Chapter 39: Pain's Arrival

Tap. Tap. Tap. Tap.

Haku walked around the gigantic hall of the underwater palace known as Ryuga-Jo. He stopped and stood before three creatures. One was a giant catfish called Namazu. One was a giant terrifying looking shark with a long tail and heavy spikes on the end. It was half the size of Namazu which was still incredibly large and it was a deep blue color with a white underbelly and many fins. The deadly narrow looking eyes and razor sharp teeth instilled fear to all that saw it. Its name was Isonade. The last was actually quite inconspicuous. Haku had to look twice to make sure that he wasn't seeing things. The last of the three guardians of the Ryuga-Jo Palace was a small and cute looking little orange octopus with big cute round eyes and was no larger than the palm of his hands. Its name was Koromodako. Mazu informed Haku that none of the three guardians cared for formalities so Haku elected to call Namazu as Mazu, Isonade as Nade, and Koromodako as Dako. Haku praised himself mentally as he thought, Mn, I have a knack for giving nicknames.

As he stared a bit longer at Daku, Mazu chimed in, "Oi, kid. Don't be fooled by Daku. He may look as small as your palm but the truth is he can grow to a size large enough to swallow even me."

"EEEHHH?!" Haku immediately exclaimed in shock. This little guy can grow as big to swallow Mazu? Mazu who is at least 25 meters tall and 40 meters long?

"Hahahaha! That's right. Fear me little human brat! Know of my awesome prowess!" Daku said in a small cute little voice.

"Don't be fooled by his voice either. He may sound cute now, but when he expands his body to a large form he sounds like the devil." Nade said in a deep and dark voice that sounded incredibly scary. Haku nodded as he mentally thought, but Nade sounds like the devil right now. And when he opens his mouth the bloody red inside and sharp razor teeth makes me shiver.

"Alright, enough banter. The kid is here to train and become stronger. Kid, tell me, have you ever heard of Sage Mode?" Mazu asked.

Ah? Isn't Sage Mode what Naruto is going to go learn right now at Mount Myoboku? And it is also the technique of Lord Jiraiya. Haku stared Mazu in the eyes as he said, "Yes. I have heard of Sage Mode."

"Mn. Sage Mode is the ability to sense, absorb, and assimilate the natural energy of the world into your body to grant you extra strength. Strength that your body normally does not have. It is a different type of energy and is more pure than your own chakra. While there are many different types of Sage Mode depending on where you're learning from what I just explained is the most basic application of it. We'll start by training you how to use basic Sage Mode but that isn't our final goal." Mazu said.

"Eh? It's not? Then what is the final goal?" Haku asked.

"Hahahaha! The end goal is to teach you how to activate Heavenly Sage Mode." Mazu laughed and answered seriously.

"Heavenly Sage Mode? What is that?" Haku asked.

"Well...It is a technique taught to us by the great Ocean Dragon Sage. The ruler of the Ryuga-Jo Palace. Heavenly Ocean Sage Owatatsumi is his official name and title. He knows much more than we do, but he currently doesn't wish to interfere with these matters at the moment and has also given us the go ahead to teach you." Daku replied.

"If Sage Mode is the power to absorb and apply the natural energy in the world around you then Heavenly Sage Mode is the power to absorb and apply the energy of the Heavens." Nade informed.

"The energy of the Heavens?" Haku was even more confused now.

"Well, forget about it for right now kid. There's no use explaining to you about Heavenly energy when you haven't even learnt how to absorb worldly energy as a normal Sage. We'll work on that first. Are you ready to begin?" Mazu asked.

"Mn. Alright." Haku nodded...

Knock Knock.

"You may enter." Hanabi said as she opened her eyes finishing her meditation.

"Ahem. Excuse me." Hiashi said as he opened the door and walked inside.

"Father." Hanabi said indifferently. Hiashi just rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly before saying, "Might I have a seat Hanabi?"

