Chapter 39: Nature.... She is Crying (Patreon)

Naruto stood in the middle of the ruins, his hands raised lazily at his sides like he was shrugging at the whole mess, but anyone paying attention could see the faint shimmer in the air around him, like the very earth was holding its breath waiting for his word. He didn't speak. He never really did much when it came to explaining things. He just kinda… asked. Not with words, but with that weird connection he had with the world itself. And nature? Yeah, she listened.

Stones rumbled like they were stretching after a long nap, roots twisted and curled like lazy snakes waking up. Walls rose back from the ground, shops and stalls blossomed like flowers after a storm. A river that had dried up during the chaos bubbled back to life and even formed little ponds here and there because, apparently, Naruto liked ponds. Towers that had crumbled stood tall again, their structure even sturdier than before. And the village’s walls? They were back, taller and stronger, as if Konoha was declaring to the whole shinobi world, "Yeah, we’re still standing. What of it?"

Naruto didn’t make a big deal out of it. To him, it wasn’t complicated. He just asked nicely, and Mother Earth — or whatever was out there — answered. Simple.

But oh boy, the people? They were losing their minds.

"Did you see that? He didn’t even use hand signs!" someone whispered.

"He’s the reincarnation of the Sage of Six Paths, I’m telling you!"

"No, no, he’s some sort of earth angel. My cousin swears he saw a tree bow to him."

"Shut up, idiots. He’s clearly controlling nature. Nature!"

Naruto didn’t bother correcting them. He didn’t care enough. He just kept going, making sure every stone and tree fell into place like pieces in a puzzle only he could see.

Sakura was sitting nearby on a pile of stones, watching him with a worried frown that she tried to hide with a weak smile every time he looked her way — which wasn’t often because, let’s face it, Naruto was bad at the whole "eye contact" and "expressing feelings" thing. Always had been.

"He’s okay," Sakura muttered to herself more than anyone else, gripping her knees. "He’s okay. As long as Karin’s safe, he’s okay." But even she wasn’t convinced.

That’s where Neko came in.

ANBU mask off, revealing her sharp eyes softened by years of basically raising the stiff little ball of nature-wielding chaos that was Naruto. She walked up to him while he was mid-way raising a new watchtower and didn’t even hesitate — she just reached out and petted him. Right on the head.

Naruto froze. Tower still half-grown behind him, rocks mid-float. His face didn’t change, still blank as always, but there was the tiniest twitch in his shoulders. Like a cat pretending it didn’t just purr.

"There, there," Neko murmured, her voice low but firm. "You’re doing good, brat." She wrapped her arms around him, pulling him close in a hug that was more mother than ninja. "No going berserk today. You hear me?"

Naruto didn’t say anything, but the tower behind him finally finished growing, solidifying like he’d given it permission to do so.

Sakura watched, blinking fast because dammit, was she tearing up? No, no way. "Neko-san… you always know how to handle him."

Neko just gave a soft snort. "Back when Hiruzen-sama died, this idiot almost tore the whole village apart in his rage. Took everything I had to calm him down." She looked down at Naruto, still stiff in her arms. "But Karin’s alive this time, and that makes all the difference."

Naruto’s hand twitched at that. Yeah. Karin was alive. He wasn’t gonna lose it today.

Meanwhile, in the background, whispers spread like wildfire.

"I heard he raised an entire forest in an hour."

"No, no, he summoned an earth dragon, I swear!"

"He’s totally gonna become the next Hokage!"

Naruto didn’t react. He just slowly raised his hand again, calling up more vines and stones to rebuild yet another section of Konoha. Sakura let out a breath and leaned back. Yeah. He was okay. For now.

—ToT—

The office smelled faintly of old paper and ink, a scent that always made Tsunade’s head throb harder than it already did. She slouched deeper into her chair, the letter from Mifune gripped tight in one hand, her other hand massaging her temples like she could squeeze out the stress through her forehead if she pressed hard enough. The paper crackled as her fingers tightened, her eyes scanning the words again even though she’d already read them twice. No, three times.

Her jaw clenched.

"So, they've really done it this time..." she muttered, voice gravelly from too many late nights and too much sake that wasn’t doing its job lately.

According to Mifune’s carefully written words, the Kage Summit had turned into a damn circus show. Akatsuki had crossed every line imaginable. Blowing up villages, snatching jinchūriki like they were groceries, and now, apparently, they had a lunatic with a mask claiming to be Madara Uchiha leading them. A ghost from Konoha’s ugliest past walking around like it was his stage.

