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the-letter-horror-lover · 2 years

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The Next: Chronicles by clarityace

Anime » Naruto Rated: T, English, Friendship & Family, Naruto U., Sasuke U., Boruto U., Sarada U., Words: 21k+, Favs: 31, Follows: 31, Published: Feb 3, 2017 Updated: Feb 13, 2017

9Chapter 1

AN: If you're reading my first Boruto fic, Reanimation, you'd know that this chapter was one of the flashbacks involving Kawaki. Yes, I am posting this as a separate story because I figured I wanted to continue this plot/timeline separately or independently. I hope that makes sense.

1:19pm

The marketplace was busy as usual when the first incident happened – when the first scream rang through the crowd. The people fled without delay, with children being carried hurriedly to safety. Police forces were at the scene almost immediately.

It did not seem so dangerous at first; the commotion was caused by only one person. He was walking slowly, almost tripping over his own feet, with his mouth hanging open, his head drooping backward, his back crouched, and his arms hanging limply by his side. His steps were small and staggering, carelessly bumping on objects and knocking them over along the way.

They would've mistaken him for a hostile drunk man if it weren't for two things – his eyes appeared to have rolled all the way into his head and blue marks glowed all over his arms and his face. They recognized him as Hakuseki, a regular in the place – a retired ninja, widower, and a father to one member of the regular shinobi force. Apparently, he threw random but fatal physical attacks on the people around him, showing both incredible speed and strength. As shinobi attempted to stop him through the use of ninjutsu, he held only an arm out and appeared to suck out immense amounts of chakra with his hand – an ability never witnessed in the village before.

"Dad! Stop this!" A young man with a Konoha headband tied around his neck yelled from the crowd, running toward the heart of the scene. The older man, Hakuseki, didn't seem to have recognized his voice and tried to tackle an old lady to the ground. The younger man held up his hand, beginning to release chakra to restrain his father.

"Meiji! Do not release chakra!" Another ninja, belonging to the responding police force, called out but it was too late.

Hakuseki, having immediately sensed the release of chakra, quickly turned around and held his arm out. Out from Meiji's hand, Hakuseki pulled a visible rod of chakra.*

"Wood-style release!"

Between Meiji and Hakuseki, wood sprouted from the ground, wrapping around the older man's arms. The rod of chakra snapped into two and Meiji fell to the ground, panting heavily with his hands clutching his chest.

"Tenzo! Hanabi and First Lady Hinata!" The captain of the responding squad was the first to see the three of them approaching.

"What is this?" Yamato asked. He was already on his knees, conjuring hand seals, his eyes focused intently on Hakuseki.

"Those glowing marks on his arms and face, I've never seen them before, have you?" Hanabi asked Yamato, her Byakugan already activated. He only shook his head.

"That young man's chakra had been gravely depleted. Someone get him out of there, now!" Hinata gestured to the other ninjas in the area, her Byakugan also already activated. She turned to her sister, "Have you noticed it yet? The older man doesn't have chakra at all. His coils are completely empty."

Hanabi examined Hakuseki from the distance. When she and Hinata noticed the commotion, they were expecting a brawl, just people's anger boiling over personal problems or petty arguments, nothing connected to a foreign mark or a disturbance in chakra. Hanabi took a deep breath; her sister was right. The older man was completely void of chakra.

"Are you able to restrain him long enough to get him transported?" Hinata asks Yamato. "We need to know what is wrong with him."

"Yes, Hinata. I can. His resistance is strong but not powerful enough to break through - "

"Mama!" Hinata looked up to find Boruto, Sarada, and Mitsuki landing behind them from the roof. "What is happening here? What's with him?"

"No, don't go near him!" Hinata yelled at Boruto, who already took a few steps with Sarada toward the bound figure. The old man was murmuring incomprehensible words and appeared to struggle tremendously against his restraints. Sarada suddenly walked ahead of Boruto, soon kneeling beside Hakuseki.

"Hakuseki. Around sixty-three years old. Retired ninja. No criminal history or prior record of any act of violence. Uchiha Sarada and Uzumaki Boruto, please step back. We need to take over," the captain of the police force proceeded toward Bolt and Sarada, gesturing for them to leave.

"Wait, those marks he has," Mitsuki sneaked behind him and tapped the captain on the shoulder. "You've never seen them, have you?"

"Mind if I look?" Ignoring the captain's commands and the police force's presence entirely, Sarada placed her hands on Hakuseki's face and looked at his eyes, her jaw dropping at what she saw. Boruto grabbed her by the wrist but she didn't let go. "Sharingan."

Sarada leveled her eyes with his and kept this eye contact for a while, hoping to see something. She was tempted to break the contact when at first nothing seemed to happen. It didn't take long, however, for Yamato to notice that Hakuseki's resistance began to falter. Soon after, his limbs became limp and he closed his eyes.

"Sarada! What did you do?" Bolt asked his teammate, who didn't seem to have realized what just happened.

Sarada jumped back, hastily releasing the old man's head and suddenly deactivating her sharingan in surprise. "What? No! I didn't do anything! What happened to him? Did I do something to harm him?" She felt herself sweating and her hands were suddenly cold and clammy. She stared at the seemingly unconscious figure in front of them.

Yamato, Hinata, and Hanabi approached them, and the First Lady placed a hand on Sarada's shoulder. "No, his heart is still beating and he's still breathing. I can see it. But he still doesn't have any chakra in his system. There was no change in that at all."

"Also, before they took his son away to the hospital, I didn't see any gain in the younger man's chakra. Or maybe he just doesn't recover as quickly as most of us do. I can't be sure. The amount of chakra loss was quite distressing, however." Hanabi stated.

"What did I do, though? Did I do anything to him without knowing it?" Sarada felt a knot in her stomach, sure that she did something to knock the man unconscious.

"Nothing we can pinpoint, really, except..." Mitsuki inspected the man closer, lifting his chin to expose the marks on his face and neck "... the marks stopped glowing the moment you stared at him with your sharingan."

"I thought so too. And he stopped resisting altogether," Yamato sighed. He tried to smile at Sarada just to assure the young woman that she hadn't done anything harmful. "And then he fell unconscious. But we wouldn't really know anything until we get him properly examined. I believe none of us has seen this before - "

"And we take over from here, then. Thank you for all for your help. Especially you, First Lady Hinata," the captain bowed before Hinata, and then to all of them again as the rest of the police force and newly arrived medical team approached the scene. "We will prepare a full incident and medical report and hand it over to the Hokage as soon as we can. An emergency investigation team will also be dispatched immediately," he explained before turning his back. Hinata only nodded in response, hoping the case will be cleared as soon as she'd hoped.

Boruto and his teammates watched as Hakuseki is carried on a stretcher, his body still wrapped in Yamato's jutsu. Soon, the squad disappeared through the crowd as they headed their way to the Konoha hospital. Boruto and his team were certainly just left to wonder what the hell just happened.

Hokage tower

2:32pm

"So there is absolutely no record of that mark anywhere?" The Seventh Hokage rested his chin on his hands as his elbows rested on the table, his eyes focused on the report laid open on the table.

"Absolutely nothing, Naruto. We're getting photos of it sent to the other villages, hoping they have any information on it, which is more likely than it being completely new or alien to everyone. It's only a matter of time before we figure out where it is from," Shikamaru said casually with his hands inside his pockets, as he stared down through one of the glass windows behind Naruto.

"But it emerged out of someone from our own village, someone who hasn't gone beyond the gates for years, Shikamaru. At least that's what his son tells us," Naruto spun his chair so that he also faced the glass windows behind his desk.

"I was thinking an outsider could have inflicted it on him," Shimakaru pointed out, to which Naruto just nodded.

"And we only have one case, so far?" Naruto asked, but before Shikamaru could answer, someone else entered the Hokage's office.

"Three now." Naruto and Shikamaru didn't even have to look at the unexpected guest to know who he was.

"Sasuke, what are you doing here?" Naruto turned to face his friend, surprised at the sudden visit. Just a few days ago, Sasuke informed Naruto that he and Boruto would be making short trips outside the village as part of his training, and that Naruto should expect to see less of them for the next few weeks.

"To deliver the news, of course. Any reason I shouldn't be here?" Sasuke asked, although he wasn't really demanding a response. He swiftly removed his coat from which he took out two folders, which he handed to Naruto. He placed his coat over his shoulder. "Two new incidents – a retired female shinobi and a new male recruit to the medical force. Two completely separate events, happening only a few minutes apart. Both were determined completely void of chakra at the time of capture; identical case to the first one. No casualties but several others injured."

"Any updates on the first case – Hakuseki and his son, Meiji?" Naruto asked.

"I was going to relay it to you in a bit. Can I ask for a little more patience here, Hokage-sama?" Sasuke smirked at the designation, to which Naruto just scowled. "Hakuseki – no chakra, miraculously alive but very weak. There's absolutely no memory of the incident. Meiji – chakra loss seems almost permanent, he would be incapacitated for the rest of his life, unfortunately. But look at the brighter side of it, had he lost a little bit more, he would've died."

"I didn't know you were a messenger now, Sasuke, and a brilliant and trustworthy-looking one, to be honest," Naruto sniggered.

"Shut up, Naruto," Sasuke spat firmly, but with a smile playing at the corner of his lips.

"That isn't the only reason you're here Sasuke. What is it?"

"Hn. That's correct. No investigation team or whatsoever is coming to report to you. I'm the only one," Sasuke said as he laid a few more folders on top of Naruto's desk.

"You requested to take over the investigation?" Naruto asked.

"No, not entirely. I just volunteered to assist them and then I requested to carry the message by myself, on my own. We can't let the information be handled by a lot of people, especially when we have no lead. One case was already concerning. Two or three? That's alarming. Those three incidents have left no less than ten shinobi possibly incapacitated for the rest of their lives."

"I'm going to hold an emergency debriefing, just in case new incidents emerge. But mind you, considering the only techniques that have worked so far – we have very little effective manpower," Shikamaru exclaimed, as he headed his way toward the door. He had barely exited the room when someone else entered hurriedly.

"Hokage-sama," a man in a green vest walked straight to Naruto's desk, the lower half of his face covered with his collar, and his eyes shrouded with a dark pair of sunglasses.

"Shino! What brought you here?" Naruto stood up, surprised at the urgency his comrade's body language displayed.

"Two new incidents, both at the academy – one male ANBU guard and a female instructor. Respondents were quick and they have been contained. But consider this – I took the opportunity to familiarize my insects with the scent and unique energy emitted by the marks on their body. My insects have been acting restless ever since, even after the marks on the subjects were neutralized," Shino explained everything without pausing to take a breath. Naruto knew that whatever Shino had observed on his insects, he'd found it very upsetting.

"We were just getting the hint that more cases would most likely emerge now, and here it is," Naruto shook his head, rubbing his hands together before taking the folder comprising of the academy's incident report from Shino.

"I will take the lead in organizing the forces. You might as well give the ANBU a heads up now, Naruto, and if they're willing, they can join us at the gates. Do what you have to, Naruto and Sasuke," Shikamaru said, his expression seemingly disturbed by the news brought by his friend.

