A/N: Wish you all a very happy and joyful Easter!
Welcome back to Guardian of the Tailed Beasts. Team-7 has successfully completed its mission to assist Team-10 in capturing the Bikochu beetle. Sai has joined the team thanks to Danzo and the councillors' machinations, only adding to Jiraiya, Naruto and Hinata's headaches, which don't seem to be ending anytime soon. And as mentioned earlier, the Suna is soon going to organize the Chunin exams. Surely nothing can go wrong this time around, right? Well, read on to find out. Wish you all a happy reading….
CHAPTER 47: WE GOT THAT BEETLE, SO….?*Konoha*
"And those idiots ran away, just completely forgetting that they had left one of their guys behind!" Naruto stated pointing to the prison scroll as he finished his briefing.
Jiraiya sighed. "Well, at least you didn't summon Bunta inside the actual reserve…"
"Come on! I know enough to not mess the forest up! You wouldn't let me hear the end of it!" The blonde jinchuuriki scoffed.
"And Shibi wouldn't have let me hear the end of it…even if he would be quieter about it than most people would be." Jiraiya added, making Shino cough awkwardly for some reason. "Anyways, your first mission as Chunin is a success. Good for you."
"Thanks, Ero-Sennin!"
"Isn't it about time you started addressing me as Hokage-sama?" Jiraiya asked.
"Nope" Naruto shot back with a grin, with his hands behind his head, making Jiraiya sweatdrop.
"And you didn't want to pursue Sasuke right off?" The Toad Sannin asked, actually surprised as such a decision was so against Naruto's usual nature.
"Yeah. Granted, I was pretty pumped to go after that teme, y'know, beat him up and drag his ass back to Konoha…but Hime talked some sense into me. Gotta factor in Orochimaru being back as well."
"Hmm…and?" Jiraiya pressed.
"And we don't want to pick new fights with powerful enemies, do we? At least at the moment."
The self-proclaimed super pervert smiled.
"Good observation, gaki. You're thinking ahead and not being a bonehead. Good…very good." He said with a thumbs up.
But Sai was not having it…though it was more accurate to say that Danzo's ideology was using Sai as a mouthpiece to voice its objection.
"Wouldn't it be stupid to let a precious Sharingan wielder remain a missing-nin? Isn't it possible that Orochimaru would indoctrinate him and make him an enemy of Konoha?" The pale boy asked, still smiling.
'So, that's what you are after huh? Of course, Danzo and his obsession with the Sharingan.' Jiraiya thought to himself.
"You do have a point, Sai." Jiraiya raised his index. "However, do you believe it is worth risking plunging the village into a possible war over just one person?"
"I am afraid, I don't understand, Hokage-sama." Sai questioned.
"Well, let me explain it for you-all of you-as to why pursuing Sasuke at the moment is too risky an endeavour. First, Orochimaru is an S-class ninja, no doubt about that. He knows the Edo-Tensei, as he demonstrated during the invasion and who knows who he might bring back from the dead to fend us off. Apart from that, he has a whole ninja village at his disposal. If we go after him, it might lead to a war between Konoha and Oto. Sure, Oto is equivalent to a minor village with a few gimmicks similar to Hoshigakure, but this is a critical time. The civil war in Kirigakure is getting more violent than ever and there are serious chances that it could spill over to our nation and if it were to happen while we were engaged with Oto, it could very well spell the doom for us. And for Shinobi, who have taken the oath to protect Konoha and the Land of Fire at all costs, regardless of what unit they serve, wouldn't it basically be a betrayal if we push ourselves into something we know could turn into a devastating war, just for one single boy?" Jiraiya questioned and none could offer a rebuttal. He continued.
"I know it is bitter. You don't like it. But this is the fact. Sasuke is important. We need to get that lad back. But he is not important enough to drag the village into a war, especially considering that the situation around us is so volatile and unstable. Furthermore, the Shinobi system has engraved deep grudges into various groups and factions-many of whom hold great influence over the villages and nations they are part of. A war between Konoha and a Minor Village would be a dangerous thing as many Minor Villages feel that the Great Villages actively supress and stand in the way of the Minor Villages, such a war would give the perfect outlet for many to act upon their desire to spread a Great Village's blood while using the chaos to prove their beliefs to the masses. The only correct way to deal with Orochimaru is let his ego get the better of him and let him make a first move that no village can possibly misconstrue, accidentally or purposefully. You all should keep this in mind. We will deal with Orochimaru in time-the Konoha Crush and the subversion of Suna's command structure for his own gain were his first mistakes, we just need to let Orochimaru give us a spark to light a fire to burn him down with. We'll deal with his assets as the opportunities come by us, and very few nations would actively seek to ally with Orochimaru-he's too unpredictable and his scientific cruelty is known by all thanks to Sensei entering him in the international bingo book. Only the desperate, the bloodthirsty, or the similarly deranged would even consider allying with Orochimaru now that it's known he will kill his supposed allies just for perceived advantage now that Suna has put out their bounty on him for killing Rasa before the Chunin Exam Invasion. Let Orochimaru remind the nations why he's an outcast among the underworld so no one sane will see any advantage to allying with him against us."
And with that, the teams were dismissed.
Before heading for their respective homes, Naruto and Hinata shared a kiss.
As he walked home, Naruto was lost in his thoughts. I.e., in a mental conversation with his parents.
