It was starting to get dark when I reached Kushina's house, but everyone was still there and awake. Kushina had held off on dinner since she knew that I was here, hoping I would cook. I did not mind, since it was a hobby, though I enlisted Rin to assist me. Kushina's cooking was interesting, to put it nicely, so she would need to take up the task while staying with Kushina, or risk starvation.
"Kakashi, you're doing dishes," I instructed after we finished dinner.
"What?" he asked, caught off guard.
"Rin and I cooked while Kushina is housing you; you should contribute something," I retorted.
"I'm living here too?" he asked.
"You're Rin's personal guard, and she can't leave Kushina's house during wartime. You also need a crash course alongside Rin in fuinjutsu, if you want a chance at keeping your position."
He sighed heavily but stood up and headed to the kitchen without argument, making Kushina and I chuckle. Rin gathered the plates and cups then followed him into the other room.
"It's going to be a little cramped in here with all of us, so would you mind if I made an addition to the back of your place for Kakashi? Just a stone structure and it can be detached," I asked.
"Sure," she agreed, standing up. "How long are you staying?"
"Tonight, and tomorrow night, if you don't mind. I'll take the couch so that Rin can get settled in the spare room," I replied as I led the way outside.
"You're cooking then."
"Figured," I chuckled then summoned my Earth clone to do the work.
We walked out onto the porch while Earth walked over to the side yard, forming hand signs. Kushina let out a sigh as she leaned against one of the posts, looking a little more serious than normal and a mix of emotions on her face. I knew that she was probably troubled by the situation of Rin being forced to become a jinchuriki, but there was also a part of her excited to share the burden with someone, even though it made her feel guilty.
"The front is pretty messed up right now, huh?" Kushina remarked.
"Yeah," I sighed. "I don't know how deep the coordination went, but my front and the Cloud front were attacked around the same time as Konoha was. The crazy bastards have gone pretty far with all this."
"Did you hear about Minato?" she asked quietly.
"Just the usual glowing praise about your future hubby," I chuckled then said more seriously, "I've talked with Tsunade recently, so that should mean he's doing fine... but I can send a clone out and deliver a personal message for you."
"Thanks... I'll prepare a scroll tonight," she retorted with a cheeky smile.
"I walked into that one," I said with a smirk. "So, how are our projects going?"
"I'm thinking your idea is crazy more every day that I work on this fuinjutsu map of yours, but I've managed to unravel the summoning seals on the last two Mist swords."
"Good timing; Shisui needs a new weapon. I wonder if he'll choose one," I mused then summoned my Space-Time clone, who wrote a brief message to send along my network.
"You and your clones," she remarked, shaking her head. "Is he even big enough to use any of them?"
"Meh, he's growing, and it's not like he'll be able to use them in combat any time soon. He's still learning his style, so experimenting with a different weapon will give him some ideas, even if he can't keep the sword."
Earth dismissed herself once she finished cutting a few windows and a doorway for Kakashi's stone house alongside Kushina's.
Clicking her tongue, she complained, "That better not be permanent. It clashes with my courtyard."
"Give it some time, and maybe a coat of paint. My clones and I can even refine the place after the war. You'll need a guest house once you and Minato have a kid," I teased.
Kushina turned nearly as red as her hair, shoving me lightly. "You talk too much, Akari."
"I can see it now..." I said with a dreamy tone in my voice. "A young boy with blonde hair and blue eyes just like his father, and from you, he gets a ramen addiction and the tendency to act before thinking."
"Akari!" she yelled, grabbing for me, but I had already retreated with a laugh.
Kushina chased me around her courtyard, threatening to beat me, while I laughed and dodged her blows. Kakashi and Rin were drawn outside from the commotion, but they smartly stayed on the porch with slight confusion. I managed to toss Kakashi a storage scroll, which had a few essentials for field work, including a cot, blankets, and a pillow, while still avoiding Kushina, though we were mostly calmed down.
While he walked off to set up his space, Kushina and I led Rin back inside. The night was quiet after that, and Kushina really did have me send off a care package to Minato by way of my clone. I could have gone back to my apartment, but it was nice to hang out with my friend again, even if it was just for a short time.
