Well that better do the trick. the problem with Sasuke should not be forced with another trauma as it could turn out more detrimental than helpful. And It would be better if he realized himself that bond with his friends are important to never be severed in path of revenge.
The path of revenge only end in emptiness the moment it's carried out. The moment it's done, the person has no other reason to continue. For this reason. There are other people to pick you up.
I need Sasuke to realize this. if he doesn't then it will only hurt himself in the long run.
Now that I think about it. When I faced that snake weirdo, he spoke about his target. He was there for a reason after all. Could it have been Sasuke? Why? Does he want him dead?
I heard about the incident with Hinata Hyuuga. A cloud ninja tried to kidnap her to get access to the Hyuuga bloodline, the byakugan.
Sasuke being of the Uchiha clan, he is destined to awaken the sharingan sometime soon. Could It have been that Orochimaru was aiming to secure himself the sharingan? No that would not make sense. Since Sasuke had not awakened the sharingan prior.
Whatever his goal may be. His is probably going to use whatever method he has at his disposal. Be that kidnapping, or just manipulation. He may use his hatred and promises of power to get him over to his side.
Not that I'm going to ever let that happen. I can get Sasuke way more power than that disgusting lizard ever could. Without making Sasuke lose his friends.
Saying that. I should get the three back into the real world and apologize. It had been a really unethical move on my part that I would not ever consider normally. There are lives at stake here too. It doesn't matter whether it's another world. I should not treat people like playthings.
Rimuru : " What was I even thinking. This wasn't like me at all. "
Ciel : " It's fine. As long as you always return to being you master. "
Ciel placed her arms around Rimuru's waist from behind and pulled him towards herself and gently placing her head on Rimuru's shoulder.
Rimuru brought his arm up and caressed Ciel's left cheek with his hand gently. Tilting his head downwards towards her.
Rimuru :" Thanks, for being there. "
Ciel : " That goes without saying. I wouldn't leave master for anything in existence or non-existence. "
Rimuru : " Hehe. I love you too Ciel. "
Ciel : " Mhm! " she quipped as she snuggled closer to Rimuru placing her lips on his neck.
Getting an idea, Ciel licked and nibbled Rimuru's neck.
Rimuru : " UEEEEHHE ! " he shouted with wide open eyes that almost popped out of their sockets, throwing his arms randomly.
Rimuru : " What are you doing Ciel! " his cheeks reddened more and more by the second.
Ciel : " Heheheee. That' a little payback for last time. " she narrowed her eyes and smiled widely, lifting her hand up to her mouth trying to cover her gargantuan smirk.
Rimuru : " Mmmmm... " he heaved closing his eyes in the process.
Rimuru : " Good grief... " he sighed. A blush still plastered on his face.
Ciel : " Anyway. I think you should be going now. They are about to wake up after all. "
Rimuru : " R-Right! Well then see you later. " he waved.
Ciel : " We are always together goofball. " she smirker.
Rimuru opened up a mirror and stepped out of his personal ninjutsu dimension.
As he stepped out of it to reality he realized something.
Rimuru : ( Wait... Did Ciel just call me... goofball?! She never calls me anything but master! ) he panicked inside. But was quickly brought out of his thought by the sounds of by groaning beside him on the floor numbering in three.
The three genin slowly dragged their eyes open while groaning. They tried sitting up while supporting their bodies with their arms.
Rimuru : " W-Welcome back guys. " he said nervously.
The three turned their head towards him slowly.
Naruto + Sakura : " R-Rimuru!! " they shouted.
Sasuke : " What the hell happened. " he held his head.
Rimuru : " Well not much happened to you Sasuke. But Naruto and Sakura had a bigger ordeal to drag through. "
Naruto : " R-Rimuru. Are you... really Rimuru? " he weakly inquired while Sakura nodded.
Sasuke : " What is that supposed to mean? " he raised his eyebrow.
Rimuru : " First... let me tell you... that... " he let out while feeling a lumb grow in his throat.
Rimuru : " I'm sorry. It was wrong of me to do what I did to you whatever reason I had. "
Sakura : " Wait... so you were not on a rampage? " she growled in anger.
Naruto : " Rimuru... " he narrowed his eyes clenching his fist.
Sasuke had enough of his confusion and broke the air to be finally answered.
Sasuke : " Can you guys tell me what the hell even happened?! "
The two stared at him in disbelief. Making Sasuke wince a little under their gaze.
Rimuru : " I'll tell you everything. "
Rimuru then told Sasuke what exactly has been going on with Naruto and Sakura while he was unconscious. Sasuke stood there in shock while the other two glared at Rimuru. When he finished he turned his head towards Sakura and Naruto solemnly.
Rimuru : " I'm sorry. Would you still hear me out? "
The two genin sighed, figuring that Rimuru may have not been completely at fault after all.
Rimuru : " I'll start from the beginning. "
Rimuru : " After our last fight. I went into the woods to train. I copied the jutsu that Haku used since we were both using the same kekkei-genkai. I stumbled on a very powerful defensive jutsu that lets me ignore any type of impaling attacks, punches and straight kicks also count into that. But the jutsu doesn't function without some... difficulties. Difficulties that I am too embarrassed to speak about. During the final fight you had all seen how I acted. That wasn't in fact my original me. But... I guess I should tell you. I have had demons sealed in me. "
The three widened their eyes for a few seconds.
Rimuru : " The last demon was identical to me physically. The only difference setting us apart were our eyes. It's were red, whilst mine were golden. Otherwise we were like clones. I didn't know what that was supposed to mean then, but now I know that we were fated. It was fated for us to become one or to be together. Recently I gained their memories, with a bit of their personality. "
Sakura : " W-Wait. Does that mean that that red haired guy was not the only one? And if I remember correctly he called you along with himself a Demon Lord. "
Rimuru : " You're correct. The demon identical to me is named Rimuru Tempest, a Demon Lord. "
Naruto : " Rimuru Tempest? It shared your name even before you two met? "
Rimuru : " Yes. I did not believe it too at first. But it's the truth. It even more indicated that we are one."
Sasuke : " Is the Demon Lord inside of you evil? Is that why you tried to kill us? "
Rimuru : " Let me make one thing clear. I had no intention of ever hurting you even under it's influence. But... "
Rimuru narrowed his eyes and clenched his fist.