"Have Sai, Ino, and Chouji with you. As soon as they can take over for you, come back to us.," Naruto told Shikamaru, knowing he still really needed the help and wit of his right-hand man.

"Sure. See you soon, three of you," Shikamaru nodded at Naruto, Sasuke, and Shino, before making his way out of the room. As soon as the door had closed, Naruto turned to Shino.

"Shino, would you care to assist the investigation team? They would really benefit from your help."

"I am more than willing, Hokage-sama."

"Drop that, Shino. I told you just call me by name."

"Heh, is that a command? Because if not, considering everything you've done, I can't just drop the title," Shino stated, his voice sounding unbelievably playful and teasing.

"Shino has a point, Lord Seventh," Sasuke quickly added, to which he and Shino quietly chuckled to themselves.

"Shut it, Sasuke!" Naruto yelled, trying not to laugh as well. It was unbelievable, how these two managed to tease him at a time like this. Naruto couldn't help but be amused at how often Sasuke seemed to do it these days. His once stoic friend seemed too entertained doing it every now and then.

Shino gave them a quick salute before silently heading off, leaving Naruto and Sasuke alone inside the Hokage's office. Naruto slumped back to his chair and Sasuke proceeded to sit on another at the front of Naruto's desk. They appeared to deliberate deeply about the circumstances, before Naruto broke the silence.

"New cases, nothing seemingly stronger or more threatening than the first one. It's not aiming to kill, it's aiming to increase in number," Naruto recalled, his arms resting at the back of his head, his eyes focused on the ceiling.

"Yes. Whether it's in the number of those inflicted with the foreign mark or it's in the number of able shinobi left permanently incapacitated after – I think it could be the latter, Naruto. The marks completely disappeared after they'd been neutralized. The victims are left just completely weak and harmless."

"These people were just pawns, then," Naruto straightened on his chair and rested his hands on the table as he leaned forward. "If someone is behind this, what is the intention? And why - the sharingan? Could it be that they're after you, Sasuke?" Naruto looked at his friend.

"I've thought of that, but I don't think so. Call me arrogant but if they were after me I was thinking they'd take a more direct and aggressive stance. My own daughter can undo the mark without breaking a sweat, Naruto. If there was anything, I think they don't mind making it look like they're aiming at me when they're clearly not."

"Hmm, that does make sense. All these weirdness in one afternoon is making my head ache! How is Sarada though? You don't have to stay here while she's out there. I can head down the field and help them investigate - "

"No. Sarada is fine. I already checked on her on my way here. She will be okay, she's done it well."

"Nothing less than you'd expect from an Uchiha then," Naruto grinned, observing Sasuke at the corner of his eyes.

"And Boruto is with her, so she'll be fine," Sasuke smiled back. Naruto knew Sasuke saw great potential in his kid. Naruto saw it too, but he felt like Sasuke had really committed himself to guiding Boruto and Naruto wanted to know why. He could only guess, however.

"Whatever their intentions are right now, that isn't the priority, I guess. We need to find out who and where they are, and how to deal with them really soon, before this gets out of hand," Naruto said, before standing up to reach for the files and stack them over each other.

"Becoming the Hokage really made you a quicker thinker, didn't it?" Sasuke eyed Naruto.

"I've always been quick, Sasuke. Maybe you would've noticed that before if you weren't so busy insulting me back then," Naruto teased.

"Maybe. Stop smiling like an idiot then," Sasuke shook his head.

"Eh, you're quick with compliments now too, aren't you?"

"Psh. Just don't let it get it to your head, Naruto." Sasuke stood up from his seat, pulling his coat from his shoulder, and proceeded to wear it.

Deep into Naruto's subconscious, the nine-tailed beast had been listening, also disturbed by the situation outside. Despite being contained inside Naruto's body, he was capable of sensing extensively, especially chakra disturbances.

"Kit,"

"Kurama? What is it? Do you have anything?" Naruto quickly entered his own subconscious to meet with his sidekick.

"Hm, not much. But there is something… It's small, barely noticeable at first but it's there. A unique ball of energy – unstable chakra," Kurama paused, he appeared to deliberate over what to say next. "It is not very threatening but it is restless and constantly moving. It's almost next to nothing, which is why neither you nor Sasuke has sensed it yet. Your sensory nin haven't said anything either, have they?"

"No. But we need to locate whatever it is, Kurama. It could be the first lead to all this non-sense. Should I use senjutsu now?"

"No, not yet Naruto. You would not be able to sense it yet anyway. Leave it to me. I can't be sure if this has anything to do with the cases being reported to you, but I would be moving out to the field to find it out personally if I were you."

"Naruto, what is it?" Sasuke asked, noticing the sudden concern dawning on his friend's expression.

"Kurama just talked to me. He can sense something we can't – at least something we can't sense yet. He said it's almost negligible but somehow concerning," Naruto answered, his eyes blankly staring at the door.

"Hn. Well that's how the incidents first started, didn't it? From something barely dangerous, now growing into something a bit alarming."

"Hmm, yes. Well if that's the case then, Sasuke, we need to act now."

4:47pm

Seventeen new cases scattered across the village. Seventeen, so far, and counting. The organized team of responding shinobi had been acting quite efficiently – keeping the injuries down to minimal and so far succeeding in limiting the number of casualties to zero. They tried using other techniques to contain and neutralize the attacks – nothing. Only Tenzo's and the Uchiha's kekke genkai's had worked. Although clones were proving to be very useful, the sudden growth in the number of incidents would soon prove to be overwhelming.

An hour ago, the Hokage's right hand man just raised the alarm level to critical.

Yamato kept himself upright against the exhaustion weighing him down. He was no longer in his prime but he had managed to contain every attack longer than he'd expected. No one would ever understand how exhausting the wood-release jutsu was and he almost dreaded using it every time. Right now, however, he had no choice but to keep these thoughts at bay. He held the seventeenth victim against the wall long enough for Sarada to neutralize the mark on his body.

As the young Uchiha waited for the victim's resistance to wane, she felt herself slip. Too tired. She felt the body in front of her relax as her eyes trailed along the marks on his body. The glow was beginning to fade. Done. She stepped back, hoping to find herself somewhere to seat or lean against, but she'd barely managed a few steps when both her vision and her legs simultaneously gave up.

"Sarada!" Boruto was by her side just in time to catch her before she fell. "Hey, Sarada, what's wrong?" He took off her glasses and moved her hair away from her face.

"Too tired," she answered, almost too softly for Boruto to hear her.

"I know, I know. I'm sorry we couldn't really help you. I'll bring you to the hospital so you can get some rest, is that alright?" Bolt untied Sarada's headband and placed it inside his pocket.

"No, no. Not at the hospital. Doesn't have to be there. Just somewhere to rest… a bit."

"No, Sarada. Bolt is right. It's just ordinary chakra exhaustion but the hospital is the safest place right now. And your mom will be there, too. You'll be fine, okay?" Hanabi knelt beside them, bringing an open canteen near Sarada's lips from which she struggled to drink from. "Bolt, take her there fast. Mitsuki, go with them. Tenzo, you should rest too."

"But if another instance like this occurs again, how are you going to handle it?" Yamato asked Hanabi.

"I… don't know. Evacuate the area, I guess. But while there hasn't been anything, don't worry about it yet. Go to rest, even for a bit. We'll inform the Hokage and Sasuke about this as soon as we can."

4:52 PM

It had been half an hour ago when Naruto and Sasuke decided to split ways with the sensory nin they'd asked to assist them earlier. A large area would be covered that way – that was how they reasoned it out. However, they both knew it was only partly true. Only Kurama could sense it and it had been faltering so that locating it was next to impossible for the group of sensory ninjas. They also both feared it was only a distraction, to which Kurama protested. After careful deliberation, Naruto and Sasuke decided to go by the nine-tails' decision to track it down.

They intended the sensory nin to go back to the heart of the village, just in case the threat decided to remain looming over Konoha, while Naruto and Sasuke attempt to lure it out, so far to no avail. An Anbu arrived before them – his message was clearly intended for Sasuke.

"Uchiha Sasuke, Hokage-sama. Word from Hanabi… " An Anbu arrived before them – his message was clearly intended for Sasuke. "Your daughter is in the hospital right now."

"What? Why? What happened?" Naruto was the first to react.

"Just chakra exhaustion. Uchiha Sakura said your daughter will be okay and that she only needs to nap. They're together right now," the Anbu answered Naruto's question, although he was still addressing Sasuke.

"You go check on her, Sasuke. I'll proceed with the search," Naruto said, placing his hand on Sasuke's shoulder.

"They said she's fine?" Sasuke asked the Anbu, ignoring what Naruto had just said.

"Sasuke, you should go," Naruto repeated. He was once again ignored.

"Yes, they said Sarada will be fine and that you wouldn't have to check on her," the Anbu looked at Naruto who just scowled at the statement. "They just want you to find the source of this as soon as you can because the only people who can deal with this right now, besides the two of you, are both down and weak. Tenzo has already been asked to leave and take a rest too. The only option we would have right now if new cases emerge is to evacuate."

"I see – "

"No, Sasuke. You still have to go see them. Your daughter has done so much already - "

"And that much would mean nothing if we don't find the source of this soon and the situation keeps growing," Sasuke snapped.

"I know that," Naruto sighed. "I didn't say we would abandon this search, Sasuke. I will proceed and do the best I can. Go check on all of them, provide the necessary assistance especially if the sharingan is needed, and then join me again when you're done." Naruto held Sasuke by the arm and talked calmly, feeling the tension building up on Sasuke right now.

"You're not about to do anything stupid, are you, Naruto?" Sasuke took a deep breath and looked Naruto in the eye.

"No," Naruto shook his head. "I don't even have any lead right now for goodness' sake Sasuke."

"Except we do suspect that they might be luring me out, maybe in the hopes that we don't face them together."

"You are joining me as soon as you're done. I'll send word for you as soon as I find something." Naruto exhaled heavily before smiling at Sasuke. "I am not going to do anything stupid, Sasuke, I promise. If I do, I'd gladly hand my Hokage title over to you."

"Hn. You wish I'd accept." Sasuke shrugged. He took one last look at Naruto before turning his back to follow the Anbu. "I'm only agreeing to leave because I trust you so much right now, dead-last. Keep your word this time like you always do."

Naruto only smiled.

AN: If you've read the Reanimation flashbacks, please no spoilers in the reviews, alright? Also... I might just change the plot of this one to give the story a different turn. I'm not sure yet.

Con & crit are welcome! Reviews and any form of feedback very well-appreciated. つづく

AN: Okay, this was the second chapter I had in the flashback in Reanimation, but I already made slight changes. After thinking about where I wanted to go with this story, I decided this will take a completely different turn from the flashback in the other story. The plots will completely diverge by the next chapters. Meaning, they're really going to be completely independent from each other. If you're reading the other one, stick to it. If you prefer this timeline, stick with this so it doesn't get confusing.

