Chapter 101 - FINAL CHAPTER

Naruto was flanked by two enormous toads as he stood on the head of a third. On the head of the one to the left was Sakura; to the right was Sasuke. The three surveyed the six Pains, neutral expressions on their faces despite the devastation.

“He killed Kakashi-sensei…Captain Yamato…All of Gai-sensei’s team…” Sakura said in naught but a whisper. She shook her head sadly. “Unforgivable, Pain.”

Sasuke didn’t have anything to say. He knew what monsters the Akatsuki were first hand. They were to be feared and respected. But above all they needed to die. Such a twisted organization had to perish. He only wished his own eyes hadn’t been closed for so long.

Only Naruto knew the third part. In all the devastation, his body had been all but buried. Since using Nature Energy for Sage Jutsu, Naruto could feel each chakra as a distinct energy source. One source was now missing, and he knew to whom it belonged.

“…Tell me something, Pain. Did you kill him? The one with the wings of fire?”

Tendo met Naruto’s eyes, staring deeply.
“…Yes. He fought bravely, but he died.”

“…Is that so?…” Naruto said quietly. His head dipped slightly. When he raised it back up, the lines on his face had darkened and become jagged. In his rage, Naruto’s words were magnified powerfully. He snarled in the most ferocious, menacing voice a human could manage:
“I…will never…forgive you! No matter what, Pain! Never!”

Shoki appeared at Naruto’s side in a puff of smoke and swirling leaves. In an instant, his eye captured the image of three Pains. The three froze, their attacks nullified.

“Keep them away from these three!” Shoki shouted to Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura. Something in the boy’s voice made all three of them obey. Naruto paired off with Tendo, Sasuke with Gekido, and Sakura with Jigokudo.

This is what I was born to do.

Shoki ran toward the three ‘frozen’ Pains. Now he could see them trapped by his Awase Kagami jutsu. The mirrors that held their images glistened brightly. Shoki could see himself running toward the mirrors. It was bizarre, to see yourself running toward yourself.

I swore I wouldn’t be made a weapon by anyone.

Shoki leapt high, his foot extending out. The three mirrors were lined up in a row.

And I didn’t. I became a defender. Just like Yuji-senpai. I freely chose to do this.

Shoki’s foot connected with the three mirrors in one sweeping roundhouse kick. They mirrors shattered, and the Pains they contained shattered out of existence with them.

Shoki landed in a crouch, panting heavily.

It’s too bad that it cost me all my chakra. I’m so sorry, Asuna. Miko…my sister…see you soon.
--
--

Naruto’s Sage Chakra had run out. Tendo had him cornered. He prepared himself to fight with all he had- nine tails chakra included.

Elsewhere, Sasuke was running low on chakra himself. He hadn’t fully recovered from his battle with Yuji yet. He stared defiantly at Gekido, frustrated horribly at how the monster could absorb anything.

Sakura had narrowly avoided Jigokudo’s grasp, but her strength meant next to nothing against a monster she could not touch without being subjected to death.
--

“Having trouble, Naruto? Perhaps this old man can lend a future Hokage a hand!

Before Naruto’s eyes, help appeared. Clothed in all black and as yet swallowed up in shadows from the sudden transport, Naruto couldn’t see who had stepped in. But the voice…
--

Sakura’s leg was caught in rubble. She had no time to shift it to escape. Jigodudo’s hand reached for her throat. It caught her around the neck. Her mouth opened automatically, and a purple octopus-like tendril seized her tongue.

“Release her!”

The strong voice command came as an arrow made of pure light severed the tendril. Sakura fell to the ground, unharmed but more than a little shaken- not least of all by her savior.
--

Sasuke swung again at Gekido, knowing his Chidori would do no good.

“He didn’t save your skin, boy, to have you die like this!”

Sasuke knew the body that this voice belonged to. But the voice itself was…wrong. And the body shouldn’t have been moving. Yuji had died, according to Naruto. Dead people didn’t normally get up and move around.

“It’s a lucky thing this child merged with my chakra to fight you, or this might not have been possible!
--

The shadows lifted and in front of Naruto appeared the Third Hokage. But he was not a Naruto remembered him. The old man was in his prime. His hair was black and not yet receded. His muscles were not yet weakened by age, and his body was not yet dotted with liver spots.

“Earth Style: Mud Wall!”

“Almighty Push!” countered Tendo. Then he suddenly shot away.

“Earth Style: Earth Flow River!” the Third Hokage added belatedly. Turning to Naruto, he said: “We’ll have to defeat him together, Naruto. I’m afraid he’s too much for me alone and you without Sage Jutsu.”

