"...Toru?"
Tsunade didn't know how to react. She saw Toru assassinate the elderly advisors in front of her eyes. But it seemed this boy was in a hurry.
"Only Danzo is left..."
"Hey! Wait!"
However, as quickly as he appeared, he left without a trace, abandoning the corpses of the elders to their fate, and because he imbued his arms with Shakuton when he pierced them, the wounds burned preventing bleeding. Putting everything aside, Tsunade approached the elders immediately and tried to do a quick check, but it was all to no avail when she realized that Toru had shattered the hearts of both elders.
'Why, Toru, is it because you were framed, is it because I didn't trust you when you told me you were innocent?'
No...
It was no longer about simply that day that he was forced to flee this place. This village had nothing that Toru cared about more than his former teammates. This was his revenge against Konoha for that night nine years ago, a night when the ground of the Asahi clan was dyed crimson red.
"Tsunade-sama!!!!" Shizune came rushing over, but her eyes widened in shock when she saw Tsunade kneeling in front of the corpses. "What happened?"
Tsunade bit her lip helplessly. "Toru... appeared and killed them..." Still, while Akatsuki's invasion is taking place, she thought it would be stupid to stand around waiting in front of the corpses of these elders. So she got up from the ground and the serious expression returned to her face.
"I see. In that case, we don't have any time left. I have more information from Pain that we managed to get from the autopsy."
"Then let's not waste time, Shizune."
***
"Hakkeshō Kaiten!" The last of the Hyūga shouted loudly as he blocked all incoming attacks.
Hundreds of kunais engulfed in flames shot out after that, as Toru was the one who attacked with a hail of metal weapons to kill most of the enemies.
Standing in front of him, only Hiashi was left, who so far could do nothing against someone like Toru. He was tired, but he had enough chakra to defend himself. Being the leader of the Hyūga clan, he was the best when it came to Jūken, but even that was not enough to stand up to a skill like Senjutsu.
However, that didn't take away from the fact that Toru had also taken some hits from Hiashi. Because he had his power divided into three equal parts, he could do nothing more than attack from a distance waiting for his shadow clones to finish the job.
"¡....!" Toru frowned. The clone that went after Hinata and Ino had disappeared. He was defeated by those girls and now they were surely looking for him. 'I don't have a choice. I held back too much."
"Jūken!"
"Shakuton..."
***
I could feel it. A few individuals hiding in a subway area. They were gathered in front of a single person. And that person was obviously Danzo.
He closed his eyes and saw into the memories left behind by Itachi. Every event and moment in that shinobi's life was controlled by someone else. He clenched his fists tightly and more than ever at that moment, the expression on his face changed slightly. He frowned and his eyes filled with indescribable anger.
Had it not been for that decision of those decrepit old men, the Asahi clan would still exist, Toru would still be living in Konohagakure, none of this would have happened.
'Even if they pushed me to do this...' Toru does not justify his actions. What he does he does in the wrong way, but he still doesn't back down. At this moment he is determined to accept the truth that at this moment he is the villain.
Villains follow their own selfish desires, they are capricious and that is something that describes Toru quite well.
"Doton... [Earth Style]" He placed his hands on the ground and let his chakra flow. Then a hole began to open up in the ground, revealing the structure that protected a subway area.
***
"We can consider ourselves lucky. All this commotion made it possible to escape Tsunade's surveillance. For a change, Akatsuki was good for something" That man walked in front of the Root ninjas. He held his staff with one hand and frowned as he felt the whole place shaking due to the explosions caused by Akatsuki. "Tsunade's reign ends here."
The Root shinobi nodded in agreement, but there was something troubling them. Before any of them could weigh in, Danzo continued his speech.
"We can't allow Akatsuki to take the Kyūbi. So I have eliminated that possibility. In the meantime, we'll stay underground until everything has calmed down."
Unable to contain his worry, the leader of the Root shinobi sighed. "Shouldn't we defend the village as well? Even if you manage to become Hokage, Danzo-sama, it won't do any good if there's no one left alive..."
