Naruto: Tales of Ashihara
Kakumei – Arc 4: Might Makes Right
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Chapter 93 – Eternal Mangekyo Sharingan
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In the middle of Konoha, in the evening, Izuna Uchiha wakes up lying on the ground next to the river where he remembers falling asleep. He slowly raises his head and sits up. After confusingly taking a look around himself, he finds himself all alone in the village. While wondering where everyone went, he recalls the last things he saw and the reason he fell asleep.
"Inoue!" he exclaims before bouncing off the ground and running around the streets, blindly looking for her.
He has no idea what direction he should look in. Added to his lack of orientation, he notices that he can't feel any chakra around. He pointlessly wanders until he gets to the main square of the village. There, he sees a figure back to him.
His master and model, the 7th Hokage is hidden behind his cape. Glad to find a familiar and trustful person here, he runs toward him. However he slows down when he notices the sky slowly changing color as he gets closer. With each step he takes, it becomes darker and makes him more uncomfortable.
Too disturbed by this, he stops and just looks at his sensei. He calls him to get his attention and sees him slowly turn around, when suddenly he stops all movements. Izuna sees the blade of an all black sword emerge from the Hokage's back and rip through his cape. Startled, he steps back.
Now seeing his cape turn blood red, he runs forward to grab him. But just as he reaches him, Naruto vanishes like a mirage, leaving Izuna to pass through his fainting image. The Uchiha stops and turns around, hoping to see the Hokage again. Instead he finds the one who committed this act. Kawaki of Kakumei, firmly holds the blade that now contains the life force of the Kyubi.
Overtaken by emotion, Izuna screams, lets his power out and leaps toward the enemy who promptly disappears in a black rift before he can touch him. Left alone, he falls into the portal that grows and engulfs everything. Now in complete darkness, after a few minutes of nothing, he hears a voice speaking like it comes from a semi crowded room.
"That chick really got me off-guard!" says a male voice with a much feminine tone. "But damn was she impressive! She was leagues away from me when it comes to Mind Body Transmission."
The young Uchiha opens his eyes, waking up from the illusion he was in, and discovers an underground lab facility in which many faces he's only seen as drawings so far are united. Having a headache, and blinded by the lights on the ceiling, he looks down to avoid them and comes to notice a certain person just in front of him.
Here, on a chair a few centimeters before him, sits his older brother, Oshio Uchiha. He's looking down, trembling and hardly breathing before noticing that Izuna woke up. Now, he takes a deep breath in, raises his head and faces him, with his eyes kept closed.
"And so we meet again, brother." he simply says, in a calm and serious voice, hiding away his emotions.
Frightened by this setting and presence, Izuna shakes and tries to get away, only to realize he's been strapped in sealed metal chains, with black receivers through his hands, nailing him to a wall. Unable to move, he looks around and sees two more people behind Oshio. Two girls. One is making a quick medical check on the other. They are Minoka, the scientist of the group, and Akiko Yamanaka, who's voice he heard earlier complaining and praising Ino Yamanaka.
Izuna's attention is brought back to Oshio who bends forward and speaks in his ear.
"Our father is no more…" he says, in a sad tone. "He disappeared, right under my eyes. And there was nothing I could have done to change it."
Izuna stares agape at his brother, surprised by his sorry voice and visible grief. But most importantly, he can't believe what he just heard him say. And this is just the beginning. Oshio goes on.
"The illusion I've just shown you was unfortunately real. This is what happened in Konoha. Naruto Uzumaki is dead. We have his Biju."
Izuna opens his mouth to say something, but doesn't manage to make a single sound. His lips tremble as he remains silent, refusing to believe what he is being told, when suddenly he notices, behind Oshio again, a doppelganger of Akiko Yamana but more masculine. Fuyuko.
He's holding a sword in his hand. A sword that he plunged into Mikitaka lying on a surgery table. With his Sharingan, Izuna sees something in the blade that makes him come to a terrible conclusion. Trapped in the weapon, being sent to be imprisoned in a new host, Izuna sees Kurama, hypnotized by a Genjutsu, unable to resist his fate.
