Katsu shot a glare at Natsumi. "You think anyone here has bad enough of an aim to miss two out of four shots by that much?" he snapped. Of course he had a plan. The kunai that he had missed were the ones flying towards Kenta. The wind shuriken should be enough to slow anyone down when they're going at a speed like that. If they couldn't react, they'd get wounded so badly they wouldn't be able to fight. If they could react, they'd have to step back. To most people's surprise, the explosive tags didn't ignite at all. They remained attached to the kunai, sometimes being lifted by the wind. He saw the fireball and weaved several hand seals and shot violent winds with dust towards it, speeding it up and making it deadlier with the destructive nature of the technique.

Halting the acceleration through the Land of Fire, Takeo had found himself two and a half miles away from the battlefield, instead stopping at a large clearing where the 4th Hokage sat. One arm rested on his right knee, and he appeared focused on a single spot that was severely scorched, kunai and shuriken both embedded into the ground. Approaching quietly and stopping only until he was directly beside his former student did Takeo think of raising questions. Nikuya was Kenji’s objective and judging by how far he had pushed her away from Konoha he had ultimately succeeded in keeping her from causing any lasting damage to Konoha, as was the plan.

“Did you kill her?”

“Ran away, as we expected. Nikuya was never a huge concern …not after what you and I have dealt with.” Kenji looked up towards Takeo, noticing that there wasn’t a single scratch on him. He knew that Takeo was one of the most skilled shinobi alive, but had at least expected a scratch somewhere. When he began to think about it, he didn’t expect Shinji to ever have a scratch either; only the strongest of the strong tended to be able to touch any of them, and there were very few who could claim to be capable of it. Most of those who had the potential to were dead, and the one that nearly killed him was far from this place. “I take it everything went well if you’re here.”

“Something like that. There’s something you should read.” Takeo handed Kenji the scroll he had pocketed, and quietly allowed the Hokage to read the contents. As expected there wasn’t very much change to be had; Kenji was equally unimpressed with the Empress’ terms and, like Takeo, wanted her to answer for how many lives she destroyed. The two sat in silence for several moments even after Kenji finished reading it, until finally he had spoken.

“Part of me wants to hide this and treat it as a sick joke …but the Hokage in me knows better. The Empress killed the last person who had wanted this war to end without violence.”

“What do you think the Mist would say?”

“I doubt Takeshi and Kotomi want to shake hands with the woman who has the blood of the 5th Mizukage, their father, stained on them. I also doubt that the village as a whole would want to hear it.” Kenji picked himself up, picking up the shuriken and kunai he had expelled at Nikuya during the height of the battle they shared. The talk of peace was destroyed a long time ago. “If the Mist did their job, and they do their job well, then this leaves two territories secured for us. Suna is becoming friendlier to the Empire, Kumo’s military was completely destroyed and those that remain are criminals.” Kenji looked over his shoulder at Takeo, both knowing the state of Iwagakure. “We’ll discuss Iwagakure after we gather our strength, but for the time being it’s off-limits.”

Takeo crossed his arms and looked towards the setting of the sun; stars had begun to shine in the sky and tonight would be one of celebration for the people. Suna was growing less contested and more ‘pro’ for the Empire, but it was also one of the closest locations to the Leaf. Things were going to get interesting very soon. “Let’s head back, there’s something I’d like to discuss with you.”

The two vanished, yet by the time they returned Takeo and Kenji both expected things to be coming to an end.

-

The roar of Kenta’s chakra was extraordinary, so much so that it was a little deafening to Kaede’s ears. Those pills he swallowed were something special to the Akimichi Clan and a great source of power, and this would be quite a fight for anyone right now. Her body was still shaky from the force used to knock her backwards, but getting back to her feet wasn’t a significant issue. The Bykaugan reappeared once again to help her better defend herself, and she had begun to bend her knees just as Kenta had begun charging. There was a plan of her own that Kaede wanted to put into motion, but there was no way she could announce it to anyone.

Shuriken with cutting power enhanced by wind style ninjutsu had come spiraling by, cutting between her and Kenta. Katsu’s efforts weren’t in vain; the simple move had forced Kenta to leap high into the air, fist still heavy with power. This offered an opportunity Kaede did not wish to miss, and she had begun to prepare for a ‘counterattack’. Karela’s effort, while caring, only served to make her stumble over and out of harm’s way to leave herself open for receiving a harsh blow. Raising her palm and thinking quickly, Kaede was quick to make use of her Air Palm to save Karela, who was acting careless all of a sudden. This was once again becoming one of those times where the Hyuga clan demanded representation; the Angel of the Leaf did not earn her Jounin rank without some tactical skills and a strong voice. It was thanks to the efforts of Natsumi that Karela could be blown out of the vicinity with wind ninjutsu, as well as a deadly set of explosive kunai Katsu had thrown from afar. Were it not for that maneuver, she might’ve needed to avoid the kunai as well.

Natsumi had gone off a little on the two and Kaede couldn’t find it in herself to defend them. Dren had been stunned to the point he hadn’t moved or spoken yet, which meant that this may have become a four on one match with someone who still had triple their experience and likely power as well. The clashing of men and women surrounding them had brought the seals that many of her comrades carried life, and Kaede had leaped backwards several feet to bring focus to them. For a short while she’d need to ensure that no more casualties for Konoha be met, and so clasping her hands together Kaede quietly accelerated the feeding of chakra. Katsu would be able to feel it most of all, being the closest one with the seal in her vicinity. Explosions and cries of pain racked her ears, yet her nerves were steeled for it all.

For the time being …you must all work together without me …

-
Kenta crashed into the ground with his fist, dismantling the earth below with devastating force. He had registered everything; the shuriken thrown at him, in spite of wind ninjutsu backing it, was easily leaped over with his momentum not being affected. Kaede was just below him, and with a forward flip he began to descend towards her rapidly. As a friend of the girl and with knowledge of the Hyuga clan’s techniques he was more than aware she had plenty of options of dealing with such a straightforward maneuver. That idea changed once another girl had jumped in the way, throwing off the possible counterattack Kaede had planned and instead …stood there? Coming to her rescue just as his fist was inches away from her head was Natsumi, knocking her and the troublesome explosive kunai that had come from Katsu beyond his range. With his fist returning to normal, Kenta was obviously unscathed minus some dust on his right fist.

