Scarlet Justice: Full Blossom – ep. 09
"Spiritoso"
[Kazekage Rescue Mission, Part 4]
"I don't...understand..."
This isn't good. Aiko is completely out of it, and I really can't blame her. This is her mother...the person who supposedly died fighting the One Tail in service of her village. It means that Sasori was there, on that night...but...why would that be the case? She's dressed almost exactly like Aiko is, with her green hair tied into a bun on top of her head. Two long strands go down the sides of her face, tipped with orange. The fair skin she had in life has been replaced with some sort of artificial, everlasting material.
"Do you like it, Aiko? I got her clothes just like she had in her previous life. And since she's a human puppet...she can do great things like this."
Sasori moves his fingers, and I can feel a pulse of energy come from Pakura's left side. Ten burning spheres of Scorch chakra surround her, floating in the air.
"Fitting, isn't it? For a mother to bring her child back to her side once more...I think I should be able to make a good doll out of you, as long as you're not too mummified by this next attack. It'll be fantastic, you know?" Sasori says with a smile. "A mother and daughter pair, preserved for all time? That would be sublime art! I need it!"
The Pakura puppet raises a hand.
"Mom...I..."
"Time to add you to my collection, Aiko!" Sasori yells. "Scorch Release! Extremely Steaming Murder!"
"Aiko!" I yell.
I flare up my chakra shroud and burst towards her, scooping her up and out of the way as three orbs slam into the sand where we were before. Aiko trembles in my grip, and I try my best to soothe her by holding her closer.
"Damn. You're as fast as the rumours say, Scarlet Viper. Oh, well. I'll just make sure that I don't miss next time."
"I can't believe this...you came back to the village, on that night of all nights?" Chiyo asks. "You were after Shukaku, weren't you?"
"I was, yes. Thought maybe that it would be a good opportunity to get my hands on some extra capital. You know how things are these days, with the economy and all." He shrugs one of his shoulders lazily. "And you can probably guess how I came upon that information."
"Spies," I hear Suketsune say.
"Very useful, and conveniently disposable. The wonders of modern innovation. Now, where was I...yes. That night about...twelve? Or was it eleven years ago? Around then. Gaara lost control of his tailed beast yet another time, and I saw an opportunity...unfortunately, by the time I got there, a bunch of troublesome Sand shinobi were crowding around it, trying to limit the damage while the Fourth Kazekage used his gold dust to try and settle things. I was quite frustrated, having come all that way for nothing. It was then that I saw her...the perfect candidate. A brand new addition to my growing collection."
"You used the chaos around Shukaku to attack...and Pakura, knowing what you must have been there for, tried to hold you off alone," Chiyo concludes. "The mess of a body that was found was a fake...no wonder we could barely identify her remains. You made off with her actual corpse in the dead of night."
"Lady Pakura...she was so strong, from what I heard," Suketsune says. "How could you defeat her on your own?"
"Oh, I had quite a bit of help. A friend that I should introduce to you soon. I'm sure you'll recognize him right away, Granny Chiyo."
"Mom...she did...all of that?" Aiko says quietly.
"Aiko..." I close my eyes before coming to a decision. My hands come together underneath Aiko's back and make a single seal. "Shadow Clone Jutsu."
"Our Water Release should be strong enough for a defensive sequence," my clone says as she appears. "I'll reinforce the jutsu for as long as I can, but it will be challenging."
"Yes. Hold on until we get back."
"Understood." She jumps back towards the others and starts weaving seals. I go on the move with Aiko as the doll fires more chakra spheres at us, their heat causing my skin to tingle even as they miss in wide arcs. At the same time, several attacks are sent at Chiyo and Suketsune, met by a reinforced water wall and just barely fizzling out.
This isn't a great situation, to say the least of it. I suspect Sasori has limited control of Scorch Release compared to Pakura, but that doesn't make him any less dangerous. Those attacks, even if they don't land, can cause plenty of issues on the battlefield. For one, it can become oppressively hot...
"I'm sorry...Lili, I'm sorry...I just..."
"You don't need to apologize, darling. Take as long as you need."