At this sight, Izuna remembers the words of his sensei. "I may be very strong, wise and comprehensive… I'm still a man… Stab me through the heart,… Cut off my head, or… take away Kurama. And I'll die like any man."
This silently brings him to tears as he understands the truth that his brother is telling. Not satisfied yet, Oshio holds on Izuna's shoulder and pushes him deeper in hate and sorrow.
"Your father is gone. Your sensei is gone. Both by my hand." he says. "The world will have to go on with this change. It will have to exist without them. Without Lady 5th. Without Konoha. Without Inoue."
Izuna is reminded of all the times he disappointed Inoue, of his failed promise to his master, of his missed relation with his father, and of his incomplete bond with his sensei and hero. He's struck by the thought that he won't ever be able to step forward and out of this. Behind Oshio, Fuyuko sorrily stares at the prisoner who finally snaps from all the painful grief and anger he's been experiencing for over a year.
In his eyes, Izuna awakens a brand new power, a metaphor of his failed wish to disappear, to escape from here and be transported to a better life. A power that inherits from his father. The Mangekyo Sharingan.
"Remarkable!" Oshio praises. "I didn't know that about you. But you're very emotional. Too emotional. So much that it's actually an incredible strength, as an Uchiha. All that hatred and sadness that you come to feel and that submerges you so easily. It strengthens your eyes to such an extent. It will be hard for you not to rely on them anymore."
At these last words, Izuna widely opens them, in fear of what this might mean. He sees his brother now open his own, and reveal empty sockets. Oshio then raises his left hand to show him the left eye, only the Rinnegan, that he implanted in his palm.
"Why are you doing this?" Izuna finally speaks, in a bruised tone. "Couldn't you just wish for a normal life? Wherever you are from? Couldn't you just move on from your loss, and find a home."
"I found a home. Here it is." Oshio answers. 'Don't give me the same speech as our father. It is too late for this. It was too late from the beginning. The world needs a new protector. A new god. After all, those cursed to wield this eye are deemed to bring their vision to this world." he says while showing his Rinnegan.
He then stands up and brings his left hand closer to Izuna's face, to stare right in his eyes with the one in his palm.
"And those born with these red eyes… Are fated to suffer." he adds as Minoka comes closer behind him. "I'm sorry, Izuna, but to me, you will fulfill no purpose other than providing me with new eyes. Eternal eyes."
Izuna gulps down, having well understood what is gonna happen to him. He knows how his father got his nearly all-powerful never blinding Sharingan, and he gets that Oshio intends to awaken the same. The Eien no Mangekyo Sharingan. By taking his brother's eyes, he will unlock a great power combining both their might into one, and leaving him eyeless.
"Look at this remarkable body, eyes and chakra!" Minoka comments. "Lord Oshio, I'm sure I can make great use of him as a test subject…"
Izuna doesn't even bother resisting. He's already given up. He just stares at his brother, who's actions, speech and feelings are oddly contradictory. As if, despite what he says, he wasn't in control of this and is simply undergoing events. Oshio washes the guilt, pity and compassion off his mind and answers to Minoka.
"Do whatever you want. He won't be of use to me anyway. Just make sure he stays alive." he says before addressing Izuna. "Your eyes can still go stronger. I will carve some last images into your mind and soul. When you'll wake up, you'll realize these were the last things you'll ever see."
After these words, Izuna suddenly senses himself forced to sleep. Brought to shake in pain and anguish, he doesn't faint and simply finds himself transported to the dark sky village again. There he witnesses the same scene as earlier, simultaneously with the moment he learned about Tsunade's death. Again. And again. And again. Endlessly. Eternally. Trapped in this cave, Doomed to serve for the experiments of a vengeful woman, gifted to her by his own brother.
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Outside of this cave, On the great balcony of the throne room in the castle, Kawaki is leaning against the edge with his head down, deadly staring at the ground. He is still traumatized by what he was brought to do to the Hokage in the name of his best friend. In the name of his cause. A cause so fragile that none except one of them still has the will to follow.
