Chapter 61
MINATO NAMIKAZE
The seal put on him by Lord Orochimaru was now gone, and Minato now had complete control over his body once more. It was a blessing for it pained him to harm the village he had once sworn to protect.
Still, defeating him was easier said than done and doing so with the quickness at which it was done was a miracle in and of itself.
"I never thought that I would ever face a shinobi faster than myself," and it was not a boast, but Minato's speed was the very thing which had won him his moniker of the Yellow Flash, and pushed him to the heights that he was able to achieve.
The only shinobi who could match his speed were the Nidaime, and the Fourth Raikage Unruly Ay. Now, a new name needed to be put on that list.
Hikari Hyuga. And that was not the only list his name needed to be put on.
"Well, I never thought I would have to face the famous yellow flash one day," he answered, and they were waiting for his body to recover before they could move ahead with their plan.
"Well, we can then simply call it luck," and Minato's speed came from his fuinjutsu, and his mastery over the Nidaime's Hiraishin. But Hikari did not use seals. His speed was a result of some rather unique, and mind-blowing chakra mastery.
"I still cannot believe that you had your chakra networks modified just so you increase your speed," and the boy had asked the White Snake Sage to modify his chakra networks to better suit his combat abilities. While it had handicapped him in certain ways, as he was able to use intricate standard ninjutsus, if their brief confrontation was anything to go by he did not need it.
"Still, to master sage mode at such a young age. You are an even greater prodigy than Shodaime-sama himself," Minato added, and the young Hyuga boy scoffed.
"I really doubt that," the boy answered, but Minato knew better. Even the Shodaime had mastered his famous Mokuton and sage mode when he was well into his twenties. Yet he had done so far earlier, and if the markings and the absolute erasure of his presence was anything to go by he was a perfect Sage unlike him and Jiraiya-sensei.
"So, we know that the Akatsuki are probably attacking both the Summit, and the rest of the villages which still hold a jinchuriki," and that included Kumo, Iwa and Kiri for Suna no longer had any bijuu in them.
"Yes," Minato repeated as the trio of him, Hikari and the Shikaku's son sat and plotted their next move.
"Obviously we cannot let that happen," the Hyuga prodigy cut in.
"Yes, I know which of the Kage is in which village because I was the one who teleported them," and Minato cut in now.
"The Nidaime-sama is in Kumo, the Sanadaime is in kiri and the Shodaime is in Iwa," and so they had the distribution.
"We can only go and face two of them," because only him and Hikari even stood a chance against them, and with his fuinjutsu and Hikari's senjutsu they had a chance of breaking the control seals and recruiting the Hokage to their side.
"So, who do we chose to go after first?" Shikamaru Nara cut in.
"We leave the Shodaime and target the Sandaime and the Nidaime," Hikari was quick to make his decision.
"As strong as we are, even together we stand no chance at all against the Shodaime-sama," and perhaps with the recruited strength of the Nidaime and the Sandaime they may be able to reverse the odds.
"We should also target the jutsu caster, Orochimaru," Shikamaru nara added.
"Locating him will take too much time. We need to gather out strength and then rush to the Summit to provide backup," and that was where the main battle was happening.
"Yes, Yondaime-sama is right," Hikari Hyuga added as he turned towards him.
"You mentioned that you remember there being five coffins when you were revived," and he nodded.
"Yes," and the boy bit his lip.
"Four of them contained the Hokage, but what was in the fifth?" Shikamaru questioned, and the same thing bugged him as well.
"If I am right, and that last box does indeed contain the shinobi I am thinking of then I can say with certainity that even with the combined might of all the Shinobi currently present at the Five Kage Summit, they will lose," and the words were chilling, and for a second neither him or the Nara kid had anything to say.
"What?" the young Nara prodigy was the first to break out the of the trance.
"I am not joking," the Hyuga boy repeated.
"But who could even do such a thi...."
"Madara Uchiha," Minato answered, as the young Nara's head snapped towards him, as his eyes widened.
"Madara as in the...."
"...one of the founders of Konoha," Hikari Hyuga finished, and if it was indeed Madara Uchiha in that box, then who was the shinobi behind that mask. The one he had faced on that night. The one who had called himself Madara.
Even back then Minato had thought it to be a lie, but now it made him rather curious about the real identity.
"So, our plan ahead is simple," Hikari Hyuga began, and Minato's body had finished healing now.
"Minato and I will take care of the Kages. As for Orochimaru, I leave him to you," he said looking towards his friend.
"I will handle that," Shikamaru Nara was not one to back away, as Minato placed his hand on the boy.
"I am going to put my seal on you, so I can come to your aide as soon as I am done on my end," and the boy smirked.
"Sure, but how will we select which one of us will take whom?" and the choice was between the Nidaime and the Sandaime.
"I have no preference here," and the boy seemed to think on it for a second, before he made his decision.
"I will take the...."
0000
SASUKE UCHIHA
In the end Sasuke found himself rushing out of the village, even as it faced an existential threat. Initially, he had planned on going out to support and protect Naruto from the attackers, but Sasuke had spent the last ten years searching for answers, and now it was time for him to get those answers.
For years he had condemned Itachi for his actions. He had made his brother the villain who had slaughtered his clan, and thought that remained the truth still, he had learned much in the last two years.
He thought of life, and how it had been before the massacre. He thought of his brother and wondered what could have driven him to do such a thing. It was hard for him to look beyond the hate. He had spent years hating his brother, refusing to ponder over the exact events of that night, but as life slowed down the questions began to simmer up as he began looking for answers.
