Chapter 101 : Planning for Dawn (1)

Daybreak is coming, and they wish to have what does not belong to them.

Peace through pain is admirable, but not acceptable. The Bijuu are not mindless beasts. I will not sacrifice their freedom for the grandiose dream of a man who thinks himself a god.

My Will of Fire is as bright as the sun, and the Akatsuki will soon know that they are nothing before the very thing that dawn heralds.

...

Tsunade couldn't help but shiver slightly as the cold wind brushed against her body. She was standing in the middle of quite a few fallen bodies, all littering the ground in a motionless display of slaughter.

Each body was garbed in a red cloak, and each body had been both human and puppet. And these few were only the ones that still existed. The others… they had been turned to ash in the blink of an eye by a monster.

The entire grass clearing had been destroyed. The land was cracked and spider-webbed for miles. The air was thick with ash, casting a dark setting over those who remained alive.

A good portion of the surroundings was soaked in chakra-laced water, a testament to the powerful Suiton battle that had taken place not twenty minutes ago.

The entire area was covered in the brightest, most potent chakra the Sannin had ever felt before. So saturated was the clearing with chakra that she could practically taste it. Death itself had touched this place, and she had never seen such power from anyone in all her years.

Uzumaki Naruto, the Bringer of Hope – who Tsunade firmly believed was the harbinger of death – singlehandedly ended the lives of three S-ranked shinobi. That in and of itself was a scary thought.

S-ranked shinobi were shinobi who were capable of becoming a Kage, and a boy of thirteen had fought and killed three of them. That, however, was not the most frightening thing. No, what truly terrified her was the fact the boy did it all with a smile on his face that spoke of dark excitement.

The blond craved for blood, and blood he was given – blood he took.

The puppet master from Suna, Sasori, his name was, had showed them all things thought impossible with the secret art of the desert walkers. The man – who still looked like a child – had summoned the Sandaime Kazekage, a shinobi who was known to be one of the most powerful ninja from the wind country.

His appearance was that of a puppet, but he still possessed the Satetsu (Iron Sand), which was a huge contribution to his fame. Naruto had been disgusted with the "human puppet", and expressed said disgust by smashing the thing to pieces.

The Satetsu proved formidable, but the Kamikage had met each construct of Iron Sand with a larger Rasengan, and within minutes, the Third Kazekage had been reduced to dust.

What happened next had surprised everyone. If quality couldn't defeat the blond, then maybe quantity could, or that's what Sasori had thought at the time. He, however, was proven wrong shortly after he displayed his trump card, his most powerful technique.

His nation slayer.

The Akahigi: Hyakki no Soen (Red Secret Technique: Performance of a Hundred Puppets) was indeed the pinnacle of puppetry, but, like everything else in the world…

It was not enough to claim the life of the Godslayer.

While the literal army of human puppets stared down the scariest shinobi born since the Yondaime, Kisame had been forced to face the legendary toad Sannin.

Jiraiya wasn't one to get so excited for battle like his godson, but when he was actually in the battle, with an unending source of Natural Energy running through his tenketsu, one couldn't help but to get excited.

It was a thrill the likes of which were greater than peeping, and that was saying something for the old, perverted man.

Sasori had thought he had a chance with his hundreds of puppets ready to strike at the Jinchuuriki even the Shinigami was wary of. That was, until that monstrous smile twisted his face. In that moment, Sasori had known that everything had been for not.

For in that moment, he and his entire puppet army was reduced to ash by the most incredibly brilliant Katon jutsu any of them had ever seen. Tsunade had only ever seen the technique twice before in her entire life.

The first time she witnessed it was during the Second Shinobi World War, when her sensei, Sarutobi Hiruzen, had used it to reduce a significant force of Kumo-nin to nothing. She had been just as awe-struck as she was when Naruto let it loose.

The second time she was made witness to the technique was at the beginning of the Third Shinobi World War, and again, it was her sensei that had used it. This time, it was against Iwa-nin. The shinobi of Iwa had successfully pushed back Konoha forces to the point where they were nearly at Hi no Kuni's border.

The Sandaime had no choice but to make an appearance, since the star player of the war was already busy with another battle with Kumo. He had taken Tsunade with him, and together, the two easily pushed them back.

