All pictures were taken from Genshin Impact with my account.
I couldn't resist taking pictures after completing this quest. Kinda sad for the story but i still liked it.
0 Comments
Okay, it's been almost 2 months since I posted anything on my website. Procrastination, life updates, and been playing Genshin Impact for the same amount of time I've been absent has overwhelmed me.
For Ghost in Time, I've actually lost interest with continuing it FOR NOW! I haven't completely given up on it, I'm taking a hiatus for the moment. Meanwhile, I've been working on other fanfiction and Original Character works - I just haven't posted them yet. I'm also having my friend, who's been my beta reader and editor for Ghost in Time, help me with a (KH) Kairi fanfic that I've had since 2018. It's a slow process so please bear with me! I have other plans on what to post on this website and on my other platforms, but if you have questions, comments, or thoughts, lemme know! Feel free to reach out to me through the CONTACT page or send a message through either Tumblrs! I was bored and was talking to my friend who's playing the English Version and I got nostalgic.
So, I recorded my entire Medal List of nearly 5 years worth! Been playing the JP Version since 2015, played all throughout college and after graduation, and it was fun until I lost interest in the game mechanics. The story wasn't enough to keep me playing the game when I could watch the cutscenes on YouTube. Plus it got to the point where the enemies were super OP and if i didn't have stronger OP Medals, then I couldn't pass the quest and move onto the next one. I did uses the Passes that you can get by earning them or by getting them when you pay for Jewels, but even then. And yes, I did use real currency to pay for more Jewels. Don't recommend if you don't have the extra money to spend, but you do you. Even when Dark Road came out, I lost interest in playing the game cuz of the game mechanics. I still watched the cutscenes on YouTube, but the game mechanics and the amount of Missions / Quests needed to move on was a turn-off. I still love Union Cross and Dark Road for what they are, but I just lost interest for the repetitiveness and game mechanics. Lemme know you're comments, thoughts, and questions! If you want more videos about my JP account, lemme know! I could do Keyblade Setups, Sub-slots, pets, costumes, or anything else. A/N: Ch. 6 has arrived after nearly a month since the last chapter! Writer's block, procrastination, and playing Genshin impact beat me up hard! As always, huge shoutouts and thanks to my friend for peer-reviewing and editing this chapter! Happy readings! Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto. Chapter 6 The Katsuyu, sitting on Tsunade's shoulder, gives the directions to the rendezvous point. Jiraiya, walking beside her, carries the bar's take-out food and the jug of water bought from a nearby convenience store. They walk at a leisurely pace so not to draw attention from the villagers. Although they're intrigued enough to meet this mysterious "lady," they're vexed when the directions lead to the Hashirama Forest - the very one that's on high suspicion. They're more perplexed when they feel a tingle of overwhelming energy radiating from a few miles away. "Katsuyu," Tsunade drawls under her breath, "Why are you leading us there?" "Lady Sakura is waiting deep within the Forest. Please hurry, Milady is feeling uncomfortable," Jiraiya lightly snorts, "I can't blame her when there's people searching for her." He angles his head to gauge the slug's reaction, who lifts her optical tentacles towards him. "May I ask who is searching for whom?" He shrugs with his palms facing up, "The whole village has been on edge since last night; the lights blew out and the ground shook! Residents near the Forest had the worst of it." "I see." The slug murmurs after a beat, "However, that doesn't answer my question." Tsunade huffs, "I'm sure the little hussy can wait a little longer." "Please refrain from calling Lady Sakura a 'hussy,"" Katsuyu chastised. The blonde woman regards her little summon for a moment before replying, "Sarutobi ordered for the search parties to track down the anomaly and apprehend it." "Apprehend it how?" The adults said nothing so the slug continues, "Consider yourselves lucky to be the first ones to meet her. I understand that you're suspicious of Milady, but I must reiterate that Lady Sakura is not the enemy. She needs your help to start her life-long mission. Now, please hurry along before the others find her first." The duo exchange a brief glance before picking up their pace a little. ●●● As they near the Forest, the energies intensify. It's like a wave of humid air on a summer's day despite the chilly overcast weather. The duo stops short in front of the Gate Entrance in wonder. Is this "Sakura" person intentionally flaunting her power? Jiraiya thought. He expands his senses to locate the point of origin, but he's surprised to feel a blend of multiple signatures. There are two he recognizes: one is of the Hokage's and the others is his student, Minato. What could this mean? Is the old man somehow part of this? How and why is Minato involved? Goosebumps rise on Tsunade's body when another subtle wave of energy rolls over them. It's strange because she can feel part of her grandfather's and grand-uncle's signatures mixed with the Hokage's. Granted, this was the place all three of them used to train so it's understandable. The rest are largely foreign to her. Regardless, they brace themselves before walking in. ●●● Katsuyu directs them away from the main path to leap through the trees to reach their destination faster. The dense charka around them sticks to their persons like another layer, snug and warm. Though it increasingly becomes heavier the closer they get to the meet-up spot. They broke through the trees to land in a sea of lilac and pink flowers. Immediately, they're aware that the chakra is highly concentrated around them. They share a look of understanding at the sight of a wooden gazebo with a curtain of foliage in the middle of the clearing. Their feet cautiously carry them across the field, up the stairs, and finally through the curtain. However, they abruptly stopped when they saw two things: another Katsuyu sitting on the table and a child with pink hair. The child's green eyes widen with something akin to fear in them, followed by a sharp gasp. Unfortunately, their expression changed before the adults could further dwell on it. "You've arrived." The child's voice - they realized as a little girl - greets them with a strained gummy smile. Jiraiya is the first to snap out of his stunned daze, "I'm sorry, but we must be in the wrong place." Even as he said that, he certainly senses something wrong about this child. "No. Lady Katsuyu led you here to meet me." She states. "You're the "Lady Sakura" she sang praise to?" Tsunade lingers her gaze on the child, unsettled because she senses something's off about the child. "Yes, This child is Lady Sakura." Both slugs confirm in unison. There's a brief pause until the child spoke, "I understand if you have doubts but I know you have questions. I'm the only person that can give you answers so please," She gestures a hand to the bench across from her, "Sit." After a moment's hesitation, the adults take their seats. Katsuyu slithers down from Tsunade's shoulder to join her copy on the table's surface. Jiraiya places the take-out bag and the jug of water in the middle of the table. "Before we officially begin, may I eat first? I haven't had a proper meal in days." The child shyly admits. As an afterthought, she quickly digs into the front pouch that's diagonally across her chest and pulls out a light pink tri-fold wallet, "As promised, I’ll repay you for the expenses." The Toad Sage wordlessly slides the bag closer to her. A giddy smile appears on her childish face as she removes the contents from the bag, pausing to read the receipt. Today is January 13, XXXX… Sakura thought wistfully. So we're twenty-six years back in the past. Inner Sakura adds. The adults noticed the twitch in her smile as she read the receipt. She sets it down in favor of opening her wallet; however, Jiraiya interjects. "Keep the money, kid." She looks at him with confusion, "But I…" She trails off when he waves a dismissive hand. "Forget about it. We're more interested in the other payment you promised us." She was about to protest when her stomach growls, causing her chubby cheeks to pinken. He lightly chuckles then encourages her to eat. She bows her head in gratitude, says grace, grabs her chopsticks, and opens the lid on the first container of food. She takes her first bite and nearly squealed in delight because of the amount of various seasonings tingling on her tongue. She swallows and takes several more bites at a moderate pace, despite her inner desire to wolf it down. Tsunade takes note of the child's appearance: specks of dried mud atop her head; the oversized and tattered jacket; her pale face; and the small yet scarred hands. Although her green eyes display childish joy, the blonde woman feels like there's more hidden truths behind them. When the child slightly tilts her head, Tsunade narrows her eyes upon the purple flower-like design on her forehead. The longer she stared at it, the more she realizes that each "petal" is like her single rhombus. There's no way that's a coincidence. I'm the only one who developed the Yin Seal so could her mark be a simple design? She looks at both copies of Katsuyu, who sits idle off to the side. The slug's words of the connecting Seals on her chest and on the Contract Scroll echoes in her mind. Could this little girl also bear that Seal? It could be on her back or maybe her chest. She softly hums a bit. I'll need to do a physical exam. Who knows what else she could be hiding. Jiraiya observes the eating child. She just looks like a regular little girl, albeit with unusual pink hair, who looks starved. However, his previous warning paired with the highly concentrated chakra around them keeps him on high alert. Not to mention the Seals that are on the slug's body. When he gets the chance, he'd like to study more about it to understand its purpose and function. He also notes the purple flower-like design on her forehead when she tilts her head. He side-glances at his partner to compare the purple rhombuses and suspects they're the same. What are the chances this kid copied Tsuna anyway? Sakura takes a breather after finishing her first meal. She sees in her peripheral vision the jug of water and looks for any cups. Finding none, she decides to make her own. She places a palm down on the table and channels some charka into the wood grains. She knows the adults are carefully observing her; she didn't say anything when a surprised gasp is heard while a wooden cup formed under her hand. "You're able to use Wood Release?" Astonishment is evident in Tsunade's voice. "Yes! It's how I created our current setting." Sakura bashfully smiles as she admires the gazebo. Once the cup is finished, she holds it out towards Jiraiya. "May I have water please?" "Sure kid." He takes the cup and took a couple of seconds to admire the handiwork - it's a mahogany tall cup with a polished shine to it. He inwardly admits it's a nice yet simple design. He pulls the tab to allow the water to fill the cup almost to the brim. She thanks him when he gave it back to her. Sakura chugs the entire cup, releasing a pleased sigh. He plucks the cup from her grasp to refill it, then sets it down just as she starts to eat her second meal. Meanwhile, the slugs on the table are checking in with their other-selves stationed in the one-mile perimeter. They're all aware of the dense chakra around them and suspect it's somehow connected to her youngest summoner. After all, Sakura's chakra reservoirs have grown substantially larger because of the gifts bestowed onto her. Although, the energies in the air are a mixture of different signatures that are familiar and unfamiliar to her. For example, the Sage of the Six Path's chakra is heavily present all around. She specifically recognizes the Nine-Tailed Beast, Kurama, signature based on how many times she's healed Naruto Uzumaki previously. She also recognizes Hiruzen Sarutobi's and Minato Namikaze's signatures in the mix. The rest are largely unknown to her. The slugs on the table refocus on Sakura. They're relieved to find she regained more color to her complexion. Her troubled eyes regained more light in them as she eats food and drink plenty of water. Katsuyu shifts her optical tentacles to look at Tsunade to gauge her reaction on Sakura. Being in a pact with her for a long time has taught the slug to pick up on some of her subtle movements - currently, the blonde woman is trying to make sense of the child. Sakura finishes her meal and puts all of the trash in the take-out bag then ties it up. She drinks half of her water before placing it back down. She feels much better after having a proper meal, so she meets their eyes. "Let's start with introductions, hmm? My name is Sakura Haruno, the same name that's on the Contract Scroll with the Slugs. I'm actually sixteen years old but my body shrunk to be around three or four years old. My Ninja Registration Number (NRN) is 012601. I graduated the Shinobi Academy at age twelve; I became a Chunin at age fourteen. I was unofficially promoted to Jounin status at age sixteen during the Fourth Shinobi War." "Wait, wait! Fourth Shinobi War?" Jiraiya parrots. "We're only in the Second War!" "Yes, and given the date on the receipt today, I'm twenty-six years into the past." Sakura intentionally pauses to let the information sink in. "Twenty-six years…so you're saying you're from the future?" Tsunade slowly asks. "That's right." She watches the two look at each other then adds, "I can prove that I'm from the future, but I need both of you to escort me to see Sarutobi Hiruzen, the Third Hokage, afterwards." "Pray to the Sage why would we do that?" He asks. "The Sage of Six Paths sent me back in time to either prevent or change the outcome of the Fourth War. I was also told by the late Lord Third to meet with him if I land in the time that he's the village leader. That way, I can gain an ally to help me fulfill my mission. However, I decided to ask you two to aid me as well." "What she says is true, Lady Tsunade and Lord Jiraiya." The slug on the right side pipes up. "The Seal that's on my chest and on the Contract Scroll as well as Lady Sakura was placed by Lord Hagoromo Otsutsuki, who you now refer to as The Sage of Six Paths." Tsunade leans back a little to try and understand what she's hearing. "Stars, I'm going to need to drink for this." Jiraiya hums in agreement, "Too bad we didn't bring some sake from the bar." Sakura silently giggles at their expense. "I know it's bizarre to hear coming from a child but please listen to what I have to say." The adults nod their heads. *** Sakumo's team ventures into the Forest minutes after his wolf pack scattered. If they thought the energies they felt from the outside were bad, they're taken aback when the air shifts to encompass their beings like a snug layer. The Hyuuga member scans their surroundings with her Byakugan, "It's certainly strange. The chakras are now wavering like those in the clouds." "Perhaps they're responding to our intrusion." The Aburame member suggests. "A normal response if the source doesn't want intruders." Sakumo adds as he looks around as far as his eyes can see. He can vaguely pick up on his pack's chakra signatures amidst the density, which worries him greatly. He directs his gaze to the Aburame member, "Osamu, are you able to locate your insects?" "No," He states after a beat, "My insects are smaller than your wolf pack, but I'm usually able to locate their whereabouts. Now that we're inside the Forest, I can't sense them." The team leader extends his chakra threads to map out their location, but the dense energies around them is interfering with his ability. "Seems like the anomaly is jamming our sensory abilities. I'm not sure if the Barrier Team will be able to transmit information via the mind link." "I'll send the warning through the radio comms." Osamu offers. "Inform the nearest teams to proceed with caution before approaching the Forest. The chakra from within is jamming our sensory abilities. Send the intel to the Hokage and Barrier Team." Osamu fumbles with the radio comm that's around his neck. He's initially met with static so he adjusts the knob to clear the frequency; he does this for a good minute but it's all static. "The radios are jammed as well. I can't get a clear signal." Apprehension is read across the group's faces, "The alternative is that I send my insects to notify the nearest teams." "That's going to be our best bet if we're going to continue with the investigation. Do it." The team leader firmly states. Osamu outstretches an arm parallel to the ground; more of the Shokaichu worms wriggle from his pores to bury themselves in the ground to carry out the message. Sakumo clenches his jaw to suppress another shudder at the sight of the worms. "Now then, the original plan was to break off from the group to cover more ground. Is that still a go?" The Hyuuga member asks. "Negative. Given the situation, it's best if we move as one. Reina and Osamu will take point while Sakumo and I take the rear. We'll head east of our location and then move North, South, and West. We'll also check the main hotspots for additional signs of the anomaly." "Sir!" The three confirm in unison. With a nod from the team leader, they leap into action. ●●● As the team jumps through the trees, they notice that fog starts to roll in. It's expected given the overcast weather; however, the hairs on the back of their necks stand up as a chill seeps through their exposed skin. Ears pick up a soft hissing sound and a sharp scent permeates the air. They stopped in their tracks in favor of observing their surroundings with hands poised to whip out their weapons. Reina focuses on the rolling fog and makes a noise of surprise, "It's a fog of chakra!" "It could be an Illusion!" The team leader makes a one-handed sign for "Release" as he expands his chakra to disrupt the flow; the other follow suit immediately. When nothing changed, they repeat the process a second time then a third time yet the fog still approaches them. Sakumo sniffs the air to note a peppermint scent, "We'd better get to higher ground just in case!" The squadron pumps more chakra to their soles and leaps higher into the trees, where the fog can't reach them. They look down with apprehension. The White Fang covers his nose with the back of his hand because he can still smell the minty scent. Osamu places one palm on the tree with his chakra reaching out like a spider's web, "If it were an Illusion, we'd be able to dispel it together. However, even the insects in the vicinity fled when the fog came in." "How far does the fog expand?" The team leader directs the question to Reina, who continues overseeing the horizon. "The fog reaches across 215 feet, likely more but the rest of the energies are interfering with my sight. We'll need to go around in the opposite direction if we don't want to get caught in it." A sudden puff of smoke appears beside Sakumo to reveal the white wolf, "Leader, myself and the others encountered a strange fog," Her nose twitches then tilts her head look below them, "Seems like you've met it already." He scratches the back of her left ear, "Yes. We thought it was an Illusion and used "Release" but we were wrong. Where are the others?" "Inari and Oguchi climbed up the hills north-west from the initial starting point. Keru is by the stream south-west of us. Yama and Tota are searching one of the clearings west from us. Shu is south-east from our position. All have reported about the strange fog." "Were any of them able to pick up a human scent or observe anything else unusual?" "Negative. The amount of chakra is misleading us." Sakumo looks at their team leader, "Should we proceed?" The man releases a loaded sigh as he looks at the horizon. *** Hunter Scouts who arrived at their destinations by either the Village Gates or Walls began working immediately. The Hyuuga members in each team activates their Byakugan to scan the areas for anything suspicious. The Aburame members sent out their insects from their bodies to find any clues of a breach and/or suspicious personnel and chakra. The Inuzuka members sent their canines to sniff for unusual smells. The humans approach the Guard Patrols for their reports while also interrogating nearby people for any odd sightings. They continue with the investigation for some time, but they aren't getting many results. The only things the Guards and the villagers have in common is that they felt something was amiss moments begore things went haywire. ●●● The other teams sent to investigate the Forest of Death and the Training Grounds search high and low and possible hide-out spots for anything pertaining to the anomaly. However, they haven't had much luck either. The Hyuuga members scan their surroundings with their blood limit, reporting that the hanging clouds are still composed of multi-colored energies. It doesn't seem to be pointing to a specific area so they can't track the anomaly that way. Meanwhile, the teams that are searching the training grounds near the Hashirama Forest notes the different intensity of the chakra levels between those in the sky and those radiating from the Forest. If the Hyuuga members try to peer through the trees and bushes, they'll need to strain their eyes to even see through the waves of energy. The teams exchange information via radio communication to the others. Those at the Jounin Headquarters are monitoring radio traffic to keep informed. "Has anyone made contact with the team in the Hashirama Forest yet?" The Jounin Commander asks through the comms. Most of the responses are negative until one member from Team 6 responds. "We're the closest to them. We've tried reaching them but there's only static." "Get in touch with them." The Commander directs one of the workers beside him, who's sitting in front of a radio transmission set-up. The person did as ordered; they adjust the knobs to find a clear signal but all were met with static. The Commander narrows his eyes at the lack of results so he ordered all of the scouts to keep their guard up. "Send word to the Barrier Team to also locate Team 14 in the Forest." ●●● Team 6 observe their surroundings while they wait for further orders. The Aburame member perks up when she senses familiar signatures from the ground. She kneels on one knee just as multiple white Shokaichu worms resurfaces. She gathers the teams attention as the tiny critters gather to form Kanji characters to relay a message. "Commander, Team 14 sent a message via the Aburame insects. They're saying that the chakra in the Forest is jamming their sensory abilities. Proceed with caution before entering. Relay info to the Hokage and the Barrier Team." She states aloud to her team and to Headquarters. "Affirmative. We'll let them know. Is there anything else to report?" The Hyuuga member presses the button on his comm, "Sir, there's a fog of chakra rolling in from the Forest. It doesn't seem hostile but it's certainly powerful." "Fog? Are you able to locate the source?" The Commamder asks. "Negative." The line is silent for a couple of seconds, then the Commander spoke, "All teams near the Hashirama Forest, if there's a person who's able to use Wind Release, try to get rid of it." Team 6's leader steps forward then performed a sequence of hand seals, ending with the Bird sign, "Wind Release: Breakthrough!" He takes a deep breath to gather air in his lungs and stomach, then he exhales it through his mouth. A powerful gust of wind hurdles towards the fog and all can see it being blown away. However, the Hyuuga member notices the energies are rapidly spiraling to form a concentrated ball. "Stop! It's forming into a ball of compressed energy and it's going to blow!" He shouts. The team leader drops the sign and stops blowing air, "Get away!" All of Team 6 directs chakra to their soles and jump far away from their original position. The compressed air contracts then explodes, creating a large plume of smoke to form a rising mushroom cloud towards the sky. The team regroups in a clearing and watch the mushroom cloud. "What the hell happened?!" The Commander asks through the comms. The leader presses the button without taking his eyes off the sight and retells the events. "It's as if the fog doesn't want anyone to enter." "What's the status of the energies right now?" The Inuzuka member asks the Hyuuga member. It took him some time to discern the situation then he reports, "Right now, the chakras in the fog, the sky, and radiating from the Forest are violently moving around. Can the other Hyuuga's confirm that?" There's multiple affirmative responses. Meanwhile, the Commander and the Chief of Police exchange grave looks. "I think it's safe to assume the anomaly is still somewhere within the Hashirama Forest." The latter sarcastically drawls out. The former massages the front of his forehead as his brain goes over several possibilities of how to proceed with this. "We need to get Team 14 out of there. All teams near the Hashirama Forest will send their insects to try and get in contact with them." The Commander orders. "If that doesn't work?" The Chief of Police asks, already having doubts of that idea succeeding in light of current events. "Have the Barrier Team try to locate and get in touch with Team 14. Once they make contact, recall them back. We can't lose any more people now, not while we're in the middle of a War." Kenji nods his head then looks to one of the police officers on standby, "You, go to Lord Third and relay the current events. Remain by his side to keep him updated." "Sir!" The officer salutes then body-flickers away to carry out his orders. "Let's hope the Barrier Team and Team 14 have better luck." Kenji optimistically said to The Commander, who hums in agreement. *** The Barrier Team exhausts their ideas on how to calm the ripples on the water sphere while trying to locate the anomaly. Everything they've tried thus far are causing the sphere to be a bubbling mess; leaving the Detection Division increasingly frustrated and confused; and the Interception Team listening to radio traffic from the Scouts and Headquarters. "How is this even possible?" One of the Division members wonders aloud. "We've tried all that we can without breaking the barrier so how…?" A person from the Interception Team came down to relay the recent developments from the Hunter Scouts. Dread settles heavily in the atmosphere. "Whatever the anomaly is, it's very adamant to not be found." Another person proclaims. "So if we can't find the anomaly, are we certain we can find Team 14?" The assistant asks with worry. The main Division member sighs before looking up at the sphere, "We'd best try. Miss Inoue," He gazes at the female Yamanaka member who's sitting on a platform with a stone helmet covering the top of her head and eyes, "As soon we've locate Team 14, we need you to make contact with them." "Understood." She nods her head. The three Division members retake their positions around the orb; the main member in the middle raises his arms upwards with his palms aimed at it. The other two follow his lead, then all three direct some chakra into the sphere with the intent to locate the team. The assistant and Interception member observe the water orb and notes that the ripples are steadily subsiding. For exactly three minutes, the Division silently work to locate Team 14 by their signatures as they know each member. The wavelets finally stopped and seconds later, the main Division member exclaims they found them. He gave Inoue the coordinates and she activates the Mind-Body Transmission Technique. *** Sakumo's team leap through the trees in the opposite direction from their original path to evade the fog; the white wolf jumps beside him. Her ears twitch to the side and barks a warning, causing the group to stop in a battle stance. "What is it, Shiro?" the White Fang asks. "Brace yourselves!" A second later, they hear an explosion followed by a strong gust of wind. They nearly lost their footing had they not channeled more chakra to their soles. When the wind died down, the group looks up to see a large mushroom cloud. Reina reactivates her Byakugan to observe it. "It's also made of many chakras!" she exclaims. "An attack from the anomaly? Could it be that one of the teams almost found it?" Sakumo suggests. Reina strains her eyes to look in the direction of where the mushroom cloud is rising from, but she releases an exasperated sigh, "I can't see anything beyond 200 feet from our position! The charka around us is too great!" Osamu places a comforting hand on her shoulder. She closes her eyes for a moment then gives a grateful nod in his direction. He gently squeezes then lets go. The team leader cracks his neck by tilting his head to the left, "We'll need to investigate the scene for clues. Sakumo and Reina will take point since you have the best tracking abilities. Osamu, see if your insects can find anything. I'll try to radio headquarters about what we just saw; I think the explosion was over by one of the training grounds. Before they could jump into action, they're startled when they hear another feminine voice directly in their heads. "I've found you at last!" "Who -!" Reina gasps, "It's Inoue Yamanaka from the Barrier Team with new information but firstly, is everyone alright?" "Yes, we're fine. We've encountered a suspicious fog earlier and we're about to investigate the cause for an explosion." The team leader summarizes. "I see. Team 6 was the closest group to your location. Their leader used Wind Release under The Commander's orders to get rid of the fog; the explosion is the end result. Luckily, no one is injured." "The fog expands to outside of the Forest? Did anyone else report anything about it?" Reina asks. "Team 6 reported that it was powerful. Other teams stated that they smelled peppermint." "We had the same conclusion. We thought it was an Illusion casted by someone or the anomaly, but nothing happened when we used "Release." My wolf pack is scattered around the Forest and they also encountered the fog." Sakumo briefs. "This is bad. The Commander gave the recall order for Team 14 so you need to be swift about it." "Did the Barrier Team locate the anomaly?" Osamu asks. "Negative. They've tried but they didn't get positive results." "Then we can't just stop the mission! We don't know what is causing these strange events and it could get worse unless we do something to stop it." The leader protests. "Unfortunately, we can't let you proceed. The order is final and I've just received word that Lord Third approved the recall as well." The leader sighs but relents, "Fine. We'll head out as soon as possible. Are we rendezvousing at HQ still?" "Negative. Head straight to the Hokage's Office to give your oral report." "Understood." "If you encounter the anomaly, do not engage with it and observe from a far." Even through the telepathic link, Inoue can feel their distasteful sentiments. "Don't forget that we're in a middle of a War. We can't afford to lose more of our soldiers at the moment. I understand your sentiments very well but we must look at the bigger picture." "Understood. Team 14 will head out and meet with the Hokage." The leader affirms. The mind link disconnects a second later. "Shiro, recall the pack. I'll summon you again for the debriefing." Sakumo instructs the white wolf, who nips his hand before disappearing in a small puff of smoke. "Let's roll out." They set off once more with their new objective: get out of the Forest alive. *** Hiruzen looks out of the office window in deep thought. The police officer sent by Kenji stands by the wall to Hiruzen's right; he's been relaying the intel as it comes through the radio comms. As much as he'd prefer to let Team 14 continue with the investigation, the new events are too concerning. They don't have enough manpower if they face the anomaly now because more than half of their forces are stationed at base camps outside of the village. Not to mention, he has to think about the public's safety and how they'll react if they catch wind of an ominous powerful thing is within the walls. He snaps back to reality upon feeling a familiar spike of chakra right outside of his door before he hears knocking. He calls out for them to enter; he watches from the window's reflection as his former student, Jiraiya, comes in. "What brings you here?" He asks. "We need to talk in private." Jiraiya looks at the police officer, "That means you have to leave." "I'm on orders by the Jounin Commander to remain by Lord Hokage's side to keep him updated." The officer firmly explains. "Well, we have something more pressing to discuss with him." Jiraiya slightly narrows his eyes at the officer, "Leave." The officer suppresses a shiver at the killing intent radiating from the famed Toad Sage. "You may go." The officer snaps his head to look at their village leader, "Wait outside. If Team 14 or anyone else arrives, tell them I'm in a meeting." "Uh, yes sir!" The officer bows then walks past Jiraiya and out the door. He notes Tsunade standing by the wall with a frown on her face; he also sees her carrying something pink and orange in her arms. He wisely remains quiet and takes his post on the opposite wall yet watches the Slug Princess storm into the office. The door slams shut so hard that he felt a gush a wind slap across his face. Hiruzen turns to fully face his students; he raises an eyebrow at the sight of something pink and orange in Tsunade's arms. "What is this meeting for?" "Activate the privacy seals." the village leader regards Jiraiya for a second then snaps his fingers All parties within the room felt chakra encompass the entire room followed by the sounds of locks clicking into place. Jiraiya reaches into his left breast pocket of his outwear and pulls out three long strips of paper. He activates the black seals that's inked on all three then throws one at the window and the door behind them and slams the third on the floor - they feel another layer of charka surround them. "Judging by that, this is quite serious." Hiruzen casually states. "It was necessary." Jiraiya starts, "We came from the Hashirama Forest because we had to meet someone there." "Even when you know that place is under investigation." A statement rather than a question. "Yes, because this -" Jiraiya jabs a thumb at the thing in Tsunade's arms, "-little lady requested we meet and that we bring her to you." Hiruzen watches as Tsunade sets the person - a child with pink hair engulfed in a tattered orange jacket, he observes - on the floor and turns around to face him. He's initially startled when he meets the child's green eyes filled with secrets; his intuition telling him that something is amiss about her. "Well, hello little one." He nods his head in greeting. She blinks owlishly at him before bowing formally, "Hello, Lord Third. It's good to see you again." "I'm sorry to say I don’t recall meeting someone with pink hair like yours." "You haven't at this time, but you will in the future." She straightens her posture to look him in the eyes. He's wary of the aura she gives off. "So why did you request to meet with me?" The child offers a tight smile, "My name is Sakura Haruno. I'm sixteen years old, Jounin Rank, and I was sent twenty-six years into the past to prevent or change the outcome of the Fourth Shinobi War." A/N: Ch. 7 is gonna be the big reveal! (I'm dreading to write this one because this gonna likely be another super long chapter, but exciting nonetheless!