"Hm... the princess hasn't become Hokage for no reason. As long as she uses that jutsu, the village will not fall. There will inevitably be sacrifices, but they are necessary sacrifices to achieve a greater goal..." He looked up and, through his bandages, a small flash of crimson showed. "The goal of becoming Hokage."
***
"Kuchiyose no Jutsu!"
Tsunade placed her hands on the ground and a black ink seal appeared under her feet. Almost instantly, a large cloud of smoke covered the front of the building and a giant slug appeared.
"Katsuyu, join every civilian and shinobi you encounter and use my chakra to heal their wounds!"
"Wow... looks like the village is in trouble."
"Hurry up and do as I say!"
"It's okay, Hime-sama."
Another cloud of smoke covered the place and hundreds of slugs began to roam the destroyed streets of Konoha. Tsunade saw this and felt overly worried. Though that worry was overshadowed by her strong spirit that will never abandon her people.
'I will protect them all, no matter what. as Hokage that I am!'
***
"But Danzo-sama. I don't think it's right this kind of action. I will follow your orders to the letter, but I just wanted to let you know my disagreement."
"I feel the same as you. I am also concerned about this village, but it is something we should not interfere with for the sake of this village itself."
"Understood..."
Boom! A huge explosion sounded overhead. Debris fell and everyone had to forcibly dodge it. No one knew what happened, but they knew right away that Akatsuki was here....
No...
Yes, that person belongs to Akatsuki, but that person was also...
...
...
"What's going on, who are you?" said one of the shinobi.
Amidst the smoke, two sky-blue and blood-red eyes appeared bright amidst the darkness. A dagger-like incandescent light glowed alongside this individual's eyes and a young male voice echoed from the scene.
"Danzo..."
Hearing his name, he inevitably smiled. He had hoped for this, hoped to be able to have those eyes of that legend, but still he held his staff and looked at the boy with a serious expression on his face "The prodigal son has returned home..."
"The flames of my vengeance will tear you to pieces" Unable to resist, Toru's clone lunged forward, instantly appearing in front of danzo. He swung the Shakuton-wrapped dagger forcefully in front of danzo and delivered a powerful slash that spread out in the form of a fiery blade that destroyed part of the place.
The old man was able to dodge it successfully, but this was not going to be the only attack he would receive.
"Stay away from Danzo-sama, you criminal!"
But to his surprise, the Root ninjas appeared to protect Danzo.
Just seeing this, Toru felt revulsion. Knowing that there were people protecting this scum filled his mind with anger. The intensity of the gleam in his eyes increased and he frowned, tightening his grip on the dagger hilt.
"OUT OF MY WAY!!!"
As if teleported, Toru appeared behind the Root shinobi. His dagger stopped glowing and began to drip blood. Danzo's eyes widened in horror as all of his shinobi fell to the ground cut to pieces.
He could see the boy's anger in his gaze which was almost expressionless except for the slight frown he wore. He clicked his tongue in disgust and used only one hand to execute his jutsu.
"Fūton: Daitoppa [Wind Style: Great Rupture]" He exhaled a large amount of wind that pushed Toru forcefully backwards and knocked the dagger away from him.
Danzo had confidence in this and tried to approach to finish him off. "You don't deserve those eyes, kid."
However...
"¡¿?!" Danzo's eyes widened as he felt a horrible pain in his chest. Something shone brightly through his body and then he heard a voice in his ear.
"Shimikomaseru, Shakuton: Higanbana Ken [Imbuir, Burning Style: Hell Flower Sword]" Toru wielded a strange flaming sword that pierced Danzo. The hilt burned his hands, and its light could be considered a blinding weapon, plus it had burned the wound instantly.
And yet, despite having destroyed Danzo's heart with the Higanbana Sword, he moved his hands and split the old man in half. The remains fell to the ground and ignited in a radiant pure fire, almost white in color.
Toru watched this in silence. He watched as the corpse of the old man was consumed by the flames. He was sure this was the real one, as his Senjutsu did not lie to him.
