Hey everyone!
So, I had planned for this chapter to have the team go on a mission and encounter Sasori. But while thinking about everything that would happen, I considered the logic of both the series and the fanfic.
And it seemed to me that, at the very least, one of the kids from Team 2 would die, and that Sasori would either die or be captured. If he appears now, his level should be, at most, elite jōnin, nothing more; he's not yet an S-rank threat, nor does he have the Third Kazekage, who, in my opinion, set a trap for him and poisoned him. He didn't face him head-on, and if he did, it was with 90% of his body already poisoned.
And that's where the plot changes come in, which I'm too lazy to make, and I'll probably forget them anyway, so I changed the idea for something else. Maybe I'll work on this idea another time.
With nothing more to add, let's begin the fic.
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Without thinking twice, I grabbed the little monkey's cheeks and started using force to make it hurt.
"AHHH, STOP, WITCH!" Asuma screamed, his face contorted with pain.
"I see you want to live the rest of your life without cheeks," I said, but he immediately let go, causing him to fall to the ground and writhe around, clutching his cheeks.
A few moments ago, I discovered that this little monkey was the one who hid my sake; he doesn't actually use it for drinking, it's also for emergencies, since it can be used for ninjutsu and medicine.
The reason he did it was because I caught him with a pack of cigarettes and took it from him.
Luckily, he only hid the sake and didn't throw it away or give it away.
Another thing. I also discovered how to spit sake using water ninjutsu, just like you can spit ash or mud, but it's not as effective as real sake; at least it makes fire ninjutsu more effective since it's conductive.
There was another reason I let it go, too, and that's because I needed it to look less battered for the meeting with Team 7.
A few months ago, Minato had been assigned to a genin team—well, two genin and one chunin. Yes, you heard right. These were Kakashi, always putting the mission first; Obito, the least Uchiha-like Uchiha... well, that's how it is for now; and finally, Rin Nohara, the catalyst for the end of the world.
As you know, the dynamic in this group isn't the best, which is why Minato invited us to a barbecue at a place that isn't mine yet, since the Akimichi family won't sell it to me, and I'm not going to be a jerk and ruin his business just because I want it.
I like the Akimichi family; so far, I haven't met a single one I dislike, so they're safe for now.
Anyway, as I was saying, Team 7's dynamic isn't very strong, and it's only holding together thanks to Minato and Rin's efforts. The main problem is Kakashi; he looks down on his teammates and isn't always very kind to others.
That's why Minato invited us, so Kakashi could have more interaction with others his age; at least that's Minato's idea. I know it won't work, but since Minato is paying for the meal, I immediately said yes.
"It's time; let's head back to the village to eat with Minato's team, as we agreed," I announced, to which the others nodded, except for Asuma, who just groaned on the ground as he got up, still in pain.
...
When we arrived at the barbecue, Team 7 was already waiting for us.
Minato greeted us warmly to deliver an announcement.
"Unfortunately, I'll have to go see your sensei, as there are important things to discuss; therefore, you'll have to eat on your own this time. I've already spoken with Chosa, so you can eat as much as you want," Minato announced with his trademark smile.
This took me by surprise, but as I was about to ask, I saw Minato's serious expression, realizing that this shouldn't be known by just anyone.
"Well, as you can hear, there's a lot of food to eat; the adults should go and talk about grown-up business," I said, following Minato.
"She talks like an adult, but she's only five years older than us," Asuma complained to the others.
Without thinking, I lifted a rock with my foot and, with enough force, threw it at the little monkey's forehead, leaving a mark that wouldn't disappear for a few days.
"I'm older than you, little monkey." With that, I used a Shunshin to follow Minato, who had already gone to the Hokage's office.
When I arrived, there were already several jōnin in the room, mostly clan heads, and a few strong jōnin, like Minato; however, the Hokage and his advisors hadn't arrived yet.
I quickly spotted Kosuke not far from Fugaku and another Uchiha I didn't recognize.
Without much thought, I approached them.
Fugaku saw me and nodded in greeting, which I returned.
"Kosuke, do you know what's going on?" I asked my comrade-in-arms.
"No idea. This caught me off guard, and from what I can see, the others too. What about you, Minato?" Kosuke asked Minato, who had just approached us.
"No idea, but I was asked to warn the other clan leaders about this and to keep it quiet," he replied.
"It must be something serious," he commented, looking at Fugaku. "Clan leader, do you know anything about this?"
Fugaku just closed his eyes momentarily, as if meditating.
"I'm not entirely sure, but the reason this isn't being publicized must be to keep spies from finding out, and the reason for this is surely due to the sudden increase in foreign shinobi, both in the Land of Fire and on the border," the clan leader replied calmly.
"That was happening in the country; I didn't know I was so uninformed," I said to myself.
"Well, it's been a while since you've done a mission that wasn't B-rank, so you haven't encountered many shinobi around," Kosuke said as if that were the answer.
"Actually, not long ago we carried out a C-rank mission that turned into a B-rank; we ran into an ANBU ninja from Iwa. He was alone, so he must have been a hunter, but I had no idea; you don't ask them those kinds of questions when you kill them," I replied.
"And what about extracting information from the enemy? What happened to that?" Kosuke asked, a bead of sweat forming on his forehead.
"Number Five hadn't come with me on the mission, so I decided to kill him. If he hadn't been an Anbu, I would have convinced my brat to try and defeat him." Just as I finished speaking, the Hokage and his advisors entered the office.
"Thank you very much for coming, knowing this meeting was a last-minute thing," the Hokage announced, sitting down, followed by the sacks of meat beside him. "The matter of this meeting is that we received word from the village intelligence network that Kusakagure has been compromised by Iwa."