Lemme know how you're liking the story thus far - or if you have general comments/questions! You can reach out to me through the "CONTACT ME" page or on Tumblr! Sakura's reading a book on the couch until Kakashi sits down next to her. She flashes a quick smile at him before returning to her novel. He didn't like that too much so he cups both of her cheeks and forces her to look at him again. "What?" she owlishly blinks at him. He didn't respond; instead, he squishes her cheeks. She squeaks in surprise, much to his amusement. "Kakashi! What are you doing?!" she puts down her book in favor of gripping his wrist in an attempt to pry them off. She squawks with closed eyes when he smushed her cheeks a little harder. He leans in closer until he lightly presses the tip of his nose against the purple rhombus and proceeds to nuzzle. Sakura opens her eyes when something tickles the middle of her forehead. Her gaze meets the familiar navy turtleneck. She lifts her gaze as high as she could in her predicament; her cheeks flush hot down to her neck when she realizes this man - her former sensei, former Commanding Officer, and former Hokage - is nuzzling his nose on her forehead! Her lips quiver to contain the squeal and smile that threatened to escape. She failed. Kakashi chuckles deeply even as he continued with his ministrations for a moment longer. His finger take comfort in her warmed cheeks. He finishes his nuzzling by planting a masked kiss directly on the purple rhombus. A cocky grin hides under his mask upon hearing her high-pitched whine. He pulls back enough to look down at her reaction - an adorable shade of blush painted across her face and down to her neck. "Kashi~!" Her whine adds more fuel to her adorableness that he couldn't help but give a chaste masked kiss on her plump lips. "Love you." He chuckles when her entire face flushes red accompanied by her gasp. Pleased, he releases her face, gets up, and walks away. Sakura continues to sit there, bothered to the Stars, unsure of how to function. A/N: this was not planned, but it’s a follow up to my other POST. Seriously wasn’t expecting more than 5 likes on that post. Hope y’all like this one!
“I’ll take Option 4 then.” “Are you sure? Once the contract is signed, there’s no going back.” “Did I stutter? Let’s get this over with.” A/N: You’re here, I’m here, (Never fear for All Might is here!), and Chapter 5 is finally here! Sorry for the lack of post in the past 2 weeks - been busy; slacking; re-editing; and struggling. So this chapter is long to kinda makeup for that but also because there’s more new characters! Hope y’all are still enjoying the story and lemme know what y’all think! Feedback is strongly encouraged! Huge shout out and big thanks to my friend for editing this! Seriously, she's an awesome friend! *See more notes at the bottom* Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto. WARNING: Entomophobia (fear of bugs) and Trypophobia (fear of holes). I apologize to any readers who have either one or both cuz this chapter will have descriptions that may trigger them. Chapter 5: The Night Before Hokage Tower An oil lamp brightens his office as Hiruzen re-organizes the fallen objects and paperwork on his desk until a messenger from the Barrier Team arrives, kneeling on one knee, head bowed. "Lord Third! The Detection Division reports an anomaly has entered the village! They're currently searching for its location." Hiruzen narrows his eyes by a fraction. Could it be the same as the ominous presence? "Tell me the full details." "Sir, the sphere had a multitude of ripples. The Detection Division tried to locate the source of the powerful energy, but it appears to have spread throughout the village. One of them perceived the energy not to be hostile. They're still trying to locate the source as we speak while another Interception Guard is checking the status of the village." "I see. I presume the Barrier Team felt the earthquake?" Hiruzen clasps his hands behind his back. "We felt the building jolt, sir." The leader is silent for a brief moment to think of his next words, "There was a strong lightning strike followed by the thunderous roar before the power went out. I expect reports from the Shinobi and the civilians about any damages from this unforeseeable weather." He peers through the window as the darkness stretches for miles. It seems possible that the strike and the ominous presence are tied to the anomaly. What could this mean? "What are your orders, Lord Third?" "Tell the Jounin Commander to assemble the Council for a meeting at 9:00 A.M. I'm certain that we're not the only ones who felt that suspicious presence earlier." "Yes, sir!" The guard formally bows before exiting to execute his orders. Alone once more, Hiruzen sighs heavily. He hears the pitter-patter of the rain against the windows with thunder rumbling now and then. Light flashes in the dark clouds, providing some visuals for him to see the village. Still, he can't get rid of this unsettling feeling in the pit of his stomach. *** Aburame Compound Since the storm strolled in, the insects within the Aburame Clan members have been buzzing with distress. It was an initial warning of the change in weather; however, their distress increased tenfold the longer the storm rages on. Every clap of thunder and crackle of lightning causes the bugs to crawl and jump anxiously underneath their host's skin. The humans can hear their troubled wails that there's too much chakra; that something "powerful" will "arrive soon." Their hosts tried to appease their critter friends but to no avail. Rather, it put the humans on edge. Many speculate there's been a change in the Second War - the enemies could've developed a new weapon or they gained more territory in an attempt to have an advantage. Few thought the storm was brought by the Ame forces, which may explain the amount of chakra in the air given the intensity of it. Yet that doesn’t explain the thick ominous fog that hangs over their heads. It wasn't until a blinding light flashes through their windows paired with a deafening boom of thunder that the insects screeched, hissed, and ticked. Their human skin bubbles up because of the critters agitated behavior. Their actions intensified when the ground quaked and the lights gave out, encasing the compound in complete darkness. "It's here!" Multiple tiny voices screech. "It's here! It's here! It's here! It's here! It's here! It's here!" "What is here?" The Head of the Clan asks. "Power." The voices hiss amidst the chaos. "Where?" "Everywhere." The Clan members sit in a foreboding silence, unsure of what to make of their critters revelation. *** Inuzuka Compound All of the canines in the Inuzuka Clan have been on edge since they smelt the storm's approach. It's not an unusual thing considering canines have a better sense of smell and they often warn their human counterparts to be cautious. What is unusual are the canine's perturbed behavior: fur bristling; ears pressed flat against their skulls; and tails tucked between their legs. Sounds of growling, whimpering, and yips are heard accompanied by a flick of their tail and/or a twitch of their ears at every crackle and roar from the weather. The pups press their small forms against the larger dogs and/or the humans to seek comfort. Their human companions also share their agitated state, which concerns them. They can feel something is off in the air they breathe in - it's as if they're inhaling a thick layer of humidity that's not just from the storm, and it coats their throats like mucus. "This might be the worst storm of the decade." One member states while looking out a window. "The unexpected are usually the worst." Another member says indifferently. "You might be right but…do you feel - do you feel that?" "…Yes." All of a sudden, a blinding white light flashed before them! An ear-splitting roar of thunder causes all Clan members to cover their ears with their hands; their canines cower with high-pitched whines. None of them didn't have the time to recover when their home shook causing items to fall. The lights blew out, shrouding them in darkness. "Shit! The fuck was that all about?!" One member exclaims as the ringing recedes. "Worry about that later! We need to check if anyone's hurt! Someone get the backup generators up and running!" Another shouts. The Head of the Clan narrows his eyes at the dark clouds. "That was no ordinary lightning bolt." "No. It reeks of powerful chakra." The canine beside twitches its nose. He ruffles his furry companion's head reassuringly. "Indeed it does." *** Hyuuga Compound The longer the storm continues to rage, the more worrisome the Hyuuga Clan members become. Their bodies tremble upon feeling the ominous build-up of energy that many of them activated their Byakugan to scan for the source. What they saw was beyond anything they've seen in all of history. The black clouds are not composed of water vapor and compressed air; instead, it's multi-colored chakra energies twisting, swirling, and bending as if captivated in a violent dance. Every time the different colored energies clash, thunder is heard, and lightning crackles. They watch as the cloud of energies finally spins in a uniform direction, forming what appears to be the eye of a tornado with streaks of electricity snapping everywhere. They gain speed, generating more electricity into a single focal point. They deactivated their Byakugan when flashes of light got too intense. After it appears to have gained enough power, a thick lightning bolt strikes the ground. The sound of explosive thunder shakes their entire body as well as the ground beneath them. "What in the world was that?!" A member asks with bewilderment once the shaking stopped. "That amount of energy…It's unbelievable!" Another gasps while looking at the sky again without their eye ability. All can still feel their bodies tremble in the aftermath; the images of colored energies are vivid in their minds. "Do you think enemy forces are behind this?" One asks directly to the Head of the Clan. "It's possible but…" A grim expression settles on their face. They reactivated their blood limit power to scour their surroundings - the colored chakra energies are still present in the sky but now it's everywhere. "We should notify the Hokage immediately. The village could be under attack!" Another clan member urgently proposes. Without looking at the audience, the Clan Head speaks. "Send a report to Lord Third of what we witnessed. We'll await his orders before we act." He cuts off any protests that were about to be spoken, "There's too much that we don't know about the energy source. It could be enemy forces that are behind this; however, even I have doubts they have the capabilities to amass that level of power." "But - !" The Clan Head faces his audience with his Byakugan activated, "We will wait for Lord Third's order. End of discussion." The room falls into a tense silence. "For now, we must check if anyone is injured from the earthquake and clean up the mess." Even as the Clan Head said that, they remained vigilant. *** Outskirts of the Village - Hatake Household Two people sit in their living room reading their vices after they finished dinner. Sakumo Hatake, recently named The White Fang of Konoha, sits at the coffee table with a novel in hand while his only son, Kakashi, sits across from him with a scroll entailing chakra manipulation. Seven additional bodies lounge in the living room, huddled together near the patio door. Three large wolves of gray, dark brown, and a mix of the two are piled together in one section; a large black wolf rests its head atop of the white wolf's back; and two smaller wolves of light brown and reddish-brown curl up next to each other. Sakumo may be thankful for the momentary tranquility of being home with his family, but his pack have been on edge since the storm's approach. Their tails flick with every sizzle of electricity as a low growl rumbles when thunder is heard. The pack warned the humans to not go outside because they sense something will soon arrive. This greatly worried the man because he thought the pack was referring to a change in the War - oh, how he greatly wishes it were something else. Now as the storm rages on, he starts to feel a shift in the electricity current buzzing around his home. He puts his book down in favor of looking through the patio door just as he heard another drum of thunder. He sees the pack lift their heads to look out as well with their ears perked upright. Kakashi saw the slightest movement from his father; he followed his line of gaze out the window. After watching the pouring rain for a couple more seconds, he feels a shift in the air. "Dad," "Yes, pup?" Sakumo angles his head to look at his son. "Something doesn't feel right." That catches the man's attention immediately. "You and the pack can sense it too." If it weren't for this foreboding presence he feels, Sakumo would've been proud of his intuitive son. "That's right. There's certainly something different about this storm. Both humans snap their heads towards the wolf pack when their growling gets louder. Sakumo shifts into a kneeling position, ready to spring into action in case something bursts through the patio door. The young boy copies his father's stance with bated breath. The seven wolves jump into an arc formation in front of the humans, each crouched as if ready to pounce with baring fangs while growling. "It's almost here." The male black wolf rasps. "Brace yourselves." Without a moment's hesitation, Sakumo pulls his son with one arm while the other hand grabs the tanto blade that rested on a nearby bookshelf. Unexpectedly, bright light flashes through the patio and windows accompanied by an ear-piercing rumble of thunder that temporarily dulls their vision and hearing. Sakumo fell on his left side and the pack nearly lost their balance when the ground shook. Other items fell over while the lights blew out, enshrouding them in darkness. Finally, everything stilled. Sakumo winces as he slowly sits up with his son in his protective hold. The ringing is receding but a pounding headache is left in its wake. "Pup? Pup, are you alright?" The darkness isn't helping with the man's dulled vision from the bright light. "I'm fine, dad." Kakashi rubs his small fists against his eyelids to relieve some of the strain endured from the sudden - and rude - light show. He physically felt his father exhale in relief before the older man rose to his feet. "What about the pack?" "We're fine, pup." A feminine voice calls out. "What was that just now anyways?" The boy asks as he encircles his arms around his father's neck. Sakumo rubs the child's back reassuringly as he places the tanto blade on the table. "I don't know but it's quite powerful if it caused the ground to shake and blow out the lights." With his eyes now adjusted to the darkness, he expertly maneuvers to the side of the living room door where a side dresser is placed. Thankfully, it only shifted from its original spot rather than falling over completely. He slides open the left panel and reaches inside the dresser; his fingers brush against a glass cylinder object before pulling it out. He sets it atop of the dresser and pulls out a matchbox next. "Let there be light." He humors after he lit the candle. Its soft yellow glow provides some visuals to their surroundings: many books shifted forward from their place on the bookshelves; some picture frames fell over on surfaces while hanging frames are crooked; dishes in the drying rack nearly slid out; etc. Sakumo sighs as he guesstimates the damage in the other rooms. He looks over to the wolf pack after hearing a curious whine. The black wolf blends in well with their current surroundings save for his golden eyes reflecting the candlelight. The white wolf steps forward to nudge her nose against Kakashi's right foot; a little smile appears on his features as he leans forward to pat her head. The other wolves follow suit, earning a childish giggle. Sakumo chuckles then places his son on the floor, allowing the wolves to surround him. Meanwhile, the man lights another candle he pulled out from the dresser. "I'll be back after I check on the other rooms. Stay here until I return." He leaves the room with his candle after hearing a chorus of barks. Sakumo checks their bedrooms and sets everything back into place before moving to the bathroom, and finally, his private study. Most of the items on the bookshelves were shifted forward, threatening to fall onto the ground. His stacks of scrolls are on the floor and the photo on his desk lies flat on its back. He sighs again as he places the candle on the floor before picking up and rearranging his things again. The last thing to fix is the photo. He picks it up and looks down at the smiling woman. Memories of happiness and contentment flood his mind as a wistful smile graces his features. He rubs the side of his thumb along the woman's jawline before setting the photo upright on the desk again. He nods his head then leaves, closing the door behind him, and continues his candlelit path to the living room. He abruptly catches himself from calling out son's name as he re-entered the living room. He silently laughs at the sight of seven wolves huddling around his sleeping child. He wishes he had a camera to capture this moment but taking in the sight will suffice. He went into the hallway again to open the storage closet where extra sleeping mats, blankets, and pillows are kept before returning to the room. He arranges two sleeping mats with the rest of the bedding in the center; his pack members took the hint because they silently moved to encircle the mats. He carries his son to tuck him under the blanket then slips into the second mat. Sakumo takes one last glimpse at his son before checking the weather through the patio door. The clouds are as dark as ever, the rain never ceased, and the wind whistles now and then. It seemed to have calmed down yet he can't shake the suspicious inkling that something huge is about to happen. Hokage Tower - Conference Hall - 9:00 AM The Conference Hall is full of the Clan Heads, the ANBU Commander, the Jounin Commander, the Chief of the Police, the Head Director of the Hospital, and many other notably skilled Shinobi. They talk amongst themselves about the events from last night while awaiting for the Hokage and the Elders to enter and officially begin the meeting. Sakumo sits beside Jiraiya with Tsunade and Orochimaru sitting on his other side. They've recapped their experiences to each other, theorizing what it could mean. The leading speculation is that Ame forces are responsible for the storm while the Toad Sage says otherwise. "Oh, stop with the "prophecy" shtick!" Tsunade negates with an eye roll. "But this could be what the Great Toad Sage prophesied!" Jiraiya asserts. "You want to believe that the storm is connected to this 'apprentice you'll acquire'?" Orochimaru inquires with his raspy voice. "Yes!" He groans at his teammates' unimpressed looks so he turns to Sakumo, "You believe me, right?" The man nervously scratches his right cheek with his index finger, "You're not wrong about the ominous presence." "But do you believe in prophecies?" Jiraiya leans in expectedly. "Well…uh…" The White Fang is saved from answering when a familiar chakra signature approaches and the sound of a door opening. The Hokage enters the Hall with four people in tow: Homura Mitokado, Danzo Shimura, Koharu Utatane, and a member from the Detection Division. They sit at the front table that’s facing the audience. Hiruzen clears his throat and begins his speech, "I'm sure the lot of you felt the earthquake as well as the strange presence last night." Many audience members nod their heads, "I've received reports earlier this morning about the blackout affecting the entire village from the low-income districts to the wealthiest. It was fortunate that the backup generators were operational. Lady Tsunade," he gazes at his former student, "do you have a report about the hospital's status?" The said woman stands up to gain all attention, "The hospital's backup generators were fully operational, preventing chaos to ensue. We treated some patients last night who were injured during the quake. Their injuries were non-life-threatening and were discharged soon after treatment. We expect more are coming." At his nod, she sits back down. "Kenji, what's the status with the police force?" The Chief of Police, Kenji Uchiha, stands up next. "We dispatched teams to check on the villagers and to assess any property damages. As I'm sure Lord Third has already heard, damage to most structures was minimal. However, we noticed that homes near the Hashirama Forest had broken windows and the residents reported their belongings either broken, fallen over, and their furniture violently shifted from their original positions." Hiruzen narrows his eyes the slightest bit while some of the audience members whisper to each other. So I was right to assume the lightning bolt went in that direction. "Have you sent a team to investigate the Forest?" "Negative, sir. We prioritized the safety of our villagers. I was about to dispatch a team to investigate further but I was called to attend this meeting." "Thank you." Kenji bows his head then sits back down. "Now, let's get to the reason why I summoned you all." The room's atmosphere becomes tense. "A messenger from the Barrier Team informed me what the Detection Division discovered last night. Please explain your findings." The member from the Division stands up to address the audience, "We detected a powerful anomaly entering the village last night. Unfortunately, we haven't located it yet because our barrier is still rippling." "We've been breached and our barrier is compromised?" Danzo, sitting on Hiruzen's right side, interjects. The member continues coolly, "The barrier is still intact despite the rippling effects hindering our ability to locate the anomaly. We do know that its power is scattered throughout the village, which may explain the blackout. Its intensive power might also explain the quake we felt." "Has the barrier weakened at all?" Homura, sitting on Hiruzen's left side, asks. "No. The barrier still holds strong. There was no identifiable breach, no point of entry - nothing we could find." "Perhaps the Hyuuga Clan can enlighten us then?" Hiruzen suggests, cueing the Clan Head to rise. "You sent a report to me last night." "That's correct, sir. Many of my Clansmen were wary of the storm before we felt the ominous build-up of energy. We used the Byakugan to find the source only to realize that the clouds were made up of different colored chakras." He paused to allow his words to sink in before adding on, "These energies formed the eye of a tornado, generating more electricity in the air moments before a large lightning bolt struck the earth." "Where did it strike?" Koharu, sitting beside Homura, asks. "We didn't see where it struck, but I believe the Chief of Police might be on the right track about the Hashirama Forest." "If the anomaly arrived in the Forest, it's likely that it has already relocated. However, it might be a good start for the investigation." The Hokage asserts. "We should send Hunter Scouts to check the Village Walls and Gates to ensure that our defenses are optimal. We can't afford to allow potential enemies waltzing in whenever they please." Koharu sternly suggests. "Indeed. The Second War is already taxing as it is." Homura pushes his glasses up. The Jounin Commander stands up while clearing his throat, "If the Hokage approves, we can send three to four-people squads consisting of at least one Hyuuga member. If the anomaly is the source of the powerful disturbance, then the Byakugan should be able to find its chakra signature." The Aburame Clan Head rises, "My Clansmen volunteers to help with the investigation. We can communicate with the other insects to track down the anomaly." "Will the Inuzuka Clan aid in the search?" Homura curiously looks at the Clan Head. "There might be a chance we can sniff out its foreign scent but the storm would've washed it away by now. On the other hand, we'll help do a perimeter check on the Walls and Gates and see if we can find anything." The Clan Head narrows his eyes with a slight frown, "Whatever it is, the thing spooked all of our canines." He focuses his gaze on Sakumo, "What of your pack?" The White Fang rises, "They were agitated by the disturbance as well. One of them warned me that something has arrived, then we were blinded by the light and couldn't hear after the thunder." He directs his dark gray eyes to the Jounin Commander, "I volunteer to help with the investigation but we must be more discrete. It's one thing for the public to panic, but this anomaly might escape- or worse, attack - if it catches wind of our plan." "Agreed." Danzo nods his head. "If you find the ominous source, apprehend it immediately." "Wait a minute," Jiraiya interjects hastily as he rises from his seat, "I understand that everyone is on edge, but we need to tread carefully. For all we could know, this powerful thing could help us win the War!" He ignores the harsh whisper Tsunade called out, "If we act violently towards it or if we capture it without giving it a chance, then it might attack us." "Are you suggesting we take a risk of trusting this anomaly whose power greatly affected the entire village in a single moment?" Danzo incredulously scoffs. "Would you rather the enemies find it first to use it against us?" The Toad Sage inwardly smirks at the Elder's twitch. "What makes you certain that the enemy isn't the one behind this anomaly?" Kenji asks. "We know too little about the disturbance to conclude if it's good or bad." "Enough!" The room falls into a tense silence once more at the Hokage's command. Those who were standing quietly sat back down. "Now then, let's do what we can without causing public panic of a potential attack. "Gather the available Chunin and Jounin ranked Shinobi to form the Hunter Scouts and send them to scour the perimeter. At least one member from the Aburame, Hyuuga, and Inuzuka Clans shall be assigned. Another faction will consist of the Konoha Military Police with the rest of the available Shinobi - start the investigation at the Hashirama Forest for clues and other candidate places like the Forest of Death and the Training Grounds. I suspect that the anomaly may avoid crowded places for the time being." "Understood, sir!" The audience affirms in unison. "Meanwhile, the Barrier Team will continue their attempts to locate it. Smoke them out by changing the barrier formula." "What shall we do if neither of us finds the anomaly?" The Division members ask cautiously. A frown graces the village leader's features. "Then we best prepare for the worst to come." He stands up from his seat with Elders following his lead, "Everyone must update each other if you discover anything. I expect reports by the end of the day. Dismissed." "Yes, sir!" Hiruzen walks out of the Hall with the Elders in tow. The frown still mars his face even when he returns to his office to resume his duties. *** Hokage Tower - Main Lobby Some of the people exiting from the Conference Hall stayed in the Main