"It's over..." He watched for a few more seconds and his body slowly became enveloped in a small cloud of smoke. In the end, this clone did its job and disappeared into the darkness.
...
...
...
However...
"It's amazing what those eyes can do. The power of life and death at my fingertips... "Out of the darkness, the one who should be dead, reappeared as if nothing had happened.
In some strange way...
Danzo was still alive.
***
"Hm... so it's finally over" The memories of the last clone came to his mind, which made a small sense of satisfaction fill his heart. He watched as Danzo died and burned with the power of his flames. He wanted to laugh, he wanted to celebrate the death of that old man, but right now he was kind of busy.
"Ugh."
He was holding Hiashi by the neck, who was pretty badly hurt. Toru looked at him with an expressionless face and then deactivated the Shigan.
Hiashi could see Toru's eyes. His blindness could be clearly seen in his eyes, which had become quite opaque.
"Hiashi-san...where is Naruto? If you know something and feel you can cooperate with us, say so. If you do, if you hand over Naruto, we will leave this village and they will even have the support of Akatsuki."
"I won't do that. I will never do that."
"I see..." He closed his eyes in disappointment and shook his head. His senjutsu could detect three more people approaching at an overwhelming speed. He knew very well who those people were, so, in his twisted mind an idea popped up... "Shimikomaseru, Shakuton..."
Hiashi knew what was going to happen. He could feel death touching his back, at the same time Toru's eyes took on that strange blue and red color again. Although he could somehow accept this, he could hear the rushing footsteps of people approaching, at that moment, almost unnaturally, he recalled the past....
As he looked at Toru's face, he remembered how Sandaime Hokage offered Toru as a weapon that he could adopt as if he were his son. The way Sarutobi proposed that didn't look good at all to Hiashi, who politely declined the proposal.
'If only he had agreed... Would this have happened?' He closed his eyes and then....
"Higanbana Ken!"
Splash! Blood splattered and instantly evaporated from the flames of the Higanbana Sword. Hiashi felt pain and as slowly his strength began to fade from his body.
Those footsteps that were heard earlier ceased the moment they got close enough to the scene.
They opened their eyes in shock as they saw the whole place. Everything was destroyed, there was blood staining the rubble and corpses of Hyūga clan shinobi scattered among the rubble.
"Otou-sama..." x2
Hinata and Hanabi could only say that after seeing their father fall to the ground with a large wound in his stomach.
"Toru, you..." Even Ino was so shocked by that.
However, that boy looked at the corpse silently and then looked at them. "I don't have to repeat myself, do I?"
[There will be no mercy.]
Ino, not knowing what to do, looked at Hinata and Hanabi. They were frozen in that very spot. Destruction could be heard in the background and in front of all this was Toru.
"W...Why, onii-san...?" A few tears spilled down Hanabi's cheeks as she slowly began to approach Toru. "Why did you do that!" The veins around her eyes swelled up.
He sighed and held Higanbana in his hand. The flames of the Shakuton slowly began to disappear, leaving no trace of what was once the Higanbana Sword.
"You ask 'why'?" He began to walk in the direction of those girls. "There is no 'why' for me. Every action has its reaction. Take away a child's toy and he will surely try to bite you. Take away a child's family and he will grow up full of hate. You ask 'why'? Should I answer you with another question?" His answer at the end was... "Why not?" And his eyes glittered with mischief.
"You're an idiot, onii-san!" She launched into an attack without hesitation. With tears in her eyes, she began to throw desperate punches, but Toru dodged them with ease. "Ugh!" She was grabbed by Toru's hair and received a knee to the abdomen, which left her kneeling on the ground.
Hinata still followed watching the scene in shock, while Ino was already ready to launch into the attack, but she heard Toru speak again.
"Ino... you are close to Tsunade, am I wrong? If so, you must know where Naruto is. If you tell me, then we'll stop attacking the village."
Ino clenched her fists tightly. "Have you no shame at all, you dare to ask me that, are you serious?" she approached Toru at a hurried pace until she stood in front of him. "Look at everything you've done...you're still going on with that stupid idea?!"
