---

Āito nodded at her compatriots plan before the girl dashed off and began placing her barrier rods. Āito had seen this kind of tactic enough times to know that flying was very soon going to be a completely limited option. She glanced at Ai and nodded at her, leaping off the phoenix but leaving the girl on its back, in case she needed to stay mobile while preparing her Jutsu. The phoenix would also allow her to stay ever vigilant of an opening, allowing her full control to jump off of the ink-based bird whenever she needed to.

Āito landed on the ground nearly silently, and while performing her next task she would still be mentally commanding the bird to fly in a wide berth overhead their joint-target. Before starting any new plans she decided to set up a way to bind their target’s movements. ”Fūinjutsu: Bijutsukan.” She said quietly as two snakes crawled from her pant legs and burrowed deep into the Earth. They would reach Havoc in approximately ten seconds, burrowing underneath the ground in order to reach the man.

Immediately afterwards she began painting. This time it was of a mighty tiger, she knew that this painting was a bit more intricate, but with the Phoenix actively flying overhead and the myriad of other combatants engaging Havoc she didn’t have too much to fear from the man until she went on the offensive. So she hurriedly worked to complete the illustration using only black to hurry through the project. While she did she kept her orders on her active animals going, as functionally simple as those orders were. For the phoenix it was simply to circle the man while it observed him, waiting for an opening. For the snakes it was to continue towards Havoc attempting to reach his ankles in approximately ten seconds.

---

---

As Sayuri scanned the area to make sure they arrived at the Hokage’s Mountain summit alright, she saw a foe approaching them fairly rapidly. She listened to her master and confirmed as many clones as she could in her frantic search for the source. However while the chakra signature was all over the place she was not able to locate a source of the clones. Her vision focused in once they were all able to stand on the summit, no longer scanning the outer-reaches of her range and focused in on the immediate area. It was then that Yogensha buckled over, it happened in an instant.

Sayuri bit her lip to cause her from reacting too loudly and simply supported the Amekage, offering her shoulder. The blood that trickled out of her master’s mouth only served to further reinvigorate Sayuri. She knew that she wanted revenge and she knew she needed to get it. But here and now was the wrong time and place.

In Sayuri’s concern for the Kage a shinobi was able to approach them mostly undetected. She turned to the new threat but as she did the Kage grasped her shoulder and pulled her back slightly.

”Sayuri,” Yogensha started. Looking all the while at the new man who had just appeared and not daring to glance away. ” Please vacate the area. Rescue as many civilians as you can on the way, and find reinforcements.”. With those words having exited her lips, Sayuri was gone in an instant. The girl refused to waste her master’s time, but she found her vision lingering on the Kage, refusing to stop vigilantly watching her master. But she had to trust her.

She had to know that the woman would be fine without her, as much as she wanted to be there for her. She took a stark look at how much Chakra she had left. She only had about a quarter or so of her usual pool which put her in a terrible place should any opponents actively come to fight the girl. But there were benefits to utilizing Taijutsu primarily.

But Sayuri’s mind lead her to a conclusion that was outside of being ambushed. If her sight did not betray her it seemed as though her short engagement with the clones of that man were not a tangential occurrence. Rather, there was a different motivation beyond destruction for this attack. The tactics behind attacking the most populated village while all of the Kage were there confused her some, but she figured that only meant the reasoning for it was that much more specific. This was not a random act of terror inflicted by a single man or woman. This was a group, enacting the first, perhaps even fiftieth, step of a process. The world was being stirred and she was only along for the ride.

Sayuri went towards the direction of the most unique chakra signatures, which was where she figured the Kage were, primarily. She needed to get reinforcements for the Amekage before anything else happened. Her mind flashed over the sickness that Yogensha seemed wracked with, but before she could make any conclusions she forced the thought from her mind and pressed forward.

Almost unsurprisingly, Kyoka's ninjutsu had left little impression on the Shark as her spray was casually caught and.. absorbed? There wasn't a splash and scatter so Kyoka could only assume that occured, whether absorbed to empower or simply negation would take further study. More importantly than the mad chemist's passive observations, the Shark decided to divert his attention in a rather obvious manner to her.

Of course, Kyoka would move to dodge, even if it was a ploy, as being a standing target in the worst case scenario would not be beneficial. However, there was the a question of efficiency as Kyoka could just jump away with minimal impact but with what little time she had, her attention turned to Rumia who had suffered a blow earlier. She had expected her cousin to have survived but there was a suppressed concern for her opposite, after all, Rumia was the only relationship Kyoka was invested in throughout her short miserable life.

Indeed, Kyoka's expectations, and to the chemist's relief, were confirmed by the sight of Rumia taking the field again in a charge with one of her attacks priming. Despite the brief look, Kyoka knew which one and anything she could do to lend assistance to her monstrous cousin would only help. Therefore, Kyoka did not plan to jump out of the way as her hands quickly went through the motions of new hand seal, Kurāken Shokushu, the Kraken's Tentacles. With the hand seal completed, she flicked a chakra filled hand backwards to launch a black powder that ignited the moment it hit the ground. This powder burned and out of the powder rose a viscous tendril that shot towards Kyoka and wrapped her up, sinking into molten asphalt-like substance slightly before being flung her away. Heat from the molten tar, even in that brief exposure, began to warm Kyoka up considerably and her layered clothing, she'd likely receive some burns being that close to the epicenter.

"Wweeee!" Kyoka hollered as her small frame was sent away. Kyoka had two things in mind, first the Kraken's Tentacle remained behind, now coiling around the area in a chaotic mess aimed at getting the Shark to reemerge right into a portion of this ensnaring hot goo and hopefully provide her cousin a clean shot. The second purpose was Kyoka's trajectory wasn't random but aimed at her approaching cousin and as the two came close to passing, Kyoka gave a sharp whistle and tossed a small ceramic case out in front of Rumia, aiming to lead her so her cousin wouldn't have to slow. Inside the case was pure sodium powder, which being an alkali metal, would react explosively when touching water. It was a working theory that Kyoka predicted the Shark, especially in this more primal state right now, to have quite the affinity for water so much so that it was likely the Shark's clothes and even skin were damp with water. If Kyoka's theory held true, then the sodium should be effective as it wasn't a chakra based attack. Rumia ultimately had two options of dispersal, throw the whole container to likely cause a more dramatic explosion or to open the container and fling the powder to causing smaller explosions and a burning effect. Either was fine, but Kyoka predicted her more simpleton cousin would be more inclined for the dramatic.

---

This was going to be a pain in the ass already. With the increasing number of shinobi surrounding him, whether it be by air or land, they were all starting to formulate their counter attack. Havoc’s sense were as keen as ever, his Heiko Kankaku was reading the movements and number of enemies around him with quite relative ease. They were all still rather far off from him, keeping their distance was a good thing. However he did feel that the one shinobi was circling around him placing objects all around him, that wasn’t a very good sign for the gravity ninja, no matter though he would just have to make quick work of the ice fairy first. Before he could focus on the ice princess, he suddenly felt the scurrying of what seemed to be serpents underneath him. A small grin appeared on his face before he touched the ground “Hitchi” removing his hands a purple imprint was left behind on the surface of the ground, once the snakes un-burrowed the seal would activate and suck the snakes in crushing them and leaving the sneak attack thwarted.

“Now where was I? Oh yes.” The pixie or whatever she was had recovered on balanced footing and was shouting some nonsense at her. He wasn’t really a man of many words, rather he was just focused on disabling her and the rest of her entourage so he could make his way to Sano. The small girl launched the ice disk she had so nimbly been riding on also encompassing what seemed to be a temperature shift, she was gifted that was for sure. Knowing he wasn’t in the time nor space to be fooling around Havoc took the offensive at full throttle. Charging his own chakra to augments the effects of his jutsu to happen more rapidly he formed one singular handseal while throwing his umbrella upwards. “Samasu” his own large dome covered the land, but his was invisible or rather it would have been if he hadn’t advanced it’s properties. A giant cylinder of pure gravity exploded from the umbrella forming around the scruffy homeless looking ninja.

The earth around him violently erupted as the sky was punctured in the 12 meter diameter around him, with the sky clear around him and the disks the ice queen had thrown at him now shattered on entry, Havoc was ready to meet her head on. She seemed to do him the favor of wanting to close the proximity between the two of them so he pushed off the land below him as it quaked in his power. Havoc was rather fast for a jailbroken ninja, dragging his cylindrical field along with him. “I didn’t want to have to sully my hands, but I don’t have my sword with me little girl. Let’s dance.” Havoc raised his free hand slowly acquiring gravitational energy in his palm.
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Ginsho bit his tongue, he knew if he said anything it would simply give ammunition to the demon that stood before him. He was always one to talk and it’s what made him so easy to hate, enough where you could make a mistake that would cost you your life for thinking irrationally. Or in Ginsho’s case the life of his friend. Ginsho scoffed in anger, he knew how much this fight meant, he had to prevail and that didn’t mean holding back or letting him off the hook as he did the first time. Ginsho was going to take the battle to him from the start. Wasting no time the young Hokage threw the swords into the shield before opening his mouth, “Henjiru” suddenly the two weapons were engulfed in a holy light. The two weapons were obstructed by a large ball of light before the picture became clearer. The metal had dissipated off the weapons and the two had fused together to create a cross of pure heavenly chakra. The cross like weapon was akin to that of truth seeking balls used by the sage of six paths in his heyday. Ginsho shot his arm out at the puppet master, allowing for the cross to rise and fire concentrated beams of holy chakra at the sinister villain.

This bought him enough time to use his strongest technique, “Seiatsu! (Ascendancy)” Ginsho brought his singular palm up to his chest in the praying motion of his religion, the foundation of his powers. A crown of thorns appeared and clung to his head, digging into his skull, drawing blood around his forehead. Black bars appeared on the inside of his palm and two through the soles of his feet, blood also accumulating around the base of the nail like structures. A massive eruption of chakra could be felt throughout the whole forest. With such grace and elegance a massive archangel appeared behind him, its size was almost comparable to a three story house. The angel was adorned in iron clad armor lending itself to mimic that of the angel’s physique. A gorgeous pair of white feathered wings flung open creating large gusts of wind that knocked the encompassing trees over and pushing the puppet master backwards a few good feet. The archangel stood directly behind Ginsho with a massive sword and shield in its hands.