Worry and fear had always been pretty foreign to him even in the most upsetting situations, but this time he guessed it was different; these very emotions were now sitting disconcertingly in his gut and he did not even know why. He could feel Sarada's chakra perfectly – depleted, yes, but far from harm and definitely recovering more quickly than he was expecting. Even Sakura said he had nothing to worry about, and if there was anyone who had consistently and unfailingly put Sarada's safety in top priority, it was his wife. When it came to their daughter, he trusted Sakura way better than he ever trusted himself.

His mind drifted back to the task he left his best friend with. When he fled they still did not have a lead. Sasuke knew the entire village trusted Naruto with their lives, but whom did they trust to watch Naruto's back for him?

Hinata and Shikamaru? Yes, but this time they weren't with him. Sakura? After the Otsutsuki's attack against Konoha two years earlier, Naruto made her swear to look after the people, and only the people – never after him. Sasuke? Maybe, but he had just asked him to leave.

Sasuke picked up his pace as he headed toward the hospital.

One thing he learned – from all the tragedies he had the misfortune of facing – was that every difficult situation, when confronted singlehandedly with the absence of anyone to depend on, almost always did not end well, no matter how unparalleled someone was.

He never stopped wondering how things would have turned out if Itachi had someone else to support him on that ill-fated night. He might have not really known Jiraiya well, but he later learned of the fall of the Toad Sage when he decided to face the Six Paths of Pain on his own. When Naruto became Hokage, Sasuke also could not help but ponder on the fates of the Third and the Fourth Hokages – how they took all the responsibility to themselves, all the while knowing it would very well end in their deaths.

When he reflected upon Naruto's request to help him in his dream of changing the world for the better, Sasuke pledged to himself – although he bestowed highest honor to self-sacrifice, if he could forestall it, he would.

He believed that it was only for this very reason that destiny allowed him to live after everything that he had done – that when he decided to grant Naruto's request of lending him support, he'd found his only remaining purpose.

As soon as Sasuke had left, the beast residing deep inside Naruto's subconscious bellowed, making the Hokage shudder for the first time in years.

The presence of the beast, which had long been undisturbed, was growing alarmingly warm. The last time the nine-tails' chakra boiled in anger rather than strength, was when he and Naruto fought.

"What is it, Kurama?"

The beast grunted, its eyes shut and its head resting lazily on the floor.

"Suddenly, as you were left on your own, the mixed chakra I was telling you about became excited, moving in a manner that seems to be taunting me. I hate being taunted; it's beyond insulting."

"Don't worry. We'll get to the heart of it. Can you locate it?"

"Yes. It has grown significant enough for me to track it, as if on purpose. Also, it is moving at the speed of an ordinary human. I think it wants you to follow it, Naruto."

"Me? It won't even let me feel it," Naruto said in disbelief, as his senjutsu failed to discern anything worth noting.

"Yes, but it still makes sense – it only reaches out to me. Think about it, Kit, who else in this village has a tailed beast besides you?"

Naruto remained silent as his mind raced. He could not think of anything else to do besides confronting it. He debated with himself – if going alone was a wise idea. The fact that the presence only made itself deliberately known to him once he was alone told him it was the only way. Sasuke would join him soon and he knew the opportunity to meet the perpetrator face to face would slip once his teammate arrived.

Naruto fully entered his subconscious, raising his fist toward Kurama. The beast opened one eye and sighed, before straightening up and looking at Naruto with the same understanding they'd always shared for years. Kurama raised his fist in the same manner and they connected. Both of them smiled.

Outwardly, only Naruto's eyes changed – a mix of yellow and orange, dancing together like fire. And then there it was, as visible to him as the sun – small but bright and burning, blue, white, violet, and gold. And the sound it made, as loud as a troubled eagle – chirping, zapping, ripping, and crackling. It filled his ears, and Naruto finally understood what the nine-tails meant when it said it felt provoking. The restless ball of energy was waiting.

"It is definitely not showing signs of heading toward Konoha, toward where the people are," Naruto stated. "Shifting only in random directions right in front of us,"

"See, Kit? This is different, far from nature energy. If we get closer, we can determine if it has anything to do with the tailed beasts' chakra, it seems almost as troubling and distressing to me."

Naruto nodded and set off, heading straight to the source. As long as he could keep this presence away from his village until he'd solved it, he felt at ease. Keeping Konoha whole was his only priority, nothing else, and he knew he had a lot of competent and dependable people to trust it with.

"How is Boruto doing, Hokage-sama? Still struggling to prove himself worthy under your shadow?" The voice of a young man met Naruto's ears as soon as he reached the location of the disturbance – right in the middle of a forest near the outskirts of Konoha.

The Seventh Hokage looked up and stared straight at the young man sitting nonchalantly on a branch. He appeared to be around Boruto's age. His hair was jet black, under which it was shaven and blonde in color. A dagger-like tattoo crawled up his face toward his left eye and a pair of piercings adorned his right eyebrow. But what immediately caught Naruto's attention was the elaborate black sigil tattoo spread across the young man's left body – his face, chest, and arm – which looked strikingly similar to the tattoo Boruto had, except this young man's mark glowed red every time he spoke, something Boruto's didn't do.

It did not take too long for Naruto to recognize him. This was the kid Boruto always helped back in the academy – their class' dead-last. Supposedly orphaned at a young age, from parents no one really knew and no one really asked about, he used to isolate himself. He had shown early hostile behavior but Boruto gave him a chance and made him his friend. After they became genin, they never really had the chance to continue their close friendship. But Naruto remembered how Boruto still spoke about him occasionally, saying this boy had potential because he was actually smart and very inquisitive – a natural strategist, as he called him – and that his only weakness was that he considerably lacked chakra.

Naruto examined the boy from a distance. Compared to his son, this young man really was still short of chakra, possessing even less of an average shinobis'. Was he really the one responsible for all of this?

"Kawaki," Naruto called back to him, causing him to look a little surprised.

"You still know me? You remember my name?" Kawaki shifted in his seat before standing on the branch.

Naruto only just noticed that Kawaki kept his right hand hidden inside his black vest trench coat, exactly where Naruto could feel the unique energy.

"So they still do talk about me, don't they? The talentless freak," Kawaki said, utter disgust evident in the manner he spoke, without any intention to hide his repulsion.

"No. But I've heard remarks that you were actually very intelligent, able to come up with ideas even the top of your class could not," Naruto blatantly and sincerely stated. "It was just that you never really bothered to perform well in class."

"Hm. When you're surrounded by bloodline geniuses who never had to do so much to succeed, while you have to do everything and never get any recognition, why even bother struggling?" Kawaki shot a glaring look at Naruto, before looking far ahead of him above the trees and beyond the mountains. His right hand remained hidden inside his coat.

"I'm sorry if you felt that way," Naruto said.

"No need to feel sorry for me now, Lord Seventh – I eventually picked myself up. Life only truly began for me when I became genin, it was then a steep upward journey for me afterwards, even after I decided I would not strive to go up the ranks. My abilities weren't exactly the type people tend to appreciate during the age of the shinobi, so I used it all for myself… as you can see now," Kawaki said, as he began to reveal what he'd been hiding in his right hand.

He pulled out what looked like a small glowing scroll, blue – almost the exact same color of marks on the victims' bodies. From its original small size, it grew bigger in the open. It looked hologramic, and from inside it Naruto was certain – restless energy swirled around violently.

"At the start, I proposed for Bolt to join me in my quest for innovation, progression, evolution – whatever you want to call it," Kawaki said proudly, while eyeing the scroll. "I wasn't convinced he was going to join me in Katasuke and Kosuke's* experimentations, seeing how his father –" Kawaki looked at Naruto, " – was vocally against their experiments. But he did."

"I knew. From the very start Boruto was very open to me about it," Naruto said.

"Yes, and to be fair to him, he was only interested in facilitating advancements that would have helped the village, while also hoping to influence Katasuke and Konsuke to align their experiments with your vision," Kawaki said. "He had no idea my intentions went way beyond that. In the end, I realized our goals just weren't the same, and so it did not really bother me when our ways gradually parted."

"Bolt only stopped after the group started experimenting on a living human body – his body. The tattoo on his right side was inflicted on him without his consent. I never found out if you played any part on it; he refused to say anything against you because he also honestly didn't know," Naruto said.

"I did not play any part on it! I knew he did not want any of it. Only I sought it," Kawaki raised his arm, as if to show Naruto the black mark and how it glowed a bloody shade of red. "I stopped them from doing any further modifications on him. Of course he did not need it, being an Uzumaki and all. I, however, was just a nobody, and will remain that way if I did not do anything."

Kawaki raised his palm toward Naruto, from whom a rod of yellow and orange chakra seemed to protrude before being sucked back into Naruto again. The nine-tailed beast felt the pang of it as much as Naruto did, but not a bit of chakra was absorbed. Kawaki didn't look surprised at his failed attempt.

"Of course I knew I could not do it," Kawaki said, as he casually shrugged it off. "But I did not expect that not even an insignificant amount of chakra will disconnect from you, and I will need way more than that. It's this problem that kept me stalling my plan for months – you're just too strong."

Naruto ignored the failed attempt to suck a bit of the nine-tails' chakra. He was aware that chaos continued inside Konoha and that he needed to know how this young man was doing it and what for. From how he was acting, it also seemed like he did not meet with Naruto for battle. He obviously had something else in mind.

"I had forbidden further experimentation immediately after what happened to Boruto and I made sure the laboratories remained inaccessible to anyone - "

"Yes, because this type of advancements did not sit well with you, Lord Seventh," Kawaki retorted.

"It did not sit well with me, and the council, and the rest of Konoha," Naruto said firmly and calmly.

Kawaki sighed. "You know, Lord Uzumaki, we aren't so different from each other. We both mean well. If you are not convinced that I don't mean overt harm, look at the current situation – zero casualties," Kawaki jumped down from the branch but he did not advance toward Naruto. "You want peace; I want equality. I think both can work well together, can't they? But like me and Boruto, you and I – our goals are not the same, and I don't think you will ever understand."

"And how do you plan on bringing this equality you speak of – by robbing everyone off their chakra?"

"In a way, yes, and eventually bring an end to the age of the ninja altogether without ever killing anyone. You have to commend all the effort it took me to develop a technique that leaves no one dead." Kawaki spun the scroll in his hand as it sparked every now and then, signaling the addition of new chakra being transferred into it.

"You did this all by yourself?" Naruto asked.

"Hm, no. For some time I was alone, but eventually, I learned that there were other people who wanted to work with me for the same purpose. I don't think you have to know who they are, but they're responsible for most of the commotion happening inside the village right now," Kawaki said.