"Yes." Hanabi said keeping her words short. Hiashi just let out a sigh as he thought, she's holding a grudge over the Izaya matter isn't she… "Ahem Ahem. Hanabi. I wanted to apologize about yelling at you before." Hiashi started.

"And?" Hanabi said.

"Ahem. And...I think that as the next in line for the Head of the Hyuga Clan, you have done your part splendidly…" Hiashi continued.

"Go on." Hanabi said.

Hiashi sighed inwardly. She's really going to make me say it. I can't believe I was momentarily swayed by Danzo. "Ahem. It should be fine if you wish to...remain friends with that Izaya boy." Hiashi said. Hanabi narrowed her eyes and said, "Father. Are you getting sick? You've been coughing a lot. Or maybe there is a word caught in your throat that you need to let out?"

Sigh. She's definitely my daughter. Stern and strong willed Hiashi thought. "Alright. Your father admits his mistake. I was wrong to yell at you like that and force you to stay away from that boy. I was momentarily swayed by Danzo. It's just that you are the next in line for the Clan Head position and there is no one else to inherit this title after you. I just wanted to be extra cautious and protect you. You know that in the past the Village Hidden in the Clouds have attempted on multiple occasions to steal the eyes of the Byakugan from our clan. I just thought that what if, maybe this Izaya boy was getting close to you for a similar reason."

Hanabi still had a stern expression on her face as she said, "So do you apologize for wrongly accusing me of my choices?"

Sigh. "Yes, I apologize."

"And you give me your word that you won't interfere in the matters between Izaya and I?" Hanabi asked with a raised eyebrow.

Just as Hiashi was about to answer he stopped himself and thought about Hanabi's phrasing of the question and said, "Um...What do you mean by 'matters' Hanabi?"

Hanabi's stern expression turned into a playful and forgiving one as she jumped in her father's arms and said, "Hehe, nothing father! You have apologized and admitted you were wrong. You have also given your consent to let me continue meeting with Izaya. There's no need to worry about anything else. After all, you should be more concerned about whether I forgive you or not." She gave Hiashi a kiss on the cheek before walking out happily.

"Eh? I feel like I've fallen into a trap of hers?" Hiashi thought amusedly. "Oi. Hanabi, we have to meet the Taketori Clan for political reasons. Pack your things. We're leaving tomorrow morning." Hiashi said as he chased after her...

Fwish!

Sasuke jumped on top of the Fourth Hokage's rock face on the side of the cliff as he slowly walked over to where Izaya was sitting. "What is it that you wanted to tell me?" Sasuke asked.

"Have you gone to see Itachi's body yet?" I asked. Sasuke furrowed his brow and said with a hint of anger, "I have. I think you owe me an explanation. Why are there so many seals and barriers placed around his body?"

I paused for a moment before saying, "To prevent the masked Akatsuki member from obtaining his body."

"What do you mean by that?" Sasuke asked.

"Meeting with Itachi allowed me to learn about some secrets of the Sharingan. Surely at some point when you met Itachi he also told you about the potential of the Sharingan's ability to evolve?" I said. Sasuke was a bit surprised and said, "So it's true then? The Mangekyou Sharingan can evolve further?"

I nodded my head and replied, "Yes. It's true. When one uses the Mangekyou Sharingan, without the great vitality of Hashirama Senju's cells, one will begin to go blind. To overcome this, either fill your body with Hashirama's cells or implant the Sharingan of a close blood relative. Usually a sibling. I'm not too keen whether implanting the eyes of someone like those of a father or mother's eye would work. I reckon it might, but just that the possibility of it succeeding would be much lower. Using the eyes of a sibling, however, would definitely work. When I met Itachi, other than his will and hopes and dreams for you, he also hoped to pass on to you his powers to help you on your path."

Sasuke stood in silence and complete stillness as he just listened. He then said, "Itachi transferred his power of Amaterasu to me."