This one person, last to be cheering for their victory and the fatal revolution they will bring to the world, is Meinu Imai, Killin' Kiss. She jumps into the throne room, happier than ever, finally rid of the one she sees as the devil. The one who thinks he has the right to oppose divine retribution.
She comes to Kawaki and jumps on his shoulders, cheerfully dancing and singing around in joy. She celebrates with the one who executed the greatest assassination plan of all time. The one who got the world rid of its savior.
"Come on! Praise yourself, dude!" she tells him. "You didn't only make history. You REmade it!"
"There's no way I actually did this." Kawaki doubts, still confused by the Hokage's disturbing smile and peaceful reaction. "It was too easy. It's like he let it happen."
"I told you countless times already!" Meinu answers, way too positive to doubt. "Killing isn't beating. You can be as powerful as you want. As long as you're mortal, you can be assassinated like anyone else."
"And now what, huh?" Kawaki angrily exclaims, feeling grief and guilt from his own achievement. "I've killed the one man that brought hope and peace to the world. What do we do now? We watch as everything breaks into chaos and war again?"
"Exactly!" yells Meinu, upset by Kawaki's lack of vision. "This is it! The revolution we swore to bring. Now whoever wants war will get it. But in the end, the fools will fall, and only Kakumei will remain. What next, you ask? What now that we've killed the God of Shinobi? Answer is we replace him. We become what he was, but better. Unbiased. Unattached to mere values and feelings. That's what we're all about since the beginning."
"… Oshio is just a mere vessel to the pleasing of unknown beings. Just like me. We're as doomed as the world now."
"It's too late to complain. Whatever you mean by this, Naruto Uzumaki is no more. Oshio is in his place now. He is the one who will guide humanity into peace until death. And the one who'll bring him down is certainly not from this world. No living human could. We've won the war before it even started."
Kawaki doesn't answer and just turns around to get back in his loneliness. He refuses to share Meinu's vision, but kind of envies her for having stood straight in her ideas all along. Unhappy with his little will, she insists and deconstructs his pessimism.
"Oshio will bring its fate to the world, and I'll stay by his side until then." she says. "But even if we're as doomed as you say, if he dies to a superior being, or if anyone returns to claim the throne, then… Shame. That's all. We did all this to one end. One person, one might, ruling over the world and forcing it into peace. Be it Oshio or not, it doesn't matter. It just has to be someone. It is the only world I'd accept to live in."
Kawaki doesn't answer. He never realized how chaotic she actually was. Judging from her words, it sounds like, all along, she never felt any compassion for the ones who were being carried in this hell with her. Is she even capable of this? Feeling guilt? Empathy? Feeling the need to make herself clear, she insists one last time.
"We're not all done yet." she adds, about the future. "We still have to kill the strongest who remain. To get rid of the Daimyo who rule the lands. To capture the Biju. Our quest is not over. We only just passed the biggest obstacle. I will go forward with this mission. I will not give up now. So I will crush Otogakure and its leader, and then the capital of Earth. I won't take no rest until I see the world as I want it to be. And you? What will you do? You don't have much of a choice."
She turns around, leaving him to think of this question. Kawaki is sick of his own doubts, but he at least has to admit she's right. The only thing left to do now is go forward. He doesn't have anything else to do. As the Hokage told him, he has to keep up.
Considering the current state of the world, the next targets should be the remaining feudal families. But other lands aside from the Union and other people such as Orochimaru who already brought them trouble by the past could still be hostile and join forces with the Kage. They have to weaken the enemy even more. That is the only thing left to do. To bring an end to the age of ninjas.
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It has been 2 nights since the surprise attack of Kakumei, which resulted in the disappearance of Izuna Uchiha and the 7th Hokage. The rest of the continent, including the hidden villages, are only starting to receive information. The Kage are aware but not only. Word of mouth went faster than official or confidential news. The few people who have access to high tech communication devices could spread the news, but no more for now.
In the underground facility of the intel division of Konoha, Seiki Tomoe has been locked in and is currently enclosed in an interrogation room, wearing a straitjacket. When she woke up from the shock after she was struck in the action of Kawaki's attack, she had suddenly completely changed her views on Kakumei and her will to betray them.