'While it is still the sensible decision to not pursue the Teme, I kinda feel pissed. It seems like what we all told Itachi were just empty words. We told him to leave Sasuke to us and we couldn't keep him in check.'
"I know, Naru-chan. I know and I hate it too." Kushina lamented.
"And I feel responsible for it. I was the one who said we should give priority to searching for Tsunade-sama, rather than going back for Sasuke." Minato said with guilt on his face.
"No dear, Tsunade-sama was important too. She was needed for Sasuke's treatment after all, wasn't she?" Kushina said trying to console her husband.
The Uzumaki family could only sigh in sadness at the situation. They just couldn't get over the fact that they messed this one up.
'Hey, Mom, Dad. I remember you guys were telling something about some jutsu in Uzushiogakure that could revive you two fully, right?'
"Yeah, something similar. At least that's how I would guess that it works. I remember reading about an Uzumaki who worked on Edo Tensei with Tobirama Senju's research team, and used that to work to start their own separate project meant to revive someone fully after Tobirama ended his project with the completion of Edo Tensei and subsequent banning of the technique. The Uzumaki are known to be rebellious and its obvious that some of us were inclined to challenge fate itself. Hehe." Kushina said smiling.
"That's the Uzumaki for you. As for your question son, we are not fully sure what that project produced or what techniques it created. Its just our guess that it functions like that. We need to see materials for ourselves to be certain of that." Minato explained.
'I see. I did tell Kakashi-sensei to suggest Ero-Sennin to arrange for a mission to Uzu, I wonder when he's gonna give it to me. Can't wait 'ttebayo!' Naruto exclaimed mentally.
*Sometime later, Hokage office*
Tsunade was at the office on a minor errand. It had a while after teams-10 and 7 had returned from the Bikochu mission.
As Tsunade was about knock, she heard something.
"You are handsome and energetic as ever, Jiraiya-san."
'…a woman is actually praising Jiraiya?' The Senju princess thought to herself and instead of just knocking or simply entering (barging in), she found herself pressing her ear on the door to listen to the conversation.
"Despite your age, you are as beautiful and strong as ever, Tokiwa-san. It has been a while, hasn't it?"
"Yes, it has been many years indeed." Tsunade heard the woman respond.
"So, did you ever manage to find a life partner for yourself?"
The woman chuckled. "My feelings for you haven't changed."
"That's a pity, but my own feelings haven't changed either." Tsunade heard Jiraiya respond, in a bit of a dejected tone and felt a pang of guilt due to it.
She then heard the woman sigh. "So, we are still on the same boat, eh, Jiraiya-san? Pursuing someone who would never love us back?"
"True, hehe, life can be a complete bastard. I have accepted my destiny. I've told you time and again, please find someone better. You still have a life ahead of you."
"I could say the same thing to you as well, Jiraiya-san."
"And once more we find ourselves at an impasse. I think we should leave this discussion here."
"Hai."
'Some woman loves Jiraiya and this pervert actually rejected her since he loves someone else?' Tsunade found herself bemused and surprised and then some part of her told her that she should not be surprised at all at this…
The Slug Sannin kept eavesdropping.
Jiraiya voice sounded again, from behind the door.
"Though, Tokiwa-san. I am sure that you are here on official business. How can I be of assistance?"
"You are indeed right that I am here on official business. I am here to place a demand for the deal you made. To have your pupil marry our leader's heir apparent: Shizuka."
'WHAT THE!!?' Tsunade mentally cursed. 'WHAT KIND OF FUCKING DEAL HAVE YOU MADE, JIRAIYA… YOU FUCKING IDIOT!' Tsunade cursed furiously as multiple veins on her forehead began popping out and tensing.
"W-well…t-that…may be problematic…"
"What was that, Jiraiya-san? Do you mean to say that you would be walking back on the promise you made as well? We have heard of Uzumaki Naruto. We have heard how he is starting to make a name for himself. That's indeed a man worthy of Shizuka-sama."
"But, I can't just make my pupil marry without his consent! He loves someone too…"
"Jiraiya-san…You rejecting me is one thing-I am a nobody. But this is Shizuka-sama you are talking about. Our future leader as well as the strongest among us, if you reject this, it would be a great insult to our village. Morality has no place in the Shinobi system and that promise was made to secure a pact between our villages. The Elders of my village are running out of patience and want the alliance sealed in blood and our leader's bloodline secured. Do you understand that?" The woman yelled.
"Please pardon the interruption and my incidental eavesdropping…" Tsunade started as she opened the door, making those in the office stop and glance at her.
"While Konoha does have political marriages, forced marriage has been disallowed since the first legal code laid out at the founding of the village." It was only after saying those words that Tsunade got a good look at the visitor.
A strongly built woman around the age of both Sannin…she must have been quite the beauty in her younger days. Even now, she had an aura of dignity and strength around herself, but the Senju Princess was not one to back down.
This woman was interfering with lives Tsunade was invested in. That was something Tsunade took personal issue with.
"Senju Tsunade-sama. It's an honour." The woman spoke. "I am Tokiwa, head jonin and retainer of the future leader of Nadeshiko village, Shizuka-sama. You are quite the idol to every woman that aspires towards greatness."
Tsunade was prepared for a fight, and still was, but this had somewhat put her off-balance.
