CHAPTER 60: CONSEQUENCES

“Where is she?”

“She reverse-summoned herself to Shikkotsu Forest.” Kakashi replied to his former teammate.

On the spot, Riku bit his thumb and summoned a small Katsuyu on top of his desk.

“Hello, Katusyu-chan.”

“Hello Ri-kun. What can I do for you?”

“Nothing much, just summon my mother here, please.”

“No.”

“...No? Why ‘no’? Katsuyu I’m not…”

“She’s undergoing her sage training.” revealed the little slug.

“...Now? Of all time?”

“She also said she deserved a vacation from the job and that she had faith that you have everything in hand.”

Riku was dumbfounded for a moment, then his anger began to boil the blood in his veins. Just before he could explode, Katsuyu told him goodbye and reverse summoned herself in a puff of smoke. Riku began to take deep, deep breaths to calm himself down. Nobody dared talk.

“Is matricide still illegal?”

“Last time I checked, yes.” answered Kakashi.

“... I’m the acting Hokage, can’t I change-”

“““No.”””

Team Hiruzen answered in unison to Riku’s dismay and he had no choice but to let it go.

“Alright, I’m done with this shit and I need a break. Kakashi, could you find Minato and Kushina, please? I have to talk to them and to you. Thirty minutes at my home. Elders if you would be so kind as to check if the civilians are alright both ours and from Suna. Sandaime-sama, please meet me at my home in ten minutes. I have a personal matter I’d like to talk to you about.”

With that said, Riku disappeared in a green flash and Kakashi left the office through the window.

“What was she thinking?” Homura commented.

“That Riku was ready to take the hat.” replied Hiruzen. “You saw how he dealt with the situations as they were coming one after the other. I wouldn’t have done nearly as good in my prime.”

“Even Anbu… They already see him as the Hokage.” commented Koharu.

“That’s not what I was talking about. I’m not senile yet. I was talking about Tsunade undergoing sage training before she made it back and gave directives or at least words of encouragement. Riku also killed nearly ten thousand shinobi on his own out of the sixteen that attacked us. Ten thousand! The impact on his psych… Tsunade should be present to deal with that.”

“He’s officially the greatest killer in History now.” said Koharu in realization. “Perhaps this is what he wants to talk to you about, Hiruzen.”

“I’m not sure I qualify for such a talk. I’m not sure anyone does.”

With nothing to say anymore, Hiruzen took his leave and made his way to the rebuilt Senju manor. The door was opened and after calling out to Riku but not getting an answer, he let himself in. He found him resting his head in Hinata’s lap on the patio. The bluenette was comforting him with sweet, reassuring words that Hiruzen couldn’t all hear, but it was clear that the action Riku took during the battle was affecting him. The retired hokage had a sense of nostalgia looking at them, remembering his beloved wife, Biwako doing the same for him from time to time, after a very difficult decision he made.

Hinata noticed him and invited him over with a wave of her hand, while telling Riku of his presence. Hiruzen sat down next to them and waited for the dirty blonde to speak. Hinata kissed her boyfriend on the cheek and left the two men alone.

“One of the members of Akatsuki was Uchiha Sasuke. He’s dead.” Riku started with.

“Then the Uchiha are gone for good. I don’t know if it’s a shame or not.”

“If I base my impression on them through Sasuke, then yes. If not… It happened ten years ago. Itachi was a fool to obey Danzo like he did. Regardless, that’s not what I want to talk about.”

“No?”

“No. What I want to talk about is who he was fighting. Naruto and Haruno Sakura. When I arrived at their location, Sakura was watching from the sidelines and Naruto was taking it easy on Sasuke. He was trying to reason with him, to make him come back to the village. With Iwa and Kumo attacking…”

“There was no time for that and you killed Sasuke.” Hiruzen filled in.

“Yes. One fist to the head and it didn’t exist anymore.That’s where everything turned to shit. Naruto attacked me with a three tail cloak.”

Hiruzen didn’t like where this was going and asked preventively.

“Is he alive?”

