Oshio vs Urashiki

Naruto: Tales of Ashihara

Kakumei – Arc 4: Might Makes Right

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Chapter 87 – Oshio vs Urashiki

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On the battlefield of the 4th war, Sasuke stands in front of the soul of Madara Uchiha that he just summoned with his left eye. The former jinchuriki of Juubi looks around and recognizes the place where he fought against the nations.

"How long has it been since this battle?" asks the founder of Konoha. "10? or 20 years?… What do you need my knowledge for?"

"20 years ago, when you became Jinchuriki of Juubi, you went through a complete rewriting of your genes." Sasuke says, going straight to the point. "I believe you had to witness a specific plane of existence to go through this transformation."

"You mean the Rikudo realm?" Madara guesses, with a smile.

Sasuke simply nods, pleasantly surprised that this summoning turns out to be helpful.

"I was aware of its existence long before the 4th war." the ghost explains. "I suppose Zetsu had led me to discover this. But I cannot believe that you aren't familiar with it. You certainly saw that place before, but simply weren't aware of its purpose and name."

"What do you know of this place?" Sasuke asks, not willing to waste any time with small talk.

"Hm!… Let's say it is the space between reality and the afterlife that connects souls to living bodies." he tries to put it simply. "The Rikudo-sennin baptized Ninshu the ability to connect people through this realm. Used this way… It lets people influence each other's knowledge and hearts. Since it served no purpose to ninjas, it was quickly abandoned following the Rikudo's passing."

Sasuke wonders about this idea. It does indeed sound familiar. A plane here one can connect with the soul of another person in order to reach its heart… It looks like what Naruto did to him several times through their fights… Could it be that Naruto has been unknowingly using this power his whole life? This would explain why the Biju kept calling him the second coming of the Rikudo-sennin.

"Of course, it can also be used to transmit knowledge and mastery in a far more efficient way than a regular lesson." Madara adds. "I believe this is how you and Naruto got to first be taught about your newly awakened abilities. Which you should probably thank me for… Had I not put you two on the verge of death, you would never have been able to meet with the Rikudo-sennin in person and receive his blessing."

"You would have lost all the same." Sasuke frankly responds. "You were a simple pawn to Kaguya. She would have taken over anyway."

"I would have lost and seen the terrible truth behind my plan, yes." Madara argues. "But so would you have. Without the power you received to defeat me, the world would have fallen to the rabbit demon again."

"This left eye is my own. Not just a gift." the wanderer replies. "Whatever the Rikudo-sennin did, it only brought to the surface what was already ours. Now tell me about how a body can go through the transformations you had as a Jinchuriki. I was told that this realm is where the gods are built. What does it mean?"

"…" Madara first doesn't say anything, a bit pissed off by Sasuke's tone. But since it is his only purpose at the moment, he answers. "When one receives the power of the Rikudo, it comes with a rethinking of his being. As the chakra of Juubi was made mine, it had to adapt my body to its presence. I was transported to the Rikudo realm where I saw my body being rebuilt as that of a god. However, I was in no control of my transformation and could only barely choose my own update. I only had the time to fuse a few chakra natures as Kekkei Genkai powers within my new genes."

"… This likely explains how the Yin and Yang seal suddenly caused us to awaken these powers…" Sasuke wonders. "But so it means that a unique trigger is needed to get this kind of biologic update."

"Yes. As I see it, this update can only be the power of the God Tree itself. As the Juubi, or as a chakra fruit, like in the tale of Kaguya."

Sasuke tries to connect these sayings with Oshio's case. Madara, not hearing any other question, gazes at the one in front of him, and gets somehow emotional.

"It's hard to believe that you're the same Sasuke who fought against me at this exact place." he remarks. "You seem completely different. I could almost say that I feel proud of what you have become. You still being here must mean that you didn't follow the same path as me and that Hashirama's dream really came true."

"This isn't the 1st Hokage's world. His ideal is still at stake nowadays." Sasuke answers. "What will remain, and forever, is Naruto's world. People like you and me, with a troubled vision of this world, still exist. It is up to me to make sure nobody repeats our mistakes."