Worse than this, she even seems to have lost all memories of what she did since leaving Hikari. She does remember accepting to be a part of a mission that was to deliver a scroll to somewhere, but nothing after that. Currently, she's face to face with Inoue who tries to get any clue about where Izuna is now.
Outside, looking at the scene are Ibiki Morino and Ino Yamanaka. Behind them come Shikamaru Nara and Sai, back from the archives. Sai and Boruto arrived in Konoha yesterday, just hours after the incident.
"We should have seen it coming." Shikamaru says, pissed off.
"What did you find?" asks Ino.
"An explanation for this woman's state. In the old notes of Jiraya about Shin no Kuni again." Sai explains. "We think she's been possessed by a member of the Onikuma clan. They had a Kekkei Genkai that made the strongest of them able to inject their chakra into people as a curse that would manipulate their will. When the curse wears off, the victim forgets everything that happened while it was possessed."
"So this is why it slipped under our noses." Ibiki comments. "It was not Genjutsu, but Jujutsu."
"Yes, and what makes Shikamaru wrong, when he says that we should have seen it coming, is that we had no information about any remaining members of this clan. It should be extinct." Sai adds. "The use of this jutsu was, more than unlikely, impossible."
"Yet here we are." Shikamaru complains.
Ino turns around to look at her daughter's clenched fists trembling in an anger that she does her best to contain while she questions Seiki. She just lost her sensei and the most important person to her. Ino feels sorry for her daughter, but can't do anything about it.
"One of the invaders took Izuna's body and left with it." she comments. "We can assume that they brought him to Hikari… They were using my clan's Shintenshin. Who were they?"
"We don't know his name. But we've known about him for over 6 years." Sai starts to tell. "He is able to use the jutsu of the Yamanaka clan, the powers of the tengu Akashita, and also, oddly, the Kagemane of the Nara clan. Judging from the fact that he could enter the village without alerting the security barrier, he must be from Konoha as well, and could even be a member of your clan."
"You're talking about just one person, but there were two." Ino comments. "They weren't shadow clones. One seemed to be a girl. I think they were twins."
Ibiki stares at them, fascinated by this tale. A pair of Yamanaka clan members ended up on another continent, and years later, found a vile use to their origins. Shikamaru, however, isn't flattered, but deranged.
"Both Yamanaka and Nara twins, originally from here?" he whispers to himself. "What a drag…. Could they be…?" he thinks, having maybe an idea of their identities, which brings back memories of the past. Memories of a murder case that busied his mind over 15 years ago. "… Nah, they'd both be boys if it were that."
He shakes his head, focuses back on what matters the most and turns around to leave, for another hidden place. In the current context, the only thing that matters is not to fail Naruto. As the Hokage told Shikamaru hours before the incident, this situation, even though happening in quite a rush, should be seen as a test. A test that the new God of Shinobi submits his world to. And Shikamaru is the one tasked with making the world worthy of him.
In the interrogatory room, Inoue, sick of the pointless analyzes she does on Seiki's mind, and the soulless answers she gets, she snaps and stands up, unable to handle the grief.
"You're completely useless!" she yells. "You don't know anything to help. You'll just have to rot in jail for the rest of your life."
"You take it really personally, this interrogatory." Seiki answers, provocatively. "Really sounds like you hate me more than you should. Did I do anything to upset you these last few days?"
"Your allies may have won, but you didn't." Inoue replies, ignoring her teasing. "They've abandoned you here. To us."
"Oh I'm not worried about that." Seiki answers. "I know Lady Meinu will come to save me. They will free me. After all, it's not like anything is here to stop us anymore. This village has no protector anymore."
Inoue, sick of holding back and arguing, doesn't bother making up an answer this time, and simply leaves her anger out in a swift punch to the prisoner's jaw. Outside, Ino shakes in surprise and looks at Sai and Ibiki, expecting a reaction. But Ibiki is used to witnessing way more harsh torture methods than that. He sees no emergency. Sai, meanwhile, knows that his daughter is in serious need of letting out. If this can fill the gap in her mind a bit, then he gladly lets do.