I nodded my head and said, "Mn. However, when I spoke with him I had promised him to keep his body safe and he agreed. There are two main reasons for this. The first, to ensure that the masked Akatsuki member doesn't use Itachi's body as a way to hold leverage over you, and second, so that you can transplant Itachi's eyes into your own evolving them into the Eternal Mangekyou Sharingan. In this way you can use the powers of your eyes without having the side effect of going blind. You don't have to decide on this now, but I just wanted you to be aware of this, and that if and when you are ready, the transplantation can happen at any time."

Sasuke stared at my back for a while before saying, "So big brother asked you to...I'll think about it later. I decided that I'll stick around the village for a bit longer. If this Pain guy attacks then I'll help out the village. After everything Itachi sacrificed his life for, I won't let some guy just waltz in here and ruin everything. If he doesn't show up within the next week, however, then I'm leaving to find Danzo. I'm going to find him and kill him. And that masked Akatsuki guy is on my list as well. I'm curious though. What was your relationship with my brother? Why did he tell you so much?"

I listened to Sasuke speak his mind before answering, "I worked as an Anbu for Lord Third for a while after becoming a Chunin. As an Anbu you work in the shadows and gather information. I found out a lot after researching Danzo. As crafty as he is there's no way he never makes a mistake. You may or may not know this but Danzo has a secretly transplanted arm with Sharingan embedded on them. Where do you surmise he obtained so many Sharingan? How do you think he was able to pull that off? It was of course Orochimaru who helped him. Danzo's mistake was enlisting the help of Orochimaru. Danzo might be more careful with keeping such important records hidden but Orochimaru has many labs in many lands. In my years as Anbu I had obviously searched for the different places Orochimaru might be in. Search enough of them and piece together enough information and it's not hard to come to the truth. No matter how one tries to cover up evidence there is always a string attached to the origin. One only has to put in a lot of effort to find it, and maybe have a little luck as well. I confronted your brother about the truth. He didn't wish for me to tell anyone so I agreed. After that your brother and I had come to an understanding. This brings me to the last thing I wanted to discuss with you about. Let me help you out a bit. Danzo came after my life so I'm obviously not going to just let him off. I'll help you find him. If you want the honors then you can be the one to kill him."

Sasuke remained silent for a moment contemplating what I said before he replied a bit suspiciously, "I see. Even though I was with Orochimaru for quite some time I never found such evidence."

"Were you actively searching for his many other bases of operations?" I asked.

"No." Sasuke replied.

"I did say I searched for many. And I reckon that since Orochimaru wanted to originally take over your body, him leading you to a place with a bunch of information on his experiments with the Sharingan would be one of the last places he'd take you." I replied.

"I suppose." Sasuke said in silent contemplation.

"Anyways, I reckon after Danzo you also want to look for your companions?" I asked attempting to steer the conversation away from how I knew so much. A little white lie with a little bit of truth wouldn't hurt anyone. Hopefully, I mentally said to myself.

"I brought them out with me from Orochimaru's lab so I should be responsible for them as well. This journey of mine will also help me sort out my thoughts about Itachi, the village, and the Clan." Sasuke replied.

"What about Naruto and Sakura?" I asked. Sasuke let out a soft and almost inaudible sigh and said, "Before I think about them I need to sort my own thoughts first. Honestly I'm surprised that those two even want to talk to me still after everything that's happened."

A slight smile graced my lips as I thought, I'm glad that Sasuke has opened up so much to me. It's probably because I'm the only other person his age who knows the truth about Itachi.

"Surprised that they still want to hold onto their bonds with you? Don't underestimate those two. One is a serious blockhead who is too straightforward for his own good. The other is hopelessly and blindly in love." I said with a smirk. Sasuke also couldn't help but smirk a little as he thought about Naruto and Sakura's personalities. I continued on, "But even if one is too straightforward, the great thing is that you always know what he's thinking. And no matter how ridiculous the situation, he'll always follow through. That's his ninja way. As for the other one being hopelessly and blindly in love? Well, even if it seems a bit naive of her, she has never given up on you. She has always continued to believe in you and everything she does is done with great passion and vigor and hope."

