Chapter 37
Shisui watched as the bright, radiant flame slowly began to wither away, until only embers remained, stubbornly clinging to life, and he understood them well enough.
"Gojo," he gasped before his sister suddenly called out his name.
"Shisui," and he turned and saw her gleaming in a strange way, as her body began to fade into particles of light.
"He did it," Shisui realized, and Hana nodded.
"But at what cost?" Hana replied solemnly.
"Give him an earful from me, will you?" Shisui asked, and she nodded as a tear ran down her face.
"I will. I promise...."
.
.
.
0000
GOJO HATAKE
He could see nothing. He had no chakra to mend the nerves within his eyes, yet he had no need of sight to feel her presence—her warmth. He felt those small arms reach out for him before he could hit the ground as she slowly lowered him until his head was resting on the soft pillow of her thighs.
"Finally," he whispered, and felt his shoulders relax as his body began to shut down.
"You idiot," she whispered in her small voice, as he felt her tears drip over his face.
"Why? Why would you go so far?" she complained, which was new for her.
"You shouldn't cry," he raised his hand, and she guided it to her face as he wiped away the tears from her eyes.
"They make you look ugly," he added playfully, and she scoffed.
"You can't even see me," she pointed out, and rightly so.
He gently caressed her cheek, and let himself bask in its softness. "I don't need eyes to see you."
For the first time in years, the world was quiet. The whispers, the echoes, and the information that had often threatened to drown him were now all gone.
"Why? Why?" she repeated, and he took a second to answer.
"Because I have grown tired of breaking promises," he declared, and he could feel her cheeks tense as she ground her teeth.
"You also promised me that we would live our lives together. You promised me that, Hatake," she reminded him, and yes he had promised her that.
"So, why are you leaving me? Why?" she screamed.
"Well, I never said I was perfect," and he heard a stick crack, suddenly and his ears perked up at that.
"Shodaime-sama..." and he stilled, as he heard the quiver in Hana's voice.
"Run. Hana. R..."
"There is no need for that," spoke the Shodaime Hokage, and he felt him walk up to her.
"The caster of the Edo Tensei is dead, and with that the seal he had put on me is gone as well. I am no longer under his control," and so he was back to his own self.
"It pains me to see that my brother's arrogance has caused you so much pain. I tried to stop him from creating this abhorrent technique, for I knew the dangers such a thing could pose," and he sounded genuinely remorseful.
"I can only hope that you can find it in your heart to forgive me for my failings, young Godaime," and what could he say to that.
"There is nothing to forgive," and he was much like him in this regard.
"This body of mine is withering away, and soon enough I will return to the afterlife where I belong. But before I go, let me make it up to you for all the trouble me and my blood have caused you," and suddenly he felt fingers pry into his face, as they gently reached into his socket.
The pain that came felt like nothing in comparison to the one that was searing through his entire being.
"Shodaime-sama," Hana gasped.
"Do not worry, child. I have no intention of hurting him," and then suddenly he felt the world shift around him, as Hashirama Senju's voice cut through the clearing.
"Gedō — Rinne Tensei no Jutsu!"
And suddenly he felt his body begin to lighten, and felt as if his heart had been given a new lease on life. His wounds began to heal, and the chakra began to course through his body once more.
He felt his face shift, and suddenly he found himself blinking; it was blurry at first, but then he could see that face again. That small face, with that pointy nose and a bob for a cut.
She had a white cloak wrapped around herself and a side of her face was marked red from the blood on his fingers.
"Hana," he gasped as he felt strength returning to his fingers, and the sensations that had begun to fade now all came back as breathing became easier and easier.
"Gojo. Gojo," she cried as she pulled him up.
"You are back. You are back," and he was alive. He couldn't believe it.
They separated as he turned towards the one responsible for this miracle and saw Hashirama Senju standing there, while his body literally crumbled away.
A white glow radiated from his body as the legendary shinobi smiled down at them.
"I am proud of the fact to see that a man of your stature wears the title and the haori that I once wore," he said with a bright smile.
"You are even better Hokage than I ever was," the man finished, before he looked down and saw his hands begin to crumble.
"It seems like my time is here, but before I go, I have a request to make," and he looked into Gojo's eyes.
"These eyes. The Rinnegan," he pointed towards the eyes of the sage that now sat in his socket.
