Chapter 55
SHIKAKU NARA
The Five Kage Summit grew closer with every passing day, and the implications of this one Summit could reshape the history of the Five Great Nations. Never before had the five nations come together against a common enemy, but there was still much to be done before the Summit succeeded.
The daimyos had met already, and a general framework had been set, and each village had been asked to nominate a force of three to attack the Akatsuki, and while they had made no specifications, Shikaku had spent days guessing what formulation most villages would use, and he believed he had a pretty good idea by now.
"It's going to be one S-ranked shinobi and then two elite A-rankers," Shikaku sat in the Hokage office, thankfully not in the Hokage chair. That burden had now fallen onto Lord Jiraiya, and with Lady Tsunade showing no sign of recovery, he had been chosen as the Rokudaime Hokage.
The ceremony was set to take place in a week, and the man had tried to delay it even more, but they had run out of time. The village could only go on for so long without a proper Hokage.
"Are you sure about this?" Lord Jiraiya questioned, and he could only nod.
"Well, I am as sure as one can be in these matters," for in the end, while he could account for numbers and rationales. There was one more component to this thing that was quite difficult to take into account.
"If any of the village pledges any more than that, it could upset the balance of power. Still, I have prepared a preliminary list of possible candidates from each village," and it had some twenty names, along with every piece of intel they had on them.
Lord Jiraiya took the scroll and put it to the side.
"Still, the main question is, who do we nominate?" and Lord Jiraiya met his gaze.
"I want to be part of that group," and he shook his head.
"We have lost two kages in the span of two years. You are the Rokudaime Hokage, and that title comes with a lot of burdens. We cannot have you leave the village in these times," and Jiraiya shook his head.
"I have already made up my mind. I must go to Ame," he was resolute, and he wanted to groan, but few could match Lord Jiraiya's stubbornness.
"The directive said that the group was to be led by a Kage. I believe I can get that position leveraging our intel on the Akatsuki," and he was right. No other village apart from Konoha had killed any of the Akatsuki members, and none held more intel on the group than them.
Appointing the Hokage to lead the force would be a logical move. Yet again, he doubted, it would be so easy to accomplish.
"What a drag," he cursed, as he realised that with him leaving, he would once again have to oversee the affairs of the village.
"I told you, didn't I? You should have taken the Hat instead of me," Jiraiya-sama joked, and he could only roll his eyes.
"Please, spare me. I have enough on my plate as it is," and he had not had a full night's sleep in weeks, and he was not the only one.
"Still, what about the other three names?" and that was as critical a choice as any, for it was a matter of both integrity and pride.
"Have you made a decision regarding that?" and now Lord Jiraiya's smile dimmed.
"Well, I have nearly decided on two," and that was quite good, for he had not just come here to hand out his reports. He had come here to support his own son.
"Who?" he asked.
"Hikari Hyuga," and that one should have been obvious.
"A good choice. There is no more experienced person than dealing with the Akatsuki than him, and I have been told that he has already left for the Summoning Realm to train," and Lord Jiraiya nodded.
"Yes. After killing Kakuzu, he is now a legitimate S-ranked shinobi, and if he managed to master Senjutsu this month, then he will be my near equal," and they would have need of his power if they were to triumph over them.
"What about the second name?" he questioned, and this time his expression shifted.
"Kakashi," he answered with some hesitation, and it was a good choice as well.
"He is a near S-rank shinobi who has vast combat experience. I doubt any village would object to his participation," and Lord Jiraiya nodded, before he gave a deep sigh.
"It is the third choice that is bothering me. I have a few names in mind, but I just cannot reach a decision," and it was good that he had not reached a decision then.
"Then let me solve that problem for you," he began, making the man frown.
"Choose my son," and now Lord Jiraiya was taken aback.
"Shikamaru?" he asked back, and Shikaku sighed as he nodded. And never before had he ever used his position to advocate for his son, but never before had he seen him in his current state.
Ino and Shikamaru had been friends since they were children, and her death had hit him hard. Even before, when one of their classmates had died on a mission some two years ago, Shikamaru had found himself in a crisis of identity, but now there was no crisis.
There was only anger. There was only revenge.
"Yes," he answered.
"The squad is going to have various shinobis, each with their own set of techniques and specialisations. We will need a strategist on the field to coordinate everything, and I can assure you that you will find no shinobi better than my son for that task," and Lord Jiraiya did not doubt his intelligence.
"This is because of Ino Yamanaka," and his tone was somber as he mentioned that name.
"She was his friend," he answered, and Lord Jiraiya's fingers drummed the table before he raised a brow.
"I can see the rationale of putting him on the squad. With Kakashi and Hikari on the team, we are not exactly lacking any firepower. But, the question is, can he really do this?" and he was right to be concerned.
"We are talking about S-ranked shinobi here, Shikaku?" and it was not as if he did not know that.
"I know, but I can assure you. Within my clan, there is currently no one stronger than Shikamaru..." Yet before he could finish, suddenly the chakra in the room shifted as Lord Jiraiya's head snapped towards the window at his back.
"What?" and then, in the blink of an eye, an ANBU appeared in the room.
"Hokage-sama, we have noticed a breach at the perimeter. It's the...."
"...Akatsuki!"
