Chapter 97 Foresight.

Don't touch the Sakura tree.

That was Sakura's only request. While he was free to deforest her jutsu, he couldn't touch the Sakura tree. Mifune had no problem with this. The tree was taller than a mountain; he had no way to cut it, and if he did, where would it go? The image of the tree crushing his village made him shiver.

"It's so beautiful!"

Mifune turned to the awe-stroked villagers.

"When did something like this happen?" One asked.

"Will it be like this all year round?" another asked.

"Don't be silly. This thing won't survive in this cold climate. We should enjoy it while it lasts." the rest nodded in agreement. No plant lasts very long in this land. They made a fortune from the chakra iron and could afford to import food but not grow any themselves. Looking at the brilliant tree, Mifune knew it would last. For one, those petals weren't real petals. He saw those petals attack the invaders, so he knew they weren't real. Sakura made the tree with a jutsu, so it wasn't a simple tree that relied on nutrients. He dared say this tree would remain alive as long as Sakura was. And with the Tail beast protecting her, she wouldn't die anytime soon.

He looked over at the hotel where the Shinobis resided. Sakura took the Jinchurikis and genins with her when she left. With more people returning from the stronghold, shinobis appeared as well.

News of the battle spread, and though there were non-believers, the consistency in the tales made it hard to disprove. The balance of power among the Shinobi nations was slowly tilting to the Leaf's side. Everyone secretly acknowledged them as the strongest and so tried in every way to steal from them or sabotage them. With such a show of power, Mifune doubts things would stay the same.

A shadow in the corner of his eyes moved, and he looked to the entrance to the strong hold. Anbus gathered around an old man. Mifune recognized him, and his eyes narrowed. It was unusual for an Anbu to be seen, let alone serving someone that wasn't a Kage.

The group disappeared in a blur, and Mifune grieved the loss.

"I just builded that Hotel, too," he wanted to cry.

"Sir?"

Clingy. Sakura was clingy.

It was something the Leaf shinobis recognized right away. Naruto was under Kurama's control and couldn't comment on the situation, but those who knew her saw it well.

Sakura was clinging on to Sasuke.

It wasn't her usual affectionate clinginess but an aggressive one. Sasuke wasn't allowed out of her sight and was forced to stand by her side while she conversed with the Tailed Beasts. Every move received with hostile eyes that told him to stay still and not move. If he did move away from her, she would grab him and integrate him about his intentions. To an outsider, it looked as though she didn't trust him, but to the Leaf shinobi, they recognized it as Sakura being aggressively possessive, though they couldn't fandom why.

Neji got tired of the show and took Sasuke from her tight grip, promising to watch over him. Sakura looked at him with narrowed eyes before nodding.

Shikamaru joined them in the corner and within Sakura's sight as they speculated about Sakura's actions.

Each had a different experience of the battle; Sasuke told them about the events before he was locked away, Neji told them what he saw with his Byakugan, and Shikamaru relayed his observation.

"You think she defeated the reanimated Kages?" Neji asked.
"Seeing that she took down a dragon," Shikamaru offered.

"I still can't believe that happened," Sasuke muttered.

"But they are immortal," Neji contered. "I have seen them rise again after being destroyed."

Shikamaru folded his hands in thought.

"When I got to her, there were puppets on the ground around her, but no sign of the other Kages," Sasuke told him.

"You also said something was wrong with her," Neji recalled.

"Yeah, Sasuke admitted. "Flowers were growing over her."

Shikamaru listened intently as the two exchanged information.

"She fought the Kages, sprouted flowers, and turned into a tree," Shikamaru muttered, arranging the information he knew. He looked at her as she sat with the Tail Beast and listened to their woes. "And her personality changed…" he paused. "Isn't it just like the land of waves?"

Sasuke flinched.

"What happened there?" Neji asked, not informed.

"Sakura went on a rampage, and her personality changed. In fact, I feel like it's the same personally now as back then."

"Multiple personality disorder?" Neji tilted his head. He'd heard of such things. A cooping meconium, if he wasn't mistaken.

"It's more like possession, really," Shikamaru offered. Memories of fire and Sakura's red eyes flashed in his mind, and he gripped his arm to stop the trembling. He wasn't sure he could protect her from this. He didn't tell anyone about the Sharingan, but now she had pale eyes like the Hyuga.

"I know the Sharingan can be transplanted into a NonUchiha; is it the same for Hyugas and the Byakugan?" Shikamaru asked.

"That's a dangerous question you are asking," Neji replied before sighing. He removed his headband and revealed his curse seal. Sasuke and Shikamaru stared at him in incomprehension.