And this so-called "Madara"? Yeah, he wasn’t playing small anymore. He had stood right there in front of the Kage and their bodyguards, bold as hell, and declared outright war against the five great nations. All for the Nine-Tails. All for Naruto.

Tsunade’s nails dug into the paper. The crackle of crumpling parchment filled the room.

All four Kage — the Raikage, the Mizukage, the Tsuchikage, and the Kazekage — had agreed to band together. They were forming a Shinobi Alliance to fight back against Akatsuki's madness. Even the stubborn old Onoki, who hated sharing his toys, had agreed. That told her everything she needed to know.

The storm was here.

Her eyes flicked to the last few lines of the letter, where Mifune politely — way too politely — asked for her decision. Would the Leaf join this alliance? Would Konoha stand with the other nations, or would they risk standing alone, a big fat target painted on Naruto’s back?

Tsunade blew out a slow breath, leaning back in her chair until it creaked in protest. Her gaze shifted toward the window, where the newly rebuilt Konoha stood tall and proud, stronger than ever thanks to that quiet, nature-wielding knucklehead down there.

Naruto.

That masked bastard thought he could just call out Naruto’s name like it was some prize to be won. He thought he could make the whole world turn on him, like the nations would scramble over each other for the so-called salvation the Akatsuki offered. Either they’d tear Naruto apart fighting to capture him, or they’d all bleed out trying to resist Akatsuki.

Damn that freak. Damn his twisted games.

But Tsunade wasn’t stupid. She knew how fragile alliances could be. One slip, one whispered promise of power or peace from the enemy, and hands that once shook in unity would turn to fists aimed at Naruto. She could already hear the arguments. "If we hand over the Kyuubi, this all ends." "One sacrifice to save thousands."

Like hell.

Her fists hit the desk with a solid thud that rattled the ink bottles and sent a pile of reports sliding sideways.

"No way in hell am I letting that happen," she growled. "Not to Naruto. Not again."

Her decision was made before Mifune even asked. Konoha would fight. They would stand with the other villages, sure — because divided, they’d all fall. But she wasn’t naive enough to think this alliance meant Naruto would be safe. No, it meant she had to watch everyone like a hawk. The minute someone so much as hinted at turning on Naruto, Tsunade would crush them herself.

She shoved back from the desk and grabbed the nearest pen, scrawling her response with hard, jerky strokes.

“Konoha will join the Alliance. We will not hand over the Kyuubi jinchūriki. We will fight.”

Her hand paused, then she added another line, sharp and clear.

“Tell the other Kage — if anyone comes for Naruto Uzumaki, they’ll be fighting Konoha too.”

She slapped the finished letter down, calling for a messenger. As the shinobi appeared at her door, she didn’t even look up. "Deliver this to Mifune. Now. No stops."

As the ninja vanished, Tsunade finally leaned back again, letting the weight of everything sink in.

War was coming. Blood would spill. That damn masked man had made sure of it. But if he thought Konoha would just roll over and give up Naruto, he was in for the rudest awakening of his life.

She glanced back out the window at Naruto, still quietly rebuilding the village like it was nothing. Her mouth quirked, somewhere between a grimace and a smile.

"Hang in there, kid," she muttered. "The whole damn world’s about to come crashing down, and you’re right in the middle of it.”

—ToT—

The wind rustled through the half-rebuilt trees as Naruto stood there, hands still lightly touching the bark of a young sapling he’d coaxed from the earth only minutes ago. He could feel the pulse of life in it, the gentle thrum of Nature responding to his will. It calmed him, usually. But Sasuke’s voice had shattered that peace the moment it echoed behind him.

"Naruto."

Naruto turned, slow and stiff like always, his green eyes dull but watching. "Did you caught Itachi?" His words came out flat, but there was a little flicker inside him. A bad feeling.

Sasuke’s face was carved from stone. "I killed him."

Naruto’s fingers curled against the tree. His eyes dropped. "Oh."

Just that one word, and his chest felt tight. He’d never said it out loud, but somewhere deep down, Naruto had always liked Itachi. "Weasel" had been there in the background when Naruto was a kid — quiet, but kind in his own distant way. Itachi had brought him food when no one else cared, had wordlessly cleaned up after Naruto’s training disasters when no one else even looked his way. And then the news had come that Itachi had slaughtered his whole clan.

"You fulfilled your goal," Naruto murmured, though his voice cracked just a little.

