The Fire is Gone

Whether or not he wanted to keep speaking, a sword to the face was a sword to the face and his survival instincts shut him up very quickly. When he had brought up his daughters, he had hoped Nyg would see reason to step down, but it seemed the strong emotions of the Uchiha had backfired on him. He should have anticipated this, but it was clear he had run out of time. No matter how he looked at it, it was clear they would not see the truth. They were already trying to obfuscate it by saying he had betrayed Nyg at Mejing, and with them revealing their special eyes, it confirmed his fears that the Uchiha were planning something, something on the level of the Scarlet Kingdom. It made sense, the Uchiha clan had become strong enough to outpace the Senju and Hyuga, and with the mess that was the Neko Empire people would feel unsafe, which would give them the perfect opportunity to swoop in and alter Kazuya's Dream...or was reviving the Kingdom the First Hokage's wish in the first place?

It didn't matter now. No, what mattered is that he survived to make sure that he could rectify this mistake. And he really didn't want to rely on the spiders for this one, but he had no choice. It was that or death, and as long as he was alive he would do what he could to keep the flame alive. It was almost funny, he originally only signed up because he wanted to make puppets and prove his family wrong. Now they'd probably entrench themselves even farther into their beliefs. Maybe someday they'd open up again, but not soon, if the Uchiha didn't try to exterminate them after this.

It wouldn't be good for him to try and fight in this room. Well anywhere in the hospital, but he needed to get some distance. Against three Uchiha and an Otsu he wouldn't have enough time, but he could probably buy enough time with just Satomi. He had already looked around the hospital once, and thanks to the war going one, the concept of 'isolated' was practically foreign to this building. No, with them on the second floor they would have plenty of time as there was only one place in the hospital one could call 'isolated'. The roof, four floors up. Even the basement had nurses and doctors scrambling about, but no one was currently on the roof up above. But it was his best shot.

Externally, the puppet armor would shrug. The only thing he could do right now was to play along, and wait for his moment.

---

134.4/135 CP
Byakugan stage 5; -0.2 CP (post 5/30)
134.2/135 CP

Despite Ashitaka's best efforts to the contrary, Nyguyen Uchiha gave the command to end Chika's life. The man had clearly chosen the word of his clanmate over those of his student, meaning the matter of the beetles must have had some weight. The boy wanted to believe his current Hokage wouldn't order an execution on the merits of an accusation alone, but here they all were. To salt the wound, he even went so far as to command him not to approach Ari, who was pitifully unaware of what was going on around her. And if Ashi had any doubt as to Akihiro's meaning when he mentioned "the lengths they'd go to" in order to stop him, Ikomiki's taking a position between him and Ari would absolutely have eliminated that. The game was set and matched. These intruders into their Team meeting had all of the power and nothing the younger ninja could do or say in their defense meant anything. Their only option was to quietly take their beatings while the veterans threw their weight around, perhaps in an effort to restore or sustain their confidence in their self-image.

"As you command, Lord Hokage." Ashitaka said as he bowed, not failing to notice how much of the enemies' hostility was focused on him. Why this was the case eluded him, seeing as how he wasn't the one accused of treason here. But there was too much at stake for him to even consider fighting. Even without Ari being present to hold as a hostage, the Inuzuka who raised him could hardly stand for themselves against such foes, and he wouldn't put it past them to slaughter the family to make a point. Consequently, his hate, despair, and fear were all bottled up and shelved amid an ever-growing number of times he felt negatively and was unable to release said emotions.

Giving Akihiro and the dead... thing wearing the Second Hokage's face a wide berth and peripherally monitoring them for any signs of acting on their hostility toward them, the boy made his way out of the hospital room.

"I really wished I could have believed in you." he said, as parting words. They were directed at basically everyone in the room, including himself. The need for an execution of a Konoha nin was the fault of everyone with authority in that shinobi's life. Ashitaka himself knew that he shared some blame because Chika and Ari wouldn't have even been involved in that battle if Ashi had the conviction necessary to fully scare them out of it. He would make sure never to repeat that failing again.

The corollary command "and wait" indicated that his former, nominal sensei had something he still wanted to say to him with sufficient immediacy that he couldn't simply leave the hospital entirely, so he found a chair in the hallway and parked in it to pull out the current volume of his notebook and sketch images of the latest dojutsu form he'd seen. For all intents and purposes, it appeared to be an evolved stage of the Sharingan. But Ashitaka only knew of the first three stages, so he wasn't sure what traits to attribute to this fourth one. That lead him to thinking about Akihiro and how he knew what exactly was in the notebooks he always had on his person. Only two other people he'd ever met even had a vague idea of their contents, and they didn't seem the type to go around sharing secrets. That just made him hate the man even more. For someone who took such an issue with someone learning things they shouldn't, he sure seemed to have no trouble doing so himself. There were three things that he was confident everyone hated without exception, especially among ninja: a know-it-all, a tattle-tale, and a hypocrite. And the Sparrow was all of the above.



