CHAPTER 67: SHIT HIT THE FAN

Tsunade and Hiruzen were looking at the report Riku had made from the current results he had. To say they were baffled was an understatement.

“If I understand correctly. Uchiha and Senju have the same common ancestor?” inquired the old man.

“Yes. The Rinnegan is created through cells from both clans interacting with each other. It can’t be an evolution since tales of the Rinnegan exist from a long time ago and the Uchiha and Senju had been bitter enemies for centuries before they made peace and founded Konoha. I think it’s more like… the sharingan devolved from the Rinnegan.” Riku explained.

“So in theory… With all the sharingans we have in our possession…”

“We may be able to recreate the Rinnegan.” Tsunade finished her sensei’s line of thoughts.

“You would. I’m not implementing myself with a sharingan. You know my belief regarding kekkei genkai. I will neither have a child nor a descendant of mine do it.”

Tsunade contemplated the idea. Would she switch her eyes for sharingan in the off chance to awaken the Rinnegan? It was tempting. She had the decency to admit as much to herself. She remembered quite vividly what Nagato had been able to do with it and what ‘Madara’ may be able to do with it too.

“We can also create a clone of you?” Riku suggested and that made her frown. She didn’t discard the idea however.

“A clone of me?”

“You know how Hashirama-ji always… ‘shows up’ when his cells are involved?”

“...I don’t like where this is going but yes?”

“We could technically recreate his whole body, in other words a clone of him. From studying his… well everything and since you have inherited the right genes we could in theory, create a clone of you and implant it with a sharingan to see if recreating the Rinengan is possible. Heck we could directly do it with him. Side note, with a new body we could use the modified Edo Tensei to bring him back fully but…”

“He wouldn’t like it.” interjected Hiruzen.

“Yes. The reason why I discarded both ideas is because the Rinnegan would be attuned to Hashi-ji’s cells not yours. And if you’re worried, your clone wouldn’t be sentient since well your soul is in your own body. It would only be an empty vessel.”

“That sounds a bit like Orochimaru’s method of immortality.” the retired Hokage said.

“Partly. Keep in mind that Orochimaru takes the body of someone else after adapting it to suit his soul. It wouldn’t be 100% compatible so he’ll have to change hosts again. In our case since it’s mom's own body there would be no rejection of her soul. The problem however comes from the aging of genes. If we make a clone from a clone from a clone and so on…”

“The results wouldn’t be good to say the least.”

“You got that right, mom. However-”

“Sage mode or keeping a young sample of the original genes or the Iryoken; all three would bypass it all. Especially your Iryoken.”

The absurdity of what was being spoken weighed heavily on everyone's shoulders. Immortality wasn’t a thing any of them were interested in and for good reason. They all understood that life was precious because there was death. Rejecting death was rejecting life’s value. Sure, Tsunade had rejuvenated her body but she didn’t intend to live forever. She just wanted her youth back and when she deemed that it was her time she would go.

“I also discovered that Hyuga and Uchiha may possibly have a common ancestor. Since the Rinnegan was said to belong to the Sage of the six paths but also contained similarities with the Byakugan I think their common ancestry pre-dates the sage but not by much. A few generations possibly. At least one. Which also implied that the Senju are descended from the sage too and in a way the Uzumaki but more distantly.”

Tsunade took a deep breath and sighed tiredly. It was a lot of information regarding her clan’s history. The heavy kind, not the trivial one.

“I will think about this. I’m not comfortable with the idea of having another me existing, empty vessel or not.”

“I wouldn’t either with Jiraiya around.”

Both Hiruzen and Tsunade snorted at Riku’s joke. The young dirty blonde was successful at lifting up the mood.

“What about tonight?” inquired the former Hokage.

“Everything is ready. Jiraiya and Kushina would be hidden inside the cave with us. They do want their pound of flesh on the asshole.”

To avoid any problem with Karin’s seal and the Kyuubi getting out, the birth of their child would be manually started. Like for Kushina, it would happen outside Konoha, just in case the Kyuubi got free. This time however, with Karin’s status as a jinchuriki and her pregnancy being public, they expected the masked man who had released the fox nearly twenty years ago to act again. Karin was being used as bait and while Riku didn’t like that one bit, it was perhaps the only opportunity they had to capture the man. Of course with her having only half of the Kyuubi, the man could go after Naruto. That was why the toads had suddenly had a ‘special’ training for him to undergo at Mount Myoboku. With all of the strongest ninja gathered in the same place, the odds of the masked man getting away were very low, despite his space-time ninjutsu.

“I want to be part of it.” said Hiruzen.

