Chapter: 61

Explosions covered the entirety of Konoha, not just the arena as those present during the Final Test thought. A cloud of smoke and dust covered the hidden village, ironically concealing it from sight. Rubble and rocks rained on the streets a moment later while the sound of buildings falling due to the damage done echoed through them.

In the aforementioned stadium, the civilian public panicked just as they did outside the building. The ninja, however, were prepared. Even those unaware of the impending attack were ready in a matter of seconds. Even in their casual clothes, a shinobi always held a weapon of some sort on their person for moments such as this.

The higher ups, commanders, anbu, elite and regular jounin were concerned, however. None of their intel said anything about an attack like that. How had the Snake managed to put explosives everywhere?

Their doubts were answered quickly. Those ninja stationed on their borders, waiting for the invasion to happen, were the first to see a possible reason. Their enemies appeared the second the first bomb was detonated, signaling the start of something that nobody was looking forward to except those that organized it.

Oto and Suna ninja charged in, ready and more than willing to fight. The surprise came from the third group though. Konoha had feared it just like Kiri and Iwa had, if more. The remaining nation had not wanted to be left out, apparently.

The Cloud had come to the Leaf.

Patrols hurried to get the word out. Everyone needed to know this, lest they be caught off guard. Especially the leaders. Because, with all the Kages present in the village, how could the Raikage not be around. Furthermore, with all that going on, there was no way the Cloud hadn't brought their best weapons, their Jinchuriki.

All the while, the mastermind behind all the chaos rejoiced, aware of everything that was going on. It had all been his plan for a long time and it was oh so satisfying to see it finally came to be.

Orochimaru stood on top of what remained of the place that had held the Kages' balcony overseeing the arena. In front of him, looming over Konoha, were three of the biggest members of the Snake Clan. A second after he summoned it, a purple barrier rose around him, trapping him and the other village leaders inside it before the cloud of dust that remained from the explosion could even clear. His elite students had done their job.

"Beautiful, isn't it, Sensei?" Orochimaru asked, gleefully looking around.

"To think this day really came," The aged Hokage sorrowfully replied, ignoring the question. His white robes having been destroyed by the explosion, revealing his battle attire underneath.

"You know what they say about snakes, Hiruzen," The diminutive Tsuchikage grumbled, looking like nothing had happened. Understandable, considering that powerful and equally terrifying Bloodline Selection of his.

"You have to cut off the head," Finished a very clearly irritated Mizukage, contrasting the rather calm demeanor of her older counterparts. All over her, ashen pieces detached from her body, revealing that she had a layer of ashes acting as armor to protect herself from the explosion. "And burn the body," She added, the ground around her scorching hot.

"Rather presumptuous of you, Orochimaru," Onoki continued. "To think you can attack not one, not two, but three Kages at the same time by yourself."

"Oh, that's where you are wrong," The disgusting smile on the Snake's face stretched even wider at that. "I didn't come alone. Not at all, did I?"

His question received no answer, but as the cloud of dust behind him was blown away by the wind, it revealed the meaning behind his words.

"Greedy bastard," The Tsuchikage spat out venomously.

"You thought I would just stand away while all of you allied yourselves against me?" A, the Raikage, questioned with a raised eyebrow. "Oh no. That simply won't do."

"So, he's delusional too," Mei pointed out with a snarl. "Just great, isn't it?"

"No," Hiruzen denied with a shake of his head. "That's just an excuse. You just wanted a chance to attack Konoha, didn't you, A?" The lack of an answer was enough for everyone present.

"And I'm not done yet," Orochimaru interjected with a laugh that set the three opposing Kages on edge. "Now, you see-"

"Shut up already!" The Mizukage shouted, and with merely a wave of her hand, lava formed from the ground. A small wave of the melted substance rushed towards the Missing nin, stopping short of hitting him as what seemed to be coffins rose from the very ground.

"How rude," Orochimaru mockingly said from behind them.

Across from him, all three of the leaders tensed up, and even his ally seemed uneasy at the sight. 'So, it was true,' The leaders all thought, with no delusions about what was to happen. They knew, all along, that there was no stopping that from happening. The Snake wouldn't have let such an important step in his plan fail, even if they had all rushed at him.

