Chapter 67 - Arc X: True Form- Chapter 1

In a battle between Sasuke and I, he has the clear advantage. He has fire and lightning to my fire and earth styles. His lighting trumps my earth style, and my fire style will likely fall short of his Uchiha-enhanced fire ninjutsu. His genjutsu will also always defeat mine.

My advantage is neutral chakra. He may be unable to read it, or at the very least have a difficult time following it.

Taijutsu may be a mutual point. A point worth expanding upon, somehow. He’s copied Lee’s speed, and has since built up the physical parameters to withstand it. I need to surpass the speed he saw and copied.

Hands folded, Yuji contemplated his next, and bigger, problem.

Do I win? Even if I have the ability, winning means killing Sasuke. But I don’t kill unless I’m defending someone. Do I count as ‘someone’? More to the point, if I kill him, will Naruto and Sakura ever forgive me?

And yet, what choice do I have? I don’t care about accolades as a ‘legend’. I’m resigned to a life of service to those two, and I’m finally okay with it. But this just kills everything.

Dropping his head into his hands in despair, he tried to weight his options, but came up with more bad news:

Fighting is all I know. Fighting is what I love. But what if I changed my destiny? What if I gave up fighting? If I were to terminate the Ten no Kishootsu prophecy…
I would be weak. Pathetically weak.
But then, I would no longer ‘need’ to fight Sasuke. It’s not impossible for me to learn a new way of life, and maybe even enjoy serving the two of them. But…

But this feeling of cowardice. I’m avoiding this because it is unpleasant. Even so, lives hang in the balance. I need to make a decision.

With that, Yuji slipped into his genjutsu world. He saw his tower in the distance, where his inner self that represented his demons were hidden. He had bonded with the beast within once; perhaps one more time would give him some kind of wisdom he was currently lacking.

And if not, the pain would remind him he was alive for the time being. Who knew when Sasuke would show up? And with the war with the Churh of Jashin he planned to wage (with or without the Leaf for backup), his life could be at an end at any time. But that was no different than usual. Just one more crisis. His only consolation was that fear could be like pain- if you felt it often enough, with enough force, or if you felt it beyond the limit of your tolerance, the pain stopped. Maybe the fear would, too.

--

It was awful for Sakura. She was torn between the thought of Sasuke coming home and the hell that had defined Yuji’s life for more than a year now.

I want Sasuke back. But at what cost? I don’t know if Yuji could or would kill Sasuke. But I know Sasuke is both capable and willing to kill. It worries me so much. I don’t want to be involved. I wish I didn’t know about this.


An image of Yuji’s battered, broken body being carried into a hospital room seeped into her mind. She watched his last pitiful attempts at breath, and then his chest stopped heaving, and he died, miserable to the end. So much left undone. So much potential wasted in senseless violence.

No! I don’t want that to happen to Yuji! There must be a way out for everyone! These prophecies be damned! I don‘t want any of my friends to die!

Sakura resolved then and there to solve this problem. It didn’t take her long to realize there was only one solution.

If Yuji gave up his abilities as this ‘Heaven’s Temper’…then that prophecy would be shattered! He wouldn’t have to die or kill Sasuke! But that would also mean giving up an ability he’s worked so hard for. But if it’s the only way…

--

Naruto didn’t like this at all. But his concerns were more for the moment than about any prophecy.

Yuji looked ready to cry. He’s tough, and won’t show us that side of him, but he’s dying inside. This whole damn this is unfair. And now, we know Sasuke is supposed to come back…but he’s going to kill Yuji or be killed by Yuji? That’s not how it was supposed to work. Maybe if I bring Sasuke back first…
No, even if I COULD, he and Yuji would just fight. Damn it! There’s no solution!


Naruto thought back to his lonely days. He knew firsthand that the most crowded room could be the most lonely place. Naruto had been an outcast for things that hadn’t been his fault. Yuji didn’t fit in, and that wasn’t his fault, either. It was all like some sick joke.

I had to work so hard to get anyone to accept me. And when they did, I was happy. Beyond happy. The only acceptance Yuji got was a prophecy that put his life in me and Sakura’s hands. And worse yet…

Naruto’s fist tightened painfully, causing his knuckles to turn first red then white with strain.

Worse yet, I find out I’m living his dream. Sakura, power, a good teacher. He’s been denied all of that. What makes him any less worthy than me?

Naruto knew that didn’t matter either. Luck, karma, fate, hitsuzen, whatever you called it, this was the hand that had been dealt. And Yuji was not the type to fold. Naruto knew that much.

I’m going to be more of a buddy to him. And if I can’t be a buddy, then I’ll find other people who can. If he has to serve us, he’s going to enjoy it, whether he likes it or not!

