Categories > Anime/Manga > Naruto > Beginning of the end or end of the beginning
Gai for Hokage?
0 reviewsEven as the survivors struggle to survive their knew circumstances plots are woven against them
0Unrated
Beginning of the end or end of the beginning
"The only thing worse than an unmotivated writer is one with an agenda?" - Kung Lou
Ch2: Gai for Hokage?
Tenten stalked through the vast and ancient trees, which made up such a large portion of fire country with the tracts of forest centring on the once powerful and vibrant Hidden Village of the Leaf. Once again, as they had done so often in the long lifetime of their village, these large forests were acting as a protective buffer for the Nins, medics and civilians that made up the hidden village of the leaf.
Only none of the people that these almost impenetrable forests protected were actually in their village, instead they had been driven out by a massive offensive lead by one of their own. Orochimaru had been one of the Leafs most venerated ninja's in his time and although he had perished with the majority of his troops in the final assault, he had achieved what he set out to do. Destroy the hidden village of the Leaf. All that remained now was rubble and smouldering buildings.
Unconsciously cheeking the readiness of her weapons, Tenten scanned the area for any evidence of the enemy. Along with the rest of her generation of Rookie's - the ones she had fought with in her first Chuunin exam, those who had survived the assault were being intrusted with keeping their new base of operations safe from enemy ninja's. It was vital that they keep the immediate area safe from combat so that new and more easily defendable village could be established within the dark caves they had fled to.
Their efforts in keeping a perimeter safe from enemy Nins were vital to the Leaf's survival. A weak of fighting had tired everyone out and a strong defence needed alert Nin. This meant as many Nin as they could spare were regaining strength under their protection. Although their original village was rubble and ashes the Hidden Village of the Leaf was not dead yet, the Leafs strength did not lie in any single place and this abandoned cave network would be home just as much as the old village had been. It was a truth that she had only just come to understand, a truth she had come to slowly.
It was a truth that had required the sacrifice of her hero for her, and she expected the majority of the Leaf's inhabitants, to learn. For as long as she could remember she had looked up to Tsunade, wanted to achieve that massive strength of will and vast reservoirs of skill that had marked her out throughout the ninja world. For as long as she could remember she wanted to be Tsunade.
It was her greatest moment when Tsunade became the villages Fifth Hokage, it had proven that she and all the other female Ninja's out there could make it in this male dominated art and even excel. Yes she mourned the Thirds death like the rest of the village, he had been a great and kind man and in saving the village from destruction he had cemented his place among the heroes of the Leaf.
The time following his death hadn't been easy for any of the survivors of the sounds initial faint four years ago, with so many other Nin dying in the attack there was more than enough work to go around to keep them all dead on their feet. But she at least took strength from their Hokage, her personal idol, and redoubled her efforts.
Tenten casually double tapped her earpiece, letting the surviving ANBU and Jounins know that she had not made contact with the enemy and that the perimeter remained clear. If any of the Chuunins on guard duty ran into trouble it was up to the surviving ANBU and Jounins who weren't resting to respond. They would provide a rapid action squad to plug any holes in their perimeter should an attack punch through. It would not make much strategic sense to draw resources away from the perimeter to plug a gap thereby making it easier for an enemy to penetrate their defences elsewhere. She prayed they were enough.
Satisfied that no one had breached the perimeter she continued her silent patrol among the giant trees once again unconsciously cheeking the readiness of her weapons. It was a habit she had picked up in the years following the Thirds death. The heightened readiness of the active Nin and the constant repair work often meant limited time to prepare for missions. Besides, another attack was never ruled out and she felt safer with her weapons than without them.
Training became a priority of the village as it prepared for war, with numbers desperately short they needed to replace their numbers of skilled Nin as soon as they could. Tsunade had revitalized and restructured the village and prepared them for a break in what had been a peaceful time. She had taught the village that the people were their strength not the walls and monuments. It was a lesson that she had only fully grasped when she saw her lead a suicide charge to cover their retreat.
Less than ten percent of Nin at Jounin skill or above had survived the Leaf village, with fewer than forty percent of Chuunin. Gennin survival rate matched civilian rates - children where the lifeblood of their village, to be protected at all cost. The Leaf had been decimated but they would survive, the village had been founded in more trying times than these and with less resources, although not by much.
Even her the famous rookie nine had not remained unscathed over the last few years, Susuke's defection, Hinata's removal from active status followed by Naruto and Choji's death in defence of their already doomed village whittled down their numbers in what remained a dangerous job. She had seen the Hokage monument bury Naruto herself. The defence of the hidden village of the leaf was an amazing display of what four years of frantic preparation can do to the skills of a hidden village and the final attack lead by Tsunade on Orochimaru's position would go down in history if any of them survived the persistent harrying of their position.
It was Tsunade's finest moment but Tenten couldn't help but view the shrivelled crone that remained with pity, it was not a fate that any ninja looked forward to. All her life she had painted a great picture and strove towards it and the feeling that not all of her hero escaped her last battle saddened her no end. She would she decided always keep the triumphant Hokage firmest in her mind and remember her at her finest not at her lowest.
Another double tap into her earpiece and she was once again flying among the trees. It seemed inconceivable that they had been betrayed but she could not explain the battle that so many died in any other way. Their fighting styles had been relentlessly studied and countered, they had been fighting on two fronts from both sides of the village walls and overwhelmed by a numerically superior enemy. It only amazed her that more did not perish though the casualty rates were horrifying enough. Whoever was chosen for the next Hokage had a gigantic task ahead of him.