"Long time no see… Saru," One of the figures that walked out of the coffins said, once it had opened.

"You've aged, Sarutobi," Another one, next to the first added.

"To think this would be the result I reached," The third said bitterly.

"I never thought I would see you two again," The Third Hokage told his predecessors, the first two to have stepped out in the open. "And under such circumstances..."

"Was this what you wanted, Rasa?" Onoki asked the third one mockingly.

"If it'll bring down Konoha and prosperity towards Suna, my death will be worth it," The Fourth Kazekage replied.

"He really believes that, doesn't he?" Mei questioned, disbelieving.

"Your agent did an amazing job, A," Orochimaru commented out loud, drawing the attention of the other Kages.

"She really did," The Raikage answered, with a touch of pride in his voice. "She is my best saboteur, after all."

"You flatter me, Raikage-sama," A feminine voice said from outside the barrier. When every eye moved to the side, they were greeted by the sight of the Jinchuriki of the Two Tails.

"Not a word, B," A cautioned when a second figure joined the woman. The brother of the current Cloud leader making his presence known. "Now, what'll you do, Hiruzen, while these two wreak havoc on your village?"

"They'll be dealt with, just like everyone else."

"Oh, you think your Jounin will be enough?" The Raikage asked, clearly not believing that for a second.

"Or maybe you think Jiraiya will?" The Snake questioned clearly not worried about his ex-teammate. "I'm sure my friends will entertain him long enough," He said, waving his hands towards his summons. "Besides," He started once more, this time turning towards the Tsuchikage. "You should be worrying about your supposed ally, shouldn't you?"

"If you think I'll help the likes of you-" Onoki spoke, growing increasingly more annoyed before Orochimaru interrupted him.

"Oh, but I have the perfect blackmail, don't I? You were even nice enough to bring her here for me," He added, making the old man's face pale as he turned towards where his granddaughter was supposed to be. Lower in the arena, the smoke had yet to completely clear, to the point where he couldn't see how much damage the building had suffered, nevermind see Kurotsuchi herself. "Now, if you help me, however, I promise-"

"And he's supposed to believe you?" Mei interrupted clearly and understandably dubious about the trustworthiness of the Missing nin. "As if anyone would be stupid enough to do that, Orochimaru."

"Shut up," Onoki interrupted, his eyes still locked down on the arena. "Talk, Snake, before I-"

This time, it wasn't any voice that interrupted the conversation. Instead, it was the sound of lightning and two figures jumping out of the cloud. The Kages then were treated to the surprised expression of Orochimaru when the two people were revealed.

One with blue hair in a spiky ponytail and green clothes while the other had white hair and lavender clothes. What happened next surprised all of the Kages too, since both individuals quickly demonstrated that they had Bloodline Limits, the first, creating crystal projectiles, and the second, displaying the ability of the Dead Bone Pulse.

"I thought the Kaguya Clan had been killed off," Mei said, being the most shocked at the second's appearance. After all, it had been Kirigakure that had exterminated the clan after they had attacked the village.

Hiruzen, spectating the events and feeling glad that time was being wasted, noticed that Orochimaru let the chance to brag pass, something that he didn't expect from his student. That made it clear that those two were the ones that were supposed to threaten Onoki's granddaughter's life. From there, it was easy to tell that someone had messed with that plan.

If he had to guess…

A smirk formed on his face when the author of the Lightning disturbance was revealed, walking alongside Kurotsuchi herself. Sasuke Uchiha faced the Oto nin while shrugging his shoulders casually. From where they stood, it was difficult to tell what was being said, but it was clear that a conversation was being shared between the Konoha and the Iwa ninja.

"You were saying, Snake?" Onoki spat out, turning towards Orochimaru, clearly much angrier than he had been before. "Thought you could threaten my family, did you?"

"That brat," The Snake muttered, ignoring the Tsuchikage. "You!" He exclaimed, turning towards the Jinchuriki. "Take care of the Uchiha, the plan must-"

Lightning resounded again, this time much closer. Before anyone present could even find the origin of the sound, a black and red blur appeared by the pair of Tailed Beast Containers. A split second later, the form of Eiji Satou became clear as he kicked Yugito Nii off to the side. The poor woman didn't even have time to react.