Rimuru : " Whether it's evil or not.... I don't know. But I can only hope that It's not. But what I can say for certain is that just like how I gained it's memories and a bit of it's personality it also gained mine. "
Rimuru : " What led me to do what I did was probably it picking up on my emotions of embarrassment and tried to punish you. When I came to my senses, I realized that what I had done was no way ok a punishment for what happened. Then, I had thought that if you didn't die anything was okay. It was also fueled by my desire to help your bonds with one another. I know that traumatic events change people drastically and very easily. And I had hoped that If I staged it correctly I'd make you all better. "
Rimuru : " But that was beyond stupid. I should not have forced you into that. It was never my right to decide. You have every right to hate me after I made you believe that your teammates got killed. I realize my mistake and I wish to remedy it. "
The two narrowed their eyes on Rimuru glaring. Rimuru in response started to shiver slightly. It was his worst nightmare to lose someone close to him due to his actions. Yet he blindly threw his power around and done exactly that. He wished that he could reverse what happened but couldn't. He had no access to his skills from his original body at the moment. But even if he could he wouldn't because if he did he would lose all sense of responsibility and consequences for his actions, leading him down to a very dark path.
Naruto : " Do you know what it's like. " he started coldly.
Naruto : " To lose someone precocious to you. " he clenched his fists and cluttered his teeth.
Naruto : " In the back of my mind. I can still hear the screams of Sakura falling into the infinite abyss going quieter and quieter but never inaudible. "
Sakura : " Can you comprehend the feeling of hopelessness, being completely powerless to right the wrong. The self-loathing. The hate. You being your worst enemy.
Naruto : " The long days of despair. Where you knew that nothing you did would amount to anything. "
Sasuke widened his eyes in shock at the two. He knew those feelings and had gone through them himself. He could not help but pity the two. He looked down at the kneeling Rimuru. He looked into his eyes that seemed distant. tears forming in the corner of his eyes. He realized that Rimuru had too knew those feelings. Hell he knew how that trauma changed people. Meaning that he had to through it more than once.
He compared the two from a few days ago and the two standing before him now. the change was glaringly obvious. It made him think back to his own past. How he came back from the academy one day to find bloodied bodies on the streets and in buildings. The bodies of his friends and distant relatives. And when he ran home, the bodies of his mother and father, laying in a pool of blood being coveted by the figure of his brother and a bloodied sword. the despair he felt. The powerlessness his brother made him feel. The hopelessness of the lives lost then ever coming back. the images of his friends and family still coming back to haunt him.
And the audacity of the reasoning behind the tragedy.
He recognized the hateful glares being sent to Rimuru. They were once like his.
But he did not understand. Why did Rimuru do what he did. In the end, his reason was so that they would get along better. It was never because he was embarrassed by something that happened and simply threw a temper tantrum.
He though back at his old self before the Uchiha slaughter. He was much like Naruto. He was bright, happy, he smiled. Although he was sad due to his father always comparing him to his genius brother, he was like any normal child.
In comparison to him now. He was cold, uncaring, never happy with anything. His drive for revenge motivating him to get stronger. Getting annoyed by almost anything. In a way. He is letting his elder brother torment him to this day without him realizing it. He remembered his exact words. He was playing right into his hands this entire time. He was letting the bastard get what he asked for. He is letting his happy days be taken away by his brother. He thought that his brother must have made him hate for a reason. And to him at this time the reason was that he would never live happily like he did back then. He thought that he simply wanted to take away aspects of his life even further.
He noticed that Naruto and Sakura were both clouded by hatred so much that they completely ignored the fact that nothing in the end happened. That it was all an illusion of sorts. They lost nothing. And if Rimuru was doing this to steer them into the right path of life, though ethically horrendous. It was something that would ultimately even save their lives.
He thought that maybe Rimuru saw himself in them and knew that if they kept going the way they were they were going to face tragedy. So he made them go through a traumatic event that would help them overcome that future while ultimately not hurting them at all and never putting them in danger.
He potentially saved them. Regardless of that, due to the could of hate, they are sending him glares of hatred.
Sakura : " You wish to remedy your mistake? How do you think you can remedy the suffering you put us through. " she stated coldly.
Naruto : " How can you even look at us and say you're sorry. We are not friends anymore. Leave us alone. " he snarled, his blue eyes that reflected the sun like a sea's surface were now like the aquatic depths that had no light to them and were as cold as ice.
Naruto's words struck Rimuru's heart in dead center. His breathing stopped as he listened. Not able to utter a single word through his tears.
Sasuke : " N-Now I know I'll be a hypocrite saying this but. I think that you should calm down. "
The two turned their gazes towards Sasuke who shuttered at the intensity.
Naruto : " You? You?! Are defending him for what he did?! " he growled.
Sakura : " You understand better than this snake what it means to lose someone dear to you. So why are you trying to defend him? " she said in dead calm voice, combined with her gaze it made Sasuke's nerves jump.
Sasuke : " In the end! You didn't lose anything. Neither of you were hurt and in the end came out better than before. Please look at him. Do you not see his feeling? I realize how blind I was before to all of you now. I can see that he understands more than even me those feeling you described. Sure it is absolutely horrendous a way to help our bonds but it was effective wasn't it? " he gulped at the end.
The two kept their eyes on him waiting for him to continue.
Sasuke : " Naruto. The point of your experience was to start seeing the reality. To not be blind to things around you. And in the end you did it. I can tell now that whatever you were before was a mask. To protect you from reality. I don't know why you had it. But Rimuru clearly noticed way before I did. "
Sasuke turned his face to Sakura with a cautious expression.
Sasuke : " Sakura. Rimuru had used an image of Naruto that he hoped Naruto would become when all of it was over and made you acknowledge him. He made you realize how blind you were to him in you obsession over me. And made you realize how weak willed you were when faced with a strong adversary that doesn't hesitate to kill, something you clearly were not prepared for before. And to be honest. When I heard what jutsu you developed to win, I was impressed, no very impressed. "
Sasuke : " He taught you invaluable lessons that can potentially save you in the future, all at the cost of nothing.
Sasuke : " You were not the only ones who he made open their eyes. When I saw your hatred filled eyes falling on Rimuru. And Rimuru's reasons for what he did. Made me thing about my own past. And realized that I'm letting my brother, who murdered my entire clan, torture and shape me to this day, by completely devoting my entire self to vengeance, my life became pain day in day out. I was cold towards everyone, called you trash and completely disregard you. "
Sasuke's body language shifted into a more confident one as the other's expression grew a tinge of surprise.
Sasuke : " But no more! I won't let that wretched bastard take away my life as well! I know your suffering. So I can't tell you to simply forget it. But I can tell you that in time you will be grateful to him in the end. And... " he trailed off.
Sasuke : " Now that I want to have back that cheerful life back that was taken from me. I can't let my team become filled with hatred. Please, hatred will only stain your life. Just like it did mine. "
Sasuke : " Can you please forgive him. Or think of a fitting punishment for him and then forgive him. " he desperately pleaded.
Naruto and Sakura widened their eyes at Sasuke's unusual kindness and consideration.
Rimuru : " T-thank y-ou S-Sasuke " he muttered out in-between sobs and painful lumb in his throat.
Sakura : " Give me some time to think about it. What do you think Naruto? " she turned to him.
Naruto : " I need time to think about this too. I still don't know if I should forgive him for what he did. "
Naruto and Sakura then turned around and walked away from the scene. The corridor turned dead silent with only the sound of quiet sobs permeating through it.