"B-but we're-"
"I didn't append anything to that statement," I say firmly. "If I have to carry you for another hour, then I will. I am not going to rush you back into this fight while you're still like this. You are not a liability...you are precious to me. So I'm going to protect you," I say as I jump back from a stream of pink flames. So much heat...this advanced nature is trouble, even with all of the skills I have at my disposal. A direct clash won't go my way too often, it seems.
"Lili..."
"Find the voice inside of you, my love. It's a truth that you and I know all too well..."
"..."
"Against that woman's Scorch Release...there isn't much we can do," Chiyo says. "Those orbs of fire will leave us desiccated if they reach our bodies. Remaining on the defensive like this means that it's only a matter of time before..."
"Lady Chiyo, it does look bleak...but we're not done for yet. We can still pull through," Suketsune says. "An advanced nature can be countered by another advanced nature, can't it?"
"That child is in no state to fight. We cannot wait for her...if Sasori decides to add another puppet to attack us, what then?"
I take a backstep to avoid another orb of flames, then jump over the doll as it tries for a slash with one of its hidden weapons. As with everything else, it's coated in poison. My feet hit the sand again, and I start running to one side and then backwards towards the rest of the group.
"Lili..."
"Aiko. Are you okay?" I ask gently.
"Poor girl...seems her spirit's been broken, and nobody can fix it. Too bad," Sasori taunts. "I guess since you have no real answer to Pakura's attacks, I'll put a stop to it here. No reason to humiliate you all for much longer, since I have things I would like to do."
Sasori's fingers move, and the Pakura doll raises one hand to the sky. Many orbs of Scorch chakra appear in the air around its body.
"That looks troublesome," my clone says. "We could use that jutsu, if we time it right...otherwise, there are many targets to look after."
"We can interrupt it in a few ways...depends on how desperate we are," I reply. I can't shoot all of those down in time, and even if I could...guess it's time to force the issue, before we run out of time and space. "Get ready to surge ahead. We have more than a few tricks in hand for high-level opponents."
"Yes. Should I prepare that jutsu now?"
"Lili..."
"Aiko. Are you okay?"
"I can...do this. I'm okay now," Aiko says. "I promise."
"..." I look into her brown eyes and nod, seeing that she's telling the truth. Slowly, she comes out of my grasp and steps onto the sand again, looking at the many spheres ahead of us.
"Lili...I need your help. If you lend me your strength, we can put a stop to all this."
"Yes."
"Before that...I have to do something. Is it okay?"
"It's fine, my love. Do what you must, and I will support you all the way." I look to my clone and nod. She nods back before dispelling herself.
"Thank you." She takes a deep breath, in and out. "Sasori. I know...about you. About how you grew up. You were all alone too, weren't you? You lost your parents, and even though you had family like Lady Chiyo...it wasn't enough, was it?"
"I suppose not, no," he replies casually. "What is it? Do you feel sorry for me?"
"I do."
"Oh. Well...that's sure something. I attack your village, I kill your mother-"
"Yes. You tore my whole family apart, in a single night. You caused me so much pain. My mom...and my dad, both gone."
"Ah, right. From your heritage, and all of the connections...that would be Sozen Uchiha, right? I never did get why he abandoned you and the village that harboured him, but...life is harsh like that. You understand, don't you?"
"I do. It took a while, but...eventually I got it. Life, especially as a shinobi, is like that. We experience pain and suffering. Sasori...there's still a chance for you to change. To put all of this behind you," Aiko says. "What you've done to me, what you're doing to me right now...it hurts, so badly. But I believe that people can change. I believe...that we can understand each other. We've both lost the people we loved the most in the world. It doesn't have to end like this."
"Sasori is a criminal," Chiyo points out. "He cannot just be allowed to walk back into the Sand, as if nothing has happened."
"I don't want that either, Lady Chiyo. I'm not an idiot. I know that Sasori has to pay for his crimes, for what he did to my mom and so many others. But that only starts with giving him a chance to atone. It starts with reaching towards him, and taking his hand. I want...that chance. It might be naive or foolish to you, but...I know this is what I want to say."
What a pure child Aiko is. If it were someone else, I might scold them, but...after being through so much, she's still like this. Still showing kindness to someone who did such a terrible thing to her...and to someone she loved, still loves, so deeply. But I can also feel in her words that this is the furthest thing from a childish, naive dream. To yearn for peace, and see justice done...that is the kind of person Aiko is.