Just as she landed on a broad branch constantly scanning for any evidence of the enemy and ready to continue her patrol, she was surprised when the entire tree shook itself to pieces. Massive branches from higher up crashed into those further down almost shaking her from her perch. A quick triple tap into her earpiece and she was diving towards the base of the tree already armed with a pair of scythes and ready to throw them as soon as she found an enemy.
Her favourite attacking style was a careful balance of attack and defence. She had mastered many types of weaponry, both conventional and unconventional and carefully created an almost unbeatable style from their use. It didn't have many weaknesses and in the tree crowded field around her, those weaknesses would be very hard to exploit.
At the base of the tree she found a semi coherent sound Nin embedded into the broad trunk. Quickly finishing him off so that she wouldn't have a potential enemy at her back she focussed on the seething mass of combat before her. Quickly peppering the area with as most of the kunai and shurikens that she had in her possession, she was surprised when she only hit half of her targets, it had been years since she had missed a target and she didn't like to think that she was about to start now. Even then she had substantially evened the odds on any potential conflict by thinning the numbers from twelve to a more manageable eight wounded she knew that it would be an interesting fight before reinforcements could arrive.
"Maito Gai," she gasped in surprise. It had been over a week and they had given up all hope on there being any other survivors. Yet here he was hopelessly out numbered and moving more slowly than she could ever remember him moving in combat. The weights that he normally kept strapped to his limbs even in combat were gone and his bloody drawn face told it's own story.
Shaking off her surprise she lunched the rest of her projectiles before joining the fray with a pair of kodachi's, there simply was not enough time for any special techniques, the small amount of time needed to set one up could mean her mentor's death and besides there were few who could out manoeuvre her with weapons while she was relatively fresh.
It was clear that these nins had been fighting a running battle with Gai for a long time. Only the fact that Gai was so spent himself caused him to have so much trouble with such lower level foes. 'They must have withdrawn most of their most skilled Nins' she thought to herself as she casually cut through their ranks. With Gai's help she evened the odds further and watched as the last three sound Nins left standing broke of and ran.
"The flame of youth never dies, it burns brighter in you every day my Tenten." Gai announced proudly, posing over the bloody corpses of the squad of sound nins. "But hurry, my everlasting rival Kakashi lies grievously wounded and needs our help."
It was an outrageous sight, amidst such bloodshed and carnage and in such a trying and dangerous times Tenten could not see the humor in Gai's obvious attempt to lift her dangerously low spirits. This was not the time to make jokes.
Shaking her head sadly Tenten started to salvage what she could from the battle sight. As low on resources as she and her comrades were, the Leaf needed everything they could lay their hands on. Before she could answer Gai though reinforcements started to appear followed by Sukura. Sukura's pink hair flashed through the dense foliage making her easy to place, "Sakura will help him Gai, I have to continue my patrol," she said stoically before resuming a random pattern through the tree's.
Although she had just fought a major skirmish and rescued a skilled Leaf Nin, there would not be anytime to rest for a long time. Even when the new base was built and operating sufficiently that such large numbers were no longer needed to defend it, their numbers were simply too low and would be for years. Reluctantly she admitted that the skirmish besides Gai had drained her more than she would have liked but there would be no one to replace her while she rested. Gritting her teeth Tenten double tapped her earpiece and resumed her patrol, unconsciously checking the readiness of her weaponry.
5555
Konohamaru slipped though the bustling cave silently, watching the frantic activity of civilians and ninja united in the task of reinforcing the cave against attack and making it liveable. Temporary living quarters were being erected and the sounds of teams of Gennin exploring the depths of the caves echoed from their depths. Just beyond the cave mouth defensive structures and traps were feverishly and hastily being erected.
Just beyond sight he knew that further guard posts were being installed as well as monitoring and alarm jutsu. The leadership were refusing to be surprised again. He would have helped out, after all, his life and that of every one of the people here depended on their preparedness to defend against attack in the short term and make a living in the medium to long term but he was supposed to be resting. Regaining what little strength he had so he could contribute as best he could to the rebuilding effort.
Since they had first arrived to the caves, a rough roster was established among the active Leaf nin to ensure that when an attack came they would at least have a few well rested and prepared higher level Nin to defend them. Those that were not resting were resettling or healing the wounded, fortifying the area in the immediate vicinity of the cave networks they had all retreated to or patrolling a wide swath of land around their position. Until the base had been completed and the current Gennins gained some more experience and skill then they were all in a very precarious situation.
Intellectually he knew that he should have been dead on his feet from working a double shift and a week of tense retreat and protection duty but his body refused to rest. He would still be out there helping if his jounin instructor had not ordered him to rest. Both his mind and body felt twitchy as if demanding immediate action and a solution to their problem. Thus he found himself silently shadowing the frantic but disciplined work throughout the cave. To agitated to rest.
He knew what was causing his insomnia but until Sukura convinced the Fifth to allow his team to go and search for Naruto there was not a lot he could do. Going it alone was suicide with teams of Sound nin marauding Fire country. Even though he refused to believe that Naruto was dead, he couldn't see his leader being injured so badly that he could not have tracked them down. Nothing had ever kept his boss down for long. He smiled proudly as he remembered some of the stories he had been told about his idol.
Konohamaru could not believe that his self proclaimed leader was not around showing off or creating chaos among the survivors. Every time he turned around he expected Naruto's laughter or confidence to flood the room, lightening the dark atmosphere that seemed to fill the dark and cold cavern that would be their new home for some time to come. The new Hidden Village of the Leaf.