??? : " Good grief. Looks like some big trouble sprung up. " a voice suddenly made itself known behind a corner.
Sasuke : " Kakashi-sensei. "
Kakashi walked over to Sasuke and Rimuru with his hands in his pocket with an impassive expression.
Rimuru : " How much did you hear? "
Kakashi : " Hmmm well to tell you the truth I was here before you all 'came back' "
A moment of complete silence occupied by the sound of the ocean waves hitting the shore as Rimuru stood up from kneeling, his head hung low while his blue hair covered his eyes.
Rimuru : " What do you have planned? "
Kakashi : " Hmmm. It depends. " he replied.
Rimuru turned away from the two facing a nearby window.
Rimuru : " Excuse me. I need to get some fresh air. " he said as he flickered out of the window leaving it open with the curtain fluttering wildly.
Another moment of silence before being broken by Sasuke.
Sasuke : " What does your decision depend on? " he asked.
Kakashi : " Well it depends of you are going to forgive him or not. If not then I will send him back to the academy and put it on his record that he attack a fellow leaf ninja whilst on a mission. "
Sasuke flinched at Kakashi's answer.
Kakashi : " And if they do forgive him then I guess all is water under the bridge. "
Sasuke : " Do you think they are going to? " he asked solemnly.
Kakashi : " Hmmm. I haven't had the pleasure to have to deal with a situation like this before so I'm am unsure of what to do myself. "
Kakashi : " But why do you care? I though you didn't like Rimuru because you felt intimidated by his strength. And would rather have him out of your way. "
Sasuke : " While that is true. I did loath him for being so much ahead of me. "
Kakashi : " Did? "
Sasuke : " But that has changed a few minutes ago. I finally realized what I had to. He made me open my eyes to see what I had become. I have a new goal in life. To live a good life with people that care about me and I care about. In spite of my bastard brother who sought to take that away. Rimuru, I acknowledged to be a genius when It came to getting stronger. So I need him to help me get stronger as well so I can also achieve my secondary goal. "
Kakashi looked at Sasuke with slight surprise.
Kakashi : " Well... I'm glad that you came to that type of conclusion. "
Sasuke : " He even helped Naruto and Sakura become stronger who I considered to be useless. Thanks to him I feel like I can confidently say that I'd like for them to be my teammates. "
Sasuke : " While Rimuru may have not been entirely in fault too. He told us about the Demon Lord inside him. He confessed that he has taken in it's memories and some if it's personality as well. And considering that it was a Demon Lord I'd say that we got a pretty mild outcome. "
Kakashi : " You seem a lot more talkative than usual. "
Sasuke : " It's just that I've began to care about the people beside me. I'm trying to do the exact opposite of what my brother asked me. He asked me to gather hatred inside me and challenge him. Now I realize how stupid I was to follow that man's orders like a mindless slave." he frowned.
Kakashi : ( Heh. And here I though that turning him away from that path would be close to impossible. But Rimuru did it during a single mission. )
Kakashi : " Well I need to go and make sure that my students are ok and resting. You should go to bed as well. "
Sasuke : " Fine. Just... make sure it works out. "
Kakashi : " I'll try. "
Sasuke heaved a sigh and went out of the corridor that they were all previously in.
....
I screwed up....
I was way too careless...
What was I even thinking back then?....
Why did I do what I did?
Why have I not even considered the consequences?!
WHY DID I ABUSE MY POWERS TO HURT THOSE CLOSE TO ME?!!
.
..
...
....
They surely hate me now.....
If I just wasn't so nosey and dug myself into their lives. If I just kept myself in check.
Since when did I think that I had that kind of authority or the right.
<< Master, please stop. >>
Why should I? It's my fault. It's all my fault. Even you can't deny that. Noone can deny it.
<< Master, it is also my fault that I hadn't stopped you in time. >>
Why are you trying to take the blame? You did nothing wrong. Why should you take blame for a bastard like me?
<< Master. Please don't say such things! >>
Am I wrong?! You can clearly see me for what I am! You're the only one who knows me like you do! You know everything about me.
So stop lying to me.
<< I am not the one lying. You are. >>
Lying?! I made those kids suffer!! For what?! A simple temper tantrum! WHAT ELSE DO YOU CALL A PERSON LIKE THAT?!!
There is no room for excuses.
I even downplayed how much of a deal it was.
I though that all it took was an APOLOGY to wipe the slate clean.
<< You're wrong. You did it to prevent a bad future. >>
But that wasn't the first reason was it?
??? : " R...m....u "
What do I do?
Can I even fix this?
??? : " Ri...m...u "
Am I going to screw over all of my other friendships in the future too?!
WHAT'S NEXT?!! AM I GOING TO START KILLING MY FRIENDS FOR FUN?!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
<< Rimuru!! >>
??? : " Rimuru!! "
Rimuru : " Huh? " I silently let out as the voice snapped me out of though.
I found myself leaning against a huge tree deep into the forest. Balled up into the fetus positions with my arms wrapping around my legs. My eyes streaming down tears like a broken hose. My teeth cluttering in uncontrollable cramping. Throat painfully full with two arms firmly placed on both of my shoulders.
I can start to slowly make out the face of the person shaking me to wake me up through the tears.
Rimuru : " K-Kakashi? " I let out weakly.
Kakashi : " Are you ok? "
Rimuru : "........No. "
Kakashi : " What's wrong? " he said as he sat down beside me.
Rimuru : " ....I'm....scared... "
Kakashi : " Scared of how'll they respond? "
Rimuru : " That too. "
Kakashi : " What is the other thing you're scared of? "
Rimuru : " ....M-me.... " I replied solemnly.
Kakashi : " Tell me why. "
Rimuru : " I'm scared that... " stopping due to a painful lumb going up my throat.
He kept his silence till I fought through the pain with tears welling up in my eyes again.
Rimuru : " That I'm going to do even worse in the future. That I'll even go as far as start killing my friends for fun. I'm so god damn scared! "
After I finished saying that, the dead silence of the nigh occupied with the shiver of the leaves being blown by the gentle winds as I tightened the hold of my arms onto my legs. Moments later I felt myself being gently motioned towards Kakashi's by his hand.
He placed my head on his chest and hugged me with his other arm.
At first I was a little weirder out. Seeing as I was a grown adult man crying onto another. But at that moment I didn't care anymore. On the contrary I felt the welcoming warmth pleasant and didn't turn it away.
I was like a child who just had a horrible nightmare.
We remained like that for a few moments which felt like hours.
Kakashi : " It's okay. You can beat it. You just have to think more before you do things. I know that you have enough willpower to not let yourself succumb to those tendencies. " he cooed.
Kakashi : " You can't ever think that it's out of your control. If you think that then it will become a reality. But if you stay confident in yourself and believe that you won't ever be swayed then it will remain a distant bad dream and nothing more. "
.