When Naruto remained silent, Kawaki continued. "After you dismantled the laboratories, I did not stop. Rather, I took it as a challenge. I quietly and humbly approached people who were masters in their field, gathering very important information," Kawaki placed the scroll back inside his coat, rubbing his palms together as he proceeded to recall. "I sought sources about kinjutsus, the chakra circulatory system, senjutsu, tailed-beast energy, fuinjutsus, medical ninjutsu, dojutsus, and countless other techniques. I made sure I only asked just barely enough, so as not to raise any suspicion. In the end, no one figured out that my purpose was beyond personal advancement," Kawaki said, a smirk beginning to play on his face.

"And this was the purpose you came up with? Ending the age of the ninja – that if no one had chakra, everyone was just going to be equals? If so, your victims are not just pawns and your plan is being carried out smoothly inside the village. Why meet with me? Surely you didn't come to fight me," Naruto asked.

"Of course not, that will surely guarantee my death. But even that was pretty calculated. You will not kill me; I made sure you won't. Uchiha Sasuke may not hesitate to get rid of me, but you won't let him. I've studied you well, Lord Seventh, and I probably know you better than your own son ever will." A wide, sinister smile appeared across his face, as if he was on the verge of laughing. Whatever Kawaki was thinking, he was probably convinced his plan was going very well.

"Sasuke will be here soon so if there's anything you wanted to tell only me, I am listening. What exactly do you want from me?"

"Your cooperation," Kawaki said unashamedly, his hand reaching into his coat, revealing the glowing scroll again. He waved it in front of Naruto. "This seal can only store so much. I've already utilized all the energy my team and I have meticulously gathered and artificially reformulated during the past two years into this small scroll. We can spend year after year improving it but our efforts can only bring about very insignificant change, whereas a reasonable amount of the tailed-beast chakra can eliminate almost every limitation it has now."

"So you weren't trying to steal my chakra," Naruto said, shaking his head in realization, "You need some of it for your plan to work on a wider scale. What made you think I will cooperate? What have you planned to cause me to oblige?"

Kawaki chuckled almost sarcastically, as if he just remembered something funny. "Whenever people think about the name Naruto Uzumaki, they always associate it with the young lad who always claimed that his greatest strength was his will to protect people. You still believe the same thing about yourself, do you, Hokage-sama?"

"Go straight to the point," Naruto commanded through gritted teeth. Explosions coming from inside his village shook the earth beneath him and he knew that the longer this lasted, the harder it would be to contain the mayhem.

"I figured that your greatest strength can also be your most crucial weakness – the devotion you have for the people, that is," Kawaki smirked.

"It's been the will to protect them that placed me where I am now, and it will always be the reason I stay and fight," Naruto countered.

"And it is the same will to protect the people that will force you to put your guard down against me. The premise is simple, Lord Hokage. If you don't lend me the chakra I need, your people will die," Kawaki said, as he started to advance toward Naruto. This young man's body language communicated only sheer confidence, not a trace of uncertainty could be heard in his voice. "For the same reason, you also cannot kill me. Refuse to cooperate, your people die; get rid of me, your people die. See, my life is tied with the lives of the people we've already marked. As long as I have this scroll sealed and active, they're in my hands."

As Naruto tried to contemplate what Kawaki meant, he felt himself being pulled back into his subconscious.

"Naruto, I've been doing my best to discern the nature of the sealed scroll he is using," the nine-tailed beast pointed out, its demeanor seemingly more composed now than earlier. "It is, as he claims, reformulated – a successful mixture of different elemental and nature energies, making it able to contain any form of chakra inside it. However, its final form initially lacked the tailed beasts' chakra so that it remained very weak for use."

"Initially?" Naruto asked.

"Yes. It seems like they've only recently added a portion of the eight-tails' chakra to it, which made it strong enough to be functional," Kurama answered.

"So you've already stolen some of the eight-tails' chakra and I'm assuming you're also after the rest of the tailed-beasts' chakra," Naruto asked Kawaki.

"Hachibi's chakra, yes. It wasn't a complicated task since we knew we could put up a fight against its jinchuuriki – making it look like we're after abducting him when we only needed a small portion of its tail. Too much chakra at once would've broken the seal," Kawaki said.

"So it was your group that was behind what the Raikage described as a random and lame attempt at abducting Bee, those disguised as weak bandits that never came back?" Naruto asked, remembering the drunk-tale the Raikage briefly mentioned to him at one gathering they'd had.

"Ah yes," Kawaki said, waving his hand as if brushing off the subject and looking uninterested. "Obviously we can't do the same approach with you," he paused, looking somewhat disappointed. "Like I said – you're just too strong. Fighting you is like a suicide attempt. The same goes with the other beasts, facing all of them in their pure form will be risky, and besides, a portion of the kyuubi's chakra will suffice. None of the others' chakra will achieve what the kyuubi's can."

Naruto heard the nine-tailed beast grunt, obviously taking the remark as both a compliment and a challenge, before speaking to him again.

"Unfortunately, Naruto, I can also confirm that everything else he'd said earlier is true. The lives of everyone they have inflicted with his mark are connected with his. As long as the seal is active, killing him kills them too, while he also retains the ability to get rid of them without killing himself," the nine-tailed beast cited before attempting to assess the presence of similar energy inside Konoha. "Kit, this kid is no joke. It seems like a very thorough plan on his part...

I'm sorry to break it to you, Naruto, but at this point it looks as if only a third of Konoha remains unmarked."

Konoha Hospital

Dusk

"Papa, I'm fine," Sarada whined while her father awkwardly touched her arms, trying to make it look as if he knew what he was doing. "If you need to go somewhere else, you can. You know there's nothing wrong with me and you're only prodding me now for show."

Sasuke stopped with an upset look on his face. Sarada looked at him and realized what she just said before scowling.

"Papa, I did not mean it like that," Sarada sighed. "You don't have to do this to show me you care. I know that already and it's now very apparent that I'm beyond recovered."

"Hm, your daughter is right, Sasuke," Sakura stated blatantly while watching them. "What are you touching her arms for anyway?" Sakura giggled and Sasuke groaned, feeling like an idiot. "In fact, I think the police forces can really use her help now. She just needs few breaks in between to make sure she doesn't overdo it."

Sasuke shook his head before looking down. They did not really have a choice. Sarada and Sasuke were the only ones capable of deactivating the markings. Since Sasuke needed to help Naruto, only Sarada could perform it.

"Sasuke, where is Naruto? Have you found out anything yet? It won't stop; it already left a concerning number of people entirely chakra-depleted without being sick and we can't find answers as to how this is possible," Sakura whispered, her voice sounded a bit worried.

"We only have a minor lead – an unusual presence looming outside the village, and the nine-tails is trying to track it down for us. Naruto is still out there," Sasuke answered. "How are they able to control the situation while Sarada is here?"

"They're focused on luring the marked victims somewhere that's been evacuated, and then keeping the people out of their reach. The forces have been efficient at it, so far. But the number of affected people keeps growing – thirty-seven was the last count I've heard. There's probably more now," Sakura said while looking out the window, seemingly lost in thought.

"So far without any casualty?" Sasuke asked.

"Yes, fortunately still without any casualty. I hope it stays that way," Sakura answered.

"Please do inform Shikamaru and the others that Naruto and I –" Sasuke glanced at Sarada, who was also listening intently at her parents' conversation. "We have a clue but it's not enough, and that it will probably take us longer to put an end to this."

Sakura nodded, her lips pursed. There were a lot of things that concerned her and she had a number of questions she wanted to ask. Somehow, part of her wanted to go with Sasuke and Naruto to help them, but she knew her responsibilities now remained at the hospital.

"I'm sorry I couldn't help," Sakura told Sasuke as he got up.

"No, you've been taking care of all the wounded. That's all that can be looked after right now and your team is doing all of it," Sasuke turned to face his wife. "Don't burn yourself out, Sakura." Sasuke gave her a reassuring smile.

"I won't. Thank you, Sasuke. Take care of yourself out there. And please do look after Naruto, too. He tends to… you know," she said before she stopped herself from saying more.

Boruto was watching them from the other end of the room, with Mitsuki standing right beside him. "Uncle Sasuke," Bolt whispered while Sasuke was getting ready. It was too soft that if Sasuke wasn't expecting Boruto to talk to him, he wouldn't have heard it.

"Yes?" Sasuke turned to the young man.

Bolt appeared surprised for a moment, and it took him a while before he spoke again. "Can you take me to my dad? I want to help."

Sasuke considered this for a while before dismissing it. "I'm not sure your father wants me to bring you along with me, Bolt. I am sorry. It's just that we haven't fully assessed the threat yet. Also, they might need your assistance here in Konoha."

"Papa," Sarada called her father's attention. "Boruto has been of great help to us. But he's really bothered not knowing where the Seventh is. Auntie Hinata and Himawari feel the same, but they're also busy keeping the people away from danger. Please reconsider taking Boruto with you," she said, reaching out her hand to hold Sasuke's wrist.

"I will stay by Sarada's side all the time so Bolt can go," Mitsuki added. Boruto grinned at him, before uttering thank you at his team mate.

"Hn, I guess it can't be helped," said Sasuke.

As soon as his mentor agreed, Boruto got up, quickly grabbing his coat and his weapons. Sasuke gave both Sakura and Sarada a pat on the shoulder and turned to nod at Mitsuki, before heading towards the door.

"We'll see you as soon as this is over," Sarada called out to Boruto. "Make sure you return in one piece!"

"Yep," Boruto replied. "Mitsuki, keep a close eye on the goofhead and make sure she doesn't do anything too silly," he said, smiling at his team mates before he and Sasuke exited the room.

"I'll let another thing slip to help you decide what's best for your people," Kawaki sneered. "The majority of them have already been marked, and I've only been activating their seals one after another, in the hopes of prolonging the time I can distract your forces, as well as the Uchiha. But it seems like I can't keep the Rinnegan-possessor away for a long time."

Naruto's form relaxed as soon as he felt Sasuke's chakra approach. It did not take too long for him to realize that his son was coming too. Kawaki remained silent as they waited; the young man appeared tense. Naruto silently ran through all the information he had – he needed to find a solution to this soon. Also, with all the information Kawaki gave him, he did not know how much the young man would let Sasuke know. There was a reason he made sure he talked only to Naruto first, and Kawaki needed only Naruto's cooperation. He knew Kawaki considered Sasuke to be the biggest threat to his plans.

"Bolt!" Naruto yelled as soon as his son came to view. "Sasuke, how are they? How's the village?"

"Nothing to worry about. They have everything under control," Sasuke answered, his eyes fixed on the young man in front of them. "Who is this kid and what have you found out so far, Naruto?"

"I will be careful with what I do now, if I were you, Lord Hokage," Kawaki cautioned, his expression displaying his growing unease. "And I will advise the Uchiha and my friend to do the same."

"Kawaki, you…" Bolt advanced toward his friend but Naruto stopped him, holding out an arm to keep him from going nearer.

"He has almost the entire village under hostage, Sasuke. Everyone's lives are at stake. One wrong move and he can wipe the village empty," Naruto explained.

"The marks on their body," Sasuke muttered under his breath and Naruto nodded. "And he's doing this because he wants something from you?"

