed by friendly fire. Kakashi closed his novel and carefully observed the field. Naruto and Sasuke's spar had finished, while Sakura practiced strength enhancement through chakra on the trees.
With an indifferent look, the copy ninja turned to Naruto and congratulated him,
"That was impressive Naruto. If this were a real fight, you'd probably win." The blonde grinned and glanced at his teammate, who could only turn away. Kakashi continued,
"However, you were fighting under certain conditions. If Sasuke was allowed to use chakra, he could've ended the confrontation with a single fireball jutsu. You don't have any notable defensive techniques in your arsenal, Naruto Uzumaki." The Uchiha could lift his head with pride, and taunt the Uzumaki back. Kakashi wasn't so keen on this childish rivalry and concluded the subject,
"And we must work on that. Naruto doesn't know many techniques, and Sasuke is weaker in Taijutsu." The masked ninja pulled out a few papers from his pocket, unfolded them, and instructed his students,
"This is chakra paper. Pour your chakra into it and by its effect on the object, we will determine your elemental affinity." With these words, he handed one each to Sasuke and Naruto, who shifted their full focus to the task at hand.
Soon enough, Naruto's paper split in half, and dampened. Sasuke's on the other hand wrinkled and turned into ashes. Kakashi smirked behind his mask and commented,
"Two chakra affinities, that's good; makes you versatile. Naruto, you seem to have wind and water affinities, and Sasuke has fire and lightning." Both Genin were pleased to hear that. Kakashi elaborated,
"Fire and lightning are purely offensive. Wind and water are versatile, earth is mostly defensive. I possess earth affinity, so we make an all-rounder team." This somewhat puzzled Naruto who asked,
"What about Sakura?" Kakashi stayed silent for a moment with a thoughtful expression, and replied,
"We are a heavy assault team and the two of you fit that role. Sakura does not possess any exceptional traits to fit that role. I might think of switching her teams to suit her role." Naruto was worried by Kakashi's words, but Sasuke remained indifferent but curious. Kakashi understood the mood and added,
"But, she can be a support unit in this squad." The blonde's face lit up at this prospect, Sasuke was satisfied.
As the squad members chatted away, a man with long white hair and wooden sandals approached the field. He was tall, old with few wrinkles, and wore a red-cyan attire. His face was smiling. Looking at the three men in the distance he remarked,
"It's been so long, Naruto Uzumaki."
Author's notes
Finally, we've crossed 100,000 words! What had kept me from creating this fanfic for three months, was the dread of writing so much with little time at hand. But now that I have crossed this milestone, it doesn't seem as hard. Is this an occasion to celebrate? Maybe. Bet how many more words will it take to complete. 50K? 100K? Whatever it is, the process seems exciting.
Do leave a review if you've read this far.