“... Sensei, you do know we need him alive?”

“I do. I won’t be a problem. I just want to confront the man who killed my wife and destroyed part of our home.”

Tsunade looked at Riku who just shrugged. “Fine. Meet us tonight for dinner at the manor. We’ll tell you the whole plan. Now I’m done for the day. Such a difficult birth as this one will need me to be at my best and I can’t be tired because of the paperwork.”

““Sure.””

The men with her inside the office didn’t believe her one bit. It wasn’t like she had much paperwork anymore with the screening and filtering done before it ended up on her desk. It was tedious but nothing as bad as before. She deactivated the privacy seals and rose from her seat. Catching her son by the arm she led him outside.

“I don’t want to do it but I will if you ask.”

“I know. You already have enough on your plate that adding the possible creation of the Rinnegan is more than I’m comfortable giving you. It’s just too much.”

“I’ll try to think of another way. Now what about Kumo and Iwa? How are things?”

“Iwa had stopped sending scouts into Ame. They finally understood that any ninja they sent there mysteriously disappeared and changed their point of infiltration. They avoid Waterfall, perhaps because it’s too close to Iron. They didn’t infiltrate Wind, so what they are doing is beyond our knowledge. Jiraiya got nothing from his contacts.”

“I really don’t understand why Iwa is persisting. They accepted the truce after Minato slaughtered a thousand of them. I killed nine times more and they still want war?”

“Maybe Onoki is controlled through a genjutsu just like the Yondaime Mizukage was?”

“That would explain things.”

The conversation stopped there and they walked back to the manor silently. Karin was speaking with Kushina and Minato in the dining room when mother and son made their entrance.

“Sensei has decided to join your protective detail tonight.” Tsunade said as she sat down facing Karin who nodded in acknowledgement.

“Not like it will change a thing. The guy will be captured before he gets closer than twenty feet from you.” added Riku to reassure her.

He didn’t need to. Karin wasn’t worried one bit about the man, nor was she worried about the Kyuubi getting free. What she was worried about was giving birth. Most notably the pain. Kushina was the one to bring her comfort while Riku went to check on the many seals that would be used during the night. Multiple times. When he got back to the group the sun had already fallen. Inside the dining room were everyone involved in tonight’s operation. Tsunade and Shizune would take care of the birth of the baby. Kushina, Jiraiya and Hiruzen would be in ambush. Kakashi, Yugao and Gai would wait inside Riku’s Botib located in the Senju Manor.

“Alright, so here is the plan. Team A(mbush) will use Jiraiya’s invisibility jutsu to hide near the entrance to take the asshole from behind. Team B(otib) will be at the other end of the room with an opened Botib, ready to take Karin, the baby and Shizune into it, close its door and use the special hiraishin to be transported inside my own Botib, here. Any questions?”

“Yes. From what I understand, that un-youthful man can use space-time ninjutsu allowing him to be intangible or teleport. How can we capture him?”

“That whole cave is layered with seals making a special space-time barrier. He will be able to get inside with his jutsu but won’t be able to get out. There are only two ways to exit the cave. One is through the entrance but since it’s guarded by Team A he won’t be able to escape that way. Two, is through the Botib. With its door closed the space inside is a separate one from ours. That’s why the Hiraishin will work and you need to close the door to be able to bail out thanks to it. Once you’re out, we destroy the Botib and the guy is fucked. He’s either captured or killed. Either way we’ll get what we want from him.”

Riku didn’t expand on the dead part but should that happen, he would use the Edo Tensei to bring the asshole back and question him.

Just to be sure, Tsunade asked Jiraiya. “Is Naruto at Mt. Myoboku?” 

“He is. Pa and Ma are instructing him on how to use their special genjutsu. He doesn’t suspect a thing.”

“Good. Now it's time for dinner.”

The dinner was light but nutritious. Enough to give everyone some energy for the potential fight. Everyone was tense and it was Jiraiya who lifted the mood by beginning to flirt with Tsunade. Of course with Riku present things took a turn in another direction. The toad sage had to dodge chopsticks piercing his eyes. The “Down, momma’s boy” the dirty blonde got was brushed on the spot.

“Of course I am. What of it?”

“Damn! You don’t even deny it.”

“Nope. Why should I? I’m proud of it. After all, I have the best mom in the world.”

“That’s all those tits fault!” Kushina interjected with a bit of jealousy in her voice. Was it because hers were way smaller or because Tsunade could cuddle with her son? Both? Nobody knew but Kushina.

“Well, yeah. Best pillows ever!”

“P-pillows?! How do you know that?! Tsunade!”  the old super pervert exclaimed in shock, looking at his teammate.