Lobby to further talk amongst themselves. Others were about to leave the building altogether to inform their clan members and/or gather the rest of the available Shinobi forces. Jiraiya slings an arm around Sakumo's shoulders with a teasing grin, "By the way, how's the little tyke?" "Kakashi's fine. He also sensed something off last night." The White Fang sighs exasperatedly, "I swear that boy is growing up too fast." The Toad Sage snickers, "Well, he does have gray hair at the age of two." "Like you're one to talk! You were born with white hair!" He shoves the white-haired man off of him, laughing at their childish banter. "Both of you are childish." Orochimaru taunts them in passing. "Oi! Are you joining the Hunt?" Jiraiya calls out. "As much as I'd like to, I have other things to attend to." The duo watch their Snake friend leave the building, then Jiraiya claps Sakumo on the back in parting. "Be careful out there! Let me know what you find, if anything!" The White Fang gave him a two-fingered salute and the Toad Sage left to catch up with Tsunade. *** Outside of the Hokage Tower "Stars, I need a drink." Tsunade groans as she exits the Hokage Tower. "Something on your mind, princess?" Jiraiya asks once he's closer to her. "Care to share your thoughts?" "Humph! Buy me a drink first." "Of course! Shall we go to our usual spot?" He wordlessly follows her down the path to the local bar they frequent. *** Barrier Team When the Division member returned to his post, he summarized the details from the meeting. When he checked the water sphere, the ripples were concerning. They've done the standard protocols last night until dawn but nothing worked. The only noticeable changes are the ripples behavior from violently quivering to steady wavelets in all directions. "Bring the barrier formula scroll!" He commands one of the assistants. A minute later, the assistant returns with a five-foot-tall beige and green scroll and unravels it on the floor in front him. The parchment is littered with black characters with large circles either containing a single Kanji character for "Boundary" and "Barrier" or they're blank in the event to add changes. The Division member dips his brush in black ink then swiftly writes the Kanji characters for "Search" and "Bind." Once he finished, he and the other two members performed the necessary hand signs to direct their chakra into the sphere. Whips of water from the pool below rise up to wrap around the sphere, altering its shape to match the barrier formula including the new variables. The three members use the Sheep hand sign to finalize the changes, causing the water formula to glow white. All while they kept an eye on the wavelets to see if it'll finally stop. Alas, they did not. Instead, the ripples became agitated again. "It's not working! What can this mean?" The person on the left from the middle asks. "Do you think the anomaly is actively distorting our ability to find it?" The one on the right asks. I'm not sure, but let's keep trying. If this continues, we'll need to report it to the Hokage." *** Hokage Tower - Rooftop Atop of the Hokage Tower is an assembly of available Chunins and Jounins to form the Hunter Scout Teams. The Jounin Commander reads off the names as he forms each team of four people, including one member from the Aburame, Hyuuga, or Inuzuka Clan. He helps the Chief of Police form their faction for the investigation. Sakumo directs his gaze upwards, unsettled by the overcast weather. It's like a warning for the impending unknown is about to come any second now. He's glad he left his son with Jiraiya's pupil, Minato Namikaze, for the day. He didn't like the idea of Kakashi alone in the house, even with the pack, so they went to Minato's home and asked him to watch over his son until he returned. Besides, Kakashi likes Minato so he felt better knowing his son is in good hands. He snaps out his thoughts when the Jounin Commander speaks, "Alright listen up! Hunter Scouts will check the Walls and Gates for breaches. Check the visitor logs and get a report from the Guard Patrols. Aburame members, scatter your insects around the assigned areas. Inuzukas, see if you can pick up the foreigner's scent. Hyuugas, your priority is to find its chakra signature. The same is applied for the investigation teams." "Sir!" The Scouts affirm in unison. The Chief of Police addresses his faction next, "Like what was said, half of us will start the investigation at the Hashirama Forest while the rest will gather eye-witness reports from the nearby residents. Our goal is to find clues about the mysterious presence and apprehend it immediately. Although it's likely the source relocated to desolate areas like the Forest of Death and/or the Training Grounds. Report your findings via radio communication between all teams." "Sir!" The teams shout in unison. "The Barrier Team is altering the barrier formula to find the anomaly as well. They'll notify us by the Mind-Body Transmission Technique." The Jounin Commander adds. "We don't want to cause a public panic so give vague answers if anyone asks. At the end of the day, we'll submit the reports to the Hokage." "Yes, sir!" When given the signal, both sets of teams scatter to their assigned areas. ⚫⚫⚫ Sakumo can already feel the energy radiating from the Hashirama Forest from a couple of miles away. Even though the Forest is said to have special trees infused with the First Hokage's chakra when he created it, the amount of power wafting in the air is too much. It's like gravity is pulling them down. "Stars." The Hyuuga teammate wheezes as her Byakugan scans their surroundings. "What do you see?" The leader asks. The team abruptly stops just before the tree line as they feel the power intensify. "There's an abundance of chakra floating within the Forest. Most of it is blue but there are different colors mixed in. They're…they're in harmony, unlike last night's storm." She directs her gaze upwards, "Even now, the clouds are composed of the same energies yet they're rapidly wavering." "Think you can locate the source?" The leader asks. The Hyuuga member slightly squints her eyes for a moment. "The dense chakra is obscuring my sight. We need to venture forward." "I see." The leader faces the Aburame member, "You're up." The Aburame member outstretched his arms to the side, allowing the Shokaichu worms to wriggle from his pores and fall to the ground. "Locate a chakra signature that's different from the rest." The white little plump worms burrow themselves deeper into the ground to carry out their orders. The host kneels then performs a sequence of hand signs for the Secret Technique: Insect Gathering; he places a palm on the ground to allow a web of chakra to expand further into the Forest. Many different species of bugs begin gathering at their location. Sakumo inwardly shudders at the image of the white worms. He meets the leader's eye, "Think you'll have luck with your pack?" "It's worth a shot." The White Fang bites the pad of his thumb, performs the summoning technique hand signs, and slams a palm on the ground. A circle of black scriptures appears beneath him the same time a large plume of smoke arises. Sitting in a formation are the seven wolves, looking at their summoner expectedly. "I need you to track any foreign scents in the Forest." "You're referring to the disturbance, yes?" The dark brown wolf asks. "That might be a challenge because of the dense chakra everywhere is mixing with the other scents." The gray wolf sniffs. "C'mon, you've faced greater challenges than this." He teases. "The insects report a human crash-landed in a clearing." The Aburame member announces. "A human?" The leader echoes, surprised. "You heard the man - you're going to sniff out a human scent." Sakumo snaps his fingers as a signal for the wolves to scatter. The pack leaps past the trees to begin the hunt. ⚪⚪⚪ Hashirama Forest Sakura sits beside a small stream that's not too far from the cosmos flower field. The cold water reawakens her senses as she scrubs her hands and legs of the grime, mud, and blood. She feels more refreshed after rinsing her face and the ends of her hair. She would've preferred a hot shower but this will do for now. She stands up with chakra on her soles and begins the trek back to the flowers. More of her childhood memories flood through her mind like a movie: her running through the fields, making flower crowns, leaping through the forest to reach The Alcove. Her chest tightened when images of her best friend and rival popped up; tears sting the back of her eyes. The slugs on either shoulder sensed her dampened mood so they nuzzle the tops of their heads under her jaw. The child giggles at the tickling sensation and gives them a grateful smile. When she returned to the field, an idea came to mind. She channels her chakra while performing the Sheep - Snake hand signs down to the ground to erect wooden beams, creating a large square "floating" deck. It's high enough to not crush the flowers underneath so she made a couple of stairs. Next is the gazebo with curtains of Devil's Ivy along the four sides. Lastly is the wooden bench table positioned in the center of the entire structure. "How quaint." Katsuyu on her right shoulder comments. The child sat down on one side of the table then placed both slugs on the table surface. "I need you to do something for me." "What is it, Milady?" "One of you will divide into smaller copies and place yourself around within a one-mile radius. I want to make sure this place is secured even though I don't sense any human chakra signatures within the vicinity at the moment." "I understand. I'll alert you if anyone approaches and/or is heading your way." At her nod, the left slug does as she's instructed. She divides into the same size as land snails, falling from the surface and slithering away into the forest. Sakura's still amazed at how fast the slug can move! "Now then!" She sighs while stretching her arms back. "What shall we do in the meantime?" "Have you decided what you're going to tell Lady Tsunade and Lord Jiraiya?" Sakura hums thoughtfully, "Yes. I just hope they'll take me seriously." She slumps over with her arms crossed on the table and rests her chin atop of them. Her cheeks puff out a little. Maybe you can show them the Wood Release to gain their attention. I'm sure they'll take you seriously then. Inner suggests. As if my creation isn't enough! Sakura snorts softly. Just saying. Katsuyu perks up slightly, "I suggest you alter your chakra signature or suppress it completely, Milady." Sakura raises a pink eyebrow in question. "My other-selves are positioned as instructed and they can sense your strong presence." She blinked owlishly, "Oh." She closes her eyes to concentrate compressing all of the chakra in her reserves until it's no longer radiating from her person passively. Then she forces it to alter its signature to mimic a nearby squirrel in a tree. "Very good!" Katsuyu chimes. Sakura's stomach grumbles, causing her to groan when the hunger pains arise. She squeezes her eyes tighter to fight it off. A small grateful smile appears on her face when she feels the slug sending a soothing wave of chakra on her hand. "I'll be okay. I still have the ration packs just in case." She mumbles out. "I know. They'll be here soon." She observes her weary form, knowing that she's quite exhausted. Since her arrival, she suspects Sakura hasn't gotten proper rest. Plus with the lack of a proper meal in who knows long during the War, the child must be on the last stretch. The duo falls into silence as a cold breeze passes through the ivy curtains. *** "You've arrived." A/N: This chapter was a struggle but not as bad as Ch. 4. This one introduced a lot of characters and techniques that I had to make sure everything flowed nicely. Plus, I included their perspectives / reactions to the storm and figure out the details of the meeting.
Last chapter, I promised to bring Kakashi into this and I did, featuring Sakumo and the wolf pack! I took a few moments to research about Japanese Wolf Deities - inspired by Ch. 27 of "Daughters of Fire" written by justjstuff on AO3 because I liked their concept of integrating folklore to the Hatake Clan and Ninken Contract Scroll. So I Googled that and stumbled across a Weebly site about it: Raph Häussler (2016) Wolf & Mythology, retrieved from https://ralphhaussler.weebly.com/wolf-mythology-italy-greek-celtic-norse.html I based the pack's names on the statues and descriptions of what's mentioned in the site, which will be revealed soon. Plus, who can resist puppers and doggos?! Comforting Toddler! Kakashi?! Like, c'mon. It was interesting to read the folklore and looking at the wolves that closely resemble the deities - and you know what? Some of the Japanese Wolf species do resemble or share some physical traits to Foxes, which may explain why sometimes lore has both canines referred to as seasonal protectors: Foxes appear during the Harvest Time and ascend the mountains as Wolves in the winter. There's also a Wolf Deity Festival that happens in January...which coincidentally kinda fits with my plans for the story! (really wasn't expecting that!) Oh, and don't worry. I'm aware of the lack of continuity between certain events in the chapters thus far - please know that I intended for some of them to occur with reason. Happy readings! CHAPTER 6 HERE I COME! A/N: It's here! Chapter 4 is here and finalized! Honestly, this was the most agonizing part of the story that didn't even happen in my Event Timeline, but since I'm making changes to the story I need to make sure things sound right. Shout outs and big thanks to my friend, who stuck through the entire on-the-fly process of this chapter, peer-reviewed, clarified, and gave me feedback! She really helped me pull through to the end! There's more interactions with Katsuyu, Tsunade, and Jiraiya so I hope all of you like this one! Please let me know how you're liking the story thus far! Feedback is strongly encouraged. Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto. Chapter 4: Private Booth It's silent in the private booth after Katsuyu declared her statement. Tsunade and Jiraiya briefly exchanged glances with a mixture of tension and uneasiness. "What do you mean she's on a mission to change everything?" Amber eyes refocus onto the slug. "What's her real mission objective?" "It's as I've stated previously. Unfortunately, I can't give you specific details at the moment. Both of you will need to meet with Lady Sakura to hear the full truth." Jiraiya leans one elbow on the table's surface to peer into the slug's gray optical tentacles. "Then what details can you give us until then?" Katsuyu becomes silent for a couple of minutes, allowing the adults to mull over what just transpired. Haruno? The last person with that last name left months ago for a trade post to help direct supplies for the War. He's about what, sixteen years old? He can have a kid at his age but…something doesn’t add up. Jiraiya eyes the slug for a second then looks at his partner, who’s also in deep thought. When her amber eyes made contact with his, there's a sense of mutual understanding exchanged between them. How did this person gain approval from the Slugs to sign the Contract? When did they sign it? Tsunade looks down at the Contract in front of her to examine the new signature. The pigment is bright red much like her own, but the Seal above it is concerning. She can sense something powerful about it - almost ancient. Besides, the family name puzzles her. The Haruno's are a civilian merchant family that was one of the early settlers after Konoha opened its Gates to welcome outsiders. While the family members are charismatic and sociable business people, they aren't suited to become Shinobi. Many of their men and few of their women enlisted to become Shinobi before the Shinobi Academy was built; however, they didn't meet the standard requirements at the time. Since then, the family have been contributing their help and knowledge in establishing trade diplomacy amongst other merchants and Clans within the village, foreign trade negotiations, trade posts in other regions of the Fire Country, and helping map out trade routes not only for civilians and merchants to use but also for their Shinobi forces. How did a member of the Haruno family sign the Contact? Who exactly is this person anyway? The last person of the same name left for a trade post months ago and he didn't mention having a child with some woman. Then again, he probably isn't aware that his partner might have been pregnant. So is this 'Sakura' person a younger sister? Maybe a younger relative? The corner of Tsunade's red-painted lips dip down. When her eyes make contact with her partner, he slightly nods his head down to affirm their mutual understanding. There's something suspicious going on and Katsuyu is withholding the information. For now. *** Hashirama Forest The Katsuyu that's resting on Sakura's left palm perks up upon the new memories flooding into her mind. "Milady," She hastily calls out to gain her summoner's attention, "I've been summoned by Lady Tsunade. She's alone with Lord Jiraiya in a private booth A privacy seal was already in place by the time I arrived." Dazed green eyes widened at the news, "Did Master say why she summoned you?" "She states to have felt a shift in our bond. It's as if someone attacked her." Pink eyebrows knit together in wonder, "If it had to do with the bond, could it be because of the Seal that's added onto my signature?" "Perhaps. My copy showed them the Seal that's also apparent on her body, then summoned the Contract Scroll upon Lady Tsunade's demand." "Wait, the Seal also appeared on your other copies?" Bewilderment crosses her face. "It seems so. Lord Jiraiya appeared to be very intrigued by it." "That makes sense considering he's a Seal Master or will become a Seal Master." She shakes her head a little to refocus, "Anyway, why did Master demand to see the Contract?" "When I mentioned another summoner, she rebuked me in disbelief. She declared herself to be the only recent summoner who signed the Contract." The slug hums softly, vibrating her small form in Sakura's palm. "Both of them were surprised upon seeing your name and the Seal above it. They questioned me for more information; however, I only told them that the Seals are connected and that you're on a mission. They'll need to talk to you to receive more detail." The child rests a curled index finger against her chin, "I think I'd understand Master's reaction if I was in her position. The Slugs are particular with who they form a bond with, so hearing about a new titleholder is suspicious - especially depending on how recent Master signed it. "I wonder…was it the Seal that Master felt? After all, she formed a bond with you, right?" The little slug nods her head. "Maybe…well…I'm not sure." Sakura scrunches her nose while she tries to make sense of a new theory, "Okay. So you felt The Sage's chakra form the Seal on your body, causing you and the other Slugs to feel something was amiss, right?" "Yes. It's why I examined the Contract myself." "Then maybe Master felt something similar to that - hence, why she summoned you! The Seals are on our chests, so it's possible that she felt the after-effects?" Uncertainty is evident in her questioning tone at the end. "We won't know for sure unless we meet, but that's what I think." Katsuyu regards the younger summoner's theory, "That's a likely scenario." She pauses then adds, "I should also mention that Lady Tsunade seems to be familiar with your family name at this time because she asked if they're a civilian class." Nostalgia is reflected in Sakura's eyes and voice, "I remember my dad telling me he used to help direct supplies between trade posts and base camps during the Second and Third War. He wasn't strong enough to pass as a Shinobi, but he wanted to help in any way he could. Being the son from a civilian merchant family gave him that opportunity." Suddenly, a strong wave of trepidation washes over her small body, "Wait…my dad and my mom…" The slug observes her with worry at the sound of fear in her voice, "Milady?" Wide eyes filled with panic snap towards the gray optical tentacles. "WHAT AM I GOING TO DO ABOUT MY PARENTS?!" The little slug freezes at the sudden outburst and it took her a second to understand Sakura's dilemma. "That is a good question." A wretched groan rumbles loudly from the child's throat as her head droops downward, "What am I going to do, shannaro?" Her head snaps upward with a sharp gasp, "What if they don't end up together? What if they end up hating each other? What if they're already in a relationship but they're going to break up?" Her breathing starts to become erratic. "What if one of them dies?! Oh stars, what if both of them die?! Is that one of the changes The Sage meant before?!" Outer. Inner Sakura firmly calls out. Calm down. Katsuyu wraps her tail around Sakura's thumb in comfort, "Please calm down, Milady. I'm sure we can figure something out regarding your parents. For now, let's make a plan and take things one step at a time." She's right. We can worry about your parents later. Right now, we need to figure out what to do with Master and the old pervert. Inner consoles. The child takes a deep breath filling her lungs with air before exhaling loudly. "Okay. Okay, you're right. That's a worry for another date." Who knows? Maybe after Master and Jiraiya help us get the Third Hokage on our side, all three of them can help us figure out what to do about your parents. The Third Hokage? Wha -? An image from the desolate battlefield shows the reanimated Third Hokage as his parting words echo in her head, "If you land in the time I was the village leader, then convince my younger self about the truth so that you can have an ally." Sakura hums with contemplation. Hmm. You have a point, Inner. The Third Hokage was, er, is known to favor his former student…even if that includes the snake. She huffs at the mental image of the traitor. If I can get Master and Jiraya on our side, it'll be easier to convince the Third Hokage to believe me. Plus, having all three of them as my allies would make things easier, or so to speak. The issue is how are you to convince those two first? "Milady?" The child returns her attention to the small slug in her hand. "Is there anything else to report from the adult's side?" "No. My other copy is currently waiting for further orders from you." "I see." She scans the inside of her wooden dome as she racks her brain to come up with something until Inner provided an idea. A mischievous smile slowly creeps on Sakura's lips, "Alright. Here's the deal." *** Private Booth The Katsuyu that's sitting on the table twitches her tail upon receiving the new information. "I've received news from Lady Sakura." Both of the adults are pulled out of their thoughts and straighten up their posture. "You're with this 'Sakura' person now?" Tsunade raises a trimmed blonde eyebrow. "Yes. I was summoned hours before you called upon me." "Can we trust this person?" Jiraiya eyes the little creature. "Yes. She's a loyal kunoichi of Konoha." Amber and dark brown eyes widen in shock. Tsunade speaks first with clear disbelief, "A kunoichi? A Haruno became a kunoichi?" "Yes. Lady Sakura is a strong, loyal, intelligent, and formidable kunoichi who was taught only by the best." A sense of pride radiates from Katsuyu's small body. A smirk appears on the Toad Sage's face as he rubs his thumb and index finger along his jawline, "So she's a strong female, hmm?" He wasn't fast enough to dodge Tsunade's choice of weapon, wincing as the sake cup bounces off of the side of his head. He aims a pout at his partner while rubbing the rising bump. "Is that hard to believe?" Katsuyu tilts her optical tentacles to the right with curiosity clear in her tone. Jiraiya refocuses on the small animal again. "We know some of the Haruno family members within Konoha. None of them passed to become a Shinobi." "Lady Sakura was promoted to Jounin status." Tsunade scoffs incredulously, "Impossible! None of the Haruno's we know of passed to achieve Genin level!" "The Haruno's you know, perhaps. However, Lady Sakura is different from her family." The atmosphere becomes thick with tension. The blonde woman narrows her amber eyes, "How different do you mean?" "She's different from her family." Katsuyu calmly reiterates. After a pause, she adds, "If you have further questions regarding her private life, you'll need to speak with her in person." She's inwardly amused at their annoyed expressions. "When and where can we meet this person?" Jiraiya asks. "Lady Sakura hopes to meet with both of you today. Preferably, with only the four of us." "Four?" A white eyebrow arches upwards, "You're going to be present during the meeting?" "Yes. Lady Sakura believes both of you would be less suspicious if I'm present." Tsunade purses her lips to the side while Jiraiya's expression becomes stoic. *** Hashirama Forest Sakura looks down at the scene in front of her: there are two copies of Katsuyu with one on the right and the other on the left to mirror the adults' position in the private booth. Just then, the child's stomach rumbles loudly. A faint blush dusts across her chubby cheeks in embarrassment. Both slug copies giggle at the girl's expense. "May I suggest Lady Tsunade and Lord Jiraiya bring food at the rendezvous point?" The slug copy on the right asks. An embarrassed giggle rises from the small child, "That would be nice. All I had was a ration pack a few hours ago." "I see. I’ll inform them to bring food as part of the deal." "Oh! Be sure to get the receipt then!" So you can pay them back? Sarcasm drips from Inner's gibe. "Receipts usually have the date stamped on them!" A proud smile settles on her expression when Katsuyu makes a noise akin to realization. "It's a subtle way for me to find out what period this is!" Inner claps her hands with praise, Clever! "That's very clever, Milady!" The prideful smiles widen on her childish features. *** Private Booth "Lady Sakura requests the both of you to bring food to the rendezvous point with the receipt. She will repay you in full and give the answers you seek." Katsuyu informs, which earned miffed snorts from the two adults. "Who the hell is she to request we bring her food?" Tsunade snarks. "You will know when you meet with her," Katsuyu responds nonchalantly. "You have yet to tell us where we're going to meet with her." Jiraiya reminds. "I will guide you there myself. Please ensure we're not being followed until we've reached the secured location." Tsunade can feel her temper rising at the audacity of this person. "Why not have her meet us instead? Is she that 'high-and-mighty' to demand we go to her first?" "Tsuna," Jiraiya drawls out her name nervously. "Please calm down, Princess." He flinches at the intense glare she's giving him. "I am calm, you stupid frog!" She snaps her attention back to the innocent slug, "Now you tell that little hussy to meet us instead! NOW! Have her get her own damn food!" *** Hashirama Forest "Hussy? HUSSY?! WHO THE HELL IS SHE CALLING A HUSSY?! SHANNARO!" Sakura roars, enraged. Both copies of Katsuyu try to placate their raging