I woke up before dawn out of habit, though I was the only one in the house that did. Space had not returned yet, so I assumed that she was bringing back a message from Minato and did not forcibly resummon her. Instead, I summoned Earth in case anyone woke up soon then summoned a tiny form of Katsuyu.
"Good morning, Lady Katsuyu. Could you reserve-summon me?" I asked.
"Of course, Akari-sama," she replied with a bob of her head.
She vanished in a small poof of smoke then, moments later, I felt the spatial tug from Katsuyu. I appeared in Shikkotsu Forest and stretched as I took a deep breath. Summoning Chrono, I had her take me to where my other clones were training.
I knew what the small mountain had looked like before they started and I wish that I could say that I was surprised by the massive change to the once barren, rocky spire, but I really was not. With less than a day of unsupervised training the top of the mountain had been blown off, yet pillars of stone with black iron rods impaled all over rose into the sky. Heavy, dark clouds hung over the mountain, crackling with lightning occasionally before lashing out at the metal rods. Channels of cooled lava streaked down the mountainside while ice covered other sections. A shallow river had already begun to take shape around the base of the mountain, and trees unlike those of Shikkotsu Forest were also starting to circle the river.
I could only shake my head in amusement since I knew that I would have done the same with the time and energy. The power of Sage Mode had clearly raised the strength of my clones to a ridiculous level, but I knew that it was significantly limited at my current rank and could not be casually used outside of this Holy Land. It was not until Chrono brought me close to the trees that I realized yet another limitation.
The massive trees in the Death Forest around Konoha were made by Hashirama's Wood Release. Although they had been left to grow on their own for the last forty plus years, the difference between those trees and the new ones my clone had created was not something that a few decades could make up. These trees were thinner, shorter, and lack the sense of vitality that Hashirama's trees still had years after his death.
"I guess it would be too easy if I was able to suddenly close the distance between us," I remarked with a hand pressed against one of the trees.
Sage Mode could boost my clones to the strength of powerful jonin, but there was still a massive casasm between me and legends like the First Hokage and Madara. Thinking of the last reincarnations of Ashura and Indra, I sighed with annoyance as I headed up the mountain. If I had been truly smart, I would have left the Village after I awakened my system and lived like some hermit on a mountaintop, grinding away my skills in solitude, until the Fourth Shinobi War. Naruto's and Sasuke's fate would have ensured that the world would be saved from Black Zetsu's master plan without me every lifting a finger.
But, I had not made that decision and threw canon completely out the window. I stayed in the Village and truly became a part of it, so I could not ignore future problems. Danzo's death had been as much for my own safety as it was for the good of the Village since he would not allow my unique abilities go uncontrol. I saved Rin because she was a kind, sweet girl who I had helped teach over the years, and she was close to Kurenai as well. Even before I started derailing canon, I knew that I would not sit aside and let Kushina and Minato die during the birth of Naruto for the sake of knowing the future.
Despite my clones focusing on training, a few had made a stone building with some simple furniture. Unsurprisingly, I found Yin inside and working on fuinjutsu while a simple illusion of a ball rolled around the table. She looked up at me as she placed the exploding tag that she had just finished aside then stood up as the ball vanished. Without saying anything, she held out a fist and I pressed my own against hers, fusing with her.
For a moment, I enjoyed the swell of power that came from Yin Sage Mode then remembered that I had far too much to do today. I activated my jutsu before dismissing all of my clones except for Phantom, Space, and Earth who all had tasks aside from training and let their memories flood into me. Normally, sixteen clones' memories from a full day of training would leave me with a headache that would take an hour to fade, even with Yin's help, but with Yin Sage Mode, I did not even feel a twinge of pain. Smiling to myself, I dismissed Yin as well then walked outside and resummoned all my non-active clones.
"Stick to training; you've all decorated enough," I instructed before a chime rang in my ears.
[Senjustu: Advanced to D]
I held my breath, waiting, hoping, praying for the usual download of information from my system when I unlocked a new clone, but after a few moments, there was still nothing. I clicked my tongue in annoyance then chuckled at my own greed, but the desire for a Sage Mode clone had been too great. Nature energy was still locked away from me directly, but my clone fusion was already overpowered, so I really should not complain.