Ginsho sprang into action dashing at the puppet master moving his hand in multiple directions, thus prompting the angel to follow his every command as it were its own and able to execute it immediately. With no lag time between his movements and the angel’s the massive archangel began its assault on the rather puny puppet master. Despite its size the flurry of attacks the archangel was outputting with its sword was amazingly fast. The forest around him was being sliced and diced into mincemeat, while Ginsho treaded on constantly maneuvering his one praying hand.
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Forest of Death... The Tsuchikage [@Yosuha171]@BladeX@Queentze@ZeroXposure

Jaakuna was surprised as his target vanished right before his attack connected. The kid was good, already trying to defend himself from the ninja before him. Landing on the branch, his senses ignited once more, sensing the ill will directed his way by the Tsuchikage. Surprising man, kind caught Jaakuna by surprise how quickly he showed up. He had been expecting a few more minutes. Maybe a moment more to play with his prey. But no... It seemed that it wouldn't be so. With a majority of the clones either having been burst, or just dissipated on their own, the chakra pool between all known Jaakuna Aka's was a lot more balanced. Allowed him to do a lot more than he may have been earlier. But this was a kage, and it was clear he was holding back because of the kiddo's near him.
"Careful, I'll probably kill them the instant they step outside your little lava field." Jaakuna smirked, eyes flashing between the three targets before him. The smoldering lava below him was, dangerous, and he'd already moved higher on his tree, constantly on the move upwards or away when his hiding perch was too damaged. This man seemed to work best by area denial. Shame... Jaakuna loved free movement...

"Sebun, leave. You're just going to waste your swords fighting this guy. He's on a different level." Jaakuna said, turning to his ally. "You can trust me~" He purred, like the fox he was before looking back to the Tsuchikage. "I didn't play many games as a kid. Daddy kept me busy." He said, pulling a shuriken from his pouch. The single star spun in his hand, before he let it loose. The shuriken flew through the air, and in a blur, it broke apart. A few hundred just like it poofed into existence. Shuriken Shadow Clone Technique! Scattering through the air, they where lethal blades showering the area of the Tsuchikage's little lava pit. showering down upon the general area of the trio. But, it didn't end there. When the shuriken struck ground, be it flesh, lava, or whatever, they exploded. Showering the nearby vicinity with Yatsu's own lava. Each explosion threatening to knock one of the poor kids either into the lava, or kill them when it blew up in their chest cavity if the shuriken hit home. This was Jaakuna's second favorite jutsu. Shuriken Shadow Clone Great Explosion Technique, which was a great follow up to the last one. "Honestly, I just played catch with my friends."

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Forest of Death... Havoc's area @BladeSS4@Write

Oh clones? Well, Jaakuna loved clones. Those things where what he was used too. In fact, they where so much fun to play with. Especially the ones that came right at him. How... Predictable. He dropped right off the branch when they came close, hands catching the branch, leaving the only thing for the two front attackers to attack was... Themselves! How delightfully ironic. Letting go, he didn't pay them a bit of attention, instead leaping off the tree and sailing through the air. He spied below him a girl and her paintbrush. Oh, an artist. Well, if she had an attack that required that much prep, maybe Jaakuna had to step in and stop it.

He inhaled, and then let out a wave of smoke from his mouth. Fire Release: Hiding in Ash and Dust Technique! The ashen mist he created this time coated the area of all those pesky water clones, and the drawing Aito. The burning ash would ignite the scroll in her hand, and any other exposed paper she had on her person. Best to get rid of all of those at once. And best of all, as he vanished into the smoke, only Jaakuna knew what was going on. The other two where blind and probably in pain from where the ash burned their skin. He'd say something witty, but that'd give away his position.





Beautiful. That's what it was. Beautiful. If the puppet master could shed a tear at this moment, he very well may have. How long had it been since he had seen this side of the hokage. Twenty years if he could recount. Twenty years in a hell of this man's creation, based of a religion that Seijuro didn't even believe in. How... Never grating. But this sight, it was blood boiling. It was heart racing. The monster's heart began to pound like a drum in his chest, spurring action. ACTION! This was the man! This was the man who ruined him! This freak and his religion had cost him everything! His empire! His fame! His future! And here he stood, glorious and proud, as if he was somehow better than Seijuro. No! He moved faster than anything Ginsho had ever expected from him, stepping to the side, the first beam brushing past his chest. The side of one of his robes was ripped apart, exposing a puppet-like joint. Beautiful white fabric fluttered away in the breeze, as Seijuro dodged again, and again. This seemed... Practice. Familiar. As if he'd seen this all before. He may very well have. "Pathetic." He scoffed, words like knives between his lips.

His eyes went wide as a glorious archangel stood before him, shadowing the land and creeping over the world. Wind billowed as wings unfurled, and the puppet master leapt back. Catching the breeze he landed at the edge of the treeline, a chuckle creeping up between his clenched teeth. "Twenty years, and you still believe in fables." It brought out full on laughter, which echoed in the forest. The Hokage was a martyr. He hurt himself, mutilating his body as if it transcended himself. All in the name of a god he claimed to be all kind and loving. The pain was on the fault of the sinner. Funny... Anything was a sin if you really thought about it. Ambition most of all. But ambition? That's what drove the man who now stood across from Ginsho. AMBITION was the tool of the strong to overwhelm the weak! The followers bowed at the feet of a strong leader. HE WAS THAT LEADER! Twenty years he'd festered, now free to bring his ambition to fruit.

As the first strike moved through the air, those golden eyes didn't pay them a lick of attention. Instead, his eyes remained on Ginsho, and his one good hand. He took a step closer, ducking down as the blade sliced the air above his head. The sound of cracking trees erupted behind him, but he paid them not a single mind. Those golden eyes knew the truth behind this technique. It was not the angel one had to worry about, but the man who controlled it. That told you infinitely more about each strike. The man BEHIND THE MAN! He charged full force, jumping over the next strike, and spinning just enough as it came whipping back around. Each strike missing, and each time Seijuro closed the distance more and more. Not attacking, but getting closer... And closer. Till he was a meter from Ginsho, where that marvelous blade and that angel where useless. Too big to defend its host. "You where better when you had both hands."

In that moment, his eyes turned a brilliant red. That beautiful white hair became scorched and black. Until that scoff, pulled back into a smile, with fangs glistening.



Jaakuna pulled his fist back, and let loose with a good punch directed into Ginsho's perfect face. The devil of Konoha, the demon fox was suddenly there... Unlike Seijuro, his heart was not hardened. It was not dead or wood. Instead, it was breaking into pieces. His eyes where narrow, focused and full of a boiling force. Tears streamed down his cheeks, as he let loose twenty years of isolation into a single punch. "Gautama, you idiot. How could you not tell it was me?"

@Syn @Yoshua171 @Write @Glitchybugger

Ai nodded to her comrades, and at her sisters orders. Even she had to take this fight seriously. Ai sighed, it was such a pain in the ass. She just wanted to make sure those she loved were safe, and travel the world. Fighting a ninja of ungodly strength who could probably trounce the most seasoned jonin in seconds? It was not high on her bucket list, which she didn't seem to have much time for. No... Ai would live. She'd gotten a second chance, and really her first shot at life, there was no way she was wasting it here. No way she'd let Aito, or Ayame fall either.

Taking to her position in the sky, Ai smiled at noting her sisters suggestion. The Stone ninja were all effective support, and could limit an enemies options, which meant them keeping their range was brilliant, though Ai itched to jump in there. They could just say no to most techniques. Ayame's barriers could section off the battlefield; Aito's ink seemed to make for good attacks, whatever she did; and Ai's speed and tags could easily chase down a target when the time came. It didn't take long for the man to force Ai into action either. His umbrella was sent into the sky. Ai shot chakra into her legs, and bolted at it, in her fastest body flicker her body would allow off of the bird. Slamming into the side of it, she slapped a tag on it, near tackling it: 清める (purify).

"Nope!"

Whatever technique Havoc was using was the source of the jutsu's power. It would send an object flying back proportionate to the amount of chakra in it. And looking at the now 2 km clearing.... this man seemed to have a lot of chakra. Ai slapped it downward at a 45 degree angle (ish), to send the umbrella into the ground far away from Havoc, and to literally knock the jutsu out of it.

Her mission done, Ai exploded into a thousand papers, returning to her position atop the bird, to wait for the next attempt by the man. Ai was currently glad for her decision to retrieve her tags. She only had really her body flickers and sticky fingers without them, her body remarkably low on chakra.

"Aito, thanks for the ride!"

Now she just needed the chance to get one of those tags onto Havoc... not that that would be an easy task in the least.

The clone and the original Tashiro were trying to slice their blades right through their target but almost like the first inital attack the man Tashiro was fight easily got the upper hand on him by moving out-of-the-way and leaving himself and the clone to go right at each other. The clang of metal on metal the swords clash and bouncing off each other. Tashiro was annoyed by the skills of this man. The third Clone in the middle of the tree under the branches only watched in bewilderment as the original and the other clone nearly slaughter each other. The third Clone did slice into the tree but stopped mid slice before pulling the sword free. Trying to keep his eyes on Jaakuna only to get caught off guard by the ash attack. The clones hidden but also being damaged by the burning ash but keeping themselves together.

The original Tashiro took the ashes as a cover grabbing his sword and returning to charge his chakra for his water saw jutsu. The clone with him grabs the same sword splitting up the duties of changing the chakra nature and charging the blade. Tashiro used twenty percent of his chakra keeping the clones up. Hoping his jutsu wouldnt lack in power but he was trying to use himself and other clone to speed up the five-minute build up time.. The clone helping the original slowly fades back into water but it doesnt drop to the ground. The clone focused the last bit of energy it was given into chakra change pushing water into the chakra that was building up on the blade of the sword. Almost dividing the build up time in half, Tashiro needed to get the water up to the right velocity to make the saw into the attack it needs to be. He needed a minute at best or the full attack but at best he has a sword coated with water. As the water gets faster it gets louder sounding like a rushing river building up in speed. Looking to use a high speed water ninjutsu against someone who demonstrated a fire technique looking to take the advantage over fire's weakness.

The other and only remaining clone of Tashiro left trying to keep it together trying to keep his eyes where he had last seen Jaakuna. Keeping his eyes scanning through the ashes keeps his eyes open for combat. The final clone barely able to keep itself together but trying to long enough to keep himself of use. Sitting back acting like the some basic shinobi would do with clones. Trying to seem like the original sitting back waiting to see the reaction to the clones trying to lure the enemy in for an attack.