Sasuke had a soft and complicated expression on his face as he recalled Naruto and Sakura's faces. I smiled as my back was turned to Sasuke and said, "I think you can travel without being too worried about such complicated things like what a village is and what a Clan is. Take it slow Sasuke. Take your time to think about such things. Come up with your own answer. See for yourself what the world is like. When things seem to be getting too complicated again, just come back home. To Konoha. After all, you have two sturdy boulders behind your back. When it gets complicated, talk to the yellow haired straightforward one. He's sure to give you the most ridiculous but yet simple answer and keep you grounded. When you feel that you're wallowing in the dark again, go see the pink haired blindly in love one. You don't even have to say anything to her yet she'll take care of you with great love and attention. She'll just be happy that you're in her presence. And I think that kind of comforting silence will help light up your darkness. And when you feel like you do want to talk about complicated matters, I guess I'm the one you're stuck with, ay Sasuke?"

Sasuke smirked one more time and said, "Hmpf. You sure talk a lot…"

"Heh, you could talk more." I replied. We both just remained on top of the Fourth's stone head in comfortable silence amidst the glow of the setting sun. One standing and one sitting as we watched the hustle and bustle of the village below...

Knock Knock.

Hm? I turned to look at the door as I laid in my bed. Wonder who that is. I walked over and opened the door to reveal one stunning Hanabi.

"Goodmorning." She said with a smile. I smiled as well and said, "You should pay me a visit every morning if you're gonna start the day looking like that."

"Oh? Looking like what?" She said teasingly. I lowered my head down to her ear and whispered, "Like an angel." Her face turned completely red but she remained grounded.

"AHEM!" Hiashi coughed as he stood at the end of the hallway.

Mhm? I was inwardly startled. I completely overlooked Hiashi's presence as my face turned a slight shade of pink before returning to normal. I quickly straightened back up and said, "Ahem. So Hanabi. What brings you here this morning?"

Hanabi just gave me a wink as I shook my head.

She knew her father was present but didn't say anything. I can't tell if she's teasing me or her father...both I guess.

"I came to tell you that I'll be out for a few days. I'm going to the Taketori Clan. Have to fulfill my duties as the next head of the Clan and sort out some political stuff so I just wanted to see you first before I left." Hanabi replied straightforwardly. I stared at her for a moment before I nodded my head and said, "Mn. So you've seen me."

She pouted and said, "You don't seem to care much that I'll be gone for awhile." I smirked and whispered, "Well...I don't think your father would like my original goodbye gift." Hanabi's face turned red as I laughed and said, "Hey, what the heck are you thinking about? I assure you it wasn't anything inappropriate."

"Y-You! I wasn't thinking anything like that. Stop teasing me." She replied.

"Hahaha, but you're fun to tease." I said. I let out a relaxed and happy sigh and said, "Hanabi. Be safe. Keep my special kunai with you no matter what."

"Mn. Then I'll be off. Don't do anything reckless." She said as she walked off with her father while waving goodbye. Just as they reached the bottom of the apartment building a loud BOOM sound was heard.

Hanabi! I mentally screamed as I instantly teleported to her side.

"Eh? Izaya?" Hanabi said in surprise.

Phew. I let out a sigh of relief. Hiashi also looked at me surprised at how fast I arrived. Right, Hiashi doesn't know that I gave Hanabi one of my special kunai, I thought. I then turned to look into the distance where several large dust clouds emerged in the air. "Looks like the village is under attack." I said.

"What?" Hiashi and Hanabi said as they both activated their Byakugan to take a look. "That robe...It's the Akatsuki!" Hanabi said. Right at that moment a giant Centipede appeared near us. Before anyone else made a move Hanabi dashed forward and struck out with her right palm saying, "Eight Trigrams Vacuum Palm!" A powerful force of air blasted the Centipede leaving it in a disoriented state as Hanabi jumped in the air at the level of its face and said, "Eight Trigrams 16 Palms!" The Centipede was subject to a series of powerful consecutive strikes before Hanabi once more said, "Eight Trigrams 32 Palms!" She continued her onslaught of an attack on the Centipede effectively leaving it motionless on the floor before she performed one backflip to distance herself from the summoned creature and threw out a kunai attached paper bomb. The kunai stuck right in the eye of the Centipede as the paper bomb exploded causing the Centipede's head to completely shatter into bits and pieces. Hiashi and I just turned to look at each other in a daze for a moment as we didn't expect Hanabi to be the one to beat both him and I to the punch.