Before he even became a Gennin, Naruto was gave him and his friends the respect and encouragement that was so hard to come by. Wherea's the villages measured his potential against his grandfathers, Naruto saw and encouraged the potential in him. It was a turning point in his life and it fundamentally changed his goals. Even after he became a Gennin Naruto was there to provide extra help and support, at least when he had come back from his training trip with Jiraiya. Naruto was more than his leader. To him he was a big brother, family. He was sure that his friends felt the same.
He refused to mourn Naruto's death, all his life he had seen, perhaps more than anyone else, Naruto's enormous strength of will and inhuman power. It was as if nothing could stop him, not enemy nin, not Orochimaru, not even the Hokage monument. By now the fate of every missing nin and casualty was known and there were plenty of people who had seen his leader thrown into the Hokage monument so hard that the entire cliff face crumbled, burying him alive. But dead down he knew that his boss lived, he couldn't imagine Naruto doing anything else.
Besides he was too busy to mourn, even now when he was supposed to be resting his mind would not stop racing about the recent attack and the weak long retreat. It wasn't pleasant being hunted every step of the way and he wondered if this was how the rabbit felt. He had never been more scared in his life, never had death seemed a more likely possibility. Konohamaru could not help but remember the times that Naruto had washed away similar fears throughout the years and filled him with confidence and wished he was here with him now.
It had saddened him when Naruto left the village to train and envied the opportunity to become stronger under a Sannin's tutelage. He was determined to let his leader widen the gap between them further however because they would inevitably jhave to fight over the Hokages Hat. When he arrived home he was a Gennin and they even had the chance to work together on missions occasionally. Konohamaru sighed as he remembered old times, good times.
Walking dejectedly back to the depressingly small area that was reserved for the sleeping nin he spotted something that raised his spirits enormously. It was Hyuuga Hiashi arrogantly strutting with his daughter towards where the Hokage lay. He had never liked the arrogant Hyuuga's but he understood their clans importance to the village and how much political clout they held, especially since the Uchiha's demise. For them to be meeting the Hokage at this hour meant that something important was being decided.
In his mind the possibility of them discussing a possible rescue mission was a distinct possibility and if they were discussing that then he wanted to be on that mission so he needed to know about it and who would be on it. First though a little information gathering was needed. All thought about his rostered rest time was banished from his mind in favour of the possibility of joining a search and rescue mission. 'Naruto would never live it down if I rescued him' Konohamaru thought with a vicious grin 'I wont let him live it down.'
Continuing his way to the area set aside for sleeping nin Konohamaru silently created a bunshin of a cockroach, Naruto would be so proud he thought with a grin. Spying missions and pranks both needed discrete and silent scheming, at least until it were pulled off.
His leader's pranks had come in useful even after he was promoted. "....not sure if he will survive, the only choice." The lone cockroach scurried unnoticed into the meeting and into the middle of the Fifths weak rasp. Konohamaru didn't even want to think about the young faces in the room. Every clan had been decimated, a whole generation had been whipped from Leaf history.
"You cannot be serious, he will have us all wearing green spandex within a week." Hyuuga Hiashi haughty tone was unmistakable even if he had not been able to see one of the few only remaining elder clan heads. The balance of power between the clans within the village would take years to readjust to a new equilibrium.
Though Konohamaru could not yet guess what they were discussing. It was clearly not a rescue, nor was permission being sought for him to go after Naruto. After all there had to be a reason that his self proclaimed leader had not yet joined them and he refused to believe that he was dead. Still he waited to see what other information he could pick up. Politics had always interested him and knowledge of it was important for the future Hokage.
"I will not last much longer, the council and clan heads need to choose a new Hokage to provide leadership and direction. Already morale is down and I am not fit to lift it. He is the only possible candidate left alive and ready to take charge." Konohamaru's hand gripped the wall painfully when he heard Tsuname's painful rasping as she tried to convince the council to appoint a new Hokage.
He had always taken for granted that he and Naruto would be fighting over the post some time in the future when the Fifth stepped down. Not even in the height of the attack had he thought that someone else would take the Hat and replace Tsuname- she was just too scary to be forcible replaced. An attack on the village and the decimation of its ninja population changed all that.
"Hey Konohamaru what are doing?" Udon asked wondering over, "aren't you off roster."
Konohamaru winced before turning around to face his team member. He didn't like to admit it but over the last few days Udon had saved his life a few times. Naruto's training had aided his whole team to differing degrees. It didn't change the fact that his friend had horrible timing and almost inevitably interrupted his pranks or other nefarious activity..
"Shusssshh Udon, I'm trying to hear. Your gonna get me caught," Konohamaru whispered harshly as he returned his focus back to the conversation between the fifth, the council and the clan heads through his connection with his cockroach bunshin . Too much had been shared between them for him to tell him to go away, he was much more likely to rope him into any trouble he was about to get himself into.
"....Very well, but are there no better...." He heard before Udon interrupted his concentration again.
"You're not going to get us in trouble again. This is not really the time to be playing any pranks Konohamaru." Udon had a concerned look on his face as if remembering a few of their pranks that had backfired. Still it was hardly the same, he wasn't even planning a prank. All he wanted to know was who they were gonna make next Hokage and besides HIS pranks had never backfired. Though he did remember a time....
Glaring at Udon he refocussed on the conversation. "Maito Gai will you accept the position of Sixth Hokage. You will face...." Konohamaru couldn't believe it. He was familiar with Maito Gai, or rather he was familiar with Rock Lee but it was the same thing. Tsuname didn't even pick someone cool like his Leader.
