Naruto : Saga of Tanya the Kunoichi

"Deidara… S rank rogue nin from Akatsuki returned to Iwagakure…" Tsunade read the report, her finger tapping on the table. 

In Tsuyu's words, if he was seen on the battlefield she should be called immediately. That SORA wouldn't be able to fight him either because of his large scale explosion jutsu and all his explosives were homing, had erratic movements, and were very hard to track flight path.

Even modern homing missiles couldn't move left and right, up and down, and move like a real living entity swiftly. Any of the SORA members at this point except Tsuyu would have been killed by him.

That's how dangerous he was. Also Tsuyu expected Iwa to make use of aerial bombardment through him, and that guy was a serious threat.

Tsunade sighed. To think someone that even Tsuyu has to keep her guard up against was with Iwa.

Akatsuki… is the group trying to create the 6th great power akin to a hidden Shinobi village? Will this war weaken the position of all nations and create a chance for this Akatsuki?

This is Tsunade's initial thought. The mysterious masked man that claimed himself to be Uchiha Madara was also in there. In Tsunade's opinion, if that man was truly Madara, it made sense for the same Madara to create his own power, his own way as he turned his back from the village then because he couldn't accept Hashirama's way. So Madara perhaps wanted to establish a power of his own.

It might be a good thing for Konoha for a while. If Akatsuki's power were seen, the other hidden villages would worry their position of power would be shaken. And perhaps this war wouldn't escalate and Konoha would survive…

As the new Hokage, she found out through an encrypted scroll in the classified information safe that Itachi was supposed to be a spy there. Itachi's deed had a reason, and she had to accept such a happening in Konoha as the Hokage.

Though, she wondered what her late sensei was thinking, letting the Uchiha clan be massacred. If we had the Uchiha clan right now, Konoha could have a better fighting chance…

***

A few weeks passed against Suna's front.

Itachi stood on a tall stone pillar of the arid Land of River, overlooking the battle that broke out between Sunagakure and Konoha. A major fight broke out on a plain, tall rocks as covers.

200 Konoha shinobi against a force of 300 of Suna's.

100 puppeteers leading as the vanguard.

"Where is our reinforcement…! Ah-!" One of Konoha's shinobi fell from the onslaught of two puppets. The overwhelming number advantage made it seem like one sided slaughter.

"Retreat!" The field commander had to order so and fall back, tens of Konoha shinobi flickered back. With this, Suna would gain a foothold in the Land of River, and would be one step away from invading the Land of Fire.

Konoha wouldn't survive…

Itachi felt solemn. Suna also sent a hundred to flank them on their backs to block their retreat at the moment. He wondered if this group would survive.

To fight 4 major hidden villages, outnumber 1 to 5 on all fronts, he didn't know if Konoha could live after this war. If Land of Fire was dissolved, Konoha too would disappear. But at this rate it will happen.

As for the small chance that Konoha was able to last long enough to bite the other hidden village flesh because of that one person, this would still lead to the weakening of all hidden villages.

Akatsuki's goal would be achieved. They would be able to collect the bijuu without resistance if all villages were weakened.

How do I save Konoha? While preventing Akatsuki from achieving its goals? If there's an option…

It's to make all hidden villages stop fighting and focus on Akatsuki. Or let Konoha lose early, so they could relocate and hide away with as many lives as possible. As long as the people of Konoha live… Will of Fire would live on, even if they would disappear from the world map.

Do I have to kill Tsuyu, so Konoha would stop retaliating and piling up their corpses? But her strength is important to fight Akatsuki and Madara…

Itachi closed his eyes. No. Making Akatsuki the scapegoat for all shinobi villages would be the best solution at the moment.

As for how… he could reveal Akatsuki's goals to all hidden villages. But no one would take his words seriously. As for killing one of their jinchuriki so Akatsuki would be taken seriously, he doubted it would work.

Akatsuki in their eyes were a mere mercenary organisation, even if they had multiple S rank nin, how could they shake a hidden village? Killing a jinchuriki of a hidden village would only escalate war. Now it was 4 against 1. But once a village lost their position, it would be chaotic. And the jinchuriki themselves can be used as a weapon against Akatsuki in their view and wouldn't care to unite to fight them.

Shisui… Sandaime… if you two were alive, what would you two have advised me to do?

Itachi's figure turned illusionary and transformed into crows, moving across the battlefield to observe.

Suna's flank troops met the Mobile Respond Troop led by Yamato at the moment. Another fight broke out.

***

"Damn it!" Naruto shouted as he sent shadow clones, sending tens of them to the front.

Seeing his allies and fellow villagers fall, get poisoned, the blood that spilled, his eyes turned red with anger.

"Ah-!" A scream from his side made Naruto look.