“You know about the Sage Jutsu?”

The Third smiled at Naruto. It was the old, familiar smile that he used to give Naruto when he was alive. “I’ve watched you all. You’ve grown so much. To think what you’d accomplish. And now, you’re so close to becoming Hokage. I’m very proud indeed, Naruto, and the splendid shinobi you’ve become. Now, to the task at hand…”
--
--
Sakura freed herself and leapt to the side of her protector. She could now see clearly who it was, and she was in awe.

“Lady Uzume?”

She started to respond, then stopped and shook her head. “No. That title belongs to Asuna Hideyama now. I’m just ‘Miko’ now.”

Sakura couldn’t believe that the name was the first issue Miko had brought up.
“I don’t mean to be rude, but…aren’t you…well…”

“Dead?”

“Well…yeah,” Sakura murmured, unsure of what else to say. This wasn’t a question you asked someone often.

Miko smiled, shrugging as if saying ‘what can you do?’.
“I am, yes. I’m afraid my successor brought me here with a jutsu that was lost- or so I believed- after my predecessor stepped down.”

“Is it like…Orochimaru’s jutsu?”

“Yes and no. Yes in that it reanimates the dead, and yes in that there must be a corpse used. But the corpse must be given with consent to be used in the ritual that brought my soul back. It is not ‘kinjutsu’; it is just not often used. To return, a soul must come back willingly. It will be restored to youth, vitality- in short, they will appear as they did when they were their strongest. But as I said, the soul cannot be enslaved. Our emotions remain. We cannot be controlled, as Orochimaru controlled souls. We have free will.”

Miko looked at Jigokudo. She could clearly see the King of Hell behind him. She’d been inside the shinigami’s stomach and knew what an awful place it was.

“This abomination, with dominion over life and death…it must be destroyed! It’s very existence is a sin! It has no soul! Sakura, please lend me your strength!”

Sakura circled around to the other side of Jigokudo, heaving shuriken and kunai at him. He still seemed reluctant to turn his back to her- at least until she picked up a section of the stone road beneath their feet and dropped it on his head. At that point, Jigokudo caught the stone, holding it above his head.

“Light Style: Light Archery!”
--
--

“You?!” Sasuke exclaimed. “But you’re dead!”

It was Yuji’s body, right down to the wound where there used to be a sword through him.

“Dead twice over, I might add. I’m not the boy you know…well, not really. I’m the previous owner of the chakra inhabiting him. As for why I’m here…well, maybe ‘how’ is a better question. But regardless, the gist of it is this: The boy used my chakra once. For the moment, his body is healed and his soul is in limbo. That means I can keep it warm for him until he gets back. Amazing stuff, that slug healing ability.”

Sasuke processed what he could, but in the end left a lot to faith. This guy wasn’t Yuji, but he was using Yuji’s body. And Yuji wasn’t totally dead. He’d been healed in time. Okay. No stranger than anything else Sasuke had seen and heard in the last three plus years.

“Now then, how do we do this?” ‘Yuji’ was muttering to himself. “Well, anything has a limit to the amount of strain it can withstand. So maybe if we…yeah, yeah, that’ll do it.”

‘Yuji’ recalled Sasuke’s attention after a moment. He pointed toward Gekido, who had been hanging back from the fight, waiting for an opening.

“Okay, boy. Give what you’ve got left of that lightning chakra to an attack. Between the two of us, we can probably destroy this thing.”

Sasuke shook his head. “Not possible. I’ve hit this thing with the most powerful jutsus I can muster. I haven’t even scratched it.”

‘Yuji’ ignored Sasuke’s warning completely, instead rushing it to attack.

“Back me up, boy, or you’re just as dead as I am!”

Gekido readied himself for the attack. ‘Yuji’ charged into him, tackling him head-on. He locked his arms around Gekido and began to squeeze. He trapped Gekido’s arms at his sides, pushing with physical force and chakra both.

Sasuke, against his better judgment, readied his Chidori.
--
--

The Third Hokage rushed in at the full speed of his prime. Tendo used his Almighty Push, but hit only a Mud Clone. Naruto charged in from behind, but Tendo kicked backward with incredible force, stuffing him in the stomach. The tell-tale sound of a Shadow Clone being destroyed complimented the kick. From there, the ground suddenly melted beneath Tendo’s feet, sucking him into a muddy quagmire.

“Fire Style: Fire Dragon Bombs!”

Tendo couldn’t move, but he used his Almighty Push to snuff out the powerful attack like a candle. But as soon as he did, he realized he’d made a grave mistake.

“RasenShuriken!”

