az: A death fic... finally I attempted a real death fic where people actually dies! Not almost....
A side shot of what-ifs that correspond with my current fic... this line of plot was actually the original baseline for the other one but then... I changed it.
Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto manga or anything of it. If I OWNED it... will I be wasting my time here? Characters and original excerpts from the fic are copyrights of Masashi Kishimoto-sama.
WARNING: I probably gonna mess with your head... so beware...
Fragility
Written by Azzie/Az aka Izumi Ishtar
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'Iruka-Sensei...'
'What... are humans--?'
Iruka glances sideways as the youth stared towards the Hokage monument.
'Is life... really that simple--?
XXX
'Hah! Don't think I can easily be defeated--!'
'Nonsense... your soul is now permanently sealed inside that body. You'll never again be able to use that special jutsu of yours, even if you escape now... you'll die anyway-- '
'Curses... you--!'
XXX
'Baka--! How could you say that life is so simple! Dying is not something that will ever be pleasant--! Don't smile like you had done something great!'
The clouds slowly let out its drizzle around the area. The coldness of the air stings into the heart of souls...
XXX
Ironic, as it seemed, that he had remained still at that spot watching the battle from where he had stood. Orochimaru had summoned Manda several moments before, and now that Giant Snake had gone battling with Gamabunta, along with some aid from... can you believe it? Hoshigaki Kisame, Deidara, Zetsu and the other remaining Akatsuki members. But Manda was not really outnumbered. It was aided with support with some more Sound-nins from Orochimaru's sick experimental results. To think that this battle was uncalled for.
The four of them had finally reunited, and Team 7 resumed normal lives again. And this was among those normal days when you had receive some of those B-class missions and just do your thing and be off with it.
But it wasn't actually that simple anymore. They still had to look out for Orochimaru, since Sasuke was still his target. The curse seal had vanished... as Sasuke had succeeded to fight it off with Anko's guidance. And the lad had grown more skillful than the last time he had been there... teaching him Chidori.
And there was still that thing about Naruto. Akatsuki's motives related to the lad had become very confusing as that organization somehow switched between enemies and allies whenever they had chance to encounter each other. And Naruto had begun to get better at harnessing his true chakra with his and Yamato's help. Honestly... perhaps it ran in families. Yondaime after all... had been the one powerful enough to be able to confront the Nine-Tailed Fox...
And sealed it.
And when people thought he had died... there he was, in another identity. Fighting Orochimaru with Naruto and Itachi backing him up, all the time stubbornly stating that he had left everything about his past life in order to achieve a greater purpose. Despite knowing how him leaving his cared persons and removing his existence from them, deeply injure the ones left behind.
And he hated it. Kakashi hated it...
People are selfish...
XXX
'You... you really are alive!', he had exclaimed as the man gave him a sad smile. 'Yes... but that person you longed for already died. He died the moment he had sealed that demon and condemned his son into a life that was more appalling than death itself. The moment that person had crawled out of the grave after the temporary death-like paralysis that befallen him after the sealing, he was no longer the same Arashi whom had been the fourth. Now I lived to a far more pressing purpose...'
'Humans... are, after all hideously stupid. What was the use of prolonging wars... if all that it gives is only--'
'Sadness--?'
XXX
'Ni do Rasengan!', cried Naruto and the former Yondaime as Itachi attacked using Amaterasu. The result was devastating. half of the forest cleared at the after-shock of the combination attack. And still, though looking too worn for battle, Orochimaru glared at the one-sided battle as he whispered several chants before releasing his final lethal attack. Arashi and Itachi immediately jump away to avoid but as Naruto tried to evade, his body failed him. He had after all... before the two Akatsuki had arrived, tapped into the nine-tailed chakra again and had managed somehow to release his sixth tail level because of the reinforced seal he had got previously. It was only when Arashi had arrived that that he had undo the Kyuubi release. The former Yondaime certainly had grown more skillful in understanding and controlling the bijuus power...
Sensing Naruto's danger, the blond man immediately turned and emerged in front of Naruto to try create a shield to protect them. And finally the shock left him as Kakashi snapped out and ran Raikiri pass through Orochimaru's heart.
The hale storm of static and metal thorns died off as Orochimaru collapsed to the ground, dead.
Kakashi had never regretted being weak this much before...
XXX
'Ga--hrgh!', cried the former Yondaime as Naruto caught him. 'Daijoubu--? O-san?-!', cried Naruto in alarm as Arashi grinned at him. 'Guess I am... already at my limits... haha. Naruto... had you ever... blamed me for everything?', said the man as Naruto shook his head, tears starting to rain from his features. 'No... you always been... my hero... even after knowing...', cried Naruto as Arashi patted the youth's head fondly. 'You're my brave little hero too...'
Kakashi slowly crept up towards them, rather almost out of will as Itachi knelt before the former Yondaime. 'Arashi-sama!', cried the elder Uchiha as Yondaime glanced towards him. 'Itachi... guess, I'll leave everything to you now. After all... I've told you everything that I've known already...', said Arashi as Itachi nodded.