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At the same time, Sakura Uchiha is sitting in her office at the ninja hospital. She has to keep going with daily life, like the rest of the village, as if her whole world wasn't crushed to pieces in a single day. Sitting there, she looks at the ceiling and tries not to think too much, waiting for good news for once. But unfortunately, none are on the way.
Boruto Hyuga walks in the room, to bring more troubling news to the medic. He's followed by Konohamaru and his wife, Saori, who's communicating with someone through a modern tool that seals sound and releases it to an output, called a sealphone. Sakura looks at Boruto and doesn't say a word. She just stares and waits for a sign. Something positive.
Unfortunately, Boruto can't deliver. Having recently returned from his mission to find Sasuke Uchiha, he sadly looks down and just shakes his head slowly. Sakura gets it as her husband is as gone as her son. This makes it too much for her. She abruptly stands up and goes to face the window to hide her face from their gazes.
"I can't take this!" she complains in a tearful voice.
"Sakura!" Saori exclaims, wanting to support her. "I am in communication with my nephew. He wants to talk with you."
Standing behind Sakura, she holds the sealphone forward to let the voice on the other side be heard. It is Takeshi Minamoto, who got the news from his aunt.
"Miss Uchiha, I'm at your service." he says. "Just tell me where we have to go. I can't stay back while you have to bear this. Izuna has got to be kept somewhere. Just tell me where. I'll go there. I'll help him. I'll bring him back to you, no matter what. Even if my land doesn't approve of it, or if I'm the only ninja in the world ready to step in. I have to. He'd do the same for me."
Sakura bites her own lips and gently shakes her head, glad that her son has such a loyal comrade. However, she can't give any answer, for she doesn't have any. On the phone, they now hear muffled sounds, and then suddenly the voice of Tsubai Minamoto. He sounds far less motivated than his son, but up to help as well.
"Pink head, don't listen to him." he first says. "I mean, yes he'll help. But his nation will too. I'll convince the Mizukage to send help to Konoha. It's about saving Sasuke's kid isn't it? In that case, I owe him this. I'll do all I can…" He stops speaking while Saori and Sakura can hear the voice of Tokiwa in the background. "No you're not coming! You're not even a ninja anymore!" Tsubai tells his wife. "Besides, you're pregnant. You can't step in this."
Sakura is glad to hear them all so motivated to help and comfort her, but in her busy mind, there is no room for optimism.
"It's pointless." she says, with the same teary tone as earlier. "Thank you for your consideration, Tsubai, Takeshi, but it's no use. It's too late. There is no possible counter attack." Unable to hold back, she lets her thoughts and tears out. "All I have left is my daughter. I've lost everything else. I've lost Tsunade. I've lost my son, my husband, my best friend. And all that from the hand of who?"
Konohamaru and Boruto sadly stare at her, not knowing what to say, surprisingly not as grieving as her about the Hokage. Sakura goes on, thinking it will make her feel better to say it.
"It's even worse for Sarada… It's bad for everyone. Konoha is left with no Hokage." she says, trying not to keep this about herself.
"You should take on the role." Konohamaru suggests, promptly, to Boruto and Saori's surprise.
"What are you talking about?" Sakura answers, angrily. "Who'd want to have to replace him?"
Boruto and Konohamaru stare at each other in an oddly trustful way. The Sarutobi then looks at Sakura, ready to make a decision.
"Follow me. There is something you should see." he tells her before leaving. "Saori, you can go home."
Konohamaru leaves the hospital, and very quickly leaps through the village to the Hokage's mansion. Boruto calmly follows him. Sakura, unsettled, follows as well, confused by this sudden mysterious behavior. After a few minutes, They get to a hidden care room that Sakura never even heard about. There she finds an intriguing, but reassuring scene.
A fully equipped chamber with a bed in the middle. Lying on it is the 7th Hokage, with his wife Hinata sitting asleep by his side. The gear surrounding indicates positive but weak life signs. Naruto Uzumaki still lives, held alive thanks to the plan of Shikamaru.
Sakura abruptly walks in the room, not believing what she sees. Hinata gets startled and wakes up, surprised by the sudden noise. She sees Sakura, looks at her husband, and lies her head back down by his sides, hopelessly waiting for him to wake up.
