Desertion !

Day 610

— "Heiwa you say ?" Repeated a man in the midst of many others who were gathered around another.

The scene was in one of the small villages of Hi No Kuni and the inhabitants were listening to what one of their number had to say about his latest journey to a neighbouring country. Indeed, rumours were flying about a country that had not suffered at all from the last war. On the contrary, it seemed to stand out for its wealth, its trade and the work it could provide for those who wished to settle there.

— "Hai ! This is the best place I have ever seen !" Exclaimed the man while gesturing to his audience. "The capital is located in a valley that is teeming with people and food is grown here in abundance."

— "How big ?" Asked another person intrigued by these revelations.

— "As far as the eye can see !" Said the merchant. "I've seen fields that are probably a kilometre long."

— "That can't be !" Protested one of the farmers who could not imagine such plantations. "It takes dozens and dozens of men to cultivate such large areas !"

— "I swear it ! That's what I saw ! We've known each other for years and I'm not one to lie, especially since this is nothing compared to the capital. It's indescribable because there are so many things... it's not even a city anymore because there are so many houses and inhabitants. Those who live there speak of a city, because it is much larger than the thousands of residents."

This new statement provoked exclamations and exchanges of surprised and incredulous looks among the villagers. The man had succeeded in arousing their curiosity and desire to see for themselves all that he had just described.

— "How do they do it ?" Asked another person, still in shock at the surreal descriptions.

— "I don't know, in any case the Daimyô of this country must be immensely rich to have all this. The city is surrounded by a wall four times the height of our houses if not more ! And the resources... the people seem to lack nothing ! There is no famine, joy and serenity are present in the streets of this place..."

— "If it's so good, why did you come back ?"

— "Because they need labour," replied the travelling salesman.

— "What do you mean ?" Several people in the audience asked at the same time.

— "I wanted to set up there but it's not that easy. There are many steps to go through before you are allowed to live there. But once you've done that, they ask you if you know people who are looking for a new life where they will not lack work and where they will be safe. And if I knew any, I had to go and find them and tell them about Heiwa and take them there. In doing so, they promised me that I would be paid handsomely."

This explanation elicited even greater whispers in the assembly. Since when did a country pay its citizens if they brought other people to settle there. It seemed totally unbelievable but the merchant who was giving his information was not known for telling lies. So what he was saying could only be the truth.

— "Security ?" Someone was concerned.

— "Yes, their system is impressive ! I've never seen so many soldiers in one place ! There are horsemen on the roads, squads on the streets and such discipline that I have never felt safer than in the streets of this city."

— "What makes you think we'll follow you ?" Asked someone who was sceptical that such a possibility existed. It was natural that he would ask so many questions because what the man was describing sounded like a mirage.

— "I told you : they really want other people to join them."

— "And how would we get there ? We barely have enough to survive here ! There's nothing left and we don't have the resources to make such a long journey," retorted one of the village elders.

— "That's just it ! When I told them where I was from and that my village was likely to come, they provided me with a wagon with food inside... they just warned me that if I betrayed them they would know and... and... I'd rather not think about what they might do to me," the merchant said with a shudder.

Indeed, the merchant remembered that day very well.

The man who had entrusted him with the wagon and the horse had made it clear that he had no interest in betraying the trust he had placed in him. The merchant had even been frightened because he had discovered that day that the magical powers sometimes described were not just a legend. As a merchant he was well placed to say that everything in life had a price, and that of a peaceful life was that of unfailing loyalty. It didn't take a great deal of calculation to realise that it wasn't much of a price to pay, the price was so much greater than the price.

But this kind of event was not an isolated case, on the contrary, similar scenes were taking place in all the elemental nations. The world was learning about Ta No Kuni and what it had to offer, all without violence. And in this period of peace, the populations scarred by the last conflict were totally receptive to such living conditions.

However, what was initially taken as a rumour gained momentum across the elemental nations who could no longer ignore the more than likely existence of a place where living conditions were exceptional. This situation did not please everyone, and even less so the various leaders of the different countries who could only watch helplessly as the populations left.

Indeed, when it came to civilians, they were free to leave their villages without any explanation : they did not have to answer to anyone. But as far as the military corps, soldiers and shinobi were concerned, they could not do as they pleased. They were even forbidden to leave or they would be considered deserters. And if they broke the law, the penalties could be terrible, up to and including execution.