A timely rant from Natsumi had shown serious complications with the small band of ninja. He had noticed that there was an overwhelming desire to protect the medic of the group, which was basically their best chance at keeping alive should things go wrong. The other Hyuga in question hadn’t reacted much at all, which to Kenta likely meant he was probably the weakest of the bunch in spite of being the oldest of them all. The boy was eager to cover his comrade and performed fairly well given the situation, but what if his comrades hadn’t been relocated and he chose to endure the explosion? They would likely have sustained the same amount of damage by being so close. And Natsumi …well, the fire in her heart burned strong, and the release of the Uchiha clan’s signature technique had come barreling towards him. A claim of him not dying was sent his way.

“That’s not your choice to make, Natsumi!” Turning on his heel to face her, his left palm had grown, markings covering the surface with visible chakra covering it entirely. Thrusting it forward, the burning sensation on his palm was uncomfortable but but more bearable than what would have happened had his palm been unprotected. The fire ninjutsu the girl used was powerful, but Kenta’s experience and quick-thinking was shown to be more than one of them could handle alone. As it turned out, Katsu had remained in the path of Natsumi’s attack and had resorted to bickering with her as well in the middle of a battle. This alarmed Kenta greatly, and he was momentarily at a loss for words. Looking between the two Uchiha, and then towards the girl he didn’t know, the Hyuga who had ultimately proved a little slower and weaker than one might expect, and Kaede herself Kenta had seen the true issue here.

“ARE YOU BICKERING CHILDREN, OR ARE YOU THE NEXT GENERATION OF THE HIDDEN LEAF!?!?” Kenta roared, obviously insulted by this pitiful display amongst the people that bickered. The former instructor within Kenta was emerging in spite of him knowing that all ties to the Leaf were to be broken. No longer could he kid himself; as long as he drew breath, he’d always hold the Leaf’s best interests at heart and it was just a matter of him believing in a different path than his friends and family. This was so embarrassing he was starting to wish the poison spreading in his body worked faster. “YOU THERE!” Kenta pointed towards Karela. “IF YOU HAVE ENOUGH TIME TO ASK ME TO DO MY WORST, YOU HAVE ENOUGH TIME TO TRY AND AVOID MY ATTACK, OR BETTER YET TRY TO COUNTER IT LIKE KAEDE WAS DOING!” his brown eyes filled with disgust, he turned his attention towards Katsu. “CARELESSLY USING EXPLOSIVE TAGS WITH YOUR COMRADE SO CLOSE TO ME? YOU SHOULD BE ASHAMED OF YOURSELF!” unless Kaede and Katsu had managed to work together in the past, he doubted that she knew the plan since Kaede was obviously prepared to attempt something.

Taking a deep breath, the Akimichi had tried to calm down a little more. His days teaching newly-made genin hadn’t quite left him, and in some ways he was still the instructor he needed to be. As it stood, none of them were perfect. “Natsumi, even you …you had time to save that girl, but you didn’t take advantage of me being in the air? That saddens me. None of you are exempt, so either you band together as comrades, or you die together as children. AM I CLEAR!?” Kaede was focusing on tending to her comrades, hoping that the others could maintain his attention. This allowed their forces to better combat the troops that had chosen to remain behind with him, and it was a wise choice. No communication necessary; they knew who she was and what her primary task was, and Kenta would keep that in mind. Reaching behind him and retrieving a flash bomb, he had thrown it into the ground and set it off, hoping to blind all those nearest him. As users with eye-based Kekkei Genkai, they would often rely on their eyes a lot without being used to fighting without them. In the several seconds of vulnerability he hoped to gain, Kenta would emerge from the brightest point emitted as a rolling ball of destruction: The Human Bullet Tank had gone careening off towards Katsu now, ignoring Karela, Natsumi, and both Hyuga.

“TIME TO LEARN THE HARD WAY!” he shouted perfectly fine as he sped towards Katsu, tearing up the ground beneath him.

Katsu was befuddled by the lecture he'd just received. He snapped back to reality when he heard the man's voice approaching him, he quickly raised his hands to weave handseals but he felt his eyes ache, seeing only a white flash. He quickly went on to weave the handseals in an effort to get out of the way. He took a gamble, using a reckless move that he would rarely use defensively. A pillar of fire flew up from the ground right in front of him with at least a meter of a radius(Fire Release: Hellfire). He knew that a wind attack like Fujin no Jutsu had a chance of hitting his comrades, which he was now more careful about. Kenta's lecture had affected him more than he'd expected it to. The boy hoped that the technique would be good enough to make his opponent either detour long enough to regain his sight. If not, if Kenta rushed through the fire, the impact would most likely be reduced by the pain caused by the intense flames.

As the flames rose, he raised his arms in defense, a kunai in one of his hands, preparing for impact.

The answer given was much like the woman who gave it, in many ways - gentle, but backed by a fierce compassion that bordered on the obsessive. There were few things in the world as cheap as words, and there were people who would have tried to lie through their teeth when posed with the daunting request to make a case for an entire faction's ideals - but from even the few moments that she had spent stood there, listening intently, Kinuko was fairly sure that Kaede could make that request as accurately as possible bar none. Her points were heartfelt, and if nothing else this proved that Kaede was indeed a genuinely caring person, but emotions did not factor into the fate of the world.

Kaede had made an error, however, in assuming that Kinuko thought herself able to change the fate of the world alone. Kinuko's sense of perspective had changed her thought process and use of language considerably more than she had assumed it would - somewhat ironically - and her mannerisms often came across as arrogant to the uninitiated in those regards. Even behind the cool neutrality, people would always think of Kinuko's words as those that felt as if they belonged to a higher power, and with no god in sight Kinuko became that higher power. It was far from the truth, but in the interest of balance it was not something that she often discussed with people. Katsu, too, had made an error - though his was significantly more grievous than his superior's. Kinuko stood for, above all else, balance. There were times and places where certain actions were meant to happen in order to ensure the continuity of the world, and appropriate death was one of them. Katsu's death was not supposed to occur at that time, and so it was not his time. When his time came, Kinuko would certainly be among the first to remind him of that fact - either as an ally, or as an enemy.