He found none. But the list of questioned continued to grow, until he found himself making the realization that the truth of that night was far more complicated than he realised.
That old hag had promised him some answers but her battle with Pain had left her in a come, depriving him of the answers he was owed. The new Hokage had refused to answer his questions as well, but Sasuke his silence had been answer enough.
That Itachi Uchiha was more than just a traitor. He was more than a clan killer.
In the end, they came to a stop near an abandoned castle on the outskirts of the village, and the former Kiri-nin stopped outside, as he motioned for him to go ahead.
"He is waiting for you inside," the blue skinned shinobi added, and Sasuke nodded.
"Why are you doing this?" Sasuke asked.
"Honestly, I don't know myself," he answered with a scoff, as he put his blade on his shoulder and leaned against the wall.
"This world is full of liars, and your brother is one of the greatest liars I have ever known," and Sasuke knew that better than most.
"One could say that I wish what is more powerful, the truth or the lies," and that was a strange thing to say.
"Go, before I change my mind," and Sasuke nodded, and by now a day had passed since he had left Konoha, as he walked into the building, and found himself walking through dim and dark corridors until he came upon a massive Hall with stairs leading upto a singular chair.
A chair which was occupied by a singular person.
"So, you are finally here Sasuke," and Itachi sat on the chair lazily with his arms folded, looking exactly as he had a month ago.
"I am," Sasuke answered as he stepped forward and met his brother's gaze, and their eyes shifted at once and the world shifted in that moment as well, as the three tomoe Sharingan appeared in his eyes yet Itachi's transformation went even beyond his own as he showcased his Mangekyo Sharingan.
"Is that it?" Itachi mocked him.
"Is that the extent of your hate, Sasuke!" and unlike before Sasuke chose to quell the rage burning his body. All these years he had spent hours imagining himself in this scenario. Imagining how he would exact his revenge on his brother for what he had done.
Yet he held himself back.
It was here. Itachi was here. He had spent years preparing himself for this day and yet that old hag's words stopped him. The Rokudaime's silence stopped him. Kisame's words stopped him.
His own heart stopped him.
"Why?" and the shout reverberated through the entire room.
"WHY DID YOU DO IT ITACHI?" Sasuke questioned, and there was desperation in his voice. For years Sasuke had chosen to forget about the brother he had once had, to hate the one who had killed his clan.
He had tried to forget Itachi the brother, so he could Itachi the clan killer.
But now as doubt and questions filled his heart, the memories resurfaced and he was reminded of how life had been before that wretched night.
"Why? Have you forgotten my words already?" Itachi answered, and he had not forgotten. How could he when he was forced to listen them for months and months because of his eyes.
"To test my strength," Sasuke repeated as he looked into those Mangekyo Sharingan.
"So, you do remember, afterall," Itachi mocked.
"And yet still you disappoint me. I should have known better than to think that you would ever become strong enough to entertain me," and his brother rose from his chair.
"Have you finally realised that you can never beat me. That all your hate and anger is futile in the face of my might!" Itachi raged, and Sasuke did not look away.
"It is a lie," and Itachi was taken aback by those words.
"Lie," Itachi laughed, and the sound reverberated across the hall.
"HAHAHAAA! Perhaps it is a lie. Perhaps I didn't really kill those idiots to test me strength. Perhaps I killed them just because I could!" and Itachi was still laughing.
"But I killed them, just as I will kill you now," and Sasuke shook his head.
"No, you won't," he answered and it was obvious that there was indeed more to that night than he thought.
"Why? Do you really think that you stand a chance against me with those eyes of yours," and Sasuke took a step forward.
"You won't kill me, because these eyes of mine...." and in that moment, Sasuke's eyes shifted and the pattern in them changed, and just like that the world around them shifted as well.
CRACK! CRACK!
The genjutsu began to break, as Sasuke found himself infront of his brother's chair, while tears slid down the thin, pale and frail face of Itachi Uchiha.
"...can see the truth," and Itachi's eyes widened, as he realised that his genjutsu had failed, and that he had been able to breakthrough it and see the truth.
His brother was injured, and barely clinging to life and yet even in that moment he swung a kunai at his neck, but the once mighty Itachi Uchiha was simply too weak to do anything as Sasuke grabbed his wrist and stopped the kunai.
CLANK! CLANK!
The kunai fell to the ground, and rattled as Sasuke looked him in the eye.
"It is over," he repeated, and saw the realization dawn on his brother as his arm weakened.
"I know," and he was dying. Itachi was dying, and there was nothing that he could do to save him.
"Will you not tell me the truth even now, brother?" Sasuke questioned, and Itachi's lips thinned.
"It won't change anything," Itachi countered, and Sasuke knew that as well.
"I still wish to know...." and then Itachi nodded, and blood began to gatherin in his right eye.
"Then so be it," and Sasuke looked into that eye, as Itachi showed him the truth of his life.
.
.
.
.
And by the time the jutsu came to an end, Sasuke had tears sliding down his face as Itachi, gestured for him to lean in, as he raised his hand.
"Promise me one thing, Sasuke..." and his voice was but a whisper as he tapped his forehead, as Sasuke wrapped his arms around his dying form.
"...protect it. Protect Konoha!"
"AHHHHHHH!"
And Sasuke's cries filled the castle, as the destined battle between brothers came to an end without a single kunai being draw.
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