_________________


Technique Used:
Sensing Technique -0.5 Cp
232.5/235 CP remaining

The Chuunins words and Satomis reaction seemed to have jumpstarted a shocked Hokage Nyg. He began to relay his distress towards the situation. The former Hokage nodded as he stopped Ashitaka from speaking prematurely. The Ghost did not blame him for believing that this could be rectified somehow. It was no easy decision, but one that should not be disputed in taking. The words he was waiting hear, there was no other way to deal with this. Betrayals were common throughout history. However it took a special person with a heightened sense of self, to betray the leader of a country. In the middle of a war at that.

Satomi now received orders to remove the threat. "Guards!" Satomi bellowed. A few seconds later, the 3 A-rank guards appeared at the doorway, mostly a Jounin squad there at the Captains beckoning. While Sato made the clone seal, a shadow clone appearing beside. "Remove him from the vicinity." The clone would say to the guards as they arrived. The Satomi clone would quickly move to stand behind Chika placing a hand on his armor. "You heard the Hokage, move it. Out the door and not a word. Don't think of trying anything. " With a  small push he would direct Chika towards the door. Where the real Satomi would step to the side so that they may leave. Keeping a watchful eye with his saber still out but at his side at the moment.

If they proceeded as planned the clone would walk behind Chika out first with the three guards standing in the hallway.  One guard leading while the other two walked on the side of Chika. Satomi directed them. Where they would lead them to the back of the hospital where it was less populated. With the sight of a serious Satomi and armed guards, surrounding Chika This would deter any personnel from being in the immediate vicinity. Within the wide hallway. The clone kept a hand on the back of man as he stopped walking and everyone echoed the same movment. "Stop. Now what was this about the girl having Senju blood?" He would simply say. He had his orders. But there was indeed something fishy going on, depending on the Chuunins answer. He may change his mind.

While the real Satomi was eyeing his occupants in the room. There was certainly some recent revelations he also needed to attend too. But it seems there were more pressing matters at hand before all of that. "Are you alright Nyg?" He said checking on the welfare of the Hokage. The job was difficult enough, without being a sensei.

-------------------------------

Used: Shadow Clone
Sato Clone: Sensory -.5
MS -.2 = 127.7/130

Stats:
Strength: B > S (EGF)
Constitution: B
Stamina: A
Speed: A
Coordination: B > S (EGF)
Intelligence: B
Perception: B > A++ (MS)

3 A-rank Guards from the Government Building

Spoiler:

Much to her efforts, Ari was practically hushed for silence. Truthfully she had no real grasp of what was going on. Yet even so for someone in her team being accused of treason and then an execution was delivered. These turn of events from a third party perspective relevant to someone Ari cares about. It had her concerned with worry and mixed with anger.

How dare they accuse my team for treason! On what rights do they have to paint traitors on whoever for whatever reason they can slap onto them! Ari thought bitterly to herself as she had no idea who the others were. They were just foreign voices to her as there was no longer any use in visual recognition when there isn’t anything to visualize. Even so, as much as she wanted to voice her thoughts, something deep within told her not to. Fate has its own plan, or so she believed. So Ari grit her teeth and sat back down on the bed.

”But it wasn’t his fault! If I hadn’t been so careless none of this would’ve happened!” Ari argued with Nyguyen as the drugs continued to muddle with her head. It honestly felt like she was on a ship as the sea raged against the hull, or at least that was the comparison she made as it felt like the world was pulling her the opposite direction. There were several warnings going through her head as one made a copy of himself, of which Ari assumed to be the result of shadow clone, and there was a foreigner that blocked Ashitaka from her.

Three more signatures had moved down the hallway upon the bark of the clones order. The ones that were addressed as guards, and frankly it frustrated her immensely that those with power were just throwing their authority around however they pleased. In her mind this wasn’t true justice, and so Ari’s hands reached up quick as a snake to snatch Nyguyen’s wrists with a very tight grip as Ari’s anger was beginning to slip out.

”Are you really okay with this?! Ordering an execution, the death of your student over some stupid operation that none of us were truly prepared for?!” Anger dripped like venom with each word as Ari barely held herself back from crying, the only reason why she wasn’t is because she’d need eyes to have tears. Suddenly Ari ‘saw’ through the veil of what was really going on. The whole team was expendable, replaceable as Ari pieced together. The realization caused her iron grip to loosen up before it dropped from Nyguyen’s wrists.

”I get it, we’re only Genin and Chunin. We’re just one of a dime compared to you people. But do we mean so little to you? I thought being part of a team wasn’t just to increase our effectiveness in the field, but to also forge bonds so that you’ll always have someone watching your back!”

