𓍊𓍊 ~ Chapter Thirty-seven — Unbreakable Heart ~ 𓍊𓍊

How the hell did Shinrai make this?! Well, he knew, technically, because Naruto had Shinrai's memories—that was how he was replicating it—but still! Naruto knew what everything meant, but it just didn't make sense in his brain. He had a clone transformed into a wooden board that he had a piece of sealing paper big enough for him to draw the complex frickin' seal that Shinrai constructed.

The whole time they were walking—all of those HOURS they spent walking, and Naruto was only halfway done. The sun was setting already! Shinrai drew it in like two minutes during Konoha Crush?! What the fuck was his brother on—?

"Hey! Naruto!" Jiraiya called, peeking over his shoulder at the seal. "How's the seal…" Jiraiya blinked, slowing his speech. "Are you done?!"

"I'm barely halfway."

"I… beg your pardon—" Jiraiya coughed. "A seal like that is as complex as the Flying Raijin!" The Sannin ran his fingers over each and every stroke of Naruto's brush. "Chakras don't usually combine, as Lady Fifth said… but, the way Shinrai micromanaged each individual pathway to divide the chakra and then recombine it… it has hundreds of strokes. The fact that a seal like this even exists is fascinating, let alone that a Genin made it. Extraordinary… How long did it take him to finish this?"

"A few months… he says it's incomplete, though."

Jiraiya shook his head and scoffed. "Of course it is… Well, show me when you're done, alright? I'll be able to poke some holes in it."

"Yeah, that was the plan, Pervy Sage," muttered Naruto.

Jiraiya rolled his eyes. From there, the group gathered in a motel. It was small, and it was the first time Naruto had seen a not destroyed building in what felt like forever. The evening light made it like it was glowing orange.

"It looks like fire!" said Natsuyo with a smile, pointing her sparking shuriken at it.

Gosei huffed. "Everything looks like fire to you."

"But it… does kinda look like fire," Naruto agreed.

Natsuyo pointed at him and grinned. "Thank you Naruto!"

"Of course!" Naruto grinned in kind.

Gosei groaned while Jiraiya cheered for some reason.

Inside the motel, there were plenty of rooms, which was why Naruto was confused when Jiraiya only rented out four. Was he really that much of a cheap old man?! From there he cleared his throat and announced that, "Okay! This is where we'll be staying for the time being. The room to the far left is Lady Fifth's, the one next it is Gosei's. Naruto and Natsuyo, you two share the third room, and the one on the right is mine."

Immediately, Naruto's eyes darted to Natsuyo—their eyes met; then they stared at Jiraiya. "What?!"

"...Do you mean that Natsuyo and I are going to share a room?" asked Gosei. "I understand saving money in a trying time, but… we're siblings; it's only right that we share a room."

"Yeah!" agreed Natsuyo, looking incredulous.

Jiraiya laughed. "No. I did not misspeak. I said what I said—and I mean it."

Yosei looked at him with a raised brow as all three Genin hurled their misgivings with Jiraiya—"Pervy Sage! What's the point of this?! It makes no sense!"

"What's the point of me sharing a room with him—he's cool but I barely know him!" Natsuyo questioned.

Gosei had his arms crossed as he gave his grievances. "I quite frankly can not see any valid reasoning behind this—"

"My reasoning is because I fucking said so," Jiraiya stated, tone hard—Natsuyo and Gosei stiffened while Naruto was unphased.

"Because I said so, my ass!" Naruto yelled, shaking his fist. "You need to give me a good god damn—"

—"I'm a Sannin! You are a Genin! What I say goes and that's final!" bellowed Jiraiya, shaking his fist back at Naruto. "Isn't that right, Lady Fifth?"

Yosei gave a dubious, "Yes…" She cleared her throat. "I put Jiraiya in charge of rooms, so you will stay in the room designated for you."

At that, Naruto found it wise to shut up. She's so damned scary!

After that, Yosei continued to speak. "You all will stay for the night. Jiraiya and I will join our Sage Mode in order to track Tsunade and Shinrai."

Gosei's brows furrowed. "What about Shinrai?"

"He got himself into a precarious situation that I find notable enough for me to act on," responded Yosei, thankfully not saying too much.

Gosei scoffed. "Of course he did…"

"Now get your asses in those rooms like I said!" Jiraiya commanded, a poignant glare accompanying it.

Naruto rolled his eyes while Gosei grumbled. Natsuyo was stiff and a bit awkward as they entered together. It didn't take much longer for Naruto to join her in the awkwardness. His whole body felt like it was swaying underwater as he walked completely out of sync with her.

Once they reached the door, they both reached for the knob. Instead of the knob, they grabbed each other's hand. It felt like an electric shock jolted Naruto's body as he flinched his hand out of Natsuyo's. She, on the other hand, slapped her hand to her leg and grabbed at her pants.

Slowly, Naruto reached for the door—Natsuyo did as well. They stopped in their tracks. Their eyes darted to and from each other. Naruto ended up opening the door and walking in first.

"Rude," muttered Natsuyo.

He looked back at her confused. "Huh?"

"You didn't hold the door open for me."

Naruto blinked. "...Why would I do that? You're not my girlfriend!"

"I—" she gasped. "It doesn't matter! It's proper manners to hold the door for someone behind you!"

"What?!" Naruto scrunched his face. "Shinrai told me you only do that for your girlfriend!"

"I'm telling you that it's something you do for everyone!"

"Okay?! Why would I listen to you?!"

Natsuyo groaned and crossed her arms. Naruto rolled his eyes and walked forward, wanting to shut the door on her to be petty… but he decided against it. As they walked in, Naruto analyzed the room they found themselves in.