summoner. *** Private Booth "Lady Tsunade, please calm down!" The slug with the adults tries to pacify the tempered blonde woman. "Lady Sakura cannot be seen in public yet." Both adults freeze for a moment until Jiraiya breaks the silence, "What do you mean?" "She's in a precarious situation at the moment. It's best if I guide you to her to avoid a mishap." The adults make eye contact with each other and the little slug knows they're engaged in a silent conversation that only they understand. *** Hashirama Forest Maybe we should take their silence as an opportunity to explore our surroundings. We need to figure out where we are before we pick a location to meet up. Inner suggests, causing Sakura to sigh with agreement. "I guess it's time to leave the nest." She straps on her pouch diagonally across her chest with Kakashi's secured around her smaller waist in the back. Next, she grabs a fist-full of dirt to extinguish the small fire embers. After that, she slowly moves to stand up on her small, bare feet. Her body is still sore from the previous activities, but thankfully she's not injured. The feeling of a headrush overwhelms her mind - her body sways momentarily until she wills herself to stand her ground. Both of the slugs watch with worry as the summoner collects herself. Once she seems composed enough, the slugs slither towards her feet then up her bare legs. They slither over her Jounin shirt until they settle inside the jacket collar on either side of her neck. "Will you be alright?" The slug on the left asks. Sakura tiredly smiles with closed eyes, "Yes, I'll be okay. C'mon, we need to get moving." She claps her hands into the Snake hand sign, channeling the right amount of chakra to dismantle her wooden dome back into the ground. The change from dim to bright lighting blinded her the second the dome receded. A piercing headache pounds against the middle of her forehead; she can hear her heartbeat loudly in her ears. She shuts her eyes tight in an attempt to dull the pressure and tries to focus on her breathing. Both slugs send a soothing wave of chakra from either side of Sakura's neck to alleviate some of the aches and pains throughout her body. Stars know that she needs all the relief she can get. The pinkette finally regains her bearings once more and opens her eyes. She's greeted by the sight of dewdrops on the low-cut grass, various sized puddles scattered on the muddy ground, and tall lush trees standing 30 feet away from her position. Thick bushes are surrounding the base of the trees; she can see red berries growing in a patch of foliage. When Sakura turns around to further inspect her surroundings, she realizes her position is closer to a cluster of tall trees. The ground directly under her feet is charred like it was bunt. It spreads out in a circle about 5 feet in diameter from her position. She deeply inhales the scents around her - the freshness after a rainfall; the earthy smell from the ground; and the subtle sweetness of the pine trees. She directs her gaze to the sky to note the overlapping gray clouds with no chance of natural sunlight peeking through. She suspects the rain will pick up again and she'll to need find shelter once more. A chilling breeze passes her bare feet, causing her to shiver. She's inwardly grateful of wearing a long jacket, but she wishes she had pants and shoes that fit her current size. "Hmm…" She hums lightly as she expands her chakra threads outwards to map out her surroundings. "Okay, I seem to be in a forest?" She locates different animals littered around as well as vaguely senses other people's chakra signatures further out. "The best way to know your surroundings is to explore!" The Katsuyu on the left suggests. The pinkette lightly giggles with a roll of green eyes, "Yes, yes." *** Private Booth "Have you reached an agreement?" Katsuyu pipes up after observing the two adults for a while. They've been engaged in a silent exchange of eye contact and subtle body movements to convey their messages. After sharing a brief nod, Jiraiya speaks first as he faces the little slug. "We'll allow you to guide us to meet with Sakura." "As well as bring food?" Katsuyu asks. "She's quite famished." Tsunade releases a huff but says nothing. "Yes, including the bill. We expect her to answer all of our questions in return." Jiraiya narrows his eyes by a fraction. "Of course. Lady Sakura swears to deliver her end of the bargain as long as the two of you fulfill your end." The Toad Sage breaks into a smile as he picks up one of the menus. "Great! So, what shall we buy for her?" "May I see the menu?" He places the item down in front of the slug and watches as her optical tentacles move from left to right. "You're in luck. Lady Sakura also favors this bar." "She's a regular?" Tsunade inquires. "She's not a frequent customer, but she likes the food and drinks. Her favorite combination is peach sake paired with the chicken gyoza, the shrimp tempura, and grilled asparagus." She looks up to Jiraiya, "She'd like two orders of that and plenty of water, please." "Is one of the orders for you?" He jests while he opens the paper door just enough to peek through, breaking the privacy seal, and gains attention from one of the servers. He recites the order to the server, which will take about 20 minutes to complete for take-out, then closes the door once more with the seal reactivated. "I prefer consuming various plants, herbs, and berries than what you humans normally eat." She says matter-of-factly. "However, I do enjoy the Herbal Pills Lady Sakura makes for me. They're delicious!" "Herbal Pills?" Tsunade parrots with curiosity. "Yes! It was a project that Lady Sakura devised to carry herbal remedies used in teas for herself and her patients while traveling. She makes extras for me to try and they're usually delicious!" The blonde woman is dumbfounded. That's…ingenious! "She's a medic?" "One of the best medics." Pride swells within Katsuyu's body, reflecting the hard work her youngest summoner has accomplished. Skepticism arises within Tsunade at the new tidbit of information. Someone from the Haruno family managed to become a Shinobi and sign the Slug Contract. Now she's also a medic? Who the hell is this person? Jiraiya notices a shimmer in her amber eyes and silently sighs for what may happen at the meeting. *** Hashirama Forest Meanwhile, Sakura strolls along the path she chose as she observes her surroundings. It's peaceful yet strangely familiar to her. "I feel like I've been here before." She mumbles softly as she ducks under a fallen tree to continue onwards. "That's a good sign!" The slug on the right cheerfully exclaims. "Yeah. Like, I think…I think I used to come to this forest a long time ago…" Something in her peripheral vision catches her attention. When she looks slightly to the left, there's an imperfect stone pathway weaving around the bases of trees. She takes the chance to walk along the path while remaining observant. The stone pathway leads her down a small slope where she encounters a wall with a curtain of moss, vines, and foliage. A particular memory appears in her mind. --- A young girl with the same pink hair and green eyes runs through the tall trees, leaps over uprooted vines and logs, and hops over boulders in a rush to arrive at her intended destination. It was a happy accident for this child to find this place for the first time. She was on her way back to her home from a flower meadow of cosmos when she noticed a rocky wall covered in moss and vines. She didn't know what prompted her to follow along the wall - perhaps childish curiosity- but she stayed close to it as she went on a detour from her original path. The vines and moss thicken as well as have clusters of foliage drape along the walls. Soon, she's walking on an imperfect stone path that leads upward to a small slope. When the young girl eyed the wall again, however, she noticed there's a big gap in between two large draping foliage. She steps closer to the gap then pushes the vines to the side. She's greeted by a dim cave-like space with a near-flat floor and varying-sized rocks along the inner walls. She steps further inside and is pleased to know its ceiling is quite high. There's plenty of space for her to move around while standing up; the place seems bigger if she sits down on the floor. A giddy smile appears on her face as she imagines what this space will look like when she decorates it. "What should I name this place?" the girl's voice slightly echoes around her. "What was the word that mama used for the back garden?" She takes a second to remember what the word was, then gasps when it clicked in her mind. "Ah! I know!' --- A nostalgic smile appears on her childish face, "The Alcove." Both slugs on either side of her neck look to her in question, "Milady?" "I know where we are, Lady Katsuyu." She chuckles a bit, "It's been a long time since I've been here. I'm surprised this exists at the moment." She veers off the stone path a bit to find the gap in between the thick foliage lined up on the wall. Similar to her first discovery in her childhood, the space presented in front of her is almost the same. "Will this be the rendezvous point?" The slug on her left asks. "No, it's too small for the adults to fit. But I do know a better place with plenty of room." She steps out of the hidden space to continue her trek on the stone pathway, leading her in the familiar direction of where the flower meadow should be. Her nostalgic smile widens as her eyes sweep across the sea of lilac and pink cosmos flowers. "This is the place." "It's very beautiful, Milady, but are you sure? It's an open field." Sakura firmly nods her head, "Yeah. I'm sure." A/N: Hope y'all liked this chapter and how I depicted the conversations and reactions of each character. For those of you who've been following my story this far, I hope the different styled fonts and formats help separate who is speaking or what's going on. If not, please let me know if you'd like a Key at the top A/N to guide you through. Also, general feedback is strongly encouraged! Feel free to leave a comment here or send it to my Tumblr page (you can find it on the "ABOUT" page).
A/N: Big shoutout and gratitude to my friend who peer reviewed and helped me edit this chapter! Really helped me pull through this long chapter. Hope ya'll enjoy! Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto. Chapter 3: The small slug patiently rests in her summoner's arms as she continues to cry. She scans her summoner's body, noting a significant change such as the amount of chakra she has and her smaller form. Katsuyu recalls the events of the Fourth War; however, there are blank gaps in between certain instances that she needs to be aware of. One of them explaining the reason for the seal to appear on the underside of her true body. *** Before the Infinite Dream Technique was activated by Madara, Tsunade dismissed her back to her homeworld, The Damp Bone Forest, to prevent her from being a victim. Hours later, she felt a familiar surge of chakra pool on the underside of her body and began forming a seal. The slug suspected that something bad happened to both of her summoners, so she unraveled the Summoning Contract Scroll to check the status of their bond. A bond between a summoner and an animal is created if the former signs their name in blood with the latter's approval. The pigment will remain bright red as long as the bond and both parties are alive. If the summoner dies, then the animal will feel the bond sever and the signature will fade into black to signify the annulment. The animal also has the authority to sever the contract at any point in time for any reason, including abuse and/or misuse of the summon. So although Katsuyu can still feel the bond with Tsunade and Sakura, she wanted to confirm their status herself. She and the other Slugs, who also sensed something was amiss, were shocked to see an additional mark above Sakura's signature. Katsuyu almost teleported herself to the Human Realm to assess the situation, but hesitation took hold of her. She wasn't sure why at the time, but she couldn't bring herself to carry on with her action. She decided to wait until she's been summoned. She deeply hoped that either Tsunade or Sakura, or both, were alright. *** After what felt like an eternity, Sakura's sobs finally stopped. She swipes the remaining tears with the sleeve of her jacket and holds the slug at arm's length to get a better look at her. The white and blue-streaked creature remains mostly the same until Sakura notices black inked letters peaking just underneath Katsuyu's mouth. After throwing a handful of sticks into the fire, the child lifts the slug higher to get a better look at the markings. "So you have the mark too." Sakura casually states then sets the slug down on her lap. "Do you bear the same mark, Milady?" Katsuyu softly asks. The child nods with a thoughtful expression, "Yeah. There's…a lot I need to tell you, including about the mark. First, what's the last thing you remember from the war?" The small slug retells the events, from being summoned to create a Healing Area for the Shinobi Alliance until Tsunade dismissed her back into The Forest. "When I checked the Contract, the mark on my body appeared above your signature. The Slugs and I were deeply worried about you and Lady Tsunade." Her optical and sensory tentacles droop downwards to showcase her saddened mood. The child allows an appreciative smile to appear on her features, "I'm sorry for worrying you and the others." She heaves a heavy sigh as a frown takes its place on her face. "Lady Tsunade was right to send you back to your world. Madara activated the Infinite Dream Technique, which captured everyone in the God Tree's vines. Sasuke used Susano ‘O to shield us from its effect - we were the only humans left on the battlefield aside from Madara and the Reanimated Hokages. "Black Zetsu betrayed Madara and did something to him. I'm not entirely sure but the next thing we knew was that the Rabbit Goddess, Kaguya, emerged from his body. She teleported Team 7 and Obito into a volcanic dimension. Naruto and Sasuke fought against her while Kakashi secured the rest of us from falling into lava. "Kaguya teleported us again to an ice dimension and then into a strange one - it was crazy! There wasn't enough time to fully process the experience." Sakura combs her short hair with her fingers in irritation. "Anyway, she sent Sasuke into a different dimension to separate us. Obito was the only one who could bring him back from that other place, so I helped him while Naruto distracted that crazy bitch!" Sakura clenches her fist at the memory, but then quickly apologizes after realizing she just cursed in front of her summon. "I've heard worse from Lady Tsunade." Katsuyu's little joke roused a giggle from her smaller summoner. "You're right. Master curses worse than a sailor!" Sakura's chest tightens at the prospect of her mentor and surrogate mother being trapped in the Tree's vines, dreaming away while her chakra is absorbed. She shakes her head to rid those depressing thoughts and continues with her explanation. "We managed to get Sasuke back and he rejoined the fight with Naruto. I healed whatever injury Kakashi had when we were reunited. Then we got teleported into a dimension with strong gravity pulling us down to the ground. It was hard to move, let alone breathe - even she was affected by it. "She…aimed her Ash Killing Bone projectiles to hit Naruto and Sasuke; Kakashi and Obito managed to cover them… Obito saved them but he got hit in the process. Naruto tried to save him, but there was no way to reverse the damage, so he…died." Katsuyu observes Sakura's facial expression: the corner of her lips tilt downward; eyes are glossed with somber; her pink eyebrows lowered and pulled closer together. There's spots of smeared dried mud on her cheeks and left temple; some clumps of mud cling onto the ends of her hair and clothing. "After Obito died, things got intense." Sakura's smaller body wilts, "Kaguya transformed into a large, evil rabbit creature. Somehow Kakashi obtained the Mangekyo Sharingan in both of his eyes and managed to summon his version of Susano 'O. He saved me from being grabbed by the rabbit, then he gave Team 7 its last mission." A prideful smile is displayed on her features for a moment while looking at her right knuckles, "It was a coordinated attack - Naruto and Sasuke managed to free the Nine Tailed Beasts from her control. Kakashi distracted Kaguya, creating an opening for the boys to use the Seals on their hands. I punched her head when she tried to escape and I broke off one of her horns." Her lips thin into a line, "Right before we thought it'd be over, Black Zetsu came back and cut off their arms that had the Seals. Then they both escaped through a black portal…" "Milady?" Katsuyu softly encourages when Sakura became silent for a long moment. The child sharply inhales through her nostrils while her eyes become glossy with tears, "Right, sorry." The slug shifts her tail to let it rest atop of her small hand in comfort, earning a grateful nod. "I caught the boys before they fell to the ground and made my way to Kakashi, who was barely awake because of exhaustion and the toll of using the Sharingan. I knew I had to relocate them someplace safer in that dimension. At least I knew the Tailed Beasts would protect us for the time being while I healed them. But then we all got teleported back to the battlefield by the Sage of Six Paths." "Hagoromo Otsutsuki." Green eyes blink at the slug quizzically. "I've met Lord Hagoromo and Lord Hamura centuries ago. I was one of the Slugs who trained them in the arts of healing." "Wow." Sakura exhales out. The slug giggles lightly at her stunned expression, "I was confused when I felt Lord Hagoromo's chakra create the seal on my body." "Right. Well," the child starts out nervously, "The Sage brought us and the Tailed Beasts back to our dimension because he also sensed something went wrong. I told him and the others what happened. Eventually, Kakashi and the boys woke up and we didn't know what else to do. I mean, we were the only ones left!" Anxiety rolls off of Sakura's body in waves as she continues on. "Then the Sage proposed to send someone back into the past to fix everything! Naruto and Sasuke got into an argument and Kakashi didn't stop them, but the Sage chose me instead. Me, of all people!" she rushes out in exasperation. "What were his reasons?" "He said that I have a higher chance to survive the trip in the portal that he and the others opened! Oh my stars, Lady Katsuyu, the pain was unbearable! I had to activate my 100 Healings Seal and…" Sakura's chest tightens as her anxiety levels increase. Her nasal passageway became congested while tears began to fall. Even if she gulps large amounts of air to fill her lungs, it felt like she couldn't breathe. She can feel her heart race and can hear it loudly in her ears. Get a grip, Outer. Inner Sakura chides. "I-I can't -!" Yes, you can. "But-!" Katsuyu sends a soothing wave of chakra from her tail that's atop of her summoner's hand. She knew she needed to comfort her summoner when she sensed the increase in her anxiety levels. Through contact, she can feel the child's heartbeat erratically. "Lady Sakura, can you feel my chakra?" Focus, Outer. Close your eyes and focus on feeling Lady Katsuyu's chakra. Sakura tightly shuts her eyes and tries to pinpoint the sensation of energy her summon is emitting. Breathe in. "Breathe out," Katsuyu instructs when her summoner took a deep breath in. The child releases a shaky breath. "Breathe in." Breathe Out. Sakura repeats the process a few more times with Inner and Katsuyu setting the pace. As she does so, she's beginning to calm down. The sensation of a soothing chakra washing over her becomes clearer. "I can feel Lady Katsuyu's chakra." She states. "What does it feel like?" "Warm." She giggles as she opens her eyes, "Ironic because most slugs are cold-blooded animals." "Yes, but I can regulate my body temperature using chakra if I desire." "That's because you're amazing," Sakura gives a cheeky grin. "Thank you for comforting me, Lady Katsuyu." And thank you, Inner. Of course! Inner gives her the peace sign and a toothy smile. "You're very welcome, Milady. Will you be alright to continue with your explanation?" Concern is still evident in her tone. Sakura nods her head, now feeling sure of herself. "I think the pain I felt was what the Sage meant. If I thought it was unbearable, then I doubt Sasuke and Kakashi would've survived. Naruto might've succeeded because of Kurama's healing abilities. However, I realized earlier today that my body is about the same as a toddler around the age of three or four." "Your physical body changed yet you have more chakra than I remember." Sakura pushes her bangs up to reveal her forehead, "The previous four Hokages bestowed upon me most of their chakra and their knowledge as gifts before I left. Lord Third figured the extra supply and information could come in handy with my long mission. The other three followed suit, resulting in an additional four chakra reserves to the ones I have." She holds out her right wrist to showcase the wooden accessory, "The First Hokage gifted me this bracelet that's imbued with his Sage Energy." She also tells her what her male teammates gave to her. If she concentrates to look deep within, she can visualize how her current chakra reserves are looking. Each of the Hokage reserves is filled with different colored energies to further distinguish themselves. She also notes how each of them is completely separate from her Main Reserve - she decides to only use them in extreme cases. Official Chakra Map Artist: Dreamy (aka Me) Digital Art Software: ibisPaint X Date Created: 2.14.21 "I've no doubt their gifts will help!" Katsuyu affirms, "What of the seal on our bodies then?" "The Sage placed a protective seal on my chest to ensure my memories, mind, body, and our contract remains intact. He said the mark will appear on your body too, but he didn't say about it also showing up on the Contract Scroll." Sakura gently holds the slug in both hands then flips her upside down to take a closer look at the seal on the underside of her body. Official Seal Artist: Dreamy (aka Me) Digital Art Software: ibisPaint X Date Created: 2.11.21 "We bear the same exact mark." She states as she corrects her summon right-side up. "Do the other Slugs also have it?" "No, I'm the only one. I suppose it's because you signed the Contract specifically with me." The child hums, "But the others remember me?" "Yes, our bond is still active. Although, I suspect the seal above your signature may have something to do with the other Slugs retaining their memories of you." "I guess that makes sense." Sakura shrugs her shoulders. "As far as I understand, Lord Hagoromo chose to send you into the past to change the outcome of the Fourth War. Do you know what time period you arrived at?" The child releases a disgruntled groan as her body wilts, "He didn't tell any of us because he feared Kaguya might follow. I understand it was to protect us, but I still wished he gave a clue." "Well, I can tell you that we're in a time when Lady Tsunade already signed her name in the Contract Scroll." Katsuyu placates in hopes to cheer up her young summoner. It seems to have worked because Sakura's gasps with a calculating look in her eyes. "Wait, do you remember how old Master was when she signed it?" A soft hum vibrates the slug's entire body as she reflects on her memories, "It was during the Second War that she developed her Yin Seal. She was older than you when you signed it, but younger than her age when the Third War began." Sakura did the math in her head, remembering her master's true age despite the Transformation Technique makes her appear younger, and her history lessons about the first three wars. "Master had to be in her mid-to-late 20's or early 30's when she signed it." Kakashi also mentioned in passing that he's known her for about two decades, Inner adds. He's 14 years older than us, making him 30 years old by the Fourth War. His gray hair makes him seem much older than that. Sakura snorts un-ladylike. Inner snickers, That and his experience as a shinobi. Sakura purses her lips then voices her thoughts aloud, "Okay, so we're not too far into the past if Master's signature is still in the Contract. Given her true age by the time of the Fourth War…Kakashi is 14 years older than my actual age…He was 12 when he was assigned to the Kannabi Bridge Mission…The Second War ended…The Third War began…" she mumbles to herself for a minute while calculating the numbers and events in her head. "Ah!" She snaps her fingers with a triumphant grin plastered on, "So that means we're either near the end of the Second War or the beginning of the Third War!" Katsuyu tilts her head slightly to the left, puzzled yet amazed at how her summoner came to that speculation Suddenly, a look of dreadful realization replaces her grin, "Wait. That means Master has hemophobia (the fear of blood)." "If she's already lost her fiancé, Dan Kato, which occurred in the Second War." The slug mournfully informs. She clearly remembers how her strong summoner fell into depression when she lost the man she deeply loved. That also means that Master retired from active duty and left the village with Shizune sometime after that. Gambling and drinking her sorrows across the lands. Inner's reminder further dampens Sakura's mood. "Whichever the scenario is, perhaps it's best if you wash away any remnants of blood off of your body before we find her," Katsuyu suggests. The child examines her fingernails in distaste; she agrees with the slug's suggestion. "On the bright side, I can stay with you for as long as you need me." Sakura nuzzles her cheek against the slug's head in gratitude. *** Outside of the Hokage Tower "Stars, I need a drink." Tsunade groans as she exits the Hokage Tower. Their village leader called an emergency meeting that morning to discuss what the Barrier Team detected last night. Presently, their team of Sensory-Types is still searching for the source of the powerful entity. They do, however, suspect the unknown entity is somewhere inside the village. Hunter scouts were given the order to do a perimeter check inside and out of the village just to be safe. There have also been reports from shinobi and civilians about the blackout affecting the entire village, from the slums to the wealthiest districts. Thankfully, there are backup generators littered in certain areas to keep them alighted amidst the darkness. As if the Second War wasn't stressful enough, there could be a threat within the village. "Something on your mind, princess?" She doesn't bother to face the owner of the voice because she already sensed his approach, "Care to share your thoughts?" "Humph! Buy me a drink first." She crosses her arms under her endowed breasts as she directs her gaze to the sky. Heavy, dark gray clouds still cover the blue sky without letting natural sunlight peak through. It's a light shower of rain at the moment, but she -and many others - wonder if the storm will pick up later tonight. It was surprising: gentle