"This world has undergone much, Rebels of Konohagakure. For each era in history, the people have fought for the freedom that they believe they deserve at the cost of all else, and with their combined efforts over countless eons they have won. Perhaps this eventual victory is as integral to the cycle that governs this world as the wars that rise to oppress the freedom that you crave. I would have liked to think that this world was ready to lay down its arms... And perhaps, in your hearts, some of you are. But not now, and not under the whims of the Empress. I will fight for your freedom... And I hope you understand what a miracle it is, to be free from oppression and famine and war, and that you treat your brethren with more humility and respect that a war like this never need arise again."

The speech could have been heard by one, a thousand, or none - but the declaration had been made, and nothing else beyond that point mattered. It seemed that the world was not yet ready to unilaterally usher in an age of peace under such violent means - the spirit of independence was strong within them, and while the Empress' vision was something Kinuko could understand, a vision meant nothing if the people were not willing to back it. One unit, no matter how powerful, no matter how significant, could never rule over an entire world that did not want them to rule. Perhaps Kinuko had underestimated the tenacity of the human spirit.

Kinuko would not, however, intefere with the battle with Kenta - it was clear to her that his last wish was to teach his former allies the most important lesson of all: Sacrifice was a necessity, and that no sacrifice should ever be taken in vain. It was a lesson the children would find hard to stomach, of that she had no doubt, but it was a lesson they all needed to learn. War was not glorious, and it was not honourable or desirable. War was the end of all things peaceful and beautiful, and it should have been treated with disdain from its very conception. When one learned to find the death of innocent people abhorrent, war became a difficult prospect indeed.

“YOU THERE!” Kenta pointed towards Karela. “IF YOU HAVE ENOUGH TIME TO ASK ME TO DO MY WORST, YOU HAVE ENOUGH TIME TO TRY AND AVOID MY ATTACK, OR BETTER YET TRY TO COUNTER IT LIKE KAEDE WAS DOING!”

Karela shook with rage as she snarled at Kenta. She had just arrived and now this man who had apparently betrayed his village...presumed to tell her what to do. It didn't take a lot to make Karela mad but now she was beyond mad.

She was bloodthirsty now. She wasn't going to stop until Kenta was dead.

"If you had a shred of honor or loyalty you wouldn't have done this!" She shouted back. "You were a shinobi of the hidden leaf! A defender of our village! What happened to your values Kenta Akimichi?! You have attacked fellow Shinobi that you once fought back to back with!" Karela looked over at Dren and snarled at him as well. "Dren! If you don't want to get hurt I'd start moving!" The Hyuga clan member shook his head for a moment and then ran over to Karela. "I take it you have a plan?" He asked carefully as he stared at Kenta Akimichi.

"You could say that." Karela said quietly as she analyzed the situation for a moment. "Dren. Stand by to hit him at close range. What I'm about to do might not work but if it does we have a chance. Katsu! Stand by to hit him with everything you have!"

Karela took a deep breath and made a series of complicated hand-signs and than slammed both hands on the ground hard enough that a small amount of blood appeared on the ground as Kenta charged at Katsu. Karela thought for a brief moment on what to do before she smiled darkly.

"Earth style: Earth Barrier jutsu!" She shouted as a massive thick wall of earth and stone appeared in the space between Kenta and Katsu.

And for my next trick... she thought as she brought her hands back up and made another series of hand-signs before slamming her hands on the ground again. "Earth Style: Enveloping Earth Coffin!" She shouted as a very thick layer of stone and earth shot up from the ground and quickly began to cover Kenta.

"Hit him now Dren!" She called out as the Hyuga shinobi shot forward towards Kenta.

Izari listened to the Empresses speech to them as she told them the real meaning about how freedom was earned and not a privilege. He wasn't sure if he could agree with that, every person has the right of choice since they are born with the ability choose, it is how they were created, so in a way freedom does come naturally. He couldn't understand how the empress could believe that taking away people's freedom as a right would help bring peace. History has proven that empires and nations never last forever and with an empire like this one, Izari could not foresee an era of peace. This empire is built on blood and blood that is not spilled for sacrifice to Ragulhu is a waste of life and power, Izari thought to himself. He would have had no problem with joining the rebels if his clan had not decided to align with the empire, but Izari was completely loyal to his kinsmen and family so he became a servant of the empire. Just then he saw an injured and barely standing Nikuya enter the chamber and Izari was surprised to see her in such a bad state.

When she explained the situation with Konoha, Izari knew that the rebels would eventually start to resist in a big way, and now they were being sent to the village hidden in the sands as an escort to try and get the other nations to sign a treaty. Izari could only guess how the other villages would respond to the treaty, and he could sense dark times ahead of them. He thought he felt his god give him the sign that the lands of the great nations and the empire would soon be flooded with blood. When they were allowed to leave Izari went to rest and think about the coming journey to the land of wind.

A pillar of flame had risen ahead of him, but Kenta had sped forward knowing that he could take a little heat, especially with enough chakra gathered around him to endure it. As long as he wasn’t standing directly in it, passing through it might mean a few minor burns here and there, but the Akimichi doubted that a boy as young as that could use incredible fire ninjutsu like Natsumi. If it was her fire, he might’ve taken extra precaution; you didn’t get the title of ‘Phoenix’ for nothing. In a surprising turn of events the young man hadn’t used it to try and encourage Kenta to steer in another path, but instead miraculously ran through his own fire, something he only heard of Natsumi doing, and was bracing himself for impact!

‘What the hell is this kid thinking!?!’ he thought, cutting back on his momentum only a little. Enduring a direct attack like this from a man double his size and three times his body weight was suicide. If Kenta intended to kill him, a direct blow like this would’ve done the trick, but with how he had slowed up he would suffer some broken bones. He thought that Uchiha were geniuses, Katsu was proving otherwise, and quickly. Thankfully someone, the loud girl who was quick to take a hit but not deal one, had shouted some words designed to upset him before creating a barrier between Katsu and Kenta. Although at full strength a barrier like that would prove nothing, slowing down had allowed him to collide with the wall and cause it to crumble slightly from impact but halted him altogether. Emerging from his expanded ball form, Kenta prepared for what came next.