It was pretty small, nothing fancy at all. The way it looked reminded him of his apartment before Ryu renovated it. Brown carpet floor, white walls, a stove, mini-fridge, microwave, and one cabinet. A single door that was probably the bathroom. And in the corner by the window… one bed.

Naruto blinked.

It was still there.

Naruto rubbed his eyes, hoping that he was hallucinating.

He wasn't.

There was only one bed.

For a room with… two people.

Slowly, with his heart thumping like thunder in his chest, he looked toward Natsuyo. She was already looking at him. It was now or never. "I CALL DIBS!" Naruto yelled, leaping toward the bed like a toad.

Mid-air, Natsuyo grabbed him by the collar and tossed him to the floor. "No the hell you don't!"

Naruto landed on his feet and stared daggers at Natsuyo. "Nuh uh! Don't be mad just because you weren't fast enough!"

"I should have the bed regardless! I'm a woman!"

"I don't give a fuck!"

Natsuyo's eyes went wide. "What is wrong with you?!"

"Nothing?! I called dibs so I get to sleep in the bed!"

"No—but—Did anybody teach you any manners?!"

"Uh… No, not really?" Naruto scratched his head with his brow raised. "I don't really see how you being a girl changes anything?"

"Woman!"

"You are younger than me!"

"I'm a Shinobi!"

"So am I!" Naruto crossed his arms and huffed. "Plus, I did more than you did for training today!"

Natsuyo scoffed hard. "That is a goddamn lie!"

"All you did was play with a shuriken!"

"You were just drawing!"

Offended, Naruto showed Natsuyo the sheer complexity of the Fusion Seal. "Does this look simple to you?! And I'm only halfway done!" He pointed to a mark on the seal. "Tell me! What does this mean?!"

Natsuyo paused for a second, squinting. "It means… uh…" She shook her head and pointed an accusatory finger at him. "Do you know what it means?!"

"Of course I do!"

"So, tell me!"

"It means, uh…" Naruto looked at the mark. …What did that mean? Shit! I forgot!

Natsuyo laughed at him. "See! You don't even know what it means!"

"I just forgot!" Naruto stomped his foot on the floor and grumbled.

Natsuyo smirked, eyes turning sharp. "Let me show you the labors of my training!" She pulled a Shuriken from her pouch. It sparked with a bit of electricity as she flung it at Naruto.

His eyes went wide as he cocked his head out of the way to dodge. Fast! "I could've done that," he lied, keeping his face deadpanned.

Natsuyo put her hands on her hips and snorted. "Prove it!"

"I don't feel like it!" Naruto declared with all the confidence in the world.

Natsuyo blinked. "...You're so lazy that I don't think you need the bed."

"BUT I CALLED DIBS—"

—"WHAT DOES THAT EVEN MEAN?!"

Naruto jumped toward the bed—Natsuyo got in his way. She grabbed him by the collar and flung him to the floor. Naruto latched onto her arm and pulled her down with him. The moment she hit the floor, Naruto launched.

Wind blasted him back to the floor, and Natsuyo triumphantly sat on the bed. "HA! I've claimed it!"

"You used Ninjutsu! That's cheating!" Naruto yelled, pointing his finger.

Natsuyo waved her finger as she kicked her shoes off. "No, it's not?! We're ninjas!"

"Fuck you," he grumbled.

Natsuyo frowned. "That's rude."

"No? It's normal."

"It looks like your normal and my normal are two very different things."

Naruto huffed. "No shit."

"You curse too much."

"Eh? Shinrai curses way more than I do."

"So I've heard…"

Silence fell.

"Since you have the bed, can I have the pillows?"

"But…" She frowned. "I like pillows."

"There's like four up there! You can sleep with one!"

"I sleep with five back at home."

"Why the hell do you need five pillows?!"

"They're comfortable!" she argued, "I make a really comfy palace out of pillows on my bed! I sleep so well."

"All of my pillows end up on the floor when I sleep," Naruto said with a snort.

Natsuyo rolled her eyes. "Oh, so you're like Fuyu."

"Who?"

"Oh! He's my little brother. He just started the Academy this year!" She said with a smile, before it dropped a bit. "Well, really bad timing and all…"

"Bad timing for us too," Naruto added. "Our first year as Shinobi…"

"Yeah, that's true," she agreed, laying back on the bed. Soon after, she threw three pillows down at Naruto. "Sleep tight!"

"Oh, I'm not sleeping right now!" Naruto called, retrieving the Fusion Seal from his pouch. "I… really gotta finish this."

Natsuyo rolled on her stomach and peeked off of the bed, narrowing her eyes on what Naruto was working on. "What is it supposed to do?"

"Combine two Chakras into one… it's the thing I asked you about with the Godai Stuff. I have an idea to use this seal to help me control Kyuubi's Chakra," he explained, recalling Shinrai's memories to copy the seal from them… he would learn how everything worked in detail later.

Natsuyo kicked her feet in the air and hummed. "That's cool… How is that going to help with the Kyuubi's chakra?"

"Uh…" Naruto chuckled a bit. She actually cares? "You remember when Shinrai and I fused, right?"

An uncomfortable chuckle escaped her breath. "Yeah…"

A stab of guilt made Naruto frown. "Well… before my seal broke, it was easier for me to control Kyuubi's Chakra because Shinrai's mind was connected with mine. It suppressed the will of Kyuubi. I was thinking… if like, I fused with a bunch of clones… then I'd be able to control the chakra no problem!"

"Cool! I hope it works out… so uh… that doesn't happen again."

"Me too…"

A beat of silence passed before Natsuyo spoke up again. "But, it's not… all bad? I wouldn't have unlocked my Scorch Release if it wasn't for that!"