rain-showers came yesterday afternoon and quickly became a ferocious storm with a show of thunder and lightning. The damage conceived was a sight to behold when morning came. Trees were bent at an eerie angle; many thinner ones toppled over on homes and/or snagged on cable lines. The streets were flooded with almost three inches of water - the civilians were very unlucky given their lack of ability to rooftop-hop with chakra. The daring could, provided they're careful. "Of course! Shall we go to our usual spot?" the owner, Jiraiya, asks. She directs just enough chakra to the soles of her feet to walk on the watery path to their destination. He follows her lead in silence. They observe the passing people as they continue to their destination. At the very least, no one was severely injured during the storm. A few people came at the break of dawn for treatment - a few broken bones or a nasty open wound - but those were treated quickly. The bar's hostess greeted the duo from her position behind the bar. The legendary pair aren't the only ones who had the idea of drinking at noon because the bar was at about half its full capacity. Jiraiya leads them to a private booth near the back. It's the kind that has sliding doors to separate them from the rest of the noise. A server quickly takes their order and leaves them alone; their sliding doors remain open now with both occupants mulling over what was discussed in the meeting. After the server places their drinks and food on the table, Jiraiya closes the doors and places a paper silencing seal on one of the panels. After he activates it with a small pulse of his chakra, Tsunade speaks first. "What do you think of the situation?" "It's concerning." He doesn't miss a beat, "If the Barrier Team or the Scouts can't locate this "disturbance," we'd best prepare for the worst." "The hospital is already overworked with patients and training people for the new medical program." She gulps her sake in one shot then eats a gyoza. Jiraiya hums as he swirls the sake in his cup, "It's strange, to say the least." He continues upon seeing her arched eyebrow, "The disturbance didn't feel hostile." She scoffs then refills her cup, only to one-shot it the next second. "Did you sense any hostility last night?" He meets her eyes with a silent challenge. "Who's to say the disturbance won't become hostile soon?" she counters with a frown. "You may be right, but I wager it's a good thing." A smug smirk appears on his face at the glint in her eyes. "You're willing to make a bet on whether this "thing" is good or bad?" Why?" He shrugs one shoulder then downs his sake in one gulp, "I just have a gut feeling." Tsunade intertwines her fingers together in front of her lips as she rests her elbows on the table. She knows he's trying to bait her into a gamble, but on what premise? It'd be too easy for her to wager the disturbance as a bad thing. However, it's interesting to hear her former teammate say that this "thing" could be good - for who? She's not sure. Yet. They eat and drink in silence until the food is halfway gone. "…It was ominous." She settles. He nods his head, "That's what everyone else said in the meeting." Before she could say something else, her eyebrows pull together in confusion upon feeling a shift in her bond with her animal summon, Katsuyu of the Slug Contract. It's as if something heavy landed in the pit of her stomach. "What's wrong?" Worry is evident in Jiraiya's tone and expression. She doesn't respond because she doesn't know what is wrong. Instead, she bites the pad of her right thumb, weaving familiar hand signs, and slams her palm flat on the table. Black seals encircle her hand on the surface as smoke arises from the point of contact. She pulls her hand away and a small slug becomes visible through the dissipating smoke. The slug, about three inches high, lies flat on the surface as it wriggles its optical and sensory tentacles to observe their surroundings before focusing on their summoner. "Lady Tsunade, how may I be of service?" Its feminine voice asks. "I was hoping you could explain to me why I felt something strange with our bond." Amber eyes peer down at her summon. "How do you mean?" Jiraiya glances between the two with curiosity. "I felt something shift with our bond. It feels like someone punched me in the chest." "I see." The slug turns its optical tentacles to regard the second human, "Hello to you as well, Lord Jiraiya." "Right back at ya, Lady Katsuyu!" He raises a sake cup with cheer. "Katsuyu," Tsunade's amber eyes narrow in suspicion, "You wouldn’t be hiding something from me, hm?" "Of course not, Milady." Katsuyu lifts her head up, "I have something important both of you must be aware of." Both of them immediately noticed the strange black marking on the underside of the slug's body. "Is that a seal?" Jiraiya leans forward to take a better look at it. He's never seen anything like this in all of his years studying to become a Seal Master. Perhaps he could ask help from his former teacher or from a good acquaintance whose family were legendary masters of sealing. "Yes, it is, Milord." Katsuyu directs her optical tentacles to the paper seal on the door, "Good. You've secured the room." "What's going on, Katsuyu?" Tsunade impatiently snaps. It's not often her familiar stalls in relaying information and she doesn't like how the slug is doing it now. "I can only tell you so much. It's best if you talk to my other summoner." "What?!" Tsunade slams a fist in shock, "I'm the only summoner that signed the contract recently! Bring me the Contract!" Who else signed the Contract? The Slugs are very particular with who they form a bond with. Even she had to prove her worth to them before Katsuyu granted her the right to sign it. So how? When? Who? "Please, Lady Tsunade. I need you to be calm because this is very important. You two will be the first humans to know about this." Both adults stiffen at the heavy implication that Katsuyu is about to share highly important details with them. Tsunade massages her right temple for a second then looks at her summon with renewed calmness. Katsuyu regards her summoner for a second then slams her tail on the table's surface. A standard-sized scroll with a green barrel and red rims appears in a small plume of smoke. "Please look at the Contract, Milady." She nudges the item until it's closer to her summoner's hand. Tsunade unravels it and gasps at the signature in the column beside hers. Sakura Haruno "Haruno? Aren't they civilians?" She asks. "Yes, they are. However, please take another look at her signature." The woman does as instructed and sees the same Seal above the bright red signature. She rests the scroll on the table to allow Jiraiya to peer at it too. His surprise only shows in the action of raising both of his eyebrows to his hairline. "The Seal you see on my body and above Lady Sakura's signature are connected." Katsuyu begins. "She's on a mission that will change everything." A/N:. More Katsuyu! I pre-planned to use Katsuyu as Sakura's companion and as an anchor in some situations.
The main issue I had with this chapter in particular (and in the story in general) is whether or not I wanted Tsunade already have hemophobia or not, which means either have Dan already dead at this point or I'll kill him off at some point. I went with the former because I didn't include him in my Event Timeline. I didn't know how to incorporate him too, so I talked it over with my friend and came to that decision. The part where Tsunade felt a shift in her bond with the slug was a spur in the moment. I initially intended to have Katsuyu teleport herself to Tsunade to set up the next stage, but it felt tacky (?) when I typed it out. Rather anti-climatic, honestly. I also made the Chakra Map to visualize how her reserves are looking from within her. Canon Sakura meditated to increase her main reserve while simultaneously storing some in her 100 Healings Seal. Please let me know how you're liking these chapters! Your feedback will help me improve for the future chapters! A?N: Big shoutout and gratitude to my friend, who reviewed and helped me edit this chapter! Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto. Chapter 2: Sakura awakes from her fitful slumber. Memories paired with the emotions endured were very vivid; she dimly remembers crying through most of the night. She remains lying on the soggy yet warm ground; the fire embers provide little light but the small vent opening allows some natural light to seep through. It’s still raining judging by the soft pelting of water against her dome. After minutes of staring absentmindedly at the ceiling, she slowly sits up with a low groan. Her body is still sore - she remembers the sudden burning sensation when she was in the portal and the impact of landing in her current position. She slowly inhales through her nostrils then exhales through the mouth. She rolls back the long sleeves of the tattered orange jacket so that she can grab and toss a couple of thin sticks to the pit; she lightly blows air at the embers to awaken the fire again. While she waits for the fire to rise, she looks at her hands. Her once long-fingered, calloused, and scared hands are replaced with short chubby fingers, though still calloused, and scarred. Dirt and blood are tucked underneath her nails; her palms have bits of dried mud caked on them. She started clenching and unclenching her hands, repeating the process a couple more times until she’s used to the stubby limbs. Sakura removes and then folds the jacket next to her to further assess her body. Her navy Jounin shirt is still missing the right sleeve, allowing her to see the dirt and acid burn scars still present on her pale yet short arm. The wooden bracelet the First Hokage gave to her is still around her right wrist, soaked in Sage Energy. Her left sleeve has patches of dried mud on it. Next, she extends her legs outwardly in front of her. The navy Jounin pants are too long for her new limbs so she removes them for further assessment. She also unclips her pouch from the waist belt. Her once long and toned legs are replaced with short and skinny limbs - she pinches her upper thighs then the calves to feel some muscle there. Her small feet are bare and dirty with mud and some dried blood darkening her toes. She looks left then right to see her black sandals a foot away from her. She already knows they’re not going to fit. Sakura feels the rest of her body with her hands to note her torso is smaller and shorter. Her chest bindings are loose underneath but leaves them alone for the time being. She can feel some ab muscles but mostly small amounts of chub on her sides. With curious determination, she slowly stands up on her small feet. Given how close to the ground she feels, she surmises she has the body of a child around three or four years of age. She clears her throat and says a few words aloud to hear her voice. Yup, definitely a high-pitch childish voice. So I became a child again...did the Sage intend this? Is that why my body felt like it was scorched by fire from the inside out? Sakura remembers activating her 100 Healings Seal in the middle of the pain. Perhaps that’s what the Sage meant by me surviving the journey. Still, maybe Naruto could’ve survived that because of Kurama’s healing abilities, but Sasuke and Kakashi might’ve suffered worse. The image of her leader's mask-less face pops into her mind, causing her to pout with a puppy-like whine. "I can't believe he was Sukea! That means Naruto and Sasuke also saw his face at the same time! Ugh!" Her lips tingle when she remembers Kakashi’s stunt. She can feel her cheeks blushing hot. “Stupid pervert!” She decides to refocus on the fire and throws more sticks given there’s better lighting. Now that she’s determined her current physical state, she needs to take stock of her inventory. She sits cross-legged on the ground then brings both pouches onto her lap. They’re identical in size and color but the weight of each is different. One is heavier than the other - she recalls Kakashi adding Naruto’s and Sasuke’s pouches inside. She opens the lighter pouch first to see a variety of items tucked in separate compartments. She removes all of the items and spreads them out in front of her on the ground. There are three scrolls for storage: an orange one for personal and hygienic items; a green one for medical and herbal items; and a purple one for poison vials and weapons. She carefully reads through all of them to recount how much of each item is left in their respective scrolls. Despite knowing that her packed clothes won’t fit her current body, she’s grateful to have stocked up on bathing essentials. She desperately needs a hot shower! She takes stock of her additional first-aid kit. Her assumptions of the supply count was correct given how low the contents are, but her mood brightens knowing the green scroll contains extras. A medic should always come prepared, no matter where and when they are! She grabs the small bottle containing the Soldier Pills she made, the small bag containing Food Pills, and the remaining ration packs to stuff them inside the kit. She leaves out one of the rations packs to eat after she completes her task. Unfortunately, her water canteen is empty because she drank it all during the War. Weaponry inventory isn't too bad with 6 smoke bombs, 9 kunai, 13 shuriken, 15 paper bombs, and 23 senbon needles. She has about 25 feet of coiled ninja wire left. The two three-pronged weapons with a paper seal on the hilt are sharp and slightly heavier than normal kunai. There's a faint trace of the Fourth Hokage's chakra flowing within the weapon. Her short chakra sword is still in good condition in its sheath. Lastly, her favorite black leather gloves are still in good condition. Sakura opens the second pouch Kakashi gave to her to see two additional smaller ones stuffed in. She empties the smaller ones and laughs at how different the contents are. Of course, Naruto would carry ramen flavor packs because ramen will always be part of his life! The frog-like wallet he always carried around looks like a saggy lump, but its face has a permanent little smile. She doesn’t check the amount of money that’s inside; instead, she gently places the froggy lump on top of her clothing pile. His arsenal isn't too bad; it added 6 kunai (most have a dull tip with sharp sides), 6 shuriken, and 7 smoke bombs to her stock. She's pleased to see he carried and used some of her special-made Soldier Pills along with her medical kit - the stars know how clumsy that goofball can be, with or without the Tailed Beasts chakra quickly healing him. What's surprising is the pocket-sized book she finds. "'The Tale of the Utterly Gutsy Shinobi'? Huh." There's no summary on the back so she opened it to the first page. It's about a shinobi with the same name as her goofball enduring the hardships of conflict, war, and hatred throughout his travels. A bit of a dull synopsis but maybe the author left a message. She goes to the last page of the book and gasps to see a young version of Jiraiya. Now it makes sense why Naruto would have it. She closes the book and places it underneath the frog-like wallet and continues with the next set. Sasuke's arsenal added 6 smoke bombs, 10 paper bombs, 20 kunai, and 20 shuriken along with the sheathed sword that's lying beside her. She recalls him - before his betrayal- saying that the Uchiha Clan were skilled with multiple types of weaponry; hence why they often carry weapon storage scrolls. He's of no exception as evident by the beige and green scroll inked with seals. She's impressed by the sheer amount of each item listed. Maybe Tenten - a member of Team Gai and a skilled Weapon Mistress - would've been impressed too. Speaking of Tenten, memories of her other friends flash before her eyes. Sai, Captain Yamato, Ino, Hinata, Shikamaru, Lee, Choji, Kiba and Akamaru, Shino, Neji - She sniffs when the image of Neji dying appears. If only she got to him in time… Would saving him make a change in the outcome? She gasps at the sudden thought because she would've tried! She would've tried to save him so that Hinata and Naruto and Hiashi wouldn't have to suffer! What difference does that make if the outcome is still the same? Her eyes widen at the familiar voice in her head. No. You…I thought you… Miss me? Awe~ I miss ya too Outer. Inner…But I thought… Sakura closes her eyes and can see the silhouette of her other self, outlined in white against the black background. She looks exactly like her teenage self instead of her current physical form. She takes a deep breath then exhales after holding it in for 10 seconds. Her emerald-green eyes open to stare at the fire, at which she throws another stick. Why are you back? You're going to need me, Outer. With all of that knowledge gifted to you from the previous Hokages and the extra chakra reserves, you need a way to protect them from enemies. But The Sage of Six Paths placed a seal -! She gasps at the thought. She hastily pulls the hem of the shirt upwards to tuck it under her chin to get a better look at her chest. She's disheartened when she sees her flat chest underneath the loose bindings. Disregarding that issue, she removes them to see the seal the Sage etched into her skin. Official Seal Artist: Dreamy (me) Digital Art Software: ibisPaint X Date: 2.11.21 Sakura hums as she examines the seal as best as she could from her point of view. Her chubby fingers ghost over the Kanji characters that make up the lines of the seal and can feel an eminent warmth. Her index finger traces the centerpiece, feeling the same energy as the lettering. Seems like there's a rhombus theme going on! Inner snickers. Like, c'mon! The five on your forehead and the four on your chest? It's not like I had a say in the design! She argues. She heavily sighs then casts one last glance at the seal before shifting her attention to her body. Because she activated her Seal when she was in the time portal, all of the injuries she sustained were healed. She adjusts the shirt until she's covered. Anyway, why would you return? As I've said, you need me to keep your gifts safeguarded. Think of me as your second line of defense just in case. Inner crosses her arms. And… What? I could help you keep your thoughts between our timeline and this one straight so that you don't become confused. She pauses while Sakura contemplates the idea. Trust me, Outer, it's a lot of information that's too valuable to be known by the wrong people. …Yeah, you're right. But let's talk about that later. Let's finish checking our inventory before we get into that conversation. Maybe we should summon Lady Katsuyu too. She is our companion who knows the situation. Sakura hums in agreement with a pensive expression. Back to her task, she quickly notes that Sasuke also carried several vials. Considering that he trained under Orochimaru, a former student of Hiruzen Sarutobi, one of the Legendary Three, and a traitor of Konoha, she suspects they're vials of poison. She carefully sets them aside with a promise to study their components at a later date. With nothing else to see, she moves onto Kakashi's items in the pouch. As she expected of the infamous Scarecrow, his pack is well prepared. Granted, he used some of his arsenal during the war, but his pouch is still well equipped. His weaponry stock adds 6 chili powder bombs, 8 smoke bombs, 11 paper bombs, 25 kunai, 25 shuriken, 26 feet of coiled ninja wire, and 29 senbon needles. He also included his short sheathed chakra sword. He also carries the medical kit she gave to him before he was deployed, and she's pleased to see the visible signs of it being (marginally) used. Much like what she did previously, she places the bottle of standard Soldier Pills, the bag of Food Pills, and the remaining ration packs into the kit as well. His water canteen has about 1/3 of clean water left, so she sets it beside her canteen. There's an orange scroll, indicating that it contains his personal and hygienic items, and a dark blue one with white rims. She unravels the latter to discover camping gear stored within - a tent, extra sleeping bags, pillows, blankets; kitchenette items like utensils, pots and pans, and some seasonings; oil lamps with extra oil canisters and matches; a flint, and emergency flare sticks. "I could've used these if I knew earlier." She muses with a humored smile. Moving onwards, she places the metal headband with the Kanji characters for "Shinobi Alliance" beside Naruto's on the clothing pile. A shiver runs down her spine after remembering her headband fell into the lava pit when Kaguya teleported Team 7 into the volcanic dimension. The next set of items she finds causes a childish laugh to escape from her. "Of course he would, that pervert!" She's referring to the four very familiar books he always carried around: Icha Icha Paradise, Icha Icha Violence, Icha Icha Innocence, and Icha Icha Tactics. She's surprised he willingly - or stupidly - brought the autographed versions with him to war. She digresses in favor of quickly flipping through the page of the first book when two things fell out of the pages. She frantically grabs them before they either fall to the damp ground or into the fire pit. A breath of relief slips through her lips then curiously looks at the items. Her eyes widen at the sight of two pictures: one of Team Minato and one of Team Kakashi. She remembers seeing these same photos inside Kakashi's apartment in the rare times she went there; both of them were framed and beside his bed. She looks at the second photo with a wistful smile as memories of their naïve Genin days flicker in her mind. "I miss how simple life used to be before everything went downhill." She wistfully says aloud. Her eyes shift to the first photo and lingers upon seeing an adolescent version of the man that became her team instructor and commanding officer. I wonder…would I meet teenage Kakashi during this time? We need to find out how far into the past the Sage sent us first. Inner reminds. You're right. Sakura hums. I wish he could’ve told us what time period he sent us to, but I understand the logic for not doing so. It was to ensure Kaguya wouldn't be able to follow after us. But we still have to be careful. We don't know where the bitch teleported to after slicing off Naruto's and Sasuke's arms. A deep frown settles on her childish features. Do you think she spied on us while hiding nearby? It's possible. Inner runs a hand through her short hair with a sigh, If she did, she'd probably appear somewhere near us assuming she jumped at the same time we did. She probably hid away before you awoke. I doubt she'd leave me alive. She could've killed me in the time portal too. She could've been dropped off at a different time period than us. Sakura tries to rack her brain for different possibilities, but the laws and outcomes of Time-Travel are always a mystery. Most of it are hypotheticals and assumptions in the attempt to understand the concept. She's one of those people who think it's possible, just very challenging to achieve such a feat. Now that she witnessed and experienced going through a time-portal…well, she's delighted to know that it's possible but is afraid of the unknown aftermath. I think the Sage would've sensed his mother if she was spying on us. I mean, he is her son and has about the same prowess as her. He'd warn us if we were endangered. That's very likely. You're right in that we need to be careful from now on. For all we could know, she might be able to Time-Travel as well considering the amount of chakra needed. Both Inner and Outer frown at the possibility, but there's nothing they can do about it other than plan for their next move. Let's think of the bright side of things! If I landed in the time of Kakashi's childhood, then that means I could prevent his tragic life from happening. When Team 7 were Genins, Kakashi took them to Konoha's Cemetery to instill a lesson about their fallen brothers and sisters - how they were killed in action during missions, some of whom risk their lives for others. There's one particular grave that he led them to and told the story of what the befallen did on their mission. She later realizes the befallen he spoke of was The White Fang of Konoha, Sakumo Hatake. His father. That was the most he ever shared about his personal life, even if he didn't directly say the name of the befallen. If her master, Tsunade, hadn't mentioned Kakashi's life, Sakura wouldn't have made the connection. If you somehow managed that, then maybe the outcome of his teammates would have different fates. Assuming you're in the right time period. Sakura glumly nods her head. Well, even if I'm not we can still make significant changes! A new sense of hope adds to her determination of succeeding this long -long- mission. Her stomach loudly grumbles, so she places the emptied bag onto the ground then grabs the ration pack and Kakashi's water canteen. The ration pack is bland and dry, yet it satisfies the hunger for the next few hours. She throws the wrapper into the fire pit along with a few more sticks to keep it burning. After taking a moment to overview her current inventory, she begins packing them away neatly. She combines all of the medical supplies into her green scroll except for her first-aid kit being available for quick access. She seals Sasuke's vials of poison into her purple scroll. She inserts both photos in-between the pages of Icha Icha Paradise then seals all four books, the Alliance metal headband, and Kakashi's short sword into his orange scroll. Next, she seals his orange scroll, Naruto's metal headband, the frog-like wallet, his pocket-sized book, Sasuke's sheathed sword, and her Jounin pants and sandals into her orange storage scroll. Sakura stores all of the color-coded scrolls, the first-aid kit, and both water canteens in her large pouch. She packs 6 chili bombs, 6 smoke bombs, 10 paper bombs, 20 kunai, 20 shuriken, 25 senbon needles, 25 feet of coiled ninja wire, and her black leather gloves into the separate compartments. All of the remaining weapons are packed into the second large pouch. Satisfied, she sets them aside. Now, she focuses on her current state of dress. She rolls up the left sleeve up to her wrist and does the same for the sleeve of Naruto's jacket before putting it on again. Her shirt reaches down to her mid-calf while the jacket nearly engulfs her entire form; the hem reaches to her ankles. She surmises that one of the pouches will act as a temporary belt. Instead of wearing his metal headband, she temporarily places it inside the jacket's pocket. "Okay! Time to summon Lady Katsuyu!" She bits hard on the pad of her right thumb with her canine incisors and performs the necessary hand signs with chakra gathering in her right hand. "Summoning Technique!" She slams her palm on the ground with black seal markings spread out in a circle. A small plume of smoke arises from the point of contact. When she removes her hand and the smoke dissipates, a white slug with three blue streaks that run vertically down the middle and sides of its body from its head to its tail is left in the center of the black circle. The slug, about a foot long, lifts its head upwards with its optical tentacles shifting their focus on its summoner. "Lady Sakura! I'm so relieved to see you're alright!" The slug exclaims with a feminine voice. The lone child smiles in return then wordlessly picks up the slug and firmly embraces her. "Milady?" Katsuyu calls out in concern, especially after feeling her summoner's body shake. She can hear her sniffling; the slug surmises that her summoner is crying so she waits patiently. "It'll be okay, Lady Sakura. I will help you in any way I can." Katsuyu consoles as she rests her head in the crook of her summoner's neck. Sakura chokes on a sob, "Thank you, Lady Katsuyu." A/N: I added Inner Sakura as an afterthought because I actually forgot about her. I pre-planned to use Katsuyu as Sakura's main voice of reason during times of doubt, someone for her to confide to when needed, a consultant. But then I realized there's gonna be times where Katsuyu isn't present in the scenarios, so I added Inner Sakura. Basically, Inner's role is like a record keeper of the timelines, a second line of defense, and to prevent Sakura from having a mental breakdown because of the sheer amount of information and memories she gained. As for Inner's appearance, she looks exactly like Teenage Sakura during the war, only outline in white against the black mindscape. She's going to be more present in the future, so look forward to read more! Weaponry Count:
