Chapter 42: Respite
Though his clone only lasted for a few minutes, it was able to carry Wu well over a hundred kilometers before depositing him in a small nook he had scouted weeks prior. Wu didn’t truly trust anyone, so, during his many cuddle sessions with Tayuya, he had his clones preparing secondary and tertiary bases he could retreat to if shit hit the fan.
Fortunately, while the Land of Lightning was known for its mountains, it was equally famous for its hot springs. Wu had discovered quite a few in his search for a Chakra mineral vein, so his clone placed him into one that had a particularly high concentration of Chakra. The moment he was fully submerged, the wounds on his body began to heal at a rate visible to the naked eye, permitting him to awaken mere minutes later.
“Ugh…”
Cradling his head, Wu immediately activated his Mystical Monkey’s Palm, alleviating the intense pressure that made his skull feel like it was going to crack open. Black Lightning was an order of magnitude more powerful than regular Lightning-infused attacks, so Wu had sustained significantly more damage than he expected. His unique constitution would allow him to recover in just a few hours, but that was several times longer than his usual recovery time.
Intending to pay the Raikage another visit later that evening, Wu closed his eyes and focused on his recovery. He wasn’t upset by Kumo’s reaction to his rather brazen entry attempt, but he also wasn’t the type to let even minor slights go unpunished. A had attempted to kill him and very nearly succeeded, so Wu intended to keep badgering the man until his eventual departure from the Land of Lightning…
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Seeing the destruction wrought by his and Saiko Dadi’s brief encounter, A couldn’t help feeling responsible. He didn’t regret his attempt to kill the boy, but his inability to end the battle immediately resulted in the village sustaining more significant damage than the previous two wars combined. He had the Engineering Corps working tirelessly to repair the damage and strengthen their defenses, but Konoha wasn’t the only one to suffer from the slaughter of the Uzumaki Clan. Kumo would recover, but it would take months, potentially even years, to mend some of the seals that had been damaged…
Far more troubling than the physical damage the village had sustained, it was the loss of trust that weighed most heavily on A’s mind. If the people lost faith in the village, they would begin to leave en masse. The Lightning Daimyo would also view their failure to protect their home as an indication of weakness or ineptitude. Even if he didn’t, the faction that opposed the very existence of Kumo was bound to make a fuss, severely reducing their funding at a time when they needed it the most.
Exhaling a weighty sigh, A appeared to age several years in an instant as he asked, “Which Teams were we sending to the Chunin Exams this year? We’ll need to make a show of force if we are to rekindle the confidence of our Sponsors…”
As the Chunin Exams weren’t even in the top ten of her priorities at the moment, Mabui found herself caught off guard by the Raikage’s question. Fortunately, he didn’t hold her accountable, his voice uncharacteristically calm as he added, “No matter…just see to it we have at least a few Aces in the group. Securing first place when the exams are in a foreign nation is probably impossible, but I want at least two people in the Finals…”
Bowing slightly, Mabui replied, “I’ll see to it immediately following the video conference with the Lightning Daimyo.”
“Nn…”
As he didn’t have anything else to say, at least for the time being, A just stared out over Kumo with a profound, contemplative expression on his face. Wu’s power was far from the legends that had dominated the First and Second Great Shinobi Wars, but his young age and desire for battle implied he would get there eventually. A doubted the practicality of the notion, but if he could sway the boy into joining Kumo’s camp, the other Shinobi Nations wouldn’t know what hit them…
Nearly as soon as that thought had crossed the Raikage’s mind, an alarm began sounding throughout the village, the result of him ordering them to remain on high alert. Shortly after that, Darui and C burst into his office, the latter appearing more than a little disquieted as he shouted, “Raikage-sama! Saiko Dadi has returned…!”
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Deciding to play things a little safer this time around, Wu had one of his clones follow his original path while he, alongside several hundred of his clones, invaded the skies above the village. His clones shared the same ‘signature’ as himself, so even if Kumo’s Jinchurik could sense him, they would need to figure out which of the ant-sized entities he was.
Matching Wu’s expectations, the Raikage, alongside another muscular, blond-haired man, showed up to confront his clone. This time, however, the Raikage didn’t immediately attack. His expression was just as fierce as before, but he lacked his Lightning Cloak as he asked, “How is it you were you able to recover so quickly? You took a direct hit from mine and Darui’s Black Lightning Darkness Dragon. You shouldn’t even be alive, much less in perfect condition…”
Shrugging his shoulders, Wu’s repeated the usual, “I’m just built different. Now, ready for round two…?”
Answering in the Raikage’s stead, the goatee’d man standing next to him began to gesticulate wildly, stating, “Yo, yo! Why you gotta come around here actin’ a fool? Can’t you see my main man’s trying to keep his cool? Ya fool, ya tool.”
Furrowing his brows, Wu’s clone threatened, “The next time you open your mouth and speak in such a ridiculous manner, I’m graffitiing ‘ya fool, ya tool’ on every surface in the village.”