Upkeep Sensing Technique

Nyguyen was relieved when Chika turned and left the room without a word. He wasn't sure he could withstand another round of verbal bombardment from the boy he had just sentenced to death. Nyguyen didn't look away from him as he was escorted out by Satomi's clone and the squadron of shinobi. He hardened his face and tried to appear confident in his decision even though he was anything but. Everyone but his own squad had made their peace with his decision and made it abundantly clear that it would stand. Nyguyen was worried that given the Senju's previous instances of mental instability that he'd crack right then and there. The circumstances were the same, if not worse, than what he had gone through after the fight with Seid. Nyguyen braced himself mentally and physically for a reappearance by "Konoha" but none came. Ashitaka obeyed his command and left the room like a dutiful pupil. The last words he spoke, however, cracked the steely exterior that Nyguyen had conjured for the purpose of his order.

"I really wished I could have believed in you."

The man's eyes grew misty and his lip trembled, but he would not allow a single tear to fall. He needed to be strong. Not just for them, not just for his lieutenants, but for all of the village. A Hokage who could not stand behind his decisions was not a Kage worth following. He exhaled and was about to respond to Satomi when disaster struck. Nyguyen had gotten lucky twice. Chika had left quietly and Ashitaka had listened to him. Ari now appeared to be sitting back down on the bed. He had kept his composure through one of the hardest decisions he had ever had to make as Hokage of the Hidden Leaf. Then it all came crashing down.

Ari shouted at him from her sickbed. She started by blaming herself. Nyguyen turned to her and shook his head vigorously. He wouldn't have any of it. Chika had made his own choices and now had to pay for them, but if there was any residual blame then it fell squarely on his shoulders. The fact that Ari was selfless enough to take that on showed how much she had grown since he had last instructed her.

”But it wasn’t his fault! If I hadn’t been so careless none of this would’ve happened!”
"No Ari! Its not your fault I-"

Ari reached out and gripped his wrist. He couldn't stop the tears now. They streamed down his cheeks and into his beard which now sported streaks of grey. He had forgotten about Akihiro's indiscretions regarding the Senju blood. What had once been a pressing and urgent matter became trivial.

”Are you really okay with this?! Ordering an execution, the death of your student over some stupid operation that none of us were truly prepared for?!”
"No! I'm not okay with it Ari, please liste-"

The truth was now pouring out. It was not just Chika and Ashitaka's faith he had lost, it was Ari's as well.

”I get it, we’re only Genin and Chunin. We’re just one of a dime compared to you people. But do we mean so little to you? I thought being part of a team wasn’t just to increase our effectiveness in the field, but to also forge bonds so that you’ll always have someone watching your back!”

The strength that he had found moments before was now failing him. Chika was something that he could find the energy to deal with. The Hyuuga was a force that he could overcome, especially when his clanmates had his back. But Ari had always been his weakness. She was the one person on the squad who could bring him to his knees. He had always been weak willed when it came to his daughters and Ari was just like them in so many ways. He had second-guessed himself, questioned his approach, and often backed down from Mercedes and Innocence because he was so self-conscious about getting it right. They were the most important people in the world to him and being the father they loved was more important to him than being the father they respected. No matter how great an aura of authority and control he tried to project, the truth was that he cared for them too much to be the parental hand they needed. Fortunately, he had had his wife to pick up the slack. There was no such luxury when it came to this young orphan. The result was a weeping Kage who had sank to his knees.

"Ari please.....I didn't want any of this to happen...Meijing...Chika....None of it....I feel like no matter how hard I try to help those I care about, I end up failing. I don't know what to do..."

It was unseemly for a Kage to cry so publicly. For the sake of the title's prestige, he hoped that Satomi, Akihiro, or even Ikomiki had the sense to shut the door. Of course, that would not rehabilitate their image of him. They were his family and perhaps they'd overlook it but it was likely that the furball would never respect him. He knew this and yet he couldn't stop sobbing. This girl whom he cared so much for, who had reminded him of his own children, was now blind and her teammate as good as dead. Ari would never forgive him but he knew it was too late to rescind the order. He had failed those three but if he turned back now then he'd be failing everyone in the city.

"I'm sorry Ari....I know you can never forgive me but at least try to understand....this is the way it must be"

Nyguyne buried his face in his hands. He was too emotionally weakened to move, to ashamed to speak.

The scenario at the hospital was looking rather grim. A person who didn't know the Hokage might have considered him pathetic, worthy of pity and weak. But the truth was that this sort of decision required a lot of strength and Akihiro knew it. The sparrow held all kinds of secrets within his heart, but perhaps the most important one was that he understood Nyg's pain far too well. Having to be responsible for the death of a loved one...he wasn't sure he'd be able to go through that process ever again. In fact were he in Nyg's place he couldn't be sure he'd have the strength to make that kind of decision. From an outside perspective it was easy to look at the scenario and say Nyg was doing the right thing... but when the situation involved you things became a whole lot different. This was the reason why Akhiro didn't really judge Ashitaka or Ari for the reactions they were having.