“A little girl like you wouldn’t be able to understand why I’ve done what I have; to pretend otherwise is just that, pretend!” Karela hadn’t proven the most intelligent out of the small combatants thus far, and so anything he attempted to explain might not have been understood nearly enough. All that came from yelling at her was more yelling back. Her next jutsu involved surrounding him in stone, to which the Hyuga he had dealt with earlier came charging towards him as the walls surround him closed.

…

Well, that was it. Effectively shutting him into a tight space with no chance of gaining oxygen, the attack might have had greater effect if there was a combination of techniques that benefit the enemy. Instead, in the effort to protect Katsu Karela had limited his ability to see beyond the wall, and not only that rid herself and the others vision of him. Taking advantage of the mistake, Kenta had utilized the Hiding like a Mole technique, sinking underground to escape the prison and effectively make any follow-up Dren might have had even more useless. Her attack appeared to have mattered, but in reality the Akimichi had emerged behind Katsu and thrust an enlarged fist towards his back, intending to send him crashing through the crumbling wall that had stopped his initial attack on the boy.

By taking advantage of Karela’s carelessness, Kenta intended to punish her comrade for it rather than her, if only to show her the error of her ways. Not only did she make any follow-up Dren had useless, but she had also robbed two of the Uchiha beside her of vision they would have needed to be most effective. The only one who might’ve known he submerged was Dren but beyond that he couldn’t have possibly known where he went, which made it more of a mystery.

As Ryozan stood by the gate to Konoha, he sensed a sudden surge of chakra, likely caused by some artificial source. His hand hovered gingerly over the hilt of his blade, and his legs wanted to dash into battle, but he was not permitted to move. Slaying some stray groups of Imperial soldiers was one thing, but there was no way he would be able to justify participating in an organized attack to Takeo when the time came. This was his punishment, and yet this is what he had been doing for the past six months. His comrades were fighting for their home and, if all went well, they would return heroes. And what was he doing? He understood now why Takeo was so disgusted with him; it felt disgusting to sit here and watch with the ability to do something, but not the will. He only hoped that he hadn't learned this lesson too late...

Natsumi gritted her teeth in frustration. "He just can't help being a teacher, can he?" She grumbled to herself. Kenta had no intention of winning this battle, from the start he had decided to die. He was holding back, but so was she. Of course she could have intercepted him in the air, she could hit a shogi piece square in it's center at this range. She was capable of it, but she didn't have it in her to attack him knowing she could actually kill him. Unwanted memories kept barging into her mindscape, reminding her that who she was fighting was a friend. The tight grip on her fans lessened, wobbling in her shaking hands until she relinquished them to the ground. She didn't want to do this, she didn't want to be here. Natsumi wanted things to go back to normal, for her to enjoy having tea with Kaede and her cousin Makoto. Her legs buckled, and she fell to her knees and closed her eyes in shame. She was unable to move, the will was gone.

"Pathetic. Once again, you've shown me how pathetic you are." A deep voice that shook her soul snarled at her. Natsumi's body quaked, she felt helpless, she knew she was pathetic. "If you want to fight, all you need to do is give me control. Let go, Natsumi Uchiha." The nine-tailed fox tempted her, giving her a way out of this dreadful situation. All she had to do was let go, just a little. Letting go for just a moment couldn't be worse than this, it just couldn't.

Natsumi said nothing, but for a split moment, she thought that it wouldn't be so bad to give herself up to the power of the demon fox. A moment was all it took. A minute trace of demonic red chakra poured from her body, the feeling was both terrifying and euphoric. Her body swelled with power that was unfamiliar yet intoxicating. Sharp fangs protruded from her mouth, her nails sharpened into grotesque claws, and her eyes morphed into an abomination of tomoe and fierce feline pupils. Now, she could fight, it was the only thing on her mind.

Her eyes scanned the battlefield, taking in information to make up for her inattentiveness. A rocky dome, a crumbling wall. Structures that had not been there before, useless information, that wasn't what she was looking for. Her eyes scrolled over towards Kenta, and locked in place on him. He appeared to have just finished attacking someone, she didn't bother looking to see who it was, all she saw was an opening. Natsumi quickly grabbed her fans from the ground, and charged towards her target. Her feet were moving too slow, she had to arrive faster, faster or the opening would be wasted. Her body lit aflame with Righteous Immolation, it's fire swirling like a crazed storm as it mixed with the fox's chakra. Her right foot slammed into the ground, shattering it like glass and launching her forward. Her body spun in the air once, giving her just the right momentum to slice into Kenta with her fans as she arrived at his location. Searing hot wind blasted from her fans, making them dangerous to attempt to block.

Katsu's eyesight slowly returned to him and he saw the man's chakra digging into the ground. He quickly performed three hand seals as the man appeared behind him, not having noticed Natsumi charging. As Kenta's blow seemingly hit him, a small part of a tree's bark had replaced him with smoke. As the bark split in two, the kunai Katsu had thrown was revealed, the explosive tag behind it ignited. It exploded and Katsu stood in front of a tree, weaving the required hands for the Dust Cloud Technique. He blew the wind from behind the explosion towards where Kenta's chakra was. Now that he could see properly, he didn't have to worry about hitting the others. The fires from the explosion were now directed and concentrated, moving quickly and burning everything in its path to crisp.

As he used the technique, he noticed an immense source of chakra around Natsumi who was charging towards Kenta. He assumed it was a technique and continued fuelling his own.