Naruto lifted his fist slightly toward Sasuke, who connected with him without hesitation. The dark-haired man nodded as he wrapped his thoughts around all the information Naruto shared with him; Kawaki remained oblivious to what just happened. As soon as Sasuke and Naruto disconnected, Naruto was pulled into the deepest area of his psyche.

"Kit, there's a vital piece of information I withheld from you earlier because I knew Sasuke would insist in entering your mind," the nine-tailed beast spoke almost instantly.

"You had to wait for the moment Sasuke and I shared information and disconnected from each other so that you can share it with me? Why – is it something you don't want him to find out?" Naruto asked.

"Whether he should find out or not isn't for me to decide, it is yours," Kurama answered.

Naruto listened intently as the nine-tailed beast carefully led him through an answer, his heart racing and thrashing more heavily against his chest with every detail that was laid out to him. The voice of the beast drowned everything else around him for what seemed like a stretch of time, but he knew they spent barely a few seconds to arrive at a mutual resolution.

Another set of spontaneous explosions wracked the ground beneath them. Naruto focused at the scroll, which Kawaki had already hidden behind his vest. It started sparking ceaselessly and the chakra inside it was moving more violently as more chakra was added. Kawaki had just doubled his efforts in activating the marks on his victims.

Something flying swooped behind Boruto, aiming to land behind his neck but he felt it approach just in time to dodge it. The young blonde man flung himself sideways and rolled on the ground before standing up. It seemed to have disappeared in an instant and he looked around, trying to figure out where it went. Suddenly, it showed itself in front of him, ready to lunge right into his face.

"Boruto! Get behind me," Naruto yelled as he watched Sasuke grab Boruto away from the path of the attack.

"I think he is trying to mark me," Boruto said as he walked toward his father. "The victims I've talked to reported extreme discomfort at their napes, starting hours before the marks completely took over their bodies."

Kawaki jeered at Boruto, obviously annoyed at his failed attempt to place a seal on him. "I've been unable to mark those with naturally huge amounts of chakra because of how weak the seal started. But now that it has grown powerful enough, I can have you and both of your teammates. Maybe I'll start with them first, that's much easier – "

Before Kawaki could finish, a katana flew toward him, cutting through his left side before the blade planted itself into the tree behind him. "Touch my child and I will make sure you regret it," Sasuke threatened.

The young man cried in pain and hurled curses toward Sasuke whose Rinnegan had already been activated. "Maybe I already have," he spat.

"Sasuke, stop," Naruto placed a hand on his friend's shoulder and slowly pulled him back. "We can't attack, or many people will die. As Hokage I promise I won't let anything happen to your child, or to any other children in the village."

"And how exactly are you going to assure me now?" Sasuke snapped, waiting for an answer. When he did not receive any, he turned to see his blonde friend looking at him with a calm expression on his face.

ooooo

"You did not miss it, did you? When Kawaki accidentally said something about how the seal can be broken,"

the nine-tails asked.

"Hm, yes, I did not miss it. The moment it slipped from him, it never left my mind,"

Naruto pondered over the exact words that escaped from Kawaki's lips earlier –

'Too much chakra at once would've broken the seal.'

"Heh, Sasuke was right when he said becoming the Hokage made you quick,"

the nine-tailed beast teased, while Naruto chuckled to himself.

"It's the only way we know of now, isn't it?" Naruto asked.

"Yes, and it looks like we only have one shot at it. We can't gamble," the nine-tailed beast added. "If we fail to break the seal, we'll just end up giving him the amount he needs to make his plan work. It will strengthen his seal and cut the portion I have, making it a bit trickier for me to break the seal again at one go."

"At one go," Naruto repeated, his voice shaking at the realization suddenly dawning at him.

"To give him everything, all at once – that is all we have to do, right?"

The nine-tailed beast groaned in confirmation.

"Do you realize what that entails, Naruto? It's a huge price to pay."

"At my end, the price is only one life for the life of many. But what bothers me is that I have to drag you into this, Kurama," Naruto's heart sank.

He slowly lifted his gaze to meet with Kurama's eyes. Naruto was surprised to see the fox smiling softly back at him.

"I'm the one you're concerned about? You're about to put your life on the line, Kit, and that's what you're bothered about? You are unbelievable, Naruto," Kurama said, shaking his head almost playfully. The fox watched as a tear escaped his host's eye. "Don't ever feel bad for me. This has always been the kind of life every tailed-beast led. People see us as nothing but chakra reserves, and we'll always be caught in a tug-of-war."

"I'm sorry if I wasn't able to really change that," Naruto whispered, barely audible enough for Kurama to hear.

Kurama raised his arm and softly nudged Naruto on his chest. "You're sorry for what? Fighting for the tailed-beasts' freedom and treating me as your comrade? This ultimate sacrifice is nothing if it means paying you back for everything you've done, if it means fulfilling your goal," Kurama paused, lowering his head so that it leveled with Naruto's. "There's only one thing I ask of you – that right now you think only about yourself, think about what you want, and what you think you should do. I will support you no matter what."

Naruto remained silent for a while, his eyes staring at the ground. He sighed heavily before speaking, "This extraction, where both the beast and the host agree to separate – has it been done before?" he asked.

"I don't think so."

"But you're sure it is possible?"

"With you current strength and mine? I think so, yes."

Naruto smiled, "That's all I need to know – "

"Kit, it is going to hurt… a lot."

"I know. It already hurts a bit now,"

Naruto answered.

ooooo

"I'm sorry," Sasuke told Naruto, as soon as he realized he'd just snapped at him. His friend just beamed, pulling him further by the shoulder.

"Stay behind me," Naruto commanded, and when Sasuke did not follow, he stepped forward so that he was a couple of feet ahead.

Naruto had never used it before, but he still remembered how to form the chakra barrier he devised for himself right after the Otsutsuki's attack two years ago. This circular barrier would trap an enemy with him inside as they fought, preventing them from causing damage outside the barrier. After performing the correct hand seals, a wall made of his own chakra rose around him and Kawaki, enclosing a huge area and separating them completely from Sasuke and Boruto.

Realizing what was happening, Sasuke dashed forward, his only remaining hand bearing the chidori. The Rinnegan-bearer drove the chidori forcefully against the barrier but Sasuke did not feel any resistance. The barrier only absorbed the attack.

"What is this, Naruto?!" Sasuke shouted at his friend, whose back was still turned against him.

"I'm sorry, Sasuke. I can't let you in. Only my chakra can pass through it," Naruto answered.

"What do you mean you can't let me in?!" Sasuke asked as he kicked the barrier furiously – nothing happened.

The barrier was growing thicker and it started looking a bit shrouded, as if seeking to conceal what would happen inside it.

Boruto watched, overwhelmed at the scene playing before him, before running toward the wall and beating his hands against it. "Dad! Let us in!"

Naruto's concentration faltered at the sound of his son's voice.

"Bolt," the Hokage said, trying his best to make himself sound calm and composed, his voice threatening to break and expose his current vulnerability. "You and Sasuke need to go back to the village and watch out for the worst. I don't know what may happen next, but the village needs you there."

"You're seriously asking us to leave?!" Sasuke asked infuriatingly, his voice riddled with disbelief.

"I need someone out there powerful enough to make sure the village is protected from further harm," Naruto explained.

"Then at least let us know what your plan is!" Sasuke yelled, activating his Rinnegan to look for a breach in the chakra wall. There was none.

"Just let me do what I can, please," Naruto pleaded almost in despair.

"Like doing everything on your own?! Was that your plan from the very start?" The Uchiha stepped back, hastily casting black flames to engulf the entire wall. The flames rose angrily against the barrier but as soon as the blaze reached its full power, it steadily died down.

"I'm not doing everything on my own! After I am done with this, it still won't be over. I need you to stay, Sasuke, so you can do the rest for me."

"And what's that supposed to mean?" Sasuke asked, a pang of anguish shooting straight at his core. "Bullshit, Naruto," he whimpered. "You promised you wouldn't do anything stupid."

"Well, I'm sorry if I can't keep one promise today," Naruto said.

Inside the barrier, Kawaki looked around. At first, he was completely flustered by what was happening. But as he listened to the two most powerful shinobi talking to each other, he began to grasp what they meant and what the current Hokage had in mind. The young man stared at Naruto in shock.

"You can't possibly be thinking of - " Kawaki said, his right hand pointed at Naruto. "You're not thinking of breaking the seal, are you?"

"Hm, I have to, and I'm sorry," Naruto took a few steps forward. "Listen to me. I am not doing this because I am against you or what you value. I am doing this because I don't want you to end up really harming a lot of people," the Hokage continued to speak even though the young man was trying to step away from him. "Doing so will only destroy you in the long run and leave you with nothing but hatred. I want you to realize there are other ways around it. Whatever I am about to carry out - it will leave your plan ruined but it will also leave you alive. Consider it as a second chance – someday you have to turn your back on your wrong ways."

"No, no. I can't, I wouldn't." Kawaki boasted. He looked at Naruto, then Sasuke, and then to his friend. "I'm too far gone."

"After this, Sasuke can show you that no one is ever too far gone to turn back - " Naruto continued to say, before he was stopped by the cries of his son.

"Dad! Please," Bolt was on his knees. His dad was the strongest man he'd ever known, and he never thought they would ever get caught in a situation like this. He couldn't believe what he was hearing. All Boruto could feel was that it was getting really harder to breathe. "Mama and Hima…" He choked, trying his best to focus at his dad's figure, the clouded barrier between them gradually making it impossible for him to see his father's face. "They will be waiting for you at home."

"I'm sorry, I know. Bolt, I will try my best. But if ever I don't make it - "

"Naruto!" Sasuke's voice rang out, and Boruto screamed against the force that just struck him.

The barrier violently expanded instantaneously, thrusting both Boruto and Sasuke away while the whole area was completely engulfed in smoke. The intensity tore against his skin and debris hit every inch of his body.

And as they both hit the ground several miles away, the last thing Boruto heard was his father telling him he loved him.

The smoke covering the entire area suffocated him while he ran senselessly deep into the woods. They shouldn't be too far from here. His mentor followed closely behind, making no attempt to stop him. Sasuke was yelling something to him but his ears were still too busted to understand a thing – that or he just didn't bother to listen.

Almost frantically, he looked around as he reached a clearing – nothing, just smoke everywhere from his own father's doing. Sasuke landed right behind him, firmly placing his hand on the young man's shoulders. Boruto quickly shoved him off.

"You can feel his chakra! Tell me where he is!" Boruto shouted, smoke quickly filling his lungs.

"I can still sense his chakra but I cannot locate him," Sasuke replied, trying to keep his voice steady.

"You were able to detect him from across dimensions before! Now you can't?" Boruto asked as he stepped closer toward Sasuke, his eyes scanning him for a sincere answer.

"I don't know why I can't, Bolt. Must be the barrier preventing me from tracing him," Sasuke mumbled as he raised both hands over his mouth in utter frustration. He could only imagine how his student felt – probably ten times worse than how he was feeling now.

