~ Every 100 Power Stones = Bonus Chapter! Your votes keep this climbing. Thanks!
Hiruzen Sarutobi's eyes darted from the man on Heshu's left—Madara Uchiha—to the one on his right—Obito Uchiha. Realization dawned.
He stepped forward, his face grave as he shouted at the two Uchihas, "To stoop to something as low as taking the Fifth Hokage hostage… Unforgivable! Release him now! Or Konoha will never rest!"
Heshu's expression was one of pure shock.
Madara looked utterly disgusted.
Obito was struck dumb.
Tobirama's fists clenched.
Minato winced in embarrassment.
Hashirama looked faintly repulsed.
Only Hiruzen remained the picture of righteous indignation.
"Hahahaha…"
Madara laughed. "How utterly ridiculous."
Konoha couldn't even tell if Heshu was friend or foe. Was there anything more absurd?
Hiruzen sensed something was wrong. But he didn't feel the awkwardness Heshu expected. Instead, his eyes just filled with sorrow and confusion.
"Heshu… there must be a reason, right?"
His expression was still kind, as kind as it had been back in the village when he'd give Heshu the fish he caught.
Seeing this, Tobirama sighed softly. To see a junior he was so proud of turn traitor… Hiruzen was the one hurting most.
Minato also looked at Heshu with a complex gaze. Orochimaru, who had performed the Edo Tensei, had told Minato that Heshu was taking good care of Naruto. He had described a man whose every action was filled with light. Minato never expected to meet him face-to-face, only to find him standing with the enemy.
"A reason?"
"There is no reason!"
Heshu's face showed no trace of emotion.
Even as countless people tried everything to pull him back.
He would still walk into the darkness.
"I've long known the sickness of this world!"
"Change is a fantasy!"
"Only in a world of illusion can the ninja world find true peace! Eternal peace!"
Heshu's words came from the depths of his heart.
Madara listened, highly satisfied. It seemed the Eye of the Moon Plan had truly taken root in Heshu's heart. He was far more reliable than that back-talking brat Obito.
[Ding! Affection of target Madara Uchiha has reached 75!]
Heshu paused. He hadn't expected to hear that long-forgotten prompt for Madara's affection again.
"Heshu…"
Hiruzen sighed and hung his head.
If anyone had ever told him he'd one day stand opposite Tsukimi Heshu, he would never have believed it. Yet here he was, facing the junior he was once most proud of.
"Monkey! Stopping the Eye of the Moon Plan is the priority!"
Tobirama shot Hiruzen a sharp glance.
Hiruzen's eyes hardened with resolve. "Understood, Sensei!"
A faint smile touched Tobirama's eyes. That's more like it. That's my student, Hiruzen Sarutobi.
Minato turned to Naruto, his eyes gentle. "Naruto, your friends will be here soon!"
Naruto blinked. The first face that popped into his mind was Sasuke's.
"We need to deal with that first!"
Hashirama pointed at the massive creature charging toward them.
While they had been talking, the Ten-Tails had completed its evolution. Freed from Heshu's control, it now possessed its own consciousness. But its nature remained that of a war machine. It was the same a thousand years ago under Kaguya Ōtsutsuki, and it was the same now under Heshu and the others.
"All Hokages! To me!"
The familiar golden glow of the Nine-Tails Chakra Mode enveloped Minato. After marking the other three Hokages with his Flying Thunder God seals, their figures vanished.
When they reappeared, they stood facing each other from the four cardinal directions.
The Ten-Tails was trapped inside their perimeter.
"Ninjutsu!"
"Four Red Yang Formation!"
From the four directions, a rectangular barrier of red, transparent flames erupted. The Ten-Tails was caught within.
"Incredible!"
"They actually trapped the Ten-Tails!"
"As expected of the former Hokages!"
The Hokages' feat bolstered the morale of the Allied Shinobi Forces. The terrifying Ten-Tails was no longer an invincible monster.
"Ninjutsu!"
Dark markings spread around Hashirama's eyes as he clasped his hands together. "Sage Art: Gracious Deity Gates!"
Red torii gates plummeted from the sky, slamming down onto the Ten-Tails with crushing force. Its ten tails, its body, its limbs—all were pinned firmly to the ground.