'Did he use this blinding ash attack and leave? Why isnt he attacking while his enemies are blinded? What kind of game is this man playing at...' Tashiro the original one was trying to piece together this fight. The man he was fighting was relaxed and didn't even seem to take this fight seriously and that was worrying Tashiro. This was a great difference in strengths between himself and this man. Tashiro was blind by the ash but he did see the fact he was way out classed, trying to use his best move again. Hit this man with all he has was all Tashiro could do and hope he can get lucky. He has one clone left and Tashiro didn't even think if he had hundreds of clones would he be able to take this man down. Tashiro wasnt about to back down because he was out classed if he was going to fail it was going to go down swinging and attacking with everything he has.

Tashiro trying hard not to get side tracked and forget about Hime as she was also dealing with a very powerful opponent. Tashiro wasnt able to lend help as he was dealing with another opponent. There were also others nearby as well now but he wasnt sure of where everyone was or who was all around helping so many unknown variables in this situation if he gets a single step wrong he this could get very messy and dangerous if he attacks wildly. He could go back after Havoc once his attack was ready and lure out his accomplice but he couldn't see clearly anymore if he launched out he could attack Hime instead Havoc or the man he wants to lure out. With Tashiro's idea he could also accidentally lure out anyone watching out for Jaakuna as well. Once he can he will go after Havoc once again. He seemed different enough he could tell the difference from him and Hime it also seemed like the best plan to lure out the burning ash user. He could use a deception slice if he had to once he is ready but he needed a minute just a half of one to get it to a point it can be used just the smallest amount of time and he will start slicing the forest up. Should he be able to keep the jutsu together long enough to do anything.

Putting the gambit together using the limited amount of chakra he and his one clone had to try and speed up the process while taking constant damage by the burning ashes. Tashiro maybe a one trick pony with one move he could use but what else could he do? Clones would just weaken himself more, summoning would hurt the tigers he summoned. This was his only choice his only move he could use if he could get it in use this time around. All he had was his chakra the water from the clone and the sword. His only choice so now he sits back and hopes for the best as his attack is rushing to a finish so he can get to attack.

Things got hot real fast, not just with the arrival of the Tsuchikage but also with the realization of who Jaakuna was. But the situation only escalated even further with the Tsuchikage and his lava jutsu. Date was following the stronger ninja with ease due to his sharingan, and when he lit the floor up he quickly climbed the nearest tree. Even after the jutsu was complete he could not feel the heat coming from the lava below and just shrugged his arms at that. Date was no fool, Jaakuna was a power ninja, the mysterious man with him probably stronger, and then the Tsuchikage which needed no explanation. He knew that this fight was out of his league before things turned volcanic, so Date agree with the Tsuchikage's statement about the retreating if they wanted to live then a strategic retreat needed to happen and fast.

The words that came out of Kaba's mouth almost caused Date to fall off his branch. The boy wanted to choose now of all times to be a hero, and what help could they offer really? Date caught sight of his barrier ninjutsu but what good would that due if he could not keep up with the fox, and sure Date could pull out the water armor and try to fight him along side the Tsuchikage but that seemed like a worse idea than running. He could understand not wanting to let this transgression go, but was revenge or some false sense of justice worth his life?.....NO!!!

Date chuckled at Kaba when he asked the Tsuchikage to let them fight along side him. "I agree with Lo d Tsuchikage, we need to go and find our fellow shinobi. This fight is out of our hands." But before he could make a move Jaakuna sprung into action. Date was quick to recognize the Shuriken Shadow Clone Technique, and quickly made the three hand signs necessary for Water Release: Water Armor and cupped his palms together in an instant water gushed from the small space between his palms and consumed his body making him look wet, but really he was still dry just had a extra layer of skin. What Date did not expect was the explosion that followed the first few shuriken finding their target. His sharingan barley picked up the shuriken right before they touched his tree, and he had little to no time to jump onto a much smaller tree nearby that was closer to the ground. The tail end of the explosion made him smack face first into the tree rather than land gracefully, but his armor held strong and he continued to look for another group of shuriken in the swarm that fell from the sky.

There were only 3 more trees he could jump to before he was shit out a luck, that's if they did not get blown up before he reached them on while he was on them. The direction he was following would take him out side the lava zone but without help he might not get out of this one.

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"Exactly my thoughts. It's remarkably hard to track the nature of something that happened from such a distance, but it was definitely not a normal explosion." Hikaru commented in an absent-minded way, not even questioning the meaning behind the other shinobi's accurate comments as he exposed his own view of the situation. "I actually raised the conjecture that It may have been someone with the same Kekkei Genkai as me, since it's the only method I know of that can possibly achieve a similat result without using any sort of combustible, but even that seems farfetched now that I think about it. The chakra required would be absurd and I personally don't know of a method to use Explosion Release from a large distance..." He stopped for a second to think about his conclusion before exposing it, even then failing to notice that he revealed a fairly important piece of information yo a complete stranger due to how impressed he was by the result of the "explosion". "Sincerely, the two possibilities I thought of where either the result of shocking a super-dense chakra construct against a surface or a suicide-bomber with an insane chakra pool and capable of using explosion release, both away too unrealistic to be considered valid hypotheses." He finally concluded, realizing a bit too late how extremely revealing his speech was, letting the stranger know not only about the fact that he had a Kekkei Genkai but also giving away its nature and the fact that he had enough knowledge about explosives to achieve the same conclusion, openly giving anything the stranger needed to know about his identity as a former member of the explosion corps - a mistake that could be quite dangerous in the specific situation, since the other shinobi wasn't completely sure about his identity as an ally. "A-anyway, It's not like we're meant to discuss this kind of thing right now. We should concentrate in running away."

In the end, the conversation quickly died after this - most certainly thankfully to his fairly indiscret attempt of diverging the konoha-nins attention - giving place to an awkward silence until the other shinobi once more started to talk, this time saying something about names and complimenting Hikaru's parents for their choice. "Guess that's true. My mother always had a good taste for this kind of thing. My father was hopeless though. Pretty sure my name would be something like Bakusatsu Kyō* if he was the one naming me."

_{*Literally Lord Explosion Murder(爆殺卿)}

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By the time his master finally disappeared, Arashi was still in the same position as before, hiding his face under the hood and looking towards the ground as he slowly recovered his composure. He remained like that for almost 2 minutes before he finally moved again, using his right hand to push away the locks of hair that covered his forehead as his body started to tremble as if he suddenly started crying harder - a misconception that was quickly cleared by the laugher that emerged from his mouth in the following second. "Do you perhaps think I'm an idiot, teacher?" He spoke loudly in despite of being alone in the now deserted market, seemingly just exposing his own thoughts for no specific reason. "I don't know who the fuck is controlling you now, but did you seriously believe that I'd fall for such a pathetic attempt of causing inner conflict? Even if I ain't nowhere near the previous leader when it comes to diplomacy, I also ain't that pathetic." The elite shinobi finished with a bitter comment, semingly vanishing from the market in the following second as he made his way out of the village with haste. After all, even if he wanted to take his time enjoying his self-given vacation, he now had to take care of his own village - being right in the middle of two big nations was hardly an attractive perspective now that he knew that someone wanted to start a war.

With the arrival of Jaakuna, Sebun knew that he wouldn't be able to have a simple conversation with the young shinobi. That's one thing that he didn't like. Over the ages the shinobi have slowly lost their patience. There used to be a sort of respect and honor on the field of battle. Names were exchanged and even though they were foes, there was respect to be had. Not in the modern world it would seem. All Sebun planned was to attract someone to his location to just converse with them. Learn their motivations and none of that ended up happening. After Jaakuna came an Uchiha boy to back up the overwhelmed barrier ninja. Before Sebun could even address the Uchiha there was another interloper that made his appearance. The leader of Iwagakure, the Tsuchikage. This man didn't even give his name before making a poorly tasting joke about the floor is lava.

"Sebun, leave. You're just going to waste your swords fighting this guy. He's on a different level." Jaakuna said. Sebun looked at Jaakuna as the Fox man ordered him to leave. An interesting way to talk to someone, most people would take that as an insult. Jaakuna was basically telling him that he couldn't stand up to the might of the Tsuchikage. Sebun wasn't annoyed or angry, actually this is working out perfectly. Sebun and his companions jobs were literally to draw the enemy to the Forest of Death and look at what happened. One of the supreme powers had made it to the battlefield.

"If that's what you want me to do Fox. I'll be making my departure. Barrier kid, if you ever want to have that conversation come find me." Sebun said as he launched all of his preformed weapons in the distance. There was eight weapons flying in different directions, he planned to teleport to one of the weapons. It would be hard to figure out which way he went.

As Sano emerged from the ground his jaws clamped down upon air, as if such a simple attack would have really worked. What none of the three had paid attention to was the single handseal he was holding whilst emerging from the ground. With him he pulled up an enormous amount of groundwater that had seeped into the ground from his previous technique. As he emerged the enemy would find ten yards of water in every direction around Sano, providing a perfect cooling counter to the hot tar around him thanks to Kyoka.

Before he could even begin to fully emerge from the earth another round of cannonfire was upon him. He slid back two meters, even with his massive size he should have been blown back much further from the blast, right? His three opponents would witness shards of ice falling from his arms and torso after the blast collided with him. The ice, which if the Chuunin were observant enough would see that the steam from the water and the tar coming into contact would have become the ice barrier, would return to water just as quickly as it had appeared, dropping back down into the puddle. Before he could even settle in, a stream of fire raged into his body, and it would appear to consume him before being pulled inward into his mouth, simply absorbing yet another Ninjutsu.

Streams of steam could be seen emanating from the large puddle all around Sano as he stood up and faced the three Chuunin. "This... Is this all the would-be Jonin of Konoha and Iwagakure have to offer? What will you try next to drive me out? You have no hope left.. Welcome to Mizugokoro." He said as the grin faded from his face. With his Mizugokoro technique now in place, Sano had indefinite molecular control over all water within a ten yard radius. Steam, water, ice, it was all under his jurisdiction. Although his ice and steam were not nearly as powerful as a Kekkei Genkai's version, he was still quite formidable.

Kyoka tossed a container at her ally. Sano thrusted his other palm at the air before the container even left Kyoka's hand, the moisture in the air converging on the exact specific spot the case was to land in Rumia's hands at that exact moment. His intentions were simple, destroy the case and its contents. If Rumia tried to grab it, she would be blown away by yet another of Sano's deadly invisible blasts. Being hit by a second one of these would surely break several bones in her body with all the moisture in the air. If she did not grab it, the case would be crushed by the force of his attack, and unknown to Sano, the convergence of the moisture in the air combined with the pressure would crush the case and cause a ridiculous explosion when reacting with the sodium in midair.