..
...
He's right....
I'm letting myself get defeated.
When did I become such a coward.
I have to fight 'it' back and not let it get the better of me.... ever.
.
..
...
Rimuru : " Thanks... Kakashi-sensei. " I made myself more comfortable.
It was inexplicable. I felt like my much smaller form needed to stay in his embrace. It was like an instinct. I felt as emotionally vulnerable as a child again.
This shouldn't be happening. But it is. For some unexplainable reason.
Kakashi : " No problem kid. That's what your sensei is for. " he said as he patted my head.
I should feel grossed out by that, but I don't mind it for some reason.
It's like a part of me wanted to be a child right now.
It was weird.
But comforting at the same time.
...
Naruto and Sakura walked back to their rooms and landed on their futons. But couldn't exactly fall asleep due to everything that's been happening. It still required though from them so they couldn't fall asleep just yet.
The both of them knew that the other was awake still mulling over what happened.
Sakura : " Hey, Naruto? "
Naruto : " Yea? "
Sakura : " What do you think about forgiving Rimuru? Do you think you could forgive him? "
Naruto remained silent for a couple moments sorting his thoughts in his mind.
Naruto : " I'm still mad at him. Infuriated even. It was like an act of betrayal of our friendship. I thought I could trust Rimuru. But now I'm having a hard time to find anything trustworthy. "
Sakura : " Yeah. I mean. The reason he did that to us was beyond... well.. you know. "
Naruto : " He did it because of a temper tantrum. " he growled bitterly.
Sakura : " And then had the audacity to think that a simple apology can wash it away. "
Naruto : " I don't know why Sasuke even defended that guy. I mean he went through something like we did too right? He would have understood how painful that is. "
Sakura : " He's been acting like a total jackass to all of us because of it too. And now that we experienced similar he tells us to calm down?
Naruto : " ... "
Sakura : " ... "
Naruto : " For that entire time I've spent in that hell. I mourned you and Sasuke. Every time I woke up the reality of it all smacked me like a sledgehammer would a glass bottle. In the end Figuring out that it was my fault that you died. And how you died Sakura.... " he trailed off as his teeth began to clutter.
Naruto : " Every second I knew that you'd still be out there. Falling and falling. Screaming for help. Suffering the entire time. It was too much from me to stop myself from crying the entire time. "
Sakura : " ... "
Naruto : " ... "
Sakura : " Naruto. " she said gently.
Naruto turned towards her his eyes widening slightly.
Sakura motioned him to come into her futon.
Sakura : " Come here. Let me help you. "
Naruto with slight hesitation stood up and made his way to her.
Naruto : " A-Are you s-sure Sakura? "
Sakura : " Yeah. Now come on "
Naruto obediently snuggled himself inside her futon.
When he got there he was taken by surprise when Sakura placed her arms around him and pulled him closer to her.
Sakura : " I'm here. And I'm alright, so please stop worrying. " she patted him on the head.
Naruto couldn't help but to let out a silent cry, heard by Sakura, as he placed his hand around her as well.
Naruto : " I...I-I though I lost everyone. "
Sakura : " It's fine now, don't worry. Everyone is fine. And you are back. "
Sakura : " I though I lost you too. Due to my own weakness. " she began to tear up.
They both tightened the hold they had on each other and remained like that for a couple of minutes which felt like hours.
They felt the cold ocean wind slip past their faces and hit their nose with the smell of salt and nature of the forest combined. The moon's glimmer silently and gently letting itself in through the crevice's of the window curtains. The silent night enveloping them and their sadness.
The quiet was abruptly broken by the sound of a suggestive whistle of a voice too familiar to them.
Kakashi : " You guys sure move fast huh? "
The two groaned at their teachers comment.
Sakura : " It's isn't like that and you know that. "
Naruto : " Bakashi. "
Kakashi : " Hehehe... well I know. I can tell. "
Naruto : " Why are you here? "
Kakashi : " Well I came here to get your opinions. But I heard anyway so I don't need to ask anymore. Instead I wanted to show you something. "
Sakura : " Show us something? "
Kakashi : " Well. You're not the only one who is hurting on the inside. "
Naruto : " Is Sasuke as well? "
Kakashi : " No. It's Rimuru. "
Sakura and Naruto collectively scoffed.
Sakura : " That guy has nothing to be hurt about. "
Kakashi : " Hmmm. I wouldn't dismiss that just yet. "
Sakura : " What do you mean Kakashi? "
Kakashi : " Well I think you should come and see for yourself. " he motioned them to follow him.
The two reluctantly obliged and got up from their futon and followed Kakashi out of the house and into the woods.
Kakashi : " We should pick up pace if we hope to reach them by today. "
Naruto tilted his head in confusion. "
Naruto : " Why is that? "
Kakashi : " Well, Rimuru is a tad faster and has more stamina than us. So I think his heart led him pretty far away from here as a result. Follow me. " he commanded.
The three then proceeded to flicker into the depths of the forest.
After a few miles they suddenly stopped at the giant tree.
The two genin took a few seconds to look around themselves and spotted that under the tree there was both Kakashi and Rimuru sitting there next to each other.
Kakashi : " Just sit down somewhere around here and don't make a sound. " he commanded
We obeyed and stayed silent watching the other Kakashi and Rimuru sitting next to each other.
Once it was quiet they could hear their conversation clearly.
Rimuru : " ....I'm....scared... "
'Kakashi' : " Scared of how'll they respond? "
Rimuru : " That too. "
'Kakashi' : " What is the other thing you're scared of? "
Rimuru : " ....M-me.... " He replied solemnly.
'Kakashi' : " Tell me why. "
Rimuru : " I'm scared that... " he abruptly stopped as tears began to well up in his eyes.
Rimuru : " That I'm going to do even worse in the future. That I'll even go as far as start killing my friends for fun. I'm so god damn scared! "
Naruto and Sakura silently gasped at Rimuru's statement. They couldn't believe their ears. How could he even say that he would kill one he considers a friend simply for the fun of it?
Kakashi noticing their expressions of disbelief tries to reason with them.
Kakashi : " Do you remember? Sasuke told me that Rimuru has a Demon Lord sealed inside of him. And it has been affecting his thoughts and judgement. He is scared that it would affecting him so much that it would one day get to that point. " he explained.
The two silently listened to Kakashi's explanation. And were now waiting for what is to come next.
They watched as 'Kakashi' pulled Rimuru close to him in order to hug him. And saw how Rimuru clung to him like a little child who's just had a nightmare.
'Kakashi' : " You can't ever think that it's out of your control. If you think that then it will become a reality. But if you stay confident in yourself and believe that you won't ever be swayed then it will remain a distant bad dream and nothing more. " he told Rimuru.
A few minutes of silence passed before Rimuru spoke up again.