"I assume these people aren't the same as us." Madara guesses. "I don't have any knowledge of what happened in this world after my death. But since you're on Naruto's side, I guess you are in Konoha. Did you rebuild the Uchiha clan?""

"My family lives in Konoha, as you originally intended, but I'm not here to chat." Sasuke replies, slowly getting into the conversation. "My enemies aren't the 'same as us', but the person I have to deal with currently is."

"… Your child?" Madara guesses, thinking that the only way for other Uchiha to exist is to be Sasuke's children. "So the Uchiha path still persists. The mother must be that student of Hashirama's granddaughter. How many children do you have?"

"I have 3…" the wanderer first replies, not holding back his inner pride. "Enough with the chat, you told me what I needed. I'll undo the summoning now."

"Oh, calm down, Sasuke." Madara sassily remarks. "You know, I came to learn that we were partly the same person. So there shouldn't be any secrets between us…"

"… Now that you've mentioned it, I do have one other question." Sasuke remembers, thinking of his children again. "My Rinnegan has 6 tomoe, while your pair and the Rikudo-sennin's had none. Do you know what this means?"

"Hm? As shameful as it may sound, I have to admit that my Rinnegan was never truly mine." Madara says. "It was just the eyes of the Rikudo-sennin that I could awaken by copying his genes. Yours is different. I assumed that the look meant that you could use your Sharingan's abilities with it as well. Is there more to it?"

"Frankly… I met someone with an eye like mine, but only 3 tomoe." he explains. "Since he also can use his Sharingan's abilities with it, I guess you're about that, but why does he have only 3? What more do I have?"

Madara stays quiet for a moment and stitches the pieces of Sasuke's speech together. The person with the Rinnegan, his child and the one he has to deal with must be one same person. His first question about the Rikudo Realm must be because he wants to know how his son awakened this eye. It seems like the end of the cycle of hatred created by Kaguya and Zetsu led the world to an even more messy path.

"You're asking questions that you're more entitled to answer than I am." he mocks. "Could it have anything to do with the Rinne-Sharingan, the eye that I awakened by absorbing Shinju?"

"Kaguya and Juubi's Dojutsu?" Sasuke questions himself. This eye had mystical powers beyond even what the Rinnegan can do. It must be something different, but the similarity in looks is worth investing in. Since he stays quiet, Madara has time to get back to his previous train of thought, and decides to say the goodbyes.

"Whatever is happening with your child, it was certainly caused by an exterior force." he comments. "For me, Indra and everyone in between, we were only manipulated by Zetsu. If your kid takes a similar path, there has to be something such as Kaguya again."

"Good guess, but you're teaching me nothing." Sasuke replies, deranged by the ghost's deductive ability. "I know very well who took him away, gave him this eye and led him to this path."

"… What are you up against, Sasuke?" Madara worriedly asks, confused by the possible existence of something beyond Kaguya.

"Something you're glad you died too soon to see." the wanderer simply says before making the same hand sign as earlier. "This was helpful, Madara. I let you return to the afterlife."

After these words, he frees Madara from the summoning. The ghost lightly laughs, surprised by what became of the world but relieved by the strong will of its protectors, and vanishes.

Sasuke establishes his theories thanks to Madara's information. Momoshiki must have brought Oshio to the Rikudo realm by giving him a chakra fruit, and transformed him into what he is now, just like he updated himself by eating his father. And after that, he must have connected their souls like Naruto can do, through Ninshuu, to transmit parts of his wisdom to him.

This explanation is plausible, even though it raises another question. How much can this Rikudo realm really be used to rebuild someone's genetics. Did Momoshiki simply give a fruit to anybody and orchestrated his rebirth to make him a replica of Sasuke? This makes him wonder how much different Oshio was before.

No. This explanation can't be right. If Oshio really had no connection with him before, why would Momoshiki specifically have chosen to make him a son of Sasuke, when he could as well have made him his own child, or the child of any other being? There has to be another connection between Oshio and Sasuke. At least one thing seems sure, Momoshiki definitely gave him something such as a fruit, which would explain his Rinnegan.

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At the same time in Hikarigakure, Urashiki Otsutsuki stands above the village. He, who was forced to interrupt his wanderings with Momoshiki due to the critical state Sasuke Uchiha had put him in, comes closer to the highest roof between the village's entrance and the great castle.

