274: Konoha Ninjas (2)

Chapter 274: Konoha Ninjas (2)

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As planned, Neji took the Ninjas to Tsunade who started to spill the situation down to them.

They were surprised— baffled even, but they accepted the truth sooner than Kurenai did. After all, the squad leaders were all great Ninjas and had fought countless enemies with reality-defying powers. This particular incident was the most shocking thing they had heard, but it wasn’t in the realm of impossibility.

The chunins under the three squad leaders came to accept the reality too, thanks to their jounin sensei helping them sort things out in their heads.

Neji then allowed them to meet their families, which helped them accept the realities further— though the Ninjas did break down at the full realisation, especially the chunins.

The three jounins, Kakashi, Guy, and Asuma had lost too many people at this point to shred tears at the sight. They just calmly and silently met up with their friends, as none of them had family members who ended up in this heaven, and bid them goodbye.

A few hours after that, Neji called everyone back to his palace, standing in front of them to offer them the same deal he did to the others.

“Excluding you guys, some other Konoha Ninjas who weren't in the village due to missions or personal reasons are still alive. Konoha, as any Hokage would say, isn’t gone as long as even a single Ninja is wearing the leaf headband.” Neji said. “So you can go out and continue your lives in the outside world, build Konoha out or scratch, live life as a civilian— anything, really. Nobody will force you for anything. Otherwise, you can live here, with your family and friends, enjoying life in heaven. The choice is entirely up to you.”

The Ninjas who were silent after meeting the souls of their family and friends looked at each other, back and forth, and then sighed. After a long while, Kiba and Ino raised their hands. When they did, they exchanged glances and thinned their lips.

“Can we stay here?” both of them asked at the same time.

“Akamaru, too.” Kiba added.

“Kiba, Ino…” Asuma said, looking at them but he didn’t judge them.

Neji stared at Ino a bit longer, making her frown in worry. “Can I not?”

“No, you can, I was just thinking that’d mean I missed out on the date we had planned.” Neji said, shrugging.

Ino’s lips formed a thin smile. “Not my fault that you left the village.”

“True,” Neji looked at the others. “Anybody else? Be quick, I am somewhat busy.”

To his surprise, while nobody else from the Konoha Ninjas raised their hands, one of the two prisoners— Jugo, raised his hands.

“Um,” he said hesitantly. “I don’t know if I am allowed since I am a prisoner and not a Konoha Ninja… but I would like to put an end to myself. I don’t wanna hurt any more people.”

Jugo was like that, scared of himself as he knew he would always hurt others— he may even think he deserved hell, even though it wasn’t his fault at all and was entirely his mental illness.

The jounins looked at Jugo and then at Neji, knowing it all depended on what he wished for. Neji nodded with a smile. “It’s possible. I am not doing this by judging karma anyway, as lots of the people currently enjoying a peaceful life under this castle are serial killers.” He shrugged and raised his hand. “I will be taking your power though, if you don’t mind.”

Jugo sounded surprised— and seemingly wanted to warn him about the dangers, but realising he was pretty much talking to a God, Jugo sighed and walked over, allowing Neji to put a hand on his shoulder.

Then, Neji activated «Mine».

Jugo groaned softly, but since he didn’t resist, the Kekkei Genkai was mined out quite easily.

[You have mined Kekkei Genkai “Nature Release” Level 4]

[Genome Ability: Nature Release

Level: Four (4)

Details: The ability to absorb the energy that lingers in nature, the air and the atmosphere— the Sage Chakra— and use it to empower oneself and also achieve a full or partial transformation, called the Sage Mode.]

[Ding! Due to Master’s Divinity, Dragon Icon, the ‘Sage Mode’ causes Master to transform into a Dragon, humanoid or otherwise.]

[Ding! Due to Master’s status as a God, a being who can have avatars, Master can grant ‘Curse Marks’ to anyone he wishes by touching. The Curse Mark allows the person to intake nature-chakra into them and transform into a Dragonoid.]

“Huh.” Neji tilted his head. “Sakura, come here.”

Sakura, who had run up to Ino at some point and was talking to her, paused at the call and then came running. 

“Yes?”

Neji tapped her on the shoulder, making a scary face of a dragon drawn in white ink appear in there, causing her to flinch in pain.

“There,” Neji smiled. “Now you have a curse mark like Sasuke, except it’s better. Show it off to him someday.”

He then waved his hand, dismissing her even as she blinked in confusion. Then she poured chakra into the seal, immediately growling as glossy silver scales erupted from her skin, her body transforming at the same time as she started to turn into a dragon, growling and roaring loudly, losing control as the power was too much for her.

No wonder, she lost control and then slashed her claws at Neji.

But her hand froze midair when her eyes met Neji’s, his blue eyes looking at her as his pupils became slit.

“Calm down,” he said, his dragon authority forcing her mind to clear her. “Now revert.” she did, not even realising how. “Good. Go back and do what you were doing.”

Sakura, dazed, nodded slowly and went back to Ino while everyone else stared at the scene in surprise.

