Disclaimer: We do not own Naruto
Co-Author and Beta: Etheral-23
Chapter 53: Harsh Reality: Act I
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Tobi stood in a large stone carved meeting hall as Bai Shen explained he was going to fetch the other high rank members of the cult. His lone eye stayed fixed upon the only two people beside him inside the room. Jeanne glared with nothing but pure malice aimed for the human man, and though Ibuki appeared docile, sipping on a large cup of sake, Tobi knew better than to lower his guard with either one, especially since the undead woman looked ready to rip him to shreds. For Yamata's daughter he was playing it extremely careful as she tried casually to grab his head and crush it for no other reason than wanting to.
And the action wasn't even born from malice like her fellow companion; she simply wanted to crush his head. Ibuki looked very confused when her hand and fingers phased through the Uchiha's body.
"So how many are within this inner circle?" Tobi questioned, breaking the silence.
Jeanne only glared back harder while Ibuki cheerfully spoke up; "Just Mr. Zu Zhang and Dr. Guildenstern!"
"Ibuki..." The undead woman growled.
Ibuki blinked back owlishly; "Did I do something wrong again?"
Looking up at the giant woman with annoyance, the shorter not-quite human woman spoke up in irritation. "Don't go around sharing information with this outsider just like that. He doesn't have any right to know"
The three-meter tall demon scratched her head with a long nail. "Ehhhh" She let out a confused sound. "But Papa let him in, so why wouldn't he know?"
"Ugh, just stop talking to him to you big brain dead drunk"
"My brain isn't dead, you're the one who's dead" She pointed out in dozy tone.
Tobi could almost hear her teeth crack as she visibly gnashed them, allowing him to see two sharp incisors. "I swear I'll suck you dry one day"
"Oh my~" The horned demon let out a perverse giggle.
"Not like that! And that doesn't even make sense for you!"
At this point, Tobi was considering leaving. Anything to avoid the headache. "It seems I am doomed to always be surrounded by bumbling buffoons"
The door to the room opened before Jeanne could angrily retort back at the human. "I see you three are getting along well," Bai Shen dryly remarked walking in with Zu Zhang and a tall, thinly demonic skeletal being adorned in black robes made with bones. Its head was a cross between a skull and curled shell.
It's crimson glowing eyes stared; "Pity, I had completed my study on the Uchiha centuries ago," it spoke in a deep distorted tone.
"He is not a test subject doctor," Bai Shen huffed with an eye roll.
"You experimented on Uchiha?" Tobi spoke up.
"Oh yes," Guildenstern addressed with a sinister glee; "Your clan's eyes and bloodline proved to quite interesting, being descendants of that alien parasite."
"Careful," Zu Zhang quipped; "before you realize it you will find yourself dissected by the 'good' doctor."
"And you are?" The masked shinobi asked with a disinterested tone.
"My name is Zu Zhang" The tall well-built man spoke with a regal formality. "Servant of this order, and a necromancer of no small caliber. This where is our brilliant researcher, Guildenstern"
"Who is very busy at the moment" The skeletal being rumbled, "If today's proceedings do not involve my research in some fashion, then my time is better spent elsewhere"
The mangled face of Bai Shen glared at him, "That is for lord Orochi to decide, lich" The demon seemed to ignore him.
"I must say, it has been quite some time since someone joined the higher echelons of our group" The almond eye shaped man said with an intrigued voice. "Far longer since anyone rose through the ranks so quickly" Zu Zhang chuckled. "Indeed, quite a few of our loyal members are not all too happy with such a development"
"Their grudges do not concern me" Tobi declared.
"Oh it should. Intrigue and backstabbing are not common here, but sometimes it's bound to happen" Zu Zhang gave him a coy smile, "I would watch my back if I were you"
The Sharingan eye narrowed at him.
"If he manages to survive any attempt on his life, then it just means he is worthy of being here" The whole temperature of the room dropped by several degrees as something akin to a constant yet passive killing intent filled it. From the shadows emerged a figure that seemed made from darkness itself. Wrapped in dark cloaks with the only color being two pale beady eyes peaking under the hood. The spectre spoke with an echoing raspy voice. "I have high expectations for one of this age who dares to call himself 'ninja'"
Ibuki squeaked; "Oh I'm sorry I forgot about Mr. Akuma."
A few dry deadpans were sent her way but was ignored by the dark spectre who stared at Tobi who glared back; "You're a ninja?"
"I am true shinobi long before this new age gave birth to charlatans who are a disgrace to the very name of shinobi." Akuma came right in front of the Uchiha who did not flinch from the entity's gaze; "We shall see if you measure up."
"As you can see Akuma takes the shinobi way of life extremely serious," Bai Shen explained casually; "He comes from an age when the art was actually created."
"And much less flashy," Zu Zhang finished.