Letting his link with the bunshin die, not worrying that the entire room of clan heads and council members no doubt saw the cloud expended from his vanishing bunshin, he turned and faced Udon. 'No' he screamed at himself 'it should have been leader'. Udon's concerned faced hovered above his own but all Konohamaru could hear and see was his big brother demonstrating a new technique and declaring his ambition to become Hokage.
Shaking his head he pushed his friend and team mate aside, 'there's still no reason he can't become Hokage, but first I have to find him.' Still dazed as the reality of there situation struck him Konohamaru headed out of the cave and into the forest. He would find Naruto and everything would be OK.
The last thing he heard was something about the power of youth before everything went dark.
5555555
"Arrogance," the deep rumbling voice of Kyuubi seemed to rumble and vibrate through Naruto's head as he faced a familiar set of gates. The massive rusted boundary between the demon and the rest of Naruto's mind was exactly as Naruto remembered it. Even the Sewers still smelled bad.
"To think that such a fragile heap of mortal flesh would even THINK of taking on a being as ancient as a wraith astonishes me." Kyuubi had not lost any of his scorn for humanity even after being sealed within one for the last two decades.
"Reckless arrogance," the words seemed to spit out across the darkness.
"Bloody fox, what the hell do you want and what the hell was that gem." Naruto stood unflinchingly before the massive gates, no longer an uncertain and boastful preteen. He had seen and done too much to go back to being that naïve. Still he had not expected to find himself before this painful of his past reminder again, not since he had finished swallowing the demons strength.
"Even I, at the height of my power and comfortable in my own realm avoided such ancient beings. They exist as anti-chakra and can simply destroy by touch your ability to create chakra, surely you felt how your coils wreathed and struggled within you even at such proximity. A direct hit would mean certain death for you and oblivion for me." Even behind the gates Kyuubi's anger was impressive and frightening.
"And you recklessly ran into battle with one that even I would think twice about crossing," nine powerful tails raked the rusting gates and shaking the seemingly fragile paper seal binding them together. "Your arrogance will get us both killed," Kyuubi roared through the gates.
Naruto in an effort not to be cowed by such a fearful display in his own mind struggled to come up with a way to calm the demon. To his knowledge the seal had never been tested so harshly, "I have access to all your chakra demon, what makes you think I couldn't have taken it on when you yourself admitted that you..."
He trailed of at the sudden stillness and aura of rage that drifted through the sealed gates, this feeling was even more terrifying than what he had faced seconds before. If he had been facing Kyuubi without the seal as a crutch, Naruto would not be sure that he would have held his ground.
"Do you think that such a weak vessel such as you could even come close to wielding a fraction of my power? Your like a metal tap connected to an ocean, fatigue would set in before you tap even a tenth of my power, only your own minute chakra generation makes you stand tall in the mill pond you call home."
"Surely you have experienced the pain as the tap has cracked when you have turned it to hard, tried to open it to much," Naruto could. On the occasion he had drawn to deeply of the Kyuubi's reservoir of power he had felt his body start to destroy itself so quickly that not even his inhuman healing could keep up. That had been years ago.
Naruto he had always been led to believe that the ultimate purpose of the seal that bound Kuubi was to slowly drain the demons chakra and merge it into his own. When he had stopped receiving any additional power from the demon he had assumed that the seal had completed its work and that the occasional whispers from behind the seal were only remnants of the once powerful demon. He had not tried to tap what a reservoir he had thought empty.
In his bones he knew the demon was speaking the truth though, still it was something that went against everything he had been taught and experienced. It was a frightening thought to think that such a powerful demon was bound within him and it still held control over a vast amount of power.
"Then how can I fight this thing then, once I leave here it will have finished destroying my clones and that damned gem was in the process of doing as much damage as that near hit." If Kyuubi was even a little bit worried then his demand would not make a wit of difference in further agitating the demon.
At once the aura of rage and intimidation turned to one of smugness, "as soon as you touched the gem at the centre of this tower then the atmosphere became poisoness to the wraith. This tower was once a great weapon and the gem is the key to its use. It is one of five that bridged our two dimensions and stood against our destruction by those beings of anti-chakra. We have been unable to destroy them but with these towers we were able to hold the line."
"Bind?" Naruto frowned at the smug demon, he did not like the sound of that and could not help but feel unsettled by the image of a smug Kyuubi. 'After so long being sealed here anything that Kyuubi has to feel smug about properly would not be so good for me' thought Naruto. "Is that a good thing?"
"Do not worry you snivelling pile of mortal flesh with dreams of greatness, the process of binding will not harm you but I will not be surprised if I see you again soon." Naruto stared at the demon lord in confusion as rumbling laughter shook the smelly sewers. It did not escape his notice that he had not been given any more than the sketchiest details concerning the tower he found himself in, the gem he had grabbed or the 'Wraith' that had so easily picked apart his clones.
The details that he had received from the demon lord had only created more questions and worn the confidence that he had once felt about his own power and skills.
555555
An unseen light source reflected from a pair of blood red eyes revealing three black pips in place of an iris. Nothing of the face that the eyes belonged to was visible in the darkness giving the eyes a disembodied appearance.
"All Jounin level and high have been recalled Sasuke sama with the others still harrying the survivors of the leaf" Kabuto's voice almost hid the sense of superiority he held around himself.
"Good," Susuke didn't even blink at what had marked the end of a campaign which had utterly destroyed what had once been his home, the death of people who had once been his friends.
"Why did you betray him Kabuto?" The only sign of his curiosity was the circling of the three dark pips inside the disembodied blood red eyes. "You were his most trusted aide, how can I ever trust that you won't betray me in turn?"
"Orochimaru had lost sight of his ambitions Susuke sama. You have not and I don't believe you ever will."
