Illumination – A Naruto Fantasy - 234. Renewal

MrProper

‘The conflicting paths have become one’

A violent clash of opposing powers, unseen to the outside world… a battle that waged on for an entire month. This period of what could only be described as “chaos”, rampaging throughout the mind, body, & soul… neared its end

“Haaa…”

During the process, the power inside the young man grew more vicious with each day, to the point it affected the very surroundings

The cave he took refuge in resembled a scene of destruction, as opposed to its outside appearance. Inside, it was damaged to the point of near collapse, damp spots with cuts and piercing holes in their center, along with scorch marks in every other spot. But now…

WOOOO…

Quiet…

There was naught but silence. Only the faint sound of his breathing could be heard as Rei sat in a deep meditation with crossed legs, and eyes closed. He was finally in the midst of consolidating his power

The energies of those that remained had vanished. Isshiki Ōtsutsuki, the original “Rei”, and his fragment known as “Notitia”, now broken down into the raw ingredients for the sole purpose of birthing a brand new chakra, unlike any other in this world

“Phew…I’m finally don–huh?”

He opened his eyes, but something was amiss…

{What the…? I can’t…I don’t feel like myself, is what I should expect but-} “It’s more…much more than what I expected. The time?! Only…TWO AND HALF DAYS LEFT?!”

Rei was neither disoriented or fatigued, but rather very energetic, which made things all the more strange. For the young man had kept a watch nearby to keep track of time. During his tenure within the cave, not a single step was taken outside of it

From his spot, he hadn’t moved, spoken, or even eaten…but he wasn’t the slightest bit malnourished

‘How am I alive?’ is the question that continues to repeat inside his head

THUNK!

“Ow! My head! Was this makeshift cave always this tiny? I clearly remember being able to freely walk…whatever. I can’t see shit, gotta be nighttime. Let’s see how my Katon1Fire Style is doin–WHOA?!?!”

SCORCH!

In an instant, a flame three times the size of his body burst from the tip of his finger! Like a broken flamethrower, he nearly fell on his bottom. Except for where he stood, each and every inch of the cave was now on fire

“I only wanted a small candle light to help me find my way out of this cave, geez! Crap…have to put them out before I’m barbeque…”

WOOOO…

With but a thought, the violent flames immediately settled. The high degree temperature had vanished so suddenly, it was as if there were never any flames here to begin with

While his new strength was impressive,

“Sniff! Sniff! Uwah! It stinks! Okay, Fire’s working just fine. Let’s try…” {Suiton2Water Style!}

SPLOOSH!

Bubbles formed beneath his feat, rising from the ground before swirling rapidly into…

“Ooooh…shit. Probably should’ve thought this through first…”

SWOOOSH!

…A torrent stream! His Water style, easily blasting through the cave! As the location collapsed in its entirety, Rei was propelled outside, before creating a massive crater from crashing down into the ground outside

“Agh…Sarah was right. In the last life or this one, I really am an impatient bastard…Oww–hm? Huh, for falling on my head from several feet in the air, it doesn’t hurt as much as I expected”

RUSTLE!

Cautiously getting back on his feet, Rei moved around a bit to get a feel for his current state. It was obvious that his prowess with Shape and Nature transformation of chakra had grown to levels he never would’ve imagined

Per the rules of Quality vs Quantity, the amount of chakra necessary to perform Ninjutsu had decreased exponentially

“My control–No, my chakra network’s distribution of energy throughout my system has reached new heights. That’s the only conceivable explanation I can come up with for this new level strength”

“Haaa…I understand. The energy within, it’s not just moving faster…it feels so pure, so flawless. I don’t even have to concentrate to use chakra anymore, it’s become as natural as breathing. This isn’t something humans are…Oh! I can finally fight like them!”

No longer utilizing his power like a human, control had become so natural now. It wasn’t long before Rei realized he’d finally stepped into “that” realm…

Clenching his fist, exhilaration coursed inside, now knowing he had taken his first true step into the Ōtsutsuki realm!

“Not just my chakra…” {My body feels so much lighter and sensitive}

Closing his eyes again, Rei took it all in as he stood tall in the rocky terrain

The chirping of nearby birds and crickets, the crumbling sound of dirt being carried by the wind, the rustling of what little vegetation dwelled in the area…even the subtle vibrations of creatures tumbling beneath the surface reverberated from the ground, to his feet, flowing through his body!

Even without chakra sensing, Rei possessed an acute awareness of all that surrounded him

“This is on a whole other level than my first remodeling. The process was only supposed to change my chakra, not my physical attributes. Could it be a resonance from the Black Scroll techniques, or something else? Granted, my body remembers the process…a correlation perhaps? There are so many questions, and not enough answers”

Rei continued to speculate for a bit longer, but inevitably decided not to “look a gift horse in the mouth”. Knowing there was less than three days before the Finals began, he had to get used to his new status as soon as possible

He also desired an update on what’s happened in his absence, but oddly enough, none of his compatriots were around. Despite moving into a cave, Rei was still in the temporary training area they utilized for the month

“Did they go back to hotel, without me? Yes, it was highly unlikely anyone else would find me if they left, but still…something must’ve happened. I should get back to find out what’s going on”

RIP! BOOM!

{Shunshin no Jutsu3Body Flicker Technique…}

Tearing off his burnt shirt, he blasted off from the surface, moving at groundbreaking speeds towards Iwagakure4Hidden Stone Village. Intent on finding out exactly what his team was up to

“Oh YEAH!!! HAHAHAHA! The sheer speed! Shisui Uchiha, Raikage… EAT YOUR HEART OUT!!!! WOHOO!!!”