At this moment the Human Path Pain arrived behind Hanabi and was about to strike out with his hand. My heart instantly clenched as I saw red in my eyes and I arrived by her side instantly and said, "Taiyougan!" A golden sphere of dense chakra and elemental forces gathered in my palm as I grabbed the hand of the Human Path Pain and thrust my hand straight through its chest. Within the next few seconds it instantly became nothing but a pile of ashes. Huff. Huff. Huff. I panted heavily as I hadn't realized I was holding my breath a few moments ago. I quickly regained my composure and said to no one in particular, "Don't touch her with your filthy hands."

Hanabi turned as she stared at my back. Her heart felt warm in that moment. Well, I had my Byakugan activated so I saw him coming and was prepared to dodge, but this is a nice feeling too. She snapped out of her thoughts in the next moment as she heard what Izaya said. She grabbed my clenched fist and said, "Izaya. It's okay. I'm fine."

Hiashi just stared in a daze. He wanted to rush out with all his being to save his daughter. He knew he'd be a bit slow but he was determined, yet before he could move from his spot Izaya had already made a move. So this is the boy Hanabi was close with eh? Not bad, not bad. And I told her to stay away from him. He slowly shook his head.

I turned to Hanabi at this moment and gave her a tight hug which surprised her, but she welcomed it all the same. After a few moments I let go and said, "Hanabi. This guy is pretty strong. I know you're strong as well but...don't fight anyone who has similar looks as the guy earlier okay? Promise me." Hanabi noted my seriousness and said, "Hmpf. I can take care of myself. But fine. I promise. You too. Don't do something reckless if you know this guy is strong. Honestly, who was the one in the hospital for more than a week, huh?"

I smiled and looked to Hiashi who gave a nod in silent understanding. I then disappeared flying to another part of the village. "This guy. He just demands stuff and then comes and goes as he pleases." Hanabi pouted.

"Hanabi, let's go find your sister Hinata and group up." Hiashi said.

"Mn." She nodded.

Deva Pain furrowed his brow as he was fighting Hatake Kakashi at this moment. He noticed that one of the Paths of Pain had not only been defeated, but had been vaporized into nothing but ashes. Even the King of Hell technique wouldn't be able to revive it without some sort of body part left. Just as Kakashi was being pulled by a gravitational force towards Asura Pain's giant chainsaw, several tens of bones protruded from the ground and stabbed the Asura Pain in multiple areas prompting Deva Pain to stop his technique and jump backwards to avoid being impaled. Kakashi regained his footing as Kimimaro joined him at this moment.

"Interesting." Deva Pain simply said as he stared at Kakashi and Kimimaro.

"Who's this one?" Kimimaro asked. At this moment the Kakashi standing next to Kimimaro dispersed into nothing but electricity and dissipated into the air as the actual Kakashi walked out from underneath some rubble and walked over to Kimimaro. Deva Pain narrowed his eyes as he now just realized that Kakashi would have been fine even if Kimimaro didn't intervene just now. "Truly crafty." Deva Pain commented. Kakashi stared at Deva Pain with his Sharingan and said, "This guy has the ability to push and pull objects with him acting as the center. He can repel not only physical attacks but also Ninjutsu. He also shares his vision with the other Pains with the Rinnegan."

"I see." Kimimaro said as he watched Deva Pain closely.

"In this short time that we fought you have managed to discern some of my abilities. I am truly impressed." Deva Pain commented. He then turned to Kimimaro and said, "If I'm not mistaken, you are the one who defeated and captured Hidan." Kimimaro nodded indifferently and said, "I was. He talked and yelled a lot."