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JIRAIYA—The Toad Sage
Jiraiya could not believe that they were here again. That they had the boldness to come here directly, and yet despite the signal from the outskirts, he had yet to see a single pillar of smoke or a sound of battle as he barrelled through the village at breakneck speed.
The location of the attack was irrational as well, for if this was to be a full-scale invasion, then they should have attacked the village center to cause chaos, or they could have attacked an outpost.
Instead, they had attacked an old abandoned temple at the outskirts of the village, and as he came upon the temple, he saw no signs of battle, and as he landed on the ground, the ground cracked under his feet as he roared.
"You have some nerve coming here, you fools," and besides him, Kakashi, Shikaku, and the entire Dragon unit of ANBU landed and surrounded the cloaked figures, who still did not budge.
Others were on their way as well, though as he stared at the group gathered infront of him, he wondered if they would be enough. This was not just a one-man show.
No, in front of him stood all that remained of Akatsuki's might.
Itachi Uchiha, Kisame Hoshigake, Hidan, Konan, and him. The masked man who was behind it all.
"Please, there is no need to fight," he said, and, unlike before, he stood at the front without hiding behind that quirky voice of his.
"I come in peace," and he really doubted that.
"Is that so?" Kakashi asked, and as he stared at that sole red eye, Jiraiya was forced to remember Hikari's words.
"Indeed, I wouldn't want to cripple your plans of attacking us with the combined might of all the Five Great Nations now, would I?" and so he knew of the Council.
His disappointment must have shown as he chuckled.
"What? You didn't think I would learn about them," and while he talked, Jiraiya had a calculus running in his mind, and in the end, he reached the conclusion that engaging them right now would simply be too costly.
"Honestly, it warms my heart to see the Five Great Nations coming together for Peace. Though you have always had a tendency to do that when it comes to maintaining your hegemony," and he was speaking of Ame.
"Stand down," he ordered, and met the gaze of the masked nin.
"Good choice. No wonder they chose you to be the next Hokage," and he could sense an ominous chakra from the temple behind them. A familiar ominous chakra.
"What are you doing here?" Jiraiya asked.
"Oh, I just came to issue a warning, that's all," the masked nin began.
"A warning?" Shikaku asked.
"Yes, you see, you could have the five nations all combine their might, and in the end, it will all still be futile. Victory will be mind, and the world will forever be changed because of that," and now he was rambling.
"And what does your victory actually entail?"
"Peace," he answered to their shock.
"You call this peace?" Kakashi raged.
"Oh, indeed. One could say that I have half achieved my purpose, for who could have imagined that day would come when Iwa, Kiri, Suna, Kumo, and Konohagakure would sit down with one another. The five Great Nations all united against a singular enemy," and if he so desired peace, then why was he hunting jinchuriki?
"Then why continue. Why not sit with us, as well?" he said, turning towards Konan.
"Is that not what you all desired? For Ame to have a say in its affairs. For it to be free of war and poverty," he pleaded, but she refused to answer.
"Oh yes, you may have made peace, but yours is a momentary peace. My aim is something far grander. Something more permanent," and with that, his eye narrowed.
"And so, you can gather as many people as you want, but in the end, I will obtain your tailed beasts, and then the world shall know peace at last. A peace unlike any before," and so that was his plan.
"How?"
"Genjutsu!" and he stilled as soon as he heard those words.
"One so potent and powerful that it will eclipse the entire planet. I call it Project Tsuki No Me," and so that was his plan.
"That is no peace! That is just an illusion!" Shikaku countered.
"And what better is a life full of pain. And so, heed my message and convey it to your fellow elders, Rokudaime Hokage Jiraiya no Sanin," he addressed him.
"The day of your gathering shall be the day of reckoning," and now a figure stepped out of the temple, and his fears were proven right.
"YOU!" Jiraiya snarled as he saw a familiar face.
"Orochimaru!"
"This entire system began with one such Summit, where Hashirama Senju gathered all five Kage and offered them a place in his world. And now his world shall end in that very Summit!"
"Gather your forces! Struggle as much as you want, but no one will stand in the way of Akatsuki!" and by then the world began to distort, and the Akatsuki began to disappear one by one, and just then another figure entered the area.
"HOW DARE YOU SHOW YOUR FACE HERE! ITACHI!"
"Sasuke..." and the boy tore up the ground with his landing, and just as he was about to launch himself at his brother, Shikaku acted first.
"...Shadow Binding!" and the boy snarled in rage.
"LET ME GO! LET ME GOOOO!"
Itachi Uchiha glanced towards him, and Jiraiya met his gaze, and immediately the world shifted as he let himself be captured in his genjutsu.
"He is planning something big for the Summit. I don't know what, but be prepared," and with that, the genjutsu ended.
"You are still weak, little brother," and with that, Itachi Uchiha vanished as well, until only Orochimaru remained.
"We will meet again, Jiraiya..." and now only the masked nin was left.
"You plan to destroy Hashirama Senju's legacy, and yet you hide your own identity behind that mask. If you are so bold, why don't you remove it and show us your face, or do you lack the courage to do that?" and he chuckled.
"Who even are you!" and he chuckled.
"Who am I? You ask," and with that, his body began to shift.
"I am the anger and hate of this world, given form. I am the amalgamation of human suffering propagated by this cruel world. I am the one who will break this cycle of pain and hatred. I am..."
"....Vengeance!"
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