Fading footsteps signalled Kabuto's exit, unanswered was his answer to the question of his loyalty.
"The only thing worse than an unmotivated writer is one with an agenda?" - Kung Lou
Ch2: Gai for Hokage?
Tenten stalked through the vast and ancient trees, which made up such a large portion of fire country with the tracts of forest centring on the once powerful and vibrant Hidden Village of the Leaf. Once again, as they had done so often in the long lifetime of their village, these large forests were acting as a protective buffer for the Nins, medics and civilians that made up the hidden village of the leaf.
Only none of the people that these almost impenetrable forests protected were actually in their village, instead they had been driven out by a massive offensive lead by one of their own. Orochimaru had been one of the Leafs most venerated ninja's in his time and although he had perished with the majority of his troops in the final assault, he had achieved what he set out to do. Destroy the hidden village of the Leaf. All that remained now was rubble and smouldering buildings.
Unconsciously cheeking the readiness of her weapons, Tenten scanned the area for any evidence of the enemy. Along with the rest of her generation of Rookie's - the ones she had fought with in her first Chuunin exam, those who had survived the assault were being intrusted with keeping their new base of operations safe from enemy ninja's. It was vital that they keep the immediate area safe from combat so that new and more easily defendable village could be established within the dark caves they had fled to.
Their efforts in keeping a perimeter safe from enemy Nins were vital to the Leaf's survival. A weak of fighting had tired everyone out and a strong defence needed alert Nin. This meant as many Nin as they could spare were regaining strength under their protection. Although their original village was rubble and ashes the Hidden Village of the Leaf was not dead yet, the Leafs strength did not lie in any single place and this abandoned cave network would be home just as much as the old village had been. It was a truth that she had only just come to understand, a truth she had come to slowly.
It was a truth that had required the sacrifice of her hero for her, and she expected the majority of the Leaf's inhabitants, to learn. For as long as she could remember she had looked up to Tsunade, wanted to achieve that massive strength of will and vast reservoirs of skill that had marked her out throughout the ninja world. For as long as she could remember she wanted to be Tsunade.
It was her greatest moment when Tsunade became the villages Fifth Hokage, it had proven that she and all the other female Ninja's out there could make it in this male dominated art and even excel. Yes she mourned the Thirds death like the rest of the village, he had been a great and kind man and in saving the village from destruction he had cemented his place among the heroes of the Leaf.
The time following his death hadn't been easy for any of the survivors of the sounds initial faint four years ago, with so many other Nin dying in the attack there was more than enough work to go around to keep them all dead on their feet. But she at least took strength from their Hokage, her personal idol, and redoubled her efforts.
Tenten casually double tapped her earpiece, letting the surviving ANBU and Jounins know that she had not made contact with the enemy and that the perimeter remained clear. If any of the Chuunins on guard duty ran into trouble it was up to the surviving ANBU and Jounins who weren't resting to respond. They would provide a rapid action squad to plug any holes in their perimeter should an attack punch through. It would not make much strategic sense to draw resources away from the perimeter to plug a gap thereby making it easier for an enemy to penetrate their defences elsewhere. She prayed they were enough.
Satisfied that no one had breached the perimeter she continued her silent patrol among the giant trees once again unconsciously cheeking the readiness of her weapons. It was a habit she had picked up in the years following the Thirds death. The heightened readiness of the active Nin and the constant repair work often meant limited time to prepare for missions. Besides, another attack was never ruled out and she felt safer with her weapons than without them.
Training became a priority of the village as it prepared for war, with numbers desperately short they needed to replace their numbers of skilled Nin as soon as they could. Tsunade had revitalized and restructured the village and prepared them for a break in what had been a peaceful time. She had taught the village that the people were their strength not the walls and monuments. It was a lesson that she had only fully grasped when she saw her lead a suicide charge to cover their retreat.
Less than ten percent of Nin at Jounin skill or above had survived the Leaf village, with fewer than forty percent of Chuunin. Gennin survival rate matched civilian rates - children where the lifeblood of their village, to be protected at all cost. The Leaf had been decimated but they would survive, the village had been founded in more trying times than these and with less resources, although not by much.
Even her the famous rookie nine had not remained unscathed over the last few years, Susuke's defection, Hinata's removal from active status followed by Naruto and Choji's death in defence of their already doomed village whittled down their numbers in what remained a dangerous job. She had seen the Hokage monument bury Naruto herself. The defence of the hidden village of the leaf was an amazing display of what four years of frantic preparation can do to the skills of a hidden village and the final attack lead by Tsunade on Orochimaru's position would go down in history if any of them survived the persistent harrying of their position.
It was Tsunade's finest moment but Tenten couldn't help but view the shrivelled crone that remained with pity, it was not a fate that any ninja looked forward to. All her life she had painted a great picture and strove towards it and the feeling that not all of her hero escaped her last battle saddened her no end. She would she decided always keep the triumphant Hokage firmest in her mind and remember her at her finest not at her lowest.
Another double tap into her earpiece and she was once again flying among the trees. It seemed inconceivable that they had been betrayed but she could not explain the battle that so many died in any other way. Their fighting styles had been relentlessly studied and countered, they had been fighting on two fronts from both sides of the village walls and overwhelmed by a numerically superior enemy. It only amazed her that more did not perish though the casualty rates were horrifying enough. Whoever was chosen for the next Hokage had a gigantic task ahead of him.
Just as she landed on a broad branch constantly scanning for any evidence of the enemy and ready to continue her patrol, she was surprised when the entire tree shook itself to pieces. Massive branches from higher up crashed into those further down almost shaking her from her perch. A quick triple tap into her earpiece and she was diving towards the base of the tree already armed with a pair of scythes and ready to throw them as soon as she found an enemy.