“He is. Only because I didn’t want to deal with the Kyubi on top of dealing with Kumo and Iwa. While I was busy dodging and telling him he was needed on the front lines, Sakura actively supported him. She threw some shurikens that broke my concentration and were it not for the hiraishin I would have died. I appeared behind Sakura and hit her neck to knock her out and tried again to reason with Naruto. He lost it even more and he impaled me through and through in the stomach with his arm. I cut it, then kicked him away. He went up to five tails. That was… horrifying . I used the Laughing Buddha Jutsu and put a biju chakra suppressing tag on him. I locked them both inside a seal. Now the question is…”

“What should you do with them?” said Hiruzen, not being able to hide the sadness in his voice. He always believed Naruto would become great one day. It was reaffirmed when Sasuke had been imprisoned and Naruto accepted it. It was as if his naivety and immaturity were gone. Clearly he had been wrong.

“What they did is treason. Anyone else but me would have died from Naruto’s blow. They attacked a superior officer, tried to murder him. There is also the way they dealt with Sasuke and the fact that their actions technically helped Iwa and Kumo. I don’t know how many witnessed the fight and I don’t know what to do. I was hoping mom would be back to deal with this, it’s her job after all but now the decision falls on my shoulders. An unstable and traitorous jinchuriki…”

“Should have the biju extracted. You can’t do that, Riku. He’s your brother.”

“Half and yes I can as the Acting Hokage.”

“Ri-”

“I will not, however. Naruto will have his chakra sealed and will be locked up. The same for Sakura. Her career as a kunoichi is over. Naruto on the other hand cannot retire. What I want your advice on is the length of the sentence. Sakura, apart from the shurikens, didn’t really… Well she wasn’t really a threat. So her sentence shouldn’t be long but Naruto?”

“Seal his chakra and put him under house arrest.” suggested Hiruzen.

“...You think that the circumstances were…that he wasn’t in his right mind so the punishment should be reduced? That won’t stand in front of the population.”

“Not if you request a psychiatric evaluation.”

“That’s even worse! A mentally unstable jinchuriki of the Kyuubi? They will want his head!”

“Not if the report shows that it’s a result of the village’s treatment of Naruto. We can argue that now with his parents in his life and a lot of therapy, Nartuo is receiving the help, support and healing he always needed.”

“That’s… You have too much faith in people. And what about Karin? She’s indirectly splashed by his actions except she doesn’t have-”

“She has you. She has Ino, and she has Hinata. Three heirs of their respective clan. You alone would be enough. Let’s not forget Karin’s own actions either. She’s popular with the people for being a really good medic and sacrificing herself for the village by taking the Kyuubi inside of her.”

Riki sighed, tired of the bullshit.

“House arrest poses a problem. Naruto lives here now. For whatever reason the Namikaze family didn’t leave and find themselves a home. That would make things awkward.”

“What things?”

Both men turned around to look inside the manor and saw Kushina making her way towards them, followed by Minato and Kakashi. Again Riku sighed. He didn’t want to have this conversation but had to.

“Naruto and the two of you living here when he’s under house arrest for treason.”

Hiruzen facepalmed loudly at the bluntness and lack of tact Riku just displayed. That stopped the three newcomers on their tracks.

“W-what?”

“Naruto wouldn’t!” Kakashi said with a bit of anger in his voice.

“I’m sure there is a good explanation for this.” Minato for his part was reasonable but there was definitely displeasure in his tone.

Once again Riku took a deep breath and shared what happened during the invasion. Kushina was floored and began crying, Kakshi was mute. Riku believed he was blaming himself for Sasuke’s turning the way he did and not curbing Naruto and Sakura’s feelings towards their traitor of a teammate. Minato had an unreadable face but Riku discerned disappointment. Was it in Riku or Naruto? Both?

“What’s the sentence?”

“MINATO!” his wife screamed.