(And bringing back memories of Hanzo the Salamander-praising their team and naming them the Sanin for managing to hold the line against him where others got crushed)
"I fully understand your point…but this is our upcoming leader we are talking about. This marriage is related to her future and our land's safety as well. We need a suitable man to marry our princess, otherwise her far less desirable pursuers will destroy our country and her in their hopes to control a village's forces; we already had to deal with a puppeteer who had attempted to brainwash Shizuka-hime and turn her into his puppet…five times already…the only reason he hasn't been killed off is because he uses a network of proxies to try and ensnare Shizuka-hime rather than approach her himself. Jiraiya-dono made a commitment. Even though he did so before he had become the Hokage, don't you think it would be quite unbecoming of a Hokage to go back on his word?" Tokiwa questioned.
Tsunade glared at Jiraiya before shifting her glance to Tokiwa. "Tokiwa-san, what promise did this man make?"
"In return for rejecting my proposal, he offered to have one of his pupils marry my pupil. His current and only living pupil is Uzumaki Naruto. My only pupil is Shizuka-hime. That is why I am here to have him make good on his word."
(meanwhile in Amegakure: Pain and Konan, former students of Jiraiya, both sneezed)
'What the hell was Jiraiya thinking!? What are you going to tell Naruto and Hinata now…they will never agree to this. How the hell did this happen?'
"Tokiwa-san." Jiraiya suddenly interjected. "Am I remembering correctly that the leader of the Nadeshiko village only marries someone who could defeat her in a fight?"
Jiraiya knew damn well how it worked for Nadeshiko's elite…and the rest of Nadeshiko really, but only the elite in the Kunoichi Village explicitly followed that rule and challenged potential suitors to duels.
Tokiwa nodded.
A smirk formed inside Jiraiya's mind at that moment, but he kept his poker face up because any display could cause this gambit to backfire.
"Then here is a proposal. Uzumaki Naruto is in a relationship with Hyuuga Hinata and they have decided to marry upon coming of age. By the laws of Konoha, specifically part of the exact same one that Tsunade-hime referenced earlier: upon becoming official shinobi, they are considered adults who can choose their life partner and anyone who interferes without justified cause will be turned away or punished. If I were to impose this on Naruto, he will never agree to it, neither would his partner. Had he been single and not in love with anyone, I might have been able to ask this of him, but that isn't the world we live in. This is a situation in which a past commitment on my part and Naruto's rights are in direct conflict-an area where the laws haven't been appropriately expanded to cover. Merely using the loophole to enforce the Nadeshiko desired outcome would be disastrous as Naruto has connections to individuals of great significance both inside and outside of the village. If he really wanted to-he could easily leave and start over elsewhere. We have to find a solution that doesn't push things to the point of no return. I can think of only one possible way to resolve this. We will do something similar to the Nadeshiko Village tradition in the upcoming Chunin exams. If a kunoichi wins the chunin exams, she will have the option of marrying my pupil. You understand, what I mean?" Jiraiya explained.
Tokiwa smirked. "So, you are suggesting that we enter Shizuka-sama into the upcoming Chunin exams in Sunagakure and when she wins the inevitable tournament of the third phase, she will have the option to marry Uzumaki Naruto, should she choose?"
"Yes."
'What on earth is he thinking! Is he betting that Hinata can beat this Shizuka?' Tsunade thought to herself.
"Alright, I accept the proposal. If this Hyuuga Hinata you mentioned manages to win against Shizuka-sama, then this topic will never be raised again. At least by me. I must warn you that certain elders within Nadeshiko were rather thrilled to discover that your student is an Uzumaki…I know when someone is coveting power and they were slobbering for it."
Tsunade didn't know whether to sigh in relief or be more tensed with the development.
Tokiwa shrugged: "Don't be too relieved Jiraiya, Nadeshiko's history is just as long as Konoha's own. We were the first to prove the melting pot theory that the villages now use, when a team of runaways from various clans and commoners who desired to live the lives of shinobi stood against the Heicho Clan-the clan of the KinGin Brothers-and won. She will have many surprises for you. I am fairly confident in her chances of winning the exams."
"Is that so?" Tsunade asked with a bit of a smug face…and a cold glare in her eyes. "Hyuuga Hinata is my pupil. I am confident in her ability in winning the whole damn thing as well! You better be prepared…" The Senju princess challenged.
"Oh…now I see why you were so interested in this topic. Fine then, I look forward to this, Tsunade-dono." Tokiwa said with a smirk before turning to leave. Just as she was leaving, she stopped for a moment by Tsunade's side.
"You are a lucky woman that a man like him loves you so much…" She whispered. Words that Tsunade had no response to.
She stood there confused while Tokiwa made to leave…only to freeze when the Nadeshiko saw something that alarmed her.
Tokiwa's eyes went hazy as if a thousand memories suddenly came rushing back. "Jiraiya…where did Namikaze Minato come from?"
Jiraiya and Tsunade both went still and tracked Tokiwa's gaze to Minato's picture hanging on the wall with the other past holders of the Hokage's Hat.
Jiraiya shrugged: "As far as I know, he was from Konoha. Civilian raised. Met his parents once before a freak illness killed them. They didn't look a damn thing like him, but he had what mattered from them-their love and belief that he could achieve what he desired. Why?"
