Even after Orochimaru was defeated, Fujin couldn't return to his house. As one of the strongest ninjas and a member of Konoha's council, he couldn't just retire to his house after such a huge attack. Fortunately, he didn't have many responsibilities as a council member.
While Hiruzen had plans to give Fujin several responsibilities over time, he postponed his plans due to how rarely Fujin visited his office. Hence, while other council members continued working even after the meeting, Fujin returned to his house without any worries.
"So, did you get it?" Fujin asked as soon as he entered his basement. In front of him was his Shadow Clone who was keeping an eye on Naruto and Gaara. Next to the clone was a pot and a large box.
Needless to say, the large box was where Kabuto was sealed. As soon as the ninjas around the sealed Kabuto were distracted by the fall of the barrier, the clone, who was initially keeping an eye on Sakumo, teleported the box to his basement. His timing was so perfect that not a single ninja realized what had happened.
As for why he did so? It was rather simple. Even though Kabuto was dead, Fujin didn't want any accidents that could see him revived again, whether temporarily or permanently. In addition, he also didn't want to see Danzo getting his hands on the box and unsealing Kabuto to get more intel about Orochimaru and his experiments.
Not only could that strengthen Danzo, but it would also cause Danzo to become suspicious about Kabuto's death. Even though there wasn't anything linking his death to Fujin, someone like Danzo would definitely feel suspicious. While Fujin no longer cared about Danzo or his actions, it would be a bit troublesome if other leaders in Konoha began suspecting him as well.
Fujin's clone grinned and replied, "Of course."
He dispelled in a cloud of smoke, sending memories back to Fujin, who thought, 'So, even the battle between Naruto and Gaara was almost identical to the original story… Sigh, whatever. I have checked Hiruzen thoroughly, he won't succumb to his injuries. As long as he lives, it proves that the future isn't set in stone.
I suppose this is just the result of my wanting to keep the events as similar to the original story. Even though my influence surpassed my calculations and caused several changes, it wasn't high enough to change the future drastically. Perhaps, if I had shown off my Flying Thunder God jutsu, Suna would have directly backed off.
Regardless, with Kabuto dead and Hiruzen alive, the future will be quite different. I am not sure how much strength Hiruzen would retain, but as long as he retains some, he'll be feared due to the Reaper Death Seal, irrespective of whether he can use it or not.
Along with my existence, it would be too foolish for Nagato and Konan to attack Konoha by themselves. Sigh, what a waste. That would have been a great opportunity to kill Konan and steal Nagato's Rinnegan before Obito could make a move.
Oh well, since I won't be able to benefit from it any longer, I don't need to be too constrained with my actions. It's time to let loose!'
Fujin chuckled as he stored Kabuto's box before turning his gaze towards the pot which contained Shukaku's chakra. Fujin analyzed, 'Even though my clone absorbed chakra from Shikaku's entire arm, he didn't get much chakra. This pot has around 5% of Shukaku's chakra. It should be enough for my plans, but there's no harm if I can increase it. Time for my first experiment…'
Due to the memories of his previous life, Fujin's knowledge of Tailed Beasts far exceeded normal ninjas. He had information that even the Kages didn't possess. In addition, he had accessed most of Konoha's research on Tailed Beasts and also had significant information about the experiments conducted by other villages due to memories of the countless dead ninjas he read.
Hence, before he implemented his plan, he wanted to conduct an experiment. Fujin thought, 'A Tailed Beast is quite an interesting phenomenon. Even though the nine Tailed Beasts were formed from the Ten Tails, the Ten Tails itself was a product of this planet's energy.
Hence, whenever a Tailed Beast is killed, its chakra disperses back into nature allowing it to reform and revive after some time. I suppose Hagoromo might have something to do with it, but it uses nature as a medium regardless of what mechanisms he created. This raises one question. Since a Tailed Beast's rebirth takes energy from nature, can I use that energy to increase the amount of Shikaku's chakra I have? Or, does every Tailed Beast have a finite amount of chakra?'
Fujin didn't have much information in this regard as there weren't many cases where a Tailed Beast was cut up. Gyuki's tentacles were frequently cut by the Third Raikage, but Gyuki always took his tentacles back later. Kumo didn't use the tentacles to form any Pseudo-Jinchurikis as they were worried that it could ruin any chances of cooperating with the Tailed Beast.
Minato split Kurama into half, but both halves were quickly sealed up, one in Minato and the other in Naruto. Similarly, the tentacle Bee used to fool Sasuke was quickly sealed too, not giving them time to grow.
Fujin only had two cases that could be used. The first was the Gold and Silver brothers. Both had consumed Kurama's flesh and gained a bit of his chakra. Unfortunately, Fujin wasn't sure whether the chakra inside them grew later but he had a feeling that happened considering the amount of Kurama's chakra they possessed.
The second case, where that did happen, was Sora, who was shown in a filler arc. In fact, that was the main inspiration for Fujin. However, a helpless chuckle escaped Fujin's lips. He thought, 'Ever since I had this idea, I wanted to see that boy to check how feasible it would be. He could have also been an easy way to access Kurama's chakra. Unfortunately, he doesn't exist…'
Not only did Fujin not find any such boy, there was no record of any temples being destroyed in the recent past. As such, Fujin was more or less certain that no one tried to make a Pseudo Jinchuriki with Kurama's chakra.
Fujin muttered, "Oh well, there's always the first time…" while continuously inscribing new seals on the pot containing Shukaku's chakra. After a few minutes, Fujin was finally done.
He observed the pot and thought, 'Hmm, yeah, this should do. Even though Shukaku isn't here, his chakra is still berserk. But, it won't be able to break through the pot now even if it suddenly quadrupled in strength.
Yet, my seals allow the chakra to interact normally with the outside world. So, it can grow by absorbing whatever it absorbs. If my speculations are right, it should grow rapidly initially. However, its growth would slow down as it grows. After all, it can't grow into a new Tailed Beast or the world would have been destroyed a long time ago.
Anyway, let me see how much it grows, if at all. I can't wait too long, maybe a month at most. Then, I'll absorb it into my new seal. Speaking of which, it's time to use this seal on me finally!'
Fujin took off his flak jacket, shirt and chainmail as a new seal imprint appeared on his left hand. Without wasting a moment, he placed it on his own abdomen!
While Fujin was busy in his basement, Homura and Koharu met Jiraiya and informed him what had happened in the council meeting before telling him that he would be the Fifth Hokage. Just like the original story, he refused and recommended appointing Tsunade instead.
Homura and Koharu didn't care which Sannin sat on the seat as long as it was one of them. Homura replied, "If you can convince her, then we have no issues. However, if you fail to do so, you have to accept the position of the Hokage. We don't have anyone else suitable for that position for the time being."
Jiraiya didn't reply as he was well aware of Konoha's situation. In addition, he was confident of convincing Tsunade. Just like in the original story, he took Naruto with him by promising to teach him a jutsu cooler than Chidori.
Around the same time, Shikaku dejectedly walked to his office, still sighing about the huge job Fujin dumped on his head. As soon as he reached his office, his eyes widened. Several ninjas were carrying stacks of paperwork to his office while others were hurriedly leaving to bring back more!
Shikaku cursed under his breath, "That cursed brat! Don't tell me…"
He quickly picked up the pace and entered his office. However, his steps faltered and he became still like a statue, with one foot inside his office and the other outside! His face became as white as the countless piles of white paper he saw!
[A/N: Wrote the next chapter a bit as well. Should be able to finish it today in probably around 6 hours.]