“Jail for Sakura. After discussing it together, Sandaime-sama made a suggestion and I agreed to it; House arrest with his chakra sealed for Naruto with mandatory therapy. It’s not normal that he sees Sasuke as his best friend when Sasuke was anything but. It’s not normal for him to focus more on one traitor than on the safety of the village and its people when war is literally at our doorsteps. His attitude towards Sakura is worrying too. Now that I think about it, Sakura will have to undergo mandatory therapy too. Until further notice, Naruto is officially on probation as a shinobi. Sakura’s career as a kunoichi however is over. She may work as a doctor at the hospital when her sentence is over, her talent in the field is too great to waste it.”

Minato let out a relieved sigh. His youngest son would live. At his side Kushina was relieved too but not very happy with the situation, understandably. Kakashi on the other hand? Nobody could tell what he was thinking.

“I don’t know if you’re aware but you are his hero. Chances are… he will listen to you.” Riku said to his father. “Regrettably, his house arrest can’t be done here for obvious reasons.”

Neither Minato nor Kushina said anything against it. They understood that it was not their home.

“You can stay until you find a new place to live in. Until then I think it’s better if Naruto stays sealed. For everyone and especially him.” Riku added, pulling out the page out his BoS with Naruto sealed inside and gave it to Minato. He added some chakra suppressing seals, biju chakra suppressing seals and a Hiraishin to it. “I trust you to put them on him and to keep him inside your home. Should he break house arrest… Then I’m sorry but I won’t be able to do anything more for him. Now if you’d excuse me, I need to see what repercussions his actions did for Karin. Kakashi if you could come with me.”

Riku stood up, bowed to Hiruzen and left the manor followed by Kakashi.

“I’m sorry, you know.”

“For what? Killing Sasuke? Arresting Naruto and Sakura?” The silver haired jonin asked but without any bite or anger in his voice.

“No. They’re all responsible for their actions. Each broke your rule in a different way and are now suffering the consequences. I did my duty, I have nothing to be sorry about regarding them. What I’m sorry about is that my doing my duty hurt you.”

“Mah~ It’s fi-”

“It’s not. Denying will only hurt you more in the long run. Especially when you’re the type of blaming yourself for things outside your control.”

“You don’t know that! I could have-”

“You couldn’t. Sasuke has been a basket case ever since the academy. Years of untreated trauma led him where he is today. Sakura already had mental problems too back then so did Naruto. Unless you’re secretly a trained psychologist, I don’t think there was anything you could have done to avoid… this. And frankly, you should see a therapist too. I know I will.”

“Why would you?” the cyclops asked, ignoring anything related to him and his team.

“Didn’t you hear?”

“Hear what?”

“Iwa and Kumo forces numbered up to 16 thousand. I killed ten thousand of them.”

“...”

“I’m pretty sure I’m officially the greatest monster in History of the Elemental Nations. Even Nagato’s kill count didn’t reach that high when he destroyed Suna.”

Kakashi had nothing to say to that revelation. It was too mind blowing to believe it to be true yet he knew it was.

“Here.” Riku said as he stopped and pulled a storage seal from his BoS. “Sakura is inside. I think it would be better if a familiar face was there when she wakes up. Just like I trust Minato and Kushina to do their duty regarding Naruto, I trust you to do the same regarding Sakura.”

It was only then that Kakashi noticed they were in front of the Military Police Headquarters. The meaning was clear for him.

“You don’t have to worry about that.” Kakashi replied. He took the page and went inside the building.

“I’m going to get piss drunk at Yugao’s tonight, you should join!” Riku shouted before leaving.

When he arrived at the apartment of his first crush ever, no one answered when he knocked on the door. The idea that Yugao may have perished during the battle never crossed his mind, so instead he went to the hospital. Six years may have passed but the purple haired kunoichi rarely got out of her apartment if it wasn’t for a girls night out with her friends, training or for a mission. Riku really felt bad that she was just surviving the loss of Hayate and not just living. He wished he could do something but so far he had been too busy or had no idea. Her wish to try and become a jonin sensei had taken a step back for some reason and he always held himself back asking why.

When he entered the hospital and went to the reception desk and asked for his friend's whereabouts. The nurse looked up Yugao’s name on her computer and gave him the number of the room where she was. Riku felt relieved and realized that he had been worried for her for a moment. When he entered the room, she saw her on the bed with a cast on her right arm and leg and a bandage over her eye on the same side.