Slap! Toru's face looked to the right after getting slapped in the face. He was left recalculating everything for a second and in his mind... 'Maybe I made it. If they hate me they won't come looking for me again' He looked at her a second later and got so close to her, he could feel Ino's nervous breathing.
At that moment she realized how tall Toru was, as she had to look up at him a little.
"If you have the strength to throw a punch, you must learn to take one."
Boom! Ino shot off against one of the walls. This knocked her out instantly, as a small drop of blood fell from her forehead, where there was a small cut, like a dot.
'Ikidzumari [Deadlocked]' He had used that jutsu to knock her out without killing her. This, from the point of view of Hanabi, who was watching from nearby, was done on purpose by Toru.
"Onii-san... you beat your friends... you destroy your home village..." In pain, Hanabi got up from the ground and looked at Toru with a frown. "You've become evil... you've become pathetic, onii-san..." She took a shaky breath, but still she glared at Toru in anger. "You are no longer onii-san..."
In response to this, Toru raised his hand and from the sleeve of his robe came a dagger. The X in his eyes took a turn and then.... Blood splattered, but the result was different from what Toru expected. Ino stood up, Toru's jutsu hadn't worked. It seemed she was tougher than she looked and even stopped the dagger with her hand.
"Hm..." He watched as blood began to gush from Ino's hand. She scowled at him and at the same time held the edge of the dagger tightly.
"Toru...you definitely crossed the line this time."
"¿Y?"
Ino's eyes widened at that answer, did he really not care at all? She couldn't understand it anymore, she couldn't let this keep happening. If she doesn't act right now, her entire home will be destroyed. However, her body was very weak, blood was pouring down her forehead and she felt like she was going to fall at any moment.
Hanabi knew this, as she could see up close how tired Ino was because of that blow. She didn't understand how Toru managed to leave her in that state just by making a small cut on Ino's forehead, but that was undoubtedly dangerous.
"I'm going to talk some sense into you. It doesn't matter if I have to break every bone in your body."
"And you're sure you'll be able to do that?"
Ino smiled. "Of course" Puff! Ino disappeared enveloped in a cloud of smoke and then... "Seishin Hakai no Jutsu [Mind-Destroying Jutsu]"
Toru felt a terrible pressure and headache. Out of the corner of his eye he could see that Ino was behind him with that typical Shintenshin no Jutsu hand position, but there was something different. He fell to the ground on his knees and held his head tightly. The memories in his mind were starting to jumble and damage his mind.
This was a jutsu that Ino was forced to create if the situation warranted it. It mixes anyone's memories and induces him into a temporary coma. She had hoped not to do too much damage to Toru's mind, but seeing how the situation was, she had to be aggressive, there was no other choice. That was why she also learned to use shadow clones, which she needed to complement her techniques. Previously she had used them to distract Toru, but she knew deep down that this guy wouldn't really fall for those cheap tricks. There was something strange about all this.
As he suffered the damage of the jutsu, Ino closed her eyes and decided to see inside Toru's mind to find out what this boy was hiding, however....
"Ugh!" her eyes widened as she felt two hands around her neck. He was now in a place full of blood, where Toru was with that strange look.
"This isn't going to work on me, Ino."
Reality was superimposed over this blood-filled scene, which brought back Ino, who was being held by the neck by Toru.
"Let her go, onii-san!"
He obviously hadn't forgotten that he wasn't alone with Ino. Hanabi went back on the attack and punched Toru in the face, which knocked him back. What followed next was a quick exchange of blows. But it only took Toru a second to hit Hanabi in the neck and knock her out instantly.
"Your body is still too young. You won't be able to withstand a single blow like this" He made his observation while looking at Hanabi lying on the ground.
"Hanabi..."
Hinata was still in shock from what her eyes were seeing. Hanabi was knocked out and almost instantly Ino joined the battle. She began to attack desperately, but Toru was dodging her and hitting back.