Oshio, as the sovereign of this territory, leaves his balcony and goes to address the intruder in the name of his population. He lands on the said roof and looks up to see the slowly descending celestial being.

"You must be an Otsutsuki." he says. "If you came looking for Kaguya, Momoshiki or Kinshiki, you're too late. One has been sealed for over a millennium, and the two others were killed by the heroes of the above continent nearly 7 years ago."

Urashiki does not reply, already well aware of these facts. He slowly comes closer and activates his Byakugan to analyze the Uchiha's chakra.

"Hm. Yes. Momoshiki-senpai definitely gave you one of his fruits." he comments. "Which is why you have this sacred left eye, and such pure chakra. However, it seems like his gift turned against him."

"What do you mean?" Oshio asks, not understanding how he turned against the one who cursed him with power.

"This special chakra he gave you. It's preventing his own presence from growing inside you."

"What the hell are you talking about?"

"Mere human…" Urashiki prepares to explain. "You should be well aware that, as a simple subspecies, your eyes should have gone blind from their might long ago. The only thing preventing it is the Shinsen energy, or as you call it Rikudo chakra, of the fruit you consumed. Now if this chakra was to be pulled out of you, you wouldn't be able to rely on it to preserve your metabolism anymore. Which means the other forces that inhabit your body would be set free to take its place."

Oshio, giving up on understanding what other force this man is talking about, reverses the situation and uses his eyes' power to analyze Urashiki's chakra and abilities.

Futsunushi

"You're very similar to Kinshiki and Momoshiki, but not as impressive." he starts to say, which Urashiki gladly listens to. "These must be common traits among your whole clan. Superhuman strength, durability, chakra reserve… You constantly absorb natural energy from the world you stand in, can bend space around you to levitate, use a pair of Byakugan, all the basic chakra elements, accelerated healing… Common traits as I said. Apart from that, you know a jutsu that causes a leap a few seconds forward in time, but even yourself are subject to it. You are also capable of manifesting a weapon that can capture people's chakra. With the captured energy, you can use the victim's powers as your own, but it only works as long as the chakra doesn't run out."

"Hahaha!" the Otsutsuki laughs at this monologue. "So you're seeing all the possible actions executable through my chakra. What a funny ability. I'd like to see this used on the Ryu Shinsen… This jutsu may come in handy against an inferior being with simple chakra circulation, since you would also easily guess what he is about to use at any moment. However, against a god with a complex, undecipherable, chakra body like me, it is pointless. In other words, you are capable of knowing my every movement, but not predict them and react in consequence… Knowing everything doesn't make you ready to face it."

After this last sentence he lightly bends forward, preparing to come closer. Oshio lightly bends his knees, ready to receive an offensive, but gets surprised all the same.

Minogame

Urashiki is suddenly just next to Oshio, with his heel pressed against the Uchiha's abdomen, pushing him far away. With a leap in time, he hurried the universe just a second forward and jumped directly to the moment where he hit Oshio, preventing any reaction to the skipped events.

Oshio coughs, taken by surprise, and is pushed off the roof, falling through buildings and walls until crashing in front of his own castle, in the middle of the crowd of villagers who were celebrating a second ago. Shaken, he stands and looks up to see a gigantic water torrent fall from the sky toward his dear people.

Gakido

Using his left eye, he absorbs the water as it falls. While busied by this, he sees the citizens of Hikari being carried out of range by the ninjas and members of Kakumei. He keeps absorbing the jutsu, but realizes he can't keep going like this, not to overdose on its natural energy.

Shinra Tensei

He pushes through the water stream with a repulsion, blasting it and turning it into a light rain instead. Now angered by the invader's careless attack on his people, he rises and unleashes the upper body of his black Susanoo, resembling the armored version of Itachi Uchiha, but bigger and covered with a layer of wide pointy scales.

"You Otsutsuki are all the same bastards!" he shouts out. "No compassion! No regard for human lives!"

"Isn't that obvious?" Urashiki responds. "To us, these poor beings are nothing more than animals. The result of a downgrading evolution."

