Sage Mode is tough to keep up during times of extreme duress.
I was burning a lot of energy in attacks as soon as I switched into that form and… and it was difficult. My Sharingan was bolstered by the Natural Energy flooding through my veins, but it could barely keep up with the relentless assaults of tendrils I was subjected to. Fast, unforgiving and yet giving me just enough time to move around and try to deliver some hits.
A barrier stopped any effort to go through and land any damage on her. It didn't seem to crack before either a Raikiri or a Senjutsu Style: Rasengan. Even as I switched into my Wind and Thunder Armors I found any attempt to breach it unfeasible. I was keeping up with her onslaught, but couldn't do anything to stop her. I wanted to say it was a stalemate, but as I noticed Ina just calmly deflected mini Bijuu Damas, I realized how underprepared I was.
The gamble wasn't paying off and my body was burning a lot faster than I needed. I couldn't handle that kind of intense pace for beyond a few minutes, my bones groaning and my muscles just screaming in agony at the pure stress I was subjecting my whole body to. Thus I pushed away, throwing some smoke bombs at Ina's feet and tried to find just enough time to prepare a reinforced Bijuudama.
Kurama jumped off my shoulder, shifting to a slightly bigger form while he tried to do that, while I kept Ina distracted with some Fire Jutsu. When you mix Phoenix Sage Mode with Fire attacks, the results are nothing short of powerful and godly. Maybe I was exaggerating on the latter detail, but I could feel both my fingers and my lips grow numb at the heat as I started to bombard the Eldritch's manifestation.
I was doing enough to distract, but not enough to prevent Ina from getting closer as Kurama charged up the blast. Still, the attack was fully charged a minute later and it was thrown at the approaching foe. Ina didn't even put an effort to either deflect or dodge the energy bomb, and the result was between the decisive and the disappointing.
The Bijuudama connected, but while an explosion ensued, it wasn't the nuclear strike I had expected- actually, the one anyone expected as Kurama snarled in surprise and anger when half the blast was just nullified by Ina's barrier. Still, the barrier was showing strains on its surface and Ina actually looked wobbly for a moment. Weakened, but just not enough.
To add more issues to my current one, a loud demonic roar came from the dark portal which the true entity was trying to use to get into this dimension. I just could taste the mental pollution growing all around, but my current desperation allows my brain to ignore it. I had to do something about it because it was the biggest threat at the moment.
Looking around for any ideas, I noticed that the ceiling was partly open, giving sight over the cloudy sky. I blinked at it, then frowned and… sighed. There was one way this could be useful and I needed to use the powered-up version of a cheesy Lightning Style technique.
"Bullshit situations require bullshit solutions," I muttered under my breath, creating a clone and ordering it to go further back to prepare the next effort to bring down our current trouble. The entity was making its way through the portal, looking close to break through but… maybe I could do something about it. I doubted this technique would have done much to Ina with her current barrier, but it would give enough of a push to throw the ancient god away from the rift.
I was running on low chakra, so I would have to tackle this matter with extreme caution. I hadn't experimented on this, mostly because there was so much BS behind this Jutsu's theory that I decided to wait some more before trying to use it- and yet reality didn't seem to care for my schedule, and I knew I would have to do something about it. The clone got as back as it could while also being directly under the opening in the ceiling. He brought both his hands towards the sky and Lightning chakra rushed upward into the dark clouds. It mixed with the electric energy focusing within and I could feel it through my clones and… the chakra itself. It was… immense. I was way bigger than anything I tried up to this point and- and I guess that's where it was time to finally strike.
Ina noticed, her gaze looking up to the sky just as I lifted my own hands to the sky and she saw thunder crackling and forming a larger creature than the one Sasuke's Kirin created. Sasuke's idea was clever as it relied on Natural Chakra being used as a control element over genuine nature and yet, it wasn't a complete idea. What I knew by theory and practice on the spot was that the more chakra is invested in this process, the greater the result yielded was going to be. The monstrous form that I conceived had sharper claws and scales, its gaze burning with incredible energy and grumbling with eagerness. A ferocious dragon judged the entity that was soon to pierce into this dimension and... It rushed upward, going back to the clouds and taking momentum before diving down into the surprised eldritch god. It roared in challenge, stunning the entity and then slamming onto it.