The Conference Room

Upon being brought to the conference room for... A conference as Yakoul could observe o' so very well, the monster listened attentively to its undisputed female God take the stand and discuss something about peace and whatever kind of treaty involving Suna. Yakoul cared more about absorbing the sounds she was making and withholding the essential of the message. The peace part was quite mind numbing to the cat creature but the escorting what more than exciting because there was a chance to hunt down strong foes and then make them feel bad for confronting Shoko's almighty cat-pet whatever. It put Yakoul in another day dreaming state, already completely abandoning the idea that it had to knock out the human it had stored away, present from the autistic soldier sitting farther in the table in the conference room. All it could think about was appearing triumphant toward the Empress, such as taking an over-the-top pose on-top of the body of the Hokage upon finishing him off with delicacy and style.

The ridiculous fantasy would come to a halt when one of those annoying Jinchuuriki would barge in uninvited. Yakoul would glare at that individual who obviously had absolutely no manners toward the Empress. As it prepared to leap on the wounded girl, a trait Yakoul completely ignored out of sheer apathy, in order to teach her some tail-slapping manners, Shoko had been faster to react to her and didn't seem displeased about her jumping in out of the blue. Actually, the info the tailed-beast wielder gave were just marvelous. Yakoul couldn't help but relax its muscles after its small moment of anger infused stress with Nikuya's entrance. More rebels, more fighting, more food, more unfair deaths on tiny arrogant brats, more emotional bullshit. It made Yakoul have those butterflies again, the grin on its face had never been this creepy out of battle before. The rollercoaster of emotions Yakoul was going through would be forced into a complete stop when the Empress gave her last order: They had to wait TWO HOURS before leaving. It was like, FOREVER for Yakoul who was already sick of this rig. Il laid its arms on the large, round table before it and rested its well defined chin on them in order to rest its bored head over.

No one had said anything yet, Remi who was pretty much Yakoul's playmate when it was bored kept her slow demeanor, fixating things for apparently no reason. Yakoul fixated her in return as it purposely sat itself in a way so it could have her on its sight. Watching something barely move for more than three seconds was like death for Yakoul, especially without an order given by its master. So it had to improvise: Accumulating a large amount of currently unknown mass in its cheeks, it seemed like it was ready to vomit. It actually did, using its belly container ability to summon objects through its belly and release them orally allowed it to spew out a miniature mountain of balled up pieces of paper which were all drenched by the cat's saliva. It was totally ready to troll. Using its tail, it would flick ball after ball of wet paper toward Remi's stout figure as well as the BORING hornets that also came in as if they owned the place. It mostly aimed for the bugs' eyes just to be extra nasty toward the pranked one.

"Hey slow Remi. Sloooow-in-the-mind."

"Reeeeemi slow girl!"

"Anti-virgin of the slow weeessssst!"

"Oi slow bozo bug thing, talk to me."

"I'm booooooooooooooored Remi the bug. And Izari's compensation for a small dong made me frooooooooown!"

"Hey you're not a virgin, did he have it big or small? Did it matter? Ooooohhhh you should marry that slave thing you gave me."

It then span around on its chair, continuously flicking paper spit balls all over the place. It wanted attention, because it was bored. And a cat can get mischievous when it would want some attention. Yakoul couldn't tease the tentacle user because he bailed like the socially acceptable being he is, so Remi was the best bet. It would really suck if the random paper flinging would end up staining the Empress' glorious clothes...

Remi tilted her head to the side to dodge one of the projectiles. Just because she was deep in her own mind didn't mean that she wasn't paying attention. As one of the few that spent any amount of time around Yakoul, she was quite used to the cat-thing's odd version of "fun". One of her hornets, the one with the scorpion tail, decided to make a game of it. It striked each of the balls, impaling them on its venom encased tail. Once it had about three stuck on, it whipped its tail, sending them right back at Yakoul.

Another hornet, this one was colored red and black, also found enjoyment in the projectiles. It got struck by one and then burrowed into it. It vibrated its wings quickly, sparking a fire that consumed the ball within seconds. It then flew into another to continue its game.

Yet another hornet decided to take part in Yakoul's fun. This one was the most normal looking of the hornets, but that didn't mean much when the large, double set of mandibles were taken into account. Another thing that kept it from being "normal" was the fact that the hornet looked like a cross between a hornet and a praying mantis. This was one of the cross breeds she'd been experimenting with...and it had a temper. It snatched one of the projectiles out of the air and gripped it tightly. Using its mandibles, it cut the ball into pieces and stuffed them into its mouth. Once that was done, it fired them back at Yakoul in tiny pieces in a very rapid fashion.

"I don't remember much of that night. My wedding night." she replied. "I spent most of it asleep or delirious. The Mitarashi head made me take a lot of pills. Tried to make me normal." she stroked her thumb across the back of the Mantis Hornet's head. "This one wished to use my ex-husband's penis for protein for her brood." she chuckles a little bit. "Then use the hole to plant the brood. But, he's actions were not against the familial law. Only our Empress can pass judgment on him and the clan itself should she wish." she looked at the cat thing again.

"You wouldn't willingly give away a plaything. But, I'm sure she would appreciate a life rather than being tortured, eaten and her corpse raped. I'll offer her the choice."

“A little girl like you wouldn’t be able to understand why I’ve done what I have; to pretend otherwise is just that, pretend!”

"I don't presume to know what you did! All I know is that you betrayed everything you once stood for!" Karela decided that this was going to be the end of the conversation on her part. She wanted to bring Kenta down but all she was doing was screwing up the attacks of the others. Okay. Time to think this through. She decided. She slowly turned around as she sensed a massive surge of chakra and saw a girl with fans with chakra blazing around her.

Who...Who is that? She wondered in awe as Dren jumped back towards her as the girl with the blazing chakra attempted to get into position to slice into Kenta with her fans.

"Well. That didn't work." He said quietly. "Do you have any other plans?"

"I have one more." She said as she analyzed the situation and a plan began to take shape in her mind. "Dren. Stay back with your Byakugan. Keep an eye on him. I want you to keep an eye on him and let us know if he uses that damn escape technique again. It's the only way he could have escaped my earlier attack."

Karela made a rapid series of hand-signs and her eyes narrowed. This time it would hopefully go a bit better than last time. If she could hold Kenta in place the others might be able to hit him with a series of attacks that might at least wound him or possibly finish him off. All she needed to do was make sure it didn't cover him completely and they might have a chance.