Guildenstern only looked annoyed crossing, his skeletal arms; "Shall we dispense with the mindless posturing and get to business before boredom kills us?"
If Akuma's presence created an unnerving pressure in the atmosphere, then now they could all feel the ocean-like weight of an enormous power hanging above them with its mere appearance.
"Oh? I did not realize your projects took priority over my commands"
From the shadows emerged one of Yamata's head, Tobi's Sharingan could spot a ringed circle of chakra forming at the base of the long neck, indicating he was moving partially through some type of space-time manipulation, which made sense to the masked shinobi. Yamata's colossal size made it impossible for him to move easily even through the largest structures of the Midian.
The skeleton demon seemed to freeze momentarily; "It is just- My newest creations require my constant attention my lord. Lilith's appetites are hard to control"
Two serpentine eyes narrowed, "Do you mean to imply the measures yourself prepared are insufficient?"
"N-No, all I meant is-"
"Then keep quiet"
The demon humbly lowered his head.
"Hehe, Papa got mad at you~" The giant demon woman sing-songed.
"Now, I do believe our latest member should be brought up to speed regarding our operations" Yamata turned to the masked man. "And how we must proceed regarding his own assignment about this 'Pain'"
Tobi decided to speak; "Before that, I was curious about something."
"Oh?"
"Bai Shen told me your cult has been working in the shadows for thousands of years, but just how big are your operations?"
Yamata gave an approving nod; "A fair question. Our roots run deeper than the Elemental Nations. We house many spies and agents within many countries and several continents." Annoyance soon glowed in the serpent's eyes; "Though we had one agent killed recently in Hesseria."
The name was unfamiliar to the Uchiha who peered over to Bai Shen; "A kingdom in a continent west of the nations. Hesseria has been in constant war with their neighbors for decades due to their rulers' lust for expansion of their empire. The current emperor, Ivan Hawthorn has proven to be no simple pawn to control."
"Indeed," the serpent god took over; "We will have to change tactics in that region."
Odd name, but he supposed that was a given with a foreign culture. "Is a human empire that much of a problem?"
"Ivan was our previous puppet. But he grew beyond our expectations; he killed our agent there and seized power himself. He is ambitious and terribly smart" Bai Shen stated, "If left to his own devices, he will prove a large obstacle"
"Allies of the more mystical persuasion would be better employed" Akuma suggested, "Perhaps our fallen Maiden can be sent to parley with the vampire courts, they would talk with one of their own"
"It shall be arranged then" The Orochi nodded, seeing the merit to the proposal.
"Riveting..." The red eyed vampire droned.
"Hmm, the southern and the northern continents have done a good job in keeping themselves busy without our intervention" Bai Shen brought up. "But if we are to accelerate our plans, it might be prudent to take a more direct approach there once more"
"The north is under the watch of the Valkyries" Zu Zhang warned.
"It is not like we lack agents there. And there are plenty of pieces to move around to keep them divided" Guildenstern observed.
"Let me worry about that" Yamata stated, "For now, I want our most pressing priority to be Jiāyuán and Gogyou-koku. The plans to keep two of the closest neighboring empires at war is already in motion. How is the progress with this Orochimaru marching, Zu Zhang?"
"Orochimaru?" Tobi said in surprise, turning to the necromancer, "Are you planning on bringing him in?"
"No such thing" He snorted. "We simply intend to direct him for our own purposes. We merely give him a gift or two to keep him in line and have him believe he's being recruited"
"Keep him as far away from this as possible. It is that snake's nature to always bite your neck when you expose it"
"It has been taken into account. Such was what Manda said"
Manda? Then did that mean... Ahhh, so the Kurokiba had chosen allegiances.
"Now, the closest potential obstacle in our plans is this false godling called 'Pain'"
"Oh!" Ibuki clapped her hands, "Do you want me to crush him for you, Papa?"
"It will not be necessary, my dear" The great snake said with a surprising amount of softness. "Not at the moment, but if he grows too powerful then it will fall to either you or me to stop him. So for now," All eyes descended upon the Akatsuki mastermind, "You must guide him as we see fit"
"What do you need me to do?"
"Convince him to switch his endeavors" Yamata ordered, "He needs to keep the nations in chaos, so far that... we are going to a start a war"
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Konoha's recent conquest of Blood Leash earned them plenty of good favor from potential clients. It increased their standing and reputation, and sent a messenger to their rival villages about trying to start a fight with them. They had taken out one of the largest underworld organizations not too long after a fierce attack on their own soil; they were not to be trifled with.
The fame and recognition came with an increased income of missions from high value clients. A lot of them were of greater risk, but also carried greater fees for their services. So the shinobi in charge of organizing and directing missions sent the more important and time consuming ones to the Hokage's desk for Tsunade's personal approval.