"...Happy to help?" That's a weird thing to say.

"Yeah! You did help!" she pushed with a smile. "Now I surpassed Gosei twice over thanks to you!"

"You're welcome!" He said with a sheepish grin, spacing out at her smile again. It was… really like the sun. So warm, so bright…

Her smile dropped a bit as she looked confused. "...Why are you blushing?"

"No, I'm not!" He slapped his cheeks and looked toward the Fusion Seal like he would be killed if he didn't.

Natsuyo laughed. "Well, good luck on your seal! It's going to work out!"

"Yeah! It will!" agreed Naruto as he continued to put it together.

While he did that, Natsuyo yawned herself into the land of dreams.

—

The rooming layout that Lord Jiraiya chose was… odd to say the least. But it was the least of Gosei's worries. The top of the list was outdoing Natusyo. In the stunning red evening light, he moved his bed directly in front of the window. After kicking his shoes off, he sat with his legs crossed on his bed, facing the setting sun.

A deep breath and he took in how the sky was the color of roses, how it made the emerald leaves of the distant trees and sprouting grass look gold. There weren't many clouds either, but Gosei couldn't quite see any unique flowers.

Despite that, he still loved bathing in the nature that was in front of him. Ignoring the ache at his side, he closed his eyes and locked himself in his own mind. The realm behind his closed eye-lids appeared, and he was back home.

It wasn't quite the same.

Konoha was borderline assimilated with nature. Every path of Konoha, every section, every house, everything was one massive garden. Water flowed in controlled streams, flowering plants at every nook, cranny, and corner. Greenery was everywhere. The sun was the boldest gold, with white clouds scattered upon the backdrop of the deepest blue sky.

It was Gosei's perfect Konoha. The one he constructed over months in his own mind.

The most ideal image training ground for a future Hokage. Gosei willed himself to appear in a training ground, where he could destroy and reconstruct at his own free will. It was on a mountain peak overlooking Konoha, even higher than the Hokage Monument.

Storm clouds rolled in thunder cracked and rain poured. No better place to become like the Storm Queen than in a storm. Thanks to the dive of research he did while constructing his mindscape, he knew exactly how natural lightning worked.

Friction manipulating charges to release energy.

Natsuyo was… quite advantaged when it came to learning Lightning Release. Fire was similar to lightning when it came to the released energy aspect, with wind being similar to the friction aspect. It wasn't far off from what she had already mastered beforehand.

Earth and water… didn't have much similarity with lightning. He'd be better off trying to learn wind release. But, since when was the easy way out worth anything? Gosei simply studied the lightning, each time as it struck around him, as it blasted into Konoha, the rocks around.

He took in every aspect of lightning and how it worked. Each time it struck something metal, however, it flowed into the metal like it was being pulled. Conductivity, yes. Gosei turned the mountain he stood on into one of iron instead of stone.

Immediately, the lightning struck almost nothing but the mountain. Every centimeter of the mountain sparked and flashed and churned with electricity. With a kunai, Gosei led the lightning into the metal like it was nothing.

Gosei rubbed his chin, studying how it worked. Electricity… flowed, yes. Flowed… like water. His eyes went wide with the realization. Electric Current! Of course… The positive and negative charges allowed it to flow between two points.

With a flick of his wrist, he clenched his fists and grinned. "Yes!"

He made himself appear at an expansive field of soaked grass as the clouds cleared into sun. Gosei took out a shuriken, channeling chakra through it while concentrating chakra at opposite points. Then, he split the chakra, releasing the energy.

The shuriken sparked. With all of the control he could muster, he controlled the voltage. In a matter of moments, he had a perfectly electric shuriken. Gosei grinned victoriously as he cheered. Water and lightning may not have been similar elements… but they were compatible elements, similar to water, lightning's movement had flow and current, wind did as well! Three of five elements all had current as their baseline for movement.

Wind was the element he was going to master next, that was without a doubt. But, he was getting ahead of himself. He needed to add lightning to his Godai before thinking about wind. His body got the rest it needed from meditating, so he would be able to get right up and train with lightning in the real world.

Until the sun rose, Gosei sparked with all of the lightning he could.

—

Kusari really couldn't do a damned thing for her Clan. Her Byakugan wasn't precise enough for her to help sort the reusable materials from the not. Well, her physical strength was more than well enough to help clear the rubble, but that required her to be around a large group of adult men, which she did not want to do. If she had any medical skill to speak of, then she'd mend all of Neji's wounds herself.

So, she had to search elsewhere for things to do.

It wasn't… hard for something to come to mind. She made a promise to Sasuke before she left, it'd be wrong not to follow up with him. So, she looked for him. He was with Kakashi-sensei. Kusari frowned. Ever since the Chunin Exam preliminaries… Kakashi-sensei did not like her.

She shrugged. As long as Shinrai came back to Konoha, then she could deal with people disliking her. But, she didn't quite want to interact with Kakashi-sensei, so she waited for him to leave. But, she didn't want to… stalk Sasuke, that was weird.

So, she looked upon the rebuilding effort, to hopefully find ideas. Miya Uzumaki had dozens of clones everywhere, using her Adamantine Chains to help support buildings as they were being built. Earth Style masters were creating dense earth for building materials…

Kusari hummed.

When Kimimaro saved her life, he created many outgrowths of bone that impaled multiple people. So obviously, the Dead Bone Pulse wasn't only limited to the bones in her body. Could she, could she rebuild the Hyuuga Compound with her own bones? It'd be borderline indestructible.

The only person to break her bones was Kimimaro. Even the rampaging Kyuubi could only crack them. That… was a swell idea. The Hyuuga Clan would be indestructible with nobody but herself to thank!

Kusari smirked.

