Chapter 239: 232. The Seed of Chakra Fruit
Hmm…
Izuna glances at the villagers.
"All of them are under a genjutsu."
He approaches the villagers and places his hand on their heads to disrupt their chakra.
"This is the same Genjutsu as Fusao."
Bzz…
He zaps the villager and disperses the pollen inside their body.
'Now I really want to recruit this guy. His genjutsu is ingenious; if you don't know the method to dispel it.'
Mmm…
"NAGATO!… NOO…"
A pained grunt attracts his attention. He stands up and walks near the source of the sound.
"KONAN?!… So, she is also under the effect of Genjutsu."
Izuna places his hand on her head to dispel the jutsu.
'Wait! Should I dispel the genjutsu? Technically, she is my enemy and I should capture her."
Izuna ponders for a while.
'Let me ask Minato-san about it.'
Whoosh…
His consciousness enters in the Sin Seal. He spots Minato and Kushina conversing something serious with Kurama.
Ahem…
Izuna clears his throat to get their attention.
Hmm…
Minato and Kushina turn around and notices Izuna.
"Izuna-kun! Thank God you are fine."
Kushina bear hugs him.
Ah…
Izuna struggles for a while but finally relents. He turns towards Minato and asks him.
"Minato-san! I have a question for you."
"Mm… Go on."
Minato nods his head.
"So, it is like this…"
Izuna discloses the identity of Konan and the relevant information about Akatsuki.
"I see… that's a lot to take in."
Minato enters in deep thought.
Sigh…
"So, she is the orphan Jiraiya-Sensei took under his tutelage."
Minato rubs his head.
"Though… they harbor harmful thoughts for Konoha and as a former Hokage I should eliminate them, but I am a dead man. So, I will leave the choice for Jiraiya-Sensei.
Till then, why don't you try to influence their thoughts? You are quite good at convincing others."
Haha…
Kushina chuckles as she hears the last sentence.
"Well…"
Izuna rolls his eyes at Minato's remark.
'My free trial of Talk-No-Jutsu has expired. I can't influence others anymore.'
Izuna shakes his head and turns to Konan.
"I will influence her thoughts with Kotoamatsukami. Though it is not an ideal approach; but it will get the job done."
Shiing…
"Kotoamatsukami"
Izuna places his hand on her forehead and casts the powerful genjutsu to alter her thoughts and induce his suggestion.
Buzz…
He continues to dispel the genjutsu of all other villagers.
"Ugh!"
Konan clasps her forehead in pain as various ideas cycle through her mind.
In this journey, her thoughts were in disarray as the death of Yahiko continues to cycle through her mind.
'Is this the Akatsuki… Yahiko dreamt of?'
Various memories of bloodshed and slaughter freshen in her memory. The members of Akatsuki members plundering other villages in the name of mercenary bounties and killing innocent people erupt in her mind.
'NO! What Yahiko wanted was a peaceful world with no war and bloodshed. He didn't want anyone to become a war orphan and struggle for survival.'
More and more memories of Yahiko's dream and Akatsuki's brutal activities cycles through her mind as both sides start to clash.
"NOOO!!"
Konan feels a splitting headache as he abruptly opens her eyes and sits up.
Haah… Haaah…
Sweat trickles from her forehead as she clutches her forehead. Her vision turns blurry for a second before she retains clarity.
"Where… where am I?"
She looks around as the unfamiliar environment greets her.
"What's going on?"
"Where am I?"
"My son!! Where is my son?"
Various unfamiliar voices echo in her head as she looks around.
The memories of the incident return to her.
"The last thing I remember was… I left the village to meet up with Sasori's spy."
Whoosh…
Konan immediately raises her guard as various paper shurikens, and chakrams float around her.
She warily stares at Izuna.
Hmm…
Izuna senses a hostile gaze on his back. He turns around and notices Konan.
Swoosh…
Izuna disappears from Konan's vision.
'So fast… he is so fast.'
Whoosh…
He reappears behind her. There is a sharp blade placed near her neck.
"If I really wanted to kill you; then I could have done it ages ago."
Whoosh…
Izuna sheathes his Katana and turns around.