Shizune stacked a batch of documents against the desk, giving a passing by smile at Tonton who slept next to it, and looked at her mentor who read the latest mission request with a critical look. "Are you considering it, my lady?"
"The pay is good. REALLY good"
"It's awful wet work..." The younger medic said with a touch of apprehension.
"We're shinobi, Shizune. We leave morality to the monks and philosophers"
The village came first, always.
"I suppose so. But are you sure about assigning it to your family? It sounds a touch harsh"
"So you expect me to give them preferential treatment?" Tsunade snorted. "Kushina's former ANBU, she's done worse, same for Kakashi. And Naruto, well, he and the other kids need this. It's for their own good"
In the years that followed Tsunade had come to curse herself for ever thinking what she did was right for her grandson. Even with his forgiveness, she never forgave herself for sending him to that wretched hellhole of a nation.
Through opening his eyes to the truth of the shinobi way, it scarred his heart forever...
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Sitting outside in one of the training areas Naruto squinted as he crossed his arms. In front of the blond was a shogi board and Shikamaru who stared back with boredom, yawning; "Figure out a move yet?" He grumped
Around them were both their respected teammates, Soujiro, with Lee, Neji, and Tenten. For whom the young teenage weapon mistress was sparing with Lyn Uzumaki.
"I'm just surprised Naru even wanted to play Shogi," Ino omitted sitting beside her fellow blond observing.
Naruto grunted; "Uncle Saito showed me how it worked and got into it." he then moved one of his pieces.
"Finally... Troublesome"
"And you wanted to play Shika," Choji quipped munching on chips; "Not even Asuma-Sensei can beat him."
"I thought I was decent at it till playing him," Karin murmured dejectedly, sparing with Sakura.
Kunai and sword clashed between Sasuke and Soujiro; "Why do think I avoided playing with him?" the Uchiha addressed.
"Because he's smarter than you," Lyn gleefully quipped earning a glare.
The wild maned woman casually dodged to her left, avoiding a flying kick from the bun haired girl. Tenten's eyes widened in shock as two longer arms wrapped around her frame in mid-air, everything began spinning before her eyes as she landed painfully on her back against the ground.
Her fellow genin all winced in sympathy as Tenten groaned from her place amidst the grass. "You can't grapple an air kick..."
"Well, seems to me I just did" Lyn said playfully, a teasing grin tugging at her lips as she looked down at the girl.
"Why do you insist on training me?" Tenten called out as she tried to ease the pain on her back.
"I like ya, lass. I see a lot of potential in you"
Sakura deadpanned. "So it has nothing to do with how much she idolizes Kushina?"
"I say she has potential" Lyn quickly snapped at the pinkette, "Taste in role models leaves a lot to be desired"
"Tenten, you should consider yourself fortunate to learn from another great warrior such as her!" Lee shouted with his usual brand of enthusiasm.
Momentarily looking up from the shogi match, Neji dryly suggested. "You should train with her then"
"Great idea!"
The Hyuuga did a double take the moment Lee stood up. "Wait I didn't mean right-"
It was of no use, Lee moved in a blur some of the other genin had trouble following. The grass picked up from beneath his furious steps as he rushed in at high speed, "Here I come, Lyn-dono! Witness the strength of my training with my new move! Leaf Valiant Wind-!"
Lyn's sandaled foot slammed right into his face, stopping him in his tracks completely.
"Damn," Shikamaru, Naruto, and Choji winced.
The bowl haired teen slumped on the ground like a sack of potatoes; "Stick with your older clone kid. He's the only one to train you right." Lyn grimaced.
A low pained whine came from Lee as Sakura and Karin quickly came over to pick the boy up and out of the way of those sparring. "A little harsh don't you think," the rosette questioned.
"Lee is a straight up taijutsu specialist. Pure strength and speed, but no real finesse for something to my arts," Lyn remarked simply but with no malice to her words. "Kid's got skill in spades, and the determination to back it up. He'll go far, just not in what I am teaching buns here."
Tenten felt her eye twitch in annoyance at the 'endearing' nickname. Seriously, what was with Uzumaki and giving nicknames for people?
"I use every single trick I have to come out on top against the monster I fight" Lyn continued, folding her arms. "You girl? I see a diamond in the rough that teacher of yours doesn't know how to work with"
"It is true, Gai-sensei doesn't know how to train me" Tenten was forced to admit.
Lee rubbed his face and looked at her in disappointment. "Tenten..."
"Look he's a great guy, but let's face it he has devoted his attention to you" The young weapon mistress said grumpily. "If I want to progress I need other teachers"
The other genin were glad the bushy eye browed teacher wasn't here to hear it; otherwise there'd be plenty of waterworks.
"That's the spirit!" Lyn grinned that classic Uzumaki grin. "So good for you to realize I'm the right one for you!"