Though the issue was that she was less than a novice at using the Dead Bone Pulse. Luckily, just at the time, Kakashi-sensei left Sasuke to his own devices. She flickered in his direction as he continued to train. It didn't take her too long to meet him in Training Ground 7. With lightning sparking around him, he looked toward her with a brow raised.

"Took you long enough to show up," he muttered, wiping the beating sweat from his brow.

Kusari huffed. "I was busy."

"Is that right?" He rolled his eyes.

Kusari sat cross-legged on the soft grass. The red evening sky made Sasuke's Sharingan pop. It was nice to look at. With his popping Sharingan, he raised his brow. "Why are you sitting?"

"I have knowledge I would like to share. About Shivua and Indra," she informed.

Without another word, Sasuke sat down in kind, letting out an exhausted breath. "Tell me."

Kusari calmed Shivua's will before it even became an issue. "From… what I was told. Indra and Shivua are siblings of sorts. Shivua Otsutsuki, daughter of the Sage of the Six Paths. Indra Otsutsuki, son of the Sage of the Six Paths. They're both from two sets of twins. Shivua and Bontena, and Indra and Ashura."

Sasuke visibly reacted to the name Ashura. His face scrunched as he shook his head.

"It seems that Indra and Ashura have… history, similar to Bontena and Shivua," Kusari noted. "Do you know who Ashura is?"

"...Naruto," Sasuke answered.

Kusari tilted her head. "Naruto? He's the one Shivua hates the least."

"It's hard to explain how Indra feels about him," muttered Sasuke, rubbing his nose. "It's like every possible emotion at once. How about… Shivua and Bontena?"

"Hmm," Kusari considered. "Think about the most intense hatred you've ever felt in your life, then multiply it by ten."

"In my case, I'll equate it," Sasuke said, narrowing his eyes.

"Fair," she responded, silencing falling for a moment as she gathered more information. "I was also told that Shivua is the Progenitor of the Kaguya Clan."

"...I don't think I've heard of them."

Kusari shrugged. "I didn't two days ago either." Kusari then used her Dead Bone Pulse to pull a tanto of bone from out of her forearm. Sasuke's eyes went wide. "This is what they can do, however."

"The hell?!" His face twistedwith horror at the sight of that.

It pleased Kusari how unsettled Sasuke was. She allowed it to show with the smirk on her face. "One of the three components of Nikuura, the Dead Bone Pulse."

'I… see…" He shook his head. "I take it you're a descendant of the Kaguya Clan then?"

Kusari shook her head. "No, Shivua transformed my body with her Nikuura in order to make into a perfect vessel."

Sasuke paused. "Is… that a good thing?"

"It's not. But I'll deal."

"...Alright." Sasuke chuckled. "How did you figure all of this out?"

"I was told by somebody I cannot disclose."

Sasuke stared at her, half irritated, half confused. "Okay." He let out a breath. "I wonder what power I can access from Indra…"

"I don't think you can access power from Indra," Kusari said, catching Sasuke's ire. "I'm only given power by Shivua because she wants to make me her perfect vessel. Unless Indra is doing the same, then I doubt he's making you any stronger than you would be regardless."

Sasuke scowled a bit. "Then how about Hinata? Bontena is obviously making her more powerful, somehow."

"...Not directly," Kusari said. "The power comes from her Curse Mark, not Bontena. It's more likely that Orochimaru's will was purged from the Mark, allowing her full control of it."

"Her as in Hinata, or her as in Bontena?"

Kusari paused. Her hand drifted to her chin in thought. "I don't know."

"Well, either way, I'm going to do the same." Sasuke stood, clenching his fists. "I was able to achieve it for a split second against the Kyuubi. It was your words that forced Orochimaru out of the mark."

Kusari smirked. "So I just need to beat it out of you?"

"You can try," challenged Sasuke, Sharingan whirling.

Kusari stood in kind. "Lovely. I need to perfect my Dead Bone Pulse, anyway."

Sasuke grit his teeth, clenching his fists as the violent violet aura of the Curse Mark spewed as Heavenly Marks whirled across him. Some of the fatigue he displayed vanished with what seemed to be his sanity.

Gripping her bone tanto, she glared and released Shivua. Every ounce of her rage filled Kusari at the sight of Sasuke—she already felt Shivua's instinct guiding her about how to use the Dead Bone Pulse. "Once I master the Dead Bone Pulse, I will have to go in order to assist in rebuilding the Hyuuga Compound."

"Fine by me," Sasuke responded with a nearly sinister smirk.

With that, they clashed.

Sasuke was beaten until midnight.

—

Another day and she still found herself healing Neji. Hinata truly wished for him to get well soon. Her fingertips were stone as she continued to make sure Neji could wake up a day sooner than he would've the day before. His condition was… stable. He didn't need Hinata to heal her. But, he by far had the most severe injuries of any of the Hyuuga Clan. It was her duty to make sure he was okay.

Staring at his face for so long reminded her of their last talk. It was… oddly similar to her recent conversation with Kusari.

Both of which she swore to take Kusari's life.

Both times she wasn't sure if she meant it in totality.

When she spoke with Neji, she was projecting. She didn't act like who she was because she knew Hinata wasn't suited for that situation. The Heiress of the Hyuuga Clan was who would handle that situation perfectly. The cold absolution of her tone was meant to drive a point home. The point was that Neji did not need to worry. He didn't need to worry because she was there to help.

Not one bit was Hinata willing to kill her family.

And she just promised to do so once again.

The fact that Kusari was out of Konoha, and then a new constellation formed in the sky, and finally, she asks her that? Everything was adding up and concern whirled in Hinata. Without Neji, Kusari's only support, truly, was her team. Both of whom were also not in Konoha. Her sensei was… dubious, according to Miya-sensei at least.