I don't have many words to use when describing the aftermath. My sight went white, all noise was erased and only a crack reached my ears. It lasted two seconds, and yet the end results were nothing short of devastating. Part of the structure over the dark abyss had collapsed, the entity groaned in pain as the thunderous attack had actually landed some damage to it and… Ina's frame was no longer swallowed by shadows. She looked around, confused and panicking. I couldn't see what was making her this worried, and my tired mind just ruled out that she was concerned that her barrier was also down.
She was an innocent pawn but… she had to die. I rushed in, my body aching with each move as I was forced to drop out of my Sage Mode, and deactivate my Sharingan. I just had enough chakra for a Great Fireball jutsu and… and then something happened. I was unsure as to why Kurama hadn't moved to join me, but I was too distracted by that golden opportunity to see the Tailed Beast struggling as the entity had slowly recovered and had started to try and tear into the large fox's mind. Sadly, it didn't manage to do enough and yet it provided it with the chance to then shift its focus on me.
I was one or two hand signs from killing a terrified Ina, heat focusing one last time in that technique when my brain just went blank. Pain exploded all over my body. Nothing from my previous experiences with suffering could compare with this circumstance. My brain was riddled with holes, my consciousness in tatters as it was unable to push back the growing terror shredding into my sanity and… and then I felt my body swallowed in a hug, and it wasn't just the shadows.
Ina was hugging me, crying but- but it was so cold, so unforgiving- so… damning. This was the embrace of death, and one that dulled any sense that was still fighting. I heard Kiara scream something, I heard Calli yell too- but I was too deep into the darkness, and it welcomed me as an empty husk ready to rot and fall.
...My body was collapsing…
...and so was my mind…
...and then…
I felt empty and light,
Hopes shattered, dreams rejected, promises broken
and I couldn't do nothing about it all, no matter how I wanted
for I was no longer alive;
I had failed
for I was dead.
…
"Don't- don't leave me. I'm- I'm sorry. I was wrong!" A sobbing girl begged, and my demise… twisted into something else.
I woke up in a panic as the noise of the door bell just yanked me out of my sleep.
Pulling up from the mattress, sweaty and irritated, I gave a look around and… huffed. Nothing new, I was in my flat. As expected. The doorbell struck again, and, as I groaned in frustration, I shifted out of the bed. I was still in my sleepwear, which was a shirt and the pants from a tracksuit outfit I mostly used for exercises in the morning and in case I had no plans to get out from home for any strolls around town. I was still confused by the sudden ringing, thinking of who could be at this hour. Definitely not the neighbors- those tended to sleep up to ten during weekends.
I glanced through the peephole, but got no sight on who was behind the ringing, yet I was given confirmation it was no prank when the bell rang again despite the lack of someone visible through the hole and… I decided to open the door. It took just a moment but soon a purple missile rushed in as soon as the door opened, tiny arms wrapping around my waist as giggles vibrated from my belly up. I looked down, and I was greeted by a warm smile and giddy violet eyes which matched her same-shaded hair.
"Fratellone(1a)!"
My eyes widened in surprise at that development.
"Ina? What are you doing here?" I was slightly surprised since this felt so… unusual.
Sure, surprise visits were normal within the family, but neither Mary or I had ever practiced those. So I came as an unexpected discovery to learn how my youngest sibling had gotten familiar and accepting of the practice. I guess spending most of her time with our parents and without us older siblings around had rubbed some of the oldies' traditions on her.
I wouldn't be surprised if she switched to speaking Sicilian because of that...
"Mama dropped me off so I could visit you!" The girl happily replied. "How are you doing, Big Bro?"