Rimuru : " Thanks... Kakashi-sensei. "
'Kakashi' : " No problem kid. That's what your sensei is for. "
'Kakashi' then started patting Rimuru's head.
.
..
...
Rimuru : " How you dealt with something like this before? " he asked.
'Kakashi' : " Well... no. Your case is truly unique, due to the fact that for your age you are too powerful. But don't get me wrong, having power isn't a bad thing. It depends on how you use it. It's maybe that you just gained it too quickly for you to catch up. "
Rimuru : " No I mean... have you had to deal with the quilt of hurting your friends? "
Kakashi : " .... "
Kakashi remained silent but silence alone gave Rimuru enough of an answer.
Rimuru : " And then have to deal with the possible reaction of your other friends or the people who know you. "
Kakashi : " ... "
Rimuru : " ... "
Rimuru : " I understand. You don't want to open old wounds. "
Kakashi : " No. I'll tell you. "
Kakashi : " This eye of mine, the sharingan, wasn't originally mine. It belonged to a teammate of mine that had been killed in action. His right side of the body was crushed under a rock. He had given me his left sharingan as a present. And made me promise to protect our other teammate. A girl named Rin. However later, when out on a mission, she got kidnapped. The enemy had planned to seal a tailed beast inside her and let her back to Konoha to unseal the beast later and possibly destroy the hidden leaf. She knew this. I came to rescue her. But... " he trailed off.
Kakashi : " I ended up killing her. She jumped in front om my attack to make sure that the beast inside her never got to us. Every time I think about my promise with Obito, I'm filled with this unbearable quilt and regret. "
Rimuru : " How did the others react? "
Kakashi : " Well they were sad that Rin was dead. But noone really blamed me for it in the end. I was my own biggest enemy back then. "
Rimuru : " I can see that you're still bothered by it. Even now. You still had not enough time to heal those scars had you? "
Kakashi : " ...No. " he replied solemnly.
Rimuru : " Just like you. I want to take things back. Make them right. But I can't. I don't think that they are going to forgive me. I saw it in their eyes. Their tone. Their hate seeped out of every pore in their bodies. They have every right to be mad at me. After what I had done to them. "
Kakashi lightly nodded.
Kakashi : " I imagine that Obito if he knew, would hate me too. Hell, I wouldn't be surprised if he tried to kill me on the spot. "
Rimuru : " I screwed up. It's all my fault. If I had just been more mindful of my actions. This would never have happened. "
Kakashi : " Well. You know how you should go forward. You can make sure it never happens again. "
Rimuru : " Yes. But our bonds will never go back to how they were. "
Kakashi : " I think that they would be willing to reconcile.
Rimuru : " How can you be so sure. " he said with slight venom in his voice.
Kakashi : " Well. They wouldn't have stayed in that bush next to us if they didn't consider it. "
Rimuru : " What?!!! " he panicked with a scent of fear in his voice as he shot his head up in an instant almost hitting Kakashi's chin but luckily for him he dodged before it could happen.
Seconds after, shuffling of the leaves was heard and Rimuru's head cocked right onto it.
Out came out Naruto, Sakura and Kakashi. Rimuru immediately stood up, his eyes alert.
Rimuru : " G-guys. " he let out weakly.
The two genin only looked at him. And didn't say anything. Their silence was broken apart by their sensei.
Kakashi : " Well... What do you think Naruto, Sakura. Do you think you can bring yourself to trust Rimuru again? " he placed his arms on both of their shoulders from behind.
There was silence again. Rimuru couldn't bring himself to speak to them despite his needs to explain himself.
Kakashi : " Rimuru. Can you guarantee that what happened is never going to repeat itself? Can you guarantee that you won't ever lash out in such intensity as you did? "
Rimuru took a couple of moments to collect himself and showed a serious expression. He kneeled down to one knee with his right fist on the ground and his head low.
Rimuru : " I promise that I will never hurt you again. I promise that I will hold myself back from now on. I promise that I'll be better. " he vowed.
.
..
...
Kakashi : " Well. What do you think guys? " he asked his two genin.
Naruto + Sakura : " ... "
Naruto : " We'll go with Sasuke's suggestion and think of a punishment for you. "
Sakura : " We'll see after that. "
.
..
...
Sakura : " I'll go first. I get 3 hits on you. And you'll promise to train me. "
Rimuru stood up ready to face Sakura.
Sakura stepped forward and cocked her fist back. Trying to recall how her punches had more power to them and launched it at Rimuru.
Sakura's fist collided with Rimuru's left cheek and launched him with a shockwave into the giant tree he's been sitting under with Kakashi.
Naruto and Kakashi stood there wide eyed at Sakura's new found power.
Rimuru struggled back up while he coughed up blood securing himself by leaning his back on the tree while panting heavily.
Sakura made her way slowly towards Rimuru again for her second hit.
Sakura : " That was for me. "
Sakura cocked back her fist again and struck Rimuru in the gut this time as another shockwave rushed out into the woods and made the three behind Rimuru crack.
All four of them heard Rimuru's ribs break as he coughed even more blood than before.
Sakura took a look into his eyes to look for what his expression was. If he showed fear or hesitation or anger, she would never forgive him afterwards.
But was pleasantly surprised to see that Rimuru had a face of determination, she saw it in his eyes that he intended to take his punishment without complaints in order to make up for his mistakes and therefore she was set on forgiving him.
Kakashi and Naruto also saw his expression which lit up the spark of hope for them.
Sakura came up a few feet in front of Rimuru and lowered herself into a stance and prepared a thrusting kick into Rimuru's ribcage.
The soundwave rocked the forest with a heavy grunt from Rimuru who had his ribcage shattered and his body sent flying along with the giant tree that had shattered into pieces.
Kakashi flickered next to him to check his condition.
Kakashi : " Rimuru! You need to treat you wound before you die! " he urged.
Rimuru looked towards Sakura who gave him a nod.
Rimuru then began his treatment of his wounds.
The process took him 30 minutes to heal completely without permanent damage.
Kakashi was impressed by the level of Rimuru's medical ninjutsu and praised him in his mind.
Rimuru weakly stood up and looked towards Sakura with an expectant look.
Sakura smiled at him gently which lightened up Rimuru's expression.
Naruto : " Don't be happy just yet. I still have my punishment of choice. " he said.
Rimuru remained silent and watched Naruto walk up right next to him with only few inches separating them.
Naruto : " For your punishment.... I want you to transform into what I showed you and Konohamaru that one time and let me touch your breasts for 10 whole seconds. " he said with a foxy grin.
Sakura looked at him in disbelief and Rimuru was taken by surprise which turned into anger but subsided.
Sakura : " Naruto! You can't be serious!! " she raged.
Naruto closely watched Rimuru's reaction and noticed immediately the anger building up in Rimuru.
Rimuru once again showed a serious expression and put his hands together for a seal.
Rimuru was flooded with embarrassment as he used the jutsu.