Without realizing it, Sasuke began pacing. Boruto watched, slowly facing the fact that the most powerful man alive in the world right now, besides his father, was just as clueless as he was.

"Why would he do that?" Boruto muttered, not really waiting for a response.

Sasuke looked at his student, who was already staring dumbfounded at the ground. His heart sank. He remembered the night he felt most helpless as a child – the first time he suspected something was wrong as he raced back to the Uchiha compound. He remembered the feelings of foreboding swallowing him whole even before he found out what happened to his family.

Now he was watching as another child anticipated for the worst.

Blasts roared in succession like thunder, all of them coming from Konoha, and there was nothing Sasuke or Boruto could do except look up at the sky toward its direction. Whatever Naruto was doing, or saying, it was enraging Kawaki and he was taking his wrath out on what the Hokage cared for the most – the village.

"Go back to the village!" Sasuke yanked Boruto as his right eye turned red and three tomoes spun into place.

"What?! Hell no! I'm not leaving!" Bolt tried to pull away, his blue eyes glaring back at his mentor's sharingan. "If I refuse to go, what are you going to do? Force me to leave with your genjutsu?!"

"No. I'm not asking you to leave. I'm asking you to get backup – a search team. It's about time we inform the shinobi forces about what's really happening now, even without the Hokage's orders," Sasuke said, his features softening as Boruto's resistance relaxed.

The Hokage's son stared at Sasuke for a moment with the most despairing eyes the raven-haired man had ever seen. "Then I can come back? With them?"

"Do what you have to, Boruto. It is up to you. You know what's best for you," Sasuke answered sincerely, to which Boruto just nodded.

The young man said something to Sasuke before he ran but another set of explosions drowned his voice. As he disappeared into the woods toward the direction of Konoha, Sasuke thought he heard Boruto thank him for looking after his father.

Inside one of the abandoned monumental halls, over which the Hokage mountain towered, the people took shelter. What began as an unusual, isolated case grew rapidly; the incident that first occurred to strangers managed to reach their own homes, eventually victimizing their fathers, brothers, sisters, and children, although most of them were shinobi. The people took heart in the fact that the injuries being caused were far from fatal, although the resulting permanent lack of chakra was still very disconcerting. With the situation still intensifying almost relentlessly, no one had the courage to wonder what effect this incapacitation would inflict upon the village.

The children and the youth amongst those taking refuge watched in awe as the Hokage's wife calmly and sensibly relayed commands to the shinobi force in charge of gathering the people to safety, occasionally lending a hand to the medics whenever someone injured was brought inside. Hinata Uzumaki's gentle and composed demeanor stood out, quite contrary to the rest of the scene playing before them, and some people found it contagious – that seeing her manage herself well against pressure seemed to have a calming effect on the people as well.

"If any of you have experienced any form of discomfort, especially on your neck or on your face, today or yesterday, please report to our medics immediately so that you can be examined. This is for everyone's safety," Hinata announced as another crowd entered the hall.

Activating her byakugan, she scanned the chakra channels of everyone entering the hall, looking for signs of unusual activity. Those possessing the kekke genkai were able to detect slight inconsistencies in chakra flow caused by a dormant mark. The victims having the dormant mark were sent to Yamato's team where Sarada was, and were placed under observation – as expected, most of them, if not all, had their marks eventually activated. For this reason, those possessing the byakugan were disseminated all over the village.

For a long time, the situation seemed manageable – if you didn't count the fact that the intelligence and medical team could not figure out the mark. Corner the victims and contain the damage. However, as the number grew, havoc started tearing the village apart. Soon, the hostile sleepwalkers attacked in groups, targeting the foundations and structures of the village. Since the victims were once shinobi themselves, their physical strength and speed matched those of the shinobi force. The greatest weakness of Konoha's defense now was that there were only two people who could completely stop the attacks.

"I've checked on everyone's chakra channel. I have to move to the next area. At least three jonin need to oversee inside, and another squad needs to watch over from every way in. I need to talk to Shikamaru," Hinata said to the head jonin in the area. "Not everyone who has the dormant mark exhibits signs in their chakra channels. We can't spread this information however, or else the people will panic."

The jonin just stared, speechless as the First Lady spoke, carefully nodding to show that he had understood.

"I will choose the three jonin who will stay here inside. Most of the people in your squad have a dormant mark, I'm afraid, and that includes you," Hinata looked at him with an apologetic look on her face.

"I see," he tried to remain composed despite the sudden heavy feeling that was dawning on him. "I'll have to stay outside then. You're not sending us to Yamato's team now though, Hinata-sama?" he asked, surprised that he was still allowed to stay.

"No," Hinata replied, "not yet. If we send all of you there, we'll be lacking manpower. That can be problematic. Just make sure the hall is closed. As soon as we find replacements for you, I'll be sending you off to Yamato and Sarada."

"I understand. Thank you for your lending us your aid, Hinata-sama," the young man bowed.

"It is my duty, as well as everyone else's responsibility, to look after the village especially during a crisis like this. Thank you for your squad's efforts too," Hinata smiled, before adding "oh, and just call me Hinata next time." Taking one last glance over the people inside the hall, she made her way outside where she handpicked three jonin to stay inside the hall before it was locked. The rest of them devotedly guarded their posts outside the hall right after the First Lady had left.

The gates of Konoha had been flung wide open as if it were waiting for Boruto. Only dull yellow lights illuminated the entrance; darkness had already stretched over the village. He raced into it, his body barely able to keep up with his own feet. He stopped for a moment, trying to compose a façade for himself. He wasn't going to let his fear slip while he faced other people. This wasn't the time to raise their concern. Whatever was troubling him, the villagers didn't need to know.

As soon as he caught his breath, he scurried through the streets, looking for familiar people. Boruto was fully unprepared for the first person that greeted him.

"Boruto! Over here!"

Bolt turned to his left to see a number of people gathered, a rumbling noise could be heard from their midst. "Himawari," he mumbled in surprise, seeing his sister emerge right from the heart of the chaos.

"Hey, you look worn out," Himawari pointed out. She stopped right in front of Boruto, placing both hands on his shoulders, her eyes probing him as if to look for injuries. His brother's jacket was cut and torn all over, almost exposing the shirt he had underneath.

"I'm okay," Boruto replied, examining Himawari the same way to see if she had been harmed. After determining she was uninjured, he looked around. "I need to talk to Uncle Shikamaru."

"I think I know where he would be." Himawari grabbed his wrist and led him deeper into the village, passing just behind a crowded area. She continued to speak as she led the way. "Have you seen dad? Sarada told me you went with Uncle Sasuke so he could take you to him?"

"I - " Boruto's voice got caught in his throat. He felt his sister's gaze fall on his face. "Uh, yeah. I was with him."

"He's got a lead then? That's why you're here," she asked, shifting her focus back to the path in front of her.

"Uh, yes. They need assistance. That's all. I need to tell Uncle Shikamaru so he can send help," Boruto whispered as they ran.

"They've found the one responsible for this? What is their plan? It's becoming somewhat troubling, Boruto. Somehow we're already running out of people," she said.

Boruto had a bad feeling that Himawari would continue asking one question after another – questions he was not prepared to answer. "Looks like they have an idea but they haven't quite told me anything, really." Boruto heard Himawari sigh.

Neither of them found comfort in the silence that lingered between them as they wound their way deeper into Konoha. He knew she had a lot of questions to ask but rather didn't. She knew he had something to say but rather didn't. They let it stay that way.

They sharply turned a corner into a narrow street. Boruto quickly spotted his father's right hand man standing not far from a crowd. It took him a while to realize who was standing next him. "Mom," he said, slowing down as Himawari let go of her grip.

"Boruto, you got anything for us?" Shikamaru was the first to notice them. Hinata turned to look as her children approached.

"Message from Uncle Sasuke," Boruto answered rather restrictedly. His mind was fully unprepared to relay the situation – he didn't imagine he would be talking to Shikamaru at the presence of both his mother and his sister.

"Did he bring you to Naruto, Bolt? How is he?" Hinata asked, stepping forward to get a better view of her son. "And where did these cuts come from?" she asked as she traced the scratches on his hands lightly with her finger

"Yes, he brought me to dad. Um, I just… I fell - I tripped, rather. Multiple times," Boruto stammered. "Dad has figured something out but hasn't really said much to me. Not as much as he'd told Uncle Sasuke anyway, –

- But I've got word from Uncle Sasuke… to you." The young man eyed Shikamaru as he spoke, so as to say more but couldn't. He could feel his mother observing him intently.

"Is there anything wrong?" Hinata asked and Bolt could only stare back.

Shikamaru seemed to grasp Boruto's struggle almost instantly, much to the blonde's relief. "Is it something Sasuke only wanted me to know?" he interfered. Boruto nodded.

"I'm sorry. Go ahead, Boruto," Hinata said, carefully taking Himawari by the hand away from Shikamaru and Boruto.

Boruto headed toward an alley, away from the crowd with Shikamaru following closely behind. When he was sure they were out of earshot, he leaned against the wall and stared straight at the older man.

"What is it?" Shikamaru asked.

"Search team. Uncle Sasuke told me to fetch a search team to help us," Boruto spoke as he crouched forward. Bowing his head, he let his hands rest on his knees.

"Help you search for what?" The older man observed Bolt as he began tensing up, his hands balling into fists. "What's wrong Boruto?"

"My dad. Help us find my dad… and Kawaki," he answered, sighing heavily.

What Shikamaru heard didn't make any sense. He didn't know why they had to look for the Hokage, or why Sasuke would even need help. The name Kawaki sounded familiar but he could not really figure out who exactly it was. Shikamaru wanted to ask him further, but a better explanation wasn't something Boruto seemed prepared to give yet. Sensing the urgency in the boy's gestures, he figured he didn't need it now.

"Will you go into detail for me as we go? Just tell me as much as you can," Shikamaru said, glancing around the corner to decide which way they should take.

"Yes," Boruto muttered, before the two set off.

Judging by the speed and agility of his attacker, he knew this was once a fine fighter. Probably one of the best, he thought. Without his katana, Sasuke used his hand to tear against the sleepwalker's sleeve. The slit revealed a spiral tattoo on his shoulder. Anbu. Sasuke landed right in front of it and he let it approach. He'd allowed the victim to attack him, only to find out how strong the marked shinobi now were. If this Kawaki could activate marks on ninjas as skilled as the Anbu already, manipulate them into turning against the village, and render them fully incapacitated right after, the village was indeed in trouble.

The attacker leaped, preparing to lunge toward Sasuke. Effortlessly, Sasuke suspended him in mid-air. Deva Path. The rinnegan-wielder sprung to level himself with the assailant, activating the sharingan and releasing him from the mark's control. Immediately, the mark stopped glowing and the opponent went limp. Sasuke wrapped his arm around the body and brought it carefully to the ground. Just as he had expected - no chakra.