They could be annoying of course, but he couldn't quite judge them. He too had a team, rivals, friends and people he looked up to back when he was a Genin. And every single one of these people had died. Hiroji, Zurui, Kazuya... One by one they had all fallen. Either to the plague, to warfare or by Akihiro's own hand the whisper of life that tied their souls to their bodies had been extinguished. And he couldn't quite say he wouldn't have fought with every fibber of his being to defend these people even if they didn't have the moral high ground. The world could certainly be a cold and unforgiving place, and despite all training against it ninjas were still humans bound by their emotions.

He glanced at Ikomiki, his student. The image of Kimiko crossed his mind immediately as well... there was no doubt in his mind that if any of those who were dear to him were sentenced to death he'd burn down nations to keep them alive. And he didn't have to be right in doing so...he'd simply do it. The Sparrow smiled. He was as much of a slave to emotions and human ties as Ashitaka, Ari, or even the crying Hokage in front of him. The thought of him being better was no more than a complex illusion, a lie he often told himself to erase any and all doubts and yet..doubt remained.

All of Ari's concerns were....valid, and concerns he too would have were he in that position. But the responsibility of leading and holding a higher office forced the higher ranked ninjas to see the whole picture even if they hated it deep within their hearts. Things were simpler when they were Genin and could assign blame at will without understanding the whole scenario but simple times were long gone. Akihiro, Satomi, Nyguyen, Kimiko...they were all responsible for so much more now... and that came with its weight.

Suddenly he'd notice Ikomiki falling back towards him and he moved to hold her before she hit the floor. She was unconscious. The Sparrow's Mangekyou Sharingan would spin furiously for a moment as he assessed the situation. Had the Genin done something to her? No...these symptons..he was far too familiar with them. The same illness which had taken Hiroji and many others. His glance shifted to Nyguyen. "I must tend to her. She's sick as well... I'll be back soon to help restoring your student's eyes one way or another. Right now however, I must see that my own student is safe.

For what it's worth..." Akihiro made a small pause. He wasn't entirely sure this would be worth anything but... he felt he couldn't simply leave while Nyguyen was in that state. The urgency of the situation forced him to, however.

"I admire your strength."

And with those words, both him and Ikomiki would be gone.

[Exit]

Used:
Sensing Technique
Mangekyou Sharingan
Flying Thunder God (into MB's base in Konoha)

Chika would make no moves to try and stop the clone of Satomi from moving him outside of the room, continuing to watch both the room itself and pathways to the roof for any possible delay's he could make to escape. He would internally admit that Satomi was a much braver man then he originally though, or a more foolish one since the clone had put it's hand on a Hyuga's shoulder. Sure it was a puppet's shoulder, but he had build Yuru for Hyuga combat. The guards made it a little more annoying, but he was sure he could outmaneuver them. It was still Satomi and his lightning-fast reflexes that he wasn't sure he could outmaneuver, let alone the speed of the man. If he was as fast at that Kumo-nin, he'd stand no chance. He would still carry himself like nothing was wrong. Even if he failed, he would not drag his clan down with him.

And like any plan made in haste, it seemed his qualification of 'isolated' was different. He could only blame himself for not anticipating the guard or Satomi looking serious. He had wrongly assumed that he'd act like nothing was wrong and do the deed quietly, but nope. Yet while it was isolated, he still had options. The hallway might've been wide, but there were still plenty or doors he could go through, there was a t-section farther up that he could take advantage of, and there was always the vents. But those thoughts would be put on hold, as he listened to the words of the not-dead ex-kage. And those words were...interesting. He'd hold his tongue as he held in the urge to sigh. Did the man not listen to what just went down?

Chika would take a few more seconds, pondering if he should speak given Satomi had said is he spoke 'he'd speak no more', but seeing as he was already on death's row, it was a risk he was willing to gamble on. "Exactly what I said. I noticed with my byakugan that she had a wood affinity along with her other elements, then I accused her of having Senju blood that wasn't her's. Akihiro said that it was his blood, confirming she did, but he didn't say where he got it from or how, the wording felt strange. I assume you're still in sen-oh?" The puppet's eyebrow raised, mirroring his own expression as he watched the chakra signatures of Akihiro and Ikomiki just...disappear. He hadn't been paying too much attention as he was more focused on the clone and guard, but it was like seeing one of his spider summons disappear. If he had been paying more attention, he might've seen their signatures pop up in the Mockingbird base, but alas he hadn't planed on someone teleporting, let alone disappearing from his sight like that. Now he was.