---

Water, ice, steam. It was all just too complex for the Shinrikyo to follow. Kyoka got out of the way with her fancy tentacle thing, and enabled a clean shot for Rumia to exploit. With the beam fired, it was there that the ice was the most noticeable, and prompted the monstrosity pout. Her tail returning to its initial jagged form once the remaining beam had pushed Sano away a few distances despite the new influences at play. With that, it was time to charge in once more.

"Pfft. Look at ya' squirm, fish-man. Pushed 'n' pushed, by lil' kids. So much so I'll almost call ya' a pushover."

Grinning widely, Rumia couldn't help but retort in an attempt to taunt the shark, and have her cousin exploit the inevitable faults to come with a wounded pride. Speaking of, a container would be sent her way, one she most definitely recognized the shape and use. But something was off, as her orange pupils remained fixed onto the aquatic behemoth. His hand extended, and chakra concentrated in one area. Rumia was not intelligent enough to actively find counters to attacks. But, like an animal, she'd charge forward.

Her swaying, vicious tail seemed to rattle as the upcoming attack. This time she was ready. Jets protruding her back and calves, and three tentacles the length of the tail emerged from her back. Widening themselves, before seemingly 'fusing', they'd form an improvised wing/shield to provide cover for Rumia. Portions were enhanced by the Hollow Shell, and her right arm pressed against it to offer more retaliating force to the upcoming blast. Upon impact, she'd almost feel herself immobilized, but the jets would pull through, while her 'shield' held tight. The tentacles were mushed up by the blast, and her forearm's bone broken from the violence of the aquatic blast.

But it didn't not stop the beast, and she could recover the container without it being compromised, as well as her body. Right arm steaming from the allocated concentration of healing while the mushy tentacles were sucked in back into her back, all she had to do was close the final distance.

Jets on her back flared, as her running speed surpassed that of those in this fight. There was a lot of water around Sano, with his being coated in the thing. That's all Rumia needed to know. She did not understand how Sodium would literally explode in quite the violent manner when in contact with water, but she knew how big the kaboom was, and that it worked. After experiencing it herself of course. She'd get dangerously close, jets enabling rapid dodging of potential pressure blasts or other jutsus shot linearly her way, becoming harder as she'd got closer, but that was the big high, the risk.

She'd rely on Kyoka and Sakana to cover her as she'd close the final meters, as another blast of pressure would certainly break her ardent endeavor. This timeframe would be extremely small, given her absurd capabilities in distance closing, but not out of the reach of the observation abilities of trained shinobi. If uninterrupted, in these final meters, she'd be coated in her Hollow Armor, and greatly lose momentum with her body armored up. The container tossed at the Shark's direction, with a paper bomb of her own added on the bottom. Nothing strong, of a weaker class made to distract over damage. With the explosion, and the range, the spread of sodium via the explosion would cause all the accumulated water from Sano's special ability to be exposed to the chemical.

A chemical with no ties to chakra, mind you.

The explosion would definitely have Rumia caught in it, though with luck he'd have her armor ready for the impact. One should just hope Sano doesn't opt for the hydrification method this time around.

Sayuri (not the P5 painting)@Write Yogensha (Mrs. Burny Bones) @Odin And Chis (Captain Smoke) @BladeX

Hokage Mountain was a good vantage point for locating her fellow Iwa-nin, Amegakure's leader certainly had a good idea in mind when coming up here. Koma was quietly listening to Yogensha as she activated her eagle eye technique and began to survey the entire area for any sign of Iwagakure's presence within the confines of Konohagakure and the Forest of Death.

As the woman asked for her name and instructed her companion to locate the rest of the Iwa-nin for her, Koma had already locked her sights in on a few of the faces she recognised, along with that of the Tsuchikage. But they were all within the Forest, far too great a distance for her to reach in order to help them in their battles, unfortunately. She didn't get a chance to respond as mere seconds later the woman made some form of spluttering and when she turned she was on her knees clasping her mouth.

Only after Koma shut off her Eagle Eyes did she realise that the woman had coughed up blood, but instructed both of them to ignore what they'd just seen.

"O-" Things were happening too fast for the worn down kunoichi to keep up with somehow, what felt like the blink of an eye later there was a dark figure towering behind them only a few feet away, heat cascading off of his body like it was natural.

“I still do not know your name, recruit. A pity. You have served Amegakure well today, but I fear your time with me is up. Find the Tsuchikage and join your people. I fear today is the day I might meet my match and see the Sage in his full glory.” Koma couldn't bring herself to ignore words spoken with such finality, but it felt wrong to just walk away with the odds seemingly stacked against Yogensha so heavily.

"I refuse to leave. You said it yourself, as of now I'm no longer an Ame recruit. I'm just Koma Hitsugi, hopeful Jonin of Iwagakure, my Kage and comrades are out of my reach in the forest, but I trust they'll manage just fine without me..." There was a mellow tone to her words before she continued, bow drawn once more. "I'll ask for forgiveness for my selfishness later, but I can't leave someone to fight alone, not like this." With only two arrows left, as well as her two smoke bombs, Koma already had her first arrow aimed at Chis. It was plain as day that she was trembling from either exhaustion or dread for what was about to happen, though she seemed about as ready as she could ever be.

If she made it through this, she'd have to learn some close-combat techniques.

---

Hime Yuki

Team Triple A @Ganryu @yoshua171 @Write, Tashiro (five minute charging technique) @BladeSS4 And Havoc @Syn

The youthful fairy was more or less ignoring what was going on around her aside from what the man before her was doing, creating... something that was causing everything she threw at him to crumble into pieces like it had just been stomped into little shards of ice, as well as pulverising the very ground he was standing on whilst he launched himself towards her in response to her own movements.

This didn't cause the fairy to falter, no, it forced her onwards to do battle with this scruffy mystery man. If she could put him down now then he wouldn't be able to try this with anyone else, her resolve steeled as quickly as the snow storm began to build up in the area around the two, visible clouds forming and snow beginning to descend in their surroundings.

Things felt wrong all of a sudden, gravity distorting as Hime found herself inexplicably having difficulty to breathe, but she gritted her teeth and surged onwards. It was already harder to move, though thankfully her wings were lasting for the time being as she closed the distance between the two. "Eat shoe, scruffy!" She managed to call out, bringing her right foot up to kick him in the face, but falling short by a small margin. No doubt at this exact same time he'd see that there was more to it than just a foot to the face, Hime activating the ice tag on that very shoe with the intent to let the pillar of ice that was about to erupt from it do the face-kicking for her.

---

Cockroach @Syn

It was all very busy up above the ground... Sano, Havoc and even Jaakuna making themselves quite the show for the time being.

Meanwhile underground in the tunnels that Yui had burrowed, she was stuck down here with Cockroach, waiting for the prime time to snatch the unruly boys away from their play-mates. "Is there anything else I need to be doing or am I just on pick up duty? I'd really like to actually see what's going on up there..." She groaned, twirling a length of hair betwixt her fingers. "What if I just go get them now and save us all the hassle of them maybe having trouble with their fights? I mean they wouldn't want to be beaten up by a bunch of kids now, would they?"

---

Āito had to react quickly to her surroundings. She had the unfortunate duty of monitoring more than a few things at once. First there were her snakes, crushed into the ground by her opponent. Luckily this gave her enough attention to make sure her Phoenix was flying around in a pattern unpredictable enough to keep Ai out of danger and stay close enough to both Ayame and herself to rescue either of them. Just as she was putting the finishing touches on the tiger to seal their opponent a wall of smog and flame quickly encroached upon her position.

Acting a single entity the Phoenix dove towards Āito, Ai still on its back. The bird flapped its mighty wings in order to protect the girl as she managed to skid along the ground, losing one of her three scrolls in the process. The bird’s flapping would aggravate the flames, but push the smog and the source of the technique back. Anything caught in those flames would feel the heat rise measurably.

She readied her Tanto in order to face the next combatant that would approach her, allowing the Phoenix to once more retreat and keep Ai at a vantage. She made a knowing glance to the girl, she felt as though she knew who she was and it was brimming right at the edge of a revelation. But she just couldn’t peg it for certain. It irritated the Kunoichi immeasurably.

And then it clicked. In the heat of battle, by a single statement.

“Aito, provide assistance to the others and us. If you see one of us use the Kai handseal it means we need you at our location. Otherwise we'll just use our names. Ai, for now at least...I'm Aya again, like when we were kids.”

The statement must’ve replayed in her mind one hundred times. She had only heard one person call Ayame Aya when they were younger. During a training session.

“Kazue.” She said, her mind flashing through every short or even slightly longer conversation they had ever had. It felt like an eternity, but it was an instant. She felt a stiffness in her nose and a small shake enter into her fingers. She stifled the emotion and attempted to focus on the fight.

"Tch!" Kaba resented the thought of fleeing but it seemed as if he would not be able to sway Date nor the Tsuchikage. He exhaled, calming himself so that he could think clearly. He would probably be more useful rescuing injured fellow shinobi rather thank taking on an opponent that clearly outclassed him. That fact was one that would upset him and drive him to become stronger. Next time a Kage would most likely not appear to save him. Kaba stared at Jaakuna, making sure he would not forget the man's face.

Kaba scoffed at Sebun's proposal, but would not forget it. Just as he prepared to retreat and leave the rest to the Tsuchikage, Jaakuna launched another assault, a single shuriken that seemingly split into many times more. Kaba refused to panic. This was a simple technique he had seen before, or so he thought. As the shuriken neared him, he began his escape, aiming to jump upon one of the lucky trees that still stood after the attack. Simultaneously, Kaba raised his left hand and erected a simple shield to intercept the shuriken. To the youn shinobi's surprise, this attack wasn't as simple as he initially presumed. Upon impact with his barrier, multiple explosions triggered, causing the shield to shatter akin to glass. Kaba had only put enough into the defense to stop shuriken, he didn't anticipate explosions. This would be a lesson for him in the future. A few more shuriken crossed the flames and smoke that had arisen from the explosion, and shot towards the tree Kaba now stood on. It was too late for Kaba to erect another shield, so he desperately leaped from the perch right as the weapons impacted the tree, which was now unrecognizable. Kaba landed on the water below rather clumsily, but he successfully escaped damage from the surprise technique. Wasting little time, he got back on his feet and a visible barrier formed around his body almost instantaneously. The barrier was of a reddish-orange tint but was still transparent so Kaba could clearly be seen. It was extra insurance for if Jaakuna decided to target him again. Kaba knew he could hardly track the traitor's speed while using that strange cloak, and especially since he would be fleeing he would have no time to keep tabs on him. Kaba just hoped the Tsuchikage would be able to hold Jaakuna in place so that he and Date could lend assistance elsewhere.