Rimuru : < Transform >
Rimuru kept his current clothes but changed their shape so that they would fit. And changed his appearance to a woman with long sky blue locks and piercing golden eyes, spotless smooth skin and small lips, and as tall as Kakashi. "Rimuru's" chest easily reached H cup. Thin waist and a nice and wide bottom.
Naruto knew that at this point he was prodding a sleeping lion. But that was why this type of punishment was perfect for this situation as it would test Rimuru's limits to not blow his lid.
If Rimuru resisted doing anything to him the entire time or after that he would forgive Rimuru. And not if Rimuru didn't.
If he could do that while suffering this type of humiliation which he knew was the worst he could pick for Rimuru, then he can trust him in the future without issue.
Sakura : " Naruto! Please pick a different punishment! This is going too far! " she pleaded with him.
Naruto : " No. This is absolutely necessary. And besides. He went overboard on us too. " he replied
Sakura could not say nothing against his retort and remained silent.
Naruto then turned to Rimuru and asked.
Naruto : " Ready? "
Rimuru took a deep breath and sighed loudly.
Rimuru : " Y-Yes... " he reluctantly replied.
[ WARNING. IT'S DETAILED AHEAD ]
Naruto then wasted no time and spilled his hands under Rimuru's shirt. The latter winced a little but suppressed it right away the moment Naruto's hand touched his belly sending a chilling sensation through him.
Naruto slowly made his way up and stopped right as he was about to reach his goal.
Naruto took a few moments to collect himself and start his internal counter.
And at that moment his hands slid up and his fingers covered Rimuru's breasts as much as they could.
Naruto's eyes widened at the sensation and could not help but feel a little rush. He felt the smooth skin, warmth and fullness on his fingers.
Kakashi and Sakura took note of Rimuru's constantly changing expressions from anger to embarrassment to flustered as his cheeks kept getting redder and redder.
Naruto wasted no time and started to explore their shape further, taking in every inch of them. After 3 seconds Naruto's fingers took note of Rimuru's nipples and decided to circle them in a clockwise motion on one and counterclockwise on the other.
Rimuru's expression intensified as his face was redder and redder by the second.
On the 5th second Naruto started to pinch Rimuru's nipples which made Rimuru make a few incoherent sounds that noone could make out any meaning of.
After a second Naruto's hands went back to the base of the breasts and started to squeeze and pull his hand towards himself squeezing Rimuru's nipples on the way and stretching them out farther.
Rimuru accidentally let out more louder voices through his clenched teeth.
Naruto pulled like that for another 8 times, 4 on each breast until time was up.
Exactly as the mark was up Naruto remembered to quickly disengage his hands out of under Rimuru's shirt.
[ Details gone. ]
When done, Rimuru was left there panting. Sending a glare towards the blond.
Rimuru however also took note of Naruto's serious expression and alert. Like he expects Rimuru to attack him any second.
Rimuru figured that much like the first punishment. This was a test to see if he would lose it again. And thus Rimuru resisted and stopped glaring at Naruto.
After a few seconds Rimuru finally calmed down and looked at Naruto with a serious expression. After a few seconds of staring at each other Naruto smiled and put up a thumbs up for Rimuru.
Rimuru's expression turned to relief.
Sakura : " Well... that makes us even. Let's get along better now ok? " she lend out a hand.
Naruto did the same as the three shook hands and smiled at each other.
Kakashi was just left standing there along with his clone with a nosebleed and bloodshot eyes wide open like they were about to pop out of their sockets.
Sakura : " Hey Kakashi-sensei! If you're done with whatever you have on your mind right now we are going back! " she shouted.
Kakashi quickly snapped out of his thoughts.
Kakashi : " Y-Yeah. Let's go. "
...
Back at Tazuna's house was Sasuke who is currently laying in his futon. Not yet fallen asleep still mulling over the happening of tonight.
The moon shone brightly at the peak of midnight.
He opened his eyes and sat up from his futon when he heard the sound of footsteps coming towards him.
He looked and saw Naruto, Sakura, Kakashi and Rimuru come out from behind the corner.
Sasuke walked over to them.
Sasuke : " How did it go? " He asked Kakashi.
Kakashi : " Well as you can see it ended up fine. "
Sasuke narrowed his eyes at the bloodstains on Kakashi's mask under his nose and black marks of blood puddles on Rimuru's clothes.
Sasuke : " You said fine? " he motioned over to their bloody clothes.
Kakashi : " Well stuff happened but, don't worry about it. "
Naruto : " Yeah. We're even now. " he said with a smile and a trace of blushing on his cheeks.
Sakura : " Some people enjoyed that way too much however. " she glared at Naruto and Kakashi.
Sasuke : " What about Rimuru? "he asked.
Rimuru : " Oh I just got sent through a giant tree that's all. " he scratched the behind of his head.
Sasuke : " By who? I can't imagine anyone being able to overpower you. "
Rimuru pointed his finger towards Sakura, Sasuke's eyes widened.
Sasuke : " You mean Sakura? " he asked surprised as he pointed a finger.
Rimuru : " Well. Turns out. She figured out the secret behind my strong punches without being a medical nin. "
Sakura : " I don't like saying it but it was thanks to you who pushed me beyond my limits. And I'm looking for more from you from now on as you promised. "
Sasuke : " Promised what? "
Rimuru : " That I'd train her. "
Sasuke : " I'll be asking you to do that too in the near future. "
Rimuru : " Sure. After all I want my teammates to be able to defend themselves. That includes you Naruto as well. But let me warn you. " his face turned serious.
Rimuru : " I'm not going to hold back on training you. You may find my methods cruel or insane. So I need to tell you that. Take what happened from before as an example. I won't be looking to traumatize you anymore since it wouldn't work when you're aware. But I need to keep in mind that my training is going to be hell. " he said sternly.
Rimuru : " Only come to me for training when you're ready to face it. Do you understand? "
Sasuke + Sakura + Naruto : " Yeah! We won't hold it against you. " they said in unison.
Rimuru smiled.
Rimuru : " Thanks. And sorry guys. " he said with genuine honesty.
Naruto : " Hey. It's fine now. So we don't talk about this again ok? "
Naruto : " Speaking of. Do you want to share a futon again Sakura-chan? " he said with sparkles in his eyes.
Sasuke : " W-What? " he let out utterly confused.
Sakura : " After seeing how you violated Rimuru right before me, no thank you. " she said coldly.
Naruto : " C'mon Sakura! You know I would never dare to do that to you. " he pleaded.
Sakura : " How'd you even know how to do what you did you creep. "
Sasuke : " Do what? " he half shouted in confusion as he looked over to Rimuru.
Rimuru only averted his face with a visible blush as crossed his hands in front of his chest.
Kakashi : " I'll show you. " he said as he activated his sharingan and put Sasuke under a quick genjutsu.