Her delight was infectious, and I couldn't hold a chuckle at that response. Still, I was surprised mom didn't even keep around to greet. A bit odd, but maybe she was busy today so she couldn't make it.
...Heh, nothing unusual on that front.
"Well, to be honest, I was trying to reach Nirvana before a little gremlin decided to invade."
She puffed her cheeks, but put no resistance while I lifted her up so I could stare at her straight in the eyes without crouching down to her level.
"I'm not a gremlin! I'm your sweet, cute and amazing little sister!"
"Mary would take offense to the 'Amazing' detail," I rebuked, knowing the older sister was the one that boasted about her 'amazingness' when possible.
Obviously, most of these times the adjective was used either loosely or for a brief amount of time due to her successes quickly turning into epic fails one way or another.
"She is amazing too!" Ina huffed, giving me a huff. Little Ina was, obviously, a big fan of her 'amazing big sister'. "Also! You didn't apologize to me."
"Oh? I did not?" I hummed a bit as I closed the front door and walked up to the kitchen. "How about some breakfast? I can hear your belly asking for food."
Her cheeks flared in a cute blush. "I-It isn't!"
Thus her belly grumbled in hunger. Further embarrassing the girl.
"Fine! But I want extra milk in my hot chocolate!"
"As you wish, sorellina(1b)."
Breakfast was somewhat bright. As soon as a cup filled with warm chocolate and milk landed in front of the girl's reach, Ina took it in her hands, almost burning her fingers in the process, and started to sip at the beverage.
"So good~!" She exclaimed in pure bliss, causing me to chuckle again. "I missed this and you lots, fratellone."
"Missed you too. How are you holding it? Having trouble with dad's antics?"
"He is as silly as usual," Ina remarked calmly, giving me an odd look. "I think he misses having the whole family around, but he is holding well."
And if dad was feeling nostalgic, then mom was meant to be feeling worse on that front. I hadn't been able to dodge work for a while due to the long hours, and the fact things had gotten hectic in the workplace just forced me to take a longer shift to make ends meet.
Maybe I should plan a visit in the next few days...
"Glad to hear that. How about school? Are you doing well?"
She looked down at the table. "It's boring. Kids are mean, John."
"Well, that's true… but not always. All sorts of people can be mean, it's just rare to find good people around."
"But why?" Ina inquired half-angrily. "Shouldn't there be more nice people?"
"I think it's more of how loud people are with their emotions," I reasoned calmly, sipping a moment from my cup of coffee. "Hateful people are louder than happy ones. They seek to spread their frustrations, to find validation because they feel entitled to a kind of happiness that they truly don't deserve."
"And good people?"
"They aren't as loud because they worry one of those hateful people will try to ruin their day. Which is why it is easier to find hate than joy, because people are those that caused it to be this tough."
She hummed and nodded at my words, but still offered me a smile. "Say, John, wanna check the local park?"
"Hmm? What for?"
"I'm bored," Ina remarked flatly. "Plus, I want to spend the day with you!"
Technically-speaking, I had no issue accommodating that request since it was a work-free day, but there was just a small issue that it was best to clarify before it actually became a big problem.
"Did mom tell you when she was passing by?"
"After lunch," She replied giddily. "So?"
"So I guess we are going to spend up to that point around."
"Yay!"
I sighed in relief at that reaction, and yet I couldn't help but feel somewhat 'saddened' by that happiness. As if it was just so 'rare' to see her this happy. But that didn't make much sense since… Ina was never that unhappy. What a silly way to see things right now.
Silly, yet… right. I just shook my head at these thoughts and proceeded to go through the preparations before leaving the flat. After a quick clean-up and clothes-change, I was up and ready to go outside with Ina. The girl bubbled with eagerness as we walked up to our destination. The walk in the park was quite pleasant. Ina played with a few kids with a rubber ball, the girl struggling a bit playing soccer but proving herself ready to learn and improve.