"Uncle Renji!" Naruto saw the kindhearted acquaintance he made at camp had his hand cut off by a puppet. Damn it...! Kagebunshin no Jutsu!

"Rasengan!"

Naruto rushed in and destroyed a puppet before it could kill Renji.

Naruto turned to face the puppeteer. His eyes locked onto Naruto with killing intent, summoned another puppet towards him. Naruto sent shadow clones to hold the puppet down, while the real Naruto jumped over it and used the puppet as a platform to launch himself towards the puppeteer.

"Damn you!" Naruto stabbed his chest with a kunai. Blood spurted out of his chest, staining his arms. 

The Suna shinobi fell with a thud. Naruto only felt heavy for a moment, feeling the stickiness and the bloody odour. But his eyes turned ferocious recalling this man had killed and hurt his people. His first kill was nothing difficult simply because in his view, he deserved it. He simply didn't give the corpse another piece of mind.

Another Suna shinobi fell. One of them screamed at Naruto, as if in grieving of his comrades death. Naruto didn't care. He only felt anger at all these people for hurting everyone he cared about. 

​One after another, blood already stained Naruto's hands. 'Protecting my people' being his pure guide, with anger and pain seeing people of Konoha falling as fuel in each of his kills.

He turned to face another Suna shinobi. But at this moment, Naruto went too deep and was surrounded by 5 Sunagakure's shinobi. 6 puppets surrounded him, multiple projectiles launched towards him.

Kagebunshin no jutsu! Tens of shadow clones were used as meat shields. A shadow clone picks up the injured shinobi on the ground, carrying him away from the battlefield. Naruto had saved tens of them this way. But Naruto too was drained out of his chakra.

I need to use 9 tails chakra… I don't have enough…

"Hnn!" Naruto tried to squeeze it out from 9 tails, and 9 tails gave it away with a mocking gaze. He could feel how stressed Naruto was. And that's a good thing.

Red chakra flowed throughout Naruto's entire body, coating his entire self and forming two tails chakra cloaks.

Kagebunshin no Jutsu! 

Three shadow clones wrapped in two tailed chakra cloaks were summoned. Two of them launched a frenzied assault towards the puppet and Sunagakure's shinobi at the front.

"Gahh!!" One of the frenzied clones simply shouted, unleashing a red chakra wave that deflects all projectiles from the puppets before destroying them with ease.

"It's the jinchuriki! Konoha's jinchuriki is here!" One of them realised the predicament and shouted.

"What!? Retreat now!" The flank troop commander of Suna shouted in panic. He didn't expect Konoha would send their Jinchuriki out this early. But then again, Konoha was that desperate of course they would!

The real Naruto in two tailed cloak form gathered Rasengan in one of his hands with the help of his clone. The rasengan was filled with 9 tails chakra.

He rushed forward after seeing the puppets at front finally destroyed. But as he was about to deal the finishing blow to the exposed puppeteer-

A young kunoichi, only as old as himself, was at the forefront. When Naruto met her eyes, what he could see was fear. Fear of death, the pain of losing everyone around her, and her shaking body. It wasn't… the same.

No… I… I can't…

The rasengan on Naruto's hand dissipated, his Kyubi chakra cloak wavered and disappeared.

Naruto's eyes were filled with unwillingness, pain, anger at the situation, and the guilt of killing a girl that was scared for her life just like the rest of them. He felt his heart stop beating for a second. That moment of hesitation made Naruto let his guard down.

The girl's scared expression suddenly turned ferocious. Even with her trembling body, she lounged forward and stabbed him with a kunai.

"Nnnh…!"

The kunai stabbed right through Naruto's shoulder, but Naruto stood still, as if didn't care. He just stared at the girl of his age, as if trying to find a justified reason to… to kill her. 

Is this reasonable? The tears in her eyes made his heart waver.

Why are we fighting… she's… she's just like Sakura-chan, just like everyone else… she didn't want to be here…

Ahh..! This pain… Dark purple veins popped around on Naruto's body from the laced poison. He looked at his shoulder, the poisoned kunai embedded in his shoulder.

"Idiot!" 

The shout from Sasuke was accompanied with cries of birds. Like thunder, followed by arcs of lightning Sasuke flashed at unimaginable speed.

"Sasuke! Don't-" 

Chidori! Blood splattered on Naruto's cheek as Sasuke's tanto pierce through her chest from behind. 

"Ack-" She was paralysed from the lightning and coughed some blood, spilling them onto Naruto's shinobi vest.

Her eyes turned dull in a second, before her body fell limp like a dead dog. He looked down at her corpse, her eyes still open, as if she was still staring at Naruto. The tears in her were still visible...

She's…dead… just a young person like me… 

He didn't know why. Tears fell from his eyes for her... 