Tokiwa muttered: "He looks so much like someone I knew a long time ago. She told me her child died…but I never saw a body or a grave at Nadeshiko Village."
Tokiwa left her flashback and lowered her head: "I apologize for wasting your time with me getting lost because of a passing resemblance. The older you get, the more you see the same face worn by different people, and sometimes they just happen to be completely unrelated to one another."
Jiraiya laughed bitterly: "I know the feeling. Safe travels, Tokiwa-san."
Tokiwa finally left.
"Now, Tsunade…is there anything I can help you with?" Jiraiya asked innocently and Tsunade remembered how this foolish pervert had just made a wager on Naruto's future and had tied it with the chunin exams.
"There is something you can help me with, Jiraiya? WHAT THE HELL WAS THIS ABOUT!? What were you thinking!? Naruto is going to have to pay for your screw up! Was Minato aware of something like this?!" The Senju princess yelled.
Jiraiya was fully expecting an accompanying smack on the head. Fortunately, that never came for whatever reason. But the anger on Tsunade's face made him sweat bullets.
"T-Tsunade-Hime…she was persistent!"
"Just because you didn't want to marry her, you had to sacrifice someone else's future!? What the fuck!?" Tsunade shouted in anger.
"Calm down Hime! I had no student at that time, nor did I ever foresee becoming Naruto's sensei. I thought I can easily get away with that since I had no students at that time!"
Tsunade shook her head in annoyance. "They're kids…they don't need this kind of pressure…wait a second, you told me about the Seer Toad's prophecy about you teaching a student who would change the world one time when we getting hammered…BULLSHIT! You knew you were going to have students one day!"
"I know…and didn't remember that time, but her arguments about a Hokage's commitment were on point too. If a Hokage goes back on his word, you know what it would do to our reputation. I had to find a way to get her off my back. Besides…" Jiraiya said with a placating gesture. "I am confident in Hinata-chan's ability to defeat that Nadeshiko princess and win the damned Chunin exams. Don't you believe in her!?"
"I wouldn't have accepted the challenge on her behalf if I didn't. If I have to put her through hell for her to win the damn thing, then so be it. I will have her win it." Tsunade stated with absolute finality.
"Yeah…I know, and when she comes to know about this, I am certain that Hinata would be even more incentivized to grow stronger."
Tsunade had to hold her forehead though, this whole damn situation was causing her a headache. "Fine." She grumbled before standing up.
Jiraiya blinked. "I thought you had something to talk about besides what just happened?"
"I did, but now Tokiwa has me wondering about Minato's origins. You don't think he could have been…" Tsunade started off growling before her curiosity trailed off.
Jiraiya shrugged: "Not a damn clue. I don't think it really matters. Nadeshiko really doesn't treat men that well, native born or otherwise. Tokiwa wasn't kidding when she said Nadeshiko's history equals Konoha's own in length. The first official records of Nadeshiko's existence date back to around the same time of the Senju-Uchiha Peace Pact that founded Konoha as a shared settlement between the two clans. My personal theory is that Nadeshiko's founders were clan-born women who wanted to take part in the Shinobi lifestyle but were told no and to get back to pumping out more kids to fight and die for the clan's profit and glory; there are stories of Kunoichi during the Warring States period, but most stories never mention more than one or two active at any given time and those are just the exceptional ones that stand out alongside titans like Sensei's old man or your grandfather and uncle. Back to my theory-I think a story similar to Hashirama and Madara played out between two girls except when their families tried to force them into their desired mould, the girls ended up rebelling and running away, finding others like them who shared the desire to be ninja, and then going into hiding and training before establishing a mercenary group like the Nokizaru Group or even Akatsuki before establishing a village using the reputation of the mercenary outfit as marketing and further expanding their numbers."
"Gee, sure you were meant to be a ninja and not a historian?" Tsunade snarked before giving a more serious response: "It does make sense. Record keeping at that time would be poor outside of Clans and the Nobility. If the same model was used…then the Proto-Nadeshiko could find plenty of work…though certain attitudes at the time would complicate things so it may have been possible that they took efforts to look androgynous."
"Yeah, and then once the Nadeshiko Group's reputation spreads out enough-Nadeshiko Village gets established and reveals that all members of the Nadeshiko Group were women and sets the rules about what women could do on fire…early documentation makes it hard to determine if Proto-Nadeshiko and Early Nadeshiko Village were any better, but somewhere along the line, Nadeshiko outright bans men from becoming part of their Shinobi ranks." Jiraiya expounded before sighing: "Classic case of a someone seeing something wrong or something they perceive as wrong, and the moment they get power they try to fix it and overcompensate too harshly in a way that becomes another problem later…that or a similar phenomenon of those suffering abuse often times going on to repeat it upon others once they have power to do so even though they should want to make sure that no one else suffers like they did. Maybe even both."
The two sat in silence before Jiraiya finished: "That's just my theory on the matter. Hard to say much definitive with how secretive Nadeshiko is, and information could be lost due to any number of factors."
Tsunade was silently contemplating before finally asking: "Do you think it's possible?"