"For the main family, it is possible to steal their eyes if you can steal them away from the clan, but that is not the case for the branch family." Neji began. "This seal is placed on every member of the branch family. It not only controls us by way of pain; it also destroys the Byakugan upon death. If someone has the Byakugan implanted, it is guaranteed to be from the main family. That or they managed to keep a branch member alive long enough to extract the eyes without triggering the seal."

"What the hell?" Shikamaru muttered in disbelief.

"Is that why the cloud village tried to kidnap Hinata?" Sasuke asked.

"They did what!" Shikamaru's head snapped to the Uchiha.

"Correct," Neji confirmed. "As Hinata is the heir, she was the ideal choice."

"Wait, hold on," Shikamaru held up his hand. He couldn't relate to the clans with transferable Kekkei Genkai since his clan had none, but he knew; "messed up" when he heard it. He rubbed his temples.

"So the Cloud had beef with the Hyuga," Shikamaru guessed.

"Yes, they are constantly trying to steal our eyes," Neji responded.

"Do the Uchiha also have beef with them?" Shikamaru asked Sasuke.

"Itachi did mention that I shouldn't be alone with them, so it's likely the same for us," The Uchiha offered with a shrug.

"Ok, so the Cloud has a reputation for stealing eyes," he palmed his face. "Does Sakura Know about this?" he groaned.

"She was the one that threatened the Raikage, so yes," Sasuke said mercilessly.

Shikamaru suddenly felt dizzy.

"Threatened a Kage. I'm not sure why I'm even surprised," Shikamaru sighed. "I think this is partially why the Cloud attacked her."

"I suspect they were just scared of her and thought her weakened after the fight."

The boys turned to find Shikaku approaching them.

"Dad?"

"We have a problem,'' Nara began but was interrupted by the appearance of anbus. The masked men flooded the room and surrounded Sakura offensively.

"Ho?" Sakura was amused by this and locked pale eyes on the door as the rhythmic sound of wood on stone echoed.

"No," Shikamaru groaned.

"I really need to retire," Shikaku sighed.

Danzo walked into the room.

Ina stood in front of the Geto statue, lost in thought. From what she knew, this husk was Kakuya's body after she fused with the chakra tree. Right now, the rabbit goddess suffers from Chakra exhaustion and needs the tail beasts, originally her chakra, back. If the world was to know peace, the Rabbit Goddess must revive.

Memories of Sakura's Otsutsuki form flashed, and she groaned. She knew her other half would be a problem, but to think she would eat the Kages and achieve "godhood."

She knew herself and those Jinchurikis would be untouchable. She didn't fancy her chances of fighting a god, seeing Moryo's current state. The two priests and their clan were busy trying to heal him after the damage he took in the fight against Sakura. The demon of the ghost army was lying in a pool of Gelel while his former enemies chanted around him. Miroku was distressed by his actions and current state. The selfish man she knew would never. Ina could already see the romance growing.

Looking down at the stone in her hand, she wondered if she'd have to go with plan B after all. The Stones of Gelel were overpowered and paired with the chakra veins, and they basically controlled the world's chakra reserve. But would it be enough? The tail beasts are existences the shinobi world cannot begin to comprehend. Ina, who knew their origin, can't fathom the amount of chakra they hold.

Beings of chakra, pieces of Kaguya, Immortals; when they die, they reform elsewhere after absorbing chakra. In a way, they were like Kaguya. She returned after her chakra gathered in one body and her "Karma," black zetsu, fused with that being.
It was with this understanding that Ina made her plan.

"What's got you so lost in thought?"

She turned around to spot Obito approaching her. She smiled at him and revealed her thoughts.

"It's going to be hard to get the tail beast now," she admitted. Obito hummed in agreement. Even fighting the Kages, he witnessed the fight between dragon and god. The two stood side by side before the statue in thought.

"I'm assuming you have a plan," he spoke.

Ina looked down at the stone again. The arc to come is Sasuke's descent into hatred. His inferiority complex triggered when Naruto summoned a gigantic toad and fought Gaara, a strong opponent Sasuke couldn't beat. Ina wasn't sure how it would translate to Sakura defeating a Dragon, something Sasuke couldn't even comprehend, but it was worth the try.

Not rivalry but love, huh?

She spared a glance at Obito. In a way, the two Uchihas would be similar, unable to protect their crush. She smiled sadly.

Sorry, Sasuke, but this is good for your character development.

"If you want to slay a dragon, find their reverse scale," she said eventually. "If you want to slay a god, well."

She smiled.

"There's no way to do that, but you can exploit their omnipotence."

"All-knowing?" Obito asked.