"You'll regret that, brat," A growled, as Genin fell to the ground, standing in front of B.

"Spare me the threats, will you?" The red-eyed boy shot back, said eyes locked on the Jinchuriki of the Eight Tails.

"If you think Yugito will be taken out so easily-"

"I'm sure my friends will entertain her long enough," Eiji interrupted and everyone was struck by the fact that he said almost the same thing Orochimaru had a moment before. "Now, I'm sure you and I can have some fun, can't we, Killer B?" He asked, but Hiruzen could see his nervousness clear as day.

"I'm afraid you won't have any fun, Eiji-kun," Orochimaru answered, not even letting the Jinchuriki speak. "You'll be too occupied..." Then the man trailed off, apparently confused by something.

"What? Are you trying to use that mark of yours? Yeah, that won't work," The amused voice of the Satou seemed to shock the Sannin all over again, much to the amusement of all present Kages, even his own 'ally'. "Fuck that thing… Although, thanks for the power up, it's greatly appreciated."

"How… What did you do?" The Missing nin asked, clearly disturbed by whatever Eiji had accomplished. The Hokage could only wonder if the boy's accomplishments were even more significant than he had thought, which was saying something already.

"A bit of this, a bit of that," Eiji dismissed with a wave.

"So, will you keep acting as if you are cool?" The Jinchuriki finally spoke, tilting his head to the side. "Or will you finally start fighting, you fool?" Instantly moving into his rather… 'unique' stance of kenjutsu, with the grand total of seven swords, which were held in places such as his mouth, the side of his neck, his stomach and so on.

"Well, if you say it like that..." Eiji replied, his nerves showing even more by the second. "I guess I'll have to get on with it, huh?" Hiruzen gave a sad smile as he saw the black markings of Orochimaru's seal spread over the boy's skin.

The Hokage looked around, bitterly aware that his ninja wouldn't be able to come and help in time. Everyone had been stationed to deal with the invading ninja, to save as many of his people as they could. After all, they had already known that it was unlikely that they would be able to help the Kages once Orochimaru's plan was enacted. They hadn't expected something equally as dangerous to be outside the barrier, unfortunately.

Eventually the dark lines covered Eiji entirely, something that he hadn't yet been witness to.

"Once again, thanks for the power up, Orochimaru," The boy added, his voice turning deeper and setting even the Kages on edge. His physical appearance changed slowly. The black skin slowly turned grey and then to almost white. His black hair grew slightly longer and even messier than usual. Two short white horns appeared on his forehead, pointing at the sky. His red irises covered the entirety of his eyes, making the white disappear while his pupils turned snake-like.

Still, all those were minor changes compared to what was added to his anatomy. From his back sprouted four pitch black new limbs. While some might have compared them to the spiders he was contracted to, to Hiruzen they looked more like the arms of Praying Mantises, which made the image that much more unsettling.

"Let's not waste more time, ok?" The now deep voice of the boy announced as he pulled the Legendary Sword from behind him.

Lightning appeared at his feet, now darkened due to the cursed chakra coursing through him.

And then, he rushed towards one of the most dangerous ninja on the Elemental Nations who replied in kind.

[}-o-{]

[Moments before, Sasuke Uchiha]

Sasuke was annoyed. Very annoyed, actually. He had been looking forward to his next battle. It was, after all, against Eiji. He knew it wouldn't have been that much of a battle, just like the Satou's had been against Naruto. Both boys had agreed to pull their punches slightly, to save energy and all that. It was part of the reason why their match had been so short.

Still, he had wanted to face Eiji. It wouldn't have been a real battle, he knew, just like he knew that he would probably lose that fight. Regardless of any of that, Sasuke had wanted to have that match anyway. It had felt… important to him.

Thus, he was annoyed.

Even worse than the interruption was his mission for the day, issued by both Eiji and Shikamaru.

"I don't need your help," The girl next to him grumbled and the Uchiha felt his eyes twitch.