Although the bodies were merely empty vessels, the Uchiha could still sense their presence very well. Having encountered it himself, he was now aware of the mark's unique aura. It was very faint, but it was there. Six of them, Sasuke estimated those currently approaching. This time he didn't have to assess their abilities, he'd seen enough. He rushed toward their direction, making sure his right eye met with theirs. All six of them went limp as he passed through, falling to the ground with a thud. Sasuke couldn't let this pathetic scheme waste even a bit of his time.

He kept Naruto's and Kawaki's chakra in check all the time. There hadn't been any change for either of them. Good, neither has done anything careless yet. Maybe the dobe was trying his best to talk the young man out of it, like he usually did. Except, as far as Sasuke could determine, the young man was in no way capable of undoing the seal that had grown to that level of power already. And he still could not track either of them, damn it.

As expected, it did not take long before Shikamaru and his squad reached his location. "I've brought the best of the sensory nin from what manpower we've had left," he told Sasuke blatantly.

"Hn," Sasuke answered, watching his wife step forward from the squad.

"I had to be sent out as well. You might need a medic nin and you have only me. The situation had quickly changed before we left," Sakura explained, as she stopped a few feet from Sasuke. "The corrupted ninja suddenly fled to the outskirts of the village and eventually scurried into the woods. We could not figure out why."

"Maybe as distraction, I've met some of them along the way," Sasuke said.

"Yes. We've dealt with them along our way, too. Boruto took another squad with him, Hinata and Himawari included. They will deal with the victims we have on loose, keep them somewhat occupied until Yamato and Sarada have cleared the village and can join them," Sakura added. "That way we can focus on our search."

"Sounds like a decent idea - " Sasuke said, before he was cut off by Sakura.

"Sasuke, where is Naruto?" the pink-haired medic asked, her voice carrying concern more than curiosity or doubt. She wasn't asking where their teammate was; she was asking why they weren't together.

"I don't know and that's why you are here. He desperately separated himself from us," Sasuke hissed.

"Why would he do that?" Sakura asked. "He didn't tell you what his plan was?"

"No, he didn't. The dobe insisted we let him do what he can," Sasuke hissed. "But unless he can give me an acceptable motive for doing so, I'm not leaving him alone to it. This is fucking stupid."

Without sparing them a second glance, Sasuke strode past them, leaving with such speed they could barely keep up with.

"The Rinne Tensei or the Kisho Tensei? Which friend will most likely give his, or her, life for yours?" Kawaki asked, more out of desperation than out of insolence.

He stared in disbelief as a smile sadly played across the Hokage's face. "Eh, both are equally selfless. But I will not allow it to work on me. The kage needs to bear his own responsibilities alone if the circumstances demand. I was the one who swore into the position anyway, not them."

"You took extra measures then?" Kawaki asked, overwhelmed by the nobility he was witnessing in front of him. The scroll glowed lightly as chakra travelled toward where Sasuke's katana previously wounded him, attempting to heal the area.

"With the help of Tsunade and Kakashi – yes, I did. Only the both of them knew. My friends and my family would've disapproved. But for matters like these, I guess the kages share the same understanding of what our responsibilities entailed. The Fifth and the Sixth Hokages aided me in as much as they could," Naruto explained. "I will always be grateful to them for that."

Kawaki knew his plan was almost perfect, with the only flaw being that he chose to believe the Hokage would not go to such lengths to protect the village. What else was he expecting, though? He played with Sasuke's katana, swinging it around, trying to buy himself time to think. Realizing the only resolve he could think of right now was to bargain, he was infuriated. Maybe if he could make the Seventh use the nine-tails, he would get the chance to suck chakra right out of it.

Standing up, his tattoo glowed blue, connecting the scroll in his hand to his body. "Rasengan," Kawaki mumbled under his breath, as chakra flowed from the scroll in his left hand toward his body and out to his opposite hand. The ball of spinning chakra quickly grew massive, occupying almost half of the entire area enclosed by the barrier.

Naruto remained unfazed, but he moved nonetheless. He and two of his clones leaped into the air, one of them forming a medium-sized rasengan. He and the other clone went into opposite directions, so that Kawaki could not keep track of the both of them at the same time. With that size of the rasengan in his hand, Naruto knew Kawaki would not be able to move very freely. The young man concentrated on the clone's attack, aiming his own ball of chakra against the smaller ball of spinning chakra. As Kawaki jumped, he returned the scroll inside his vest and used this free hand to grab his weapon and hurl it toward the clone. The aim was futile and the clone disappeared right after it had released three seals behind Kawaki. Before the two rasengans collided with each other, the smaller one dissipated and the clone carrying it disappeared in a puff of smoke. The real Naruto appeared right behind Kawaki, knocking him downward with a kick on his back. Before the rasengan hit the ground, Naruto infused it with his own chakra and redirected it upward, so that it freely exited the barrier.

As the rasengan reached a majestic height, it ignited, lighting the sky up for a split-second before completely clearing up. A thunderous roar shook the entire area and Kawaki could only shudder. It was only through such desperation that he even attempted to use it. Angrily, his drove his fists toward the ground, his body shaking in rage.

The Hokage watched him. It was unbelievable, what massive jutsu this young man could handle at this point. Had this boy chosen to use this power against the village, many people would have died. Instead, his methods did not involve killing anyone. Whether this was out of fear or of conscience, Naruto figured it did not matter now.

"The manner I will use to counter your seal – I've made it clear to you, haven't I?" Naruto spoke calmly in almost a gentle manner. "Do you realize what position it will place you in? You'll carry all the blame and the hate. At this point, I've somehow assumed you have no intent to kill."

"You don't know anything about me," Kawaki retorted.

"That's true. I don't even know why you have no intent to kill. But given what the outcome will be, is it the life you wanted? You'll become a rogue ninja and a bounty will be placed on your head - "

"What difference would turning back do now? I'm not a fool, Lord Seventh. If I surrender, there's just so many consequences to face, so much to pay for everything I've so far caused. It's throwing away everything I've ever worked for. It wouldn't make any difference now," Kawaki sneered. "And don't ever think I will regret this. Even if I never did any of this, life will still have nothing for me besides the inequity of a society that values only the shinobi."

"We've had people, who had turned rogue and went so far as to become international criminals, given second chances after they've completely turned back on their ways - "

"Like who? Orochimaru, Kabuto, the Uchiha? Name one that is not as equally gifted and powerful as those three and let him convince me instead," Kawaki snarled. "You were right in saying I never had the intent to kill. I could, but it won't benefit me anything. I'm not that stupid. In the same way, causing your death isn't going to do me any good either."

Kawaki remained silent for a while, gathering his thoughts. Naruto let the silence linger between them. From outside the barrier he could hear explosions coming from afar. For now, he could only trust his comrades to keep everyone safe.

"I will spare your family, and other people close to you, then you won't have to lose your life. Just give me the chakra I need and I will leave Konoha," Kawaki bargained. His hopes weren't too high but it was his only chance.

"No chance, kiddo," the nine-tails growled, although he knew only Naruto could hear him. "C'mon, Kit. Use your taijutsu to knock some sense into that brat like what you did with the Uchiha. Reminds me of the days he'd gone insane."

"Kurama, stop it," Naruto sighed. Even though the nine-tails already saw Sasuke as a trustworthy comrade, the beast could still be very tactless about his past.

"But I am serious, Naruto. If you can't use chakra against this brat, might as well knock him out with your taijutsu."

"I don't know if you're kidding, Kurama. I can end up killing him."

"Then all the better," the nine-tails grunted and Naruto just scowled at him. "Bring him to me, Naruto."

"Wait, what?" Naruto asked in surprise.

"He wants me then let him into your psyche. Let's show him exactly what he's looking for," the nine-tails said, shifting into a serious demeanor.

Kawaki suddenly felt warm. Before he knew what was happening, he was burning. He squirmed in extreme discomfort as his whole body tingled everywhere. His senses struggled against the overwhelming sensation for a moment before it died down, and then everything was black. His eyes remained shut but somewhere he could hear droplets of water falling rhythmically, its sound almost calming him.

As he tried to move, he heard something roar. "I don't trust you, brat."

Kawaki jumped and he found himself staring right into the eyes of the nine-tailed fox.

"So forget about whatever you're trying to bargain us with. It's not going to work. You still have so much to learn, so don't go out there acting all high and mighty. We've seen that so many times before," the beast jeered, emphasizing every word. It didn't break eye contact with the young man sitting staggered before him. "Just be thankful for the fact that you'll most likely walk out from this alive."

Naruto remained silent behind Kawaki as he pondered over what was being said, knowing exactly what the nine-tails meant.

"We can ask you to tell us how much chakra will be needed to break the seal as our own side of a bargain, but I just can't see myself trusting you," the nine-tails said before he paused. His eyes softened as his gaze shifted to Naruto. "Knowing this Hokage right here, he'll weigh it – saving his life while risking the lives of many, there is just no way he will let that happen… I am sure of it."

Kawaki felt himself shrink as the beast scrutinized him. Behind him, however, the Hokage stayed still. Naruto could beat the hell out of him if wanted to - yell at him, torture him, make him suffer - but he didn't. Kawaki would never understand why.

"There is only one way this should end. We're all for forgiveness and redemption, but if life failed to teach you early on that for every action you do there are consequences you have to face, then I sure as well hope this time it teaches you exactly that,"the nine-tails spat, feeling itself burn with fury from the inside. "Whatever consequences you have to face for this, you only have yourself to blame, no one else. This is from your own doing, and not the world's."

"That's enough, he needs to go. We need to finish this now," Naruto interrupted. He could hear the commotion outside the barrier growing and he could not bear to let the village suffer any longer.

Naruto walked to face Kawaki before pushing him hard against the chest. The young man would never forget the look on the Hokage's face – a mix of despair and disappointment without losing courage and confidence. Kawaki silently wished he had known the Seventh under different circumstances. Maybe, just maybe… they could've shared the same dream.

As soon as he fell against dry ground, Kawaki pushed himself up, rushing toward where his weapon lay. Before Naruto could realize what he was doing, Kawaki raised the weapon and thrust it with full strength through his own abdomen. His hands were soon slowly drenched in crimson. This was his only chance left to make a deal with the Hokage. Naruto cursed under his breath as the young man fell to his knees; he rushed to his side.

"I would rather die than see my plan fail right before me. Your people will die along with me - " Kawaki said before screaming in pain, "Give me the chakra I need then I will heal myself."

Naruto glanced over the wound underneath Kawaki's hands. He knew it wouldn't be enough to kill him, but if the young man went any further, his death was certain. He could not risk that.

"Kit, it is time," the nine-tails growled.

Naruto found himself back in his subconscious again, probably for the last time. He stared at the fox, whose paw gently rested on top of the Hokage's head. Kurama was smiling, but the beast was also shaking.

"I can't," Naruto choked before he paused, his eyes diverting away from the nine-tails's gaze. "I can't thank you enough… for letting me do this with you, Kurama."

"Kit," the nine-tails chuckled. "No. Thank you," the beast lifted his host's face by the chin and looked directly at Naruto's eyes, "For having me. I know you didn't really have any choice but - "

Naruto and Kurama both laughed. Naruto brought his arms over his eyes, his sleeve suddenly soaked with tears. He could only imagine how pathetic he looked like right now – a grown up man with a badass cloak, crying. But Naruto could not help it. He was lying to himself when he said he was ready.