She reminds me of Naruto, in that way. That purity and determination to make things right...it's those sorts of things that can change the world, if given the chance. Maybe after the groundwork is laid...
"..."
But I suspect...that she realizes the truth in her heart as well. Sasori might be beyond salvation, as he is now. But there is always the option to try, no matter how small the chance.
"I suppose I understand your words," Sasori says.
"..."
"But your village has no meaning to me. Loyalty, service...all nothing. In fact, if this old woman in front of me were to drop dead, I wouldn't feel a thing. I don't have real emotions any longer. I have no need for them...utterly useless."
"Sasori..."
"Sorry to ruin your dream, little Aiko. Now, you can die in a hail of hell fire, or you can surrender yourself willingly to me right now. I might even spare your friends if I can get you as a consolation prize for losing out on the One Tail...again."
"I won't be doing anything like that," she says firmly. "I just wanted to try and reach out to someone who I thought understood. But...I guess that didn't work. So you need to pay for everything you've done."
"And you're going to fight your mother?"
"My mother...I don't see my mom anywhere, you creep," she snarls. "You made a puppet out of her corpse, you don't have my mom. You will never have her. You wanna know why?" She slaps a hand over her chest. "Because she's always been right here, inside of my heart. Right next to me. It doesn't matter how much you make your action figure look like her, it will never have the soul she had."
"Like I need something as idiotic as soul. Getting real tired of your rambling...let's speed things up and get rid of your little allies first, okay? Have at them, Pakura."
The Pakura doll stretches its arms forward, and all of the chakra spheres shoot towards us.
"I can do this! I know I can! Because I'm Pakura's daughter!"
Aiko claps her hands together, and the same number of spheres that the doll created appear around us.
"Go!"
She thrusts both hands forward, and her attacks meet with every one of the doll's head on. The chakra spheres smash into each other and explode, bathing everyone and everything in a wave of harsh, dry heat.
"No way," Sasori mutters.
"If that were really my mom...I wouldn't stand a chance," Aiko says, trying to catch her breath. "But that's just a stupid doll. It...could never measure up to her."
"You're amazing, Aiko," I say to her. "That was an incredible attack."
"I couldn't have done it without you. I need you one more time, Lili...lend me your strength, just as I asked before...so we can give Mom a proper burial."
"As you wish. What did you have in mind?" I ask.
"A big, powerful Fire Release technique. I can make something special out of it."
"As if I would give you time to set up shop again," Sasori says. "You got lucky once, but I can tell it took a lot out of you. How about something you can't easily counter, then?" He has the doll rush forward and extend one of its arms. Another hidden weapon, isn't it?
"It shouldn't be a problem either way," I say. We're out ahead with this. He's getting impatient and wants to put this away, so we can exploit that flaw of his.
"Here we go! Try stopping this one!"
"If you insist. Summoning: Murakumo!" The knives appear in my hands in a flash, and I flow lightning chakra through them.
The doll's arm extends further with a loud pop, and several compartments with seals on them open up. In the next moment, a multitude of similar arms explode out from the seals, extending further and rushing towards me.
"Don't want to get hit with those, do I. Only thing to do is speed up." I focus my chakra. "Lightning Release Chakra Mode, Second Stage."
The blue-white shroud bursts into being around me, and I ready my knives by layering my hands over each other.
"There we are."
It's a mass attack, meaning not every arm is going to land a blow at once...the intent is to make the target panic, get hit by one of the arms, and then end up shunted into the others to make it fatal in the end. I also wouldn't put it past Sasori to have surprises hidden within that mass of arms...in which case, this is the best way to go about it.
"Aiko, any defensive moves?" I ask quickly.
"Yes!"
"Good! Fall back and help shield the others!" I say before rushing forward. No doubt Sasori will try to take advantage and attack them while I'm occupied. Let's hope I cut through this quickly enough. My blades find their first set of marks as I dive into the mass of hands, holding my ground and continuing to slash as quickly as I can while they continue to come down on my head. There are several sounds that differ from the others as I continue to cut through, and those might be the hidden tools I was thinking of earlier, being sliced to bits.
I move the knives behind my back and slash outwards, allowing myself to escape the maze of false limbs. There's probably another attack coming.