But Sasuke didn’t nod. He didn’t look satisfied. His fists were clenched so tight his knuckles were bloodless. "No. I didn’t."

Naruto’s head tipped to the side, his expression still that same sleepy calm, but his eyes sharpened. "Huh?"

Sasuke stepped closer, his gaze fierce like black fire. "Remember what you told me back in the forest?"

Naruto blinked. The forest? He wracked his brain, which was honestly not his best strength — too much noise and not enough care for human words most days. But then it clicked. "About Nature?"

Sasuke’s lips curled in a bitter smirk. "About Itachi."

Oh. Right. Naruto had told him, way back then, when they’d nearly come to blows again, that maybe Itachi wasn’t the villain everyone painted him as. That maybe, just maybe, there was more to the story.

"He was forced to do it," Sasuke said, voice low like a blade sliding from its sheath.

Naruto’s throat bobbed. "I assumed so. Who was it? That masked man?"

For a second, Sasuke’s eyes flared. "It was Konoha."

Naruto blinked again, slower this time, like his brain was lagging. "Huh?"

The word came out more confused this time. Why would Konoha — their home, their people — make Itachi kill his own clan? That didn’t fit. That wasn’t the story he’d been fed all his life.

"The Uchiha were planning on taking over the village," Sasuke ground out. His fists were shaking now. "So the village eliminated my family. You were right, Naruto. Itachi was framed. He carried the burden to protect the village — to protect me." His voice cracked on that last word, but he covered it fast.

Naruto’s fingers pressed harder into the tree trunk. He could feel it pulsing under his touch, steady and alive, while everything in his chest felt like it was crumbling. "I... see."

That was all he could say. Because what else was there? The truth was ugly, and it tasted like ash in his mouth.

"I am leaving the village," Sasuke said suddenly, voice cold as steel dipped in ice.

Naruto’s head snapped up, slow but sharp. "Why?"

Sasuke turned, the edges of his cloak flaring slightly with the motion. His Sharingan flickered to life, gleaming like blood in the dappled sunlight. "This disgusting place took away my family, my clan, my childhood, and my brother. I am leaving." He paused, then threw a look over his shoulder, eyes dark and full of something heavy. "Naruto."

Naruto’s lips barely moved. "Yes?"

"You may already know it, but the shinobi system is corrupted. It has too many flaws. You are being used. Like Itachi. And one day, you will regret it."

Naruto’s hand slid away from the tree, his palm now empty and cool. He stared at Sasuke, face unreadable but eyes shining faintly, not with anger — but something close to pain. "I see."

That was all. Because what could he say? He didn’t know anymore.

"You will," Sasuke said, voice like a curse. "And I hope it’s not too late by then."

With that, he turned and began to walk away, the forest parting slightly as if even Nature didn’t want to stop him.

Naruto stood there, watching the space where Sasuke's figure shrank with each step. The wind rustled again, tugging at his hair and the loose sleeves of his robe, but he didn’t move. Didn’t call out.

Because deep down, he knew.

Sasuke was right.

—ToT—

Hinata shuffled her feet awkwardly as she stood near the edge of the clearing, clutching the little bento box so tightly her knuckles turned pale. Her heart was racing — not because she’d run here, but because… well, it was Naruto-kun. And even after everything, even after seeing him tear apart mountains and rebuild forests like it was nothing, he still made her feel like she was about to faint every time he so much as looked in her direction.

Naruto, meanwhile, was sitting cross-legged by a little spring he’d accidentally made while fixing the forest. His robe sleeves were rolled up, his staff resting against a rock, and his glowing green eyes were watching little fish swim in the clear water. His expression was blank as usual, that weird sleepy coldness that made him hard to read these days. But Hinata swallowed her nerves and stepped forward anyway.

"I-I brought you some food," she mumbled, voice almost too soft. "Since… since Ichiraku's is still being repaired… and Karin-san is still s-sick…"

Naruto blinked slowly, his head turning just a little. He glanced at the bento box, then at her. "Thanks. Dattebane." His voice was so flat, but there was a flicker of acknowledgment there. That was enough to make Hinata’s cheeks glow bright pink.

She stood there, fidgeting, twisting the edge of her sleeve between her fingers like she always did when her nerves got the better of her. And then, before she could stop herself, the words tumbled out. "D-Do you… um… l-like Karin-san?"

Naruto raised an eyebrow. His hand paused halfway through reaching for the bento. "Karin? She's family. Dattebane." His tone didn’t waver. It was like he couldn’t even imagine it being anything else.