She took a deep breath and slammed her hands down onto the ground again. "Earth Style: Enveloping Earth Coffin!" She shouted again as thick layers of stone and earth began to cover Kenta.

Evil conference room of evil

This had now become a duel of the fates, an challenge Yakoul could never back down from, this was petty much it. Those flying insects were pretty much playing saliva pong with the cat creature because why not? In response to that, the Empress' pet hopped on the round table with its knees well flexed as if it were in a highly wary attack position. It mainly flicked its tail as usual to send the projectiles back at the targets which had replied to the paper ball throws. In order to add some intensity to the moment, Yakoul would suddenly simulate background themes in the form of loud hums, occasionally going for a low key sound for the heck of it.

"Oh yeah. Gagakukushiiii Drugs are bad girl huh BUUUUUURRRRRRRRRRRRR Your guy was a rapist. Must be cool to rape living things. GAGASHASHASHAAAAA!"

Said Yakoul as it kept adding tension in the sounds it released during its little game with the hornets. The more it moved around on the relatively fragile piece of wood, the more the objects on it would be shaken and would eventually fall off, creating one big mess int he conference area. Yakoul just had to make this as over-the-top as possible in order to free itself from the boredom that induced this oppressive two hour wait. It simply imagined the hornets as Kenji Uchiha and some other big rebel, replying with as much force as possible when the it sent back the damp paper balls.

"ZozozhhahaiBuuuurrrr You should like, GET LAID WITH IZARI Buundiditotgaaashaaaa so you could find out how it feels and tututtutututuuuuuuuuuuuu POW see if he has a micro-dingdong."

Said Yakoul while it kept focusing on messing around. It purposely shouted "get laid with Izari" in order to get the young man's attention for he was indeed in another room. Hopefully he would hear this and react in the utmost hilarious way, or better yet, Remi would actually do it.

"I do wonder if your obsession with his penis stems from you wishing to use it for your own pleasure." Remi hummed at the cat creature and looked at her hornets. The hornets begin to play the balls back to the cat creature, working as a cohesive unit now.

If one sailed too far, one of the hornets burned it before it could land. If the ball was playable, the scorpion tailed one hit it back. If another was smacked towards Remi, the Mantis Hornet would smack it away or use it for ammunition to shoot back at Yakoul. Remi didn't give any indication that she felt sorry for what she said, in all honesty she was quite curious as to why the creature WAS so enamored with Izari's penis and its size. And Yakoul's apparent, newfound love and fixation on tentacles and rape. Well, the latter was old news. Though she did wonder if given the chance, what exactly would Yakoul do to Izari once it found out the answer to its question.

After witnessing the desperate cycle for peace cause almost as much death and bloodshed as the Empire itself did, Shiro made his way through Konoha away from the conflict. A realization came to him as he surveyed war in its most raw form, a battle for one's free wil. This realization was of grate magnitude, perhaps in some form Takeo's attitude toward the rebellion helped spark this change in the blind man's mind.

For a moment Shiro stood in the middle of the street, his head tilted upward slightly so his forehead faced the sky. A strong gust of wind followed his presence as the thought of God centered itself in his mind. He wondered why humans were allowed to bicker so pointlessly. He thought of the commander and his judgmental attitude toward Ryozan and how it reminded him of the way the Empress forced her will upon the great nations. Such similar people on exact opposite sides of the war. Shiro pondered the great interconnected nature of the universe and how he himself fell into place in between the two poles. He gravitated much more toward the side of free will and freedom, but the balance the Empress strived for was so appealing as well. Both sides had their flaws, but Shiro was not likely to remain in Konoha for long now that the rebellion was over.

From what he had heard Suna was losing its rebellious hold and was turning Imperial faster each day. This did not bode well for the samurai, who shook his head at the thought of having to remain in Konoha and take orders from Takeo, one who did not even value his services and wrote him off as some mercenary. He seemed at a loss for options with the state of Sunagakure, his temporary home, becoming less and less appealing the more he thought of returning to Imperial customs. He looked down at the ground in thought.

The presence of two men caught Shiro's attention while they walked away from the battle that had to soon come to an end with the inevitabe victory for the rebellion. The blind samurai lowered his hat and turned to face.. one man? The image of the man making his way out of the village was of a stout old, grisly man of bushy white hair. Shiro recognized this man as one of the elder shinobi of Konoha and a notable member of the rebellion. Shiro rubbed his hand over his rough cheeks. He slowly raised his left hand and pointed at the old man approaching the exit to the village toward the Empress's castle.

"You.. you're... your name is Senju! Hei.. chachi... Heito.. crotchi... Heitokuraimu Senju!" [Hate-Crime Senju] Shiro shouted obnoxiously throughout the fairly empty streets, seeing as most of the fighting was going on a ways away from them. The blind samura kept his hat low as he spat with each word, violently pointing at the old man. "What are YOU doing leaving your rebel comrades in battle, you's a scared lil' BEAATCH?!" Shiro exclaimed, keeping his right hand at waist-level while continuing to aggressively poke at the old man's presence.

Izari was resting in his room when he shouting outside and he would have ignored it had he not heard his name shouted and the owner of the voice also talk about how Remi should get laid with him! His eyes went wide and he literally fell off of his bed and hit the floor hard from shock. He quickly got up and got dressed and then quickly headed for the area that Yakoul was in. When he found the empress' pet, he glared at the creature and said angrily, "You are a sick little bastard, keep those disgusting words to yourself and the bodies you violate!"

He didn't care if made Yakoul angry, he didn't like the creature and thought of him as nothing more than a monster. He never really understood why the empress had tolerated his twisted morals, but right now he wasn't afraid of the thing before him. He secretly prayed to Ragulhu that a lot of misfortune fell upon Yakoul and that the beast would mind its tongue."

Conference Place

The creature's ears would perk when it could hear Izari's footsteps getting closer and closer to the room he was previously in before bailing. In response to that, Yakoul turned its head toward the room's door, just waiting for the young man to barge in. This cut Yakoul's focus completely and ended with it getting blasted with multiple wet projectiles on its face and body, but it did not care. Its tendency to make weird noises to emphasize the moment had also entered a halt.