And, in these post-war times, the leaders had to deal not only with a shrinking civilian population but also with the risk of high desertions from their armed forces.

In both cases, this was not a very serene situation, as each country was struggling to recover from the previous conflict.

It was in this tense context that Hiruzen Sarutobi, the Sandaime Hokage of Konoha decided that it was time to learn more about this city that was on the lips of all these villagers. And before doing anything, he sent one of his best spies :

— "Go ! You know what you have to do. I will act on your report."

The man, one knee on the ground, nodded and stood up before disappearing into a puff of smoke.

Hiruzen Sarutobi watched as his village struggled to recover from the war. He had to find out the secrets of this town to make it so appealing.

Day 650

On the Ta No Kuni side, the concerns were of a different nature. Three men were walking along the main road just outside Heiwa. One of them stopped as they could see the edge of the thriving city they had been building for so many months.

— "This is our problem of the day Uchiha-dono, Uzumaki-dono," said Daiki.

— "Well ?" Ashina asked casually.

— "The demographic change is getting bigger and bigger every day. At this rate the city won't be able to accommodate anyone by the end of the year. And it would be a waste of time and resources to rebuild the wall," Daiki explained, gesturing to the fortification.

— "That's not a problem," Madara said, looking at the wall.

— "What do you mean ?" Daiki worried, perplexed that the Heikage was so unconcerned about the situation.

— "According to your calculations, how much should the city be expanded ?" Madara asked, ignoring the previous question.

— "At least a quarter, but expanding is too restrictive."

— "On which side ? West or east ?" The dark-haired man asked sharply, a sign that he wanted to have the essential data to act.

— "West would be best," Daiki answered, not sure why Madara was asking these questions.

The son of the Daimyô wondered what he was going to propose : they would still have a problem in that area since there was a mountain that would take years to dig down into a habitable area. He was about to make this last remark but was taken aback by the Heikage's attitude. The latter had turned around and was walking slowly, civilian style, towards the west of the city. Ashina followed suit, wondering what the Uchiha could offer to solve the problem.

They arrived at the west side of the city and stationed themselves in front of a mountain.

At first glance, there was no way to expand it except to blow up the mountain. But it would still take time to prepare the ground and build a protective wall.

— "What are you going to do Madara ?" Asked the Uzumaki who could only think of one technique that could be a solution : Doton Terafomingu.

The Uchiha answered nothing, he stared at the mountain before him and concentrated. He had mastered the Doton, but he had to think bigger than just manipulating the element of earth.

He performed the mudra of the rooster, the dog, the dragon and the snake while activating his Rinnegan, whose concentric rings widened. He channeled his chakra under the silent gazes of Ashina and Daiki.

When no one was expecting it, a dull cracking sound began to echo throughout the valley. The mountain had just split and the cracking sounds of the rock continued steadily until they slowly rose into the sky.

The valley was a visual and sonic mess, which caused some reactions of shock and concern as everyone who turned towards the deafening noise was witnessing something completely insane. The mountain continued to break up into various pieces of rock that floated off the ground for a moment before falling back with an equally deafening noise in presumably specific locations.

Everyone who was close enough to the western area saw that the phenomenon they were witnessing was solely the result of the magic practiced by Madara Uchiha. He was making a natural wall out of all the boulders torn from the mountain.

After a while, the noise stopped just as abruptly as it had started.

— "There... now you have a natural wall and the equivalent of half the current city to build new living areas, I'll get back to my business," Madara said before disappearing in front of everyone's stunned eyes.

There was reason to be shocked by what had just happened, for no one had ever seen anything like this before. Madara Uchiha had done what could be called terraforming.

Ashina silently watched what the dark-haired man had just accomplished. As he slowly stroked his moustache, he thought about what he could do to continue what Madara had started.

— "Hmmm, I think this natural wall needs to be upgraded, as well as the one already built," Ashina stated to himself.

— "How do you want to improve it ? It was built by the best architects and everything was thought out to have the best defense possible," Daiki defended himself.