"As expected of the God of Shinobi," Heshu remarked, standing with Obito atop a rocky outcrop, watching the scene unfold.
"Hmph."
In a flash of movement, Madara vanished from their side. With Hashirama here, how could he possibly stay put?
At that moment, more figures appeared on the battlefield.
The Akatsuki members, led by Konan.
But strangely, Konan didn't immediately move to Obito's side. She stared at Heshu. "Just who are you? Tsukimi Heshu, or Tsukimi Hanataki?"
As a member of the Akatsuki, she hadn't even known the Fifth Hokage of Konoha was also one of them. She and Nagato had thought themselves the leaders, but the true masters had always been Obito and this man before her. But Heshu and Hanataki were just too similar. Sometimes, in a daze, Konan even felt Heshu was Hanataki.
"If you wish, I can be both," Heshu said, spreading his hands. A golden light, similar to Hanataki's, ignited around him. "After all, we have merged into one."
Konan shuddered. Seeing that light, her eyes reddened. "Nonsense! Hanataki is Hanataki! He could never be replaced by someone like you!"
Heshu: "…"
What's that supposed to mean? Someone like me?
On her way here, Konan had encountered the four Hokages. Under Hashirama's talk-no-jutsu, she had been convinced. She realized her and Nagato's mistake and intended to end it.
"I believe a bridge to peace can be built in reality!"
"I will carry the will of Nagato and Hanataki, and I will stop you!"
Konan's body began to levitate, paper bombs fluttering around her like wings.
Heshu: "…"
Why does everyone keep carrying someone's 'will'? Hanataki was an emotionless clone. What 'will' did he even have? Listening to me is the greatest respect you could pay him!
Sasori retreated coldly. "Your decision is your own. Don't include me."
He flashed to Heshu's side.
"If Hanataki has merged with you, then I follow you," Sasori said quietly, his gaze on Heshu. A flicker of something like nostalgia passed through his eyes. "After all, Hanataki was the only one who truly understood my art."
Heshu: "…"
Kisame and Zabuza exchanged a look, then moved to stand behind Heshu.
"Compared to the others, your face just feels… safer," Zabuza said with genuine feeling.
Kisame just grinned. "I believe we're on the same path." He didn't fully buy into the Eye of the Moon Plan either, but he sensed the same aura from this man as he had from Hanataki. That was enough.
Kakuzu weighed his options, then appeared beside Heshu as well.
"You might not know this, but the Akatsuki is out of funds."
Heshu: "…"
So that's why he's here.
Hidan smirked. "Can't leave me out, can you?" He didn't get the whole 'Hanataki or Heshu' thing, but he recognized the face. As a follower of Jashin, who else would he follow but Jashin's messenger?
Behind Konan, only Itachi and Sasuke remained.
"Feeling a bit lonely, Konan?" Heshu raised an eyebrow, his eyes full of mockery.
"No!"
"You're the lonely one!"
"Now, I stand with the world!"
Konan declared righteously.
Heshu: "… Truly, as expected of Hashirama Senju." His talk-no-jutsu was on par with Naruto's.
"Itachi. Sasuke. Won't you join us?" Heshu extended a hand toward the two brothers.
Itachi Uchiha had never imagined his sensei, Heshu, was the deepest undercover agent of all. The man who, even as he was dying, had been thinking of him… Could such a master of deception truly exist? Seeing Heshu stand with Obito, Itachi couldn't distinguish what was genjutsu and what was real. The whole scene felt like a bizarre, absurd dream.
Sasuke, of course, stayed by his beloved brother's side, playing the part of the perfectly obedient little brother.
"Fine." Heshu withdrew his hand, a look of disappointment on his face. "It seems we can only shake hands in a world of dreams."
Itachi's eyes darkened.
Meanwhile, Madara's eager attempt to greet Hashirama was met with a cold shoulder.
Watching Madara obediently sit on the ground, waiting for Hashirama to finish his business, Heshu's mouth twitched.
True bros. He'd never seen Madara this patient.
Sasuke and Naruto also had their epic reunion, their first meeting in nearly four years.
"Sasuke!" Naruto beamed.
"You idiot!" Sasuke smiled back.
Hashirama's voice boomed across the field. "Shinobi of the Allied Forces! We have opened a window for you! The battle with the Ten-Tails begins now!"
