Complex solutions

Opening his eyes, Uzumaki found himself in a familiar gloomy damp dungeon, a huge hall with swaying lamps on the ceiling, occasionally winking at him with unfriendly and sharp bursts of light. Our hero was lying in the water on the floor, feeling his head splitting with pain and a lot of incoherent thoughts that came from nowhere. The guy tried to sit down, leaning on the floor with his hands, and his palms completely fell into the murky liquid with bunnies dancing on its uneven surface from artificial dim lighting.

Raising his head and looking ahead, Naruto froze in horror. He saw how the opposite wall of the hall with a huge cage for the Nine-Tail embedded in it was covered with cracks. Small pieces began to break off and fly away from the wall, which dissolved in flight, never reaching the floor. Right in front of Uzumaki's eyes, their abode in the subconscious of genin began to disintegrate into the smallest particles.

— Kurama! Naruto called out, but he didn't get an answer.

Instead, there was a crackling sound from the appearance of new cracks in the ceiling and the roar with which some other hall of this imaginary complex of cold and gloomy rooms collapsed.

In the darkness behind the bars, two red lights lit up, and the Nine-Tailed himself, bringing his muzzle closer to the cage, fell under the beam of the swinging lamp. Naruto could see that the monster was exhausted. Now the formidable demon looked like a huge skeleton, covered with leather and red fur.

— What's going on? Uzumaki squeezed out.

— We fell into the clutches of Akatsuki. It looks like this is the end," the Nine—Tail growled, not taking his eyes off the boy, who was quite surprised by this answer.

— How?! What happened?!

— Help came to those two, — Kurama replied. — Madara. The man in the mask who twice subordinated my will and who is responsible for the death of your father. And Itachi Uchiha.

At the mention of Itachi, a chill went down Naruto's spine. But then his thoughts returned to the first name he heard.

— Madara? Did he kill the Fourth? — he managed.

Nine-Tails squinted.

"Not exactly him. It was me," the demon grinned. — I think there is no need to hide anything anymore.

Naruto stared at the demon with all his eyes.

— You... Why didn't you warn me about the consequences of using that technique?

The fox bared his teeth in a predatory smile.

— Because this technique was the key to my freedom. All this time I've been preparing you for the moment when you let me out yourself, playing the role of a caring daddy and teacher and waiting. But I delayed with expectations! — in a rage, the demon hit the wall of the cage with his paw, and his claws struck out the brightest shower of sparks.

"So you've been lying to me all this time?"

— That's right. However, you still owe me something. With all the strength that I managed to gain. And life. You wouldn't have lived a year if I hadn't protected you from stupid mistakes," the Nine-Tailed Man burst out laughing, and the next moment his laughter turned into a wheeze. "But what does it matter now?

The next moment, the gate of the cage clanged loudly, but this time not from a blow from a demon, but from some outside influence. It's like someone just tried to rip them out from the outside.

"I'm dying," the demon didn't pay any attention to it. — And the only thing that can't help but rejoice is that I will take you with me. Jinchuriki doesn't live long without us. Or rather, they don't live at all! I hate you, Naruto. And I hated it all the time from the moment when the Fourth tied our lives together!

Naruto succumbed to his instincts and jumped back. An unknown force still tore out the gates of the giant cage, and they flew off in different directions. One of the doors crashed into the wall, making a hole in it, through which a blinding yellow light began to break through, and the other collapsed to the floor, leaving a huge dent on it.

But the freed Fox did not have time to jump out and tear apart the helpless genin, as huge ghostly chains flew out of the ceiling, twisting the Cube and digging into it with points resembling the heads of dragons.

— I hate it! — the demon repeated in a quieter voice, and the next moment he exploded, losing his usual appearance and turning into a stream of orange chakra, instantly absorbed into the chains.

Uzumaki was left alone in the middle of the crumbling world in his head. And when this world comes to an end, probably his life will have to end.