Jiraiya stopped for a moment and stared off, "…Yeah. I've seen enough and learned enough to know that it is within the realm of possibility. It would explain Minato's talent for the Ninja Arts. Talent like that is stupidly rare, you don't see civilian born ninja like that too often. They're usually like Rock Lee, having to claw and scream their way to prominence. Minato having a random talent for a violent profession with his personality…I just don't buy it enough to consider that he didn't have Shinobi ancestry. You're the medical expert, but I know enough to know that inheritance is an unpredictable quantity, but everything we inherit has to start somewhere and that includes aptitude or lack thereof."
Tsunade nodded before making to leave the office: "We have questions that are more theoretical than anything else. We would need to know who Tokiwa saw when she looked at Minato, and DNA samples from either the subject or near relatives with a clear answer on what their relation to the subject was for accurate testing and interpretation of the data shown. That's pipe dreaming right now, and I've got a regimen to write up and a training dummy to find."
Jiraiya blinked and shivered as the phrasing brought to mind an incredibly harsh instructor from their youth who often singled out problem children as 'training dummies', and every ninja of the Sannin's generation passed through his training at least one time.
"Tsunade…please for my own sanity's sake, are you referring to an actual dummy or Hinata?" Jiraiya bluntly asked.
"Yes." Was the equally blunt response.
Tsunade left the office and Jiraiya sat in horror while silently wished Hinata luck.
-x-
Otogakure
3 days later
Kabuto walked into the primary lab and found Orochimaru observing one of their latest projects.
The core of the parasitic creature they had managed to obtain from Mugen Shigaraki before his now confirmed demise by an unknown party had been placed on a souvenir from one of Orochimaru's earlier achievements.
The core was bound to a horn of the Hachibi, one that had been sliced off by the Third Raikage during the rampage that led to Ushi-Oni being sealed inside a gourd which ended up killing its host at the time, Blue B, Killer B's predecessor.
Few knew that it was Orochimaru who had induced the rampage during an infiltration mission, fewer still knew that Orochimaru had loosened Blue B's seal to a degree that any attempt to seal the Biju would result in an extraction.
And only two people knew what became of the Ushi-Oni's missing horn.
Orochimaru discovered the demise of his most recent business acquaintance in perhaps one of the worst ways possible.
Walking into a lab to begin the day's round of experiments, only to see Mugen's rotten head lying on the floor, with a note ordering Orochimaru to cease contact with the organization Mugen Shigaraki had been part of.
The note was signed with a symbol rather than a name: a stylized phoenix with long and stylized tail feathers that almost looked to be tentacles had it not been for the clear feather detailing…and numerous eyes across its visible body, most of which in places where eyes most assuredly did not belong in any way.
The Post Scriptum was merely a date and time and instructions to look towards the nearest facility to the main lab at that time for proof that they, whoever they were, were not 'Fucking Around.'
That date was yesterday, the day that Mugen's head had been discovered, and the time was a mere 3 minutes after the note had been read.
A violent and massive explosion erupted from the secondary lab closest to the main facility.
The lab where all the research, data, and material for the Sasuke Duplication project was stored outside of Uchiha Sasuke himself.
Everything was destroyed, and no survivors were able to be found in the wreckage.
Many bodies pulled from the debris showed signs of slashed throats, severe frostbite from what was presumably moulded ice bindings, at least a few had punctures in the neck area from what seemed to be bite wounds, and severe rope burn, especially around the wrists, among other injuries both fatal and debilitating.
The staff of the facility were slaughtered, some given quick release, others maimed and forced to wait for their injuries to turn fatal or for the explosion to occur, and others tightly bound and forced to await the detonation. Some had signs of a Gentle Fist-like art being used on them to paralyze both body and chakra network, while the ones with bite wounds would have bled out as autopsy analysis revealed the bite sites to be infected with something that disabled clotting factor.
And among the bodies was the rest of Mugen's body with the words: 'FUCK AROUND AND FIND OUT, ASSHATS!' written in bright purple on the man's once pristine suit, identified as such thanks to distinguishing features on the man's hands, with a continuation of the threat written on paper attached to the stump that used to be Mugen's head saying: 'We can assure you- it will not be us finding out.'
They were able to dig up evidence of the bomb, and it wasn't an explosive note. It was an explosive device that no one had ever seen before.
To say Orochimaru-sama was in a bad mood would be an understatement.
He was furious, with no target deserving of his rage that wasn't too valuable to risk. Even worse was that Kimimaro, fully recovered from his illness following having his Curse Mark extracted to use the fragment of Orochimaru's essence within to bring the Snake Sannin back from death, was now reflecting that rage in brutal tests of loyalty after hearing a rumour that traitors had done the deed that harmed Orochimaru's interests.
Kabuto felt bad for those being subjected to Kimimaro's brutality, but this was a necessary evil. No one had died yet, and quite a few had come out of Kimimaro's torture better for it…plus a combing of ranks was inevitable and necessary. Kimimaro was handling the rank-and-file, with his mind rejecting the possibility that the betrayal may have come from higher up as those raised to such ranks were done so by Orochimaru who couldn't make bad calls in the Kaguya boy's mind.
So, Kabuto had taken the initiative, directing the rage of their leader into productive outlets while he scoured for anything that could be good enough to quell the Snake's rage.
A mere two days passed before the perfect information presented itself.
A mission statement document for a new expedition to Uzushio.
To be led by Naruto Uzumaki.
Danzo was someone who Kabuto hated with all of his being, but the alliance Orochimaru had with the cripple was surprisingly useful.