With the new barrier now erected surrounding him, Kaba again took off to search for survivors in need.







Chis watched on in silence as Yogensha ordered the two others to retreat from the area. He figured she was either incredibly confident in her own abilities, or extremely caring enough to not allow her subordinates to put themselves in further harm's way. Maybe it was neither, he had no idea. One of the girls, the Byakugan user ultimately complied. Actually, she obeyed Yogensha too easily. Chis did not give chase, but he was on alert that the kunoichi might return with assistance for her fearless leader.

The other kunoichi, Koma had different plans. She outright refused to leave Yogensha and even moved to aim a loaded arrow directly at the cloaked fiend. However, Chis' main focus remained with his prospective opponent. As Koma completed her plea to Yogensha, Chis would began walking slowly directly towards Yogensha. Both his hands held each other behind his back, and he did not approach in a threatening manner. But make no mistake, if either were to make a move on him he would react accordingly to defend himself. After what seemed to be an eternity, the Black Dragon would stop about 2-3 yards in front of Yogensha, who now faced him. He studied her current condition, realizing that she was actually a very attractive woman. That would in no way effect Chis' next decision though.

Chis noticed the small amount of blood that seemed to have escaped her mouth not long ago. "Hm..." he bellowed. His attention quickly moved back to Koma, but it was only a moment before his eyes turned back to Yogensha. "Kaguya, Yogensha... Indeed, I am aware of who you are. I've heard interesting things about you and wanted to confirm them for myself. I assumed you would be a worthy foe for me today, but it seems as if the situation has taken a bit out of you... Are you ill?" Chis paused, and quickly resumed his retort, not expecting Yogensha to reveal her affliction to the enemy so easily. His voice was deep, and as imposing as his presence. "Kaguya, Yogensha, it is unfortunate that you are in this current condition. I will let you and your subordinate live though anything that occurs after I exit is not of my concern. But do not mistake this decision as pity. You will certainly see me again...soon. I will not forget my promise to you, and next time I will not be so kind. I look forward to it. Same applies to you, girl." Chis did not know Koma's name, but he would remember her face and voice, even from the small interaction. Quickly thereafter, smoke began to pour from Chis' mask and swiftly enveloped him. In a moment, he was gone from the scene as fast as he appeared.

---

---

Noting the shuriken and the departure of the traitor's ally, the kage shook his head and hit his spear against the ground once.


The lava near him twisted then whirled rapidly in spirals around him. As the shuriken reached him—no matter how numerous—they were blocked by the viscous lava, where they exploded, dispersing small bits of the lava in several direction for a brief moment.

Staring up at Jaakuna he struck his spear against the ground again. Lava swirled for meters behind him, forming several whirlpools, before they erupted into the air, forming geysers of deadly molten material upwards. It sprayed throughout the air all around them, and made pursuing the two chuunin impossible. Any attempt to do so would result in severe, if not fatal, burns. Conversely, if this were a clone, it would result in its dispersal.

Either suited him just fine.

“Jaakuna Aka. You know, I heard tales about you. I considered you a hero of sorts. A man who made a noble sacrifice to make sure that a monster never walked this earth again.” He fell silent and let it drag on for a time, performing handseals with the hand at his side. Unseen to Jaakuna spearhead shaped portions of hardened volcanic rock formed—their like buried by the magma that coated the forest floor.

Every tree within the area of his lava was quickly being engulfed in flames. The smaller ones were melting as the lava consumed them.

“Once I would have been glad to see you alive, but now I am disgusted by it.”

A small pulse of chakra pushed into the lava around him and he began to walk across the fiery molten field.

“I will ask you three times to surrender. If you fail to, know that you will regret it—clone or not.” There was an alien, barely restrained rage in his eyes, and steel in his voice. He knew that if he could not make Jaakuna surrender, that he would likely kill him.

One way or another.

---

---

---

Running she saw as Ai made her move on their adversary's umbrella and she also noted the attack on Aito. She was releived to know that her friend was alright in the end, but she also knew it mean they had another adversary—which wasn't the best news really.

Holding a hand up she used the kai handsign, signalling Ai—and the Phoenix—to return to her. She had decided there was a much faster way to disperse her barrier rods. Once picked up, she'd signal Aito to make the phoenix fly high into the sky over the center of the artificial clearing. Once high enough she'd have already set up a huge number of barrier rods in hand. Crouching briefly, she built up a bit of chakra, tensing her legs, and then launched even higher upwards, leaving the phoenix to circle that spot.

Having moved into a spin as she jumped, she released the barrier rods using her own strength and the force generated by her spin. They were sent out in almost every direction and after several moments they would strike ground or trees, eventually completing the circle.

By the time they had struck, Ayame was already focusing chakra to them. Using 3/4ths of her chakra she activated two massive dome shaped barriers. One outside the other. The inner most one revealed its nature swiftly as she called out these words.

“Seki no Koi Sakana(_{関のコイ魚} 'Barrier of the Koi Fish')!”

The outermost barrier however, was different, for it was not a screen, but a solid wall.

As she landed, clearly out of breath, she said the technique's name. “Kōken no Ishi(_{後見の意志} 'Guardian's Will').” Of course, to the innermost barrier there was a catch, as its purpose was inverted. Any chakra that struck the inner surface of the barrier would be distributed over the entire surface area of the construct, rendering its power null and void entirely.

Signalling to Aito down below, she pointed to the outer reaches of the barriers, then to each of the other combatants.

They needed to get out of the barriers because Ayame had one other tactic in mind, and it would take the remainder of her chakra to pull it off. She hoped that someone else would knock out the criminal before she was reduced to using that tactic....

Kaito Chosokabe

@yoshua171
Kaito kept his thoughts to himself as he studied the man infront of him. He was obviously a very dangerous man. Making deals during the middle of a warzone? Obviously not a regular chunnin. Kaito doubted very much he was anywhere near a chunnin's skills, a thought that did cause a slight change in his face, but not a large one. As he went silent, Kaito finally smirked, his mind having finally come to its conclusion. His ego being stroked only hastened it.

"Such praise. I really must make it a regular thing then to injure the Hyuga. Now, the sorts of people you're looking for, why it sounds like you almost label me a scoundrel. Someone who's dirty, and would betray their master without second thought. I mean, if you knew my history, you would know that is...absolutely something I've done before. Do tell me more."

Kaito chuckled, his face alight. Behind him the hospital finally gave way, dust kicked up across the area. Kaito hid his face with his cloak as the dust finally overcame the area. Through the debris cloud he could hear the scramble of the survivors trying to get away. He wasn't sure why. Under the cloak, his face was grim, but fleeting. It was stupid now to run away. The building was gone. They wouldn't outrun the dust. Infact, NOW was the time they were needed at ground zero, but they kept running away. Kaito finally was able to lower his cloak. As his face was back, it looked alight again.

"Now, continue. What kind of activity do you have planned? You may or may not have my interest. It depends on what's worth my while. If its just for kicks and giggles, I'm not a cheap date."

---

Ginsho paid no attention to the man’s words, he was quick with the tongue like a viper and just as sharp. Ginsho had not trained to perfect and learn this ability all those years with no arm and no friends to falter now. While this technique was not at 100% capacity due to his dominant arm being gone, the sheer power of this brilliant jutsu was more than enough to contest with the God of Shinobi before him. Had he had his second arm he would be miles ahead of his previous competitors. It seemed the puppet master was quicker than he had remembered, no matter he simply had to raise the level of strength in his attacks. Closer and closer the man drew dodging and weaving all of the attacks the archangel was throwing out. So close he could almost smell the fragrance of death on the man before him, that’s when his face seemingly began to melt away revealing a familiar face. Jaakuna had it not been for Namine’s intervention and Aka giving up his identity this revelation would have been costly to his sanity and focus. He was rather blessed to know his dead friend had come back to life and bombed the village.

His eyes widened for a moment and quickly closed back to attention, the undead fox was quick to underestimate and assume the limits of his abilities. The archangel had full domain over Ginsho, no space was too small or near him to not attack. Due to Ginsho’s own immense speed and the angel following his hand motions, it allows him to carry out attacks with the statue in less than 0.1 seconds and to do so with leisure. The blows of the statue are so fast that they may appear to originate from another dimension, this impression is strengthened by the fact that the blow does not come from Ginsho’s position. However Ginsho decided to cast aside the sword and shield for more impressive strength to supplement against the speed demon he once knew as a friend. Ginsho smirked and spoke, but not to the appeal of his old friend that one died a long time ago, “Kami no Te” (God Hand) Ginsho was unflinching, simply creating a chopping motion with his hand. The angel’s fist came down seemingly invisibly, impossible for basic and some advanced ninja to see coming. If Aka didn’t move out of the way he’d be mortally wounded, if he did the earth would have a massive crater below them.

It was Ginsho’s own emotions that gave him away. See, the thing that made Jaakuna so strong was that he always managed to get under the skin of whoever he was facing. Even that of his very best friend. Already a red coat was growing over his skin, each time a small blink of light as he began to move faster and faster. At this point, it was taking at least two of his tails to keep up, and his heart was racing. He knew Ginsho’s intent before he struck, already moving as the blade came down. Gravel exploded around him, a cloud of dust surging from the spot of impact. Jaakuna’s feet touched down several feet away, and when he looked to Ginsho again, he wasn’t alone. Two orbs of light fluttered behind him, one a brilliant white, the other a hellish red. “U~iru o u~isupu” (Will-o-Wisp) Jaakuna surged forth, another set of two tails growing in behind him. A right hook coming right for Ginsho, before a tail struck the earth, pushing him to the side and in a blink, he was attacking from his exposed side. Where he had no arm to protect himself.

There was no time for emotions or thinking, only action. Ginsho wasn’t being very saintly or heavenly in his actions, but he could chalk it up to smiting an evil that was plaguing the world. His love for battle that ruled the early years of his life began to emerge. When did he get so soft that he allowed for things as small as this to faze him? He took the path of the righteous man only to lead him to some hoax of enlightenment and the loss of his arm. Had he remained to be the ninja who was none for his ruthlessness and aggression, he would have no problem watching his back and crushing the insect that was in front of him, “When did I stop attacking first?" He thought as the smoke cleared and the dead host brought out what could only be a discount copy of the original tailed beasts cloak. Jaakuna dove into action and Ginsho had a shot of nostalgia with the tantamount speed this clone was picking up. He was much faster now and the aids of his wisps would prove some annoying hindrance.