Pissed off by this mentality, Oshio's Susanoo stands up and shows its complete body rising in front of the castle that's around the same height as him. In his hand now appears an ethereal blade. The original version of the sword that he can also summon as a minimized human scale version.

Futsu no Mitama

He dashes this absorbing blade through the sky and attempts to slice the Otsutsuki in half. Urashiki pulls out his black rod and blocks the sword. He is however repelled by the strength of its swing, sending him off the borders of the village to the forest.

Through the connections made by his white rods, Oshio hears the voices of Kakumei's members interrogating their leader. In the middle of their complaints, he hears Kawaki.

"I'm coming to help you!" the general declares.

"Don't you dare!" Oshio answers angrily. "You stay back! Like everyone else! Get everyone to safety. I'll take care of this virus."

After these words, the black Susanoo leaps off the ground and lands in the forest, where it sent Urashiki. Oshio raises his majestic sword and prepares to throw it down wherever he sees his target. But before he finds him, an inorganic dome gets in shape around him.

Doton – O Doro Domu (Great Dome Prison)

Urashiki creates a giant hemispherical dome, wide enough to imprison the 100 meters tall spectral armor. Once closed, the 20 meter thick walls start swallowing the energy inside. Oshio, just beginning to see his armor fade off, swings his sword down, cutting through the dome, and keeps its blade dug in to absorb the chakra back. It quickly dries the jutsu from all the chakra it absorbed and collapses the prison.

Futon – Cho Gofusen Rendan (Super Great Balloon Barrage)

As soon as free from the dome, the Susanoo is struck by countless wind twisters that violently push it backward, making it fall over to the ground. Now lying on the ground, the Susanoo gets held in position by dozens of giant stone spires emerging from the soil to bind it. While stuck, Oshio notices Urashiki standing above and quickly coming closer. He dispels his armor to escape and prepares a jutsu just as Urashiki powerfully lands in front of him.

Katon – Ryuen Hokka

He expels a bunch of great dragon fire heads that go toward Urashiki.

Ameno Subaruboshi

The Otsutsuki finally reveals the red chakra string of his rod and swings its hook through all the dragon projectiles, gripping the chakra inside and turning them all off. As he collects and swallows the chakra, he is forced down by the ground under his feet being lowered into a corridor. A corridor with only Oshio and him face to face.

In this narrow space, the Uchiha creates and projects black chakra rods from his hands to the enemy as piercing projectiles. Urashiki either dodges or deflects them with his fishing rod. After half a hundred rods raining, Oshio throws one last that Urashiki evades as well. Noticing that it flies off into his opponent's Byakugan blindspot, he uses it again.

Chimatakami

He creates a space rift that swallows the flying rod and releases it going the other way right behind Urashiki, who suddenly feels it piercing through his back to his abdomen. Unlike most human weapons, it can lightly pierce the Otsutsuki's flesh thanks to the Rikudo nature of the user's chakra. Unpleasantly surprised, Urashiki leaps straight forward in the corridor to reach his opponent who prepares to physically receive him with another black rod forming in his hand.

Reppusho

Without touching him, Urashiki strikes Oshio from close up with a strong wind palm that sends him fluttering all the way to the end of the corridor where he crashes into the wall, spits out blood, but quickly focuses again, not yet ready to lose.

Bansho Tenin

He pulls the Otsutsuki closer to him and makes him lose grip and uncontrollably fly toward him through the corridor. He rapidly plunges forward at the same time and stabs through his enemy's heart. Urashiki shockingly stares at the tool piercing him.

"Woh! This eye will always amaze me!" he praises the Rinnegan before his counterattack.

Doton – Kame Zutsuki (Turtle Head butt)

After slamming his foot to the ground, a turtle statue swiftly emerges from the soil and fiercely hits Oshio in the abdomen again. Kakumei's leader is lifted off the ground and propelled to the sky, back to his village. He crashes on top of his palace, and gets on his knees looking around to find his opponent again. After a few seconds he sees him setting foot on the same roof.

Chimatakami

He opens a portal right in front of him and lets the output appear above Urashiki who quickly notices it.

"The same trick won't work twice." the celestial says just as he catches on a black rod falling on him from the gate. But the Otsutsuki spoke too soon.