That, however, was not enough. Hiruzen wanted to make sure they knew just whose home they were trying to enter. The Sandaime may have been older than most shinobi, but the youngsters of Iwa knew better than to poke the dragon that had slumbered in Konoha for many years.

To remind them of this, the Third God of Shinobi brought Iwa to their knees with a single technique. Looking back at just how powerful her sensei had been, she could understand how he could command someone… something, like Uzumaki Naruto.

That had been the second time she had seen the Katon: Goka Mekkyaku (Fire Release: Majestic Destroyer Flame), which had originally been an Uchiha technique.

Apparently, the Sandaime had passed it down to his shadow, because Tsunade was shown the absolutely terrifying fire technique for the third time in her life that day. She had thought her sensei had made it huge, but when the Kamikage let it loose, the jutsu consumed everything.

The multitude of human puppets that littered the ground was the lucky ones, because the majority – along with their master – had been reduced to nothing but ash.

Sasori of the Red Sand had been terminated by a child who smiled while he watched him burn.

When the Suna missing-nin was erased from existence, Naruto had turned his gaze to Kisame, who was giving Jiraiya a run for his money.

The Kiri-born shinobi had been a powerful ninja even before he left Kiri, and Mei had told him stories of the great swordsman who still carried Kiri's prized blade, Samehada.

Tsunade had thought his previous smile was sinister, but the one he gave when he looked at the shark-like man literally sent fear into her body, and she could even see Jiraiya and Naruto's students back away from him.

Shizune, the poor girl, was forced to cower behind her the entire time, the kind of battle that was taking place since they arrived being far ahead of her level.

The monster had awoken, and no one was safe.

If they got caught in the crossfire, it was their own fault. At that moment, Tsunade knew that, even as the Godaime Hokage, she'd never truly control Uzumaki Naruto.

No one could.

The Senju-hime couldn't decide whether Kisame was brave or stupid when he met Naruto's monstrous smile with one of his own. The shark-like grin only seemed to make Naruto all the more excited, and the fact that Jiraiya literally picked Shizune up and fled really explained just how dangerous his godson was.

Tsunade had known that Jiraiya had surpassed both she and Orochimaru when he mastered Sage Mode, even though she'd never admit it. And if a master Sage was terrified of something, it was a sign to hide and pray that whatever that something was didn't care enough about you to be bothered with killing you.

It was a sign of death, plain and simple.

Jiraiya had taken her, Shizune, Sasuke and Gaara all the way back to Tanzaku-gai in his haste. There, she and the four shinobi just faced the direction the two powerful monsters were to battle, and from there, they could feel the monstrously large chakra the two were washing the surroundings with.

The fact that Hoshigaki lasted as long as he did surprised even Jiraiya, and Tsunade wasn't sure how she felt about the two younger boys who were just smiling. The red-headed one was a Jinchuuriki who could perfectly – and safely – unleash his Bijuu, and even revert back to his human form just as easily.

That kind of control over a Bijuu was unheard of unless you were a Kumo-nin, and she wasn't sure why, but the young Uchiha unnerved her. His eyes were covered by cloth, yet he had no problems seeing at all, and the way he held himself was not what you'd see in one so young.

He felt… cold, dark, ominous, yet… she could see a passion in him, a strong passion to protect.

These boys were so difficult to read, and so very, very strange.

After the tremors died down, and the scary amounts of chakra stopped spiking, Jiraiya had led them back to where Naruto was, and Tsunade couldn't help but freeze at what she saw.

It was a war-zone. That was the only way she could describe what she was seeing.

She blinked again, and Naruto was in front of her, his clothing torn asunder, staring at her with curious eyes. She didn't back down, though. She held his gaze with her own, gilded orbs beholding bronze ones, and after ten seconds, the blond smirked, bowing his head to his fellow blonde.

"Mission complete, Hokage-sama." He said. His eyes still held hers, but instead of a scrutinizing expression, he held a bemused one.

It would seem she passed whatever test he had given her. She was accepted as the next Hokage in his eyes.

Tsunade just nodded to him, not trusting her voice as she looked at what the clearing was reduced to. Large scars ran across the ground. The green grass was wet with Suiton-laced chakra.