"Curious, it seems Akihiro and Ikomiki just disappeared from the hospital." He had to hold his tongue to refrain from saying anything more, such as 'Is that another power of the Sharingan?' or 'I guess that implicates their guilt then.' "All I have left to offer are theories on how he got the blood, if you'd like to hear them."

If Satomi asked him for his theories, he'd speak up again, but if not he'd stay quiet and try to figure out the next step in his plan. "If I'm being generous, he got the blood from a willing Senju, but I find that hard to believe as those would've been some dire circumstances for them to give over their clan's bloodline. I personally think he got it through the use of his sharingan, or he had someone else get the blood for him in a less then honorable way. I don't have evidence for either theory, but seeing as he lied about me giving away the Hokage's location, I have no reason to trust he isn't hiding how he got it. I'll still submit to that dojutsu test he mentioned if you think I'm lying about that by the way, at least then I'll die knowing someone knows the actual truth."

The only things in the world more difficult than the spectacular activities demanded every day by ninja life were a proportionate list of inactivities. Waking up. Guard duty. Studying. Meditating. And worst of all... waiting. Worst among these was being forced to sit idly by and simply allow horrible things to happen to someone you cared about. It was like knowing a loved one was diagnosed with a terminal illness and wasn't expected to live to the end of the hour. To salt the wound, Ashitaka couldn't do anything to stop it, since as usual because of his age his words invariably fell on deaf ears. He wasn't allowed to be there for Chika, and maybe hopefully bring him some kind of peace. He wasn't even allowed to be there for Ari, who had done nothing wrong and probably didn't even know why their teammate was being executed while she was confined to her hospital bed.

All he could do was sit there in that chair and wait. He wasn't bound by shackle or seal, only command, and yet he couldn't move from the waiting chair in which he sat. When the security force escorted his best friend in the world out into the hallway where Ashitaka waited, he wanted desperately to take one last look at the older member of Team 10. But he didn't, because he was afraid that even that slight of an action would be perceived as a threat which would only make the situation worse. Instead, he focused on the section of floor between his knees and listened to the sounds of the hospital building creaking as it shifted ever so slightly and "settled", unaware of the fact that he was causing the faint motions. He was blinded by tears that he refused to release from his eyes, but that didn't stop them from pouring in.

And then... Akihiro Uchiha and Ikomiki Otsutsuki just vanished from the room, perhaps content that they had pushed the Hokage beyond the point of no return. It was such a stereotypically super-villain thing to do that Ashitaka almost laughed at the absurdity of it, but instead made a strangled sound and grabbed his aching head in both hands as the starkly conflicting emotions in his mind caused him to lose his grip on the tears he was holding back. They streamed freely down his cheeks as he wrangled with the horrifying reality that he was right about the thing which he wanted to believe was just stupid paranoia inflicted by the nearly-fatal damage he'd suffered at the Land of Waterfalls' Black Site. Those damn aliens... really did have complete control over the village using the Uchiha as their proxies. They had resurrected Satomi Uchiha as their slave and used him to leverage Nyguyen and Akihiro, and by extension everyone who feared or respected either or both of them. Which was virtually everyone in the Clan.

Ashitaka had never felt so helpless in his entire life. Even lying in a pool of his own blood and doing his pitiful best to fight off the overwhelming chakra of Seid Otsutsuki, he had earnestly believed that there would be something he could do if the powerful alien decided (as he did) that the dumb kid just wasn't worth his time and energy. The Black Receivers and Irui Mikiri's electric shockwave had made it nearly impossible for him to even breathe, but still his fighting spirit remained, perhaps largely due to his faith in his village's willingness to avenge him. But all of that was before. Back then, he didn't know of the power in his own blood, let alone that others coveted it enough to want to rob him of it. Then, he never would have believed for a second that Nyguyen Uchiha would allow the poaching of a Konoha ninja's Kekkei Genkai, let alone that of one of his students. Then, he sincerely believed that the Otsutsuki were people as his sensei promised, and were therefore a challenge he could rise to meet.

Now, he knew better. It was made abundantly clear that the pale beings were capable of controlling all of nature's elements, warping gravity and flexing the fabric of space-time to their whims, but they also controlled life and death... and even love and hate. He supposed it was only natural that they would treat humans like humans do animals, given that they probably saw them that way and apparently there was no shortage of humans who would encourage that perspective. Ashitaka felt a mountainous cloud of despair loom over him as he came to realize that to fight the pretty monsters who considered human beings to be their playthings was potentially also to fight all of humanity as they stood beside and happily under their slavers in a fight against the threats of freedom and personal responsibility. And to make matters worse, he knew thanks to his visit from The Sage that the only reason he had a means to fight them at all was because of his own personal share of the Otsutsukis' esoteric power. To wage war on them was to become one of them, so even if it were possible to win Earth's freedom, he would have to lose himself in the process.