Explosions continued to be heard in the background and desperate screams flooded the sky. The clouds of smoke caused by the explosions and the summoned beasts spread up to the sky and in the midst of all this chaos and destruction... Toru...
...
...
He defeated Ino easily. It only took him a little while to charge such a powerful blow to send Ino into the rubble of the buildings. After that, he was silent and looked at Hinata.
She saw his look, there was nothing left to fix there, everything was broken, it was too late.
She walked slowly until she reached her father's corpse, got down on her knees and took him in her arms....
That man, her father, lifeless in her arms. She unknowingly hugged him tightly and then looked at the disaster around her. How long was it going to be like this? The buildings were shattered, Ino and Hanabi were unconscious.
In the middle of it all, that boy looked at her with that expressionless face. He didn't dare to say anything, he kept silent watching her.
...
...
[I wish I had eyes like yours]
She remembered the kind Toru, who didn't look at her as a weird girl for only having Byakugan eyes. She remembered how this boy used to always accompany her for walks all over Konoha.
Her memories... slowly became sad, filled with her father's blood.
'Why does it have to be this way' She clenched her fists tightly. 'Why can't we go back to those happy times...' she laid her father slowly on the ground and stood up as she looked down at him. 'Why...?'
'Why...?
WHY!!!
That question echoed in this girl's mind. For two and a half years, she had been training tirelessly, strengthening herself to bring back her first love. She clenched her fists tightly again, from which a little blood came out due to her nails being buried in her hands.
She wanted to cry, she wanted to scream... the scared little Hinata was coming back. She just looked at the ground as she continued to wonder to herself and, then, from her jacket she pulled out a white dragon mask with pink details.
'We've come to this...'
She looked at the mask and remembered her time in ANBU, without much thought, she put the mask on silently and raised her palms. 'I'm already tired of this... I'm tired... of chasing you so much if you won't come back to my side..." Her palms balled into fists and the veins around her eyes swelled.
'We can't go back now, can we? It's already too late...'
A split-second silence that seemed eternal gave him time to think and then....
"¡¿?!" His eyes widened as Hinata appeared in front of him without warning. She, wearing the mask, raised her fist high and punched him in the face with so much force, Toru went flying into a nearby wall.
The roar of the blow was heard echoing and Hinata stood with her fist extended, but it seemed that this one wasn't going to end. Toru stepped out of the rubble and sighed. His eyes glowed crimson and a mark, like a wolf's paw, appeared on his face.
"It's amazing how strong someone can become in just two years, don't you think?"
Hinata didn't answer. She kept quiet and went on the attack again.
Toru understood this and accepted the duel by giving all his power against her. However, she exceeded his expectations.
Desperately, in such a wild way, she began to throw coordinated blows with her fists wrapped in chakra, her speed was incredible, her fighting skill was exceptional.
Toru was having a bit of a hard time. She was too strong. But what was the reason for this sudden change? He didn't know very well, but at that moment, Hinata put aside all her inner conflicts and focused on doing what was right.
Assassinate the villain.
Boom! Bam! One after another, the punches and kicks connected. Toru was blocking them with his hands, but Hinata was insisting more and more, increasing her speed as time went by and then....
A memory came to Toru's mind, a rather nostalgic memory.
That training with Hinata three years ago overlapped with the present. At that time, Hinata's taijutsu was graceful and slow. Her attitude when fighting was somewhat timid, always hesitating whether she should strike or not, but now, the Hinata of the present did not hesitate to strike with all her might, did not hesitate to counterattack instantly. She was fast, she was wilder than any animal struggling to survive and surely inside the mask she had a too serious expression, but Toru reduced the importance of this and focused on blocking Hinata's attacks.
"Omoiken: Hendō! [Heavy Fist: Fluctuation"
Knowing very well what that taijutsu of Hinata's does, Toru stepped back and connected the seals on his hands to use Fūton, but when a ninja takes his time performing ninjutsu, the one who uses taijutsu takes advantage of that opportunity.