Once done, Sasuke was left utterly speechless with wide eyes and looked with great disappointment at Naruto.
Rimuru : " Can we please just forget about it please? " he pleaded.
Sakura : " Yeah. We are all already over it. Let's just go to bed. " she suggested.
The four then went ahead and laid down on their futons and within minutes slept.
....
<< Looks like it resolved well master. >>
<< Although I regret I was not able to comfort you just like Kakashi had. I figured that if I appeared it would only cause trouble down the line. >>
I breathed in deep and exhaled.
Ciel. You have to promise me, that if I somehow act out of turn again and not stop myself. That you take over and stop me from doing anything I'd regret.
<< That goes without saying master. >>
This entire event just has my nerves constantly streched out. I'm tired.
Now we relax and take it easy for a while.
Because thanks to Kakashi. I can see the rays of hope ahead again.
Funny how I am essentially ten times his age and yet I acted like a child in his arms.
<< In terms of age. You are essentially an infant compared to the other Demon Lord and especially the True Dragons. Not to mention Veldanava. >>
Maybe. I think I get why I am undergoing such changes.
<< Do you, master? >>
Yes but. I don't know how to explain it. All I know is that I have to stand firm so that it goes without problems from now on.
<< There is nothing you can't accomplish, master. >>
<< Now you should go ahead and sleep so you can refresh your mind. Good nigh∼ >>
Rimuru : " Good night. " I said out loud as I felt my consciousness think out and fall into the dark embrace of the night.
...
Rays of the rising sun shone onto my eyelids waking me up.
The air smelled wonderful. The nice breeze of the ocean and forest in the morning. If there was anything good about living in this place right now it would definitely be the smell of air.
I supported myself with my arms behind my back as I sat up and looked over to my teammates.
They all were still sleeping soundly.
Not wanting them to wake up I silently stood up and opened a mirror that lead into the kitchen.
Why the kitchen? To cook breakfast of course.
I still had leftover eggs and indegridients. I can make all of us some good scrambled eggs.
While I was back at the village I made sure to bring with me back a bar of butter if the situation ever required it.
I heated up the stove and brought out the pan. Then I cut the butter and put it in. I'm using the butter as a base for the eggs.
Once the butter is halfway melted and the pan is coated with it's melted liquid state, I crack enough eggs for all of us and put them into the pan.
I needed to get enough eggs for 8 people. And if I wanna make 4 eggs for everyone to have enough energy for today I needed 32 eggs in total.
Luckily I had enough from the leftovers form the previous feat I made back at the village center.
I made a clone to assist me by cutting up onions into cubes and dumped it into the nearly cooked eggs while another seasoned them with salt and pepper.
I also had leftover 4 marinated meat slabs that I put on a grill along with 32 pieces of bacon
When the eggs were done I put them on 8 separate plates and added freshly picked herbs to all of them.
The strong smell of the cooked marinated meat permeated through the room and made it's way around the house slowly.
While doing that I roasted some bread to make toasts and put the remaining butter on them.
I cut up cucumber, tomatoes and some radish. and placed them on the plates. Along with some salad.
After the meat was done I cut up the 4 meats into 8 and placed them on each plate. After I added the bacon that had taken on the leftover sauce of the marinated meat, I poured the remaining sauce on all plates equally.
Right as I finished I cleaned all the cooking tools and pans and put them back into the drawers when I heard a pair of footsteps make their way down the stair when stopping abruptly.
I heard the person in question take a couple of sniffs and hum in delight.
The footsteps continue and out of the corner came out Kakashi.
Kakashi : " You're up early. And what's all this? It smells good. "
Rimuru : " A little breakfast I prepared for us all. "
Kakashi nodded after seeing the 8 plates all spread on the table.
Kakashi took a look at my face for a couple seconds which confused me.
Rimuru : " Is there something on my face? "
It could be possible that I accidentally got something on my face while cooking so that's maybe why he is staring.
Kakashi : " No. It's just you're noticeably brighter than every other time I saw you. "
Oh. Well I've had a good mood since Naruto and Sakura forgave me. I'm grateful that they chose to give me another chance which I thought I had lost forever.
Rimuru : " Is that so? " I simply replied.
Kakashi : " Should I go and wake up the others? before the food gets cold? " he asked.
I nodded and he went back upstairs and after a few minutes I heard a set of footsteps walking down and stopping abruptly.
??? : " Whoaah what's this smell?! " a voice I can recognize as Naruto's
??? : " What is this?! " I heard Inari exclaim.
??? : " Hmm something smells great. " I heard Tazuna.
Rimuru : " Well you come down and eat before it gets cold. Or would you rather stick with the smell instead? " I teased.
Naruto and Inari instantly ran down the stairs in hurry to sit at the table. After them came Sakura, Sasuke, Kakashi, Tazuna and Tsunami.
Naruto And Inari stared at the food with stars in their eyes while in their seats.
Tsunami : " Whoah. Looks good too. "
Rimuru : " Thanks. I decided to use the leftovers I had from before. "
Sakura : " Emm. Not to ruin the mood but. Isn't it a little much? "
Rimuru : " I'd say to stop worrying about your figure because since you're a ninja you're bound to burn everything away anyway. Especially under my training. "
Sakura : " I guess you're right. It looks too good anyway to not eat everything. " she mused.
Rimuru : " Well sit down everyone. " I motioned them to their seats.
When we sat down and started eating, we were too busy with the food to ask any questions during breakfast.
After everyone finished I put all the dishes together into the sink.
Rimuru : " Are you going to the bridge Tazuna? " I asked.
Tazuna : " You bet. I'm not about to lose that race now I? " he smirked with a foxy grin.
Rimuru : " Sure then. Be careful and break a leg. "
Tazuna went out of the front door.
Rimuru : " Tsunami could you please go with Inari and give us a moment of privacy? "
Tsunami : " Sure, come Inari. " she obliged and headed back up stairs with Inari in tow.
My teammates raised a confused eyebrow at me, waiting for what is about to happen next.
I don't know where this need came from, but I feel like I needed to do this.
Rimuru : " Come closer all of you please. "
They stepped closer but not close enough
Rimuru : " Closer. "
They reluctantly stepped closer.
Rimuru : " Closer. " I repeated.
Now they were almost hugging each other. But not close enough.
Rimuru : " Closer. "
Kakashi : " Ne, Rimuru I think we are already close enough. "
I furrowed my eyes.
Rimuru : " Closer. " I commanded.
They reluctantly obliged.
And now that they were all clone enough, I wrapped my hands around all of them and hugged them all collectively.
I like them all very much. After all that happened, I regreted being harsh to them for almost no reason at all before, that and what happened yesterday. Yet despite that they accepted me again.
They all looked at me flustered.
Rimuru : " Thank you. For accepting me again. I love you all. "
Platonically of course.
I could feel their tension disappear when I said that and hugged me back.
Rimuru : " Naruto. I need to speak to you. You all can stay if you want. " I said as I broke the hug.