Hinata, for some reason, looked hopeful at that. Like the storm of nerves inside her was calming just a little. She took a deep breath, pushed her fingers together, and stammered, "D-Do you… l-like… Sakura-san then?"

Naruto finally looked her in the eye. Those strange, glowing sapphire eyes that seemed less human and more… something else, these days. He didn’t even blink. "She is a friend."

Hinata’s heart skipped — no, tripped and faceplanted — but before she could figure out if that was a good or bad thing, Naruto's voice cut through the air again.

"If there would be no Shinobi," he said, so suddenly it made her jump, "would all the conflicts stop?"

Hinata’s mouth opened, then closed. She blinked. "N-No…" she stammered, caught off guard. "It… it is human nature to quarrel. If… i-if there are two humans, then… there will always b-be… c-conflict…" Her voice trailed off, unsure why he was even asking this.

But Naruto just kept staring. His eyes locked onto her like he was reading something deeper than her words. Cold and distant, like a winter storm just waiting.

"What if there is no humans?" he asked, voice as calm as still water but sharp enough to cut.

Hinata stiffened. "N-No… humans?"

"Yes." His gaze didn’t waver. "Imagine a world without humans. War and conflicts wouldn’t exist. Only Nature. Just how she always was. Green and peaceful. Dattebane."

Hinata’s mouth went dry. She could barely breathe. "W-What are you talking about, N-Naruto-kun?"

Naruto’s gaze seemed to glow brighter, like the sky at dusk just before everything goes black. His voice dropped lower. "About a millennium ago, three beings came and nearly destroyed the earth. Then came the shinobi system that has been corrupting the world ever since." His fingers tapped the wooden staff by his side absently. "But imagine… two billion years ago. What if humans were never born? How beautiful Earth would have been. No pain. No wars. Just… peace."

Hinata’s legs felt weak. Her hands were trembling now, but not from nerves this time. From something colder. Darker. "A-Are you saying you want to… k-kill all humans?" Her voice cracked at the end, horror starting to sink in.

Naruto didn’t answer right away. His face didn’t change, didn’t even flicker. He just stood up, grabbed the bento from her hands — gently, like he wasn’t even aware of her shaking — and said, in that same deadpan tone, "Thanks for the food. Dattebane."

And then he turned away, leaving her standing there, frozen.

For the first time in all the years she’d known him, through all the battles and chaos, Hinata realized… she was afraid. Truly, deeply afraid of the boy she liked.

—ToT—

Up there in the sky, where even the clouds couldn’t touch him, Naruto floated — weightless, wingless, and wordless. The wind didn’t bother him. The chill of high altitude didn’t bite his skin. He was above all of it now, literally and… something else entirely.

And then, like a dam breaking inside his skull, he heard it.

Crying. Not just a kid scraping his knee or a baby fussing in the middle of the night. No — it was deeper, rawer. A chorus of pain that came from every direction at once. He could hear children wailing in empty huts, their stomachs twisted by famine. He could feel the sharp pang of fear from girls barely old enough to understand what was happening to them, screaming in the dark as monsters in human skin tore away their innocence.

The earth itself throbbed with the pulse of violence.

His glowing sapphire eyes narrowed as the storm of emotions swept through him. Fear. Hatred. Desperation. Lust. Greed. Envy. Wrath. Lies. It was endless — like every rotten corner of the world was screaming at once.

He could hear the animals too, oh yeah. The desperate cries of wolves and tigers as their homes were set ablaze to clear land for more fields, more cities. Birds forced from their nests, running from the smoke, only to fall dead from exhaustion. The rivers whispered their grief as they choked on poison dumped in their veins.

And humans?

Humans laughed.

Bandits raiding small villages, setting homes on fire and cutting down anyone who got in their way. Lords hoarding rice and gold while children dropped dead in the streets. Shinobi clans sharpening blades for wars that didn’t even make sense anymore — fighting not for survival, but for pride and power.

Naruto closed his eyes, but the noise didn’t stop. He could feel it in his bones now. Deeper than bones — in his soul. Like the entire planet was groaning in pain beneath the weight of human sin.

And then, from somewhere buried deep in his ancient memories, the images came rushing back.

He remembered being a single-celled organism floating in the warmth of a primeval ocean. Simple, peaceful. No hunger. No killing. No war.

Then a plant, swaying gently under the golden light of a young sun.

Then a fish, darting through coral reefs that glowed like underwater fire.

A bird, soaring through clear blue skies unpolluted by smoke and blood.