"No good, huh. Fine...let's try this."
Two launchers flip up at Sasori's command and start spewing out clouds of gas. Poison, then. Typical. I hold my breath and run back into the cloud before jumping upwards and out of it again. The Pakura doll and Sasori are below me as I float.
"!"
He quickly spies me and shifts the doll into my path, detaching it from the mass of arms below.
"Water Release: Water Shark Bullet."
I extend a hand forward and the shark appears from midair, slamming into the doll and sending it into the sand before it can attack. Sasori doesn't seem concerned at all as he moves his fingers about, manipulating strings.
Ah, he's trying something. My head whips to the left and I arch my back to avoid the piece of metal that sails by. That's the severed tail from his Hiruko puppet...a cute trick, I suppose. I spin and sever the strings nearby, making the tail fall harmlessly into the sand. The Pakura doll bursts upwards from below sprouts claws from another hidden arm to engage me; I block easily with my knives as we continue to float through the air. The strong smell of poison is ever present, and I quickly push away as soon as I hit the ground, just to make sure I'm not disoriented.
"Lili! Are you okay?" Aiko calls to me. I look back for a moment to see that she's poked her head over an earthen wall.
"Fine, darling. Now that you've caught some of your breath properly, let's put an end to this nuisance."
"Got it!"
I hop backwards a few times until Aiko and I are side by side.
"It's something a bit reckless...and once I'm done using it, I might be out of the fight for a while," she says. "Using two bloodline limits at once isn't an easy thing."
"As long as you're committed, Aiko. I can take care of the rest."
"Yeah...this is something I want to do. For Mom's sake...that thing isn't her, but it's made out of her body. I think that putting it to rest properly will make her even happier."
"Then let's do that, together."
"Right. I want your strongest Fire Release jutsu, just like we talked about earlier." She has her Sharingan activate once more.
"Understood. It's just the one seal, now. Ready?"
"Set!"
I quickly make the Horse seal, with both of my elbows out and my index fingers making a triangle shape. Aiko does the same with only a moment of delay, and we inhale with our heads tilting back simultaneously.
"That looks like fun...let's try it out for ourselves, Pakura. Show them the true power of your infamous Scorch Release."
A large pulse of chakra comes from the doll's chest compartment. Its mouth drops open, and a massive stream of pinkish flame erupts from it, racing towards us.
"Fire Release!"
"Scorch Release!"
Aiko and I breathe out together.
"Great Fire Annihilation!"
Two streams of flame mix together, becoming a deep red sea that rolls across the sand. It clashes with the doll's attack before washing over it completely. The material starts to smoke in defiance of the heat before bursting into flame before us, starting to burn rapidly. The clothing disintegrates, and so does the hair and other accessories. Limbs begin being eaten away, and the panel over the doll's heart area pops open, exposing the rigging inside before it starts to crumble and turn to ash as well.
"..."
I shift my eyes over towards Aiko and catch hers, before we make one last push together. The flames streaming from our lips intensify, and the doll can no longer resist anything coming for it. Every part of it is consumed by the flames, eaten away, turning into particles of dust that are carried into the wind.
Aiko's attack ends and I follow suit, as she falls on her hands and knees in the sand, exhausted. She wipes her face and I help her to her feet.
"That's it then...that's all..."
The Pakura doll, the many puppet arms...and possibly even Sasori himself. All gone, with only a dark, glassy surface left in their place.
"I'm rather impressed. The two of you working together like that...I didn't expect it to go that well. That's kind of a bother, because I worked hard to get Pakura, and get her into working condition. Now she's gone, not even spare parts."
Sasori emerges from the sand some distance away.
"On top of that, you've done plenty of damage to me today. First Hiruko, now this...you could have really ruined my day, you know that?"
"What...what is that?" Aiko asks, confused.
"Major Kobayashi, Aiko! Are you both...okay?" Suketsune stops mid sentence as she catches up to us.
"I see." Chiyo lands next to Aiko. "So that's why he looked as young as he did..."
"..."
Sasori's robes are gone, and with it the concealment of the truth: that he has made himself into a puppet as well. His eyes are now wide open, making him look as deranged as he has sounded this entire time. Segmented arms, cables in place of his stomach, two contraptions extending from his back that have five blades each. And on the left side of his chest, a strange circle with the character for scorpion on it. It's the thing that was emitting chakra earlier and sending it through his body.