And until then... he still had to deal with his helplessness in much more personal difficulties. If he fought to defend Chika now, it meant making them both the enemies of all of Konohagakure no Sato. But if he didn't, then his friendship and loyalty meant nothing because he was a coward who sat idly by while someone he was supposed to protect was killed. He didn't know what to do, and time was running out. Satomi's decision to take his Teammate to a different part of the hospital was little more than a formality. All three of the Hokage's former students could still see each other, he could tell by the way his Sensing Field overlapped with Chika's Byakugan and... Ari's own Field? When did she get that? He shook his head and concentrated on doing nothing. The hospital... no, the entire district was his domain and all he had to do to save his friend was be willing to kill thousands of civilians.

And the more he thought about it, the more he wondered why he didn't. It wasn't like he benefited in any measurable way from their presence, since he was perfectly capable of surviving out in the wilds of the Senju Forest even before he'd unlocked his ninjutsu-enhanced capability to simply create a pocket civilization around himself on a whim, or even forego eating as a luxury. He could walk away from it all with much greater ease than he'd been brought into it. However, he was taught that it was irresponsible of him to do that, to think and act in such a selfish manner. He was taught that it was the duty of the strong to protect the weak who could not flourish without them, and that of the weak to love and support the strong in return. But right now the strong were abusing their strength to crush those among the weak who had the potential to join them in offering that protection, and even joking about it. And he'd heard that it had been commonplace to do this within the bounds of what passed for civilization for some time now. "The strong do what they can, the weak suffer what they must," one of the handful of unwritten 'Laws of the Wilds', was supposed to be what people coming together and building these Villages were meant to overcome. And yet... in hindsight, it seemed as though the Otsutsuki's actions were kharmic retribution for what humans did with the power so generously bestowed upon them. Or perhaps they were as the Hokage suggested in that they were people too, and as Ashitaka suspected at the time merely did as humans would do if given an Otsutsuki's powers.

So, having the power to do almost anything but not knowing what to do, Ashitaka waited.

The Uchiha used Kaguras Mind Eye, to see if he was telling the truth. Just as he thought. Satomi had been very interested in the Otsutsuki gaining an elusive and powerful bloodline of the Leaf. Though there were more pressing matters. In the heart of war, many problems like this would arise. It wasn't his first, having battled the Society and Iwagakure on separate fronts. It was important to remember that enemies lay in unorthodox places. Like right under their nose. Which the Hokage had finally ordered to correct. It would be left to Satomi to set a precedence while they were still fighting.

The Ghost of Konoha listened intently till the Chuunin began to notice that Akihito and Ikomiki had departed suddenly. Satomi was well aware of the ability his former student possessed. At that moment, the clone moved right hand off of the puppet user. While simultaneously striking forward with his left hand, aiming for Chika's heart. The powerful Mangekyou Sharingan eyes peered past the puppet exterior, reading ever single movement of Chika. Coupled with Mind's Eye, even the puppets fake chakra system could not fool his sense. The clones left hand hummed with lightning chakra, a Chidori spear speeding outwards. With such a powerful thrust it, would pierce the armor and strike his heart.

He altered the blade of lightning to not emit spears from the body, keeping the spears true shape. While extending the Chidori Spear into a 5 meter blade through his heart. Which would of course be a fatal hit, Satomi would not need to cause more carnage. If connected he would let the body and puppet fall to the ground and he'd back away a few feet. The guards standing at ready just in case anything were to arise.

At the same time, the real Satomi was upstairs listening to his brother in law speak on the matter at hand. He seemed pretty disheveled, which Sato could expect from the trials of battle. However their Hokage could not be seen like that. He walked to the exit and closed the door. After Iko seemed to feel ill, Aki quickly went to her care, teleporting out of the hospital. Ashitaka had taken his leave as well. Satomi could say nothing. His own words would be extremely harsh towards the students. But he simply said a few words. "Perhaps we should go Nyg. It is has been a trying day."


-------------------------------

Sato Clone: Minds Eye-.5
Chidori Spear -10
Goken (Strong Fist) -1
MS -.2 = 117.7/130

Stats:
Strength: B > S > S++(EGF, Goken)
Constitution: B
Stamina: A
Speed: A
Coordination: B > S > S+ (EGF, Goken)
Intelligence: B
Perception: B > A  > S (MS, Minds Eye)

3 A-rank Guards from the Government Building

Spoiler:

Pretty soon, it felt like the world had stopped in an endless void when all of the sudden. In the distance, Ari detected a sudden spike of Raiton chakra and immediately after that Ari could no longer sense Chika. That heavily suggested that the reason Ari could no longer sense Chika was because she cannot sense the dead. It really felt like Ari's life was traded with Chika's to the girl. The fact that she was breathing and awake became a miracle itself.