— "Yes, but not against shinobi... leave it to me, I'll install some Fûinjutsu formulas to make it stronger," Ashina answered, already thinking of a lot of different formulas to make this wall impregnable.

Day 710

Almost a year had passed since Tsunade Senju had made the bitter discovery that all the members of her clan were missing. The war had taken so long to end that her late uncle had had no choice but to recruit children and women of any age with Ninjutsu skills.

Even mothers with small children had to go to the front, leaving their offspring in the care of the few old women still alive. But the war and especially the lack of resources had those fatal consequences on the last members of the clan... starvation, then death.

And since this horrible discovery that she was the last of her family to be alive, the blonde teenager had only one idea in mind : to become stronger.

So she spent the next few months studying every day, months perfecting her chakra skills. She had not stopped going through the book provided by Sakura Haruno. She knew it inside and out in order to become a medic ninja as it was described.

However, she had undertaken this training in the greatest secrecy with Jiraiya. The teenager was the only one she had confided in... he was after all one of the few who could understand her pain and above all, he had been the one who had had the right words to comfort her.

But today, Tsunade Senju was not studying, it was no longer time to learn but to pass the first test. The blonde was sitting cross-legged in front of a low table. She had placed the green-covered book the pink-haired woman had given her on top of it.

This book was unique.

Not only because of the amount of information it contained, but also because Sakura had adapted it for Tsunade. Indeed, she had applied Fûinjutsu seals that would only be activated when Tsunade was ready to discover the purpose of all this learning.

The young blonde had had to study and practice all the exercises in the book to get to the end where it simply said : "Do you think you are ready ? If so, activate me."

Tsunade inhaled deeply, she was confident despite the slight apprehension she might feel. It was understandable since she didn't know what would happen when she triggered the seal. She channeled her chakra and placed her finger on the Fûinjutsu formula written just below the last sentence. The seal activated and a small puff of smoke materialized which made the girl jump.

Once dissipated, the smoke gave way to a pile of leaves.

— "An examination ?" Tsunade said as she took the sheets in her hand.

This was her test !

So for the next few hours, the blonde answered all the questions in front of her as best she could. Many of the questions were obvious to her, while others required more thought on her part. But it was with a great sigh of relief and satisfaction that Tsunade put down her pen after answering the last question.

— "Phew..."

Just a few seconds after she put down her quill, the last sheet lit up with a Fûinjutsu seal that made the scroll blank before a sentence appeared :

'Meet me in Heiwa.'

— "Heiwa ?" Tsunade asked aloud.

She had heard about this place, as had more and more people. Did this woman live there ? Was she responsible for what was happening there ? Would it be the right thing to join her ? So many questions flooded the young blonde's mind that she lay down on the floor before looking up at the ceiling.

— "What do I have to lose ?" Tsunade whispered as the ball of sadness slowly returned to the back of her throat. She remembered that she had almost nothing left in Konoha, no family... even her sensei.

Since the end of the war, the sensei of Team Seven, Sarutobi Hiruzen had little time to spend with his students. The survival of his village was paramount and that took up most of his time. Her teammate Orochimaru had also changed since the end of the war... or rather, since the death of his parents.

Tsunade had suffered the loss of her entire clan, but unlike Orochimaru, she had the support of Jiraiya. But now, aside from the white-haired teenager, there was nothing keeping her in this village.

She turned her gaze to the coffee table on which the exam she had just completed was laid out. She couldn't figure it out, but she felt the need to reach this person, as if she knew it was the only thing she should do : a hunch.

— "Tomorrow..."

— "Tomorrow what ?" Jiraiya's voice said as he entered the room.

Tsunade was so deep in thought that she had forgotten that her friend came to her house almost every day to check on her.

— "Nothing," the blonde said hastily as she straightened up to gather all the papers in front of her.

— "Are you sure ?" Insisted the teenager who knew very well when the blonde was lying to him. It was rare, but he knew her well enough and he was a very observant ninja to detect the slightest trace of a lie.

— "H-Hai..."

— "You know you can tell me anything Tsunade, I'm the last person in this village who will divulge your secrets," Jiraiya said softly as he moved closer to the blonde.

She brought her legs up to her chest and wrapped her arms around them. She then buried her head in them and sighed.

— "Promise me you won't get mad..."