Her favourite attacking style was a careful balance of attack and defence. She had mastered many types of weaponry, both conventional and unconventional and carefully created an almost unbeatable style from their use. It didn't have many weaknesses and in the tree crowded field around her, those weaknesses would be very hard to exploit.
At the base of the tree she found a semi coherent sound Nin embedded into the broad trunk. Quickly finishing him off so that she wouldn't have a potential enemy at her back she focussed on the seething mass of combat before her. Quickly peppering the area with as most of the kunai and shurikens that she had in her possession, she was surprised when she only hit half of her targets, it had been years since she had missed a target and she didn't like to think that she was about to start now. Even then she had substantially evened the odds on any potential conflict by thinning the numbers from twelve to a more manageable eight wounded she knew that it would be an interesting fight before reinforcements could arrive.
"Maito Gai," she gasped in surprise. It had been over a week and they had given up all hope on there being any other survivors. Yet here he was hopelessly out numbered and moving more slowly than she could ever remember him moving in combat. The weights that he normally kept strapped to his limbs even in combat were gone and his bloody drawn face told it's own story.
Shaking off her surprise she lunched the rest of her projectiles before joining the fray with a pair of kodachi's, there simply was not enough time for any special techniques, the small amount of time needed to set one up could mean her mentor's death and besides there were few who could out manoeuvre her with weapons while she was relatively fresh.
It was clear that these nins had been fighting a running battle with Gai for a long time. Only the fact that Gai was so spent himself caused him to have so much trouble with such lower level foes. 'They must have withdrawn most of their most skilled Nins' she thought to herself as she casually cut through their ranks. With Gai's help she evened the odds further and watched as the last three sound Nins left standing broke of and ran.
"The flame of youth never dies, it burns brighter in you every day my Tenten." Gai announced proudly, posing over the bloody corpses of the squad of sound nins. "But hurry, my everlasting rival Kakashi lies grievously wounded and needs our help."
It was an outrageous sight, amidst such bloodshed and carnage and in such a trying and dangerous times Tenten could not see the humor in Gai's obvious attempt to lift her dangerously low spirits. This was not the time to make jokes.
Shaking her head sadly Tenten started to salvage what she could from the battle sight. As low on resources as she and her comrades were, the Leaf needed everything they could lay their hands on. Before she could answer Gai though reinforcements started to appear followed by Sukura. Sukura's pink hair flashed through the dense foliage making her easy to place, "Sakura will help him Gai, I have to continue my patrol," she said stoically before resuming a random pattern through the tree's.
Although she had just fought a major skirmish and rescued a skilled Leaf Nin, there would not be anytime to rest for a long time. Even when the new base was built and operating sufficiently that such large numbers were no longer needed to defend it, their numbers were simply too low and would be for years. Reluctantly she admitted that the skirmish besides Gai had drained her more than she would have liked but there would be no one to replace her while she rested. Gritting her teeth Tenten double tapped her earpiece and resumed her patrol, unconsciously checking the readiness of her weaponry.
5555
Konohamaru slipped though the bustling cave silently, watching the frantic activity of civilians and ninja united in the task of reinforcing the cave against attack and making it liveable. Temporary living quarters were being erected and the sounds of teams of Gennin exploring the depths of the caves echoed from their depths. Just beyond the cave mouth defensive structures and traps were feverishly and hastily being erected.
Just beyond sight he knew that further guard posts were being installed as well as monitoring and alarm jutsu. The leadership were refusing to be surprised again. He would have helped out, after all, his life and that of every one of the people here depended on their preparedness to defend against attack in the short term and make a living in the medium to long term but he was supposed to be resting. Regaining what little strength he had so he could contribute as best he could to the rebuilding effort.
Since they had first arrived to the caves, a rough roster was established among the active Leaf nin to ensure that when an attack came they would at least have a few well rested and prepared higher level Nin to defend them. Those that were not resting were resettling or healing the wounded, fortifying the area in the immediate vicinity of the cave networks they had all retreated to or patrolling a wide swath of land around their position. Until the base had been completed and the current Gennins gained some more experience and skill then they were all in a very precarious situation.
Intellectually he knew that he should have been dead on his feet from working a double shift and a week of tense retreat and protection duty but his body refused to rest. He would still be out there helping if his jounin instructor had not ordered him to rest. Both his mind and body felt twitchy as if demanding immediate action and a solution to their problem. Thus he found himself silently shadowing the frantic but disciplined work throughout the cave. To agitated to rest.
He knew what was causing his insomnia but until Sukura convinced the Fifth to allow his team to go and search for Naruto there was not a lot he could do. Going it alone was suicide with teams of Sound nin marauding Fire country. Even though he refused to believe that Naruto was dead, he couldn't see his leader being injured so badly that he could not have tracked them down. Nothing had ever kept his boss down for long. He smiled proudly as he remembered some of the stories he had been told about his idol.
Konohamaru could not believe that his self proclaimed leader was not around showing off or creating chaos among the survivors. Every time he turned around he expected Naruto's laughter or confidence to flood the room, lightening the dark atmosphere that seemed to fill the dark and cold cavern that would be their new home for some time to come. The new Hidden Village of the Leaf.
Before he even became a Gennin, Naruto was gave him and his friends the respect and encouragement that was so hard to come by. Wherea's the villages measured his potential against his grandfathers, Naruto saw and encouraged the potential in him. It was a turning point in his life and it fundamentally changed his goals. Even after he became a Gennin Naruto was there to provide extra help and support, at least when he had come back from his training trip with Jiraiya. Naruto was more than his leader. To him he was a big brother, family. He was sure that his friends felt the same.