"If they think they know everything, they wouldn't respond well to things not going according to plan. But in our case, we'll be taking advantage of them expecting something and being alert for that one thing. Leaving a blind spot."

"You know a lot," Obito stated.

"It's my job to know," she responded coolly.

"Sometimes I think you might know the future."

"Ha!" she laughed. Looking at him with a smug smile, she said. "I'm sure I don't know what you mean." She turned and left then. "Where is that Snake?"

Obito watched her go muttering to himself.

"That doesn't reassure me."

Next time, a battle between Danzo and Sakura!

Next Chapter

February 15

Until next time

Night song~

Otome

"See, Hashirama," Madara smirked. "Your actions caused more damage than good." Hashirama groaned from his corner, where he was hugging his knees, depressed. He was like that after hearing the woes of the tailed beasts, who got mistreated by the people Hashirama "Gifted" them to. They were sentient with their own thoughts and dreams, yet they were treated like weapons along with their host.

Gaara's tale hurt him the most. A child forced to watch others die around him because of their evil intentions. Watching his uncle try to kill him was the last straw. Hashirama wanted to create balance, but in the end, he only made new soldiers. He repeated the history he desired to change. His depression grew.

"Enough!" Tobirama came to his rescue. "No one could have foreseen this happening!" he yelled. "Hashirama did what he thought was best with the knowledge he had at the time!"

"I used the Nine tails as a weapon against Hashirama; what made you think others wouldn't as well?"

His words hurt Hashirama deeply.

"Were you perhaps oblivious to the struggles of your own wife?" Madara continued unperturbed. "She was a walking time bomb that had to keep her emotions in check, less the Nine Tails control her. And she had the sealing mastery of an Uzumaki. Imagine the agony those hosts felt without that leveling of support?"

Hashirama looked up at Kurama in shock; whether he was looking at Mito's form of the fox himself was unknown to them.

"I didn't mean to cause you pain," he said in a trembling voice. "I just wanted to create peace so that no one else had to lose their family to war." Kurama was starting to feel uncomfortable. Those words were for Mito and not him; no one cared about him. Minato was silent throughout this argument. He knew what it was like to be a Jinchuriki, both through his wife and his time in the Shinigami's belly. It wasn't easy, and that was with a strong seal; with Hashirama gone and the Uzumaki clan whipped out, there were bound to be "complications."

Madara and Hashirama had the same goal. They wanted a world of only love. Hashirama was content to pass the torch to the younger generation, but Madara felt they should bear the flames alone. He didn't want to be like his parents, who used them as soldiers.

Thanks to Sakura, Marada learned Hashirama was right, and the younger generation carrying their dreams of peace was the way to go.

Expecting peace, through inaction, however, would never work, so Sakura devised her soul-split plan.

"Why are you acting so high and mighty!" Tobirama grabbed Marada's collar. "This is your fault, to begin with! Had you not used the Nine tails, It wouldn't have become a weapon!"

"That's not accurate," Kurama said, getting everyone's attention.

"Before Madara, the cloud village tried to enslave me," he explained. "If not for the Sharingan, I wouldn't have been caught by him, but I wasn't hiding my existence."

"What? Are you saying it was only a matter of time before someone caught you!" Tobirama was in disbelief; was the fox defending Madara? The fact Kurama used Mito's face only made the situation uncomfortable.

"Humans will always seek to control power," Kurama went on. "And I am absolute power." Mito's face sported a sad smile as he spoke. "It was only because you humans were busy killing each other that we remained free for so long."

Everyone in the space was responsible for robbing Kurama of his freedom, and yet, he was calm, almost resigned. Even now, he remains trapped in yet another body after leaving the Shimigam's belly. Would he ever have his own body again?

Hashirama stood abruptly and caught the fox in a tight embrace.

Kurama gasped as the Senju held him.

"I'll fix this," he promised. "I'll make sure you are never shackled ever again! A world of only love! As long as I can, I promise I'll show you that!"

Kurama's eyes widened, and nine fox tails swayed wildly behind.

The form of his wife made it easy for him to make the promise. Hearing the fate of the tail beast heart Hashirama's heart. He wanted peace, but he never thought of the burden this power would have on their host.

"I'm sorry," Hashirama whimpered. "I'm sorry," he repeated over and over. Madara and Tobirama, used to this sight, signed, while Minata and Kurama were at a loss for words. This crybaby was the god of shinobi?

"If you mean that," Madara stepped forward. "Then let's create that world together."

Hashirama looked at his childhood read with teary eyes while Kurama was still stunned.

"Madara," Tobirama growled. He knew better than to trust an Uchiha. Madara looked up at Sakura's sleeping form, suspended from the ceiling.

"Right, Sakura."