Kusari basically had… nobody right now.

That worried Hinata. Every part of her life was ripped with regret. The blame laid nowhere but on herself—she should've been a better family member to Kusari and Neji. Did she give up too soon? Had she loved them more after they shared the loss of a killed parent, would they love her like she did them?

What could she have done? What could a grieving child like her have done? The venom inside of her wanted Hinata to believe that none of this was her fault. Even if that were true… it didn't matter.

It is still my responsibility.

It was simply impossible to believe that anything good would come out of it.

—

The rebuilding effort was going great. Danzo's planning plus Miya's active help and direction got things moving. Things weren't this hopeful after the Kyuubi attack, not at all. Well, it was easier to hate externally, the other villages like Kumo, Iwa, and Orochimaru. Not something internal, like a failed invasion. Plus, Konoha had forewarning, most people were able to evacuate and stay safe.

The Kyuubi… had no warning. It happened as quick as lightning and was gone just as fast.

Beyond that, however, Danzo picked up something that she had to check out. There was an… organization of healers forming in Konoha. They called themselves the Scarlet Sword. Surprisingly, most of the capable healers were already pooling inside of it, sharing resources and knowledge to become even better.

Ever since Lady Tsunade left Konoha, the Medical Corps fell apart and became quite disorganized. Medical Ninja were basically independent entities, with one Genin per squad being chosen to become a medic one way or another. This Scarlet Sword seemed to be knitting it back together.

Their 'headquarters' was a… surprisingly large white tent in the flattened half of Konoha. They were taking advantage of the free space, it seemed. On the front center of the tent, there were two artistic red blades crossed together. Upon further inspection, they looked like Grass Cutters? The whole thing eerily reminded her of Shinrai.

He wasn't back yet…

Three more days, Shinrai.

With a breath, Miya entered the tent. All eyes were on her, plenty of healers and injured paired up together. It really was no different than what they were doing at the Academy. Miya wasn't… impressed? Really? But she was interested—

—someone turned the corner from inside the tent and waved. "Miya!" called a woman, blue eyes, auburn hair, pale skin with an eyepatch and an arm in a cast. The hair—that hair looked familiar.

It clicked. "Aiko?"

"Yes! It's me!" she affirmed, walking through the paths between medical centers. "I've been wanted to talk with you since… forever."

"Aw, then why didn't you?" Miya asked with a frown.

"You seemed busy."

"Well…" Miya chuckled. "You're not wrong."

Aiko chuckled, messing with her hair. "Yeah…"

"Are you getting healed for your…" Miya pointed at Aiko's arm and eyepatch, frown deepening. "Injuries?"

"Oh! No, I organized this whole thing."

Miya's eyes widened a bit. "Wait, you did?"

"Yeah!" Aiko walked past Miya and out of the tent. "I'll tell you all about it… outside!"

"Gotcha," she agreed, walking outside with Aiko.

The beautiful red sky of the setting sun made Aiko's skin glow the same color as her hair. It… somehow made the flattened land of ash look pretty.

Both women stepped into stride, with Miya of course, towering over Aiko. It didn't take too long for Aiko to start to explain herself. "When I was being healed for my injuries… I noticed that everything was really disorganized? Well, it may be since Konoha was just invaded. But, in the Land of Grass, the medical systems were really organized… at least for the rich like I was.

"So, I decided to organize all of the healers I could into this, y'know?"

"I see," Miya considered, nodding her head. "Where did the name come from?"

Aiko had a tight, hurt smile pull at her face. "Ah… Back in the Land of Grass, there was a girl that helped to heal my father. Her name was Yoraika."

"Yoraika?" asked Miya.

Aiko looked at her. "You… know of her?"

"Yeah… I helped Shinrai. He's hurt about her," answered Miya.

Aiko looked like her heart was torn from her chest. "Ah… yeah. He hates me. I named the organization after Yoraika's pretty eyes, and the sword she once carried. It exists because of her goal. She wanted to make sure that nobody ever got sick again." She let out a breath.

"I see…" Miya smiled. "That's a noble goal."

Aiko agreed with a nod before taking a deep and heavy breath. "Ryu… kinda inspired me to make this, too."

"How?" Miya asked, frowning. She felt in her bones that something painful was going to come from Aiko's words.

Aiko had the mix of the deepest frown with the sharpest scowl. "Ryu and I aren't… friends anymore. During the invasion, I saw too much destruction. I asked him—I begged him to help bring it to an end. All of the destruction that Shinobi brought.

"He said no. I haven't seen him since. I guess that motivated me to do what I can myself." Aiko let out a bitter chuckle. "You're acting Hokage… right?"

"Yeah…" she answered. Miya already knew where this was going.

Aiko let out a heavy sigh. "Why don't you become the real Hokage when you get the chance? You're tired of all the destruction, the loss?"

Twin fires of agony pained in Miya's heart—Shino and Gai. Her throat tightened as she went to respond.

"It was Shinobi that took it all of from you, from me, from everyone," she rambled. "Ryu's not… who he was anymore. I hope that you're different. I hope that you're somebody that's going to end all of this. Please Miya…"

"I…" she began, not knowing what she was going to say. Ending Shinobihood… that was a tall task. Was she even capable?! Hell no, she wasn't at all. "Do you know what you're asking for?!"

"I'm asking for peace. I'm asking for a world where people never have to experience this—"She waved her hand at the destroyed Konoha"—again! Why are you all so against it?!"

"Because it's impossible," Miya said with a heaving breath.

Aiko shook her head. "Do you remember what Ryu used to say?"

"What?"

"Nothing's impossible."