Naruto briefly wondered about that Azami chick and what her deal was. He could tell from first glance that she could make just about anyone happy, if she wanted. And she had a special affinity for Yuji as it was. But then, Yuji had obviously tried to get somewhere with her, and it hadn’t worked, for whatever reason.
--

For three days straight, Yuji and his mirror-image battled in their genjutsu environment. Finally freed from his prison, Yuji’s other self was devious and attacked. Yuji’s first thought was to subdue him again, but decided instead to fight. Instinct kicked in, and he fought himself over and over again, in a never-ending battle that resembled a vulgar dance. He took care never to kill his other self, lest he suffer a serious backlash.

“Aren’t you done yet? I’ve beaten you ten times!” Yuji demanded, a chakra scalpel at his image’s neck. “I need to absorb you. It says so on the scroll.”

His mirror self got up and kicked; Yuji cut his leg off with the chakra scalpel.

“Take all the time you want. I’m going to absorb you and make your power mine,” Yuji told ‘himself’ viciously. “I need it. I’m going to fight, and I’m not going to die. And if I’m going to fight Sasuke at full-power and not kill him or get killed, then I need this power. Only you can give it to me.”

“Power comes from within. She taught you that, I suppose? The she-demon in hell?”

Yuji gave a vicious kick to his counterpart. “I don’t need to be made more angry. I wish I could have saved her. I wish I could have traded places with her. At least then this nightmare would be over. But because it’s not, I won’t waste her sacrifice.”

Yuji checked the time. His body was due to collapse in real life. More importantly, ANBU was suppose to have the scroll returned to him. The one with the Issekigan’s history in it. He needed rest before he tackled that beast.

Time enough to beat this other guy, then. I need that power; no bluffing there. I also need the ‘Ten no Kishootsu’ scroll to know the full extent of what I’m up against. But I can’t leave…
--
--


Azami had just finished a good training session on the white sands of the beach below her home. She never got tired of the brimy breeze, or the beautiful view, or the lack of real combat. She kept her skills sharp, because she was still wanted. But most of the villages had given up. Her name had spread, and as she had wiped out a number of her former comrades who were on the shadier side in the process of cleaning up her new home, most considered her reformed.

“Hey, Azami!”

That was Kojiro, a fisherman whose father had helped build the Great Naruto Bridge. Azami had hit it off with him pretty well. They were both a little on the lonely side. Fishing all day didn’t leave much of a time to get to know anyone else. And Azami was untouchable. That had been the downside to cleaning up this place single-handedly. People feared her.

But not Kojiro. And, after a while, Azami noticed he was handsome in a rugged way. With the piece of knotted rope tied around his forehead, a chest bare save for a tattered best, bronzed from work in the sun, and a muscular frame, he was an attractive catch for any girl.

Azami wasn’t sure she was fishing, though. She thought of her skinny, pale, mop-headed friend from the Leaf, as she did every day. He was night and day different compared to Kojiro. Save for them both being nice, they had precious little in common.

A large shadow blocked the sun for a few moments, causing Azami and Kojiro to both shield their eyes and look up. They didn’t need to look for long, as a miniature Yo-O fluttered down onto Azami’s shoulder.

“Oh? A letter from Yuji?” Azami said aloud.

“Your boyfriend?” Kojiro asked, his voice less amiable than usual.

Do I detect jealousy? Azami thought with amusement.
“Oh, no. Not even a fling,” she tossed over her shoulder, sliding the scroll out of the carrier pouch on Yo-O’s leg. “A good friend.”

Kojiro looked visibly relieved, causing Azami to visit her main objection to dating him.

Too bad he’s so dumb. Now, Yuji, he’s sharp. Kojiro has plenty of good points, though. Still not sure I’m in the game.

She unrolled the scroll, giving a grin at the contents.
“Get a sacred scroll, huh? That’ll take all of a day. Give me a hard one, Yuji!” she giggled, scribbling back a reply.

“Going for a few days? I’ll look after the place,” Kojiro offered. He often checked on Azami’s property while she was away, beating down the few thugs who bothered to come to the Land of Waves these days.

Azami kissed him on the cheek. “Thanks, Ko. I’ll be back soon. I might visit for a while. The Leaf should be having a festival. Last time I was there, I was a fugitive. I‘m going to enjoy it this time.”

There was more to it than that, of course. Azami really wanted to see Yuji again, and to see how Naruto and Sakura were doing. From Yuji’s scribbled note, it was easy to tell he was busy or in pain. Probably both, true to form. He usually had good handwriting, but this letter had been written in haste.
Besides that, there was no need for him to ask her to go the scroll. He could get it himself. Granted, she was faster, but Yuji was a loner. No, if he was asking her for a favor, then he was in a bind or had some kind of problem.

Mmm…It’d be so nice to go and have a fling with him. But I’m not that kind of girl. And he’s not that kind of guy, for that matter. If I pushed him a little, maybe…

Who am I kidding? If I pushed him, he‘d blush, get a nosebleed, and pass out.

Azami grinned sardonically, satisfied with that description of Yuji. She contented herself with thoughts of teasing him when she saw him.

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