The gloomy hall, illuminated by the blinding chakra from the sealing technique, plunged into complete darkness. The blond guy, who had been hanging in the air all this time and spewing orange-red chakra from his open mouth, collapsed to the floor like a dead weight. His stopped eyes remained open, there was no life in them anymore, as evidenced by the discolored iris encircling the frozen pupils. Jinchuriki froze in an unnatural pose, his mouth remained open in a silent cry for help. Next to him was the green-haired girl from whom the demon had been extracted earlier.

There was a click of fingers, and the room was illuminated by the lights of dozens of simultaneously lit torches decorating the walls. The man in the orange mask lowered his hand before any of the other Akatsuki realized that he had turned on the light. The members of the organization stood in a pentagram engraved in the floor with circles, each of which had a certain symbol that coincided with the hieroglyphs of the Nukenins on their rings. A little further away, the shoulders and head of a creepy statue of Gedo Maso grew out of the wall, which in the process of sealing opened its mouth and opened almost all its eyes. Now the Statue of the Heretic has petrified again, having turned from a revived monster into a sculpture that inspires fear and awe.

—The sealing is complete," Payne said, looking around at everyone present. — Seven-tailed and Nine-Tailed are now with us.

— Two at a time. That's great. Less hemorrhoids with these Tailed Ones in the future," muttered Kakuzu.

— Three days without a break. Leader-sama, let me restore my strength," Deidara, or rather, his hologram, addressed Payne. Like Sasori, as well as Zetsu, who was sent on some kind of mission, the bomber could not personally be present during the ritual, but participated in it remotely. However, it required no less effort from him.

— If Kisame hadn't thrown away his skates so quickly, they would have managed it in two and a half, — Hidan grinned, unharmed, but pale, since a White Zetsu tissue transplant was required for full recovery. — What a disease!

A follower of the cult of Jashin caught the disapproving look of his comrades in the organization and hurriedly shut up.

— If it weren't for Itachi and Toby, you and Kakuzu would have suffered the same fate, — reminded Sasori, whose true appearance was hidden inside the Hiruko doll, whose hologram was seen by everyone present.

— What do you want me to do now, Leader-sama? — asked Zetsu, who returned the conversation to the original channel.

— Rest is necessary for everyone, we are closer than ever to the realization of our goal, — said the man with the rinnegan, glancing sideways at Toby, who barely nodded. — However, we should not deviate from the strategy we have chosen. A quick blow after blow, and all the jinchuriki will be ours. Sasori and Deidara, having recovered their strength, go after the Four-Tailed One that we missed in the Willow. Zetsu, look for the Six-Tailed One. When you find him, Conan and I will deal with him personally.

Payne paused.

— Toby and Itachi, your task is to strike at the Fog and capture the Fourth Mizukage, — he added. — When everything is ready, we will move on to the final stage of our plan.

Itachi hesitated, nodded, thinking that Nagato would not send him to a direct attack on another village. So Toby himself insisted that he and Itachi go on this mission.

He looked regretfully at Naruto's lifeless body lying on the floor, thinking how much the loss of a comrade would affect his brother.

"Anyway, Sasuke, I think I did the right thing. Being around jinchuriki, you were in danger. But now it is unlikely that Akatsuki will ever appear on your way. And if you're lucky, you'll never see me again either," Uchiha mused.

— What to do with the bodies? Conan asked after a long silence.

There was a pause, because the only one who could be interested in this is a former member of the group, Orochimaru. But after he left the ranks of the organization, the issue resolved itself.

"I don't think they're of any value yet," Payne replied. — Get rid of them.

When the meeting was over, the holograms of Sasori, Zetsu and Deidara disappeared. Kakuzu and Hidan left the hall. Payne was talking to Conan about something. And Itachi was watching Toby expectantly, who came up to him, casually stepping over the bodies of two jinchuriki.

— What are your future plans? Uchiha asked cautiously.

The masked man flashed his eye through the slits of the mask, then put his hand on Itachi's shoulder.

—I missed Kirigakura ramen," he said, and the next moment both disappeared into the spatial funnel. — Things will wait, and the Three-Tailed One will not run away from us.

"He was pleased," Payne said when he and Conan were alone, looking at the place where the two Akatsuki had just stood.