Arashi chuckled. 'Then again... no more need for the rest of you to completely detach yourselves from the past. I--had always wanted to say this before--', Itachi looked up in surprise as Kakashi wondered at the meaning of it.
'Even if I'm no more after... remember what I've told seven of you before... all of you had evolved so much... I should not be worried.', Kakashi noticed suddenly raw emotions coming from Itachi that he never thought he'd see on the cold man's face. 'I will tell the others... but Kisame would probably fume. He had nowhere to go after all...'
Arashi snorted as he held Naruto closely.
'Kakashi...'
The silver-haired jounin looked up towards him as the blond man smiled. 'It's not your fault. Don't take it so hard...'
Kakashi pulled down his mask as Itachi glanced towards him. 'What do you mean--? How could that make me feel any better?-!', he cried as Arashi ran his other hand over his silver tuft of hair. 'You've grown so much... or haven't you? Please... to think I almost forgotten your smile...'
Arashi coughed again as Naruto cried aloud. 'Oyaji--! Shikkari--', he said as Arashi snorted. 'Naruto... I've already cheated death once before--'
'No... don't say like you're leaving us anytime! You baka--!'
He laughed. Despite the situation that had not deserve such light-hearted shine. Like sunshine in the midst of a rainy day...
'To be called baka by your own son! But thank you... I at least had been able to hear you call me...', said Arashi as his head drooped onto Naruto's shoulder. 'I love you so much... my beloved son...', said the almost faint voice as Naruto felt his last breath touched the nape of his neck.
Naruto clutched his father's cold hand as he blinked his tears away. 'Baka--'
XXX
'Arashi-sama had done so much for us... He had given us new purpose to life after most of us had lost ours. I will make sure his will is carried over...', said Itachi finally as Kakashi leered at him.
'And what was that?', he asked as Itachi rose. 'Selfish people always craved power. And because of that... numerous harm had been done only to achieve that power--', at this, he glanced at the fallen form of Orochimaru. '--but it was undeniable that we need power. To protect people... Such irony. Arashi-sama thought of a way to resolve this situation...'
Kakashi waited, but it seemed Itachi had not wanted to further explain. But then, he remembered that Akatsuki had been going around looking for the tailed beings. Suddenly he saw the reason---!
'Ano... Itachi-san. Will you... ever settle your differences with Sasuke--?'
Itachi turned towards Naruto as he sighed. 'Sasuke... after that last time when you came to fight Orochimaru, had been wondering a lot about you...'
Itachi snorted. As he had expected. That little brother of his...
The three of them turned as Sasuke, Sakura and Pakkun arrived to the clearing, with Jiraiya and Tsunade. Naruto sighed as he felt another jolt of pain on his back. Really... to think that even Kyuubi can't speed up his recovery fast enough without harming him even more...
'Kakashi-sensei... I guess, I really couldn't realize that dream to become Hokage after all...'
Kakashi glanced at his student in wonder as the lad rose, and finally he noticed the massive amount of damage that Naruto had received. That means... even with the shield Arashi-sensei formed, it couldn't protect both of them after all. How had he not noticed it before. 'Ne... Kakashi-sensei...', said the lad again as the silver-haired jounin felt a sharp stab into his heart.
'Life... is really this simple.. isn't it?', he spoke again as he turned to face the incoming people.
'Tsu-- Tsunade-baachan! Hontou ni... gomen!', he gasped as Tsunade froze in confusion. Jiraiya also paused as he saw Arashi's body lying beside Kakashi, clad in Akatsuki attire. Sasuke and Sakura turned away from looking at Itachi as they stared at their companion, puzzled.
Naruto grinned widely as his body finally collapse before Kakashi caught it swiftly...
XXX
Tsunade's hand shook as she took her hands away from Naruto's wrist. 'No... please tell me this was just a horrid dream...', she gasped as Jiraiya stood still as a statue. He had finally arrived only to see both father and son... dead. And when he had thought that the former already been dead long ago... only to see him dead again. Now, in different circumstances...
Sakura collapsed and cried as Sasuke looked up to find console from his elder brother, only to find none.
'Baka--! How could you say that life is so simple! Dying is not something that will ever be pleasant--! Don't smile like you had done something great!', shouted Kakashi in an outburst as thunder boomed and rain fell on them. Itachi glanced at him as the rest of the Akatsuki members arrived. Giving the last parting look towards their leader and the vessel of the nine-tailed which was the son, Itachi left along with the rest of the group as the remaining Konoha shinobis paid no attention towards them.
Tears and rain water were almost indistinguishable on the jounin's drenched face as he held the youth with one arm and the other still holding his former sensei's hand as Kakashi screamed his heart out. Since once again... he had lost the people that he cared a lot. Again... failing to protect them as he had sworn to do...
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az: there's actually some more after this. But I'm so lazy to continue. haha... another part will be coming while I'm trying to compose the other continuing chapter of the not-confirmed title fic- spiral. XD