Miya drew in a sharp breath.

"Think about everyone you care about, Miya! Everyone! Do you want them to live in a world like this?! Do you want to live in a world where every day is a day that you could lose them?!"

Every word was like a damned dagger. "Aiko…"

"Miya please," Aiko pleaded.

Miya winced, shutting her eyes.

Every day was a day Shinrai could be killed.

Every day was a day Naruto could be killed.

Every day was a day Hinata could be killed.

Every day was a day Kiba could be killed.

Every day was a day Ryu could be killed.

Konoha Crush was that day for Shino.

Konoha Crush was that day for Gai.

Miya clenched her fists and let out her hardest breath. "I'll try. I can't guarantee my success—"

Aiko threw a hug around Miya. She squeezed her tight and breathed. "Thank you… so much."

"You… You're welcome," Miya responded, hugging her friend back.

Miya… had a goal. A goal she knew she was going to fail at.

—

Shinrai's Sharingan made the dim tunnel as bright as day, it was Karin that had to lead him, however. They both had a blade in hand, with Yora still chained to Shinrai's waist. Karin's sensing knew where Orochimaru was. All he had to do was trust her, follow her lead… It was funny, how she said he made hell feel like home, because that was what she was doing here.

He was in sync with her quiet steps with his own of silence. Despite the presence of Orochimaru Shinrai could feel, Karin counteracted it. He was calm. He was prepared.

After today, all of it would be over. Finally.

Karin stopped at a corner, the snakeskin walls turning a corner, leading to a blue glow. She signed that, he's here.

Shinrai's heart skipped a beat as he clenched the hilt of his white Grass Cutter.

"Karin," said Orochimaru, and that voice made them both freeze. "I've been waiting for your return…" His voice slithered from around the corner as he chuckled. The way he spoke was weak—it sounded like it was supported by twigs.

"And I see you brought what I asked of you." Shinrai didn't need to see Orochimaru to know that he was smiling.

Growling with his eyes whirling, Shinrai turned the corner—"Wait!" Karin yelled—Orochimaru stood in front of a large blue-glowing test tube. Vials of blood and seals containing countless variations of chakra were everywhere all over the room. Orochimaru's back was turned to Shinrai. Both of his arms were limp at his side and there was barely any activity in his chakra—it was barely even there.

What stopped Shinrai from attacking… was what he saw in the test tube. A boy, a few years older than him. Skin brown just like his. Hair crimson just like his. A breathing mask latched to his face as he was comatose, floating inside whatever liquid he was in.

Shinrai's eyes went wide. "Baiko…"

"He misses you…" Orochimaru stated with a sick grin.

Shinrai snarled and stabbed, but Orochimaru blurred—kicking Shinrai away. Karin was frozen in place—trembling with her blade about to drop out of her hand. Shinrai got up and screamed, "Karin!"

With a flinch she stared at him but she didn't move—could she move?!

"Ah yes… Karin," Orochimaru said, smiling as he looked at her. "Thank you for bringing him to me like I asked of you. I'll repay you… somehow."

Shinrai's blood went cold. Everything felt like it was nothing. Hollow Sharingan eyes stared at Karin. All she did was stare back—her thorny blade fell to the floor as she gasped for words. The fireworks in her floral eyes warped. Everything about her twisted with pain.

"You… you…" Shinrai began—eyes burning.

Orochimaru laughed. "Oh… you didn't seriously think that Karin would defy me? She knows better," he looked to her. "Don't you?"

Karin didn't respond; she didn't say a fucking word—"You're lying!" Shinrai screamed, preparing to attack—Orochimaru appeared in front of him, golden eyes peering into the scarlet.

"Am I? I've never lied to you, Shinrai…" Orochimaru chuckled. "Unlike her."

Shinrai roared and kicked at Orochimaru—the Sannin dodged, his own foot pinning Shinrai to the ground. "KARIN!" he pleaded to her—He saw the apology in her watering eyes while she did nothing—

—Adamantine Chains exploded. One whipped Orochimaru in the face, another picked up Shinrai and pushed him away. Again, she was forcing him away from Orochimaru she was—"NO! KARIN LET ME GO!"

"Don't mourn for me." Karin's voice was final. Too final. The same pain of a forgone conclusion—just like Yora. She looked Shinrai in the eyes as she sent him away. "I don't deserve your tears."

Blood erupted like a spiraling geyser. Karin's Adamantine Chains dissipated into golden-green shimmers. Her head dropped to the floor, separated from her neck. Lifelessly, her body followed next. The stump of her neck helplessly supplied blood to an appendage that was not there.

All the snake did was grin with the bloody Kusanagi blade protruding from his mouth.

Time slowed on Karin's corpse—the red searing into Shinrai's memory. The only movement was the scarlet fountain that was her neck.

Shinrai wailed, agony spewing from his voice. A swift motion and he released the Kyuubi Chakra within. Twin tails of boiling crimson erupted from his skin in seconds. Not even the Kyuubi's Chakra could hope to match the guttural fury pumping through his veins. His body was a blizzard of lava as he met him halfway. The true Kusanagi clashed with an imitation. A kick and Orochimaru's ribs buckled. Orochimaru's neck twitched and a gash spewed blood. Shinrai's ribs were slashed like they were flesh.

The Kyuubi's Chakra repaired it and Shinrai screamed out—breaking Orochimaru's jaw with a monstrous punch. A pure burst of demonic chakra cracked the Sannin's spine against a wall. The snake growled as a gleeful smirk curled his lips. "Oh… I wasn't expecting this from you!"