A tree, standing tall for centuries, watching over forests teeming with life.

And then…

Humans.

For two thousand years, he had been hunted, cut down, burned, enslaved, experimented on, and betrayed. Every time he reincarnated, they found him. Their swords, their fires, their lies — always waiting. Lust turning to rape. Greed turning to theft and starvation. Pride turning to war. Wrath turning to slaughter. Envy turning brother against brother.

Every time, the same cycle. Over and over again.

And now, he stood at the peak of it all — the strongest, the last pillar holding up this cracked, broken world. And it begged the question. The question that had been clawing at the back of his mind ever since the first time he looked up at the stars and wondered why.

"Why all this suffering?"

His heart, if it could even be called that anymore, beat slower. Calmer. Deadlier.

Was this truly the answer to his question? Was this why he existed?

To be the Earth’s final weapon?

To wipe the slate clean?

Save Earth — not by protecting the humans who lived on it, but by removing them?

His eyes flickered like dying stars. He could feel the planet beneath him, calling out, aching for peace. A peace it hadn’t known since humans first walked on two legs and declared themselves kings.

Naruto’s lips barely moved as the thought took shape, bitter and cold:

"Am I… the answer? Is this my purpose… to save Earth from them?"

The sky around him crackled. The wind held its breath.

And deep down, in the heart of Nature itself, something ancient stirred.

—ToT—

Down in the deep, where sunlight couldn’t dream of reaching, Naruto dove like a shadow slipping through ancient waters. His body moved with the grace of something that had ruled these depths long before humans even learned to crawl — sleek, powerful, silent. Like the megalodon he once was, back when his bones were made for crushing whales and his hunger was as endless as the ocean itself.

The pressure down here, fifteen thousand meters below the surface, would turn any ordinary creature into paste. But not him. Not Naruto. Down here, he was home. Each kick of his legs pushed him deeper until finally, his feet touched the ocean floor — a dark, forgotten kingdom where no human light had ever dared to flicker.

And then… they came.

At first, just a shimmer in the black. Then hundreds. Thousands. Creatures that humans would call monstrous or ugly, things they’d sketch in horror books and whisper about like nightmares. But here, in this velvet darkness, they were radiant.

A ghostly gulper eel, its translucent skin glowing faintly like a paper lantern, coiled around him with slow, curious grace. A frilled shark, older than every shinobi village combined, circled once before vanishing into the black.

An octopus — no, not an octopus, something grander — its arms glittering with bio-luminescence like galaxies stitched into flesh, hovered in front of him. It blinked. And though it made no sound, Naruto heard it.

Eyes. All their eyes spoke.

From the anglerfish with its soft lantern lure, to the massive squid with scars older than empires, they all watched him. Some pulsed gently with lights in rhythms too ancient for human minds to understand. Patterns that spoke of grief, of memory, of warnings whispered through generations.

Creatures long thought extinct drifted past — coelacanths with their ancient armored scales, spiral-toothed sharks with their impossible jaws. Even stranger beings, unknown to any man’s scrolls, brushed against him. Transparent, ethereal things with wings instead of fins, and bodies that shimmered like the surface of oil on water.

And none of them feared him.

Because they knew.

They remembered.

Before humans, before chakra twisted the world into blood and hatred, there had only been them — and the vast, pure silence of Nature. Before the beings from the stars fell and introduced that cursed energy, tainting the rivers, the forests, the very air with violence and greed.

Naruto could feel it now, pulsing through the ocean floor beneath his feet. The chakra humans had learned to mold and weaponize… it was a disease. A contamination that had spread like a sickness, seeping into the roots of the trees, poisoning the winds, suffocating the seas.

Nature… she was crying.

Not with screams, but with this hush — this aching silence that wrapped around him like a mother mourning her children. The creatures pressed closer, their lights dimming in solemn rhythm.

They didn’t need words. Their eyes told him everything.

"Help us."

"Remember."

"Cleanse."

Naruto’s sapphire eyes glowed faintly, matching the pulse of their silent cries. He reached out a hand, and the massive squid curled a tentacle around his wrist, not as a chain, but as a connection — a bond older than chakra, older than shinobi, older than humanity itself.

Down here,

in the dark womb of the world, Naruto wasn’t a boy, or a shinobi, or even a jinchuriki. He was something else. Something ancient.

And as the pressure throbbed around him and the ocean sang its old, sad song, Naruto understood.

Nature wasn’t asking. She was begging.

And the time for silence was ending.