Tenten was sure she never said such thing, but figured it was safer not to contradict the woman.
"Did Tenten get a new sensei?" Ino tried to understand how things came to this point and was coming up blank.
"Now," Lyn spoke brightly turning her attention to Sasuke and Soujiro sparring; "You two can stop."
The boys paused with the Uchiha heir slightly glaring; "Why?" He was actually enjoying himself facing the least annoying Uzumaki he knows.
"Because sourpuss I want my cute little nephew to spar against my brand new student," Lyn smirked ignoring Sasuke's twitching eye. "I want to see how buns fair against Soujiro."
For the young swordsman's part he gave a nod before respectfully bowing to Sasuke and strolling to Lyn's side; "As you wish Auntie Lyn." The buxom redhead patted the boy's head.
Tenten cocked a brow; she had only seen this kid in action a few times. He could damn sure wield that katana like a seasoned shinobi. But she had wondered a little if there was more too his skills. The thought actually made her blood pump some before smirking and pulling out her ebony kunai. "Let's see what you got."
"It would be an honor Tenten-san," Soujiro gave a small bow before drawing his sword.
Huffing Sasuke came over to the side of his teammates' while keeping his eyes on the sparring match.
There was no warning, no hesitation, when Soujiro dashed towards her in a burst of speed. His katana flashing in the sunlight as it aimed for her in a nonlethal blow. Tenten yelped and backed away, crossing her dark blades to parry the sword with a flash of sparks. Her brow eyes stared into his amber ones, and saw the complete stillness beneath them. Not emptiness, but a deep rooted calm.
He slashed again, a methodical move refined with years of training, and Tenten countered. Multiple times their weapons struck, as the weapon mistress tried to get a read on her opponent. There was no nervousness in his swings, no hesitation in his steps, no glaring openings she could exploit.
If she took the offensive then he quickly adapted. Fighting Soujiro felt like fighting against a calm stream, if she struck then it would just move around her. His style was that of a swordsman trained in the samurai ways, but Tenten was a ninja she had many tools in her arsenal.
She slipped a small handful of firecrackers from her pouch and threw them at his face. He actually blinked in surprise and backed away, shielding his face as they went off with loud bangs.
Tenten grinned and took the opening to charge at him now that his back was lowered.
Soujiro took a deep breath, and switched the grip on his blade so it was pointing down.
Water emerged from the sword.
The older teen's eyes along with the eyes of the others grew in shock at the sight. "Fourth form," Soujiro spoke calmly as his body swirled effortlessly; "Striking tide!"
Tenten dodged the attack and water within moments. However the tree behind the older teen wasn't so fortunate. With clean precision the water covered blade sliced through the lumber like butter. More than a few jaws dropped as the tree fell to the ground.
Choji dropped the chip from his hand; "Whoa..."
"Holy crap!" Ino, Sakura, and Naruto exclaimed beside a visible stunned Karin.
Neji blinked beside Sasuke; "The precision of that cut..." The Hyuuga narrowed his eyes towards the tree.
"So he has been holding back," The Uchiha oddly felt his lips curl to a smirk.
The weapon mistress paled at the falling tree; 'Damn this kid is dangerous.' She shook off the shock glaring back at her sparring partner. Like before, the younger teen was the pinnacle of calmness looking back to her. "Got more?!"
Soujiro nodded as he shifted his stance once again. Shikamaru's eyes narrowed paying close attention to the calmest Uzumaki's even breathing. 'A chakra breathing technique?'
Neji has his Byakugan activated to better observe this technique. It was simply fascinating, Soujiro was not molding his chakra through any hand signs, but rather making it flow in an organic fashion by way of concentrated breathing, making his will itself regulate the energy coursing through his pathways.
As a Hyuuga, he was very adept at controlling and regulating one's own chakra, to the point many in their family required much less, if any, hand signs when performing techniques. The advantages that came with a taijutsu style and dojutsu such as theirs. And to see such natural control displayed like that by others was very fascinating.
Tenten was not one to let surprise take her for long, she was already pulling a scroll fill with a variety of tools, all she had to do was throw it over Soujiro and let the contents be released, letting down a rain kunai and shuriken fall atop him. Soujiro merely shifted his stances and created a turbulent wave of water with his blade, swatting away all the projectiles coming from him.
When he returned his gaze to the bun haired girl, she already had a bow an arrow drawn; not exactly the best weapon for a ninja in a close ranged fight. She took aim and let loose, the arrow cut through the air only to be swat away by Soujiro's stream of water.
At that very moment a seal ignited in the arrow, letting out a discharge of electricity, which coursed through the water connected to Soujiro's blade. The shock was strong enough for his hands to twitch and force him to drop his blade.
Lyn lifted an eyebrow and grinned in approval.