After that short match, we managed to find a cotton candy vendor and get ourselves a snack before lunch. It was delicious and the girl took this chance to pull me to a nearby bench so she could enjoy the natural peace of this setting and draw a few things. Ina loved drawing things and people, with most of her subjects being drawn with happy faces and colors. In this particular case, it was me and her and… it was very well-made. "Whoa, that looks so amazing, Ina-cha- I mean, sorellina."
She blinked, a hint of confusion flashing as she looked up at me. "Also, fratellone?"
"Yes?"
"You are never gonna leave me, right? Your bestest littlest sister?"
That was… an odd question. But since both Mary and I have left home, I guess she was worried about us forgetting about her. Still, what really confused me was not the question itself but the tone. Why did she sound so desperate about it? I thought little of it but… I couldn't just ignore it like that and decided to ponder more about it after this visit.
"I would never do that, kiddo. And never think for a moment about that, okay?"
Ina hummed distractedly at that, almost sounding unconvinced by this. After that, the girl dragged me to the nearby amusement park. It's been more than a decade since I last visited the place and… it looked the same. The quality hadn't exactly dropped, but I guess the fact it was still beloved by little kids in the city didn't cause any drastic drops in income.
The entire session was quite amusing as Ina behaved as if this was the first time she visited this place and… that made no sense. She has already visited this amusement park before and I could… I could remember she liked it. I think. My mind was failing to remember the details, I just knew it happened. I ignored all these mysterious flags until we got to the Ferris Wheel. I never tried it back when I used to visit the place, mom always saying it was something that scared her a lot. Heights, that is. But since the thing was on norm and people were having a blast in it, I decided to indulge Ina's desire to try it.
Everything was great… until it wasn't. The higher we went, the darker the world felt turning as if shadows were consuming it. This sight felt so familiar and yet not. The ride finally stopped still, seemingly uncaring of the bizarre escalation and I could feel something else changing within that circumstance. My previously 'calm mind' now shifted away from peace- flashes of war, of familiar faces, of promises, of desires and… and then…!
I remembered!
"Ina…?" Shock flared from my throat, eyes narrowing in pure dread at the girl as tendrils started to wrap around the large structure we were in.
She sighed and then turned her gaze away from the window and back at me, the world warping around us. We were no longer atop the attraction- we were sitting on two blocks over a glassy floor over an endless dark pit. I was still in my previous body, yet now the memories were flocking back to my mind and I could remember everything. How I started a new life, how I studied to become a ninja – a killer – and then took part in the First Shinobi War. The various events that ensued within and after- and finally…
"You," I muttered again, this time resolution flaring in a way that her blank look melted in a melancholic sigh.
An illusion? What is going on here?
"I'm sorry. For lying," Ina confessed, her expression and overall mood shifted from the cute little girl I had finished entertaining to a grand day. "I just wanted to know for once- how a family works. If it was just like I remembered. If it was really something worthy of the pain I put myself and others through."
"Why?" I asked, confused by this overall situation. "I thought- I know I died there, why did you do this?"
"I wanted to try to make it work. I tried to have them back, my parents. But I failed. A lie, I was lied to," She said with tears rolling down her cheeks. The emotional dam has broken up. "I tried- I then tried to trick it, to do it through you- through your dying thoughts and by reviving you I entered this… world. John, fratellone, this- this was the best."
"..." I was just so shocked to rationalize what had just happened, and then Ina gave me a hollow look.
"You… You have to kill me. If I die- it will have no reason to remain. I'm the one that keeps it here, I'm the vessel- the anchor."
…
She tensed up when I stood up from my seat and took a step so I could stand in front of her and… yank her in an embrace. The girl tensed up even more, panicking at the possibility this was a trick to then break her neck but… I didn't. I just hugged her, and she hugged back by instinct. Ina sobbed, nuzzling onto my chest.
"I-I have to die."
"No, no you will not."
"W-Why? The world-"
"I will not hurt my sorellina for nothing in this world," I replied firmly. "Sure, this whole mess is confusing and I know I should be angrier about this… yet I can't bring myself to do it. Not to you- you are not the one to fault."