"Looks like Jiraiya's teaching fell on deaf ears. The messiah of Jiraiya's prophecy turned out to be a paragon of destruction. An emotionless puppet used by others for their selfish cause."
'Wha… what?!'
A frown appears on Konan's emotionless face as a tint of remorse and guilt appears in her heart as Izuna's words reverberate in her ears.
'An… an emotionless puppet!!… used by others for their selfish cause.'
Konan is lost in a trance as she reflects on her life.
'Why?!…. why can't I deny his words?'
The weak, frail and emotionless image of Nagato bound to the Gedo statue appears in front of her.
Konan slowly lifts her head and stares at the image of Nagato.
"Those eyes…. the eyes of Sage… the eyes of hope and light.
But now… why they are devoid of any love and hope…"
A shiver runs down her spine as the cold, emotionless eyes gaze into her soul.
"… why they so much resentment and hatred for this world?"
Konan mumbles to herself as she struggles to look for an answer.
Izuna ignores her and walks towards the Giant tree.
'The Genjutsu is showing its effect.'
Crunch… crunch…
He steadily walks towards the center of the village and approaches the base of the Giant tree.
"Hmm… this tree is still sucking the vitality of this turtle. Should I try to uproot it?"
Swoosh…
Two giant Susanoo arms appear behind him as the arms grab the trunk of the tree.
The arms of Susanoo apply upward force, and the roots of the tree erupt from the ground.
ROAR…
The giant turtle roars in pain.
Ah…
Izuna surveys the roots of the tree and notices some red veins tightly bound to the roots of the tree.
"These are… these roots… or rather, these veins are directly connected to the heart of this giant turtle. If I pull the tree out; the heart of the turtle would stop functioning."
The Susanoo arms gently place the tree and disperse.
"I have to think of another way to remove this tree. If I forcefully removed it, this turtle will die for sure."
Izuna scrutinizes the top of the tree.
Huh!
He notices a small red fruit at the peak of the tree.
Whoosh…
Izuna flies towards the top and grabs the fruit.
Swoosh…
Instantly large amounts of Nature energy and vitality cycle through his body and rejuvenate him.
"WOW!… Just by touching this fruit, I recovered my chakra. What kind of fruit is this?"
Hmm…
He notices two more small unripe fruits near the only ripe fruit.
"These are Vitality fruits."
Kozue slowly approaches Izuna and remarks.
"Oh!"
Izuna returns to the base of the tree and stands in front of Kozue.
"Looks like you have some idea about this tree. Any clues on how to save this Giant turtle."
"Yes!" Kozue nods his head as he wipes his tears.
"This giant chakra is grown from the chakra seed passed down through our Shinrin Clan.
A millennium ago, the seed of the Senju tree reached out to earth from another world. The seed slowly sprouted and grew into a Shinju tree.
The ancestors of my clan were nomads who would wander the land from one place to another. The King of the land tasked members of my clan to take care of the Shinju tree in exchange for a stable life.
So, the ancestors of my clan settled near the Shinju tree. Slowly, my ancestors grew dependent on the Shinju tree. They would drink the dew from the leaves of the Shinju tree. Cook food from the bark of the Shinju tree.
Slowly… slowly… the physiology of my ancestors changed. This is the blessing of the Shinju tree to our clan, and we are the descendants of the Shinju tree."
Kozue narrates the origin of his clan.
Hmm…
Izuna performs a full body scan of Kozue as a frown appears on his face.
'His body is similar to Zetsu. Though in Zetsu's case, his memories and sense of individuality are wiped clean. Still, his body is almost the same as Zetsu; maybe except for some parts considered unnecessary by a certain someone.'
Izuna stares at the thing dangling between Kozue's legs.
Brr…
A shiver runs down Kozue's spine as a cold sensation crept between his legs.
He hurriedly hugs his body and continues.
"… after the Rabbit Goddess consumed the chakra fruit. The chakra fruit left an empty unfertilized seed. She passed that seed to the caretaker of the Shinju tree; the Shinrin clan…"
"Mm… so mean to say that… this giant tree is the sprout of that hollow chakra seed."
"Yes!"
Kozue nods his head.
Chapter 240: 233. End of Problem
'A seed of chakra fruit, huh!... I thought only ten-tails act as the seed of the chakra tree and transform into a Shinju after feeding upon an Otsutsuki.