It had led to Orochimaru and Kabuto discovering that Danzo had a brainwashing Mangekyou Sharingan in his missing eye's socket. Danzo spilled that part of his hand so thoroughly that Orochimaru refused to meet with the war hawk outside of circumstances where Danzo's ability was confirmed as disabled, and frequently implied to Danzo that if the cripple brainwashed any of Orochimaru's subordinates then the war hawk would be made to burn.
Though Kabuto had to wonder how long this joke of an alliance would last before Orochimaru disposed of Danzo to keep from being stabbed in the back.
This new bit of intel regarding planned missions…It was obvious Danzo was hoping Orochimaru would be attracted by potential knowledge to be plundered from Uzushio, which would hopefully lead to an 'accident' that Danzo could use to seize Naruto and conscript the Jinchuriki into ROOT.
Kabuto laughed quietly and bitterly at the obviousness of his former employer; it was so ham-fisted that it may as well be cooked and eaten.
Kabuto's inner monologue turned dark as he visualized killing Danzo. A swipe across the eye to disable that Sharingan by severing the optic nerve. Followed by a swipe to rip apart the muscles connected to Danzo's prosthetic arm to disabled his Wood Release…followed by a specially designed paralytic drug to give Danzo a new meaning to the word agony as Kabuto questioned the man who took away everything he once cared about.
'It would be easier to take his Sharingan and use it against him…but where's the fun in just doing that?' Kabuto chuckled internally as he entered Orochimaru's personal lab for this complex.
Kabuto knelt before his master who barely acknowledged him, focusing more on the experiment unfolding inside the vat containing the core bound to the Hachibi horn.
Orochimaru's mood had worsened on the day separating the explosion from the present. His biological cloning endeavours had ended up failing miserably and being written down as a failure just as he began rolling out new and improved versions of his mass distributed body mods, which had to be removed due to design flaws.
Another note was found soon after, signed with the same strange phoenix insignia. The note listed the exact failures in the mods.
Whoever wrote it claimed responsibility and stated that this was proof of how much they knew regarding Orochimaru's operation that they could sabotage it in such a way.
Paranoia regarding further sabotages had begun to become apparent to Kabuto.
'Orochimaru-sama has even begun suspecting an infiltrator or even an imposter among us. Some good news might just be the needed remedy to this series of setbacks.'
Kabuto spoke: "Orochimaru-sama, one of our contacts has managed to discover that Konoha is planning a new expedition to Uzushio."
Orochimaru did respond with a tilting of his head but made no sound nor did he turn away from the experiment tank.
He was afraid that the one thing he had managed to gain from Mugen would slip out of his fingers and be destroyed by yet another sabotage by the men of the Phoenix.
Kabuto continued: "They are planning to send Naruto Uzumaki as the leader of the team. This close to a Chunin Exam, I suspect that they will be sending him with chunin rather than genin or even jonin. The mission is slated to begin in two days and continue till just short of the exam."
Orochimaru looked downwards and began contemplating. "The current circumstances forbid we split our forces. We need to carry out a full sweep and find out if we have been compromised. I need you, Guren, and Kimimaro close so we can deal with traitors in our ranks should they attempt another move. You three are the only ones whose loyalty I am absolutely certain of."
Kabuto nodded: "Understood sir. Should I hire a mercenary to trail the team? Rahyo Yuki perhaps?"
Orochimaru didn't move: "While I do approve of the idea of recruiting Rahyo, his skills lie in battle and assassination. Amachi has begun reporting major successes in his research. I believe he found himself an additional benefactor who is supplying him with materials. I doubt Amachi is the traitor, but I do believe that he could be sharing details unknowingly in his excitement. The advances he is reporting in the span of mere months are absurd. Full integration of sonar-based echolocation, and refining of it into a weapon useable on land and in water. Once we have cleared our ranks of suspicion, we move into investigating Demon Island to ensure that no intelligence leak has sprung from there. I want a name for organization using that bird insignia. They have resources I have only seen during my ROOT days when I carried out missions against Danzo's greatest enemy, a similar shadow organization to both ROOT and Akatsuki known as Kara. The one-time when all of Danzo's claims of being the foundation that supports the Leaf sounded believable."
Kabuto spoke: "If we are locking down our forces pending a full security sweep, then does that mean you intend to use Edo Tensei and test the new control tags?"
Orochimaru broke out into his signature smirk: "Indeed. Self-Autonomous reincarnations bound by specific instructions that they are unable to break. Sacrifice of the ability to directly control them mentally in exchange for theoretically massive range expansion for the reincarnations to operate in away from the summoner. I have just the pair in mind for this mission."
Kabuto stood up: "Any particular individuals you would like to use for the sacrifices?"
"Kukuku…bring me two of the still breathing corpses from the sabotage regarding the implants."
Kabuto did as he was told, bringing two Oto-Nins who had been rendered brain dead by the sabotaging of the body mods. They had been given modifications using cultivated Hashirama material, produced at one of the labs that thankfully wasn't sabotaged or Orochimaru's rage would have been apocalyptic as it would have destroyed something he needed for his Final Host, in order to make them useable sacrifices and hosts for the Impure Reincarnations despite the severe mental and physical damage.
Material that could be used for reconfiguring the body due to the absurd adaptability of Hashirama Senju's genetic material. A waste to use it for Edo Tensei reanimations…but it could create hosts for the reanimated that could channel the soul's full power and potential far easier and keep the soul within the summoner's control.