Katon – Goka Messhitsu (Great Fire Destruction)

From the same gate now emerges a massive torrent of flames that Oshio expels in the input. Urashiki has just time to gasp before being drowned in this hell breath. Spectating with the villagers from another roof, Kawaki and the other members of Kakumei see this huge flame destruction cover the sky above the castle, painting it orange. Oshio, still on the roof, covers himself with Gakido to prevent the flames from burning him.

This endless torrent incinerates the air above the village for many tens of seconds, leaving the citizens astonished. However, it is abruptly brought to an end by the Otsutsuki, who takes advantage of the fire covering his enemy's sight.

Ameno Subaruboshi

Unable to see it coming, Oshio's chest is suddenly pierced by the hook of Urashiki's fishing rod. Before he can react and attempt anything, the Otsutsuki uses his other best skill.

Minogame

Time skips to 5 seconds later. The fire cloud is fading away from the sky, leaving the Uchiha to see his opponent, severely burnt but standing straight, holding a mass of chakra in his hand that seems to be everything that he just pulled out of him. Kawaki, using the Byakugan that his Shojo seal gives him, witnesses the scene while everyone else has to guess it.

"Oshio!" he screams before jumping away to join him on the roof. Minoka, Fuyuko and the others stay there, hesitating and worried.

He lands on the roof after a single bound and finds his best friend on his knees, out of chakra with his Dojutsu turned off. The invader slowly comes walking toward him. Kawaki prepares to step in but sees his friend, breathing out in anguish, raising his hand to tell him not to move. Urashiki lets the chakra mass in his hand vanish in thin air.

"I don't need this. It's not the chakra I want." he says.

"Wh-What did you do to me?" Oshio asks.

"I got you rid of the Rikudo chakra in your body." he simply answers. "Now, for your eyes to not go blind, and your body to remain in shape, you have no choice but to let what Momoshiki has sealed inside you grow."

Oshio, with his eyes back to simple black irises, tries to see around, but finds it way more difficult than it used to be. He can already feel the difference. Using his eyes will now be way more consuming than before.

"Had it not been for Yamitsuki-sama's momentary leave, I would never have gotten an opportunity to come here." Urashiki comments gladly.

"What do you want?" Oshio now asks, considering himself the loser.

Urashiki crouches down next to him. By manipulating his chakra pathways, he forces Oshio to activate his Sharingan again and cast a low Genjutsu on them both. Kawaki sees them simply staring at each other for a few seconds as if they were communicating in a mystic way. Also leaping over to the castle, Meinu Imai lands next to Kawaki, still wearing nothing but a towel.

Urashiki Otsutsuki now stands up and looks at his burnt body, two stab wounds, and messed up clothes, a bit embarrassed.

"Tsk! I admit that I may have underestimated you." he says. "Leave me some time to heal." he adds before rising to the sky, flying off and disappearing in just a few seconds.

Kawaki and Meinu now run to the side of their ruler, finally allowed to check on him. Meinu gets to her knees and holds him against her. Kawaki evaluates his state and clenches his fists. They're joined by Fuyuko, Minoka and Akiko who's only wearing a towel like Meinu.

"We… We have to change our plans." Oshio says, slowly catching his breath. "Meinu, don't cancel your bounty contract on Ryuka's intel giver. You'll have to change your acquaintance's orders… I need a volunteer to take part in our next move. One of your friends from Ketsu will be fine… And Kawaki… I need you to prepare Minako Onikuma. She needs to be able to fully use her clan's Kekkei Genkai in two days."

Kawaki and Meinu look at each other, unsettled by these sudden requests that sound like pieces of an elaborated plan. What did the Otsutsuki and Oshio discuss right now, and how much time did they give themselves?

"We don't have much time…" Oshio adds. "Our new priority is to eliminate Naruto Uzumaki and my father as quickly as possible."

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In the land of Fire, very early the next morning in the Hokage's mansion, Izuna Uchiha is walking around the hallways, looking for his sensei when he comes across Saori Minamoto. Her presence in this building is quite unusual as she doesn't have any business with ninjas and politics anymore.