"They are a great power, but one that invites only pain and imbalance to this world. Destroy them. Do not cover them or their power. Destroy them, along with any and all traces of Tobirama's mistake. The dead have no place in the world of the living," he declared, and Gojo nodded.
"I will, I promise," and the man smiled.
"Be well, Hatake Gojo," and with that, the body crumbled down, as Hashirama's spirit rose and began to dissipate. Finally, he was gone, and all that remained behind was a corpse that carried the infallible Rinnegan.
He turned his head towards Hana's familiar face as the world slowly became visible to him, and he could sense the battle at the gates. But he did not care for it, as he smiled at her.
"You have no idea how I have longed to see this face," he whispered, and she nodded.
"I could say the same thing," and slowly she came down, and her lips tasted like iron and dirt, but he did not mind. Nor did she, as they let themselves forget about the world for a few minutes.
It took him five minutes to recover his full chakra, and after that he stood tall once more while carrying Hana in his arms, as they stared at the burning remains of the very power that had given them back their lives.
The Rinnegan was gone. Destroyed, and now he had an army to take care of.
Hana pulled in the cloak closer, as she pouted angrily. "Do I really have to come?" She complained and Gojo just smirked.
"I am not letting you out of my sight ever again." Gojo declared, making her cheeks flush.
"Shut up. You are the Hokage," she chided him.
"We will see about that," and he closed his eyes, and then in a blink he appeared on the roof of the station from where Shikaku and Inoichi were directing the whole campaign.
"Godaime-sama," Shikaku gasped as his head whipped towards him.
"You are back, Inoichi declared, and the relief in the air was palpable, and he saw their eyes shift towards the person in his arms.
"Hana…" Shikaku recognized her as Gojo stepped forward and analyzed the battlefield.
"Not bad at all," and despite the sheer number of the enemy force, they had held up rather well.
"What about Lord Orochimaru and the revived nin?" Shikaku questioned.
"They are handled," Gojo declared and then gently lowered Hana to the ground.
"Be careful," he added softly.
"I will just sort this out in a second," and then he drew in a breath and turned towards Shikaku.
"Shikaku," he called out to his second in command as he riled up his chakra and brought his hands together.
"Consider this my resignation," and the man seemed a bit taken aback by the declaration as Gojo's blue eyes gleamed with power.
"Ninpo:…" he declared, and for a second the entire world stilled.
"…Fukuma Mizukshi!
Then all of the enemies were cut down into nothingness, and the battle that had been going on for several hours at least came to an end within seconds.
Gojo turned around and saw Hana's eyes widen at the sight, and this was her first time witnessing his power.
"Wahh," and she raised a brow.
"What was that?" she asked, and he gave her a wink.
"My power," and she turned towards the forest, and then back to him as he wrapped his arm around her knees and pulled her up once again.
"How strong are you?" she asked, and he smirked.
"The strongest ever…."
Then they vanished once more, and he appeared in front of the shop he had started years ago, and Hana's eyes widened.
"You built the shop," and she was amongst the only people who knew about his dream.
"Yup, and now it is ours…."
.
.
.
With the death of the Akatsuki, the other great Nations prepared themselves to act. By then, Iwa and Kumo had already learned of the massive attack on Konoha and believed that the forces of Konoha were tired, exhausted, and spent.
Under these circumstances, Amegakure was an easy target, and so they launched their offensive. The disjoined Amegakure shinobi stood no chance against the two-pronged attack, and so they all gave a sigh of relief as suddenly a wall of Paper emerged and separated Ame's forces from those of Iwa.
"You shall not pass," she declared, as Ame's forces roared in approval, and she had not come alone, as Jiraiya the Toad Sage stepped forward.
"What she said…."
On the site of Kumo's onslaught, a sole figure descended from the sky, and the offensive came to a halt even without him uttering a single word.
"You! We were told that you were dead!" the Kumo commander gasped, as the demon of Kumo just smiled.
"Even in death, I will always make time for your dear village…."
0000
You can hop onto the Patre 0n, and read the last two chapters for Free! You can also sub and get an early look at my new Haku SI fic that will be coming out soon, along with all of the other stories currently in serialisation.
The link is down below! 😉
www.Patre 0n.com/Drkest
Have a fantastic day!