"Go Tenten! Go Soujiro!" Naruto shouted, "I'm cheering for you both cause I don't know who I should be cheering on! Yeah!"
Tenten took the opening, dashing forward throwing away the bow to grab her ebony blades again, the katana should still too charged for Soujiro to pick it up again so this was her chance.
Soujiro grabbed a hold of his twitching wrist and calmly breathed, extending his footing as his stance changed. He moved his arms in a flowing motion, the moisture in the air gathered and given shape by his own chakra, he manifested a stream of water that impacted directly against Tenten, who was thrown back to the ground.
"That's enough for now" Lyn called out.
Tenten quickly sat up, soaking wet as Lyn came close to both teens; "Not too bad buns. The fireworks were a good touch."
"Use every trick on your sleeve" the kunoichi omitted raising to stand while holding her arms at her side, the water dripping from her.
The buxom redhead gave a thumbs up to her nephew; "Your weaponless breathing is getting better kiddo!"
"Thank you Auntie Lyn. I have been getting quite a bit of training since coming here," Soujiro sheathed his sword before bowing to Tenten.
A whistle came from Naruto; "Was that an Uzu technique?"
"Ehh," Lyn shrugged; "More a samurai thing. Soujiro was better suited with their skills though he knows the Uzu Kenjutsu forms. He just mixed it with the samurai arts thanks to Saito."
"It is quite impressive," Neji declared evenly.
"I have still much to learn," ever humble was the calm Uzumaki who responded.
"That Breathing style was superb" Neji praised him.
"Totally caught me off guard" Tenten scratched her neck. "I must admit, being able to do elemental attacks without handsigns sounds like something I could use. I always have my hands busy with my weapons"
"Oho, you're interested aren't you?" Lyn let out a wry grin. "You want to do stuff like... this?"
Just by holding up her hand, Lyn ignited a steady stream of flames, keeping the flame going as though there was a great candle in her hand. Tenten stared fascinated at the display of jutsu without any seal.
"Elemental control through breathing style, it differs from jutsu as it requires a very different school of thought to master it. You need to stop thinking with ninja pragmatism" With a squeeze of her hand, the flame exploded outwards, making Tenten jump as the demon huntress was surrounded by arcs of rapid moving fire. "You need to conjure the element as an extension of yourself, not as a single weapon"
"Wow..." The weapon mistress said in awe.
"I have a fire affinity myself" Ino muttered, "And I doubt I could do something like that without handseals"
"Tell me about it" Naruto said, "Crystal style flows naturally, but when I separate the two elements that make it up individually it becomes really hard"
Lyn dispelled her flames placing her hands on her hips; "Wind and earth elements can be hard to train at the same time."
"Especially earth," Naruto grumbled back.
"Well keep at it, relying too much on your Shoton isn't a good thing." Lyn's eyes shifted to her left as Kushina and Kakashi appeared via shunshin. "Look who showed up."
"Afraid it's for business today Lyn-san," Kakashi addressed before looking to his students; "Team 7 we're up for a mission." the seriousness in his voice drew strong attention from the demon slayer and the kids. "We're to speak with the Hokage at once."
A low whine came from Ino; "And I wanted to hang out a bit more."
His childhood friend gave a quick hug before getting up with her teammate. "We can do that once we get back."
"May I come along?" All eyes turn to Soujiro who questioned with as raised hand.
Kushina blinked turning to Kakashi and Lyn before back to the boy; "Umm, alright..." She knew the boy can handle himself well enough; "But we bring this up to mom first okay?"
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"Han'ei Country?"
"Yes" The Hokage nodded in affirmation at Sakura. "The Daimyo has contracted us to help him deal with insurgents. Since about a year ago the country has been facing a prolonged rebellion, and this isn't a run of the mill peasant uprising, this a skilled guerilla campaign that has been steadily dwindling the court's resources"
"You want us to put an end to the rebellion" Kushina summarized, she had experience with this sort of missions.
"I want you to assist the Daimyo Tokuhara with whatever it is he needs you to do. His clan is very rich, and I cannot stress enough how much he will be paying us for our support" Money that the village could use after the major events that have been happening in such quick succession.
"You can count on us, granny!" Naruto promised with that usual smirk of his.
"This is a very serious affair. Do not hesitate" Tsunade said with a firm voice that channeled all her authority as Hokage.
Naruto was not going to anyway; he always made sure to give it his all for the missions that truly mattered. And he hasn't failed once yet, he wasn't about to start now.
"I've picked your team plus Kushina and Karin because I believe the latter's sensor abilities will be most useful" She nodded at the young girl and her daughter. "And because this will require experience in assassination" Something Kakashi and Kushina had in spades.
There was still another issue though.