“Anyway,” Neji caught everyone's attention again. “Looks to me that nobody else wants to go. Now I have something to offer to Kakashi.” Neji looked at Kakashi. “How about you trade your Sharingan for five times the amount of your current Chakra, a permanent boost to your reserves, along with Raikage’s signature Jutsu, the Lightning Armour.”

Kakashi blinked.

“Pretty sure they’ll make you the Hokage when you rebuild the village, you will need such powers. That, when added with the thousands of jutsus you have learned over the years, the ones which you’d be able to spam with triple your chakra, you’d be one of the strongest Kages even without the Sharingan.”

Neji had received quests for both Tsuchikage and Mizukage missions, but since he didn’t do anything flashy he had received nothing (not even levels) except some Energy Potions that could increase the Mana/Chakra of any person drinking it. Kakashi previously had 5114 CP before, in the Gaara mission, but now he already had 7242 CP after Neji fixed his Sharingan. Tripling that, he would have more than 36 thousand chakra. Which was kinda a lot, and he could always grow the amount by himself later on.

Truthfully, Neji could just take the eye from Kakashi, nobody would be able to stop him after all— but he quite liked Kakashi, so he didn’t mind compromising a bit for him.

“On top of that,” Neji added. “You wouldn’t lose your vision, just the Sharingan.”

“Well,” Kakashi gave Neji an eye-smile. “That doesn’t sound like a bad deal at all. Besides, I was starting to lose sight in that eye, anyway.”

Neji smiled back.

— - —

Neji didn’t immediately send the volunteers down to heaven, as most people here had things to talk to the people in the palace. For example, Kakashi with Tsunade about the future of the village, Hinata with the two foxy women (Neji didn’t stop her), and Asuma with Kurenai.

Asuma was very happy when he learned Kurenai was alive— that was the only reason that stopped him from choosing heaven, as his loved ones were still alive. His relief was endless when Kurenai told him that even their child, a daughter, had survived as well.

Asuma had yet to meet his daughter, Mirai, but now that Neji’s speech was done he finally could go see her. So Kurenai led her to a room, where Mirai was sleeping, and they entered the room excitedly.

However,

Once Asuma entered the room, his expression froze as he looked at the girl sleeping soundly in the bed.

“This…” Asuma was at a lack of words. “Who is this, Kurenai?”

“Huh? Oh, you must be confused.” Kurenai said, smiling soon. “This is Mirai. I was… impaled by an attack launched by Pain, it penetrated my belly and had… killed Mirai. But you saw what Neji can do. He revived her, brought her back to life, since he’s able to do that as long as the body is not too destroyed.”

Asuma frowned. “Are you sure he is not… tricking you?”

“Asuma?!” Kurenai snapped her head at Asuma. “Neji? Tricking us? He would never! He gains nothing from this.”

Asuma kept frowning. “Kurenai, I can’t accept this. Our daughter… She was supposed to grow up with us, slowly, over the years. She wasn’t supposed to come out as an already grown-up girl. This… are we still her parents if we haven’t grown her up to this point ourselves? Would she even recognise me?” As he finished, Kurenai went silent and he continued. “Kurenai, be truthful… I won’t blame you. Is this really our child? Or perhaps did Neji create her? Like those emotionless angels I saw down there? Am I even the father?”

“...That’s it.” Kurenai growled, standing up with teary eyes. “You are being weird, Asuma. Neji isn’t that type of guy, he doesn’t earn anything by consoling me with a fake child. Also, her eyes look exactly like mine, even if she may not be your child, she is mine.”

Asuma frowned at that, but just shook his head, knowing she was just mad. Though one thing he couldn’t ignore was her statement about Neji.

“How are you so sure he is not that type of guy? Did he ask nothing in return for his help?” Asuma asked, watching Kurenai’s frown melt. “...So it is as I guessed.”

“I-it’s not like that!” Kurenai tried. “He asked me to serve him from then onwards, along with Mirai— but it’s nothing of that sort! I even asked him that, and he said I can think of anything that goes with the definition of serving, like cleaning the palace and cooking food. You are misunderstanding.”

Asuma kept frowning, a bitter look on his face. “So he asked you to serve him from them onwards, without mentioning a time limit, which may as well be eternity given he is an immortal being. Yet, you accepted without consulting me?

“...Asuma, he saved our daughter’s life, I wasn’t in the mindset to think of anything else there.”

“That’s enough.” Asuma’s lips quirked in disgust. “Are you suggesting you would have accepted his demand even if he asked for your body? And don’t call her my daughter, I haven’t seen what happened with my own eyes, I can’t believe anything you say. To think I trusted you, Kurenai.”

“...” Kurenai stood on her spot, baffled and shocked with her mouth agape.

“Mhm…” a whimper came from the side. Mirai had woken up. “Motha? Ale you cryin? Motha?”

Kurenai just stood in her spot, tears trailing down her cheeks as her eyes shook.

A minute later, she just leaned onto the bed and hugged Mirai, saying it was alright, that it was fine now, even as she cried like a baby.

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