— And you? Conan asked, looking into the unusual eyes of a red-haired man with a piercing.

— I dread the day when all the jinchuriki will be with us. And I still think that Madara has her own plans for them.

"You need to rest, Nagato. I'll take care of these two," sighed Conan, adjusting the collar of her cloak and turning to the bodies, pointing her hands at them. Naruto and Fuu ended up in paper cocoons.

—What a pity," Danzo muttered. — This boy showed great promise.

The third exhaled a cloud of smoke, watching it, changing its shape, dissolve in the open window. His chair was turned back to the visitor, who was boring as always with a gloomy look at Hiruzen's back.

"And now the end of the Fourth Dynasty has come, and with it the end of the Uzumaki clan," Shimura added, squinting his eye. — If the boy had been at the Root, this would never have happened. He would be under my supervision and protection.

— Maybe. Be so kind as to deprive me of other reminders of my mistakes," said the Third in an uncharacteristically firm tone. "And I'll accept that you were right.

Hokage shook his head.

— Asuma has decided to leave his post and return to service in the revived Order of the Twelve Ninja Defenders. And I will not influence his decision. The teams will have to merge together. Mikoto will be Ino's replacement. And Kakashi will replace my son as the captain of the team," he said. — Replacement... I don't like that word.

— Is it only about one replacement? Shimura asked, hiding his genuine surprise.

— Shikamaru came to his senses and informed me personally about his decision to continue his shinobi career, — Sarutobi replied.

Danzo chuckled to himself. Stupid, but commendable. However, Nara would not have made such a decision if he had not been sure of it. And if a genin from the geniuses clan was sure of something, it gave hope that his fate was something more than being a cripple.

— Is that so? And what about Uchiha Sasuke?

The third Hokage hesitated with an answer.

— Actually, he expressed a desire to leave the number seven team and join the Root. Actually, that's why I asked you to come...

The light illuminated the hospital room through the open window. A fresh breeze also rushed into it, bringing a wonderful aroma of cherry blossoms. The guy looked thoughtfully at the clouds slowly floating in the blue sky. Some reminded him of animals, some looked like fruits. One cloud with a long tail was exactly like a pineapple, in fact, like Shikamaru's hairstyle.

Half of Genin's face was hidden under bandages. However, after the best doctors of Konoha worked on his face, the young Shinobi was assured that he would not be afraid to look in the mirror. Although that unfortunate explosion will still leave some reminders of itself.

Shikamaru never really thought about his beauty. She wasn't that important to him. And even now, what was happening to his face worried Naru much less than the severed limb, which he still felt like some part of his soul, but which turned into a bandaged stump that hurt to move. And which was even more painful to look at.

"It could have been worse," Shikamaru muttered to himself when the pain became so severe that it became difficult to maintain composure. He remembered Naruto, engulfed by a bubbling red-orange chakra and turning into a beast. And I remembered Eno choking on her own blood. Who knew that the feelings that Shikamaru had for his teammate would make themselves felt so late? Or could he simply not distinguish the severed bonds of friendship from the mercilessly cut threads of love, with which the necessary ties were made?

"I wonder if he died as a beast or if there was still something human left in him in his last moments?" genin mused.

In principle, the answer to this question was not so important. And it wasn't so important who Naruto was. Shikamaru could say with certainty that Uzumaki was his best friend in the first place. And everything else is not so important anymore.

— Can I come to you? — someone entered the room, obviously forgetting to knock.

"Is there anything I can do to stop you?" Shikamaru asked ironically, smiling at his friends who entered and showing the straps that chained him to the bed and which the caring doctor apparently forgot to remove.

"Not the best joke," Choji muttered, who was so saddened by Shikamaru's appearance that he had to sit down on a chair and put the bag of chips aside. — How are you feeling?

— You can, you just need time, — said Mikoto, who entered after Akimichi. She went to the window and pulled the curtains aside even more so that even more light filled the room. Light, which they now lacked so much.

The Uchiha looked unimportant. His eyes were red. Apparently, the last day she did nothing but cry. But now, it seems, Mikoto has gathered all her will into a fist to somehow inspire others.