Tsunade looked at the silent young swordsman who had requested to take part of this mission. "Technically you're not really an official... anything of this village; at most you're a refugee who was granted asylum. I'm not sure you will want to join this anyway"
"I want to start being more proactive in my endeavors" He merely replied with, "To start, I need to have endeavors. Perhaps following my cousins will help me with that"
That didn't really check out to the Hokage, but from what she heard the boy was good. Very good. And he didn't question things, she could use that. "I suppose there is some clause about clan members joining other relatives in their missions we can pull" She motioned at Shizune to start preparing the paperwork. "He's your responsibility, you get that?" She told the two jonin.
Her daughter and Hatake bow; "Yes ma'am."
"Good, you have an hour to prepare before leaving for Han'ei. Get to it."
Naruto flashed a bright grin; "Will get it done!" Shizune felt a knot form in the pit of her stomach.
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It took Team 7 less than an hour to gather their things before reaching the gates and departing for their mission. The group leapt through the trees with Soujiro and Karin following with ease. "Does anyone know anything about Han'ei?" Soujiro politely questioned.
"Only that Daimyo Tokuhara is considerably wealthy enough to nearly rival Tsuki no Kuni," Kakashi omitted; "And holds considerable influence with several members of the Fire Court."
Sasuke cocked a brow; "If he had that much power why didn't he go to the courts directly?"
"I'm guessing he did," Kushina addressed keeping her eyes ahead; "And they told him to come to us for help." She glanced towards Saito's son; "Soujiro honey, when we arrive at Han'ei I need you to follow mine and Kakashi's orders."
"I understand Aunt Kushina."
"I won't lie to you, this will be a daunting mission" The former ANBU addressed the young genin. "I doubt it will be a great challenge of your abilities like it was when we took down Blood Leash, but rebellions and uprisings are always sordid affairs. I need you to be ready to follow through on it, understood?" She discretely gave her son a longer look.
Team 7 plus Karin all nodded firmly, "Understood"
Naruto would find how little he truly understood, for Han'ei would prove to be vastly different than any other mission he had taken before. It would haunt him for years to come... but it also paved the way for the path he'd choose.
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It had been several days for team 7 plus Karin and Soujiro for their sojourn towards Han'ei. The group had only made stops when needing to rest or sleep. Keeping an even pace as they drew close towards a small village just inside the border of their destination. The sight they came to stuck a chord in a few; "It's like Nami all over again," Sakura murmured.
Or something a bit more worse in Naruto's opinion as the buildings and people looked to be in a horrid state. Nearly every house in the area appeared to be poorly cared for and ready to collapse. The residents looked even more impoverished than those from Nami as everyone; from the adults to even children were malnourished wearing nothing more than rags.
The atmosphere was full of despair, for the residential empath of their group, it made Karin shake as she felt it all. "There is so much pain here," she whispered holding onto Naruto's arm trying to calm herself.
A loud scream caught the attention of the group as the quickly ran inside the village.
They saw townsfolk running away in terror; the sounds of panicked screams followed by war cries filled the air as they quickly saw the source at the other end of the village. A group of a dozen armed riders wielding various types of weapons and wearing poor quality armor terrorized the villagers. Their horses barreling through anything in their path as they smashed windows and doors, reveling in the fear on the civilians' eyes.
"A good day to you, fine people" The leading bandit, a balding man with a scarred face, spoke with a jovial tone as he brandished a long spear. "If you would be so kind as to surrender all your valuables and riches, we'll be on our way and nobody has to get hurt"
The townsfolk could only back away in fear.
"Well?" He slowly lost the fake cheer in his voice, slowly frowning darkly. "We're waiting!"
"P-Please, sir" An older man slowly approached. "We're a poor town; we don't have anything to give you"
"Ohhhh that's not what I like to hear" The bandit spoke in a low tone as his crew chuckled darkly. "I was hoping to avoid the hassle, but if you don't cooperate, we'll just raise this miserable little town and take anything that catches our eyes"
"N-No!" The old man got on his knees in supplication, "You can't do this!"
He gasped when the tip of the spear was pointed at his face.
"And who's going to stop me?"
The thugs words were met with a fist coated in crystal to the jaw from an angry visage of Naruto; "How about me jackass!"
Sasuke sighed rubbing his temples; "Damn dobe..." And it was no surprise the blond's mother also jumped herself into the fray, Soujiro was quick to follow suite drawing his katana; "Is this an Uzumaki thing?"
"Well," Kakashi absently shrugged with a weak chuckle.
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Kushina huffed crossing her arms under her bust glaring down at the now mostly dead band of bandits. The few that remained had fled for their lives only for Kakashi to stop them and detain them with a genjutsu. "We will take these idiots to the Daimyo," the redhead muttered with a grunt.
"Hai," Kakashi nodded as he, Naruto, Sasuke, and Soujiro picked up the incapacitated bandits.