A/N: Big shoutout and gratitude to my friend who helped me edit this chapter. She really helped me with the grammar, the sentence phrases, and so much more! Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto. Chapter 1:
It’s surprisingly cold in the whirlpool of blue and white energies as Sakura continues to descend. She assumed that it would be warm, but she’s grateful nonetheless for wearing Naruto’s jacket. Sadness takes over her at the thought of the ball of sunshine, then to the conflicted Uchiha, and finally to the lazy, perverted teacher. Embarrassment rises next when she remembers the feeling of Kakashi’s lips pressed against hers. His naked lips stole her first kiss for star’s sake! She shakes her head from side-to-side in an attempt to refocus. It wasn’t very effective because the memory of his bare face flashes before her eyes. “Stupid, perverted Kakashi!” she whines aloud, feeling her cheeks heating up. At least that helps with feeling cold. She tentatively wets her lips with her tongue, tasting the slight iron from blood - likely her own - and somehow a subtle nicotine flavor. She wasn’t aware that Kakashi smoked at all! She surmised given the stress of the events leading to and during the War may warrant the craving. She guessed he picked up the habit around the time Asuma Sarutobi died. Her thoughts were interrupted when a sudden, hot intense pain engulfs her entire body inwards and outwards. A raspy scream escapes her lips and her eyes shut tight. It’s as if her skin is melting off; every muscle sharply contracts; her bones feel like they’re breaking and mending themselves without her chakra numbing the pain. Her head feels like someone took a heavy boulder and repeatedly hammered her temples and forehead. Is this what the Sage meant?! Another scream erupts yet she can barely hear it from the ringing in her ears. She needs to focus on activating her 100 Healings Seal, but it’s proven difficult because of the intense pain. Come on! She clenches her jaw, grinds her teeth in an attempt to endure the pain and focus. A sharp intake of breath through her nostrils aids her mind in grasping the stored chakra in her original Seal. She forces her hands to unfurl from a tight fist to form half of the Rat Sign. “Release!” She cries out. She faintly feels her Seal expand across her forehead, down to her neck then reaching to her fingers and toes. The feeling of the stored chakra wash over her body, raising a cool sensation to calm the heat. The energy significantly dulls the pain to the point she can relax her tensed body. Despite her eyes still being closed, she can see a light source shine brightly. Is this the exit of the portal? She kept her eyes closed in fear of becoming blind and forced herself to be patient. ************************** The source of the bright light patiently waits as Sakura’s body floats closer and closer. When she finally passes through, the light shines brighter with a pulse sounding like a heartbeat. ************************************************************************************************** In the Fire Country Rain pours heavily within parts of the Fire Country, including The Hidden Village in the Leaves, Konohagakure (Konoha, for short). Winds blew so strongly that trees bend and angle raindrops in the same direction. Thunderclaps with a show of lightning lighting up the dark sky. Sometimes, lightning will strike down to the earth, igniting a tall tree in flames with spraying splinters or create a burned crater in a patch of grass. Wild animals scampered to find shelter in caves or make burros in the ground. Canals are overflowed with rushing water, mud, and debris. Most people stayed indoors to avoid the cold and rain, but some people either have to endure the harsh weather or find a make-shift shelter. Konoha Such is the same within Konoha. Many shops and businesses decided to close down for the day because of the harsh weather except for a few grocery outlets and restaurants. Facilities like the Hokage Tower, the General Hospital and other clinics, the Shinobi Academy, the Jounin Headquarters, the ANBU Headquarters, Torture and Intelligence Division (T&I), the Barrier Division, and the Uchiha Police Station remain open in case of emergencies. Most, if not all, of the employees are a shinobi of different ranks with different calibers. Hiruzen Sarutobi, the Third Hokage, sits in his office at the Hokage Tower currently reading one of the many mission reports he received. The report detailed the events of a mission in a time of war - the Second Shinobi War between Konohagakure, Sunagakure (Suna), Amegakure (Ame), and Iwagakure (Iwa) for economic disparity and resources. He deeply sighs when the report states that half of the Ame battalion stationed themselves in a civilian village, who has no take on the war, near the Fire Country’s southwestern border. Konoha forces didn’t move to eradicate them yet because they don’t want or need unnecessary civilian bloodshed. They will wait until Ame enters their land to strike. However, Hiruzen pauses in his mullings when an ominous feeling washes over him. Expanding his chakra to detect if the source is nearby, he’s puzzled when no such thing is found. Not yet, at least. He scoots his chair back to stand in front of the middle window that’s behind his desk. The heavy rain reminded him of the Ame forces from the report, but that’s not the source of this unsettling feeling. Suddenly, a thick lightning bolt strikes in the direction of the famed Hashirama Forest, created and named in honor of the First Hokage, followed by a deafening roar of thunder that shakes the earth and, subsequently, the buildings. The windows rattled while some of the items on his desk and bookshelves toppled over or fell to the floor. The ceiling lights blew out, encasing his office - he suspects the whole Tower and other buildings - in darkness. His eyes narrow apprehensively. That ominous sense increased tenfold as a warning that something or someone is coming. General Hospital The hospital is quiet save for the sounds of chatter amongst staff members, patients, and machinery to monitor heartbeat and oxygen levels. In one of the offices dedicated to the Head Director sits two people engaging in a conversation. “Phew, this weather is crazy!” exclaimed Jiraiya, former student of Hiruzen Sarutobi, one of the Legendary Three, and Toad Sage. “How about we go home and enjoy a nice fireplace to warm us up?” “Whose place did you have in mind, pervert?” Tsunade, former student of Hiruzen Sarutobi, one of the Legendary Three, and the world’s best Medical Ninja, snorts with a flat tone. “I’d suggest my place, but your home is quite lovely too.” A suggestive smile accompanied with a wiggle of white eyebrows is directed to her. “Go die in a ditch.” Tsunade dismisses him while her eyes didn’t pause in reading one of her patient’s files. “If you’re not here to help with healing or for a checkup on injuries, get the hell out of here.” Jiraiya places his hands atop of each other on his chest with a pained look, “Oh, but I do have a wound, my slug mistress. I have a wounded heart that only the best medical ninja can heal.” He sharply tilts his head to the right to avoid being hit by Tsunade’s weapon of choice, a heavy stone paperweight. It lodges itself in the wall behind the man. “You know I was just teasing you, Tsuna.” He pacifies with his palms up. “I know you meant it. Stupid perverted frog.” She grumbles loud enough for him to hear. Tsunade massages her left temple with her forefingers to relieve the headache from dealing with the perverted man and hospital duties. Not to mention the medical program that the Council recently approved despite not having the ideal time allowance to properly train them. At the very least she’s grateful for the program to be up and running. The difficult part was finding ideal or potential candidates for the program while the challenging part was training them enough to patch up a solder or two, chakra-based methods or traditional medicine wise. The medic reaches for the now cooled tea resting on her desk - a sudden crack appears from the base of the cup to stretch upwards branching into two at the rim. She gasps in bewilderment. It’s a tell-tale sign of a bad omen and she’s not one to ignore such a thing for a stupid superstition. Amber eyes meet dark brown ones, both conveying a grim understanding. A particularly bright, white light flashes through the visible windows that temporarily blinded their visions; an explosive roar of thunder follows two seconds afterward. The roar was powerful enough to tremble the earth and topple stationed items over. The fluorescent lights blew out in her office; both adults suspect that the office and parts of the district are experiencing a blackout. “Hmm,” Jiraiya hums as he walks to one of the three windows in her office, “Want to make a bet that the lightning show had something to do with Hatake?” She scowls at him at the weak attempt to make a bet, “We both know that it wasn’t him.” He shrugs both of his shoulders without facing her, “You think it had something to with that powerful sense moments before we got a show?” “Yes.” Tsunade adjusted some of the items on her desk, including neatly stacking paperwork before she quickly stands up. “I need to check on the hospital. Make yourself useful instead of lounging in my office!” She leaves before he could respond. A heavy sigh escapes his lips, casts one last glance through the window then leaves. Barrier Team Within the Barrier Team’s lower level sits three people in a triangular position with a large sphere of water floating above them. All three wear robes similar to the Shinto priests but their hats bear the Leaf Symbol in the center, close to the base. One person sits in the middle of four pillars while the remaining two people sit at the ends of the pillars. On the upper level of the chamber is a lounging area complete with couches, dining tables, a kitchenette, and a large restroom. Five people are wearing the standard Jounin uniform with their upper right arms bearing the symbol of the Barrier Team; three of them are sitting at the dining table playing cards while the remaining two are busy in the kitchen. The three people sitting around the water sphere have their eyes closed for better concentration. They’re highly skilled Sensory-Types that can sense many chakra signatures whether it belongs to a civilian, a shinobi, or an animal. The sphere acts as a smaller version of the barrier surrounding the village, including underground and high in the sky. The primary purpose of the barrier and the team is to detect intruders and intercept them if necessary. The secondary purpose is to detect any incoming attacks like projectiles from enemy fire or meteorite-like projectiles falling from the sky. The latter being a rare occurrence but known enough to have happened previously. A minor additional function is to detect unusual or abnormalities in the weather such as the terrible thunderstorm and lightning show going on since the previous day. Konoha weather reporters and scientists were puzzled by the sudden arrival of such conditions when it was supposed to be sunny despite the cold winter months. Many brushed it off as a claim that the weather was always being unpredictable no matter how many calculations were made. Others were indifferent to the change. However, there are a few that believed these dark conditions are signs of an omen - it's yet to be decided if it’ll be good or bad. The three Sensors share the same belief that an omen is approaching fast. They can feel it with every lightning crackle in the air and roar of thunder. Suddenly! Their eyes snap open to look at the water sphere - the entire thing quivers in a multitude of ripples in all directions. “Pinpoint the exact location of the anomaly!” The person sitting in the middle orders as he raises his arms upwards, his palms facing the sphere’s surface. The other two follow his example, then all three direct some of their chakra into the sphere to pinpoint the source of that sudden yet powerful feeling. After exactly one minute of doing this, the one positioned to the left of the middle spoke, “What is with this strange power?” The person positioned on the opposite side shook her head, “It’s strange. It doesn’t feel hostile.” “It’s too early to disregard that.” the one in the middle states, “It may not feel hostile now, but its power is too strong.” “Shall we dispatch the Team?” the person on the right asks. “Have we located the source?” the person in the middle counters. A moment of silence and concentration passes before the one on the left sighs, “No. Whatever possesses this power is spread throughout the village.” “We must keep trying.” the one in the middle states. “Guard!” One of the five from the upper level jumps down swiftly. He lands in a kneel and one arm resting on top of his thigh. “Check the status of the village. Send another to inform the Hokage that something powerful entered the village.” The kneeling guard looks up in shock, “We should dispatch the Team to apprehend the source!” “We can’t pinpoint its exact location yet. Tell Lord Hokage that we’ll continue investigating the cause of such powerful energy.” “Right away!” the guard bows his head before using a teleportation trick to carry out their tasks. Hashirama Forest A large streak of lightning strikes an opening in the Hashirama Forest, created and named after the First Hokage. If there were eyewitnesses anywhere near the vicinity of the strike, they’d be blind by the white light and deaf from the roar of thunder. Although the lightning strike was swift, it did leave something behind in its wake. At the impact site is a jagged patch of burned grass with a body lying in the very center of it. The owner of the body is lying face down, with short pink hair flared out, a tattered orange jacket covering its upper half with black pants and sandals at the bottom; a black sheathed sword lying on the left side and a large pouch lying on the right side of the body. The body, clothes, and items are immediately drenched because of the pouring rain. A small whimper erupts from the body. A twitch on the left hand follows; soon that hand curls its short chubby fingers around the sheathed sword. Eyes hidden underneath the lids shift side-to-side for a moment then slowly open to reveal emerald green eyes. They blink until their vision is cleared. A low groan emits from its throat as they force their heavy and sore body to slowly sit upright. Emerald green eyes shut tight again because of the shrill ringing in both ears. The owner of the body deeply inhales through chapped lips, holds their breath for five seconds, then releases a shaky exhale. The ringing begins to fade so the owner continues the same breathing exercise until the sound stops. Soon the ringing sound is replaced by the sound of wind howling and rain droplets pelting against the earth. The owner of those emerald green eyes open them to see darkness, but a quick flash of light followed by a thunderclap allows a picture to be seen. The owner of the body and the emerald green eyes finds themselves surrounded by tall trees. “Where…?” a second later, a gasp is heard. “Wait! Wha-!?” emerald eyes widen as they travel downwards yet all they see is darkness. The chubby fingers that curled around the sword numbly lets go to tentatively touch the owner’s face. Fingertips feel cold and wet cheeks. The other hand that the owner realized was holding onto the large pouch joins its other half to further inspect their face, then forehead, the back of the head, and down the torso. “I...I’m okay?” The owner tilts their head to the right side slightly, “Is that my voice?” It could be the loudness of the rain pelting on the trees and ground or it could be the howling wind or it could be their paranoia, but why does their voice sound high-pitched than normal? “Hello?” the owner calls out experimentally to not only hear their voice again but also hope that someone was listening nearby. Why? They’re not sure exactly. The owner calls out again, louder this time, and confirms that their voice sounds higher than their normal tone. It still sounds feminine, a girlish childish sound though not one they’ve heard in a long time. “Achoo!” the owner - a girl - sneezes followed by violent shivers all over her body. She sniffed a couple of times. Remembering the jacket on her person, numb chubby fingers hastily wrap the flaps of the tattered fabric more securely around her body. “Hello! Is anyone there?” She waits with emerald green eyes moving across the dark plain. When nothing happened, she expanded thin chakra threads around them to sense anyone near her - unfortunately, all she felt were animals of varying species (birds, fauna, rabbits, squirrels). Although she senses human chakra signatures, they’re too far away from her current position. “Achoo!” She sniffs again as a whimper escapes her lips. “I need shelter.” During the scan with the chakra threads, she mentally mapped her surroundings: she’s sitting in a small forest clearing with trees surrounding her for acres. There are shrubs and bushes and varying rocks scattered around; there is a large lake southwest of her position. A weary sigh passes through her lips. She checks on the status of her current chakra reserves, not including the additional ones, to find she has just enough to spare. “Guess I have no choice.” Ensuring once more she’s alone, she numbly weaves hand signs with chakra channeling through each step until she stops on the Snake Sign. “Wood Release: Wood Locking Dome!” the chakra from her hands travel to the ground in a circle around her; wooden pillars erupt in symmetric form that join together to create a dome. She no longer feels the cold rain and the wind biting through her clothes when the dome is complete except for a thin, rectangular opening on the side near the top. She needs fresh air to breathe in lest she suffers from oxygen deprivation. She also needed the opening to vent out the smoke from the campfire she’s about to make. Still holding the Snake hand sign, she channels chakra again to uproot four short logs of wood with many branches attached from the ground. She releases the sign and stops the chakra flow to gather her materials. First, she breaks off all of the branches to put them into a separate pile beside her. Second, she stacks the four logs in a pile a few feet away from her position. Third, she weaves another set of three hand seals, ending with the Snake sign again, before placing her palms flat on the ground in front of her. “Earth Release: Rock Trail!” a small trail of rocks emerges from the ground surrounding the logs in a raised circular ring. She grabs one of the sticks she broke off earlier and inserts one end of it into the ground. She performed another set of three hand seals, ending with the Tiger Sign. “Fire Release: Flame Stream.” Taking a deep breath as she curls her right forefingers inches away from her mouth, chakra coats her throat, tongue, teeth, and gums in a protective layer in time for a small stream of red-orange flames to be exhaled. The end of the stream balloons into a small ball that makes contact with the upright end of the stick. When she runs out of breath, the stream ceases and she’s left with a little torch. She quickly gathers some thinner sticks from her pile to light one end of them with the fire. Once they’re all lighted, she gathers the entire bundle to place it underneath the log pile through a small opening. It took a few seconds before the small fire latches itself onto one of the logs. Satisfied with the results, she releases the bundle and watches the fire grow. She’s provided light to her dome while providing much-needed warmth. As she stares into the fire, her mind begins to process her situation. Images flash before her eyes of a boy with blonde hair, blue eyes, and whiskered cheeks; a boy with black hair, red and purple eyes, and a frown; and a man with white - no, gray hair, she self-corrects - dark gray eyes, and a mask. “Naruto. Sasuke. Kakashi.” her changed voice calls out the names, each following their respective images. Then a floodgate of more images rapidly flash causing a major headache and heartache. Emerald green eyes become clouded with fresh tears, spilling over her cheeks. Hiccups and whimpers tear from her throat with each image getting more painful than the last. “I…” She takes a sharp intake of breath through both her nostrils and mouth. “I...was...sent...to the...past...by...the...Sage…” she chokes out through a series of hiccups. “I’m...on a...mission…” Progress. She continues onwards. “My name...Sakura...Haruno…” she sniffs despite her nostrils becoming congested. “...I’m sixteen years old...a Chunin of...of…” “Never forget that you’re a kunoichi of Konoha.” The boy with sunny blonde hair, oceanic blue eyes, and fox whiskers appears in her mind with a wide smile. Chapped lips curl into a smile as more tears fall. “That’s right.” She releases a light, airy giggle. She traces a finger on the symbol that’s engraved in the metal headband she was gifted. “My name is Sakura Haruno, a Chunin-ranked kunoichi of Konoha. I’m sixteen years old, on a mission to change the past to save the future.” A/N: Takes place right after Sakura jumped through the portal. Also shout out and huge thanks to my friend for reviewing and editing.! Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto. Prologue Omake:
The portal closes with a loud boom after Sakura falls through it. Now it’s only the three boys of Team 7, the spirit of The Sage of Six Paths, the four reanimated Hokages, the Tailed Beasts, and the spirits of the previous Kages. “Now what happens?” Naruto asks the Sage. The ground suddenly quakes violently, causing large cracks to appear and jagged boulders to erupt upwards. The three men nearly fall had they not concentrated some chakra to their feet for stability. The Tailed Beasts braces themselves to prevent from falling either to the ground or to each other. "What the hell happened?!" The blonde shouts just as the quaking stops. Kakashi scans the land to assess the damage and looks quizzically when white particles emit from their surroundings including from the God Tree. Curiously, he looked up at the sky to see a large black ball expand. He looks to the Sage for answers. "It appears that the changes have begun." His words gained their attention, "Soon, the events of this timeline will disappear permanently." "What happens to us then?" Sasuke asks. "You and the people trapped in the God Tree will disappear as well. Do not fret, you may still live in the time Sakura Haruno is." "That's not reassuring! What do you mean by that?" Naruto groans in frustration. "If Sakura Haruno made the necessary changes, then you and the people you know may exist albeit different from the current version." Naruto clutches the side of his head and whines, "I don't get it. Ugh, I'm too tired." Minato stands to his side with a sympathetic smile. "I assume the Tailed Beasts will disappear too?" Kakashi asks. "Don't worry about us!" The Eight-Tailed Beast, Gyuki, exclaims. "We'll still be around so we'll meet again for sure. Just, you know, under different circumstances. Maybe." "Ah! I'm going to miss you Kurama!" the blonde whiskered boy exclaims with teary eyes. The Nine-Tailed Beast scoffs distastefully, "Stupid brat." A humored smile appears on the Sage's face at the exchange. His double Rinnegan eyes note that the blackness reached the ledge of the crater where they're currently located. "There is not much time left. I will release the souls of the Kages and those in the Reanimated Technique." "I hope that your forbidden technique won't be used again, brother." Hashirama looks at his young brother, who sniffs to the side. "It's caused much conflict." "Who knows?" Tobirama comments nonchalantly. Inwardly, he has a suspicion that his most forbidden technique may be used again at some point. Well, not much he can do now so he'll let things go as they are. The Sage formed the Rat Seal and soon white beams of light engulf all of the spirits and reanimated beings. Naruto looks at his father when the light engulfs him. His blue eyes tear up and his lips quiver. "I guess this is goodbye...dad." A hopeful smile appears on the man's face, "For now, but I have a feeling that we'll be together again. The three of us as a family." Naruto sniffs, uses his arm to wipe the tears that spilled. "I can't wait!" Minato's physical form loses its color and crumbles into a pile of paper, yet his soul floats in his place, "Until next time, Naruto." The younger man beams a smile, "See you, dad." Minato briefly made eye contact with Kakashi then nodded at him. The latter returns the gesture with a smile very visible because of his exposed face. Soon, all the souls inside the light beams fades away into nothing. Now it was only the Tailed Beasts, the three members of Team 7, and the spirit of the Sage. The blackness already consumed the ground underneath the Beasts, who are now dissolving into white light particles, and continue to near them. "I guess this is it then." Naruto says with somber . "The end of this timeline," Kakashi adds. The blonde teammate looks at Sasuke, who bears a melancholic expression, then looks at Kakashi, who is looking up at the never ending blackness. He shifts his blue eyes downwards just as the blackness finally consumes the ground. Their bodies start to dissolve into white particles too. "I love you guys...Sasuke...Kakashi...Sakura." Even though the other two didn't say anything, their silence echoed the same sentiment. The Sage watches as the men dissolve completely in white particles until he's the only thing inside the blackness. He smiles one last time and fades away into nothingness. Summary: They were supposed to win the war. Naruto and Sasuke were supposed to seal the Rabbit Goddess, Kaguya. They were supposed to release everyone from the Infinite Dream Technique. But Black Zetsu interfered before she could be sealed. Bloodied, exhausted, injured, and out of options, the Sage of Six Paths offered a once-in-a-lifetime offer: one member of Team 7 must time travel to prevent or change the outcome of the 4th War. The Sage chose Sakura to be the one. She accepted. Author's Note (A/N): I've been sitting on this Kakashi Hatake x Sakura Haruno (Naruto) fanfic idea since August of 2020. I wrote out an Event Timeline for this story to help me outline key highlights that will occur as the main characters grow from childhood to adulthood. A lot of changes will be made from my Timeline to the drafts as needed. 