Hinata wasn't going to let Toru use ninjutsu, so she continued to be aggressive with her punches. One after another, Hinata's punches began to destroy the surroundings while Toru blocked them with agility. Each punch made the ground tremble and also made Toru recoil.
At the same time, nearby, a boy was watching the fight in surprise. That was Konohamaru, who had previously managed to save Ebisu from being killed by one of Pain's paths.
'They... they're really fast. I can hardly see them and every time Hinata-san hits that guy, everything shakes...' It was obvious that this boy was not at Hinata's level and that was why he was surprised by the demonstration of power.
When Toru threw a punch, he felt as if a stream of water flowed down his arms, which blocked the attack and returned it to him with twice the power.
Boom! But in the end Hinata couldn't keep up, which Toru took advantage of as an opening to punch her in the stomach and knock her back.
She stabilized quickly, but thanks to the Byakugan, she realized that behind her there was a person.
"Konohamaru-kun... please, I ask you to get out of here. It's dangerous, go to the shelter and, if you can, try to help as many injured people as you can."
"Hinata-san, how did you...? Oh... Are you sure about that? That guy is really strong."
"Do as I say or he'll end up killing you."
Konohamaru saw Toru and swallowed saliva. He felt nervous and better decided to do what Hinata told him, but before he left he saw something....
*Drip*
*Drip*
Beneath Hinata's mask, a couple of tears spilled out.
She...
She's crying.
But still she can't give up, so Konohamaru ran away and let Hinata fight the villain. Soon the punches were heard again which were blocked by the Senjutsu's power.
"Oraaaaah!"
Hinata was starting to feel tired, but she was still able to take advantage of Toru wanting to use ninjutsu to use Jūken and smash Toru's chakra ducts. And just as she wanted, it happened. Toru fell to his knees unable to move and she approached him.
She took out a kunai and looked at him silently.
'Otou-sama... Hanabi... Ino... I'm sorry...'
She raised the kunai and stabbed Toru in the throat, but... Puff! It was only a shadow clone. The ground beneath her feet cracked and, behind her, Toru appeared who at that moment....
"You did well, Hinata."
That was the last thing she heard, before falling unconscious on Toru's arms.
What followed next, apart from the explosions and screams, was a crushing silence. Toru stood in the middle of the unconscious girls. With an expressionless face he watched as Hinata's mask was cracked. This mask was about to break because of the fight....
He was silent again, but... "It went just as I planned..." Hinata's mask broke and Toru saw it at that moment. The tears that had spilled down her cheeks... he realized how he had done things. He saw all the destruction the fight had caused and Hiashi's limp body on the ground.
Hinata was crying and fighting because of this. This was Toru's fault, he alone was to blame.
With Hinata in his arms, he looked up at the sky....
...
...
...
"I'm a jerk..." Too late to repent, he shook his head and with the blood he had lost during the fight, he summoned Okaminaru.
"Toru-dono, what do you need me for? There's a lot of destruction here. It's your home village, isn't it?" He appeared enveloped in a cloud of smoke and the first thing he saw was that everything had gone to hell.
"It is..."
"I see..."
"I need you to take these girls out of the village. Once out of Konoha, protect them with your life until I give you a signal."
"Understood" Okaminaru looked at the girls lying on the ground. They had almost no injuries, but they were unconscious. 'So these are those people that Toru-dono has thought about so much these past few years, huh...' The physical state of these girls let him know more about Toru.
After that, Okaminaru shrunk his body so as not to be seen and carried the girls on his back.
"With this, I've finished everything I had pending...?" A voice echoed in her head, it was Pain.
[Toru, I need you to take care of a troublesome ninja. I want to have a little talk with the Hokage, so I need time. Go with the Deva Road, that's where the enemy will be]
Toru sighed and agreed.
***
Meanwhile, elsewhere, Hatake Kakashi encountered Nagato's Deva Path. He frowned and went on the attack after seeing the hostile intentions of this being.
To be continued...
________________
And that was all. For the next chapter I will be cruel once again and ask for 300 stones of power.