The first shot was blocked, while Ginsho welcome the second shot to his open side. He was wearing his heavenly plated armor that would soak some of the blow, the rest not so much. Blood spurted out of his mouth before he greeted the fox boy with a devilish grin, the old Ginsho was back. ”Kami no Hakushu” (God Smack) Utilizing his phantom pain in his dead arm he performed a one handed clapping motion which the archangel swiftly copied in an instant. The clap did minimal to no damage but was strong enough to hold someone of Jaakuna’s caliber still. In quick succession, Ginsho took his open palm and connected his thumb to his index finger with the other three still flexed to form a 9, promptly following all five fingers stretched out, ”Kujuu Go Kami no Hane” (95 God Feather) Suddenly the massive wings sprang into action and released a barrage of blows in an instant directly in front of Ginsho to inflict massive damage, without needing to "pray" for each strike.

The fox shinobi had to admit the impact against Ginsho was… Satisfying. The whole thing felt just like sparring in the old days. Except Namine often complained loudly in the background about cheap shots. The fox had to admit, this whole thing was new to him. While he’d stagnated and weakened in hell, Ginsho had clearly been hitting the gym. If anything it was impressive at how far one had gone while the other fell. Maybe he was the fallen angel here? Ginsho’s old stories had stuck closely by him during the years, always curious about them each time a tale was told. A tale about how an angel was struck down from heaven. “You’re getting good! I haven’t felt a rush like this since we fought Boro the mountain!” Jaakuna grinned from ear to ear, only to feel the sudden clench of fingers around him. His tails curled around each finger, and he knew what was coming next.

Jaakuna’s strength was a benefit as he pushed against the hand clenched around him, draining the chakra construct as fissures began to crackle along each digit. Creating just enough space, as another tail formed, this time clutching his war fan. As a feather struck the metal it began to bend. An exposed shoulder began to bleed as one of the feathers sliced into the skin, another nipping at his calf. The pain of life once again flowed through him, and he reacted. Wind rushed out from the clear white orb, and the arrows quivered. Feathers in the face of a powerful wind, known as Fūton: Taifūikka. The powerful gale of wind slammed against the feathers, launching them right back the short distance to the man who used them. The hand holding Jaakuna finally broke, and he leapt back, panting as a hand clasped over his cheek, a trickle of blood oozing out. His leg began to quake, but he pushed past the pain. Because he was too excited to stop. “You’re better… Not so old now, are you?”

“I just age slower than most, and I moisturize.” Ginsho let out a reminiscent laugh they would once share when they were young. Ginsho seeing his old teammates being shredded by his feathers was depressing despite being a necessity in the situation. If he could set Jaakuna’s mind and body free and release his vengeful tether to this world, it would be a consolation prize to that of Seijuro’s death. He had to do this for Namine, for himself, for everyone else who suffered at the hands of Seijuro during the second war. “It’s time to end this old friend, walk into the light.” Ginsho started to pour all of his chakra into his praying, one final prayer that would send jaakuna to the doorsteps of heaven. His heart ignited with passions and helped him pray to the maximum. The angel suddenly disappeared and reappeared behind the fox boy, tenderly clasping Jaakuna with his palms. The sheer amount of chakra being channeled was enough to be felt across lands and in the next instant it was gone or rather just bottled up within Ginsho’s body.

”Kami no Enko” (Halo of God) A halo appeared above the Angel's head before it quickly began to spin and shoot out a massive, enormous flare of Ginsho’s chakra and aura in an attempt to destroy the enemy.The attack was so massive not only would the portion of the forest of death they were in, but acres of land would be deleted from the sheer power of the technique. While being a holy knight and devout keeper of the faith, which allowed him to age twice as slowly as a normal being, his final technique left him drained. Quickly aging him to the age of 82, normally this wouldn’t be so devastating, but the acceleration of age and the expenditure of his chakra coupled for a very vulnerable Hokage.

“Ginsho you b-” Jaakuna was about to swear as hands came crashing down. A thick smoke exploded from the wisp of fire, acrid black smoke that was easy to ignite. The cloud did nothing to stop the hands as they slammed down around his form, pinning the fox shinobi inside. A tiny red flash could be seen for a moment, but it seemed meaningless. The fire that ripped him apart was absolute. A terrifying display of god’s will… Horrifying to behold as the forest before Ginsho was reduced to nothingness. The smoldering scorch marks of where Jaakuna’s final moments where…

“Terrifying. Glad I wasn’t in that.” Jaakuna spoke softly, and he faded into view behind Ginsho. That smell of graveyard impossible to detect over the scent of scorched earth and wood. In the moment of Ginsho’s attack, he had used a clone. The smoke was a cover for the handseals, hiding his body swap for the moment. That red flash was him leaping away, invisible to the naked eye. But the fox looked… Exhausted. His hair matted and frayed at the edges. “You know… In the old day I may have just tried to tank that with Kurama… I feel… So weak you know. Like I’m missing half of me.” His hand pressed softly to his own chest. “But lets be honest… All this time… What I really missed was you. Nobody else could make me feel like you could. Nobody else could make me feel this young… You? You complete me like Kurama never could.”



Just like that the angel faded from the plane of existence in a brilliant radiance of light, the particles touched the wrinkled and aged skin of Ginsho. His armor disappeared from his body along with the crown of thorns and the chakra rods implanted in his hands and feet, his suffering was gone. It was odd, Ginsho bared no ill-will to his friend there was some solace….some closure in this defeat. Ginsho was only half the man he used to be and Jaakuna was a living doll unhindered by the limitations of man. “If I was enough to complete you, if Namine was enough to complete you, even sensei, you would be on our side of this play of tragedy.” Ginsho’s tone was bittersweet and direct. “Why, why are you doing this jaakuna? Did the fame and greed really poison the legendary Sanin that forfeited his life to seal the demon that you now lay in bed with?”

“I admit…” There was a long pause as he crouched down, balancing on the tips of his feet. “You should know my greatest secret now…” He leaned in, and his words were impossible to hear outside of that soft breath. And as he pulled away, he left his beloved friend with the true depths of his betrayal. “It’s true. All those years ago. I… Admit it, I did a bad thing. I tried to fix it. Figured I could do something great with what I did. But it didn’t work out that way. And yet, when I could have been selfish, I saved you. My body was always faster than my mind.” Jaakuna smiled softly, as he ran a hand back through his hair. “I’m a fuck up, Ginsho. I may have been the one people wanted, but you’re the one they needed. I deserved to die, and I spent twenty years in hell for it. But now? I don’t think I can walk away from that. It’s got me by a leash… I’m my own Bijuu, and Seijuro’s the Jinchuriki bending me to his whims.”

It was a pity to find out that his friend had walked the opposite path he did in their youth. Once a glutton for punishment and violence, Ginsho took the path of salvation. Jaakuna was the person the village needed, or rather deserved. But instead he ate the forbidden fruit, lured in by the snake known as Seijuro, just as adam and eve were poisoned by the same snake in the garden of eden. This was twice now that he had been betrayed, how could Ginsho have been so ignorant to the vices that existed within Jaakuna? “You’re wrong, I didn’t complete you, I never even knew you. You were a stranger, those feelings i harbored for you were all a lie. You’re weak, you’re nothing more than a coward. A sheep in fox clothing, I’m glad you were the one to die that day, your pristine reputation as the village’s Noble Jinchuriki and the next candidate for Hokage died with you that day. I just hope your misguided ambitions were worth their weight in gold. Some ”Emperor of fate you turned out to be.”

Jaakuna had nothing to say as Ginsho spoke. It was painful to listen, but if he listened he could delay what was coming next. “I guess… You’ll just have to be the one to atone for my sins.” Jaakuna whispered as he stood up. He walked about the scorched arena, grabbing the scorched black trunk of a down tree, driving it into the ground like a stake. “I lied about a lot. But you know, I wasn’t always lying. After all, I was being honest when I told you that Namine wished you would stop quoting that bible stuff. Me, personally? I liked it. Never believed a word of it though. In a way, those could be your lies. Lies of salvation, lies of a god. But you… You’ll be able to find out soon enough.” He took another log, shaping it easily into the proper shape as he began to string the two scorched pieces of wood together. When he stepped back to admire his handwork, Ginsho could see how warped Jaakuna could be. Gnarled and smoking, twisted and in horrible condition, Jaakuna had fashioned a holy cross in the middle of this field. The fox returned to Ginsho, picking him up tenderly no matter how the fragile Hokage may have tried to fight him. “Hush… Just like that fellow from your stories… You will atone for my sins, and the sins of this shinobi world.” He cooed, before he began the devil’s work.

Just as Jaakuna began to speak of his interest in Ginsho’s bible verses, the withering Hokage closed his eyes and relaxed and gave into his fate. “The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters. He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name's sake. Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me. Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the Lord for ever.”

His words became sharp as daggers, “The path of the righteous man is beset on all sides by the inequities of the selfish and the tyranny of evil men. Blessed is he, who in the name of charity and good will, shepherds the weak through the valley of darkness, for he is truly his brother's keeper and the finder of lost children. And I will strike down upon thee with great vengeance and furious anger those who would attempt to poison and destroy my brothers. And you will know my name is the Lord when I lay my vengeance upon thee.” Ginsho knew he was provoking the fox boy, all of his words had a tinge of truth to them, but it was mostly just a bluff to provoke the old sanin. His hopes lied in the fact his novel words would change his perspective, but Jaakuna did in fact die the day he chose to eat the forbidden fruit, he was beyond salvation. Ginsho was powerless to end the life that was spiraling out of control, had he just been a little bit stronger or a full man, he’d be the one burying an old friend. The rest would now fall into the hands of his brother….

“For he is truly his brother’s keeper…” Jaakuna whispered softly as he raised a kunai into the air. The thunk of metal on wood filled the air as blood gushed onto reborn devil’s face. “I like that one… But my favorite story is that time you talked about the desert.” He raised another kunai, and struck again. With only one hand, it was harder, but Jaakuna tried his hardest. He nailed Ginsho to the cross, taking a step back and admiring it all for a moment. “The tempter came to him and said ‘If you are the Son of God, tell these stones to become bread.’ But the holy man replied ‘It is written: ‘Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.’” Jaakuna took his fan in his hand, and lifted the handle up like a spear. “I took the bread… AMEN!” The handle was a blade of itself as it drove into Ginsho’s heart. Scarlet blood soaked the earth, and Jaakuna let his breath rise and fall. “Amen… Amen… Amen… What does that even mean?” But he expected no answer from the corpse before him. A minute passed, and Jaakuna just watched, until he was sure Ginsho was dead. He pulled his weapon free, and pulled the body from the misshapen cross. Holding him tightly and winding a cloth over the wounds. He walked away with the body, hands brushing through that flowing white hair. As if caressing a lost child. With the body, Jaakuna vanished into the earth, leaving the hokage’s hat behind.