He hated this… what is this? What are they doing? Why are they killing each other…?

"Retreat idiot! You are too deep!" Sasuke punched his face to knock some sense into him, sending him tumbling down.

Sasuke's Sharingan flashed. With Lighting Flow Mode, and enhanced perception he threw shurikens and kunai to block the incoming projectiles from the puppets coming towards them, deflecting the projectiles in its trajectory to reach the puppeteer at the back at impossible angles, injuring them in a single instance.

Sasuke fell back and pulled Naruto with him.

With the reinforcement and performance of Yamato, Sasuke, and Naruto's jinchuriki presence, Suna's flank troop retreated quickly, and the main army of Konoha managed to retreat safely. But they still lost their foothold on the Land of River and had to retreat back into the Land of Fire to defend their homeland now.

***

"Idiot. What were you thinking? Why are you standing there like an idiot? What is wrong with you? Why don't you finish her off? Why did you let her stab you? You could have died, idiot!" Sasuke asked a flurry of questions with a hint of anger laced in his voice. 

He observed with his sharingan how Naruto's Kyubi cloak disappeared, even his rasengan dissipated before he could land it.

He felt so frustrated seeing his friend acting like this. He really would kill himself if he kept acting like this. Naruto did kill a few of Suna's shinobi. But all of them were adults, much like Yamato. And in Naruto's mind, it was to protect Konoha.

But facing the girl just now… Naruto felt his reasonings, his moral justification crumbling.

Sasuke sat in front of Naruto, currently being treated by Sakura. Poison was drawn from his body little by little.

"..." Naruto just closed his eyes with his hands. The pain coursing through his body was nothing compared to the pain in his heart.

"Why are we fighting…" Naruto muttered weakly.

"It's for everyone, Naruto…" Sakura said softly, her focus remained to draw out the poison.

"I know… but… she… she was scared, Sakura… she doesn't want to die… she doesn't want to be here… she's so young… like me, like you Sakura-chan… and… she died…"

"She is Suna's shinobi. Of course she is fighting for them. Everyone on the battlefield here had signed themselves up to become the village's force, to become a blade for their village. The same goes for us. You think I enjoyed killing? There's only one person in this world that I would be happy to kill. But the rest of them? I don't. But it's what we have to do. Can you grow a brain already? Tsuyu would have broken your bones if she knew how you hesitated back there and asked for a death wish." 

Sasuke really couldn't hold his anger anymore. This naive guy could drive him insane. He would complain to his little sister so she would beat some sense to him for sure.

"Sasuke is right, Naruto… I hated seeing our people hurt, poisoned… and even killed. No one wanted to fight Naruto… but we fight because we have to protect ourselves. I wouldn't want Konoha to disappear… I wouldn't want to lose my home. I wouldn't want to lose you both…" 

Sakura's eyes had maturity glimmering in them after treating many of Konoha's shinobi. She failed to save a few, and some amputated their limbs to survive the vicious poisons that could even rot their limbs. 

"... We fight… for our home… I know…" Naruto mumbled.

"But… they don't have a choice either…" Naruto figured out the bitter truth. The illusion of his justice shattered. Recalling the fear in the girl's eyes, the pain and tears of his own enemies… he felt his heart wavering.

They obeyed their village command, but some of them never wanted to fight and kill others like this. Most of them never wanted war. As for those who revel in it… they were here for vengeance of the past war and pain. 

They fought for each other as well, much like Konoha's shinobi. Tsuyu's and Ero-sennin's education coupled with his real time experience had to wake him up from the illusion that Konoha was a pure victim.

He recalled the faces of those he had killed with his hands… Some look scared. Some tried to struggle and take him down with them. Some screamed for the death of their friends that he killed with his hands.

Ero-sennin… I finally understand… I hate all these…

Sakura finally extracted the last bit of poison from Naruto, letting out a sigh of relief. Seeing Naruto's downed empty expression, she signalled Sasuke to leave him alone.

Sasuke grumbled and had to stand up and leave the medic tent.

"Just rest alright?" Sakura gave Naruto a smile, holding his hand for a moment to give support to him.

"Okay, Sakura-chan…" Naruto replied weakly. He felt spiritually and mentally broken from everything he had seen. The corpses of his acquaintances, people of Konoha, the cries and tears in the medic tent for those who failed to be saved. He turned his head, seeing a kunoichi crying over a cold corpse of her supposed lover.

But at the same time, this image reflected the image of the person Naruto killed. A Suna shinobi rushed toward him screaming in anger. Maybe it was his friend? He remembered the face filled with pain pointed towards him.

I killed someone important to them too… they hated me for it… and I hated them for killing Konoha's people… 

Naruto's mind was a jumbled mess. He closed his face with both his arms, trying to figure out everything himself.

***