— "Me get angry ?" He replied surprised, it was not really in his temperament.

— "You're right... promise me you won't do anything... stupid," the blonde corrected.

— "You're asking a lot of me, Hime, but for you, I promise," the teenager conceded with a small pout.

Tsunade sighed before straightening her head and looking around to see if anyone was hiding.

— "I intend to leave the village tomorrow," the blonde finally said.

— "Why ?" Jiraiya asked confusedly.

— "I finished Sakura's book and at the end was a hidden exam... and... and I passed."

— "Why would passing this exam cause you to leave your home ?" The boy wondered.

— "Because after I passed it a sentence finally appeared and I know where to find Sakura. And... and I'd like to ask her to become her apprentice," Tsunade admitted, this was the only thought that had been on her mind since she had studied the book for so long.

At the beginning of her studies, she had immersed herself completely in the explanations and exercises. But without really realising it, she wanted to be able to learn even more and only Sakura could give her that. And now that she'd said it out loud and told someone else, it was crystal clear : this is what she wanted most in the world.

— "What about us ?"

— "What about us ?" The blonde wondered.

— "Sensei... Orochimaru... me..." the teenager clarified.

— "Jiraiya... you know very well how I feel, I don't want to be helpless anymore, I don't want to see my loved ones die."

— "Except that you will leave the last ones you love behind."

— "I have nothing left Jiraiya," she breathed with despair in her voice.

Hearing this sentence the young boy felt his heart clench. He obviously understood what she was referring to, but that didn't stop him from being disappointed in some way. Had she still not understood ?

— "You have me," Jiraiya whispered, lowering his eyes to the ground.

— "Please Jiraiya, you told me that you would help me become as strong as this woman, so please don't try to change my mind."

The teenager realized that she must have hurt the young man with her words. Of course he was there, he had always been there. She didn't ignore the feelings he had for her and she didn't care about them either. But this was the path she wanted to take, she couldn't force it on him. Yes, she knew the consequences of deserting her village and she knew the boy well, who would surely do everything he could to prevent her from carrying out her plan.

— "If I can't convince you to stay in Konoha, let me come with you," Jiraiya offered confidently.

— "I beg your pardon ?"

— "If you leave, I won't have anyone left...I only have you Tsunade."

Day 715

A plain-looking man was sitting in a place away from the crowds and the eyes of the city of Heiwa. It had been weeks since he had been sent there to find out if this country was a real threat to the world.

No one had seen him, no one could remember him because that was one of his main abilities : to be transparent. Not in the literal sense, but because he could blend in completely with the crowd without drawing attention to himself.

It was not for nothing that Hiruzen Sarutobi had called upon him. Among his colleagues, he was the only one capable of carrying out the mission requested.

He was not an exceptional shinobi because of his fighting skills, but because of his espionage skills. Indeed, his chakra reserve was barely higher than that of a civilian, which allowed him to camouflage it very easily without arousing suspicion if he encountered sensory ninjas.

Secondly, his Dôjutsu allowed him to observe and seek out the information he needed. The Hyûga was therefore the ideal candidate to accomplish the mission requested by the Hokage.

During all these weeks, he had been observing, listening, calculating, taking notes and he was surprised at the logistics put in place to manage this place. There was just one thing that was strange, there was one part of the city he couldn't explore. As soon as he got close to it, he had the irresistible urge to go and look elsewhere, and that's what he did.

Surely, this area had been protected by the famous illusion stick reworked by Ashina. No one, and especially not outsiders to the city, should know about the ninja troops Heiwa had.

Even if they were confident in their security system, the Uchiha and Uzumaki knew that sooner or later the nearby hidden villages would send spies their way. The quest for information was the key and all the leaders knew it. You can't judge your neighbour and classify them as an ally or enemy without knowing more about them. So they could do nothing to prevent espionage at the risk of revealing unnecessary details, like the fact that Madara was still alive.

And after all these weeks of observation, the spy made his report for his Hokage :

'It's no longer a village, it's no longer a town, it's way over. I count easily more than ten thousand inhabitants in the whole valley. There is an organisation and a management of the country like I have never seen elsewhere.

Trade is flourishing, resources are plentiful, and I'm not even talking about the country's wealth. I managed to infiltrate the city's coffers and what I saw there left me speechless: money as far as the eye can see.