Shinrai roared, fury molding his chakra for him. "FIRE STYLE! RAGE AGAINST EVERYTHING!" The narrow hallway was consumed by fire—Orochimaru was scorched. All of the damage Shinrai dealt remained. A burning Sannin kicked Shinrai's skull. It shattered at the cranium and Shinrai dazed. Kyuubi's chakra melded the bone—slashes brought Shinrai to his knees and he was blasted away.

The Kyuubi Chakra healed—NO! He growled, seeping his Special Chakra into the Kyuubi's chakra. With a roar, the cloak blasted from crimson to scarlet. His three tomoe whirled like a cyclone as he conquered the Kyuubi's Chakra. It mended only the minimum amount of damage needed for him to fight at full capacity. The rest fueled the power he needed to slay the Snake Sannin.

Shinrai's Kyuubi-boosted roar caused a tremor in the corridor. Orochimaru was on him—Shinrai blocked with his own blade. Shinrai needed his twin blades in tandem just to keep up. Putrid hatred possessed every block, failed counter—Shinrai just couldn't keep up. Orochimaru's head moved like a serpent's—Kusanagi left slashes on the Grass Cutters. Fury roared and Shinrai 's head pushed down against both of Shinrai's arms—he was too strong—Shinrai weaved a half seal on his white blade. "RELEASE!"

Cobalt Blue fire scorched out of the blade named Shinrai—Orochimaru's eyes went wide. The screeching blue of Nibi's fire burned Orochimaru's face as the Sannin screamed. A flicker and Shinrai stabbed his foot into Orochimaru's chest. Rib after rib shattered. With his free hand, Shinrai grabbed Yora, belting her name. Her chakra melded with his own and a scarlet slash severed Orochimaru's useless arm.

The Sannin screamed. Desperation clawed at Orochimaru's throat as Kusanagi gutted Shinrai. It ripped his torso to ribbons and another kick sent him flying. Shinrai landed in a pool of blood. Karin's blood. Aching numbness overtook his body—he looked at her—he saw her eyes…—

They weren't dead.

She was alive—her healing chakra attempted to mend the wounds.

Alive.

Karin was alive.

Shinrai stiffened. His anger turned cold. He looked at the other end of the corridor. Baiko. Baiko was there—SO WAS OROCHIMARU. Fire to a storm. He could save them—he could save them both. Anger seethed into desperation. It was all up to him—it had to be him. Shinrai's fists clenched—his heart, his mind, his will, it became unbreakable. He was going to protect them. He needed to protect them. He was going to save them. He needed to—

—Gold erupted from Shinrai's Chakra. Adamantine Chains—his Adamantine Chains flowed from his back. His battle cry ordered them to charge at Orochimaru. The Snake Sannin cursed, his Kusanagi futility trying to cut the chakra of Shinrai's unbreakable chains. He constricted Orochimaru, flickering over with a half seal weaved. Desperation screamed across Orochimaru's face—he was trapped.

"RELEASE!" He stabbed Orochimaru through the chest—and Jinsei Flame poured from Shinrai's white Grass Cutter. The searing fire made the Snake Sannin wail. Shinrai cut the blade out then he kicked. The spear tips of the Adamantine Chains stabbed Orochimaru's legs, pinning him to the floor. Another chain wrapped around the Kusanagi blade and held it in place.

Chakra whirled within Shinrai's free, open palm; the purest scarlet—just as pure as Yora's eyes were. Orochimaru's golden eyes squirmed with horror. Shinrai's chakra spiraled into a helictical sphere the color of blood. "RASENGAN!" Shinrai screamed, driving the jutsu into Orochimaru's chest—over his heart. Blood spewed and the weakened Sannin wailed. He cried out from the agony as Shinrai crushed his heart into mush.

An itch in his eye—Shinrai saw chakra. Orochimaru's chakra. A reaction turned his body into snakes and they all constricted Shinrai—his Chains broke him out. It was too late—Kusanagi stabbed him through the heart. Most of Orochimaru's wounds remained, even his chest was still half-caved in. Despite that, rasping satisfaction heaved from the snake's breaths.

Shinrai growled, seething as his grip on the world loosened. He pushed Orochimaru off of him—the Sannin collapsed to the floor. Shinrai sent all of his chakra to the wound in his heart. All of the Kyuubi's power was used to repair it. Shinrai was forced to his knees, heaving. Someone else turned the corner.

"Kabuto!" Orochimaru gargled, blood spewing from his mouth.

Shinrai spat out a frustrated growl—could he save Baiko?! He didn't have any more Kyuubi Chakra—was it over?! Nono—IT'S NOT! Shinrai screamed, sending an army of Adamantine Chains toward Baiko's test tube. Blood spewed from his wounds from the sheer exertion of his body. At the same time, he grabbed Karin's severed head by the hair and had a chain hold her dismembered body. Kabuto—he was quick. He could cut the Adamantine Chains. Only one made it through—glass shattered and liquid spilled.

Baiko fell out of the tube—

—Shinrai grabbed Baiko—

—Kabuto cut the chain.

"GIVE ME MY BROTHER!" roared Shinrai. It was too late, Orochimaru was getting up, Kabuto was charging—an invincible wall between him and Baiko. No matter how many chains he sent, Kabuto cut them all. His eyes darted to Karin and her eyes weren't open anymore.

Shinrai's heart ripped and he made a web of Adamantine Chains within the corridor, blocking Kabuto and Orochimaru. His scarlet chakra whirled into another Rasengan and he slammed it upward. Rock ground and then an eruption of Shinrai's chakra. Red evening light peered through and the very base itself began to collapse.

Adamantine Chains cleared his path and Shinrai escaped Orochimaru's clutches. Karin's blood stained his clothes more than his own. All of his Adamantine Chains besides the one holding Karin's body faded as Shinrai flickered. He went as fast as he could, speeding and speeding—he never went nowhere near as fast as this before. Before he knew it he was over a mile away from Orochimaru's base.