“What? I have years of cuddling to catch up on. And it’s very relaxing. Way better way to deal with the stress of the job than drinking until I roll under the table.”

“That’s not fair! Naruto doesn’t want to cuddle with me!”

“Did you try not leaving him a choice?”

“I…No? Should I?”

“I can’t believe you get to suck on those, brat!”

“What the heck are you talking about, you deranged pervert?! It’s just cuddling! If I want to suck on breasts, I go to Karin, Hinata or Ino! Not my own mother!” That was a bit of a lie Riku told aloud. Now that Tsunade had created a jutsu to produce milk, he sure as hell was drinking it straight from the source. The few sex sessions they had since then had been very wild. The wildest to date.

“Goddamn it! I forgot you have your own harem too! Why is life so unfair?!”

“God! Why was I stuck with an idiot on my Team!” Tsunade lamented, rolling her eyes. She was amused though and to make Jiraiya squirm she grabbed Riku’s head and plunged it right into her cleavage.

“Argh!”

To the side, the Jonins were having a field day. At least Kakashi and Yugao. The former even had a few words.

“This is the best entertainment I have had in years. Maybe I should come more often for dinner.” he said, picking up his glass and perching his thirst.

“Are you sure it’s not for Shizune?” teased Yugao and the water in Kakashi’s glass went through the wrong pipe. Gai snickered at his side.

“If he was taking our relationship seriously that may be possible.” replied the called out woman with a bit of bite but mostly humor in his voice. The relationship between the two had been going well so far and Shizune was waiting for Kakashi to ask her to move in. The man however, was either too lazy or too scared to pop that question.

“Now, Kakashi. Life is short, it could end at any moment. You should make the best of it. Take it from my experience.” advised Minato with a teasing grin on his lips.

“Very un-youthful of you my rival. Leaving such a beautiful flower as Shizune-san, hanging. Un-youthful, I tell you!”

“Hm… Maybe I went to the wrong rival.” the head of the hospital said and leaned towards Gai, showing a good bit of cleavage herself.

“Oh hell no!” In a flash Kakashi was right by Shizune’s side, giving her a kiss for everything he was worth. “You can move in anytime.”

“I’m not moving into your small apartment, Kakashi. You’re moving into my house. There is a backyard for your summons.”

“Deal!”

“... I swear if you get closer than ten feet of Yugao-chan’s ass, I’m cutting it off with a rusty kunai dipped in vinegar, you rotted brained pervert!”

“It belongs in a museum!”

“Riku is very protective of you it seems.” Commented Gai to the purple haired woman.

“He still has the hugest crush on me. Ever since he was thirteen.” she answered with an amused smile. That always brought her mood up to know that in his eyes she was still the most beautiful kunoichi in the village, his mother not counting. Especially when he was married to Hinata and on his way to marry Ino and Karin who were beauties themselves, especially Ino.

“Do you intend to join the harem?”

“Do you intend to spend the rest of your life as a woman, Taicho?” the ex-anbu replied with a predatory grin. The threat to emasculate him was very real.

“Mah~ I’m good. I recognize a no when I hear one. Though I’m sure Shizune wouldn’t let you.”

“Are you sure? I don’t have a problem with a girlfriend instead of a boyfriend.”

“I… Hm… ”

“Minato! Once Naruto gets back, I’m restraining him with my chains for some cuddling time! I’m owed my cuddles and I’m getting them!”

“Kushi-chan yo-”

“You better not get in the way if you know what’s good for you!”

“Riku! I want my boobs to stay that size after the birth. Maybe a little bigger?”

“Again?!”

“Wait! You can grow boobs at will now?! I thought it was an accident with Tsunade’s?! Teach me!”

At the end of the table Hiruzen, who was able to watch and hear everything from his  position, was having the time of his life. The scene before him was why he had worked so hard and so long to defend his home. Unfortunately it had to come to an end.

It was late enough into the night and they needed to start the plan. With the exception of Minato, who would wait in Riku’s bedroom with the Botib, everyone was holding hands. Riku flashed everyone to the cave and each went to their position. Kushina, Hiruzen and Jiraiya disappeared out of view against the wall at the entrance. Kakashi brought out his Botib and put it against the far end wall. He opened it and went inside, ready to activate the temporary Time seal which would get his team plenty of time to Hiraishin away once the closet was a closed space. Yugao and Gai were just outside guarding the door, to quickly evacuate the people that needed to get out of there. The rest of the group went to some kind of altar to which Riku had put a comfortable mattress on it.

“Nice touch.” Karin said, giving him a peck on the lips and laying down on the mattress. She was still nervous.