Orochimaru placed the scroll containing the base formula for Edo Tensei on the ground of the ritual chamber, and ran through the signs while Kabuto placed the DNA samples on top of the sacrifices.
Orochimaru finished the sequence and slammed his hand down on the centre of the scroll's array.
"Summoning: Edo Tensei-Contract Bind!"
The array on the scroll burst out into a grid that encompassed the two sacrifices and from the array emerged rushes of wind and leaves.
The sacrifices were obscured by the leaves until the wind died down and revealed the Impure Reincarnations.
A tall pale man with a lean yet muscular build and no eyebrows, with a Kiri headband sitting on his head sideways but the metal unscratched.
A young teenager with an unbelievably androgynous appearance, with a Kiri headband wrapped around his head properly.
Kabuto pressed the control tags into their necks quickly before they could react and placed a large and familiar sword before the tall man.
Orochimaru smirked: "Momochi Zabuza, Yuki Haku. Stand up."
The kneeling reincarnations obeyed.
Orochimaru spoke: "You live again by my power. You will follow my order to the letter and spirit. You two are to head to Uzushiro and wait for a Konoha team to arrive and stalk them into the derelict village. Observe them and seek out an opportunity to ambush them and make off with anything they might gain from the ruins. Should they find the fabled Uzumaki research into the secret of resurrection, you are to engage them immediately and steal it. You will identify the team as it will contain your old acquaintance, Uzumaki Naruto. Understood?"
"Yes…" both Reincarnations droned.
"Get moving."
The obeyed, with Zabuza placing the sword on his back, appreciating the familiar weight of the Kubikiribocho-The Executioner's Sword.
As they moved, Haku spoke: "Zabuza-sama…if this is the Second Hokage's forbidden summoning technique and we were both summoned, then that means I failed to protect you with my sacrifice. Even in death, I couldn't be of use to you. I really am a failure."
Zabuza grunted: "Haku…your sacrifice saved me from Kakashi. I couldn't bring myself to slice through you…and that moment of humanity made Kakashi hesitate. I died in what came after, when Gato betrayed us. I died dragging that bastard down to hell with me, we should have just killed Gato and plundered his vaults when we got hired. I knew he was a scumbag and a snake and I let him bite me anyways. I should have realized what was coming when he came after us after our first fight with Kakashi and his team."
Haku heard him but mumbled: "If you say so…"
The two incarnations began running towards their objective.
-x-
Amegakure
One day later
Pain opened his eyes with annoyance as uninvited guests entered the chamber that he used to keep his real body safe whenever inside of Amegakure and its rain.
He knew they had entered Amegakure.
The rain was an extension of his sensing abilities…Uzumaki born with sensor abilities often had powerful and unique abilities compared to others with similar abilities.
Nagato learned soon after his…awakening (Yahiko's death)…that he could seed the clouds with chakra and turn the rain into both sensory and a cost-effective way to operate the Six Paths of Pain over Ame's territory.
The soon to be dead men never had the element of surprise. They were merely beneath a god's notice.
Pain spoke raspingly: "I see you had the forethought to disable my Paths before coming after me…tell me…if the Paths get their power and abilities from me, then shouldn't you fear me a thousandfold compared to the individual puppets that I control?"
One of the children playing at being adults and assassins growled: "A cripple is no threat to Kara. The Paths are your only means to impose your will upon the world, and they are dead."
Nagato smirked: "I think you overestimate my limitations. The Paths are incarnations of my powers, held back by the limits of my chakra and the limitations of a human body."
Pain remained unphased as the assassin charged and promptly met his end through Pain channelling the Asura Path and manifesting its weaponized tail to impale the man before dismissing the appendage.
Pain's face went calm: "So…you are members of Kara…I presume Jigen sent you. Konan was…apoplectic…to discover that you scared off Doctor Amado when she was looking at trying to convince him to come and look at my injuries."
Nagato clasped his hands together in an almost prayer like fashion.
"The concerns of a corpse matter not. Only your death."
"Amusing, the same could be said about you, just in the plural sense." Pain drawled: "Agony: Deva Avatar!"
A summoning seal appeared before the room pressurized and filled with smoke before the smoke filtered away.
The Kara assassins saw a mechanical creature with two long rectangular arms and a serpentine lower body that curved downwards into what appeared to be a bulbous turbine, while its face was a mask that looked almost infantile, but beneath the metal glared two red eyes surrounded by green gelatinous flesh. The creature moaned and it sounded like a horrible parody of a baby's angry wailing.
The creature's red eyes had the pattern of a Rinnegan in it.
Pain smirked: "The Six Paths that form the basis of the Rinnegan's powers are merely something far greater condensed down, and filtered through the lens of humanity. My pain led to me discovering that the Rinnegan is more like the Sharingan's Mangekyou form than most knew. My unique ability is Agony. The ability to call forth the Paths in their true, unrestricted, and unfiltered Path. This is the Akumu, the unfiltered form of the Deva Path. An Avatar rather than an incarnation. Horrific, yet beautiful. Twisted, yet elegant. Fitting in all honesty, after all: gods and their creations often may be holy but to lesser creatures-these beings can be downright horrifying to behold in their true forms. Akumu, much like its name, shall be your nightmare…except you shall not awaken. Not while you are still alive."