"I just… need to be alone for a while. I hope you can understand Nyguyen." Ari spoke as her lips trembled. Sorrow had gripped her heart, and frankly she would rather sacrifice an arm or a leg to save Chika. It was too late for that however as Chika was dead now. She was both angry and sad that Ari was so weak that this unfortunate event happened. Yet Ari was once again felt helpless in the situation. Ari laid down on the bed and curled up into a ball. Hiding her face with her legs as the pressure allowed Ari to grieve.

Nyguyen was so distraught that he didn't even realize that Akihiro had left. The young man had teleported away to tend to Ikomiki but the Hokage was too busy mourning his student to notice. Eventually, he felt the gentle touch of his brother-in-law. The Ghost of Konoha was telling him that it was time to go and though he felt anchored to this spot, he knew that he needed to take his leave. Ari shied away from him and said she needed to be alone for awhile. The withdrawal was like another knife through his spirit. He wiped the tears from his eyes and did his best remove any evidence of crying. He slowly got to his feet, hopefully with Satomi's assistance. He opened his mouth to say something to Ari. An "I'll be back," an "I'm sorry," even some kind of historical quote. Nothing came to mind. He turned away and walked out of the hospital room. The Hokage held his head high and did his best to act unmoved but his tone and gait made it clear that ordering the exeuction of Chika had cut him deeply. He'd never be the same again and nor would any member of Team 10. Before he walked down the hallway with Satomi, he turned to Ashitaka and choked out a few words:

"I'm sorry Ashitaka....I had no choice..." he stopped himself before the tears came coming back. "You are dismissed soldier...we'll talk again soon. I'll make sure the doctors don't trouble you any longer"

Nyg would intervene in any future druggings. Ashi had proven his mental stability by following orders and standing down. He knew that part of it had to be the fact that he was surrounded by four fairly powerful shinobi (yes Nyg counted himself rightly or wrongly). Although the fact that he could recognize that he was outnumbered and outgunned and act accordingly was at least evidence that he was now of sound mind or at least getting there. Nyguyen then turned away from the Senju and exited the hospital. The Fire was not gone...but it was on the brink of extinction.

Exit

Satomi's timing couldn't have been better. His sight distracted by the disappearance of the teleporting Ninja, combined with the sheer speed of Satomi's movement and his own confidence that the deed would be done somewhere else. All three came together to put him in the situation before him. One that, if he had paid a little more attention to the reading of the room, he may have gotten out of. But that didn't happen, and the next thing he knew there was a very familiar pain in his chest.

He didn't have much more time to live, seeing as his heart was just pierced, but in those brief seconds, he'd watch as the spear felled the Ninja who was in front of him, the man having not moved out of the way of the spear's attack. Maybe he knew that his time was up, at least subconsciously. If he wasn't so focused on the fact he was dying, he'd maybe wonder just what sort of Hokage would casually kill his own men while executing another. Instead, in his brew few second of consciousness, he'd tense up, pressed a button, and begin to say something, but nothing came out as the shock of pain killed him before the lack of blood moving did.

The man known as the Grand Puppeteer was dead, but when Satomi removed his hand, he would not fall.

---

The puppet known as Yurushite Karakuri stood there, unmoving, uncaring. It'd vital components reinforced to survive a single Raiton and physical strike since Mejing, though it would be clear that the puppet was in no shape to take another hit.  It's internal computer being activated it would begin to do it's usual startup.

Running system diagnostics. Left chest is 98% damaged. Requires Repairs. Left Back is 98% damaged. Requires Repairs. Internals functioning at 37% efficiency. Combat not advised. Weight detected. User check...Vital signs negative...Chakra signature negative...Blood Sample registered.

The puppet would take a few more seconds to compare the sample with the one it had inside itself, before declaring it's findings. "User Chikamatsu Momo Hyuuga is dead. Estimated Cause of Death: Pericardiectomy 78%. Electrocution 10%. Takotsubo Cardiomyopathy 2%." The voice was a lot more feminine, not having the twinge of Chika's voice inside it. To anyone who knew of it, it would sound like Chikamatsu's mother, Sakura Amandi-Hyuga.

"Initiating Final Voyage. Activating hidden designations. Locate Dokuma. Protect Dokuma. Prevent Hyugaempire. Prevent Scarletempire. Live." The commands were simple, but the puppet did not fully understand designation 3 and designation 4 were. a subcommand was input and delayed to ask Dokuma what designation 3 and designation 4 were fully, so it could complete designation 3 and designation 4.

It had it's commands, and it knew where Dokuma was last seen. So, it turned, and without looking at the three remaining ninja, it started to walk back, the small pockets of Chikamatsu's body that weren't charred by the strike dripping small amounts of blood, the burnt remains holding the rest of his insides from falling out. It did not care about them, it did not care about those who may see the corpse of Chikamatsu inside it. Yuru had it's commands, and it would execute them until they were completed, or it was destroyed.