The setting sun dyed the sky the red of roses, the edging black of night like wilt on petals. Finally, he kneeled, placing Karin's body into a grassy clearing. His Sharingan peered into her, the healing chakra was fading—green into nothing. A drop of his heart into boiling ice—"NO!" He placed Karin's head onto her neck, using his Mystic Palm to mend the wounds.

His hands wouldn't stop shaking. Karin didn't move—her chakra was barely reacting. "Karin!" Shinrai cried—her chakra wasn't getting any stronger. "You said you wouldn't die! You promised!"

Nothing. Her blood pooled in Shinrai's hands.

"WAKE UP!" he pleaded, his Sharingan burning—blood forming in place of tears. "WAKE UP KARIN! PLEASE!"

She didn't respond—she wasn't responding. "I KNOW YOU'RE ALIVE!"

Nothing, as her chakra continued to fade. The world slowed on her pained final face. Shinrai pumped every ounce of chakra he had into his Mystic Palm—it was doing nothing. It didn't matter, he'd never let her go, he'd never let her go—Karin gasped.

Her healing chakra bloomed in full force. The wound severing her head from her body repaired in seconds and she sat up. Shinrai's Sharingan stopped burning and he wiped the blood from his eyes. Her open eyes looked into his for less than a second before she wrapped her arms around him. Shinrai held her tight, held her close—they latched onto each other and let out a joint breath.

Karin was alive—they made it out.

Everything was so calm and warm and it was… bliss.

Shinrai didn't know how long they hugged, how long that bliss lasted… before a flood of memories invaded him.

"Thank you for bringing him to me like I asked of you."

Barely thinking, he pushed her off of him and stumbled away from her. Warmth froze over and his heart felt numb. Agony in her eyes, Karin reached out to him before clutching her own heart. Tears spilled down her face.

"Did…" Shinrai began, breathing seemed harder than fighting Orochimaru. "Did… you…"

He didn't need to finish his question for her to answer. "I'm sorry," she wept, voice shattering like glass hitting the floor.

The cold became everything, and everything became his frost. Shinrai trembled, looking in her direction, but not at her. He was looking past… what? He was looking at what he felt—nothing.

"Why did you save me?!" Karin questioned, sobbing, barely breathing as she wiped the tears from her face only for them to keep coming. "I don't deserve to be alive! I took all of your firsts away from you! I—"

"How much did you lie to me?" He cut her off, his voice like an echo chamber. "Did you really want to love me?"

Karin sobbed harder, shaking her head. "I'm sorry—I'm sorry…"

She was a broken fucking record. She didn't stop apologizing. They didn't really mean a thing.

"You shouldn't have saved me!" Karin screamed. "You shouldn't care about me—I don't deserve any of that! You should have let me die!"

Baiko. I didn't save Baiko.

"...I know."

His response made Karin wail even louder.

Seeing her hurt him for so many reasons, on so many levels.

"But I did," he continued with his echo-chamber voice. "But I do care."

"WHY?!"

Why didn't I save Baiko?

Shinrai shrugged. "I dunno. I guess I can't help it."

Karin shook her head, covering her face with her hands, sobbing and sobbing. It felt like her killing chakra was inside him again. Except, it was in his head not his body. Everything slipped away and Shinrai… couldn't seem to help it.

Shinrai looked at her with hollow Sharingan eyes. Seeing her pain, hearing her sobs… even after everything… "I hate seeing you cry."

That made her crying even worse. "Why?! Why don't you hate me?!" She kept asking all these fucking questions—like she was begging him to hate her.

Shinrai snarled, tomoe whirling. "Do you fucking want me to?! Do you want me to cut your head off and just leave you to die?! Is that what you would do if you were in my situation?!" He tossed his namesake blade to her feet. "There! You wanna die so bad?! Then kill yourself! Go! Do it."

Wordlessly, shaking, she stared at the blade at her feet. Her inhales were choppy and her exhales were haggard. They stood there for minutes.

Finally, she grabbed the hilt. She brought it to her neck—Shinrai grabbed her by the wrist, stopping her. "Don't you fucking dare." Shinrai glared at her with all three of his tomoe—Karin looked terrified.

Terrified… of him.

He let go and snatched the blade out of her hand. Everything was so damned empty. Shinrai sucked his teeth, and sealing his sword away. He tried to look at her but couldn't. Was it because of what she did? Was it because he had her headless corpse burned into his memory? It didn't fucking matter.

Like she wasn't even there, Shinrai walked past her. "We're going back to Konoha."

Slowly, she stood and followed him.

Dying scarlet and wilted rose stepped toward the darkness of the coming night.

—

Everything was so dark. It was cold. Was this what being alive felt like? He couldn't remember what being alive felt like. It had been so long… Who even was he? Whenever he tried to remember it was all black. There were holes everywhere. Things that were empty that should've been full. Nothing was right. Existing was wrong. Going back to sleep seemed like the right thing to do.

Dying… dead. Was that what he was before? Was he dead? Was he just born once again? He wanted to go back. It didn't seem like he could. Hearing, he tried to hear. No sound. Feel, he tried to feel. He was wearing clothes, they were thin. What his back laid on was hard and cold. Rock? Taste, he tried to taste. Saliva… didn't really have a flavor. Smell, he tried to smell. Cold air… it smelled like water and candles.

See, he tried to see.

He opened his eyes to the world, and the first thing he saw were the golden eyes of a snake.

"You're finally awake… Baiko."

đ“ŤŠđ“ŤŠ ~ Chapter End ~ đ“ŤŠđ“ŤŠ