3/4/21: Shout out and huge thanks for my friend who reviewed this! She helped me catch most of the mistakes I had in the original post. Please let me know what you all think! Feed back is strongly encouraged! Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto. Prologue: The Sage of Six Paths sensed something was wrong. He feared for the worst and instructed the Reanimated and the Souls of all of the previous Kages to summon Team 7 back to their dimension. What was brought back shocked all witnesses. Large plumes of smoke appear on the outer rim of the summoning circle to reveal all nine of the Tailed Beasts, free from their hosts. One large cloud of smoke appears in the center of the summoning circle then vanishes to reveal Sakura standing up carrying her teammates: Kakashi is on her back causing her to hunch over slightly; Naruto is in the crook of her right arm; and Sasuke is in the crook of her left arm. All can see how battle-worn they are and can hear her heavy panting. “What? We’re...we’re back?” Sakura blinks then quickly scans her surroundings. Sure enough, it’s the same familiar battleground before Kaguya teleported Team 7 and Obito through multiple dimensions. She exhales loudly as she slowly lowers herself into a kneeling position then gently puts down Naruto and Sasuke on the ground; she carefully eases Kakashi onto the ground behind her. “Sakura Haruno,” She looks over her shoulder to meet an older man with the same features as Kaguya. She sprung up into a battle stance with a kunai in hand. The man raises one hand to appease her, “Fear not. I am not with my mother, Kaguya Otsutsuki.” “Then who the hell are you?” she sneers. “I am Hagoromo Otsutsuki, known as the Sage of Six Paths.” He sees a flash of recognition in her eyes as she slowly lowers her weapon but her stance is still rigid. “You’re the one who gave Naruto and Sasuke the sealing marks.” She states rather than questions. The blonde-haired teammate briefly mentioned he and the black-haired teammate received “gifts” of sorts from the Sage. Now she’s face-to-face with the legendary man. “Yes. It is the same marks my brother, Homura, and I used to seal our mother initially.” His Rinnegan eyes grimly look over to her teammates on the ground. “I sensed something was wrong and brought the souls of all of the previous Kages to summon everyone back to this realm.” He looks into her eyes, “What happened?” Sakura catches movement to see Minato, the 4th Hokage and Naruto’s father, run up to them with deep concern apparent on his face. “Naruto...is he…?” Her green eyes sweep across the other 3 reanimated Hokages then to the ground with a saddened look. “We almost had her.” Then she looks up angered, to stare into Hagoromo’s eyes. “It was the last mission. Obito...he died after saving Naruto from Kaguya’s Ash Killing Bones. Somehow, Kakashi got the Mangekyo Sharingan in both of his eyes to summon a complete Susano ‘O. He attacked Kaguya, then Naruto used a combined Rasengan with the other Tailed Beasts Chakra. “Naruto and Sasuke were just about to seal her and I punched a horn off of her head when she was about to escape. We all thought we’d finish her off but…” She grits her teeth and clenches her fist tighter, “The damn Black Zetsu interfered. I didn’t see it happen but all I saw was Naruto and Sasuke’s arms get cut off and then the damn bitch fled through a portal!” Hot tears stream down her face, “The bitch fled and we have no idea where she is now! Kakashi is unconscious! Both Naruto and Sasuke passed out from blood loss and exhaustion!” She roughly ran a sweaty and bloodied hand through her hair in frustration. “We failed! We lost the damn bloody war!” Those not under the Infinite Dream Technique have a somber sympathetic expression. This war has taken a greater toll on Team 7 more than anyone else involved. Their chance of success was lost. Almost. The First Hokage approaches the crying woman and places a comforting hand on her shoulder. Wet green eyes meet reanimated yet strangely warm brown eyes. “We haven’t lost hope yet. There must be something we can do before Kaguya returns.” She wanted to scream at him that it’s hopeless. What can they do at this point when everyone else is either dead or trapped in the dream world. For one reason or another, she did neither. She closes her eyes while taking a deep breath holding it for a couple of seconds before shakily exhaling and opening her eyes. “Thank you, Lord First.” The man nods and squeezes her shoulder before releasing her. A low groan catches their attention. They look to the three men lying on the ground and see that Kakashi is moving to sit up. Sakura immediately kneels beside him and checks for any more injuries she may have missed. “Did we win?” He asks, looking at her face. Pale skin marred with dirt, dried sweat, shallow cuts, and blood. Once bright eyes are now tired..and sad. “Sakura?” She presses her lips together in a thin line as she shakes her head from side-to-side. “She got away.” she pauses then sniffs, “Naruto and Sasuke lost their arms that had the seals because of Black Zetsu.” He’s beyond shock. The last thing he remembered seeing was his three former students cornering Kaguya before blacking out from exhaustion. When he looks down, he finally notices the two unconscious boys. He can see the small rise and fall of their chests so at least they’re alive. “Kakashi.” He looks up to see the reanimated Fourth Hokage stand beside his sleeping son. “Minato...I’m sorry.” For what? For failing his son, Naruto, as a child, Genin, and now when they were supposed to have won the war? For what happened in the past with Team Minato? “I’m just glad you four are back.” Kakashi nods in agreement though the outcome could have been more ideal. He looks at their surroundings and sees the freed Nine Tailed Beasts somber and uncertain now. Not to mention the souls of the deceased Kages positioned around the outer ring of the summoning circle and finally, the floating elder. He’s wary of the man given his similarity to the goddess they’ve been fighting for who knows how long. “So what do we do now?” He asks a dreaded question. “There are only four of us alive in the entire world I guess.” “You seem to be forgetting us, human.” The Five-Tailed Beast, Kokuo, states. “Right. Sorry.” He’s not. “Four humans, nine freed tailed beasts, four reanimated Hokages, and about twenty spirits. Am I missing someone?” “Kakashi…” Sakura calls out with worry. He briefly glances at her before closing his eyes and sighs. “Sorry.” “It’s okay. I get it. Nearly had a breakdown myself.” she mumbled the last part to herself but he heard it. “But you’re right to ask: What is there we can do now? It’s only a matter of time before she comes back.” The Third Hokage, Hiruzen, steps forward closer to them, “We’ve tried to free some of the others trapped in those cocoons, but the shells would only regenerate as if nothing happened.” “So we’re alone then…” she sighs out then looks at her boys. She stopped the bleeding and healed whatever other damages they endured but they’re too exhausted. She looks at Kakashi, who’s looking at the ground in a daze. He’s exhausted as well as mourning Obito’s real death this time. She checked his chakra levels and they’re dangerously low; the same can be said for her main reserve so she had to rely on the 100 Healing Seal. “We can devise a plan for our next attack in the time that we have now,” The Second Hokage, Tobirama Senju, says, gaining attention from everyone. “The Reanimation Technique will be in effect for as long we allow ourselves to stay.” His reanimated red eyes look towards Minato’s armless form. “Even if with the Reanimation, you could still lose the ability to regenerate if you’re hit with one of Kaguya’s truth-seeking orbs.” Kakashi tiredly reminds them, “it’s over if any of us gets hit with the Ash Killing Bones. Plus we only have one medic.” he looks at Sakura. “She can’t heal us continuously. Kaguya will likely take you out first.” “No, she won’t.” A raspy voice states. “Naruto!” Sakura crawls to his right side then checks the condition of his residual limb. “We can still beat Kaguya.” He coughs a little then gets to sit up with Sakura’s assistance. “I’ll kill her before she kills you.” “Bold words coming from you.” Sakura gives a tiny smile while cupping his cheek. His blue eyes still manage to hold determination despite being exhausted and drained. “Damn straight.” He chuckles before coughing a bit. She pats his back gently, wishing she had water but she ran out hours ago. He smiles at her before looking at the Sage, “Hey Gramps, still got any tricks up your sleeves?” Minato balks at his son’s rude behavior. “Manners Naruto.” Though he can’t help but smile when his son, his proud son, beams him a cheeky smile. “There is a way to undo this mess.” The Sage’s words catch everyone’s interest. “Then tell us! How can we set things right?” Naruto demands. “It is a risky and long method but if done correctly, then there will be different results.” He eyes Team 7, “It involves one person time-traveling into the past and changing history as you know it.” “Is that even possible?” Tobirama quickly asks. The concept of time-traveling is a floating hypothetical he’s heard during his lifetime and thought it could be possible if given the right circumstances to allow it to happen. He created the Flying Thunder God Technique that the user manipulates space to cross distances in a short amount of time. “Yes, though it requires much more chakra that an ordinary person does not possess. I will need all of the Kages and the Tailed Beasts to help make certain changes and open a portal to allow someone to enter.” “One person? Who…?” Minato asks, looking at the four living humans left. “I’ll go.” Everyone looks to Sasuke, who is sitting up. “I’ll go back to the past.” “No way! You’d screw up the whole world!” Naruto shouts, leaning over. He would’ve fell on his face had Sakura not been there to hold him back. “I should go! I can save my parents before they die!” Minato winces in guilt. “It is admirable that the two of you volunteer but unfortunately, neither of you are fit for this particular mission.” The Sage admits. “What? What do you mean we’re not fit?!” Naruto demands. “Calm down! You’ll reopen your wounds.” Sakura placates by placing a hand against his chest. “But…!” He trails off upon seeing her determined face. He pouts, “Fine.” She couldn’t help but smile at his childish behavior - it’s refreshing. She ruffles his blonde spikes, earning a smile from him. “If not me or the Dope, then send Kakashi,” Sasuke calls out. “He’s fit enough to not screw it up.” He ignores, or is oblivious of, the frowns he received from the witnesses. Sakura doesn’t even turn to look at him when he says that. It’s as if he doesn’t consider her at all. “As I am aware of Kakashi Hatake’s capabilities, I cannot send him back to the past.” The Sage looks at Sakura, who’s watching in bewilderment. “I am sending Sakura Haruno to complete this mission.” “But…!? Wait, why?” Naruto quickly turns to his female teammate, “Not that you’re not fit or anything - you’ve saved us multiple times and all and -” “Why are you sending her? Sasuke interjects. “She has the capabilities to complete the mission. Out of you three men, she has the highest chances of surviving the journey from the portal because she is a healer.” His Rinnegan eyes focus more on the girl, “You are not from a prestigious clan nor of memorable skills or blood limits. You are a civilian with parents frequently traveling.” “How did - ?” “A civilian person without strong clan ties will be easier to send. The Uchiha's, the Uzumaki’s, and the Hatake’s will grow suspicious if I send any of one of them. They are less likely to survive the journey through the portal as well.” “What about the Tailed Beasts?” she asks, gesturing her arms around them in the Beast’s directions. “We’d get noticed immediately upon arrival. We can’t risk getting caught before we take action.” The Two-Tailed Beast, Matabi, purrs out. “Furthermore, there comes a heavy price you as the traveler must be aware of. Two of the same person cannot co-exist in one timeline for it will create a paradox that will endanger everything. For me to send the current you back to a time long before your birth, I must erase your existence in this timeline.” Chapped lips part in disbelief. Erase my existence? “Wait, I’m sorry, but how can I even exist if you erase my being in this timeline? How far back are you sending me?” This is insane! Time-Travel is a topic with too many clauses in the logic behind it. Not to mention the consequences if she’ll make any changes - hell, her mere existence in the past will cause a ripple effect. “I cannot tell you the date I will send you back in case my mother follows you. I will place a seal onto you to protect your body, mind, memories, and your summon contract with Lady Katsuyu. As I have stated, I will need help to make certain changes in the past to prevent as many paradoxes as possible. Erasing your existence from the moment you were born to now must be one of those changes. Doing so will grant you free reign to move as you see fit.” Well, shit. Sakura thinks about the opportunity if she takes this. She can stop the war from happening, or at the very least change the outcome of the war. She can stop the Pain’s Invasion in Konoha. She could stop Sasuke from leaving the village. She might stop the Uchiha Massacre from happening. She could give her teammates, including Kakashi, the family deserve. However, all of that depends on how far back she’ll be sent to the past. Kakashi observes Sakura mulling over the opportunity while Naruto and Sasuke argue about the mission. He’d rather go to correct the wrongs he’s made and prevent the losses he’s endured. However, the Sage’s words repeat in his head. If the journey through the portal causes damage to their bodies, Sakura does have the highest chance of surviving because she can heal herself with chakra or traditional methods. With her civilian background, she can blend in with the crowd without clans noticing her. He muses that people will still notice her pink hair no matter what. She’s an intelligent girl - no, a young woman. Scoring the highest on exams and knowing so much about medical practices and history and, more importantly, their history. He may have lived longer than her but even he doesn’t remember everything that happened up to this point. She can change everything far better than what he or Naruto or Sasuke could do. “Sakura…” “I’ll do it.” Her bold statement stopped the boys’ argument and gained everyone’s attention. “I’ll do it, so do what needs to be done.” she ignored Naruto and Kakashi calling her name in fear that they might want to talk her out of it. “All I ask is to give me a few minutes to say goodbye.” Hagoromo nods with a prideful smile, “It will take some time to open the portal. Step forward to receive the protective seal.” “Wait just a moment.” She stills then looks to her left to see the reanimated Hiruzen approach her. “I’d like to give you two important things that I know will help you on this mission.” She gasps, “Lord Third, I...you don’t have to…” she trails off when he raises a hand to silence her. “Please allow this old fool to do something right for once.” He offers a soft smile at her. She bites in the inside of her cheek while reluctantly nodding her acceptance. “Whatever gifts she will receive will also be protected with the seal.” The Sage assures, “However, you must ensure that they do not fall into the wrong hands.” “I understand.” The old man smiles at her like a proud grandfather congratulating his granddaughter for accomplishing something great. “You’ve become a fine shinobi. I was right to place you on Team 7. “ She’s uncertain why she chuckled at that statement but she did and gave a little smile, “I’m kinda glad you did, Lord Third.” He nods somberly then gently takes one of her hands in his cold, old ones. He places his free hand on her forehead, “I’ll give you most of my chakra and the knowledge of all the techniques I know.” His palm glowed bright blue that she had to close her eyes before she went blind. She can feel his chakra transferring to her as a separate reserve to her existing ones. It’s much larger than her original reserve but smaller than her 100 Healing Seal. Her mind is flooded with information about all sorts of techniques she may have heard or read about it. She opens her eyes a bit dizzy by the sudden amount. “Oh wow...talk about a headache.” her giggles mixed with his chuckles. “My apologies.” He watches as a second purple rhombus appears to the right side at an angle of her original seal. “The second thing I’ll give you depends on when you’ll appear in the past. If you land in the time I was the village leader, then convince my younger self about the truth so that you can have an ally. There is a crystal ball I use and you now know the technique of how to use it. Much like the Yamanaka Clan Mind Transfer Technique, the crystal ball will show you the memories you have. I don’t doubt that it will be useful.” “Thank you, Lord Third.” she hugs him to which he gratefully returns. They separate and he walks back to his original place on the summoning circle. “Sarutobi has the right idea of giving you additional chakra and knowledge.” She’s startled when Tobirama approaches her. She can feel his power just from being near him even if he is reanimated. She feels so much smaller when his reanimated red eyes peer down at her, “You’ve proven to be a capable kunoichi of Konoha; therefore, I will give you my chakra and knowledge as well.” Her jaw drops as her eyes widen. It’s one thing to receive such gifts from the Third, but to receive the same thing from the Second, the grand uncle to her mentor, Tsunade, is overwhelming! Hashirama bounds next to his young brother with a bright smile, “I will too! I’ve witnessed your strength stronger than Tsuna herself!” He barks laughter that makes her body vibrate. “It’s also an honor to meet another Wood Release User that’s not related to me!” Sakura blushes at the compliment; she’s still in shock to make a word. “Man! Sakura’s getting all the praise and attention!” Naruto groans loudly to snap her out of her stupor, “And she gets more power from the previous Hokages? So not fair!” She scoffs incredulously, “Hey, I didn’t ask for it! They just offered and who am I to refuse the Hokages?” She crosses her arms with an angry pout, “Besides, you have Kurama and you’re the reincarnation of one of the Sage’s sons! The same thing can be said for Sasuke being a damn Uchiha!” The dark-haired teammate grunts with a glare in her direction. The blonde teammate nervously chuckles while scratching the back of his head. “I was just teasing Sakura.” She rolls her eyes, “You call it unfair when I’m the only one from Team 7 who’s clanless with no talent or blood limit to be passed down. Even the Hatake’s have something and Kakashi got the Sharingan.” The said Jounin leader sighs, “Now you’ve done it.” He mumbles towards Naruto. “I didn’t mean anything by it! I swear Sakura! It was just a little joke.” “Naruto, it’s best if you just apologize," Minato advises nervously. He can sense her temper from his position. “I’m really sorry Sakura!" He held up a single-handed prayer gesture. “He has no tact.” Sakura snorts in amusement at Tobirama’s blunt comment. “Come.” He raises his left hand and looks at her with an expectant expression. At her nod, she gently places his hand on her forehead, glowing with blue energy. She closes her eyes again and can feel another separate reserve being added. Additional information about techniques - some of which were the same as what Hiruzen gave her but most are new to her - and theories about chakra and elemental energies were added to her mind. “I’m giving you the location of my lab and library as well. The traps and locks will deactivate upon infusing my chakra to yours.” Tobirama informs as images of his private facilities are shown in her mind. She staggers a little when he removes his hand. She regains her footing then opens her eyes once more. Both the First and the Second watch as a third purple rhombus appears to the left side at an angle of her original seal, opposite to Hiruzen’s. She smiles pity at him, “It’s a shame that not all of your ideas were finalized.” He smirks, “I trust that you’ll finish what I started then.” “You’re giving me too much credit!” He nods his head still with a smirk before he goes back to his original position on the summoning circle. She looked up at Hashirama’s smiling face and couldn’t help but smile back. “May I?” He raises his left hand first. She nods and closes her eyes again just as he slips his hand underneath her bangs, resting it against her skin. Blue energy emits from the hand and causes her pink bangs to float upwards. Another separate reserve is added to her arsenal as well as many techniques, including many Wood Release skills that even Yamato had either trouble with or didn’t know about. By the time he removes his hand, a fourth purple rhombus appears at an angle below the one created by Tobirama. He held his hand out with the palm facing upwards and she watches as a wooden bracelet is woven in the center. When it’s complete, it has a glossy polish. He holds it in between his thumb and forefingers then uses his free hand to gently grasp her right hand. “This bracelet is infused with my Sage Energy. Use it well.” He slips on the bracelet on her wrist and it shrinks until it fits without sliding off. She can remove it as long as she tucks her thumb and pink underneath the rest of her fingers. “I’ve never used Sage Energy before.” She shyly admits. “Thank you, Lord First.” She bows her head in gratitude. “There’s always a first time for everything!” He proudly exclaims. He gives her one last encouraging smile before taking position on the summoning circle. Minato approaches her with an easy-going smile, “I guess I’m the last one then.” “You don’t have to, Lord Fourth. Three is already enough.” she shrugs her shoulder trying to play it off. “That may be so,” he eyes her forehead and chuckles a bit, “But it seems that I need to fill in the spot.” She tilts her head to the side in confusion. “Um, how are you...well, without arms…?” “Forgive me for this but bear with it for a moment.” Before she could rebuttal, she freezes when he invades her personal space and presses his lips on her forehead. “Forgive me for this but bear with it for a moment.” Before she could rebuttal, she freezes when he invades her personal space and presses his lips on her forehead. Naruto gasps and screeches, “DAD! WHAT ARE YOU DOING TO SAKURA!?” He starts to march over there but Kakashi loops his arms under the blonde's shoulders. “Calm down, Naruto! It’s the only way he can do the transfer.” “I don’t care! He’s kissing Sakura!” Naruto continues to thrash in Kakashi’s hold but to no avail. Kurama snickers at his host, “Seems like your dad beat you, brat.” He laughs as Naruto continues to struggle and fume. Sasuke closes his eyes in distaste with no comment. Inwardly, he’s furious that he’s not the one being sent to the past. He could change everything! He wouldn’t have to lose his family, his brother! Things would’ve been different for him. Is that why the Sage didn’t entrust him with the mission, among other things? His selfishness to get what he lost and more? “DAD!” Sasuke reopens his eyes to glare at Naruto, “Shut up, dobe.” “Screw you Sasuke!” Sakura ignored the background noise to focus on the sensation of another large reserve being added to her arsenal. She now has a total of seven reserves, six added to her original and four to her totaled three. Eight if she counts the Sage Energy inside the wooden bracelet. Not to mention the amount of information he’s passing into her mind. She even learned the concept of forming the Rasengan! She hopes to experiment with it when she can. Minato steps back and sees the fifth purple rhombus forming between Hiruzen’s and Hashirama’s seal. He’s bemused at the completed seal looking like a five-petaled flower in the center of her forehead. “The last gift is inside my pouch. If you could please get two of the three-pronged kunai with a paper tag wrapped around the hilt.” A rosy hue tinges her cheeks as she excuses herself to do as he instructed. She notices that the items are slightly heavier than the standard-issue kunai and can feel the stored energy humming inside it. “You use these for the Flying Thunder God Technique.” She briefly recalls him throwing several of these items across the battlefield. “Yes. You know the technique originated from Lord Second and I simplified the formula.” “Why are you giving these to me?” “I believe they can help you in a pinch. You might even be the next Konoha Flash!” he chuckles at his joke before donning a serious expression, “If you meet my younger self, try to convince him to be your ally with this.” He juts his chin at the items in her hand. Despite being uncertain of how to gain either him or Hiruzen’s trust as an ally, she nods in understanding. “Thank you, Lord Fourth.” He smiles once more, “You should say goodbye to your team.” She returns the smile then bounds to her three male teammates. He watches them interact amused and sad at the same time. He prays to whatever good deity out there that she’ll succeed and be safe in her journey. Kakashi releases Naruto as she gets closer to them. The latter immediately checks her forehead with concentration. He snickers and pokes her forehead, “You have a flower in the center of your forehead, Sakura!” She swats his hand away with an angry pout and rosy hues staining her cheeks, “Shut up!” Kakashi steps forward then leans forward just enough to see the seals, “He’s right. It’s very fitting for you.” his visible eyes crinkle in what they assume is a smile. Sakura self-consciously touches her seals with downcast eyes. The white-haired man ruffles the top of her hair, “It suits you, Sakura. A flower for a flower child." She scoffs while swatting his hand away. He and Naruto laugh at the terrible joke; she couldn’t help but join in too. Official Seal Artist: Dreamy (aka Me) Digital Art Software: ibisPaint X on phone Date Created: 2.11.21 A/N: Start from the top rhombus - her original Seal- and go clockwise: Hiruzen, Minato, Hashirama, and Tobirama. Her laughter fades and looks at all three of them with glossy eyes, “I wish I could