The resulting explosion shook the entire Leaf Village. All of Naruto’s power had been put into that attack. It had struck Tendo dead-on in the head. The force of the attack ripped out all the chakra receivers implanted in Tendo. It also removed his head.

Naruto sagged, exhausted. The Third Hokage caught him, a strange smile on his face.

To think he’s come so far! I suppose I shouldn’t be surprised- you are the son of the Fourth Hokage, after all. His genius is, in a way, yours. From maverick to beloved son of Konoha. Well done, Naruto. Well done.
--
--

Once Miko’s arrow of light hit Jigokudo, he dropped the slab of stone Sakura had tried to drop on him. It fell onto his body. His physical strength was such that he did not die outright.

“Damn it!” Sakura cursed loudly, favoring the ankle that had been caught in the rubble. “If that didn’t kill him, what will?!”

Miko leapt high into the air then. She floated as she gave Sakura a final instruction.

“Once this arrow strikes him, you must move quickly. Hit his ki point with all the strength you can. And pray it’s enough.”

Jigokudo had just begun to shift free of the stone on top him when he saw the female hovering above him, an arrow of light as big as her entire body aiming directly for him. He did not have the power to defend as the other did.

The shaft of light pierced him in the center of the chest. Miko’s aim had been true. And yet, he still lived. The stone prison that had held him shattered into pieces. Four more arrows hit him, each one trapping an arm or leg. He couldn’t move.

Sakura saw her opening. She moved as fast as her sprained ankle would allow her to and drove her fist home with all the power she had.

Jigokudo’s body exploded outward along with the ground beneath him. The power disintegrated his bones. The arrows that had held him in place held even in the face of such immense power. Being held in place while the rest of his body strained to move put him in a violent tug-of-war.
His arms and legs stayed put. The rest of his body went.

Miko landed gracefully as a cat. Sakura was still standing, though it was clear her strength had faded now. Miko held her in an embrace, holding Sakura’s body to hers.

“You did well, Sakura. You’ve more than earned the respect bestowed upon you. A healer…a warrior…a tender girl with a pure heart. Such a rarity! It’s a pity your path is not that of the priestess. Your power could rival mine, or even Asuna’s.”

With that, Miko and Sakura disappeared in a flash of light.
--
--

Sasuke’s Chidori hit Gekido where he aimed. But it was absorbed, just like every time before this. He was about to pull back, but ‘Yuji’ shouted:

“Hit him again! Once more, Sasuke! He can’t absorb another shot!”

Sasuke pulled back, having to recharge when his chakra was this low. He let his Sharingan deactivate; he needed all the chakra he could get. It was like he was back in training with Kakashi, and he had to charge up the Chidori. The difference was the immense power he now wielded put his younger self to shame.

“Now!”

Once more, Sasuke charged. He saw ‘Yuji’ move from Gekido- A curse mark had appeared on Gekido’s body- and he wasn’t moving as fast as before. But he was moving fast enough to be a problem. Until ‘Yuji’ acted. Sasuke had noticed something in his hand before, but didn’t know what it was. Until now.

‘Yuji’ thrust the black sword that Pain had impaled him with through Gekido’s face. He held onto the handle, eyes closed in concentration. To Sasuke’s eyes, a green chakra was visible, coming from ‘Yuji’.

So that’s what-

Sasuke thrust his most powerful Chidori into Gekido’s body. The force of the impact threw Sasuke clear around Gekido. He spun and landed on his feet just in time to see ‘Yuji’ let go of the sword and drew something (kanji for ’defend’) in the air with blood.

The Gekido’s body exploded.

The blood in front of ‘Yuji’ had apparently been some sort of defensive jutsu because Yuji was unhurt.

Sasuke wished he could say the same. He felt his world starting to darken. He had reached the limit of his chakra. He wouldn’t die, but that was the last bit of fight he had in him.

‘Yuji’ regarded Sasuke with a look that was unreadable. It was something that combined contempt and admiration along with sincere gratitude. Then the face that was normally ‘Yuji’s returned to it’s default neutral expression.

Slinging Sasuke over one shoulder, ‘Yuji’ raised two fingers to his face and disappeared in a puff of smoke.
--
--

The Hokage mansion had been left standing even after all the attacks. Lady Tsunade, Shizune, and Jiraiya were already gathered on the roof. The village was quiet now, with only occasional sobs and cries of joy piercing the intense silence.

“To think one man could orchestrate such a horrific act…” said Shizune.

“Humans are capable of amazing and horrible things. Such potential…” added Jiraiya. “Tsunade, how many did you save?”