The moment Pain stopped speaking, Akumu moaned before its tail began moving. Specifically, the turbine that formed the bulb at the end of its tail.
A slight distorted haze filled the room.
Pain was unaffected.
The assassins felt like they were underwater on dry land. Struggling to breath, every action pushed against by the environment.
Any attempt to harm Akumu and end its power was met by the same resistance. The same harsh gravity.
Pain smirked: "Akumu may lack the focus of my Deva Path, but its usage is far more powerful overall. Remember I said this would be your nightmare…it still is, just it shall be your final nightmare. The one that carries you to eternity."
Pain gave one final order: "Akumu. Kill them."
Akumu acknowledged and intensified the gravity acting on the assassins.
The assassins screamed until finally their own bodies collapsed inwards due to the gravitational pressure applied to them.
Konan walked in not long afterwards, barely acknowledging Akumu itself, but noticing its work strewn about the floor.
Konan breathed out: "At least this batch of corpses will be easier to get rid of."
Pain nodded: "I've been working on finishing things with more…cleanliness. Less work for you or anyone who has to deal with it."
Konan said nothing and stared at Nagato before uttering a single word. "Phrasing."
Nagato thought for a moment before sighing at Konan's antics: "Konan…get your mind out of the gutter."
Konan said nothing and stared…again.
Nagato sighed: "Right, right…its attached to the rest of you."
The bodies were promptly wrapped up in a paper cocoon and taken away to be disposed of.
Nagato spoke up: "Aren't you gonna clean up the blood?"
Konan shook her head: "You said you were going to lessen the messes others and myself would have to deal with. Try starting there."
Nagato grumbled as Konan walked off. "Knew I should have just pulled out…"
"Phrasing."
"I KNOW EXACTLY WHAT I SAID!"
-end-
Editor's note: It may feel a bit silly with what happened with Nagato and Konan at the end…but it makes them more human in my opinion. Plus it gives an opportunity to introduce our unique ability for Pain: Agony. Madara got Limbo and Sasuke got Amenotejikara(his unique ability to replace with anything in line of sight), so we decided to give Nagato a unique Rinnegan ability and decided it should be related to the Six Paths of Pain. Akumu is merely the Deva Path Agony. It is based on the Nightmare from Metroid Fusion and Metroid Other M. The others won't be revealed for some time.
Minato: we anticipate much regarding potential response to this…this was the result of one editor staying up WAY too late, feeling a bit slap happy, his cocaine addled weasel of a brain deciding to randomly start imagining things, and one RaNK001 who loved the idea and gave the go ahead to include it as part of our worldbuilding for other fics that this detail works incredibly well for.
Nadeshiko and Shizuka: yeah, this was planned for a while even if it veered off course uncontrollably thanks to a sleep deprived editor. I feel comfortable to say that Hinata's next big headliner fight will be Shizuka. We definitely got big things planned for that fight…and the Suna Chunin Exams (Mwuhahaha)
The bit about the Heicho clan, reference to the fact that Kinkaku and Ginkaku are based on characters from Journey to the West, a pair of demon king brothers who lived on Mount Heicho and were in possession of a set of five treasures which were the inspiration for the Sage Tools, and their mother was a nine-tailed fox which was the inspiration for the KinGin Brothers being Pseudo Jinchuriki of Kurama's power.
We couldn't remember if Amado had been mentioned in this fic in the past (not Amachi, we already went through two brainfarts where I mixed up Amado and Amachi) so this is his first official mention. I think that's all from me.
A/N: Nothing to add here. I hope you all enjoyed the chapter. The ones that destroyed Orochimaru's lab were the same ones that pursued Mugen (basically All for One) into Guardian's universe. This was us tying up everything with that little crossover segment up.
Also, yeah, the Akatsuki and the ROOT are engaged in with the Kara in shadow operations. Nothing big yet, neither of these organizations know about the goals and the leadership of the other. Just that they all realize that they need to get rid of the other. It can be said that Isshiki realizes that Zetsu is made up of Kaguya's chakra and considers it a threat to his plans. But at this point, Kara lacks its key members. Amado isn't a member yet, which means no Koji and no Delta. Its pretty much Jigen, Boro and Isshiki's jyuubi at this point and obviously without Amado, there is no question of Daimon and Ada. This means Kara doesn't have the firepower to deal with the Akatsuki in a straightforward way, without Jigen coming out in the open and getting noticed by the five great nations. Hence, the two organizations are trying to sabotage each other rather than fighting out in the open. Same goes for the ROOT. Of course, Danzo considers Kara to be a threat, but in his thirst for power and his endless ego, he has kept this information hidden from Hiruzen and subsequently Jiraiya, who as of now have no idea about Kara's existence. For the time being, Kara won't be playing a major role. But we just wanted to let you know that we haven't forgotten about them and that we do intend to deal within the Blank period at most, without needing to go into the Boruto era.
Regarding the deal with the Nadeshiko? Well, it stemmed from the need of giving Hinata a good enough opponent to allow her to shine through it. And also well, with Jiraiya being Hokage, it kind of makes sense for the Nadeshiko village to try to leverage Jiraiya's little promise with Tokiwa.
I hope you all had a good time reading this chapter. See ya'll in the next one.
Cheers and peace!
RaNK001 and GBAboy313 out.