63 Chapter 62

Chapter 62

Kaen was furious. He let Itachi use Tsukuyomi on him on purpose, as it would be the best way to communicate with him. Yet the bastard didn't have any intention of talking with him. Itachi put Kaen in genjutsu, which lasted seventy-two hours for him. He counted every second as he was tortured. And Kaen was furious now to let Itachi do this to him.

It was hard to keep his eyes open. Even though his body was fine, he still could feel pain lingering. He was awake for three days. His mind was shutting down. But he couldn't fall now, not when Itachi and Kisame were before him. And most importantly, he couldn't show any weakness before his subordinates. He was supposed to be the strongest shinobi in the village.

"Give up the Fourth Hokage's legacy, Kaen," Itachi said, his voice as cold as ever. "And I will leave the village."

"No, you won't, because I won't let any of you leave. One of you will have to stay here forever," Kaen said as he forced himself to stand before them. "Did you think I would be alone? I am the Fifth Hokage of Konoha. And you are a terrorist. A criminal. The whole village is by my side while you are alone."

"Heh, and where are they now? Let me guess, on their way," Kisame grinned as he holstered his sword on his shoulder.

"They were always here," Kaen replied as forty shinobi with masks surrounding them revealed themselves. "I came out to play, but now the games are over."

"That's more like it," Kisame didn't look even a bit afraid.

"Enough," Itachi, on the other hand, knew that even he couldn't defeat all of them. "He isn't in the village anymore, is he?"

"Isn't that why you attacked?" Kaen asked back. "Because you know Jiraiya wasn't here too."

"We leaving, Kisame."

"No, you aren't," Kaen dismissed Kakashi's hand and stepped forward.

"You barely can stand," Itachi stated, and it felt like Itachi was looking down on him. "Kakashi is too tired. And the rest aren't on our level. So, to stop us, you must ask how many are you ready to sacrifice."

"Thirty minutes," Kaen replied as he ignored the pain lingering from being sliced up over and over again. "That's how much time you have before I recover. And once I do, I will kill you."

"Then maybe we should finish this."

"Kisame," Itachi's voice was low but powerful. "We don't have time anymore. We didn't come to start a war."

"Fine, fine. And I finally got excited."

Kaen sat down on the ground as Itachi and Kisame disappeared before them. Kaen still wanted to bash that arrogant bastard's head wide open, but he let him go for the information he got. Itachi wouldn't be foolish enough to throw away an opportunity to give him information. So, it meant that Itachi had already said everything he had to say.

The Fourth Mizukage is dead, and so is the Three Tails. From the information he had about tailed beasts, Kaen knew it would take about two years to reform its physical form. And he had warned Kaen about Akatsuki's goal, even though Kaen already knew it. But most importantly, Itachi came to check on Kaen. He wanted to see how strong the Fifth Hokage was.

"Hokage-sama," Asuma was the first to address Kaen. "We should chase after them."

"Leave it," Kaen replied, but he, too, wanted to kill Kisame at least.

"We could have fought and defeated them," Asuma didn't let it go.

"We could have," Kaen agreed, making him even more frustrated. "But if the fight dragged deeper into the village, will you be responsible for all the innocent deaths? No, you won't. Because you aren't the Hokage. This isn't a battlefield. Our duty is to protect the village, not wage war."

"Enough, Asuma," Kakashi silenced his comrade before he could say more. "Itachi and Kisame still had plenty of strength and powers they hadn't shown. It would cost us too much to fight them."

"But we can't let them go so easily."

"You don't know anything," Kaen replied, getting angrier with each moment as Itachi saw through his bluff. "Kisame took Chidori and shrugged it off. My arrows could barely pierce his skin, and the poison didn't work on him. Itachi had two more abilities that could instantly kill any of us apart from the genjutsu he used against me. You know nothing about them, and yet you want to fight them. It is a foolish decision that a Jonin should not make if it isn't necessary."