Maybe there is more to it than meets the eye.'
Izuna turns to Kozue and asks him.
"Will this tree turn into a Shinju in the future?"
'If it can turn in a Shinju, then I can put most of my plans into action.'
"No" Kozue shakes his head.
"This tree can't turn into a Shinju Tree. It contains only a fragment of the power of the Shinju tree. Still, this fruit can bring a person back from death."
"What?!"
Izuna's eyes widen in surprise.
'If it can bring a person from the dead, then it is as good as the outer path of Rinnegan.'
"This tree has absorbed an immense amount of Nature energy and Vitality from this Giant turtle and grew these chakra fruits. These fruits were meant as an offering to the Lord Kishin.
This turtle will die once all three fruits ripen."
Hmm...
Izuna inspects the chakra of the turtle.
'Indeed... the vitality of this turtle is rapidly draining.'
"So, do you have any way to remove this tree without killing the Giant turtle in the process?"
Izuna asks him.
"I can give it a try."
Kozue nods his head and walks towards the giant tree.
Shoom...
Kozue infuses large amounts of chakra in his arm as they turns into a large green vine.
Swoosh...
He slowly inserts the vine into the tree and merges with the tree.
'So that's the Kekkei Genkai of the Shinrin Clan.'
Izuna examines the process.
'He has fused with the giant tree and is now almost non-recognizable from the natural energy of the tree.
His intel-gathering capabilities will be quite useful for the team.'
Whoosh... Swoosh...
The roots of the Giant tree retract slowly as the veins of the Giant turtle turn normal.
After an hour,
Swoosh... whoosh...
The roots of the tree disappear completely and the giant tree shrinks.
Swish...
Kozue jumps out of the trunk of the tree.
Huff... huff...
He breathes heavily with a small chakra seed in his palm.
"I did it."
He takes a deep breath and falls to the ground.
Whoosh...
Izuna flickers near him.
"Are you ok?"
He supports Kozue.
Swoosh...
Izuna infuses a small amount of Nature energy into Kozue's body.
Haah...
Kozue slowly sits up and takes support against a boulder.
"I am alright. I am just mentally and physically exhausted."
Roar...
A giant roar interrupts them.
Kimimaro walks towards them and conveys the message of the Giant turtle.
"The Giant turtle is no longer in pain."
"Well... that's good to hear." Izuna nods his head.
He turns towards the rest of the villagers, who are slowly recuperating from the incident.
"There won't be any Shangri-La Village after this incident. Since most of you are rogue ninjas with huge bounties on their head; it would be difficult for the likes of you all to live peacefully in the outside world."
The expression of Fusao and the rest of the villagers turns ugly as Fusao had earlier recounted the details to them.
Gulp...
One of the middle-aged men gulps his saliva and asks him.
"Then... then where should we go? What should we do?"
Hmm...
Izuna scrutinizes them as he ponders.
'Though I don't have any special connection with this group of people and I would even suffer a huge loss by not handing them over to bounty office.
But what most of them have done has nothing to do with me; so, I am a bit conflicted.'
"Izuna-kun... why don't you send them to one of the smaller villages in the Land of Fire?! These small villages are under the protection of Konoha since Konoha is paid by the Daimyo to secure his land."
Minato suggests him.
"This way... the village can monitor them and even employ them in the future."
"Well... that's not a bad idea."
Izuna nods his head.
Ahem...
Izuna clears his throat to get their attention.
"Since you people have nowhere to stay and live"
After half an hour,
After dealing with the villagers, Izuna turns his attention to Kozue and Kimimaro.
"So, what about you, Kozue? What would you do after this?"
"I... I"
Kozue holds his head as he is lost in thoughts.
"I will visit the remains of my village and after that, I will roam the world to search for a meaning in my life."
He shakes his head as he reminisces about his village.
"I see... If you are fed up with your travels in the future; then you can always come and seek me for a job in the future."
Swoosh...
Izuna takes out a scroll from his pocket and passes it to Kozue.
"Just visit Konoha and hand over this scroll to the guards. Somebody will lead you in."
"Thank you."