Izuna decides to discreetly follow her until she enters the Hokage's office. Unable to follow further, he just leans against the wall to listen on the other side. Behind him in the hall is Inoue who was sneakily following him. When he stops, she does the same a bit further, to keep spying on him.

In the office, Naruto is sitting in front of Konohamaru Sarutobi, who has his daughter, Satomi, climbing up his back and holding on to his blue scarf. The Sarutobi clan leader looks even more mature than 6 years ago. He now has a chinstrap beard with no mustache like his uncle Asuma. Saori, his wife, enters the room and salutes the Hokage.

"Hi, I just need you to tell me a few things about a name." Naruto says.

"I'm listening, Hokage." Saori replies.

"As I was saying to Konohamaru just now, an elderly citizen of Ryuka has contacted us. He says he can provide information about Oshio, the leader of Kakumei. This sounds odd to me because I really expected Sasuke to decipher this mystery, and certainly not any old man to help in that."

"Someone from Ryuka?" Saori questions. "So I guess he was around when I was the leader over there. But Hokage, I'm far from able to name all the villagers of Ryuka."

"Does Jin Heihachiro remind you anything?" Konohamaru asks her.

"Um… Maybe yes. Well, this guy used to have a souvenir shop before he retired. He was a business owner, so I know him. You know… Taxes, stuff like that… But yeah I really just know his name and business. I can't tell how he'd have any information on this Oshio guy."

"Well, I just entrusted your husband with the mission to go and meet this man." Naruto explains. "He may be targeted by Kakumei, so I need trustworthy ninjas to do it."

"I'm flattered, Lord Hokage, but…" Konohamaru starts to say.

"I told you many times to just call me Naruto." the Hokage insists.

"Um… Yes of course, Naruto… But my team has been dispatched. Denki Tatari and Ao Hyaku are on special force squads under Koji Kashin's commands now. They're not my students anymore."

"We just need to find the right team to go with you." Naruto says, before noticing the presence of Izuna listening from the other side of the door.

He quietly grins and, without any hand sign, makes a clone that appears right behind Izuna.

"What are you doing?" he quickly says in his ear.

Izuna gets startled, trembles, and tries to punch whoever is in his back by reflex. The clone of the 7th calmly stops his hand and lets it hit his palm. Izuna shockingly stares at who he just tried to disfigure, and walks away. He goes to rest against a wall where the Hokage joins him, also leaning against it. Inoue is still spying on him from a distance. Behind her, another clone of the Hokage discreetly bends down to do like her, unnoticed.

Seeing the young Uchiha's troubled emotions, Naruto decides that it's time for them to talk about it.

"You don't exactly know what to think about this, huh?" Naruto says, to no reply. "This boy may be your father's son. But he's older than you. So he should be your elder brother. How is this possible?"

Izuna remains silent. He just stares at the ground and keeps listening. Naruto goes on.

"I understand. In your place, I'd also expect answers I can believe. Maybe your dad's theories would be satisfying if they were a bit more complete. That Momoshiki is responsible for it, okay. But how? You wonder, huh? Me too… Maybe it happened to you, like it happened to me, to wonder about what having a big brother or big sister would be like. And now, it feels like it's come true out of nowhere, but not as you expected it. You wonder if there is a possibility that you and him one day share a regular brotherly bond."

Izuna looks at his sensei, a bit disturbed by how accurate these suppositions sound. The Hokage keeps going.

"But where is he from, first? Maybe what makes you angry and confused is the idea that if he had a normal life, he'd be in your place. But in this case where would you be? Would you exist? Would you be the leader of Kakumei? Or would you just be his younger brother, as ideal as it sounds?… Thing is, no matter how hard you think of it, it won't change anything. No matter how angry you are, how much you make it clear to others, to your friends, to your family, that you're unhappy and confused, it won't bring you any satisfaction. What you need, what you really want, is to find answers. Your father is on a track to get them. But maybe you also want to look on your own. Answers. That's all you want. You just don't like mystery. Because they're a bit like secrets."

"How do you do that?" Izuna finally speaks. "How do you understand people so well? I never spoke about this to you. Yet, you quickly got it, and even found some similarities we share to build up your speech."

"Haha! Yeah I have a way with words. I know, you're not the first to tell me." Naruto brags.