♦♦♦

Iwagakure

“…And while Iwa continues to be a constant annoyance with plots and rule-bending, I still believe we should maintain our focus on those from Ishigakure5Hidden Rock Village”

“I heard the Ishi Terrorists were here as well, and their gunning for your students”

“It’s not just them Raikage-sama, there are several squads hailing from their village. This Iwa-Ishi alliance will only prove to be even more troublesome should they emerge victorious in these exams” (Tango)

“What of other village contestants…?”

After a week from Tetsuo’s Mori abrupt appearance in the village, the Raikage and his entourage had arrived. And with his arrival, all of the Gokage6The Five Shadows from the Great Shinobi Nations were present inside the Stone Village

Team Tango, Tetsuo Mori, the Daimyō, and all other present parties hailing from Kumogakure were here to great the figurehead from the Cloud. With him, his most trusted security guards, Darui and C, along with his secretary Mabui

Thanks to their ally and spy, Karai, purchasing every single room in the hotel, the location had become their temporary base of operations. Guards standing a watchful eye for any who might approach with ill intent

Everyone was on their knees in Seiza7Japanese formal style of sitting as a sign of respect towards their village leader

The one in question, sitting with his back against a wall, all eyes on him. His two bodyguards, C and Darui, sitting on his right and left sides…

“The others came in force, with participants from locations long thought lost or destroyed, or villages I’ve never even heard of, having shown up. Even with Iwa’s measures to thin the ranks, the overall numbers for the final contestants is still over a hundred” (Tango)

“As I’ve informed everyone prior to your arrival, this village has something special planned for the finals. However, I still haven’t been able to get anything else, and I doubt anyone here will fair better” (Daimyō)

“Tai, Suzu, what about you? As the only ones here to actually participate in the exams, I’d like to hear your thoughts” (A)

“Yes, Raikage-sama. While Ishi and Iwa are indeed a problem, we shouldn’t underestimate the other villages. Particularly, the ones hailing from the Great Nations. Suzu and I had an encounter with one of Konohagakure’s8Hidden Leaf Village Uchiha clan, and it’s not a meeting I’d like to have again” (Tai)

“There was also that puppeteer from Sunagakure9Hidden Sand Village we fought. Plus, Rei had a nasty fight with ninja from Kirigakure10Hidden Mist Village” (Suzu)

“We’d already received a letter about him being poisoned. Thank you again for looking after my little cousin” Mabui gave a light bow to Genin in gratitude

Since his departure nearly two months ago, Mabui’s thoughts had been focused on Rei. During work, she couldn’t help but become distracted with worry that something might’ve happened to her only, living relative

When she received word of him almost dying from poison, Mabui was one step away from charging directly into Iwagakure alone

“T-There’s no need for that Mabui-senpai! All the credit really goes to the tech I received from Tetsuo-san, this portable defibrillator from Mori Sp. worked wonders” (Tai)

“My pleasure. Do you know if he’s coming back tonight?” (Darui)

“No clue, we left some guards behind just in case, and Ronri-senpai has his lizards monitoring the area while he manages them from downstairs with his signature Tokage no Me no Jutsu11Lizard’s Eye Technique” (Funsui)

“So you don’t know if he’s ready…” (A)

“T-That’s…well…” (Tango)

Some of the others in the room grew awkward at A’s realistic remark. They had no idea what exactly was in store for them, and no matter how hard they tried, it was impossible to plan for every scenario

“He’ll be ready” (Suzu)

“As our we” (Tai)

“?!”

Surprisingly, the ones who seemed the most calm weren’t the adults, but the Genin

Sitting with resolute eyes, the pair stared back at the Raikage with unwavering gazes, fully confident in not only themselves, but their absent teammate

“From what I’ve heard, even you two don’t know what he’s doing, correct? How can you be sure he-?” (C)

“We just do” (Tai & Suzu)

“…” (A)

Mabui did her best to hide her chuckle as she was of like mind as these two. Showing complete faith in her younger cousin

“I think we’re getting off track, wouldn’t you agree boss?” (Darui)

“Is that so?” (A)

“Yup. It’s a bit late to be questioning their resolve, we did that a while ago. All the preparation, strategies, plotting, we’ve done everything we possibly could. All that’s left is to just…get it over with” (Darui)

“You make it sound so simple…” (C)

“Rei once told me, thing’s are only complicated if one decides they are. Heh, that kid is wise beyond his years. Relax boss, he’ll be ready” (Darui)

“He’ll have to be, as will the rest of you. I don’t want you heading back to that practice field anyway. After tonight, you’ll have two days left before the finals. It’s safe to say you’ve earn some time off to relax and get your minds prepared” (A)

“Should I have Ronri tell our guards still waiting there to call Rei back?” (Funsui)

“Do it. It’s best we stay togeth-” (A)

BOOOM!!!

Just as the meeting reached its end, the group jumped on their toes at the blasting sound of something crashing in the hotels inner courtyard

No words were necessary as everyone, even the Genin, ran out of the room to find out what happened. Coming across a massive cloud of dust from whatever landed on the ground

TING!

{This chakra…what is this-?! I’ve never felt anything so…!} (C)

“Cough! Cough! Geez, I’m just tripping all over myself today. Hey guys, mind explaining why you left me behind–oh. The old man is here. THAT’s why you left? I’m shocked, appalled, and hurt”

“REI!” (Suzu, Tai, & Mabui)

{How in the hell did he get past our guards so easily…?!} (Funsui)

“So. What I miss?” (Rei)