Naruto : " What about? "
Rimuru : " Your 'mask' " I said and he instantly furrowed his eyes.
Rimuru : " I knew you had it. That was why I went to such lengths to break it. Because I know that deep down you are capable and intelligent. You created the mask so that you didn't think about what the others said to you. You intentionally made yourself act stupid in a way. It was a way to run away from the pain. "
Naruto didn't reply, nor did he disprove.
Sakura : " Run away from the pain? " she asked confused and worried.
Rimuru : " Kakashi. I think that It's time that they know the truth. Naruto too. "
Naruto's ears perked up at hearing something about the truth. He wanted to hear it too.
Kakashi : " Fine. It would have to come eventually. "
Kakashi : " Naruto is the container of the Nine Tailed Fox. "
Sasuke's eyes widen as do Naruto's while Sakura audibly gasps.
Sakura : " You mean that monster that almost destroyed Konoha? "
Kakashi nodded.
Kakashi : " The third wanted for Naruto to be seen as a hero who keeps the Kyuubi out of the village. But the villagers instead think that Naruto is an incarnation of the fox demon. So they treated him poorly ever since the secret somehow got out. Noone knew who spilled it. The Hokage told only select few and put a shush order under the pretense of execution. Yet it somehow got out. "
Rimuru : " Treated poorly is an understatement Kakashi. They made him suffer. And to protect himself Naruto made this mask that prevented him from perceiving reality. " I said as I hugged Naruto.
Rimuru : " But now. I want you to know that you don't need it anymore. You have friends who care about you more than ever. And I believe that you'll make the villagers change their minds about you. "
Naruto : " To be honest... I'm not sure If I can forgive them first. They beat me, sent hateful glares, Called a monster or demon, made sure that their kids also stayed away from me. I don't know if I can forgive them despite that.
Rimuru : " But now you can look ahead to a bright future. "
Naruto tilted his head in confusion.
Rimuru : " If I learned anything. Then I'd say that gratitude is the best way to connect people. I know that if you extend that helping hand without punishing them. They will eventually find themselves with guilt. And through that they will become better. "
Naruto : " Where did you learn this from. "
Rimuru : " That's how the Demon Lord rules his lands. " I state.
The others gawked at me.
Rimuru : " I said that I act evil under it's influence. But as a matter of fact. It's not even it's fault. The Demon Lord is not one in title. But body and spirit. Not personality or ego. What I am under the effect of, is it's aura. Sure. It has it's tendencies. But over all they are not a bad person. "
Kakashi : " Have you... spoken to them? "
Rimuru : " Yes I have. And that was when I learned who they were. I learned why was I acting differently yesterday when I had fallen asleep. And now that I know the cause I can more easily defend against it. "
Rimuru : " But back to Naruto. Yes, you need to be the one to extend you kindness to them and swallow your pains. I know that It's unfair to ask that of you. But that is how it is going to be if you want to change things for the better. "
Naruto : " I'll try that.. then... " he reluctantly said.
Rimuru : " And cheer up! " I half shouted with a pout.
Naruto turned to me a little startled but then laughed. After that he showed the first genuine smile of his true self. It almost made my heart melt.
My pout became a genuine smile too as I hugged him more.
Rimuru : " That's it. You don't have to hide anymore. "
The others watched us with smirks plastered on their faces.
Rimuru : " What are you looking at?! "
Kakashi : " Nothing. Just that you two look cute together is all."
Rimuru : " Don't go saying stuff like that! It sound super weird when put out of context! " I half shout at him.
Sakura : " It's just nice seeing you. " she added.
Sasuke : " Naruto being smart? Now you have me intrigued. " he stated.
Rimuru : " Whatever. We need to get out too so we can finish the bridge. And on that. You don't have to help me. Kakashi can instead of lazing around train you guys. Ain't that right. " I slightly glare at Kakashi.
Kakashi : " Sure. I'll se what we can improve on. " he nodded.
And with that we set out on our merry way.
I used the flicker jutsu to get to the construction site. Looking at the bridge I still have quite the work set out for me. Fortunately I knew how to get around it.
Rimuru : << Multi Shadow Clone Jutsu >>
I made around a hundred clones appear in front of me and started to delegate jobs for each of them.
At one point Tazuna came to check up on my progress and was left stupefied when he saw the large number of Rimuru's working on the bridge diligently. I just smirked at his expression and he left back to his work in a huff. Then I heard a distant yelling thinking that that was probably Tazuna barking out orders as fast as he can to catch up to me.
Meanwhile I used my free time to go and check on how the others are doing.
Once I found them I sat down in the tree and observed them.
Naruto was using a large number of clones that were sparring with each other to try and get his wobbly martial arts up to speed.
Sakura was doing physical training and was sweating bullets.
Sasuke on the other hand was sparring with Kakashi.
Sakura needed to get physically stronger asap no matter how you looked at it.
Naruto was also working on his biggest weakness.
And Sasuke was trying to get more actual battle experience. They both had their sharingans activates so I assume that they were practicing that.
...
The rest of the days were the same. We woke up, had breakfast and went to either train or work on repairing the bridge.
Now that I think about it wasn't there one more person with the one's that I killed with pure killing intent but somehow survived?
<< Yes. There was that shark man. >>
Ah yes. Well he ran for his dear life and he wasn't so involved as the others so I won't dwell on him surviving.
I also got to spend time with the Ice dragons from before. They are a precious bunch.
I also made sure they could step out of the waters, by completing their dragon bodies
Once out I got smothered by all 6 of them. Luckily the ice they had wasn't cold otherwise I'd be an icicle.
I told them to go out and claim territory for themselves.
Now that I have a chance to ask this. But why are they still here?
<< It is due to your ability. You can effectively make living creatures using it. >>
I see. So that means that these little guys won't be going away anytime soon. I might as well turn them into summoning animals.
<< They can also learn to intake nature chakra as well. In fact they have already begun absorbing it from their surrounding.
That's great! But who would be their boss?
<< None of them. >>
Why?
<< There is a better candidate. >>
And who might that be?
<< That is a surprise for master later. >>
Also I heard that summons usually go inro their own worlds. How am I going to get them there?
<< Master should try to reverse summon them into a random location and they will take care of the rest. >>
Ok but I'll do that later I still don't want to say goodbye to them.
The days went by one by one. The others got a lot better while I finished before Tazuna.
He was fuming so much that he turned into a tomato. It was funny seeing.
They named the bridge "The Great Rimuru Bridge"
Rimuru : ( That moniker is never going to leave me is it. ) I chuckled.
<< Master is simply great! >> she chimed in.
I also took Zabuza's sword with me. I might use it or not. But once I revive him he's going to want it back.
On the last day there We threw a big party to celebrate and got sent off by Inari with tears pouring out of both his eyes and Naruto's.
And like that, the mission is officially over.