"I'm serious, Hokage-sensei." Izuna insists, with admiration. "People's feelings and worries have no secret to you. No wonder you manage to be like family to everyone in the village. You're just so good at it. It really feels like you're emotionally omnipresent. Able to understand and help everyone."

"Come on, kiddo. I get it." Naruto interrupts, with a wide smile. "You're gonna make me blush. Stop talking as if I was some kind of God."

"Isn't it what you are?" the student replies. "The legendary 7th Hokage. Savior of the World. Some even call you the New Rikudo-Sennin. Nobody before you was more deserving of the title of God of Shinobi."

Naruto inhales and looks up to the ceiling, suddenly getting serious.

"Honestly… These praises are too much. I may be very strong, wise and comprehensive… I'm still a man, a ninja." He tells, briefly pointing at his headband. "I still have emotions, like any human. I don't just know your feelings. I can also feel them. I can feel bad for others, like I do for you. I can get confused, doubtful, sad, insecure, just like you. I can still feel pain and make mistakes. Just ask Kurama, and I'm sure he'll tell you I'm an idiot. All those little things will never leave me, hopefully, and will let me be human."

Izuna doesn't interrupt and lets him go on.

"I still need to eat, to sleep, to feel loved, to live. Stab me through the heart and I'll be dead, like anyone else… Well maybe not that easily… But be a bit more brutal. Cut off my head, or… take away Kurama. And I'll die like any man."

"You're not any man." Izuna simply comments after a short silence, feeling like it's now him who has to reassure his sensei.

"Neither are you." Naruto says, looking down at him and showing a bright and sincere smile that he's had on his face all along this speech. "I'm not omnipotent. I still need the people around me to do things I can't. See… I can't answer your questions. But maybe you can. If you go on this mission with Konohamaru, you may get pieces of the answers you're looking for."

"Um… I wanted to ask this." Izuna says, a bit shamefully.

"Sure. That's why I'm suggesting it." Naruto replies as he lays his hand on the boy's shoulder.

Inoue is still looking at them, warmly affected by this conversation. Behind her, Naruto finally gets himself noticed.

"You should probably go with them." he says.

Inoue virulently shakes, startled and trying to contain a scream. She looks in her back and sees the Hokage.

"I already told you not to sneak on me like that, sensei!" she complains.

"But it's so funny!" Naruto answers. "Who wouldn't wanna try to sneak on someone with your sensory skills?"

Inoue just lightly laughs and doesn't answer. She looks at Izuna again and gets out of her hide. Naruto pushes her forward to make her walk toward Izuna just as the original Hokage, Konohamaru, Saori and Satomi get out of the office.

"Here they are!" Naruto says to Konohamaru as his two clones disappear. "These two will come with you. They're available and voluntary."

Izuna looks at Inoue, who from his point of view was just brought here by the Hokage with perfect timing. Inoue, a bit embarrassed, shyly looks at the boy she now only admires from a distance. She still has his recent freak out on Misora in mind, and is a bit scared of his changes in mood. Izuna stares back, calmly, and doesn't speak.

"Umm… What about Boruto?" Inoue asks her sensei. "He's the third member of the team."

"Boruto is busy training, so it's just you 3." Naruto answers. "And let's be honest, him not being there will leave some success to you. I know he's usually the one to steal the headlines."

Konohamaru stares at Izuna doubtfully. He knows of this young man's emotional engagement in the current political climate and wouldn't like it interfering with the mission. However, this should only be an intel gathering mission. Izuna's curiosity may actually be practical in such a condition. So he accepts.

"Are you two sure about this?" he asks. "Up for it?"

"Up for it?" the little Satomi repeats after her father, mimicking his voice and serious face.

Izuna and Inoue stare at each other with the same confident look they used to share often a year ago. Inoue, noticing this fact, can't stop herself from smiling. Izuna just looks at her trying to resist her urge to grin, and keeps calm.

"I'm sure about this, Konohamaru-sensei." Izuna says, determined to find his own answers.

"Me too!" Inoue answers, just willing to keep an eye on Izuna, as Mirai advised.

.

End of Chapter 87 – Next Chapter: Oshio Heihachiro