A wizened elderly woman had come over to Kushina's side offering her gratitude; "Thank you youngsters."
Kushina offered a friendly smile; "We were passing by, my son kind of made our decision to stop." She thumbed over to the blond Uzumaki.
"Gods bless your kind heart" The village elder said with gratitude. "With the rebels stirring up trouble further in the country, the daimyo has recalled soldiers to hunt them down. We are... very much defenseless here"
They were more than defenseless, from what Naruto could see, the town was run down. A lot of these peoples looked like they haven't been eating properly for a while, and wore old and torn clothing. Had they been attacked before? By how despondent the woman sounded, it looked like this was not the first time the rebels' actions were causing trouble for the people here.
"Don't worry" He assured her with a positive smile. "We'll make sure you guys are safe again!"
Before the woman could reply, Kakashi quickly interjected. "We've already wasted a lot time. Come on, let's pick up the pace" Taking command of some of the horses they took from the fallen bandits, they were tied up and placed upon them so they would take them to the capital to face judgement. Naruto waved his goodbyes cheerfully as he took point to the front of the group, where he chatted with his mother, alongside Sakura and Soujiro.
As Kakashi guided the horse with a tug of the reigns, he noticed Sasuke and Karin slowing down slightly. "I've been around enough to understand what's going on" The redheaded girl muttered low enough for the jonin to hear him.
"Naruto hasn't realized yet" Sasuke added, "But what we saw, the state of the town... the rebels are not to blame aren't they?"
"...No" Kakashi finally admitted, "No they are not"
Karin frowned with concern as the Uchiha softly pursed his lips, "And how long are you going to wait until you finally tell him we're here to help a tyrant?"
"He will see soon enough"
"It's going to end badly"
"I know... but he needs to understand this is our job"
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Takeda strode through his encampment deep in the woods around Han'ei. His eyes surveyed all those who joined his cause, all those who have suffered under the foot of the Daimyo. Those who lost loved ones like him or grew tired of the oppression and greed. All of those who said no more and stood up against the bastard living in his palace.
He knelt down beside a few of his men, helping the doctor tending to some of his wounded. Close by others were training, readying themselves for the next battle. Then his eyes stop on the hulking force that has been the blessing for their cause's success since joining them several months ago.
The leader had thought as many others that the Uzumaki had died out decades ago. So it came a surprised to him and his group when a nearly seven foot tower of muscle calling himself Kosuke offered his hand to aid them. Seeing the Daimyo's crimes for what they were and wanted to bring it an end. Wanting neither money nor fame, but to simply right a very large wrong in this nation.
Takeda has never met such a noble individual who carried himself with pure humility. And was damn proud to call him a friend.
And all it started just because Takeda offered him food.
"We have this, Takeda-san" The doctor said with a smile, "I'm sure you have more pressing concerns right now"
"Nothing is more important than making sure my people are okay" He replied, finishing bandaging one of his rebel's leg.
"And we're thankful for that, but I do believe you have other appointments today" He nodded towards the approaching Uzumaki and his companion
Saying his goodbyes to the people in the medical tent, Takeda stepped out to meet with his newest companion in the middle of the camp. He briefly looked over the shooting range; their archers improved day by day, and briefly reminded himself to get some target practice done when he had the time. He sidestepped around a few people carrying supplies, nodding to them as they went, before he was face to face with Kosuke, who was carrying the wood needed to make new battlements.
Next to the bear of a man was an actual bear of immense size, easily three meters tall at its shoulders. The large brown beast was carrying a large collection of logs atop its back tied with ropes. While the brawny redheaded man hefted a singular large log over his shoulder.
"Yo, Takeda" Kosuke greeted him with his strong voice. "Keeping busy as always I see"
"There's a lot of work to be done, Kosuke-san" The young rebel leader replied with a smile.
"Someone your age should be out having fun. Maybe take Isamu out on a date"
"Ah" He let out a soft laugh as his cheeks tinted with slight embarrassment. "Maybe, but most people my age aren't in rebellions"
"Hmph" He let out a non-committal grunt. "At least go to bed early today" He asked with a gentleness that betrayed his immense size. "Kuma worries about you" He tilted his head at the large bear at his side.
Said bear let out a low growl, licking the young man's face.
Takeda chuckled as she softly pushed away the slobbering beast. "Alright Kuma, just because you asked" He patted the bear's head a few times before looking around. "Are the twins not back yet?"
Kosuke shrugged a large shoulder, "Their recon should be over with, and they'll be here soon enough"
No sooner did those words leave the tall man's lips as two figures adorn in white hooded changshan shirts with red lining, hard leather armor on one of their arms, a red sash at their waist, white pants and sandals appear at Kosuke and Takeda's side. Pulling back their hood, it was revealed they were twin young men around Takeda's age with long brown hair with long bangs. To only differences between them were the colored bandannas with one wearing red, and the other one blue.