"His core," I say quietly.
"What do you mean by that?" Chiyo asks.
"That round part on his chest is his core, or something similar to it. That's how he can control chakra despite having that sort of body...he's not completely a puppet, but he's also not human any longer. He was right to call himself hollow, then..."
"What to do...what to do." Sasori puts a hand under his chin. "Using another human puppet might be a waste...though with only three of you in play now, it's probably worth a shot. I don't want to use myself so early, after all...not against this quality of opponent."
"I see you have yet to lose that confidence of yours. A shame," I say to him. "I was hoping that after we turned your first abomination to dust, you would change your mind and decide to live."
"You're the strongest one here...with access to at least three elements, weapons, and some serious agility. Annoying, but solvable with this." Sasori has one of the scrolls pop out from his back so that he can grab it. "One of my finest creations, and one that took a lot of work...he was instrumental in capturing Pakura, in fact. He is truly my favourite...and I can show you why."
He unrolls the scroll, showing the character for three before a new doll arrives in a puff of smoke.
"That...that face looks familiar," Aiko says drowsily.
"No...that cannot be!"
Chiyo trembles with anger as she stares down Sasori.
"You were the one behind his disappearance...Sasori! How could you stoop so low?!"
"It's nothing you should be too worried about, old witch. You're about to die anyways."
"I...I've seen that face before," Suketsune says. "That's one of the lords..."
"It was some time ago that the Third Kazekage disappeared suddenly," I reply to her. "It threw the village into chaos, and forced them to choose a new Kazekage because of what was happening in the background."
"That was...the Third Great Shinobi War, wasn't it?"
"Yes. And the village continued to search for him before giving up, using precious resources in the process. It created bitterness and resentment between nations, and as a result the embers of war continued to be stoked."
Yet another doll, with shaggy, dark blue hair and the same darkened material for its shell as the last. It's covered in a black cloak and levitates at Sasori's side. Artificial yellow eyes peer at us.
"It's because the village never thought someone so powerful would be killed...but it seems that this was not the case. Sasori...I could take you being a criminal because of the pain you felt," Chiyo starts, "but this is too far, even for you. Causing the deaths of the Third and Fourth Kazekage, then trying to erase the Fifth? You have brought the Hidden Sand to ruin with your actions! You are the reason that we have suffered for so long!"
"Am I, Granny? Heh. I suppose if we're spilling secrets, how about this one...I know that there's only one person in the village with enough medical and sealing knowledge to place Shukaku inside of a human host. Want to guess who that is?"
"..."
"Have you told little Aiko how Gaara got to be the berserker he was? Have you told him why he was ostracized for so long? It's because the Fourth Kazekage wanted the One Tail put into his son, the only compatible candidate out of three children...and he asked you to carry it out for him."
"Lady Chiyo...is that true?" Aiko asks. "You...put the tailed beast into Gaara?"
"...I did."
"The Sand's lust for power...that was what brought it to ruin. That was what led it to put a monster inside of a child. That was what caused the Fourth to try and make a deal with Orochimaru, which led to the invasion of this one's village," he says while nodding towards me. "I wasn't partnered up with Orochimaru by that point...and frankly, I'm grateful to the Scarlet Viper for taking him out. Betraying Akatsuki wasn't something I was ready to forgive."
"It seems we will have a lot to talk about when we get back to the Sand," I say. "But at the least, some proper healing will take place. Aiko, Suketsune, Chiyo. Get back to your defensive fortification."
"You cannot-"
"I can, and I will, old woman. You still don't know who I am...so I will show you. I will take this facsimile of the so-called strongest Kazekage in history and grind it into dust."
"I love the confidence," Sasori says. "And since I think we've done enough talking, let's start our dance for real."
"So be it. Unfortunately for you, I am a diligent student of history...so I already know about your little tricks with bloodline limits and the like. No metal weapons, right?" I have Murakumo disappear from my hands.
Sasori grins madly. "Oh, this is going to be interesting. Come on!"
I flare up my chakra mode again as the Kazekage doll charges.
"Make sure you don't regret your words, boy."