This revelation raised alarm bells among the five great villages, since if Iwa were to take control of Kusakagure, it would have an easier time invading us and, consequently, attacking us.
(Note: It's like Russia and Ukraine, but in this case, it would be like the US fighting Russia in Ukraine.)
With that said, the people began to speak in hushed tones.
"Ah, I don't like this," Kosuke commented, recalling when they went to scout the Iwa border.
"I remember you guys were there not too long ago, right?" the Uchiha clan leader asked, mostly to Kosuke.
"This could be bad, since Iwa has its jinchuriki deployed in that area; maybe this was always the Tsuchikage's plan," Minato said, looking directly at the Hokage thoughtfully.
Now that I think about it, Jiraiya isn't here, since this information had to have come from him. But now that I think about it, the old mummy didn't tell me anything about this; it's impossible that he didn't know about this, knowing the number of spies he has all over the continent.
I stared at him intently as he sat with his eyes closed, completely calm.
Most likely, he knew even before Jiraiya, but he didn't say anything so that rival countries could prepare and there would be even more chaos. That way, if things go wrong, he can blame Hiruzen and be able to remove him from office and become the new Hokage.
The funny thing is, it worked out for him, but instead of him becoming Hokage, it was Minato. It can now be considered that the Third Shinobi World War was the one in which the most ninja died, especially from Konoha, since they were fighting on four fronts at once, and Iwa, which I still maintain is cloned.
"Silence," the Hokage exclaimed, silencing the murmurs. "As much as I like things this way, other details have also come to light, such as the increase in Kumo's ninja patrols or Suna's relentless and continuous attempts to invade sensitive areas."
No one understood why the Hokage was saying these things, since this was almost normal—the actions of Suna and Kumo.
"Our priority is to stop Iwa before things get worse, but if this gets out of hand, surely both Suna and Kumo will join in, and consequently, so will Kiri, the latter trying to gain an advantage somehow." With these words from the old man, it was clear what he was getting at.
If things spiral out of control, the ninja world will most likely be plunged into another war. The question was, who would be fighting whom?
The worst thing that could happen is that the four villages would focus entirely on Konoha.
The village has many prodigies and high-level ninja, but they are limited and cannot be everywhere, so it is very difficult to fight on four fronts at the same time and gain an advantage in the war.
If this were to happen, Konoha would surely fight in the most defensive way possible.
"With this, I ask for your help and cooperation, both from your forces and your subordinates, so that the Will of Fire and the village remain safe." The old monkey finished his speech.
Now I understood why we summoned the clan leaders.
If the worst happens, you want us to use our clan members to hold off the other villages; in other words, send them to the front lines.
At that moment, someone raised their hand; I immediately recognized the man who had asked to speak.
"Hogake-sama, I don't mind sending my men to the battlefield to defend the clan, but if this were to happen, who would be the commander in this conflict? "Hiashi Hyuga said, and if I'm not mistaken, he was looking at Danzo.
I chuckled; I barely understood what he meant.
If for some reason Danzo were to command the front lines, the Hyuga clan would not join this armed force.
I think Hiruzen realized this and spoke immediately.
"If this were to happen, who would command would depend on each front, but of the ninja I have in mind, it would be my students, Shikaku Nara, or yourself," the Hokage explained.
"I see. thank you very much for answering, Hokage-sama," Hiashin replied.
I must commend the old monkey for his eloquence, as he neither confirmed nor denied that Danzo would command, giving the Hyuga clan a chance to feel reassured, knowing they wouldn't be in Danzo's hands.
Oh, Danzo, how many enemies you've made in this time, and I'm a little surprised that it was the Hyuga clan who did this and not the Uchiha.
What I do know is that the old mummy didn't tell me anything about this. This means he's already suspicious of me, hiding things from me. If this continues, I'll have to start the One-Eyed Mummy content protocol. And if things reach unacceptable levels, I'll kill him.
...
The meeting continued with questions and statements that, frankly, I didn't pay attention to, since I already knew what I was interested in. World War III was just around the corner, and secondly, the ninjas were ordered to go to the front lines to die for the Will of Fire.
I felt quite reluctant to send the members of my clan, both Senju and Chinoiken—whose identity only the Konoha high command knows, no one else—to a slaughterhouse, but I knew it had to be necessary to win the war. I would have to call upon my advisors and then see if a call to the clan itself was necessary.
But first, I had to do something important, taking advantage of the time between when the war started and when I was sent to the front lines.
Not far from the hot springs, I saw a tree where a pervert was staring at the hot springs with binoculars.
Without wasting any time, I threw a water ball at his back without using hand seals.
The pervert was so engrossed in what he was doing that he didn't notice the attack. The moment the attack hit him, he fell to the ground, where he was standing next to the women at the hot springs, where he was pricked with thorns.
I just sat and listened to the symphony of women's screams and the pervert's agonizing pleas—music to my ears.
After several minutes, the pervert arrived, his face and half his body bruised.
"I sensed you were spying from afar, so I helped you so you could get a closer look at those naked women. What a good student I am, helping you, aren't I, you perverted sage?"
"I'm not a pervert," he added, and a toad emerged from his feet and struck a ridiculous pose. "I'm a super-pervert, the great toad sannin, Jiraiya."
At this, I just clapped slowly.
"Wow, great performance. How many brain cells did he have to burn to do that?" I asked him.
"This brat," Jiraiya complained, dispelling the summoning. "What do you need? I thought you were in an important meeting."
"We were, and knowing what's about to happen, I think it's time to do that training."
"That training?" Jiraiya asked, starting to stare intently at my entire body; I didn't say anything because I knew what he was doing. "Certainly, you already possess the physique and chakra reserves to begin."
"Good, let's begin Sage Mode training immediately," I declared, looking intently at him, to which he nodded.