The ash that coated the air felt damp, almost, if that was even possible. A war between two master Suiton users had been fought here. A war between two inhuman shinobi had been fought here. A war between monsters had been fought here… and Tsunade felt… oddly pleased.

That feeling that had escaped her for many, many years was still blazing in her body, her very veins feeling hot. The Will of Fire was once again ignited within her, and it had never been so fierce before. She no longer felt cold or alone.

Now, she felt like a proud kunoichi, and even though she was still slightly bitter at the village for taking everything she'd ever loved away from her, she was… content with her new life. She would become the Godaime Hokage. She would become Konohagakure no Sato's first female Kage, and she would lead the village into a new era, with this harbinger of death at her side.

She may have lost everything, but if she gave it her everything, maybe, just maybe, she could make sure that what she'd gone through wouldn't happen to anyone else. With the Will of Fire… the will to defend her home and people, she felt like she could do anything. This boy… this shinobi… this monster… he had given it back to her…

Naruto showed her how to feel again.

So lost in her thoughts was she that she didn't even notice the strange, blue thing in his hands until just now. Raising an eye brow, Tsunade began. "What… is that?" She asked, confused. The blond was holding it by a hilt, which made it even the stranger. It was bulky, with a scale-like surface and… a mouth? Was… was that thing alive?

Naruto smirked, bringing the item up triumphantly, his eyes expressing his happiness. "Samehada," he spoke, "The greatest sword to ever come out of Kiri." He swung the sword in a skilled motion, and the blade hummed appreciatively. He chuckled. "I think it likes me."

"You took Kisame's blade from him?" Jiraiya asked. "Very nice, kid." He nodded in approval, his trademark grin on his still Sage-marked face. Natural Energy was… in a way, addicting. It was a very dangerous force of nature, something no man, no matter how strong, would ever take lightly.

There had only been a handful of people in all existence who had been able to use it and even fewer who could master it. Jiraiya fell into the former category, until Naruto shared his secrets, and now, he was the latter. With it, almost anything was possible.

Sage Mode instantly placed the man or woman who could use it effectively as an S-ranked shinobi. It was one of the most deadly things ever discovered of the natural world. However, most could never sustain the energy for very long, thus, not many people could truly appreciate it.

Now that Naruto could use Unity to link them together, supplying him with plenty Natural Energy, Jiraiya could see why Naruto was so battle-craved. With this much power, this much raw strength constantly running through his veins, there was almost nothing more pleasing than to fight.

It was an odd sensation for someone who wished for peace, but it was because of that peace-seeking disposition that he could perfectly control his emotions. Thus, the reason had yet to drop Sage Mode. It felt too good, and if Naruto wanted to keep the link going, he wasn't about to tell him otherwise.

"What you did with Kisame himself, was also "very nice", sempai." Tsunade's eyes widened. That voice… that voice belonged to…

"Thank you, sensei," Naruto nodded to his godfather, "Karasu." He finished, glancing at the dead body of his very first human friend.

All eyes followed Naruto's, and within seconds, a murder of crows was born from the very air itself, and from those crows, a lonely figure walked forth, his crimson eyes as analytical and stoic as ever.

He was a man whose name was whispered in every nation, and feared just the same. He was Uchiha Itachi, the man who slaughtered his entire clan in the dead of night.

Tsunade and Shizune, who was standing next to Sasuke and Gaara, were shocked to see the missing-nin still breathing. They had for sure seen Naruto end his life at the very beginning of all the fighting.

A harsh silence fell over the destroyed clearing. No one moved. Tsunade watched the missing-nin stare back at the Kamikage with undeterminable eyes. The slug Sannin began to inch herself closer and closer to Shizune, ready to defend the woman she had begun to look at like a daughter, or attack the Uchiha traitor alongside her fellow blond.

Speaking of her fellow blond, why was he so… relaxed?

She was given her answer when Naruto smirked, walking over to S-ranked shinobi and putting his arm out to him, his hand clenched into a fist.

For a second, Itachi did not respond, and Tsunade watched the confrontation with wide, unbelieving eyes. And then, with a smirk the mirrored the blond's, Itachi bumped his fist to Naruto's, a universal sign of friendship.

What the hell was going on here?

...

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