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Cockroach had made his way through on of his many hidden tunnels, having lived for more than a century, all play and no work made Gokiburi a dull boy. Instead, the cockroach spent years creating hidden pathways and tunnels that mapped out the entire known map of the ninja world. Having mastered subterfuge and guerilla warfare, he was sure that his tunnels were completely hidden, only able to be known or seen by the cockroach himself. It was sort of a living maze in the sense it bended to its masters will and was sentient enough to cover its own tracks. Being a non-fighter and having just returned from their infamous prison break, Gokiburi hid alongside Yui in the tunnels while the rest of the Yomigaeri were either at battle or back at their home base.

“I’m sorry Ms. Magician, I didn’t mean to pull you all the way out here for nothing. If I was enough to retrieve these men I would, but alas I’m less than half a man, a monster. I can however create an image for us on what’s going on outside my lady.” Gokiburi etched a hideous smile that would strike fear and uncomforting in the most stoic of men. Lady Yui seemed different however, she was always so kind, yet so condescending to the little roach. Gokiburi would take any form of praised or kindness from anyone, old age had made him lonely and the other Yomigaeri saw him as an insect. Cockroach waved his hand before an image of each of the fights simultaneously happening, and the death battle between the Hokage and their puppet Sanin.

The killing blow was a piece of wood impaled into the heart of the great angel that ruled over the leaf, how tragic, yet poetic in a way. Gokkburi began to guffaw quite loudly, unable to control his bodily fluid spit and snot ran out of his grotesque orifices while he bounced around jovially. Regaining his compose with a slight rise in his voice he turned to the purple haired mystique, “Looks like we don’t need to wait for them to finish their fights anymore, that’s the signal. We’re done here, let’s retrieve those good for nothing bastards." While Nui could handle the retrieval of two or three of the Yomigaeri, Cockroach handled the rest. Weaving several uneven hand seals with his disfigured finger, cockroaches began to pour out of his mouth and ears and the folds of his clothes. An army of vile creatures filled the tunnels before making their way through the ground and appearing around the feet the participants ready to swarm their bodies and teleport them away.“Shall we make our exit to stage left my dear?”
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At this point in the battle Havoc was growing quite weary of the subtle and scared tactics the onslaught of chunin were using to combat him. How painfully arrogant was it of them to begin to imagine suppressing a natural force of the world. Gravity was one of the main four components that was natural law that governed the world. The thing about gravity is the more you fight it the harder you’re crushed underneath it. This was the hard truth these chunin would have to face once Havoc decided they would die for their insolence. Serving just as a distraction was turning into an actual fetish for the freshly jail broken ninja. ”It’s been too long since I flexed my muscles, shame you’ll have to die for it. Join my gallery of art.” Havoc muttered lowly to himself, although audible enough for the ice princess to hear while she had succumbed to the early effects of running into his dome of gravitation force.

The not so young chunin was rather spry and fearless in the face of such a destructive force as havoc. It was slightly reminiscent of two other kunoichi he had met on the way and recruited. Although this one seemed rather stupid and too old to mold into a perfect weapon a tool. As for Havoc he already knew of a yuki, his partner, it’d be a sight to see watching the two of them take part in mortal combat instead of the scruffy homeless man. Once again like a moth to an open flame the ice princess dashed towards havoc to deal some damage. The gravity within his domain increased to 5g’s if she was strong enough she could perhaps fight off the ever looming war to knock her unconscious. Havoc scoffed at her meager attempts to kick him only falling short. Could she be that much of an imbecile? Suddenly havoc’s eyes fixated on the tag plastered on her foot. ”Shit” he muttered before dodging to the side having a pillar of ice just barely hitting his whole head. A small pile of hair soaked in blood fell to the ground, the shadows covered his eyes but his icy blue gold irises were extenuated.

Wiping the blood from his cheek he was ready to retaliate, it was just like riding a bike, only this time he was a little tripped up. Before he could attack the ice girl who was surely battling her own body to stay awake a disruption in his gravitational sense shot through his entire body. Shifting his attention to were the depression in gravity was arriving Havoc threw the hand that was channeling gravitational energy in, up into the location of the arrival of whomever it was. ”Banshō Ten'in” the umbrella was pulled down violently just missing the body and hand of the girl, however she wasn’t as lucky as she hoped. With the dome in place, Newton’s third law had an increased effect. Due to the amount of gravitational energy weighing down onto the earth below them an equal amount of force would need to be exerted by the Banshō Ten'in in order to combat the force surrounding it. This potent attractive force would suck the misguided chunin and phoenix into his domain to be crushed inside, paper was still susceptible to the wrath of natural order.

The third ninja sprang into action but it was a bit too late, cockroaches began to puncture the earth and surround havoc’s legs. In a few short moments he would be entirely covered in the plague like creatures and vanish from thin air. Havoc turned to Hime and smiled, “Looks like my fun here is gone” he took his finger and traced his fresh blood before touching it on his tongue, “Next time you won’t be so lucky.” But before the gravity ninja could depart he needed to leave a going away present. Pouring the rest of his chakra into his next jutsu, he exploded in a powerful rage, “SHINRA TENSEI!” he bellowed before a massive repulsive force exploded in all directions, enough to swallow up 10 km of the land before them. Whatever weak barrier the chunin could manage to concoct would only serve as a small buffer and reprieve before his repulsion eroded it in seconds. The umbrella ceased to exist and Havoc had disappeared entirely, cockroaches pooled at the blood he had left behind.
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A few days past and the air was thick with sadness. The flame of the leaf village had gone out and the symbol of peace had left with it. Rain trickled from the sky in a somewhat poetic twist. The village was silent, just the patters of water making ground fall could be heard. It was as if all the life of the village had been sucked out with it. Letters and birds had been sent out to all of those who would listen, the chunin from both villages were asked to commune in Konoha for the funeral of the late Hokage, Ginsho. Friends, family, and other village leaders were invited to join in the service.



The funeral march had made its way towards the vacant hole below the Hokage’s headstone, beginning to be lowered while the rest watched. Ninja were all dressed in black as the rest of the invited collected before the other village elders and chunin alike. Shinko stood at the front of the large headstone of his fallen leader. Everyone seemed to be there, except Kyo who had been rescued by the late assistant and hospitalized due to his extreme injuries. The ever silent assistant waited for the ninja to get situated and friendly with each other, before walking to the side of the stone ready to speak, the first time any of the ninja before him would hear him speak.

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Forest of Death... @Yoshua171

"Well, lets consider this my first chance to surrender." Jaakuna spoke, watching as the Tsuchikage did his best to keep him away. "But... I'll decline. Hopefully you will still one day be willing to offer me those last two chances. Though, I doubt it." There was a poof of smoke, and he was gone. He'd succeeded in keeping the Tsuchikage busy, a whole affair that made matters... Difficult for the future. But, he did learn something from his encounter, and that was how far different this world was from the last.

Around the village, the last of Jaakuna Aka's clones dissipated. But in time, the word would spread. Somebody would say it out loud, and soon, the whole village knew exactly who to blame for this whole morbid affair...




Bumu couldn't help it. Looking over to Hikaru, and then thinking about just what kind of person would name their kid something as stupid as... Bakusatsu Kyō? He just imagined Hikaru in a silly paper crown, running around and blowing stuff up. Biting her lip, Bumu still ended up bursting into full on laughter. "Wow, you must have some crazy family, huh?" Bumu teased, tongue sticking right out. His ears twitched, and he glanced over to the northern edge of the forest. "DUCK!" He shouted, leaping down behind an overturned tree. The tree itself had long since formed into the ground, with rocks layered over and newer trees growing over it. Landing just in time, the fox bore witness to the devestation of the forest around her and Hikaru. Trees blown away, the ground shattered and turned to dust in a few areas. Horrifying to behold. "Well... I guess you and I lucked out. We're out of the forest now. Though there is no forest." Bumu chuckled nervously as she peeked out from their hide-y hole, thankful it withstood all this. "Though I guess they got what they want, since I can't see anybody else besides some of the other students."

Dusting himself off, Bumu turned to look at Hikaru. "So... I'm guess you Iwa guys are gonna be heading out soon, huh?" Bumu inquired, turning to his short term friend. "I guess I'll be seeing you around then. This whole day has me really reevaluating my life choices." He seemed to joke, but there was always the chance she was serious. "Look, if you need a place to stay, I'm your ninja, got it?"

One Week Later

Bumu hated this suit. Scruffy, rented it so it didn't fit perfectly right. The fox shinobi pulled on the collar, and despite the best efforts available, it never felt good. But that may have been the atmosphere. Around Bumu where the shinobi of Konoha. Many gathered, even from foreign lands. Rain pelted down from above, and despite the lack of life the whole ordeal seemed... Bitter. No body in the casket. They never could find it. But Namine, the village's top sensory had witnessed it from a great distance. Details where scarce, but they all knew who did it. Jaakuna Aka.

The Aka clan stood alone to the side, most of them children of the famed fox. Bumu stood a bit further off, in his own group to himself. He had made it clear many times his affiliation as the unknown bastard child of the fox sage, but the rest of the family had chosen to separate themselves from Bumu. Moreso now that the eyes of the judging village lay upon them. In truth, Bumu hadn't spoken to any of the others much sense then. Most just shut their doors, or had other things to do. Humans... How easily they turned their backs on others it seemed... Not even heroes where exempt.

"I see you actually wore a suit today."
Bumu didn't even need to look to know who it was. But either way, he looked to his right. There stood Kurin Senju, pride of the Senju clan. Smelling more than usual of plant matter. A great deal of bandages covered his face and body, supposedly from the burns he had suffered during his exam. "What's it matter to you?" Bumu muttered, a scowl on his lips. "I don't need pity you know."
"You don't?" Kurin asked, rather quizzically. "You're standing alone. The rest of your clan seems... Off put by this whole ordeal. What about you?"
"I don't need somebody to mental analyze me, okay?" Bumu snapped back. "It's this stupid suit that's got me all riled up!" He stomped away, leaving Kurin alone to the dreary atmosphere.