take one of you guys with me. I don’t think I can do this all on my own.” Naruto clasped his left hand on her right shoulder, “You’re never alone, Sakura. Team 7 will always be with you, no matter what. I promise you that!” She stares at his optimist smile and returns the favor. She believes him with all of her heart. “Plus you have Katsuyu to help you,” Kakashi adds. He unclasps the pouch from the back of his waist then opens the latch to inspect what’s left inside of it. There are still plenty of weapons inside such as standard-issued kunai, senbon needles, paper bombs, ninja wire, and some soldier pills. He reaches into the pockets of his vest to place a couple of storage scrolls inside, next to his three prized possessions. He also removes his metal headband that bears the Kanji character for “Shinobi Alliance” to place it inside the pouch. “Kakashi?” Naruto asks in confusion upon his actions. “Naruto, Sasuke, give me your pouches so that I can add them to mine.” He instructs. “Eh? What for?” Naruto asks. “Just do as I say.” he holds out his left hand expectedly. The blonde unclasps his and gives it to him, who puts the entire pack inside the large pouch. He looks at Sasuke, who tosses his pouch at him. The team leader inserts the second smaller pouch inside then closes the latch. “Here. A shinobi should always be armed.” He holds the entire pouch out to her. “Kakashi…” He gives her duo eye crinkles at her soft tone. She sniffs a little as she takes the pouch from him, then clutches it tightly to her chest. “Thank you.” “Ah!” Naruto exclaims upon realization. A smile appears on his whiskered face as he hastily removes his tattered orange jacket from his person; he holds it open for her. “You’re giving me your jacket?” She’s surprised yet touched at the gesture. She knows how special the jacket is to him because it was given to him by Jiraiya, the late Toad Sage. “Mh-mh! That way you have something to remember me by!” “As if I could ever forget you, knucklehead,” She giggles as she slips on the jacket. He helps adjust the shoulders so that it rests easily on her smaller form. He felt some male pride upon seeing his long-time crush wearing a piece of his clothing. She’s smaller than him that the jacket dwarfs her despite the tattered sleeves and hem cutting a few inches off of the original length. He manages to untie his metal headband that bears the Konoha insignia and ties it around her neck. “Never forget that you’re a kunoichi of Konoha.” Tears that gathered in her eyes finally fell down her cheeks. She pulls him into a one-armed hug, mumbling her gratitude in his shoulder. He returns the gesture as tight as he could, smiling in victory that he did something right. Kakashi chuckles at the touching sight with endearment. He curiously peers at Sasuke when he approaches the duo as they separate. Sakura didn’t bother wiping away the tears from her face as she looked nervously at her former long-term crush. “Sasuke…?” One black eye and one Rinnegan stare at her for a brief moment before he raises his right arm out with his sheathed sword in hand. “Take it.” Her lips part open in shock. This boy - now a young man - is giving her his sword, the same one he used in an attempt to kill her. She hesitantly reaches out only to pause in hesitation. She looks into his heterochromia eyes for...what? Betrayal? Deceitfulness? His expression never wavered as she stared at him, not even when she firmly grasped the sheath. He releases his hold and she lets the sword hang by her side. “I’m sorry.” She stiffens upon hearing those two words. The words she’s been longing to hear for so long from the person who’s caused her so much heartache. “Sorry for what?” she asks slowly with narrow eyes. His bi-colored eyes soften just enough to emphasize the meaning of his words, “ ...For everything.” Kakashi and Naruto watch the scene with smiles of their own. She bites the corner of her lips as more tears fall on her cheeks, “It took you four years to apologize to me.” She sniffs, “About time, you idiot!” “And I thought my habit of being late was bad.” Kakashi prides himself on making Sakura chuckle and Naruto laugh; he managed to glimpse a smirk from Sasuke. “Sakura Haruno,” The group looks to the Sage, “We must make haste. The portal will open shortly after I place the protective seal onto you.” She walks forward in time to stand in front of him. The Sage weaves hand signs fast before she could make them out then hovers his right hand above her chest. A white light shines in between the space and Sakura feels warmth washes over her entire body. As the light dims, she feels something is being etched into the skin between her breasts. It’s oddly not painful but more of a needle poking her skin multiple times type of sensation. The Sage retreats his hand when the light fades into nothing. She places her fingers where she felt the mark is etched into her skin, feeling a rough outline through the shirt. She looks up at the Sage, expecting him to say something. “The seal is set. Lady Katsuyu will also bear the mark on her body when you summon her after you arrive. I will begin preparing the portal.” He nods at her before floating near the middle of the summoning circle. He claps his hands together as he and the other Kages concentrate their chakra in the very center. Sparks of energy snap until one white sphere the size of a soccer ball appears and gradually expands. Sakura sighs as she turns to face her team. This will be the last time she’ll see her team, her boys as she knows them. She blinks away the tears that begin to gloss over her eyes. “This is it.” Her voice wavers, overwhelmed with emotions. Naruto embraces her again then says in her ear, “We believe in you so trust in yourself.” She returns his embrace with the arm holding on to Sasuke’s sword. The blonde teammate drags the Uchiha into the group hug; Kakashi amusingly joins in on the group hug. They separate after one last tight squeeze. She smiles longingly at them but rests her eyes on their leader. “I don’t suppose I can ask to see your full face? I mean, I don’t know if I’ll ever see you again.” she half-jokes with a sad double meaning. Kakashi ignores the looks the boys are giving him in favor of looking at her for a second. He notes the energy sphere is much larger now and continues to expand. Soon, she’ll go through and that’ll be the last time Sakura Haruno, the apprentice of Tsunade Senju, one of the best medic ninjas any nation could ask for, will be known. He hooks his index finger inside the hem and tugs it down. All three gape at his full-face now revealed to them after so many years. Her eyes shift to take in his facial features to commit into her memory. A straight nose, high cheekbones, smooth fair skin, a strong jawline, and a defined tanned line just under his eyes and across his nose bridge. Two things that stuck out to her are his lips - neither too plump or too thin- and the mole resting near the left corner of his lips. Sakura, never taking her eyes from his face, shifts the sword from her left hand to her right with the pouch in between her chest and arm, cups the left side of his face. Her thumb caresses his cheek gently. She laughs, “I win the bet! You two owe me so much money!” She gasps when she feels and sees Kakashi smiled amusingly. The man has deep dimples on both corners of his lips! Her eyes squint at the smile and the beauty mole for a second before widening in recognition. “You’re Su--!” She couldn’t finish that sentence because something soft yet a little chapped captures her lips. Her eyes bulge out slightly upon realizing who these lips belong to. Naruto screams in horror while Sasuke’s eyes widen with parted lips. “WH-WH-WH-WHAT A-ARE YOU-YOU…!” The former stammers out with modification. Kakashi finally pulls back with a smirk on full display. He chuckles when her face lights up bright red with a shocked expression. “Let’s keep that a secret, okay?” He winks at her playfully. “GET AWAY FROM SAKURA YOU DAMN PERVERTED TEACHER!” The man easily dodges to the side when the blonde lunges at him. Minato, who watched that exchange, blinks at his former student. The same student who used to be always aloof, cold, distant, followed the rules. The same student who endured many losses in his youth. The same student he thought of as a younger brother. The reanimated man shakes his head with amusement, “Kakashi, you little dog.” Sakura touched her lips, still in shock. Her former teacher, the second most perverted teacher who worships porn, just kissed her. He stole her first kiss! He stole her first kiss on the lips for star's sake! If it’s possible, her blush just got more heated. She doesn't know whether to be mortified by the notion her 14-year superior just stole her first kiss at the sweet age of 16, or be happy she got her first kiss at all before the end - or is it considered the beginning given her approaching task? “LOOK AT HER! YOU MADE HER SPEECHLESS!” She finally snaps out of her daze because of Naruto’s yelling. Her eyes briefly look at Kakashi only to look away just as quickly. Oh man, she can’t look at him the same again! “YOU DAMN PERVERT!” “Oh, calm down Naruto.” A sudden glint in his visible eyes appears, “Unless you want a kiss too before our approaching end?” The blonde stiffens then backs away to hide behind Sasuke, “Get away from me!” “What about you, Sasuke?” he only received a dark glare in return. Kakashi shrugs nonchalantly yet he’s highly entertained. A loud ripping sound echoes in the quiet battlefield, drawing the team’s attention to the center. The energy sphere has grown into an opening the size of a Beast Energy Ball in the ground; white and blue energies spin in a never-ending spiral like a whirlpool in water. “It is time, Sakura Haruno.” The Sage calmly states, looking back at her. The medic swallows a lump caught in her throat then takes the first step. Her slow pace gains speed until she’s running closer to the portal. She ignores the fresh set of tears slipping down her cheeks. She ignores the urge to look back because she’ll likely stay with her team. She jumps at the edge of the portal. The energy pulls her down into the whirlpool of energy. Still, she doesn't look back. She dares not to look back. Although she smiles when she hears Naruto cheering after her. I swear to fix everything. Don’t wait for me because I’ve become a ghost of the person that once existed. A/N: 3/4/21 I've made the proper changes that were necessary. I hope I got them all and I'm so sorry for the previous version! Stars, it was a mess. I should've re-read this before I posted this, but what's done is done.
I hope all of you still like story! I strongly encourage you to comment and/or send in your reviews to let me know what you think of this chapter as well as the upcoming ones! It's been months since my last post. Life has changed in ways that doesn't align with my schedule.
It's not just this blog but I've been inactive in all of my social media accounts for a while now. Understandably the pandemic, the wild fires, personal changes and adaptions, and lack of motivation played key factors in my missing time. However, I haven't been completely inactive when it comes to writing! I've been writing in physical journals about latest fanfictions ideas. Surprisingly, I haven't been writing about Kingdom Hearts but back into certain anime fandoms. The nostalgic feelings came back upon re-reading old and finding new works created by other authors kept me sane during these crazy times. I made it a goal to continuously use this blog to publish my works when I re-created this and I was really going with it at first. Yet life happened and I lost the motivation to keep it up in the months followed after my last post. I guess I can put my insecurities into the mix as well. It's not like I forgot about this site. Rather, I felt...afraid of it? I mean, this is going to be public and the Internet isn't always the nicest and best place for words or mediums to be displayed. One day, you find your word(s) against yourself, misinterpreted by strangers. Honestly, I think I went about this the wrong way. When I re-created this blog from an old school project to become my personal project, I naively thought that views would come within a few months. I used to look at my website view counts every week. While I was glad that there were surprisingly a lot - I remember having 14 views at one point - I didn't realize that it added fuel to my pre-existing anxiety. Why? I had bigger expectations for this and when that didn't go as well as I expected, I felt...sad? Disappointed? Both, most likely. The same can be said for the lack of commentary on any of my posts, even when I promoted my site on my both of my tumblr accounts (does anyone else still use Tumblr nowadays?). Even when I promoted it on my Twitter account, which I haven't used in months either, I didn't get any commentary - not even a criticism. Although I'd say it's hypocritical of me to say how sad and disappointed I am for no comments on my posts when I don't leave my comments on other authors' works, mostly. I leave a few for some when I find their piece really interesting - the way they write, their structure, the plot, character portrayal, etc. I think another part that had me rethink about this my site is the direction. I mostly wrote about Kingdom Hearts because I have the most typed documents ready to be uploaded. So suffice to say that I accidentally believed that this site would only become a Kingdom Hearts blog - that's what got me worried. It was easier than to type a new draft on a topic completely different. That's a lazy-ass way to say that I'm procrastinating to type up new and different content all the time. In realty, I physically write much faster than I can type when it comes to new ideas, regardless of the fandom. Like seriously, I just wrote 92 pages (46 pages x 2 sides) on an timeframe for my latest story idea for the Naruto (anime). Physically written, might I add! Sure, you can account for the paper size and the content length but the fact remains the same! Deep down I knew that it wouldn't be that easy. I knew that it wouldn't come to me within a few weeks. It takes time for people- complete stranger- to find my site, read my posts, and willingly leave comments. Instead of using this blog to naively make my "online presence" known, I need to remember that this was originally for fun. My own controlled safe zone to willing publish my fanfiction based on fandoms I've been part of for years. So I am going to publish new posts that's not centered around Kingdom Hearts soon. News Update Review The past couple of days have been busy with updates on the new installments in the Kingdom Hearts series. We first have Kingdom Hearts: Dark Road confirmed to be released on June 22, 2020 as a mobile game. We will finally know what happened in the past to have Xehanort become a Keyblade Master of Darkness, not light. With five new characters confirmed to be present in the game in addition to Eqarues and Xehanort, we're super excited for the story. The second news has everyone on the edge with Kingdom Hearts: Melody of Memory, especially as it's confirmed to be a rhythm game. Before the confirmation on June 16, a lot of people and myself included were curious yet dreading if it was going to a rhythm game using the same or similar mechanics like in Atlantica (KH2) and/or the Melody Catcher Reality Shift in Symphony of Sorcery (KH: DDD). I looked on the brighter side of things and thought of how the game would work involving interacting with music. The use of Unreal Engines for the graphics, Yoko Shimomura compositions as either classics or varied renditions of the classics, including the Kingdom Hearts: Orchestra Concert music, and the story revolving (mostly) around Kairi on her journey to find Sora. The 2020 Trailer showcased what Melody of Memory will look like and how it will function, better - maybe beyond better- than I and other fans initially theorized. [All images are found on Google Image] When I first read the word "melody" in the title, I thought it had relations to music; thus a rhythm game. It reminds me the Fantasia (1940) world called "Symphony of Sorcery" in Kingdom Hearts: Dream Drop Distance. The concept of "Sound Idea" to "dispel the darkness" (Mickey, KH:DDD) from the tainted musical score inspired another idea that I will explain later in the post. [Idea 4] The mechanics are vastly different than the previous games, which makes it more exciting! The story of the game remained unknown until the trailer released today. Fans theorized Kairi would finally get her own game where she traverses inside her Heart to find any clue on how and where to find Sora. That seems to be the case as she has more screen time in the trailer. [Source: YouTube SQUARE ENIX] Flashbacks This brings up the next and most important news. After confirming Melody of Memory as a rhythm game, it transitions into a static disruption that leads to cinematic cutscenes of what to expect and flashbacks. Fans already guessed the flashbacks belong to Kairi because her memories of Radiant Garden in Birth by Sleep were hazy. [Source: Screenshots from YouTube SQUARE ENIX] [Images found on Google Images] Supports "Personal Note" The following 4 screenshots are most talked about because it visualizes what both the Kingdom Hearts Light Novel and Ansem Report 11 talked about. In the Light Novel, there's a few pages where Apprentice Xehanort (really Terranort) asked where "the girl" was. Aeleus, one of the Apprentices of Ansem the Wise and a Palace Guard, told him she's sleeping in the "pod". Personal Note: I thought the "pod" was referred to the Memory Pods in The Old Mansion in Twilight Town. The same pods that Sora. Donald, and Goofy slept for a year for Namine to completely restore the damage she caused in their memories in Kingdom Hearts Re: Chain of Memories. Sora's pod was bigger, resembling a white flower that when open, it's a blossomed flower. Since Terranort was examining her, I thought they used a pod like Sora's. Donald and Goofy pods are simpler and smaller. That would make sense for them to use since she was a child at the time of these experiments. In the Report: “I have chosen one special girl. I do not know if she possesses a power like that of the Princesses. But, there is a chance, and this is an experiment. She may lead me to the place where the one holding the key is… I shall send her off to the ocean of other worlds.” [source: Kingdom Hearts Wiki - Ansem Reports] Kairi was a child, 4 years old in Birth by Sleep. One year later after Terranort was given refuge in Radiant Garden under the Answem the Wise's apprenticeship, Darkness took over the world. Kairi, 5 years old, was sent to Destiny Islands. There was a meteor shower happening and Kairi fell from the sky onto the shores, where she was discovered by Sora [depicted in Kingdom Hearts Manga]. When she awoke, she had amnesia. With only her name remember, she didn't know where she came from, how she arrived on the Islands, what happened to her home and family. Five years worth of memory were "gone". In the KH universe, the memories are hidden than forgotten. Kairi claims to not know about her past in the original Kingdom Hearts game, but later states those memories are hazy for her when Aqua brought up their meeting in the Radiant Garden. My personal thought is that Kairi did have amnesia for awhile with the exception of her name. It's likely that over time she has flashbacks or visions or dreams so muddled and hazy that she can't find the truth. Another personal thought revolves around the ability of her Nobody, Namine, aka "The Witch". She's a unique Nobody born from both Sora and Kairi's Hearts after the events of the original Kingdom Hearts game. She has the ability to alter, destroy, and restore memories of Sora and those around him. Considering her abilities, I suspect she could uncover hidden memories buried deep within one's Heart. In Re:Mind, Riku states she's currently with the Twilight Gang - Lea, Isa, Roxas, Xion, Hayner, Pence, and Olette - looking for clues in Roxas's and Xion's memories. If given a chance, perhaps she can work with Kairi to fully unlock her hidden memories even though the latter is experiencing some flashbacks. The Ark Speaking of flashbacks, the picture below is also the talk in the fandom [Sceenshot taken from YouTube SQUARE ENIX] It's machine that has made its appearance before. [Image found on Google Images] This is the machine Sora and gang finds in a room in Hollow Bastion. At the time, we couldn't interact with it. We just entered this room and see this machine, fight enemies that appeared, and get a chest. [Image found on Google Images] Later in Kingdom Hearts Union X (KHUx), we see Malificent in a room where the machine is. The name of machine is called The Ark. Next, we see Lauriam, who is the original person of Marluxio (Nobody), enter and tells her to leave. When she refused, he summons his keyblade and proceeds to attack her. In a different cutscene, Lauriam wakes up in a now damaged room, including the machine. Injured, he proceeds to exit the room with a limp. Given The Ark was damaged and later made its appearance in Kingdom Hearts and in the Trailer, I wonder if they're exactly the same machine? If so, that means that Radiant Garden is a section of the once Daybreak Town. Scala ad Caelum was built on top of Daybreak Town, as seen when Sora and the gang fought Armored Xehanort underwater. Or were two machines made - 1 in Daybreak Town (KHUx) and 1 in Radiant Garden (KH, Trailer)? Could it have been the Master of Masters who built them? Who knows? Stars and Ideas [Screenshots taken from YouTube SQUARE ENIX] The following photos bring up other ideas I have. Here we see Kairi and Riku in The Final World. Idea 1: What if this portion is at the start of Melody of Memory like in KH3 as the opening cinematic cutscenes? Tetsuya Nomura told the public the Final World and Dive to the Heart takes place at the end of the game's plot. So what if these screenshot are actually scenes that happen at the end or towards the end of the game, but are brought to the start of the game as an opening? Idea 2: What if Kairi and Riku go to The Final World in the middle of the game because it's the hardest place to reach? Chirithy explained in KH3 that in order for someone to reach this place, they would have to either enter a very deep sleep that's near Death or actually die. Since Kairi has been sleeping for a year an Riku has been having strange dreams, they both enter the world by going under a very deep slumber that it takes there. Sora has done it countless times before, but he didn't realize it until Chirithy explained it to him. Idea 3: After the duo arrives, they're encountered by a group of Stars I have two options for this idea:
Kairi's Heart Fragments [Screenshots from YouTube SQUARE ENIX] [Mentioned on my tumblr@katukutataka and @khhcfi] In KH3 Re:Mind, Sora had to find Kairi’s fragments of Heart in Scala ad Caelum in order to undo what Master Xehanort did in the story. He manages to gather 5 Fragments from all of Scala ad Caelum. When put together, it creates a 5-petal flower. Also serves a reference to the Paopu Fruit they shared on Destiny Islands. Master Xehanort broke her Heart into 7 Fragments, so Sora was short of 2. He had to search someplace else because he ran out of time before the Other Sora and his companions arrived to fight against Master Xehanort. Through the connection of Hearts, he found the 6th Fragment in Riku. [Destiny Trio for life!] The 7th Fragment is found in King Mickey’s Heart, which I thought was surprising. I thought it’d be found in Aqua’s Heart since she saved Kairi in Birth by Sleep from the Unversed in Radiant Garden. However, I think because King Mickey was in trouble during the heat of the moment that Sora just went into his Heart. The mouse king also encountered Kairi the same time as Aqua and have interacted with her on numerous occasions throughout the games. Once Sora had all 7 Fragments, it formed the 5-petal flower with a base at the bottom serving as leafs. Her Heart Flower glowed to reveal the Keyhole that Kairi passed though. In the Kingdom Hearts 2020 Trailer, we see the same Flower appear before Kairi. It spins then glows and breaks apart once more into single Fragment. The photos shows 7 Pink Lights. The Lights seem to be heading in various directions. Sora is seen holding a pink light. I suspect that it’s one of Kairi’s that somehow found its way to him. Perhaps the purpose of scattering her Heart Flower was to find Sora. That way, she can sense where the Fragments are and travel the distance to meet him. I’m not sure if the remaining Fragments will either go to Sora or return to Kairi with the exception of the one that found him. You can see in the last photo (bottom right) that Sora has the smallest smile as he's holding Kairi's Pink Light. I suppose is nostalgic of his brief quest in KH3 to find all 7 Fragments and/or he's comforted by the familiar presence. Other Observations Something struck me when I looked back at The Secret Reports in Kingdom Hearts 3. KH3 secret report 3: Experiments of the Heart Notes on Subject X, Excerpt 1-- Subject was found in the central square shortly after dawn. Female, approximately fifteen years old. After seven days' observation, she spoke her first words, but could not provide a name. Subject exhibits signs of profound amnesia, and displays concern about which world this is. Her words suggest that she departed her home world with others, though she cannot recall the names of her erstwhile companions. All efforts to explore those memories have met with a rejection response. After his initial experiments on me, Ansem the Wise ceased his research into the heart, his hand stayed by some fear I cannot fathom. Yet this new subject is like me: devoid of memories. She is the perfect sample upon which to continue my master's work. She, too, could benefit from it: by traversing the heart, we have a direct path into memory. I myself have begun to reclaim my lost past thanks to these very experiments. Who is she? Whence has she come? These are questions no scientist could ignore. And the words she muttered, "May your heart be your guiding key"... —Xehanort [Source: Kingdom Hearts Wiki - The Secret Reports (KH3)] Yes, I'm very aware that Xehanort is referring to Subject X - Skuld. However, the bolded section of the report really struck me odd in an interesting way.
Thank you for reading this long and dense post! It's a lot to process with the amount of information that's being released everyday for Melody of Memory and Dark Road's release in a few days.
Always welcomed to share it on other sites but please give me FULL CREDIT. I worked really hard for this and I don't want people sharing my ideas without giving proper credit. Let me know what you think by commenting on my website or sending a comment/ask on either or both of my tumblr pages: https://katukutataka.tumblr.com/ https://khhcfi.tumblr.com/ [if links don't work, copy and paste it your search bar] Thanks and stay tuned for more to come! |
Monthly Archive
September 2021
AuthorHi there! My name is Kristine and welcome to my website! |