"If I could turn back the time to the day I was born, I'll still choose to have you here," Naruto said, pointing at his core.

"Would I have any choice?" Kurama sniggered.

"No," Naruto smiled back at the beast. He sighed heavily. "Well, I guess this is it," Naruto said, as he rubbed both of his palms together and his breathing became shallow. He was beginning to feel cold, or he was just nervous; he didn't really know. Butterflies surged into his stomach and he couldn't help but feel a little giddy. Naruto tried his best to keep thoughts about his family at bay. It was just too much to handle at the moment.

"I will also die, Naruto, but only for a while. I don't know how long, but in two, five, or ten years, I will be back. And I will remember everything as if it was just yesterday. The tailed beasts never forget," Kurama said sadly, his eyes staring at his own reflection in the water.

"Kurama? When I go," Naruto said, waiting for the beast to straighten up and look at him. "It will all be over for me. But you, like you said, you'll see the world again and that you'll never forget. Can I ask you a favor?"

Kurama looked at Naruto, "Anything, Kit."

"Everything we ever fought for – will you remember? Everything I did, one day it will be forgotten. But when that happens, you will still be here. Can you… look after them, for me? The children, the village… the future," Naruto sighed.

The beast nodded, smiling at Naruto. You truly are the most honorable person the world will ever speak of, Naruto. I am sure of that, he thought.

Without hesitation, the Seventh Hokage lifted his fist toward the nine-tailed fox with a big grin on his face, connecting with the beast for the very last time. He turned his back and took a deep breath, before conjuring a sign that broke the seal.

"Let's do this, Kurama!" With all his remaining strength, Naruto gave everything he had.

And then everything around him gradually faded to black.

No one missed the first explosion when it happened. The sky ignited in a powerful blast, its power rattling the earth to its core. Himawari and Boruto looked up, its flare reflected in their eyes.

'Was it - ?' Boruto wondered. It couldn't have been just his imagination. The nature of the blast felt familiar, like he'd seen it before.

"Find where that possibly came from," a familiar voice commanded over them.

Boruto turned to see Sasuke approach them from behind, with the rest of Shikamaru's squad following him.

"Nothing?" Boruto asked, feeling a bit disappointed that his mentor's group was just as empty-handed as they were.

"Nothing," Sasuke confirmed, his voice stern. "But that," he gestured toward the sky, "was his - the rasengan with his chakra written all over it. Find out where it potentially came from then we find them."

Right after Sasuke finished speaking, four figures surrounded them. Sleepwalkers had been pursuing Boruto's and Shikamaru's squads, but just one glance was enough to tell them that these people weren't the same. Their eyes were normal and they did not have the blue mark, the only tattoos adorning them remained on one side of their bodies and they closely resembled the tattoo Boruto had. Bolt and Sasuke also recognized scars and weapons similar to the ones Kawaki had.

"You're with him, aren't you?!" Boruto stepped forward, his hands balling into fists as he addressed them with contempt.

"Oh, so you've seen him… Kawaki, your friend?" One of them, a guy who appeared to be around Boruto's age, spoke. "Blonde hair, blue eyes… You must be the Hokage's son. Kawaki has told us many things about you - "

Before he could continue, Boruto leaped and kicked him squarely on the chest. As they both fell to the ground, Bolt tackled him before punching him twice on the same cheek. His opponent spat blood out at the impact and his nose started bleeding.

"I remember you," Boruto yelled, grabbing the other man's hair and yanking him up. "You were the coward in the alleyway the other night. Beating up an old lady right after you've robbed her! How fucking dare you show your face to me! Who do you think you are? Weakling," Boruto sneered.

"Let's see if you can still call us weaklings right after Naruto gives in to our commands - "

At the mention of his father, Boruto grabbed a kunai, pointing it toward the man's throat. Instantly, however, a woman appeared behind Boruto, who positioned a blade across the blonde's throat. In a puff of smoke, Boruto disappeared, only to reappear behind the woman. He landed a punch on her back, driving her across the woods for a few yards before hitting a trunk.

"Like I said – weaklings, cowards," Boruto emphasized.

"That's enough," Sasuke whispered to Boruto, as he grabbed his student's arm from behind and held it against the blonde's back. Sasuke kept him in that position until he felt the young man relax.

The Uchiha had spent a great deal of time with Boruto to know full well that he inherited neither his father's nor his mother's composure when angry. Although Naruto often still lost that composure when he was younger, he had nothing close to Boruto's vulgarity. You wouldn't want to deal with the Hokage's son once he was mad. Sasuke could somehow see his younger self in Naruto's son, and he was hoping their similarities ended with that.

"The seal is also connected to all of you, am I right?" Sasuke asked the one Boruto had tackled. He received only a smirk in response. "Do not kill any of them. Just incapacitate them or tie them up, whatever you want to do. Just don't inflict anything fatal," Sasuke announced, addressing Boruto's and Shikamaru's group.

"Incapacitate us? Heh, I don't think so," the third in the opponent's group jested - a dark woman with short, orange hair, who appeared to be around Konohamaru's age.

She placed one end of a straw between her lips and blew, sending several miniscule paper cranes swooping toward them in different directions. They gracefully dodged them, and it was only slightly difficult because there were too many.

The woman yelped as Hinata appeared right in front of her, landing a single gentle fist to her core and sending her flying to the ground. Before Hinata could aim the same attack at Kawaki's fourth member, a short stout man whose eyes had been heavily bandaged, her daughter's shriek alerted everyone in the area.

"Hima!" Boruto yelled, rushing toward his sister's side. Himawari placed on hand behind her neck, her face grimacing in pain as she fell to her knees. He caught her and she rested her head on her brother's shoulder. Boruto felt anger boiling to the point it never reached before. They'd marked his sister. "Uncle Sasuke!" he yelled.

Within a split-second, the Uchiha was right beside Naruto's children, gently lifting Himawari's face to look at him. "Look at me, look at my eyes." Himawari did as she was told. Sasuke shook his head, "Can't really do anything on a mark that hasn't been activated yet."

"What's gonna happen to her?" Boruto asked, fear etched across his face.

"I'll be fine," Himawari whispered, smiling at her brother. "Daddy's gonna make everything okay, right Uncle Sasuke?" Sasuke stared at her with eyes wide before nodding.

"It's about time, they should be here by now," the fourth member declared, right after seeing how they had managed to mark only one person in crowd.

They could only release cranes once after a while. It would take them a while before they could attempt to target Sasuke's group again. More than a dozen sleepwalking figures arrived, quickly surrounding them. Several of them advanced toward Sasuke and Naruto's children, separating the three. Once Bolt and Himawari were separated from Sasuke, all of them gathered around the dark-haired man, who then focused on deactivating all of their marks.

In Boruto's arms, Himawari trembled. "Hey," Bolt whispered, looking at her. A blue glow appeared on her neck, pulsating as it grew. Soon, Himawari was on her feet, her eyes blank, and prepared to lunge at Boruto.

As Hinata and Sasuke, having realized what was going on, attempted to dart toward where the children were, another violent force shook the earth. This time its intensity was even greater than the first.

Sasuke felt the vast, overwhelming surge of a tailed beast chakra - the nine-tails' chakra. He stopped on his tracks. The entire area was suddenly illuminated orange and the air grew warm. The sky roared and what appeared like fire loomed over the mountains. The explosion was blinding; Sasuke could barely recognize the outline of a fox that was ready to attack.

The crowd looked on. They'd never seen such demonstration of power on earth since the end of the Fourth Shinobi World War. The new generation had never witnessed such unimaginable existence. But as soon as it had reached the peak of its strength, it exploded, sending debris flying everywhere.

Sasuke shielded the children with his cloak and the commotion had barely died down when he heard Boruto yell. "Himawari! Your eyes… Hey, you're okay!" Boruto was hugging Himawari, who had a wide smile across her face. A laugh escaped Boruto's lips. "At first I thought you were going to attack me!"

"Ah, really? Of course I won't do that! But it's all okay now, isn't it?" Himawari asked.

Boruto looked around. Most of the perpetrators that had once gathered around Sasuke were on the ground, some of them rubbing their eyes or scratching their heads cluelessly. For some reason, the glowing marks that covered their bodies had gone. The four attackers that carried out Kawaki's schemes suddenly attempted to retreat, but Shikamaru's shadows prevented them from moving any further.

Hinata activated her Byakugan, checking Himawari first before the rest of those who'd been marked. To her surprise, none of their chakra channels showed any signs that they'd been disturbed at all. Hinata turned to Sasuke, the look in his eyes engraving itself into Hinata's memory forever as she asked him, "What happened? Is it all over now?"

Sasuke looked at her, his lips barely moving. "Naruto's chakra… it's gone."

AN: I am planning a major change in the plot from Reanimation but I'm still only 75% convinced about it. I really need to make up my mind. Anyways, feedback appreciated! Thank you for the reviews so far.

Hinata had lost someone close to her heart before, had seen so many people she cared for disappear, had seen many of them fight for their lives almost on the brink of death right in front of her. But none of that would compare to the moment she had to watch her two children go through the same experience for the first time in their lives.

Boruto and Himawari had gone to look for their father before she could even manage to move. The last time she heard about them, she was informed that they had completely separated themselves from the others. Her children were beyond inconsolable. She had no idea where they went, and she had no idea where she was going herself.

Her feet dragged her heavily across the woods, her breath caught painfully in her throat. Could be the crying, or the fatigue, she didn't know anymore. Sometimes she would stop when it felt like the world was suddenly spinning, but then it would become steady, then she would just have to go farther again.

Everything felt like a nightmare she needed to wake up from. None of it could be real.

The memory she had from earlier this morning flooded her mind.

000

She woke up to Naruto cooking, surprisingly, cursing to himself almost comically as flames burst from the frying pan. He tossed the pan and its contents entirely into the sink, only producing more smoke in the process.

"What are you doing?" Hinata asked, chuckling to herself, as Naruto removed the pot holder from his hands with disgust written all over in his face.

Naruto jumped in surprise. "Hinata! You're awake! Wait, wait. I was just cleaning up..." The groggy Hokage panicked, quickly grabbing the pan from the sink with his bare hand, only to toss it again and curse it under his breath for being too hot.

"Let me handle it," Hinata said, grinning as she opened the faucet and the exhaust fan to clear the smoke out.

"I'm sorry," Naruto grumbled, his eyes cast on the floor. "I only made a mess, didn't I?"

Hinata smiled at him. "It's okay. Why are you up so early anyway, Hokage-sama?" she asked playfully, trying to cheer Naruto up. "Got a lot to do at the office?"

"Huh? No, no. I just... Well, you remember I came home kinda early than usual last night and got a lot of rest and... you know. I just figured I'll make you breakfast for once," Naruto sighed. "You always do it for me."

#boruto fanfiction

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