How weak. Nousagi stood with the rest of the Hyuuga clan, looking the distance to the funeral parade going down between the crowds. The Hokage had been a great man, and he had died in such a weak way. An assassin it seemed, and one who took the identity of the village hero. Now the village villain. He glanced around, looking to each member of his clan in time. With all that had happened, the clan was a broiling with gossip, and self interest. Already he could hear the murmurs of his father and his aides, all discussing their own bid to put the Hyuuga in charge of Konoha once again. Mind you, Nousagi didn't argue, as taking advantage of this moment to push an agenda was probably on the minds of all promenient clans. For a while it had been believed that one of the Aka clan would have been a strong contender for the Hokage's replacement. But recent affairs had completely ruined that bid for them. A boon for all the other clans.

"Kai, which clan do you believe has the chance to place one of their own in the lead for village leader?" Nousagi inquired, turning to the member of the Otsutsuki clan. Kai's failure in the tournament had been... Disappointing, but none the less a good aide was hard to come by, and Kai could at least do that. "Personally, the Senju clan will probably make a strong bid. Since the passing of their clan head many years ago had crippled their chances during the last time the spot was opened by tragedy. But now... They may very well be looking to reclaim their heritage as one of the more prominent clans in the village."




Suits where never a good fit for Ocha. More often than not he'd have gone to this event in his usually flashy outfit. But he respected the former Hokage a great deal, even during the war. Ocha could recall the times they met in battle. Ginsho on the side of Konoha, and Ocha on mission by the former Mizukage to assassinate somebody of value. He could not recall the score, but in the end it seemed Ocha was the winner on that front. "Strange... I always thought he'd ascend to that heaven he always prattled on and on about." Ocha commented softly, seated alongside the other Kages. Ocha himself was dressed in a fairly simple suit and tie, but the bandages that covered his body was for the health of those around him. Thick and tightly woven, covering every inch of his body. He couldn't help but feel... Sad. How odd, that wasn't an emotion that came to the surface very often. But in a way, this was the beginning of an end of an era. The last great heroes of the war where slowly dying out. Leaving only the villains of that sordid affair to live on. "Tragic."

---

Koma insisted she stay there and, although Yogensha considered it momentarily, she decided not to order the girl away again. She was not a part of Amegakure - any longer - and was responsible for her own choices. Adding to that, this person in front of them seemed to possess power enough to make this fight a true fight - unlike fighting the clones, like she had been before, this would result death either for her or for him. Having Koma here as a back-up seemed good even if it placed a lot of risk on the girl. As Chis, the Black Dragon, spoke to her and Koma, however, she felt her blood boil. Momentarily the pain in her bones was gone, as she focused on his words. Do not underestimate me, she thought - a thought contrary to how she acted. It was good that he underestimated her. That way she could catch him by surprise.

She did her best to control herself, to maintain that perfect composure she was renowned for, but the pain in her bones combined with his dismissive words - and the fever she was running by now - meant that she could do little to control herself. The rage of the Kaguya clan came up in her and unfurled itself quickly. She formed numerous handseals, pushed a foot forwards to gain a grip, and cried out. “Fūton: Kazekiri no Jutsu!” She slung her hand forward, where a good amount of wind chakra had gathered, and let go of the chakra, sending a slicing wave of wind forwards towards the Black Dragon.

It was too late. By the time the wind hit him, he was gone, leaving only some smoke behind where he had once been. Yogensha bit her lip, drawing blood, before turning to Koma. Finally, she pulled up her arm and wiped the blood from her mouth with her sleeve. “We should return to the village. It seems most of the danger has passed. Now we should aid those we can find.” Before she could step forward, her body went numb, and her attempt to step forwards ended in a vague stumble, causing her to fall to her knees. What is this, she wondered, the pain returning to her bones, seemingly burning the insides of them up. She could feel them moving - surely that was a mistake, just a result of the fever that was setting in, it was making her delusional. But if Koma paid exceptional attention to Yogensha, she could see bulges under her skin moving, as if there was something under there trying to get out.

After a second or two of rest, Yogensha finally pushed off and managed to get upright. Without addressing her seeming tumbling health, she continued. “Let's go,” she ordered.

By the time they'd reached the village, news of the Hokage's passing would've reached them. Ironic, Yogensha thought. She'd been prepared to die but was spared by someone looking down on her. The Hokage was looked up to, and ended up dead. The Sage had a funny way of choosing who would pass to the afterlife.

---

Yogensha and Sayuri had stayed in Konohagakure to attend the funeral - something that was becoming increasingly troublesome as Yogensha's condition had worsened, and she was restrained to using a wooden support to stand upright. Despite every moment being burning agony for her, she somehow maintained her composure as well as she could on the wooden support. She was still dressed in her Amegakure garb, the blood still on her sleeves. Not from fighting. From illness. The Konohagakure medics had offered to look at her and 'take care' of her illness but she had insisted she was fine. There was no way that the Konohagakure medics were going to be allowed to gather intelligence on her. She'd have to wait until they were back in Amegakure. A moment that could not arrive too soon at this moment.

As the casket was brought forwards, Yogensha could only lean towards Sayuri slightly. “Kaito has been missing,” she whispered to her, before leaning back as well as she could. Looking at the casket, Yogensha felt nothing. Ginsho had always been a beacon of stability for her as a political leader - he was not an ally of her, far from it, but he was not a warmonger and she knew she could rely on Ginsho and Konohagakure to offer her assistance if it were needed. She had supposed that was part of the Will of Fire.

But with the flame extinguished and the Hokage dead in a box, perhaps it had just been something else entirely.

But as a person, emotionally, she could not bring herself to feel much. Ginsho had been just that. A political leader, like her, but of far greater importance. It made him a target. It made all of these people a target. It reduced him, as a person, as a being, as a human. It made him an object. Yogensha knew she could see past that - that was the Sage's will - but could others? Could they see past his status as a barrier between them and their goals?

He was supposedly in a casket now. So evidently not. A raindrop hit her on her nose. It reminded her of home.

---

Several weeks had passed since the Hokage's funeral, and Yogensha's situation had only worsened. The civilians of Amegakure were getting restless - what if their leader fell ill and died, would they be subject to another civil war? Would they pay the price of her death? The shinobi were also getting restless. Rumors of planned coups were taking over and soon enough there was not a clan left in Amegakure that was free of the accusation of being a traitors den. These rumors were kept from Yogensha by her staff - either to not burden her already frail health with the thoughts of unrest, or because she'd insist on going out and stopping it.

Not that it would stop her.

She had gotten up and walked through the corridors of her residence, inspecting the left over artworks and the many many industrial pipes, that echoed the sound of rain hitting her building permanently. Although she was frail, she had enough chakra left to sustain Ukojizai no Jutsu, meaning it now permanently rained and she was permanently aware of new visitors entering her village. A sad compromise between her health and duties as the leader of Amegakure.

As she wandered, she found herself at the bottom of the gigantic tower that was her residence. She slowly pushed open the large, heavy cast-iron doors and walked onto the raised plateau that lead up to her house. She heard yelling below her, and slowly approached the railing at the edge of the raised platform. In front of her were two men, wearing Amegakure forehead protectors on their arms. They were evidently shinobi - and they had brought their clans too, who were standing behind them seemingly ready to enter a riot and fight the other clan.

She watched as the two went back and forth.

“Your clan is nothing more than good-for-nothing rain-dancers that pick up the left overs of other clans! And now that our great leader has fallen ill, you want to pick up her left overs? You should be executed for treason!”

“Tsk, all lies! You are guilty of what you accuse others of! Everyone knows that your son and the heir to your clan is a bastard anyway, so if anyone should be executed it is you, for adultery?”

“What, say that again, I dare you! I will rip your throat out with my kunai so fast that you couldn't even ask for forgiveness!”

“Yeah? I'll fucking burn your whole clan to a crisp!”

They went back and forth some more until they noticed Yogensha was watching over them, leaning on her crutch, her face saying nothing, not even disappointment. “O-oh,” the two men mumbled in unison, quickly bowing down and kneeling before their leader. Yogensha watched them and the entire two clans kneel before her, but it made her feel no better about the situation. She stared at them a moment longer before turning around and silently, and slowly, walking away towards her home again. “Disgusting,” she whispered to herself, before the heavy clunk of the doors indicated that she'd entered the building again.

---

Two hours later, Sayuri would be summoned. It'd be the first time in two weeks that she had been summoned, and when she entered, she'd find that the room had changed a lot. It was dark, lit only by candles in the corners. The door to the balcony was open, letting in the sound of the wind that tried desperately to pull down the tall structure, and the rain that had not stopped since their arrival. At the center of the room was Yogensha, laid in a bed.

Where she would normally stand so tall and proud, like a true leader, confident but with a humble streak, she was now reduced to a woman that had lost a lot of weight, so much that her bones were visible through her skin. The bulges under her body still moved, more violently than before, as if something was trying to get out of her body. But she couldn't feel it. She was on so much pain medication that she would be lucky to feel anything at all. The only reason she hadn't been assassinated yet was because she had shut down the village temporarily. Nobody was allowed to enter or leave. The border-guard units were on high alert and any trespassers were attacked and incapacitated or killed on sight.

The village had been tense, needless to say.

Sayuri would surely be off-put by the situation in front of her. It was well known that Yogensha was sick, but many people thought she was just bedridden with a common illness. Nobody knew it was this serious - not even Sayuri. A cough would alert her as a weak hand beckoned her to come closer. “Sayuri,” Yogensha whispered, even her voice weaker than the leading voice she'd possessed before. As Sayuri came closer, she'd note that a single bone on Yogensha's neck was protruding through the skin - it'd made a holy and was now visibly protruding from the body, shaped like a spike. Yogensha didn't know - didn't feel it. It was largely hidden, but now that she was laying down, it was clearly visible.

“You must mount an expedition. The lands that I come from are not Amegakure - I come from somewhere else. You must go there and find a remedy for my disposition..” she slowly said, stopping to gurgle and cough heavily. Her fever was running so high, you could literally feel the heat coming off of her. “The village is turning into a chaotic mess without my leadership, and people are at each others' throats. We don't have much time left. It's not just me you will save with this remedy, it's the entire-” Again she coughed, turning over on her side and spitting out blood as she did. She didn't mention it at all, only wiped her mouth slowly with the edge of the blanket she was under. “.. it's the entire village.”

Merely an hour later, crows flew out from the grand tower of the Amegakure leader. They carried pamphlets and posters for the recruitment of a 'great expedition' to the east, to uncharted lands and hidden treasure. Nothing was mentioned about the true purpose of Yogensha's expedition, to treat her illness. All interested parties were told to convene in Amegakure - showing the pamphlet to the border guard would allow you to pass into Amegakure with a squad of border guards to escort you. Any interested party were to report to the Amegakure command hall, to meet a certain quartermaster called Geiji Akimura.