Tsunade looked out across the village, a grimace on her face which had begun to crease, revealing her true age. She had expended an enormous amount of charka.
“Everyone but those whose souls were pulled out by Ningendo. Gai and Lee, too. I couldn’t save them after their bodies degraded. Even so, Pain only got a dozen victims…”

“But it’s a dozen too many,” Jiraiya finished for her. He put his newly reattached arm around her. “I’m sorry, Tsunade. But you kept this from being the outright disaster it could have been.”

“I played my part,” Tsunade acknowledged, nodding a bit as if to confirm it to herself. “But it was them…those children. No…no longer children. Those amazing shinobi who stood up to Pain and the evil he represents. Naruto, Sakura, Sasuke, and Yuji. They bear so much for the sake of those they love…I should, by all rights, bear that burden.”

Three puffs of smoke, and six more people appeared on the roof. Eyes grew wide all around as half of the new arrivals were people who had been dead.

Before any explanations could be made, A shadow on the roof opened up. From the shadow came Asuna, Akari, and finally Azami and Kojiro. Asuna’s hands were still locked together in the hand sign that kept the Third Hokage and Miko bound to their earthly vessels.

There was quiet conversation as the conscious people spoke about the village and what an enormous task lay ahead of them. There was time to bury their dead now. The Akatsuki had been devastated with the loss of seven of their charter members. An ANBU squad had found the ‘Pain Master’, dead in a fake tree made of origami not far from the village. Next to him lay Konan, also deceased. They had been found dead, apparently from pushing their chakra so hard they simply could not recover. Konan’s overuse of chakra was suspected as suicide, though that was never proven.

The casualty count for the Leaf was low. Katsuyu had saved nearly all the injured. Konohamaru, Neji, Gai and Lee were the four most notable injured. Konohamaru’s limp body, devoid of a soul, was cremated, as was Neji‘s. Gai and Lee had no bodies to be cremated; their names were etched onto the new memorial obelisk, as the old one had been demolished by Pain‘s assault.

Yuji was one who fell into the ‘what happened?’ category. His body was alive, and he would apparently return to it once the original ‘Ten no Kishootsu’ was done with it. The Third Hokage and Miko would have to return to the shinigami’s stomach.

The original Ten no Kishootsu wrote a few things down on a scroll, to be given to his successor when he returned. He departed first, pausing only for a minute inside Yuji’s personal genjutsu to speak with the young man. After that, Yuji came back in his body. He was so pleased to see the Third Hokage that he couldn’t decide to hug him or bow, so he did a strange amalgamation of the two. They talked for a brief while. Then Miko gently took Yuji’s hand and led him away.

He and Miko went off alone for a while. It wasn’t long, but you could see that it was hard on them both. They eventually parted after one last hug and kiss on the cheek. Yuji left to be alone immediately after that.

“Losing your bride is difficult once…but twice is just cruel,” said Tsunade.

The Third Hokage took his pipe out of his mouth, the deep baritone of his voice full of wisdom. “This war…this way of life…has demanded much from all of us. Were you to offer him another role, he would decline. That is the heart of the prophecy.”

“Why write the damned thing at all? Do you know how much suffering it caused him?! The hell that I’ve had to help that boy deal with is completely unfair!” Tsunade exploded, shaking her fists. “Why would you do that to him?!”

Sarutobi shook his head, eyes unhappy. “Not by choice, Tsunade. The boy was cast in such a role because of his own paradox. He is a peaceful person, yet lives to fight. He cannot settle for peace; he must strive for conflict with the aim of creating peace. Peace for other people. He would take on a burden that others would shun. Even for this battle, the heroes are these three,” he said, indicating the unconscious Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura. “But had Yuji not been here to help them from the shadows, this battle may have been lost. And it would have, no doubt, been twice as devastating.”

Sarutobi looked at the direction Yuji had gone, again shaking his head. “If only I’d had more time with the boy. He might very well have made Hokage someday. At the very least, had I allowed him to fight Orochimaru with me, I may not have died. But events unfolded the way they did for a reason, I suppose. You’ve done an admirable job, Tsunade. I can safely leave the village in your care…and in the care of your eventual successor.”

Naruto never heard those words as he lay unconscious with the remainder of his cell. Kakashi and Yamato came later and watched over them.

The organization ‘Akatsuki’ was not yet defeated, but held in check, at least for the moment. The Leaf would rebuild, as they always did. They united more in the face of danger; their ‘Will of Fire’ becoming a strong defense against any and all threats. They had one Hokage, but they had many to look up to. The Leaf would continue to grow and prosper under the watchful gaze of the FireShadow and her eventual successor.

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