"I get enough dingdong with all the body clean up I gotta do on fridays, slow-girl."

It replied, keeping its focus on the door until Izari came in to scold the being about keeping everything to itself. This made Yakoul snicker like the spoiled brat that it was upon seeing how irritated the man appeared. To Yakoul it simply screamed small penis, especially when his opinion on the cat appeared to be just as generic as an Uchiha in an emo rally. Its expression was a rather curious one, having its index finger pressed against its lower lip while continuously glaring at the angered young soldier.

"Sooooo... Does that mean you have a small thingy or you're a desperate virgin? I'm having a hard time, Izari. Please help me!"

There were many echoes of pain and ferocity throughout the final stretch of this terrible battle; Kaede stood firm in the middle of combat, miraculously ignored by all participants. It seemed to be a standard that if the sub commander, being Kenta, had allowed her to pass then it was his responsibility to see to her in some form. Channeling her chakra throughout hundreds of people at a time, her passive recovery of chakra and tissue repair was now much more active, resulting in a battle that was completely in the favor of the rebellion forces. Although she was glad to be of use to her comrades, seeing so many enemies fall did not bring her pride nor pleasure, only the exact opposite. With her attention on all of her surroundings she had not neglected to keep an eye on the battle with Kenta, and had to resist an urge to smile after hearing him rant. Although they met as enemies, he still cared about the youth of the Leaf enough to point out mistakes during a battle he didn’t intend to survive. Even now she could be thankful that in spite of his disagreements with the village he hadn’t broke ties with the people he cared about, enough to instruct others on how to best defeat someone like him and even better: Work as a team.

She was prepared to make her move and allow her comrades to finish what they must until a particularly violent surge of chakra was detected within Natsumi, who had been idle for almost a minute or so. Hesitation was not surprising, and even Kaede was guilty of it just prior to Kenta unleashing his chakra; the others may have seen Kenta as a traitor, but between Natsumi and herself all they had seen was a friend on the opposite side of a world they both wanted to have. Her friend had reached for her fans and had taken a good look at Kenta before charging, her foot digging into the earth as she charged towards him. No one else had seemed to take notice of the change enough to hesitate, but Kaede herself was starting to tremble at the chakra raging within Natsumi.
It wasn’t hers …not entirely.

‘Natsumi …what’s happened to you?’

~
The scrawny form of Katsu had split into two, vanishing and replaced with the kunai he had thrown earlier, bark and all. A substitution was one of the classic techniques taught in the Academy, simple but effective as a beginner tool to avoid danger and confuse an opponent. Kenta didn’t know how the young boy had figured out his target and much less know this was coming, but put more of his attention on deciding how to escape this predicament. Substitution would be delicious irony, yet why not reward the kid for a job well done? In spite of the earlier childishness, Kenta had shielded his face and endured the explosion, using his enlarged forearms to help shield himself from the close proximity. There were assorted burn marks along his armored forearms and his ears rang a little, but all in all he was in one piece. Bringing chakra to his feet, Kenta kicked off of the ground, better avoiding the follow-up that Katsu had planned and allowing him to waste his chakra. His technique may have been powerful, but it wasn’t as though it could move in other directions!

Landing with a noticeable quake in the ground, Kenta grinned proudly and looked towards the Uchiha boy. “Not too bad, maybe there’s a little hope for you kids after all!” He was plotting his next offensive to keep these kids on their toes until a dangerous feeling began to overwhelm him. Instinct told him to flee, but experience and courage killed that sensation immediately. Concerned, he glanced over in time to see where it was coming from, only to prepare to defend himself as it ran right for him: Natsumi!

“Natsumi!?” he exclaimed in surprise, witnessing a side of her he had never expected to witness. A reckless charge with flames surrounding her, flames even he didn’t want to tempt unless he had no other choice. He was awestruck at the ferocity in her eye, and both recognized and feared that she had entered a state of mind that might render her unreachable if things continued. With someone like this on a rampage there was no way he’d want to risk his men and women further. Preparing to take another bounding leap, he found that the prison beneath him was returning yet again, this time much more narrow in an attempt to better box him in. Another leap was clearly in order, but Natsumi had overtaken him. It seemed that Karela’s careless usage of the exact same jutsu a second time would benefit her, but only due to this current matter. Leaning his head to his left, he had gritted his teeth and channeled chakra into them once more, markings coating the surface of the skin. The momentum Natsumi brought with her was great, but Kenta braced himself and managed to catch her by her wrists. From this range he could feel the heat emanating from her fans causing a discomforting tingling sensation across his face. That was nothing compared to his hands, which felt like he was placing his hands in fire itself. The chakra on his hands was doing well to keep his flesh from melting, but a fireball was child’s play compared to continuous flame at this close range.

Causing his expansion capabilities to move to his feet, he had increased their size to the point they had broken free of the prison Karela had created and began to swing Natsumi around faster and faster. Without taking into consideration where he was aiming, he had coincidentally released her in the direction of Katsu. Once released he could relax himself only slightly; even in the heat of battle he could see that things were not going to be able to go in their favor, and so Kenta had sucked in plenty of air before releasing his final order: “RETREAT! Gather everyone you can and RETREAT!” there was enough blood spilled today, and there was no good in letting his soldiers die due to pride he didn’t have. The soldiers had taken the order and, once again, began to pull back. The wounded were aided and the Empire’s presence was being pushed back towards the Land of Rivers once more. Digging into his pack once again, Kenta had retrieved a round yellow pill and consumed it, flooding his chakra pool once more with a renewal of energy, causing his aura to shine through once again even as his girth had dropped a considerable amount.

As of now, he was paying more attention to the enemy that pursued the retreating soldiers rather than the group of children who couldn’t even work together against a common threat. Without hesitation he had taken off, leaving the current battle zone to assist those who worked under him.

~

“I saw what happened to Yuna …and I don’t want to see that happen to me.” Kenji muttered back to Takeo, the two traveling together towards the height of the battle and taking their time in doing so. It just so happened that the Jounin Commander had mentioned his daughter’s role in the war from this point on. He allowed Natsumi to free the village because she had done as he asked for the past six months, and because she, as a shinobi of the Hidden Leaf, deserved the right to defend the village with her comrades. To release her out into the world knowing she’d be a huge target did not comfort him. “Chizuma and I stopped Yuna. I don’t think anyone could stop me.”