Deva Pain just stared for a moment in silence before saying, "Where is the Nine-Tails?" At this moment three figures fell from the sky and landed by Kakashi and Kimimaro.

Fwish Fwish Fwish!

They were precisely the Fifth Hokage Tsunade, the Third Hokage Hiruzen, and Izaya. "Like we would ever tell you people!" Tsunade said with a scowl. Deva Pain narrowed his eyes with caution and said, "It appears you people first need to be taught a lesson of what pain is." Hiruzen looked at me and said, "How did it go Izaya?" I nodded and said, "Don't worry, other than us there aren't any others close in the vicinity."

"Foolish. It matters not how close or how far anyone is. I will let you all know what true pain is." Deva Pain said as he started to float up high into the air. At this moment everyone knew that Deva Pain was about to do something drastic. This is it I mentally exclaimed. He's going to use an extreme version of his Almighty Push ability and destroy all of Konoha. Now is the time to activate the barrier and prevent him from doing any major damage. I turned to Kakashi, Kimimaro, Tsunade, and Hiruzen and said, "Now!" They all nodded as I teleported Kakashi, Kimimaro, Tsunade, Hiruzen, and myself to the designated markers I prepared before coming here.

Swish Swish Swish Swish Swish!

All five of us stood at a corner perfectly opposite one another as Pain was already high up in the air. At this moment Hiruzen, Tsunade, Kimimaro with Kakashi, and I formed the Ram hand sign. Just as Deva Pain said Almighty Push, the four of us said, "Ninja Art Four Red Yang Formation Barrier!" As the power of the gravitational push started expanding from the center out, the four-sided red barrier rose up in brilliance as we kept the distance of the barrier short to minimize how much damage would be done to the village. Deva Pain widened his eyes in shock as the powerful gravitational push shoved against the barrier on all sides but was unable to break it. After a few moments of attempting to break the barrier but to no avail Deva Pain ended his technique as he silently thought to himself. I've praised Konoha's shinobi many times before, but I still must say it once more. Konoha's shinobi are truly capable. To think that they even predicted and prepared for something like this. After focusing all of my chakra on using this large scale technique my powers won't return for awhile.

As Deva Pain slowly fell down to the small crater he created I sensed that his power was truly weakened so I stopped the activation of the barrier to conserve our chakra as it was a really chakra taxing technique to use. This prompted Tsunade, Hiruzen, Kimimaro, and Kakashi to stop as well. Deva Pain looked on confused. They ended up releasing the barrier? Why? Have they predicted that after using such a large scale technique that my powers won't return to me for some time? Or perhaps it's that they aren't able to use this barrier for long periods of time he mentally questioned. The second Deva Pain touched the ground another figure appeared in front of him. Deva Pain frowned and said, "Who are you?"

"Heh. Uchiha Sasuke. You bastard." Sasuke said as he glared at Deva Pain with his Mangekyou Sharingan activated.

"Uchiha Sasuke? Then you are Uchiha Itachi's younger brother. I see that you have awakened the Mangekyou Sharingan. It appears Tobi has failed in recruiting you." Deva Pain commented. Sasuke just frowned as he narrowed his eyes at Deva Pain. Soon a figure fell from the air as it weaved the signs for Boar, Dog, Bird, Monkey, Ram and said, "Summoning Jutsu!" As it landed next to Deva Pain the other paths of Pain fell from the sky as well after being summoned. Altogether a total of five paths of Pain remained. The Asura Pain was also completely healed from its earlier incapacitated state. It was also at this moment that a cloud of smoke appeared and several other figures jumped down from the sky.

Swish Swish Swish Swish Swish!

As the puff of smoke cleared it revealed a total of seven people who stood opposite of the five Pains. Uchiha Sasuke, Uzumaki Naruto, Hatake Kakashi, Tsunade, Sarutobi Hiruzen, Kaguya Kimimaro, and Karasuma Izaya.