As he spoke, a window large enough for shinobi to pass through opened in the otherwise impenetrable wall of the Four Red Yang Formation.
Naruto and Sasuke shared a look and charged toward the opening.
Another figure landed in front of them.
"Don't leave me behind!" Sakura brushed dust from her hands, smiling brightly.
The three looked at each other and grinned. Team 7 was finally together again.
"Are we just going to let them?" Kakuzu asked.
"Let them play," Heshu waved a hand dismissively. "The Ten-Tails cannot be defeated." Ice-cold air seeped from his palm, coalescing into a chair behind him. He wasn't like Madara, who didn't care and just plopped down on the dirty ground. Heshu had standards of hygiene to maintain.
Kakuzu: "…"
Obito, unable to hold back any longer, jumped down into the fray to find his own long-lost rival. Not fighting Kakashi made Obito's skin crawl. It was the same principle that made Madara drop everything for Hashirama.
So much for executing the plan together. In the end, it's just me.
Swish!
Speak of the devil.
A figure appeared before Heshu.
Shisui Uchiha.
Heshu: "…"
He didn't want some fateful showdown. He had no sense of restraint. Shisui would end up in orbit.
"Heshu… all those years in Konoha… was it all a facade?" Shisui still couldn't believe it—that Heshu had been an Akatsuki plant from the start. Nor could he believe a six- or seven-year-old Heshu had already been a trained infiltrator.
"Still refusing to accept the truth, Shisui?" Heshu stood up. "What will it take to make you believe? Me killing you?" A cold smile played on Heshu's lips.
Shisui felt like he was seeing him for the very first time.
"Regardless… I will stop you. And I will bring you back to Konoha."
"The place you lived for over a decade… I don't believe you feel nothing for it."
"The years we spent together… I don't believe you feel nothing."
Shisui's eyes were firm. If he could just stop Madara's plan and bring Heshu back, then eventually, he could make Heshu remember the good of Konoha. Make him feel it again.
Heshu hadn't expected Shisui to be this stubborn, even resorting to the 'forcibly take you back' trope. He looked at Shisui with a complicated expression, fighting the urge to pop open his skull and see what was inside. Just how many copies of Konoha's new literary masterpieces—The Overbearing Ninja's Gentle Love, The Hokage's Runaway Little Wife, The Ninja's Sweetheart—had Shisui been reading?
"How do you know those titles so well?"
The System stroked its electronic tentacles thoughtfully.
Heshu: "… That's none of a system's business."
The System pouted its digital lips and resumed stroking its tentacles.
Shisui took a step closer. In his dark pupils, the Sharingan began to spin, finally solidifying into the Mangekyō pattern.
"So you're determined to fight?" Heshu raised an eyebrow.
It wasn't that he looked down on Shisui. It was that he wasn't the same Heshu from Konoha anymore. In both ruthlessness and power, he had taken a quantum leap. The old saying still held true.
This year, with my hands in my pockets, I know not the meaning of 'opponent'.
"Hmph."
Shisui, however, smiled strangely. The crimson glow of his Mangekyō pulsed ominously.
"Heshu… I don't know if this will work on you. But I refuse to give up on this one small possibility."
Crimson tears of blood welled from Shisui's eyes. A gentle smile spread across his face, just like the day they first met:
"I'm Shisui Uchiha."
"I'm Tsukimi Heshu. Nice to meet you."
"Nice to meet you too."
"Kotoamatsukami!"
Scenes from their childhood replayed in Shisui's mind. The corner of his mouth lifted. For Heshu, he held infinite patience.
Because they were friends who grew up together.
Because they were comrades who fought side-by-side on the battlefield.
Because they were warriors who protected the village and the people they cared for together.
Because… Shisui Uchiha had always loved Tsukimi Heshu.
Shisui reached out a hand, as if to pull the Heshu before him into an embrace.
"Heshu…"
"Come back to Konoha…"
"You will always be Konoha's Fifth Hokage…"
The pattern of the Mangekyō Sharingan reflected deep in Heshu's eyes.
───── ⊹ ⊹ ─────
📖 Main story COMPLETED + Bonus Stories ongoing on Patre\on
🔍 Search:p a t r e o n.com/GoldenLong
───── ⊹ ⊹ ─────