“I’d say that it wouldn’t happen to you, but I know better than that. Truth be told I’d be beside you on that path.” Takeo had already lost his wife early in their marriage, and to lose his only grandchild would send him on a spiraling descent into darkness he didn’t expect to escape again. “Natsumi is my grandchild, your daughter, and we both want to protect her. I don’t believe keeping her locked up in the village is going to help her grow.”

“If the Empress gets her hands on Natsumi, you really think she’ll let her go again?”

“The point is that she’ll be prepared to fight so that doesn’t happen. Peace makes ones blade a little dull, and it was hard to keep her skills sharp with so many eyes around. This is the opportunity to get her out in the world Kenji, she can’t be your little girl forever.”

“I know that damn it!” Kenji shot back, frustrated. Sealing the Kyuubi in her wasn’t exactly something he wished for her either, but she made an unfortunate circumstance work in her favor. She had come to know his name, even when no one else had asked. All Kenji had seen was a violent monster, but Natsumi saw him differently, at least bothered to know who it was beneath all that harsh exterior. “I know …I know. If anything ever happened to her…”

“I share that concern, but she’ll need this. We won’t be around forever.”

The two fell silent for a time, not wishing to reflect more on the suffering. They were connected by two people very dear to them both, and they both understood what would become of them should they lose them, and what would become of those that took them away. Hatred was a powerful weapon, a weapon they would rather not have to wield unless absolutely necessary. The sounds of metal clashing against metal were still a ways away.

“The organization Root,” Kenji returned his gaze to Takeo. “They said they’ve got a new tool for the Leaf up their sleeves ...something big, they called it a ‘Mark’.”

“…” Takeo considered this; although the Leaf wasn’t weak, anything to help tip the scales in the rebel’s favor would be welcome. Almost anything, anyway. “What do you know about it?”

“It's something to increase a shinobi’s power in every single attribute. They didn’t tell me much more than that, but assured me it would be ready shortly. I’m only telling you because I’d feel more comfortable if someone else knew, I haven’t told anyone else yet.” Kenji knew Root’s formation was long before his time as Hokage, and that they were an organization similar to the ANBU, only their missions were much more underhanded and deemed ‘necessary’ by the Elders of the Council. Although Kenji was uneasy about their existence, they took a big risk when it came to informing them of their existence prior to the war’s outbreak. Few knew of its existence and none knew of it outside Konoha itself, meaning that those old timers knew how to play the game of secrecy.

“You’re not considering Natsumi, are you?”

“She’s got enough to bear, adding something the Elder’s come up with would just increase the weight. Besides, I’d rather see the effect on someone willing to take the risk. All that talk of its capabilities and no subject to demonstrate it. Once I see it I’ll determine if it’ll be used …but they made it clear that they decide the users.” The Elders took pride in it, enough to approach him about it before its completion. “From the sounds it’s been in the works for a long time.”

“Six months forced to not take action? I’m sure they’re more than eager to give the Empire their gratitude for that.”

Kenji was prepared to respond until a discomforting jolt shot through his senses, something Takeo too experienced. They both had come to an immediate halt, looking to one another.

“You felt it too?” Takeo asked

Kenji nodded immediately. That chakra was faint, but it was something he wouldn’t forget any time soon. Takeo was with him during the sealing within Natsumi, so he’d be just as familiar with it as he was. This was the first they had ever felt something coming from his daughter.

“You mentioned Kenta …you don’t think he—“

“He’s got a knack for encouraging you to go farther than you could ever imagine. My guess is he brought it out …somehow.”

“Double time it!”

The two had once again vanished without a trace, accelerating towards the battlefield.

Yūdai Shadan and Yūdai Suishō

It was theirs again.

Their self constructed house, a project taking years of their life, was just like they had left it. Suishō was uncharacteristically happy, given that she had little faith their house would have remained unscathed. With no hesitation, she swung the door open, a small cloud of dust racing out into the wind, her smile vanishing quickly. Suishō hated disorder and despite the pristine outside condition of her home, the state of the interior was completely unacceptable to her. A thick coating of dust could be seen on every surface, including the now shriveled, black flowers that had been in the vase on the table.

She let out an angry sigh, immediately grabbing a clean cloth from a small cabinet and began wiping surfaces down.

Shadan grabbed her hand, "Calm my dear. There are other things we must do first."

It was uncharacteristic for him to be serious, so Suishō didn't protest, unlike usual.

"You're right," she replied, letting the cloth fall onto the table she had been wiping down before following Shadan out.

Recapturing Konoha had separated them from their children, who were still in Suna. Most of the messenger hawks would be busy, but both of them knew of one that wouldn't. Shiō's hawk would be at the Nara compound, near their friend's office. Shiō had sworn by the bird many times, despite its temperamental attitude towards most. However, Suishō wasn't going to let an angry bird get in the way of getting her children back.

The walk was short, only minutes away at a casual pace. Upon entering, like they suspected, Hiyō sat on one of the branches of the trees in one of the courtyards in the Nara compound. Surprisingly, she was able to coax the bird down easily with a small bribery of food. Suishō partially suspected the bird sensed the urgency and was not going to play games with her in this instance. Passing the bird to Shadan, who looked rather odd with it given his size, Suishō scrawled a quick message onto a scroll and slipped it into the container on Hiyō's back.

We have retaken Konohagakure. Please let your grandmother know so she can bring you back. Your father sends his love.

Love,
Mom

It would still be awhile before she would see her children, given the journey, but she now knew they would return to her. Much of the weight of the campaign had been lifted. There was still an Empire to topple, but she was home and her children would be home with her soon. Shadan shared the sentiments, the task at hand done, the hawk now in flight towards Sunagakure, and returned to his more cheerful demeanor.

"Now you can clean," Shadan nodded, patting his wife on the back.

"You mean we," she replied, walking back, her head resting lightly on his arm.

Shadan only smiled in response.