"I have no doubt," Nara replied, smiling sadly. — I will still beat you all on the exam for the title of chunin.

— Either you convince yourself of this, or the explosion has damaged your ingenious convolutions, — said the sullen Sasuke, who stopped at the entrance and leaned his back against the wall. He didn't go any further, as if something was stopping Genin.

"Glad you came, Sasuke,— Shikamaru replied. —Is Asuma-sensei here too?"

"Alas, none of us have seen him since returning to Konoha," Mikoto shook her head, looking out the window. Apparently, she was afraid to look at her comrades, because she felt that emotions could take hold of her again at any time.

— It's a pity... Nara muttered. — At least I would thank him. It must have been difficult to carry me all the way to Konoha.

"I don't think he's coming," Sasuke said just as coldly. — Asuma leaves Konoha and returns to the service of the Daimyo of the Land of Fire.

— What?! Shikamaru and Choji blurted out at the same time.

— The third one informed me about it. I think it would be a betrayal to hide the truth from you," Uchiha replied.

— When did you communicate with the Third? Mikoto was wary and finally turned to Sasuke. — As far as I remember, Kakashi and Asuma reported everything themselves.

Two pairs of dark eyes met.

— I'm leaving team number seven, — Sasuke announced without trying to soften this news in any way. — And I'm joining a special unit of the ANBU.

— How?! — Mikoto's legs trembled. — You can't do that!

— It's a pity that everything turned out this way, but with you and Kakashi, I'm not strong enough. Not strong enough to kill my brother! Naruto was also weak, for which he paid with his life," Uchiha grinned. — Congratulations. There are just three of you to turn into another team of losers who are not capable of anything in the face of a real threat. Did I say three? Hm... More like two and a half.

Hearing this, even the peace-loving Choji became enraged and jumped up from his seat.

— Don't you dare say that! — he shouted, swinging his fist at Sasuke, but Shikamaru managed to call out to him in time.

"Don't, Choji!

Uchiha looked contentedly at the fist that stopped right in front of his nose, after which he grinned again and walked away.

"Glad you're alive, Shikamaru. But evaluate your capabilities soberly. Don't fool yourself the way I've been fooling myself all this time," he said finally.

Everyone followed Uchiha with their eyes, and only Mikoto looked at the empty doorway for a long time when he left.

— When did he manage to turn into such a scum? Choji squeezed out, sinking back into his chair.

"I don't blame him. He's absolutely right about something," Shikamaru sighed. — What do you say, Mikoto?

Uchiha did not immediately respond to the hail. Her mind was elsewhere. First Naruto, now Sasuke left her. It was like the time when she woke up in the hospital, not remembering anything and not knowing anyone. But she wasn't going to be that poor girl again. Her fingers fiddled with a card from the Naruto deck, which somehow turned out to be in the girl's hand.

— Itachi and any Akatsuki who gets in my way will pay for what he did. I will prepare for this meeting," she said. — And we won't lose anyone else.

Darkness and gloom. Emptiness. Silence. Complete absence of anything, even thoughts. Naruto was swimming or, rather, drowning in all this when the whole world in his mind cracked at the seams and ceased to exist.

But there was something else in that impenetrable void that remained deep in him even after the disappearance of the Nine-Tails. These were two blue sparks of chakra that appeared out of nowhere and flew to his rescue, becoming larger and taking on clear shapes.

When he went to the very bottom of the abyss of nothingness, floundering helplessly, two palms, male and female, firmly grabbed his arms and pulled him up.

"That's not why our chakra was sealed in you. But I'm glad it came in handy. Live, Naruto!" — a man's voice sounded first.

"I will collect our and the rest of the Nine-Tailed chakra to restart your organs. Live and know that we love you!" — he heard the woman's voice.

In the next moment, the paper bundle that Naruto turned into by Conan's efforts tore, and Uzumaki, who tore the walls of the cocoon, was free. He didn't know where he was, but he knew for sure that no one was nearby and that no one was looking for him anymore. In the semi-darkness, his eyes flashed, which forever acquired a purple color.