"The Fifth Hokage is right, Asuma," Hiruzen Sarutobi walked in. Too bad he didn't come in sooner. "You should be happy that no one lost their lives when it could have ended differently."

"Observe them while they are in the Land of Fire," Kaen ordered the ANBU. "But to not confront them unless it is necessary. Two teams are to inform Jiraiya of what happened and provide all the support he asks for. You three can leave and rest up."

Kaen pointed at Kakashi, Asuma and Kurenai. As they left, Kaen turned to Hiruzen. Kaen motioned the previous Hokage to follow him to his office. Kaen could barely keep his mind awake, but he still had enough strength to return to his office. His talk with Hiruzen couldn't wait any longer. And Hiruzen knew that too, as he could see Kaen struggle but said nothing of it.

"What did Itachi say?" Hiruzen asked as they stepped into the office.

"The Fourth Mizukage is dead, and Akatsuki is after the Nine-Tails."

"They want Naruto?" Hiruzen asked, surprised.

"Yes," Kaen answered as he quickly sat down. "But that is enough. You are not on active duty anymore, Hiruzen. And I only inform you out of respect for you. But I forbid you to interfere with any further. Is that clear?"

"I trust your judgment, Kaen," Hiruzen replied, looking at the ceiling, clearly unsatisfied with Kaen's instructions but still listening. "I won't interfere with anything, but I must know everything."

When Hiruzen returned his gaze to Kaen, he found the Fifth Hokage passed out on the table. Hiruzen checked Kaen's condition, and after seeing that he was sleeping, he left the office. Hiruzen was concerned about Kaen and the village. But he knew he would only get in the way, so he left everything in others' hands.

…

Shikamaru walked around the village absentmindedly. The Hokage's words rang into his ears. It would be easy to return to the Hokage's office and tell the Fifth Hokage that he thought about his words but still decided to take responsibility for a chunin. He wanted to say he was ready but knew he wasn't.

He saw how Sasuke, Naruto, and Shino fought. Even Hinata showed her determination and hard work. But what did he have to show? The Fifth Hokage was right. Shikamaru didn't look at being a shinobi seriously. He didn't train, he didn't study. Everything came to him easily; he understood everything taught quickly, so he stopped trying.

"Have you heard? Itachi has returned to the village and fought the Fifth Hokage?"

Shikamaru stopped strolling around the village as he heard two shinobi speaking to each other. He had heard Itachi's name but couldn't remember where. But someone fighting Hokage got his full attention. And he needed to find out more about it. He considered asking the shinobi that spoke of it, but he didn't need to as they talked without his prodding.

"It wasn't only the Hokage. Even Asuma and Kakashi were involved, and only the interference of the ANBU made Itachi back off."

"What was Itachi Uchiha even doing here? After killing his clan, I thought he would never return?"

"Maybe he came back to finish what he started. After all, Hokage-sama is an Uchiha too."

"We are talking about Kaen Uchiha here. He fought Orochimaru. Does Itachi think he can defeat him?"

"It didn't look like Hokage-sama had the upper hand as he had to let Itachi go."

"So, are you saying that even Hokage-sama isn't strong enough to face Itachi?"

Shikamaru wasn't strolling around anymore. He was running. He ran to Sarutobi estate as fast as he could. It was already shocking to hear that someone fought the Hokage, but hearing that even with Kakashi-sensei and Asuma-sensei, they couldn't defeat their opponent was beyond anything he could have imagined. The idea that they could even be defeated never has occurred to him.

"Sensei!" Shikamaru yelled out as he saw Asuma-sensei on a terrace sitting. "Is it true that Itachi Uchiha has returned to the village?"

"Shikamaru," Asuma turned to Shikamaru and sighed tiredly. "Rumors have already spread. Damn those idiots."

"It would have happened sooner rather than later," Shikamaru almost broke his neck when he heard someone else sitting with Asuma."

"Hokage-sama," Shikamaru never felt so embarrassed before.

"Sit down, boy," Hiruzen Sarutobi motioned for a seat for Shikamaru. "And I am no longer the Hokage."