Once I was sure that no clone was unlocking, I dispelled Earth and resummoned her so that she could train. The entire time I was gone was less than ten minutes, and that was mostly me looking around at all of the changes to the mountain. I disrupted Katsuyu's anchor with my chakra and returned to Kushina's living room where I had been before.
No one had woken up yet, so I headed to the kitchen and started making breakfast. Kushina's fridge was mostly empty since Kushina practically lived off of instant ramen, but I still had plenty of food in my storage scroll, so I pulled out some things. As the smell of bacon and eggs started to fill the house, I heard movement coming from the other end of the house. About ten minutes later, Rin walked into the kitchen with a yawn and rubbing her eyes.
"Good morning, Rin. Would you go see if Kakashi is awake yet?" I asked.
"Okay," she replied, then walked towards the front door.
As she left, I plated the last of the food then brought everything to the table. While she was outside, I headed to Kushina's room and knocked on her door. There was no response, but that was not surprising since I knew how lazy she could be. I opened the door and found her sprawled across her bed like a starfish. Chuckling, I walked over and channeled some Ice chakra into my hand. The moment my hand touched her arm, she yelped as she jerked away and ended up rolling off her bed.
"Akari!" Kushina snapped while I laughed.
"I think that's the quickest I've ever woken you up," I said with a smirk. "Come on, I made breakfast, and I've got other things to do today."
She groaned and threw the pillow that had tumbled off with her before standing up. I caught and tossed it back onto her bed then walked out of her room. Kakashi and Rin were already sitting at the table, so it was an easy guess that Kakashi was also an early riser. Knowing Kushina would still be a few minutes, I told them to start eating while I returned to the kitchen and made a pot of coffee. By the time it was ready, she came walking over to the table and dropped into her usual chair, still half-asleep, but she had changed clothes and combed her hair.
"Half milk and three spoonfuls of sugar," I stated as I placed the mug in front of her before I sat down next to her.
"Mmm," she hummed after snatching up the cup and taking a long drink. "This almost makes up for how you woke me up. Did you put your hand in ice water or something?"
"Something like that," I chuckled as I made myself a plate of food.
Kakashi was giving us weird looks while Rin looked amused and had to stop herself from chuckling a few times. Before we finished eating, Space arrived with a scroll for Kushina and several reports destined for the Hokage. She grabbed it excitedly and started reading right at the table while Space passed off the rest of the scrolls and dismissed herself.
I said my goodbyes before heading out to the Hokage's Tower. The Village was slowly waking up with the sunrise as I walked, quiet yet peaceful. Some shops were beginning to open, and there were friendly faces moving up and down the streets.
My father was in his office despite the early hour, but that was not surprising. I gave him the reports and talked with him for a while before I asked about Pakura. She was still in the Village and was staying in the building reserved for the Sand delegation, despite her injuries. When he told me about how badly she was burned, I could only sigh since I knew that she would carry heavy scars unless one of my theories proved to be correct.
I left the tower and made my way to the small manor reserved for the Sand. Knocking on the door, I waited until Maki opened the door. We were rather familiar with each other since she shadowed Pakura like how Shisui shadowed me, so she was not too surprised when she saw me.
"Hey, kid. I came to check on Pakura," I said.
"The Kazekage isn't taking visitors," Maki replied quietly.
"Fine, then I'm here for medical reasons," I retorted, crossing my arms. "Will you tell her that I'm here, please? If she really doesn't want to see me, I'll go, but I think I can help her."
She hesitated for a moment then nodded and closed the door. I put my hands in my pockets as I turned around and looked up at the sky while I waited. Maki did not take long and reopened the door then showed me inside. There were a few men that I did not recognize sitting in the main room, but she led me past them and into a large bedroom where Chiyo was sitting off in a corner while Pakura laid, sitting up against the headboard, her entire upper body wrapped in bandages.
"Kazekage," I said with a polite bow of my head.
"Commander Sarutobi," she said with a hoarse voice. "I heard about the attack on the main camp. It's good to see you looking so well."