Undaunted by the clone’s words, Bee was about to respond with another rhyme when A held up his arm, a steely expression on his face as he said, “Not right now, Bee…”
Raising his hands in a gesture of mock surrender, Bee took a step back and elected to remain silent while A turned his attention back to Wu and admitted, “Now isn’t a good time for our rematch. I have a meeting with the Lightning Daimyo, and the village is in chaos after your most recent attack. Give me a few days to sort things out, and I’ll gladly accept your challenge. Just nowhere near the village…”
After hearing from Yugito that the only thing Saiko Dadi desired was a good challenge, A attempted to appeal to the boy’s ‘sensibilities.’ There was a chance Dadi would just refuse his request, but, with the state the village was in, it would be negligent of him not to try a more ‘diplomatic’ approach.
Surprising and relieving the Raikage, the clone didn’t need to consider his response before answering, “Sure, I don’t see a problem with that. It’s not as though I came here to attack your village. In fact, before you so rudely tried to give me a haircut, I was coming here to inform your people that I would soon be departing the Land of Lightning. Color me surprised when the Raikage himself came out to ‘greet’ me…”
Hearing Wu’s ‘admission,’ a bit of color drained from A’s usually healthy brown face. He still thought he did the right thing by at least attempting to eliminate the person that had been targeting his subordinates, but the cost of his failure…
Exhaling a wearied sigh, the Raikage shook his head and muttered, “So that’s how it is…” before meeting the clone’s gaze and asking, “And where will you be heading next? According to Nagito, you’re planning to provoke each of the Five Great Shinobi Nations, correct…?”
Nodding his head, the clone affirmed, “Eventually. For now, I’ll most likely pop over to Suna. Why, are you planning to take advantage of my actions to benefit from the other nations’ plight? I can’t say I’m surprised, but I’m not particularly fond of being used. If you want to kidnap children for your little research projects, do it on your own time…”
Shaking his head, the Raikage narrowed his eyes and replied, “After what you’ve done to Kumo, I’m just hoping you’ll afford similar treatment to the other villages. The notion of a war breaking out may excite you, but I can assure you there is no ‘true’ glory to be found on a field of slaughter. You want powerful opponents? Keep doing what you’re doing. Trust me when I say you have ‘effectively motivated’ many people to surpass you…”
Adopting a radiant smile, the clone mused, “Is that so~?” before causing the two men to tense as he began ascending into the air, adding, “When you’re ready, come to the region I fought the pussycat a few weeks ago. Fail to do so within the week, and…let’s just say you won’t like my parting gift.”
Before the clone could leave, A surprised both it and Bee by extending his hand and saying, “Wait, Dadi-sama. I will come to face you, regardless of your response, but what is the possibility of you aligning with Kumo in the future? You’ll understand once you visit the other Shinobi Nations, but no other village reveres individual strength and merit as much as Kumo. You have already witnessed the capabilities of myself and our Jinchuriki. Join us, and I will personally see to it that you never want for a worthy foe…”
Adopting a fairly amused smile, the clone replied, “As attractive as your offer is, I’m afraid I can’t accept it. There is already a place I belong, at least for the time being. Once you discover where that is, feel free to send over someone to try and convince me. I’ve developed a fondness for fiery redheads these past couple of weeks, so that little burnt tomato you sent after me a few weeks ago might suffice~.”
Finished with what he had to say, the clone turned away and vanished from the perception of the Raikage. The man next to him, Bee, could still follow him, but that was because he was the Jinchuriki of the Eight-Tails. However, even he lost track of the clone when it suddenly stabbed itself in the chest, forcibly dispersing and transmitting its visual records to the original…
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Feeling a little ‘pent up’ after his second assault was halted before it could begin, Wu returned to his and Tayuya’s love nest to find the zesty redhead doing crunches. He doubted she had been training the entire time he was gone, but seeing a thick layer of sweat covering her naked body brought a smile to his face. Thus, for the better part of an hour, he silently observed her, waiting until she had finished before remarking, “Nice ass…”
Though every nerve in her body tensed, Tayuya managed to avoid crying out or startling as she looked back to find Wu staring at her from his bed. Her first instinct was to ask how long he had been watching her, but she quickly suppressed it, asking, “How did it go?” in a genuinely curious tone.
Making a so-so gesture with his free hand, Wu casually replied, “Almost got my head chopped off by the Alphabetical Ape but managed to keep myself together when I imagined about how despondent you’d be if I failed to return. So, how was house sitting? Were you a good girl while I was away…?”
Furrowing her brows, Tayuya asked, “Did you really fight the Raikage?”
Nodding his head, Wu revealed, “And we agreed to fight again in a few days. Until then, let’s make the most of our time together. Who knows, I might lose my head for real the next time~?”
Exhaling a sigh, Tayuya whispered, “You’d better not…” before making her way over and joining Wu in the bed. He immediately licked the sweat from her shoulder, but instead of getting flustered as she had a few days prior, she reached down and grabbed the appendage resting against his inner thigh as she said, “You’re not allowed to die, even after you give me what I want…”
Instead of responding with words, Wu surprised Tayuya with a quick peck on the lips. It was a lot tamer than what she did of her own accord, but it caused the tips of her ears to turn red, a precursor to the blush that would follow…
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