It wasn't even a joke at this point- not the classic cliché where the main protagonist was pulled into forgiveness. There was nothing to forgive. The point of killing her was to kill off the beast, but I refused to draw innocent blood because there was some ancient god bastard that was trying to pull a fast one on reality itself.
"I will stop it," I promised, "But you need to help me, this time around, Ina. How much can you give me in terms of energy?"
"… You should just-"
"I'm not killing you, dumbass. I refuse," I snapped firmly. "Help me, Ina."
"..." She was silent for a while but then… groaned. "F-Fine. But… you promised."
"I did."
"I'm your little sister now," She remarked seriously. "You're my big brother."
"You're my sorellina, and I'm your fratellone."
Another sob was drawn out of that confirmation and the world collapsed around us. I felt my body shifting as I felt shorter. I was once more Danzou and… I felt energy coursing in my veins, healing my wounds and filling up my reserves. Plus… My Sharingan was slightly hurting. I reached the side of it and felt blood. I blinked, the world shining with more clarity.
Mangekyo Sharingan. I felt chakra ejected by my body and formed a barrier around us. It wasn't just a barrier, it was a… rib cage. A white-chakra rib cage at that. I pushed the shadows away from us, and we were both back to the real world. And I was using a fraction of my Susanoo, which was drawing a lot of my energy fast. I had to push the monster back, and to do that I had to do what Ina said to a degree. Ina had to stop being the anchor, and I had to find a way to cut their connection. It had to be something visible through chakra to a degree. If Hirotada had been around, I bet he could have spotted it quite easily, but I had to rely on my trusty Sharingan in that regard and… I found it. A strange 'dark chakra' chain which was connected to Ina's neck and trailed out of the Susanoo. I grasped it, and the girl shuddered.
"Does it hurt you if I hold it?" I asked and she frowned.
"It feels weird, but not bad," Ina admitted and I took out a Kunai. "Are you… doing it?"
I nodded, holding my breath as I focused to keep my Susanoo up while I struck the connection with my chakra-imbued slash. The attack detached the entity from its avatar, and the reactions were quick to register due to the closeness to one and the loudness from the other. Ina whimpered, but she recovered just quickly. The same didn't extend to the bastard I just cut off from its 'child support'.
"WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"
The eldritch entity started to convulse, its shadows shattered, its hold on reality broken as the world no longer allowed it to anchor itself in this reality. Rejected, outrageously so, the deity was thrown back into the void and the cut into the fabric of reality was mended by reality itself.
The cave started to shake, a sign that it was going to collapse quite soon. I picked Ina up and held her up as I saw Kiara in her phoenix's form rush towards us, with Kurama and Calli on her back. I jumped up and landed near the others before the fiery bird rushed upward through the open-ceiling and got us out of that last issue.
And during that flight, I had the chance to see the extent of the damage that brief eldritch invasion caused. Good news is that it didn't extend beyond the visible region in terms of destruction, bad news is that it was enough to shatter a few houses all over the Land of Waves due to some high-level earthquake shakes. It was a lot of damage, but nothing in terms of lives' loss due to the evacuation. My instinct hadn't betrayed me in that regard and… I was tired.
Sighing in relief at the end of that dreadful battle, I sat down and pondered what to do next with Ina. She was going to stick with me, yes, I didn't have any issue with it, but a quick look at Calli confirmed she wanted some answers, and I knew for a fact Hashirama was going to grill me for the truth about what happened in this mission. That was way beyond even S-rank due to the insanity I just handled. My mind was somewhat 'fine', the same as usual, but I could tell it was all because Ina restored it to its 'original' form, before I got mauled into madness by the entity she tried to summon.
Speaking of the girl, she had fallen unconscious, soft snores coming from her lips while her inhuman form persisted with those small and cute ears and tendril-like bangs on the side. Yep, it seems like the situation was over, but I was bringing home a little sister as a souvenir.
Call me crazy, but I think I can accept this aftermath.