Kozue accepts the scroll and slowly walks out of the remains of the village.
'Konan has also left. I had no choice but to manipulate her thoughts. Let's see how things will play out with both of them.'
"Kimimaro! Let's say goodbye to this giant turtle."
Both of them flicker out of the cavern together with the villagers.
Roar...
"You have my gratitude, human."
The Giant turtle thanks him.
"In the future, if you have any need for me. You can just summon me."
The giant turtle spits out a summoning contract in front of Izuna.
'Er... I don't think I will need this turtle in any sort of fight.'
"Kimimaro... since you can understand this turtle. Why don't you sign a contract with the turtles? Also, their defensive abilities pair well with your Taijutsu and Kekkei Genkai."
Izuna nudges the summoning scroll to Kimimaro.
"Yes!" Kimimaro nods his head and bit his thumb to sign the summoning contract.
"This trip wasn't the kind I was looking for, but still I got something useful out of it."
Izuna stares at the chakra fruits in his hand. There are two small fruits and one large fruit in his hands.
"With this out of the way, let's return to the village."
Izuna grabs Kimimaro's shoulder and teleports to the village.
Whoosh...
-----------------
Inside Konohagakure,
Sigh...
Tsunade takes a deep breath as she rests against the Hokage chair.
"Finally, all the paperwork is over. Shizune... let's visit the hot spring tonight. We will bring Mizukage Mei with us to ease her mood."
"Yes... Tsunade-sama."
Shizune massages Tsunade's shoulders and nods.
Swish...
Tsunade takes out a scroll from the drawer.
"This seal by Izuna is quite handy."
Tsunade opens the scroll.
There is a summoning seal on the scroll with the sealing formula of Flying Thunder God Technique engraved on it.
"This seal can allow a person to summon another person from far away, albeit the summon has to agree and infuse the chakra in his version of seal to teleport here."
"Yes, Tsunade-sama."
Shizune nods her head.
"The Flying Thunder God Technique is quite hard to master. Besides, the Fourth Hokage, his Raijin Squad, and Izuna; nobody has managed to learn this technique."
"This seal can prove very vital during a war where the information exchange is quite crucial."
Tsunade nods her head.
Sigh...
Tsunade takes another deep breath and gazes out of the window.
Multiple ninja academy students appear in her vision as the kid's practices their Shurikenjutsu skills on targets.
"Konoha suffered a little loss during the attack from Suna and Orochimaru. The future of Konoha is safe for now and I hope Konoha will flourish in the future."
Haah... Haaah...
A small girl with black hairs with a blue tint on end appears in her vision. Her hairs are tied in a ponytail with bangs framing her face. The girl has black eyes. She wears a long-sleeved, high-collared black shirt with the Uchiha clan symbol on the back. Her baggy blue pants flutter in the air as the girl has a serious expression on her face.
There are five shurikens held between her fingers.
Haah...
The girl aims the shurikens at the target and launches them simultaneously.
Whoosh... whoosh.... Whoosh...
Clank... clank... clank...
All the shurikens hit the target right in the dead center.
"Amazing! That's quite impressive Ayaka-chan."
The chunnin instructor praises her.
"It's nothing compared to Onii-san, Iruka-sensei."
Ayaka shakes her head and picks up another batch of shurikens.
Sigh...
Iruka sighs helplessly and turns towards the rest of the group.
'Izuna-san is a genius. I was in the same class as him during the academy, yet he graduated just in six months. I am sure he didn't even remember my name.'
Iruka takes another deep breath and instructs another student.
"Tsunade-sama, don't you think it is too early for Ayaka-Chan to enter the academy. It is the era of peace, so the village isn't in a dire need of Ninjas." Shizune questions Tsunade.
"No. it is alright."
Tsunade closes her eyes as Izuna's warning echoes in her ears.
'Tsunade! The Fourth Shinobi War is on the horizon. It will require the collective strength of all nations to deal with the enemy.'
"Ayaka is also a rare genius, like her brother. So, it is not that big of a deal to enroll her in the ninja academy."
Sigh...
"Now I really miss Naruto. It has been a week since that brat left for his mission in the Land of Waves."
Sigh...
"I just want to ditch all this work and drink some booze and gamble."
"…"
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