"Why did you come, Shikamaru?" Asuma asked.

"I heard that Itachi Uchiha has attacked the village and fought you and Hokage-sama."

"Are you worried for your sensei, Shikamaru-kun?" Hiruzen asked, probably amused at Shikamaru's reaction.

"Is he really that strong that Hokage-sama had to let him leave?"

"He is," Asuma answered, but Shikamaru could tell his sensei didn't like it. "And he wasn't alone. Itachi has come with one of the Seven Swordsmen of the Mist."

"So even Hokage couldn't defeat him?" Shikamaru was shocked.

He wasn't stupid enough not to know that there is always someone stronger. But it was the first time someone challenged his belief that someone was stronger than his sensei and Hokage. He grew up hearing stories of feats that the previous Hokage had accomplished. Kakashi was a genius shinobi, Asuma was one of the Twelve guardian shinobi, and Kaen was taught by two of the Sannin.

"There comes a time for anyone to realize that the world is bigger than one could imagine," Hiruzen said. "But don't feel discouraged. The current generation is more talented than the previous. One day, you will grow as strong if not stronger than the legends you have heard about."

"Talent alone can't make one strong," Shikamaru replied as his eyes dropped to the ground. "Sorry, sensei, I have to go."

Kaen Uchiha was right. He didn't have what it took to be a shinobi. Shikamaru returned to his home and took off his headband. He didn't deserve it, nor did he want it. He hasn't put in even half of the effort others have. How could he stand or even lead them? Shikamaru knew that others couldn't accept it, and he couldn't accept it either.

Shikamaru knew he could depend on others. But he didn't have strength, and he knew that because of him, someone else would have to pay the price for his laziness. Shikamaru collapsed on the floor, looking at the ceiling. It felt like the world around him was crashing down, and he couldn't do anything to stop it.

"What got you down so much?" Shikamaru looked at the doorway to his room where his father stood.

"Why, you ask?"

"Because you are lying on a dirty floor," Shikaku answered. "I know you are too lazy to clean your room, but you wouldn't lay on dirt, as washing your clothes would be even more troublesome."

"Hokage has offered me a promotion to Chunin."

"I know."

"He doesn't think I am ready or will ever be. He said I should give up on being a shinobi."

"Do you think the same?"

"I didn't," Shikamaru replied. "But now I do. I barely put any effort into anything I did. I don't deserve the promotion. I don't even know why I am a shinobi in the first place."

"When I became a shinobi, I had no choice," Shikaku said. "The village needed shinobi, and I was from one of the most prestigious clans in the village. Heir to Nara clan."

"So I am," Shikamaru said.

"But you have a choice," Shikaku replied. "If you don't want to be a shinobi, don't be. But if you give up because someone has hit you with a dose of reality, you will never be anyone. If you aren't ready, then become ready."

"I heard that Itachi has returned to the village and fought Hokage," Shikamaru said. "Hokage couldn't defeat him, so what could I do? What could I do if someone as strong as Itachi ever came for my friends?"

"You could fight for them," Shikaku replied.

"I am not strong enough!"

"Nobody ever is. But shinobi aren't people who are strong, but people who are ready to endure for their village, for their friends and family. No matter how hard it is, shinobi must endure. And I know that if Ino or Choji ever fought with someone they could not defeat, you would still fight them if it meant protecting you. Even knowing that they would be defeated and killed. Because we fight not because we are strong, but…"

"Because we must endure," Shikamaru finished. "Can you teach me? I want to be stronger."

He might never be as strong as others. But at least he could try. Like Hokage said, Shikamaru would regret it if he didn't do his best. Even if it was too late to start, he had to try. He couldn't let his friends down. It would be more troublesome to hear Ino whine about him giving up either way. So, he will do his best.

A.N. As always, If you want more, up to seven advanced chapters, you can support me on pa treon. com \ ironwolf852. And if you have any requests for stories, I will only take them on my pa treon.