“Hey.” He said softly, noticing that she was just resting with her eye closed. Eye that she opened when she heard him.

“Hey.” she answered with a weak and tired smile.

He approached the bed and took the diagnosis attached to it. Reading it quickly, he put it back down and came to sit sideways on the edge of the bed. The side which was not injured.

“You’ll be fine.” he said, taking her hand in his.

“I know, the doctor told me. Except the eye. It’s gone for good. The scars around it are permanent too.”

“You’re still the most beautiful Kunoichi I have ever met.”

“I knew you’d say that.” her smile grew bigger.

“Of course, you did. You know I’m an honest man. I tell the truth. If you can’t handle it, that’s your problem.”

That made her chuckle a bit.

“I went to your place to see if you wanted to get shitfaced. Even invited Kakashi. Guess it’s for another time, hm?”

“If you can get me out of here…”

“Oh, I can. But with the state you’re in, I’m not leaving you alone at your flat. It’s Senju manor or the hospital.”

“Or, you bring me inside your Botib, fix my bones and we’re back into the real world in less than a minute.”

“... Alright. But I get to braid your hair.”

“...”

“...What? Isn't that what women do during a sleepover?”

“Shut up and get me out of here.” she said with an amused smile.

Riku didn’t need to be told twice. He picked her up in his arms, and flashed right back home. He brought her to his bedroom and put her on his bed. The one eyebrow raised she had said everything.

“Did you expect me to bring out the Botib while carrying you?” he replied and unsealed the closet from his BoS. He created a clone to find Kakashi and to tell him where they were and Yugao’s situation. Then, he entered the closet and asked where she wanted to go. The garden to rest or the bed?

“You have a garden?”

“Yep. Made for Ino when I proposed. Want to see it?”

“I’d like that very much, yes.”

And so, they went to the garden ust like that. She admitted aloud that it was beautiful and she enjoyed the calm and quiet of nature. They stayed seated in the Gazebo in silence for at least an hour when Kakashi came in with a big box full of alcohol.

“Damn it, I feel left out now! I’m the only one with two eyes.” he said, helping his former teammates settle in and passing around the beers.

“You were completely eye-less a few months ago.” reminded Yugao.

“True. And I have two eyes too.”

“You know I wonder if it’s not possible to put a seal that would just… turn on and off your sharingan.”

“Knowing you, possibly.”

“That makes me think. Want one of those Yugao?”

“I’m good, thank you.”

“Rinnegan? Wait no, we don’t have them anymore. Guess we-”

“Wait, wait, wait! What do you mean we don’t have those anymore?” inquired Kakashi, putting down his bottle that was about to meet his lips.

Riku took a deep breath and sighed.

“They’re gone. I think ‘Madara’ took them away during the fight. I left them in the lab to study.”

“You… don’t think that… Akatsuki’s attack and Iwa and Kumo… A diversion to steal them?”

“At this point I’m sure of nothing. Except that they must be the only pair in the world since they were stolen. For now.”

“For now?” questioned Yugao.

“The bit I was to discover was… full of surprise to say the least. The eyes had both cells from the Uchiha and the Senju.”

“... An evolution of the sharingan thanks to the Senju cells?” Kakashi wondered.

“Possibly. I’m not about to remove my eyes for a sharingan for the purpose of testing that.”

“Fair. Still if the mix of both clans could produce the Rinnegan and that only one had appeared… Must be something else to evolve the sharingan.”

The conversation went back to Yugao and what kind of cover she’d used for her eye. A simple eye-patch or a head protector like Kakashi? Apparently she was for the former all the way. They were joined an hour later by a disgruntled Minato. The man had come to tell Riku that they had found a small house not far from here. To everyone’s surprise he took a beer and down it in one go.

“Sorry but… I needed that.”

“No one’s judging here. Our objective is to get shitfaced to forget today. At least I am.”

“I can imagine.”

“I would if I wasn’t on painkillers!” An unhappy Yugao said, drinking apple juice.

“I guess we’ll have to do it again then.” Riku said with an amused smile making his drinking buddies chuckle.