“Everything is going to be alright. The peri-”

“Riku, I’m a doctor, I know how it goes!” she snapped. The squeezing of his hand by hers showed that it was her fear talking in truth and not her anger. Riku nodded and squeezed back.

Once everything was in place. Tsunade started the birthing process. It took two hours of grunts of pain and some screams from Karin to be dilated enough for the baby being ready to come out. Back at the entrance, Kushina felt for Karin, having gone through the exact process herself. What would have been supposed to be one of the happiest days of her life, had turned out to be her worst and her last. She swore to herself that this time would be different. Should the masked man show up, and she prayed he would, she would not only get her payback but also put an end to the threat of her clan’s future. So far the only Uzumaki that would be born would be from Karin, since Kushina herself wasn’t sure she should have another baby because of Naruto, and Naruto was still hanging on to his teammate. From what she heard from many people, it was a lost cause and she didn’t want a daughter-in-law who had physically abused her son and may continue to do so.

“Come on! I see the head, push!” Tsunade ordered, and Karin obliged in a curling scream.

“Good! Do it again.”

“Riku.” the redhead whined in pain and exhaustion, looking for support.

“I'm here. Take a deep breath.” he answered while keeping a hand of the Kyuubi’s seal. He was making sure it held. But he was pushing and that added to Karin’s pain.

“Again!”

The scream Karin let out was the loudest so far “AAAAAAHHHHH! I SWEAR… YOU’RE NOT TOUCHING ME EVER AGAIN!” 

“We still have to make an-” Everyone in the room knew that trying to be logical in that moment was not the right answer and Kushina heard Hiruzen facepalm at her side.

“PUSH!”

“NEVER AGAIN!” she pushed more.

“Argh!”

The crunched sound of the bone in his hand went unheard by everyone as Karin yelled at the top of her lungs. It was over however, Tsunade had the baby in her hands and slapped its butt. Immediately, the baby screamed even louder than his mother did.

“It’s a girl.” Tsunade announced, while she cut the umbilical cord. Riku was way too busy maintaining the seal to do it himself. At the same time Shizune was applying the Mystical Palm to sooth the new mother’s pain and heal any damage the birth had incurred. Once cleaned up and put into a warm blanket, the new member of the Uzumaki clan rested in her grandmother’s arms. Karin was in too much pain from the fox trying to get out to hold her daughter.

That was when everyone was distracted that the attack happened. Or that was how it happened for Kushina and how it would have happened had she not had the experience and teammates at the ready. Yugao was one of the first to act, deflecting three kunai aimed at Tsunade and Shizune, saving their lives. Gai acted at the same time, appearing next to Karin and picking her up in his arms. Riku made a shadow clone who put his hand on the seal and continued his boss’ job. Quickly everyone retreated inside the Botib as per the plan.

“Oh no, you don’t!” shouted the masked man that walked into the cave and threw more kunais at Gai to let go of Karin.

This time it was Riku that blocked them, standing protectively in the way of the attacker. Team A went into action quickly. Jiraiya activated the special barrier and stood in front of the entrance to block it. Kushina used her chains to restrain the man that perhaps she hated the most and Hiruzen was ready to act.

“AH! Kushina-san. I have heard tales of your resurrection. I didn’t quite believe it until that failed attack on Konoha from Iwa and Kumo. How is it going? Feeling nostalgic? I sure do.”

“You’re sure more talkative than you were all those years ago. Good, maybe T&I won’t have to work on you too much?”

“You seem to be under the impression that you caught me. I can feel your chains trying to suppress my chakra but it’s not enough to-” he stopped chuckling when whatever he tried to do, failed. Riku believed he had tried to use his space-time ninjutsu to get free. “That’s impossible! Your chains are made of chakra, they shouldn’t restrain me to-”

“They aren't, asshole.” Riku said, approaching the man. “You just don’t know anything about space-time, that’s why you’re trapped. Like all Uchiha, you got a cool flashy jutsu and didn’t bother to wonder how it worked and just used it like a retard. Your and your clan’s arrogance is truly a wonder. Now let’s see who the fuck you are.”

“I’m… Madara…” the man said with difficulty as he tried to get free of the chains.

“Oh, please. Madara was the most prideful man I’ve ever met. He wouldn’t hide behind a mask. That’s beneath him and the way of a coward.” interjected Hiruzen as Riku removed the mask. 

“Yeah I’ll wear a mask too if half my face looked like the skin of a ballsack.” He also removed, painfully, the sharingans in the man’s socket getting a scream out of it.

“O-Obito?”

Everyone turned to Kushina who had spoken.