I think that the Daimyô discovered a gold or silver mine in the mountain to have such wealth and that's why they have developed so much. Thanks to this they have also increased their armed troops, however there are no shinobi or if there are any they can be counted on the fingers of one hand.

I await your response for the next phase of the plan.

Bird in a cage.'

Day 720

Sakura had just finished her post-delivery rehabilitation session. It had been over five months since she had become a mother and as soon as her physical condition allowed, the Kunoichi had begun to take care of her body that had been transformed by the pregnancy and she had started training again. More than any other mother, Sakura couldn't afford to have any physiological concerns.

She was glad she had enough knowledge to help her body recover from such an ordeal. She was studying a stack of scrolls she was working on for her healing centre.

Meanwhile, Madara was not far behind her. The man had discovered the joys of fatherhood. The first few times he had acted like a ninja of his own, he had observed this little being that was his flesh and blood, but he had not dared to interact with it.

He was both curious and a little afraid of not knowing how to handle it. A legitimate fear of the men of that time, who considered this field to be reserved for women. But Sakura was not a woman of the Sengoku era and she had decided to awaken the paternal fibre in her husband. She was convinced that he was capable of taking care of their daughter very well. That is why one day, when Nozumi was only a few weeks old, Sakura slipped the infant into Madara's arms.

— "I entrust her to you Madara, I have to start my rehabilitation and I can't take care of her for a while."

The man had wanted to protest but his wife's determined tone made it clear that he had no choice. And from that day on, Madara enjoyed taking care of their child. An infant was not as frightening or as fragile as he had thought. On the contrary, he quickly saw the rapid changes in the child's physical and motor development.

Now, soon to be half a year old, Madara took advantage of every moment he had to spend with his daughter. He was a loving yet authoritative father. But when Sakura caught herself watching them out of the corner of her eye, her heart clenched with joy. The bond between them was so strong that the man didn't need to express it verbally. One only had to see the way he looked into Nozumi's eyes to understand what she meant to him : a future of peace.

Madara would never admit it openly, but he was the happiest of men. He had found the woman who filled his life with happiness, he had become a father, he had succeeded in building his own city where peace was the key word. Nothing could be more perfect than what Sakura had done since his fight with Hashirama. He was glad that she had chosen to save him and help him fulfill his dream...

— "Sakura-sama," a guard announced to the young woman who was engrossed in her pile of scrolls. "There's someone here to see you," the man continued, standing at attention.

— "Who is it ?" Asked the rose, who was still struggling with all this respect and protocol towards her. She had managed to earn the respect of her peers in her old days, but this time it was different... she was respected as a superior.

— "They preferred to remain anonymous, but they said they came from you."

— "Send them in," Sakura said and began to think about who they might be. She'd been around the world for so long and talked to so many people that she couldn't remember who she'd invited to join her here.

Then the door opened and Sakura's heart leapt with pleasure, a smile appeared on her face and she had to hold back tears that were welling up in the corners of her eyes. She was happy to see the newcomers, especially a young girl who stood proudly before her.

— "You finally made it," Sakura said as she put down the scroll she was reading.

— "Hai," replied the newcomer.

— "I assume that if you're here it's because you have a request of me."

— "We would like to become your apprentices so that we can become like you," Tsunade answered with conviction.

— "I accept your request Tsunade, but I can't fulfill your entire request."

— "How so ?"

— "I can train you Tsunade, because you have the chakra control, you have the basics, you have the motivation and because I only want one apprentice. So I am forced to refuse your request for a partner," Sakura said seriously.

An uneasiness suddenly settled over the room at Sakura's announcement. The two teenagers had not expected this at all and were taking the news in.

— "What will happen to me then ? Who could train me ?" Jiraiya asked, speaking for the first time since the beginning. He was somehow sad that he couldn't be trained by this powerful woman, but more importantly he was worried about what would happen to him if no one took care of him. Should he return to Konoha ?

But while all sorts of questions were running through his mind, a hand came to rest on his shoulder and he turned his head to come face to face with a torso. He looked up and saw a man who made his eyes widen in amazement.

— "Me ! I will train you..."

Before him stood Uchiha Madara.