Chikamatsu's fire was gone, snuffed out before it's time. But even so, it's embers still remained.

---

Chikamatsu is dead. Long live Chikamatsu.

When Nyg dismissed him, Ashi couldn't help wondering why he was made to stay in the first place. Nothing he said or did would have mattered, so the command had served no purpose but to force him to endure the peripheral witnessing of the death of his Teammate. He was staring at floor when the Hokage dismissed him in passing, so he couldn't see the tears flowing down the man's face. Not that his own would have allowed him such fine detail in any case. But he did hear the coarseness in his voice and the burgeoning hate inside him shattered, along with the strength of purpose he was drawing from it. Ashitaka was forced to face the lie he'd been building up in his mind head on and watch it fall apart. This wasn't some Otsutsuki plot to subvert Konohagakure from within, it was a genuine betrayal committed by Chika, and both it and having to act according to that treachery had torn Nyguyen up inside. Worse, the Senju boy had only amplified the pain by choosing to side with his friend over the truth.

"You... are not the one who should be sorry... Nyguyen-sama. The Hokage's word... is Law. The Hokage's way is..." he forced control over himself and wiped his eyes with a sleeve. "...is Right. I... I am the one who is sorry... for all the times I've acted against your will. And now I am of no further use to you. Even my blood has become something that can be cheaply imitated."

He would say and do nothing else until after the man had left and a few moments had passed when the whirring of familiar gears announced the arrival of the puppet made in the image of his late friend's mother. In response to this, Ashitaka stood to face it, not wondering why Satomi's clone and its escorts had simply let it move about unhindered. He stepped into its path and put one hand on one of its shoulders.

"Stop." He commanded it. "You've gone far enough."

The kid didn't know enough about puppets or engineering to stop it normally, but it was made of Senju Wood and he had enough control over that that it didn't matter. With a combination of flowing chakra and raw strength, he tore the puppet armor to splinters in a matter of seconds, feeling something in his chest tearing with it. He caught Chika's lifeless body as it fell and held it up to the nearest individual whose identity he didn't bother sorting out. The voice that delivered his words to that person was completely devoid of emotion.

"The Lord Hokage has ordered that this Hyuuga traitor's eyes be preserved for the restoration of his favored student, Ari Dokuma. See to it that his command is carried out immediately and without failure or mishap. I have to report the death of the former Head of Clan to the Hyuuga."

As the body was taken to the appropriate ward and the shattered remains of the puppet armor were cleaned up, Ashitaka conducted a crisp right-face and marched out of the hospital with his face frozen on the polite side of "about to murder the next person who crosses me". The boy whose gentility and mercy had cost him several crucial battles had died this day, and the wise animal whose combined brilliance and savagery would see to it that the body that once hosted him did not share his fate.



[Exit Thread]

There was nothing the boy could do to stop Satomi after he struck. The guards already being out of range having surrounded the area was no longer trailing him. The blade would stop short pointing downwards. Using the power of the Mangkeyo Sharingan, Satomi was able to read puppets movement before it even made. He noticed the immediate extinguishing of Chikamatsu's life. But somehow the puppet had some residual energy. No matter, Satomi skipped a few meters back, and the guards all repeated the same movement.

The Ghost of Konoha would leave the Chidori Spear inside the body, and activate four other spears. These spears would erect from the body and destroy the joints of the puppet. It being made of Mokuton made it particularly susceptible. Seizing all movement from it finally. The Uchiha would release the technique once the puppet moved no more. It would fall to the ground, destroyed. "Take the body upstairs and prepare the eyes to immediately salvaged. Discard of this puppet as well. I never want to see it again." The Guards nodded and would remove the body from the puppet and clean the area up. The Clone would escort the body back up to the room. Sato would end the clone jutsu after seeing it.

Sending the information of the events transpired back to Satomi. "It has been done." He would simply say to himself. The eyes were a special trait of the Leaf village. They would not go to waste. As he had learned, the other member of the group had been damaged beyond repair. Even Aki seemed unable to do anything. He would have to an immense amount of paperwork for this. In the meantime. One crisis had been averted.  While they waited for the next. Satomi would arrange the eyes proper removal before leaving it to the proper medical staff. He also signed 24/7 protection over the entire process with the guards after they were done with their tasks.

Satomi would leave, after getting the staff to remove the eyes from Chika with his help. Satomi looked at the pair of eyes after removing them. One of his clans hated enemies, their eyes were certainly powerful. What could he do with such power? A question for another. He was sure Aki could perform a miracle with these set of eyes. Ari would have a long road ahead of her.

-------------

[Exit]