"What does this mean?" Sakura asks Konohamaru and Boruto. "Did he… know?"
"He did. It means we need to retrieve Kyubi." a voice says behind them.
Shikamaru walks in the room with Kakashi Hatake, ready to explain in detail what the Hokage's situation means.
"Naruto and I saw this coming. We knew it would come to this." he sighs. "And he decided to let it happen. With the exception that it didn't kill him. When Kurama left his body, his life force was forcefully extracted as well. Except, thanks to Kagefuin, we sealed a part of his Yang energy in his shadow, and left it to be released back to his body in case the rest disappears. So, he's kept alive by his remaining life force. This was made possible, this jutsu, Kagefuin, by the research I did after the 4th war with a woman of my clan. Shinjitsu Nara. She was murdered 2 years after the war, but her work, her spirit, found a purpose in this."
"He's alive, but he can't wake up, can he?" Sakura asks, curious about what Naruto's state means.
"He could, but it would be risky." Shikamaru explains to everyone. "Standing up and going back to daily life would quickly consume the life force he still has. For it to grow and heal, he needs the Kyubi back. Until then, it is safer for him to stay like this."
Sakura widely opens her eyes, agape. She looks at Hinata enthusiastically, relieved by the news. She finally finds a piece of hope, but is still bothered by how she came to find out. The world is made to believe that its hero is gone, and will inevitably seek vengeance. Acting too emotive, she grabs Shikamaru by the collar, not accepting the trial he puts the world to.
"You bastard!" she tells as she lifts him off the ground, to everyone's surprise. "How can you keep this a secret? You're deceiving everyone with this lie! Do you know how important he is to people? Why do you have to put them through this?"
Kakashi lays his hands on Sakura's to calm her down and speaks.
"Sakura, you have to understand." says the former Hokage. "It needs to stay secret for now. If we were to reveal this, the enemy would be aware that the Kyubi is the key to Naruto's return, and they'll use this information to their advantage. We need to free Kurama and bring him back to Naruto, without it looking like a priority. The best way to do so is by letting them believe they won."
Sakura lets go off Shikamaru's neck and steps back. She takes a moment to think. Naruto may still have a chance to be saved. But Izuna is missing and nothing is in the works to save him. She has a very clear idea of where he could be. For Oshio to suddenly take interest in his brother and kidnap him, there must be something he wants from him, which seems pretty obvious considering their blood relation and clan. Oshio is after Izuna's eyes. But who knows what he'll do once he's satisfied. She needs to save him.
While she's deep in her thoughts, Konohamaru brings back his suggestion from earlier.
"In the meantime, the world needs to believe that we're going forward." he says. "And so, someone has to take the Hokage's place."
Sakura turns around and looks at him, not ready to accept.
"You should do it." she suggests instead. "I can't. I'm not made for this. But you, Konohamaru, you are. You always wanted this. This is what Naruto would want too."
"This dream is far behind me now." he answers. "This isn't about choosing a new Hokage. Just about choosing who will lead our revenge. Sakura, you're way stronger than I am. I may be a commander on the field, but you're one everywhere. Also, most importantly this is your battle. Like you said, it's your best friend, your son, and your husband. They were taken away from you, by your own son. It is up to you to choose how to get it back. I leave this to you, but I'll gladly serve you in this quest."
"Me too." says Hinata who stands up, determined to bring the help she can to save her husband.
The medic-nin looks around, and sees Hinata and Boruto trustfully staring at her, accepting her momentary leadership. Kakashi makes a proud face under his mask. Shikamaru confidently looks at Sakura.
"We already received messages of support from the Kazekage, and even from the Raikage." Kakashi says, to cheer up the crowd. "It is just a matter of time before we get the other village's engagement as well. Everyone will help with this."
"… Great!" Sakura exclaims, confidently. "We'll do this then. We'll free Izuna and Kurama. For once, let us save Naruto, in owe for all the times he did the same for us."
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End of Chapter 93 – Next Chapter: Orochimaru vs Kakumei