"Get over it, Princess," Sasuke told her, specifically using the nickname that Eiji had told him would annoy the girl. If he had to be annoyed, so did she. Besides…

"If she knows that the nickname comes from Eiji, who saved her before, she might trust you, if only a little,"That had come from Ino, surprisingly enough. He noted, with satisfaction, that his friend had been right.

"If they send these two against you, it's because they can take you," Sasuke told her.

"Don't call me Princess or I'll do something you'll regret," The girl threatened.

"Oh," He raised an eyebrow, feeling the corner of his mouth twitch. Maybe he could channel Ino for a bit… "So, only Eiji can call you that? I see how it is."

As the girl turned an almost shining shade of red, Sasuke had to wonder if this is how the Yamanaka always felt when she teased everyone. It would certainly explain things. 'And Hinata does make it very easy...' He mused, before pushing those thoughts aside and turning his head fully against the ninja that they would have to face.

"Tch, you want the girl or the boy?" The Iwa nin asked, evidently having done the same thing as he did.

"If there's a close combat fighter," Sasuke remembered Shikamaru's words then. "Make sure that she fights them, she has the advantage there, as Neji showed in the Preliminaries. Not to mention that she must have prepared for that considering her match."

Considering that he had seen the male ninja weaponizing his own bones, he was fairly sure that he was one such person. So...

"I'll take the woman," Sasuke replied, nodding to the side where the kunoichi stood. His chosen opponent didn't stay idle though, as she sent a volley of crystal shards his way. In a second, lightning came alive at his feet.

He couldn't, as was often the case, completely vanish the slight proud feeling in his chest. It was always there when he used the Lightning Flicker. It was like using the Great Fireball. It felt like a family technique to him, in a way.

As he threw a handful of Sparkling Shuriken at the woman, he took a split second to see how the Iwa kunoichi was doing. His mission was, after all, to help her out. As he did so, he almost felt pity for the white haired boy. Lava was already all but raining on him. If the hostile ninja was any slower he would have fallen with that first attack that created a small shower of magma drops.

Yes, the girl could take care of herself in that match, he was sure. Now… as for his own...

As he dashed again, with his opponent dodging his attack and sending her own back once more, the Uchiha wondered if he should use the technique his sensei had taught him. Kakashi-sensei had described it as an assassination technique, and while Sasuke was nowhere near good enough to use it as such, he could very well kill someone with that.

He had been ready to kill Itachi, yes, but killing someone else… He didn't have much of a problem with that. For a long time, the Uchiha had thought that was a good thing. It would certainly make things easier when the time came for him to achieve his goal.

However… How would the others react to that? Would they see him differently when they realized that he didn't care about taking lives? He'd seen how Eiji and Chouji had reacted to their first kills so… What would they think when they saw him not caring?

"Guys," Eiji had told them, when everyone had been given their orders for the several possible scenarios. "Do what you have to do. If you are alive by the end of this, then it's a victory for me."

A resolution solidified inside Sasuke. It didn't matter if he had to kill this woman, or anyone else. It didn't matter if he didn't care about doing that. What mattered was surviving, nothing else.

For his goal.

For his new family of choice.

[}-o-{]

[Moments before, Shikamaru Nara]

"There are Kumo nin invading," One of Eiji's Spider had reported to them. How the little thing had managed to move from the borders of the village to them in such a short time, they didn't know, but it was a question for another time.

Although, Shikamaru was sure that it was specialized on that or something.

Back to the present, that little bit of news had given lots of information to Eiji and himself. Especially to the Satou, it seemed, because he had immediately warned them against the dark man with white hair and many swords and the fair-skinned woman with long blonde hair. A pair that had appeared right next to where the Hokage and the other leaders were.

"I need you to contain the woman," Eiji had said.

Contain, not fight. Shikamaru's mind ran a mile a minute as he tried to come up with strategies to do just that. It was good that Eiji had warned them against the chakra that the woman, and the man for that matter, had access to, which was apparently very dangerous. The fact that it would power them up was concerning though.

"Never, ever, underestimate one of them," Their friend had warned, dead serious. Nobody had missed the meaningful look he had traded with Naruto, who gulped and nodded, as if getting a secret message.