"Thank you, and also, thank you for your help repelling the Stone assassins. When my father told me about the injuries that you had taken, I knew that I wanted to see if I could help you," I explained.
"Do you think I am here for show?" Chiyo asked with annoyance.
"Of course not, but my skills are rather unique. I'm not sure that I can completely replicate the healing effects since I had outside help, but I was left covered in second- and third-degree burns from the Six-Tails' acid before treating myself."
Chiyo's eyes widened with surprise since my recovery was ridiculous, even to people like Tsunade. She looked over at Pakura, who had closed her eyes and taken a slow breath in.
"Look, I'm not asking for anything in return. You already did more than enough for me to consider you a friend over the last year and then you went saved my father and my Village. It's the least I can do, and at worst, it won't work more than a normal healing jutsu," I added.
"Alright," Pakura agreed, reopening her eyes.
"Great... now, can we get some privacy?" I asked with a cheeky smile.
"What?" Chiyo snapped.
"Just go, Chiyo. Akari enjoys annoying people, so arguing won't help," Pakura sighed.
I chuckled, "Take my fun away."
Chiyo huffed and walked out of the room without another word. Maki hesitated for a moment but followed behind Chiyo once Pakura made a shooing gesture towards her. Once they left and shut the door behind them, I walked over to Pakura's bedside, dragging Chiyo former chair over.
As I unwrapped the bandages on her arm to check the extent of her injuries, I said in a light tone, "You leave the front for a couple of weeks, and the Mist decided to throw everything they have at us. You must be frightening, Kazekage."
"Shut up, Akari," Pakura said, closing her eyes again.
I chuckled, but it was forced since I saw the dry, almost-mummified skin, a sign of her superheated Scorch chakra.
"Still so cocky?" she asked with a bitter tone.
"Well... if this works for you, I won't need to worry about my newest scar," I remarked.
She chuckled softly then asked, "How bad was the attack? I've heard reports from my staff, but I don't trust that they aren't hiding things due to my condition."
"While I would call it a full-scale attack, they spread out their troops across too many of our outposts to truly breach our defense. If it wasn't for their ploy with the Three-Tails, it would have been a complete disaster before it even started."
"I thought you said the Six-Tails attacked the camp."
"Yep," I confirmed as I carefully rewrapped the bandages. "The Mist kidnapped one of our Leaf shinobi and attempted to seal the Three-Tails inside of her. She's on the same team as Shisui, the student of Minato, and a civilian ninja, so an easy target they assumed, I guess."
"Did she survive?"
"Yes. I escorted her back to the Village shortly after I recovered," I said then summoned my Chrono-Vitality clone.
Pakura's eyes reopened when Chrono appeared in full Sage Mode. Chrono did not need me to prompt her and began healing Pakura with her own version of the Mystic Palm jutsu. I had tested the unique chakra's healing potential while stationed on the Mist front and noticed that it could lighten some of my old scars aside from just repairing the damaged tissue, which was something that normal Yang chakra could not replicate. With Sage Mode, I hoped that the damage could be reversed, which could help more than just Pakura.
Chrono started with her hands since they were the most important for all shinobi. Pakura let out a hiss after a few moments, her fingers jerking, but the way she started flexing them, I knew that feeling had likely returned suddenly. Chrono finished with her hands and started to move up her forearms before Sage Mode ran out. Since her chakra was mostly exhausted, I dismissed Chrono and unwrapped the bandages on her hands to reveal fresh pink skin.
Touching her fingertips to her thumbs one by one, she smiled over at me and said, "I owe you for this."
"We're already even. The technique isn't something that I can do easily, but I can provide more treatments when I have time, though I'll be returning to the front in the morning."
"No, we aren't... with this, you've helped me keep the mantle of Kage," she replied, making two fists so tight her knuckles turned white.
"Good because you're the one I believe would keep the alliance going after the war," I retorted.
Pakura chuckled lightly as her hands dropped to her sides. "Thanks, Akari."
"No problem," I said with a nod then stood. "I'll let Chiyo come and check you over, but I would prefer you not talk about the jutsu I used."
"Of course."