"Well there you two are Isao, Isamu." Kosuke grinned.
The twin with the red bandanna, Isao, gave a salute before turning serious; "The Daimyo called some shinobi backup."
"And it just had to be Konoha of all people," Isamu, the one with the blue bandanna, retorted.
Takeda let out a soft breathe through his nose, "We knew it would happen eventually. Come on" He motioned at the twins to follow him, "You too Kosuke, I want you here for this"
The large man shrugged before placing the great log on top of his bear companion, he and the younger warriors followed after Takeda as they walked towards the largest tent in the camp. A makeshift center of operations where his lieutenants discussed the latest Intel and prepared their strategy.
"How long until the Manji clan reinforcements arrives?" Takeda asked as he stepped into the tent, his followers stood at attention as their leader approached the center table which had a map of the country.
"Still five days away" Isao replied. "We've been doing a good job making cracks in their defenses, but if you want to win you're gonna need to wait for those guys to arrive"
"They're master marksmen and infiltrators, only then we'd be able to take out the castle and their multiple riflemen" Isamu followed.
"Right now our priority should be to avoid direct confrontation with the Konoha shinobi" Takeda stated as he leaned his hands on the table. "Do you know who they sent?"
"They couldn't just send some no-names, oh no, they had to send one of their best" Isao drawled as he reached into his clothes and pulled out a bunch of black and white photographs. They were taken from a distance, but they still had enough quality to be able to make out the details of the people entering the capital. "They sent one of their best, Kakashi Hatake" He handed Takeda one of the pictures, this one focusing on a masked man with the headband covering his eye. "The Man who Mastered a Thousand Jutsu"
"Shit..." One of his lieutenants swore.
"That is a big name" Another one muttered.
"And they sent him with his team it seems" Takeda commented as he looked at the picture of the young genin. Something caught his eye though, "Who is this woman?"
"Oh her..." The twins exchanged a nervous look, "We weren't sure at first. But we have good reason to believe that is-"
"Kushina Uzumaki"
All gazes sharply turn towards Kosuke who gently took the photo. Pure disbelief glowed in his ever widening eyes; "Impossible..." A myriad of emotions flowed from his tone.
"Big guy?" Isao questioned gently.
Takeda stared up at the towering man as saw faint tears fall from his cheeks. "I-I thought she was dead..." Kosuke couldn't fight the relieved smile growing on his face. "She's alive..."
Around him the others looked to one another and back to their Uzumaki ally; "Maybe it's best one of us faces them." A woman spoke up.
"No," Kosuke wiped the tears away from his eyes shaking his head; "I need to see her."
Takeda shook his own head; "I'm not that cruel to where I'm having a friend fight his own family."
"This isn't about cruelty kid," the larger looked right at the young leader; "I have to see Kushina. I have not seen anyone of my clan for decades. Please Takeda..."
"Kosuke" The pony-tailed young man muttered, "They were contracted to kill us"
"She will not kill me, she won't even want to fight me" He said with absolute resolution. "I can promise you, so long as she sees I am with you; we have a chance of avoiding conflict"
"Putting too much faith in her, big guy" Isamu said softly, "She's a ninja, how do you know she's the same person she was before?"
"She's still kin" He looked at Takeda with pleading eyes, "Promise me, Takeda, that we will not harm them"
They were mutters of outrage amongst his soldiers.
"Kosuke you... you realize what you're asking of me?" The young rebel muttered, "Family or not, they work with our enemies. And you want them to, what, join us?"
"I know they will" He replied with great conviction.
The rebel leader looked down, pondering on his words. Kosuke had helped them so much in a battle he had no stake in, made so many impossible victories a reality because of his great strength and dedication to their cause. Now, with the final moments of their rebellion so close at hand he would ask him this...?
"I am asking you to believe in me, Takeda" The messy red-haired man pleads.
"You… You're not planning on leaving us, right Kosuke-san?" One of the soldiers fearfully asked.
The large man saw the apprehension in their eyes, and he could not fault them. He had just displayed a rare show of emotional vulnerability at the prospect of seeing someone of his family once more. Kin was above everything for the Uzumaki, but these brave people whom he had given his strength to for this righteous cause needed him.
Kosuke was not about to break his promise.
"Never" He assured them. "I swear I will do what's best for you. I will not harm my kin, but neither will I abandon you"
More than a few people sighed in relief.
Takeda sighed before finally agreeing to the man's request. "I'm putting a lot at risk here, Kosuke. What if she still fights you?"
"She won't fight me seriously" He replied with certainty, "She's Uzumaki, we don't fight kin"
Kosuke was sure of his convictions, and he was certain Kushina was more than a ninja for hire.
He'd come to find Kushina was not so certain herself.
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