He refused to mourn Naruto's death, all his life he had seen, perhaps more than anyone else, Naruto's enormous strength of will and inhuman power. It was as if nothing could stop him, not enemy nin, not Orochimaru, not even the Hokage monument. By now the fate of every missing nin and casualty was known and there were plenty of people who had seen his leader thrown into the Hokage monument so hard that the entire cliff face crumbled, burying him alive. But dead down he knew that his boss lived, he couldn't imagine Naruto doing anything else.
Besides he was too busy to mourn, even now when he was supposed to be resting his mind would not stop racing about the recent attack and the weak long retreat. It wasn't pleasant being hunted every step of the way and he wondered if this was how the rabbit felt. He had never been more scared in his life, never had death seemed a more likely possibility. Konohamaru could not help but remember the times that Naruto had washed away similar fears throughout the years and filled him with confidence and wished he was here with him now.
It had saddened him when Naruto left the village to train and envied the opportunity to become stronger under a Sannin's tutelage. He was determined to let his leader widen the gap between them further however because they would inevitably jhave to fight over the Hokages Hat. When he arrived home he was a Gennin and they even had the chance to work together on missions occasionally. Konohamaru sighed as he remembered old times, good times.
Walking dejectedly back to the depressingly small area that was reserved for the sleeping nin he spotted something that raised his spirits enormously. It was Hyuuga Hiashi arrogantly strutting with his daughter towards where the Hokage lay. He had never liked the arrogant Hyuuga's but he understood their clans importance to the village and how much political clout they held, especially since the Uchiha's demise. For them to be meeting the Hokage at this hour meant that something important was being decided.
In his mind the possibility of them discussing a possible rescue mission was a distinct possibility and if they were discussing that then he wanted to be on that mission so he needed to know about it and who would be on it. First though a little information gathering was needed. All thought about his rostered rest time was banished from his mind in favour of the possibility of joining a search and rescue mission. 'Naruto would never live it down if I rescued him' Konohamaru thought with a vicious grin 'I wont let him live it down.'
Continuing his way to the area set aside for sleeping nin Konohamaru silently created a bunshin of a cockroach, Naruto would be so proud he thought with a grin. Spying missions and pranks both needed discrete and silent scheming, at least until it were pulled off.
His leader's pranks had come in useful even after he was promoted. "....not sure if he will survive, the only choice." The lone cockroach scurried unnoticed into the meeting and into the middle of the Fifths weak rasp. Konohamaru didn't even want to think about the young faces in the room. Every clan had been decimated, a whole generation had been whipped from Leaf history.
"You cannot be serious, he will have us all wearing green spandex within a week." Hyuuga Hiashi haughty tone was unmistakable even if he had not been able to see one of the few only remaining elder clan heads. The balance of power between the clans within the village would take years to readjust to a new equilibrium.
Though Konohamaru could not yet guess what they were discussing. It was clearly not a rescue, nor was permission being sought for him to go after Naruto. After all there had to be a reason that his self proclaimed leader had not yet joined them and he refused to believe that he was dead. Still he waited to see what other information he could pick up. Politics had always interested him and knowledge of it was important for the future Hokage.
"I will not last much longer, the council and clan heads need to choose a new Hokage to provide leadership and direction. Already morale is down and I am not fit to lift it. He is the only possible candidate left alive and ready to take charge." Konohamaru's hand gripped the wall painfully when he heard Tsuname's painful rasping as she tried to convince the council to appoint a new Hokage.
He had always taken for granted that he and Naruto would be fighting over the post some time in the future when the Fifth stepped down. Not even in the height of the attack had he thought that someone else would take the Hat and replace Tsuname- she was just too scary to be forcible replaced. An attack on the village and the decimation of its ninja population changed all that.
"Hey Konohamaru what are doing?" Udon asked wondering over, "aren't you off roster."
Konohamaru winced before turning around to face his team member. He didn't like to admit it but over the last few days Udon had saved his life a few times. Naruto's training had aided his whole team to differing degrees. It didn't change the fact that his friend had horrible timing and almost inevitably interrupted his pranks or other nefarious activity..
"Shusssshh Udon, I'm trying to hear. Your gonna get me caught," Konohamaru whispered harshly as he returned his focus back to the conversation between the fifth, the council and the clan heads through his connection with his cockroach bunshin . Too much had been shared between them for him to tell him to go away, he was much more likely to rope him into any trouble he was about to get himself into.
"....Very well, but are there no better...." He heard before Udon interrupted his concentration again.
"You're not going to get us in trouble again. This is not really the time to be playing any pranks Konohamaru." Udon had a concerned look on his face as if remembering a few of their pranks that had backfired. Still it was hardly the same, he wasn't even planning a prank. All he wanted to know was who they were gonna make next Hokage and besides HIS pranks had never backfired. Though he did remember a time....
Glaring at Udon he refocussed on the conversation. "Maito Gai will you accept the position of Sixth Hokage. You will face...." Konohamaru couldn't believe it. He was familiar with Maito Gai, or rather he was familiar with Rock Lee but it was the same thing. Tsuname didn't even pick someone cool like his Leader.
Letting his link with the bunshin die, not worrying that the entire room of clan heads and council members no doubt saw the cloud expended from his vanishing bunshin, he turned and faced Udon. 'No' he screamed at himself 'it should have been leader'. Udon's concerned faced hovered above his own but all Konohamaru could hear and see was his big brother demonstrating a new technique and declaring his ambition to become Hokage.