'There'll be time to question them later,' Shikamaru thought to himself, half surprised that Ino had been so ok with not knowing everything. He guessed that even she had her priorities set for the moment.

"Is there a plan?" A voice asked from their side, and it was a good thing that all of them had gotten used to Shino by then or it could have given them a heart attack. Years had passed and they still couldn't detect his presence unless he made it known.

"There is, we have to contain someone," The Nara informed briefly, as they continued running. Eiji had given them a general idea of where to go. They were almost there so-

"Just that?" Kiba asked as he joined, coming right after Shino and Chouji. Shikamaru, and the rest of them, didn't much trust the Inuzuka to help them, but Eiji had been adamant that they needed all the help they could get. So, for the moment, they would give the other boy the benefit of the doubt.

"Eiji has his doubts that even he can take care of one of these people by himself," Shikamaru told him and was pleased to see that the information had the desired effect on Kiba, and Shino and Chouji too.

"Containing, that was the plan?" Shino asked and the Nara saw his bugs already crawling over his skin. Those would have been incredibly useful for their objective, but…

"I don't know if that will work," Shikamaru shook his head. "Eiji said these guys have chakra that is… dangerous."

"Hm, that complicates things," The Aburame admitted with a frown.

"Hm, guys," Both of them turned towards an unusually hesitant Naruto, who was looking anywhere but at them. Concerning, because they were running pretty fast and they wouldn't put it past the blonde to run into something. "Can you try… with me?"

"Why though?" Shikamaru asked.

"I have… that dangerous chakra thing too," He answered, looking like he very much didn't want to talk about the topic. Sharing a look with everyone present, the Nara nodded towards the Aburame.

"Ok," Shino said simply.

"Just, give me a second," Naruto choked out as he took a deep breath in while one of the Kikaichu's landed on his cheek. When he blinked his eyes, the blue had changed into red and his pupils had slitted like a cat's. "Now," He said, and Shikamaru noted that his teeth now resemble Kiba's.

"What the fuck?" Said Inuzuka mumbled, and the Nara could only, very reluctantly though, agree. It was a very unexpected and strange thing to witness.

"It is dangerous," Shino muttered. "It's like a poison to my bugs."

"Hm, so that option is out, huh?" Shikamaru mumbled as his mind continued running through options.

"Not exactly," The Aburame replied, looking pensive.

"Do you have something in mind?" The Nara all but demanded.

"Guys! The woman is coming our way!" Ino called out.

"Where?!" Chouji asked, looking around confused. His problem was that he was searching the wrong place. She wasn't moving towards them from the ground. Now, one could say that she was…

Something collided against the earth some distance away from them. 'Good aim, Eiji,' Shikamaru mused with a smirk as his shadow started moving. 'Did you kick her over here?' He had to wonder.

The woman had fallen there, after all.

"Get started, guys!" The Nara called out. Next to him, Ino snapped a hand seal for her Mind Body Numbing Technique. She had given them a rundown through the technique when they decided on what to do, and it was perfect for their objective. Especially since Eiji had warned against actively taking over the woman's mind.

Naruto, meanwhile, sent a bunch of kunai with seal tags that embedded themselves around the woman. His new and modified weight seals, apparently derived from Eiji's training weight ones, pinned her to the ground instantly. He didn't stop there though, continuing to send more and more.

"What do I do?" Kiba asked, with a frown and a snarl, unsure of how to contribute. Unsurprisingly, since he didn't have much in his repertoire that would help contain a target.

"Shika?" Neither did Chouji, who seemed equally hesitant to join.

Shikamaru opened his mouth, ready to tell them to be on guard duty, in case the woman escaped their attempts. Then he paused and frowned, while he laid his body on the floor face down.

"What are you doing?" The Inuzuka asked, looking at him strangely.

The Nara was too busy thinking to reply to him, however.

"Driving our target into the ground," Ino answered for him, pointing out how the woman was doing the same as Shikamaru.

"Damn brats," They heard the kunoichi growl and their eyes widened when red chakra started manifesting from her body.

"Shino… what was that idea of yours?" Shikamaru asked. "I would like to hear it now," He ground out before speaking again. "As for you, Chouji, Kiba, I have something else for you to do