Shaking his head he pushed his friend and team mate aside, 'there's still no reason he can't become Hokage, but first I have to find him.' Still dazed as the reality of there situation struck him Konohamaru headed out of the cave and into the forest. He would find Naruto and everything would be OK.
The last thing he heard was something about the power of youth before everything went dark.
5555555
"Arrogance," the deep rumbling voice of Kyuubi seemed to rumble and vibrate through Naruto's head as he faced a familiar set of gates. The massive rusted boundary between the demon and the rest of Naruto's mind was exactly as Naruto remembered it. Even the Sewers still smelled bad.
"To think that such a fragile heap of mortal flesh would even THINK of taking on a being as ancient as a wraith astonishes me." Kyuubi had not lost any of his scorn for humanity even after being sealed within one for the last two decades.
"Reckless arrogance," the words seemed to spit out across the darkness.
"Bloody fox, what the hell do you want and what the hell was that gem." Naruto stood unflinchingly before the massive gates, no longer an uncertain and boastful preteen. He had seen and done too much to go back to being that naïve. Still he had not expected to find himself before this painful of his past reminder again, not since he had finished swallowing the demons strength.
"Even I, at the height of my power and comfortable in my own realm avoided such ancient beings. They exist as anti-chakra and can simply destroy by touch your ability to create chakra, surely you felt how your coils wreathed and struggled within you even at such proximity. A direct hit would mean certain death for you and oblivion for me." Even behind the gates Kyuubi's anger was impressive and frightening.
"And you recklessly ran into battle with one that even I would think twice about crossing," nine powerful tails raked the rusting gates and shaking the seemingly fragile paper seal binding them together. "Your arrogance will get us both killed," Kyuubi roared through the gates.
Naruto in an effort not to be cowed by such a fearful display in his own mind struggled to come up with a way to calm the demon. To his knowledge the seal had never been tested so harshly, "I have access to all your chakra demon, what makes you think I couldn't have taken it on when you yourself admitted that you..."
He trailed of at the sudden stillness and aura of rage that drifted through the sealed gates, this feeling was even more terrifying than what he had faced seconds before. If he had been facing Kyuubi without the seal as a crutch, Naruto would not be sure that he would have held his ground.
"Do you think that such a weak vessel such as you could even come close to wielding a fraction of my power? Your like a metal tap connected to an ocean, fatigue would set in before you tap even a tenth of my power, only your own minute chakra generation makes you stand tall in the mill pond you call home."
"Surely you have experienced the pain as the tap has cracked when you have turned it to hard, tried to open it to much," Naruto could. On the occasion he had drawn to deeply of the Kyuubi's reservoir of power he had felt his body start to destroy itself so quickly that not even his inhuman healing could keep up. That had been years ago.
Naruto he had always been led to believe that the ultimate purpose of the seal that bound Kuubi was to slowly drain the demons chakra and merge it into his own. When he had stopped receiving any additional power from the demon he had assumed that the seal had completed its work and that the occasional whispers from behind the seal were only remnants of the once powerful demon. He had not tried to tap what a reservoir he had thought empty.
In his bones he knew the demon was speaking the truth though, still it was something that went against everything he had been taught and experienced. It was a frightening thought to think that such a powerful demon was bound within him and it still held control over a vast amount of power.
"Then how can I fight this thing then, once I leave here it will have finished destroying my clones and that damned gem was in the process of doing as much damage as that near hit." If Kyuubi was even a little bit worried then his demand would not make a wit of difference in further agitating the demon.
At once the aura of rage and intimidation turned to one of smugness, "as soon as you touched the gem at the centre of this tower then the atmosphere became poisoness to the wraith. This tower was once a great weapon and the gem is the key to its use. It is one of five that bridged our two dimensions and stood against our destruction by those beings of anti-chakra. We have been unable to destroy them but with these towers we were able to hold the line."
"Bind?" Naruto frowned at the smug demon, he did not like the sound of that and could not help but feel unsettled by the image of a smug Kyuubi. 'After so long being sealed here anything that Kyuubi has to feel smug about properly would not be so good for me' thought Naruto. "Is that a good thing?"
"Do not worry you snivelling pile of mortal flesh with dreams of greatness, the process of binding will not harm you but I will not be surprised if I see you again soon." Naruto stared at the demon lord in confusion as rumbling laughter shook the smelly sewers. It did not escape his notice that he had not been given any more than the sketchiest details concerning the tower he found himself in, the gem he had grabbed or the 'Wraith' that had so easily picked apart his clones.
The details that he had received from the demon lord had only created more questions and worn the confidence that he had once felt about his own power and skills.
555555
An unseen light source reflected from a pair of blood red eyes revealing three black pips in place of an iris. Nothing of the face that the eyes belonged to was visible in the darkness giving the eyes a disembodied appearance.
"All Jounin level and high have been recalled Sasuke sama with the others still harrying the survivors of the leaf" Kabuto's voice almost hid the sense of superiority he held around himself.
"Good," Susuke didn't even blink at what had marked the end of a campaign which had utterly destroyed what had once been his home, the death of people who had once been his friends.
"Why did you betray him Kabuto?" The only sign of his curiosity was the circling of the three dark pips inside the disembodied blood red eyes. "You were his most trusted aide, how can I ever trust that you won't betray me in turn?"
"Orochimaru had lost sight of his ambitions Susuke sama. You have not and I don't believe you ever will."
Fading footsteps signalled Kabuto's exit, unanswered was his answer to the question of his loyalty.
Sign up to rate and review this story