Chapter 105: The Final Hour

Naruto enjoyed the cool breeze that hit his face as he sat on top of the Uzu Wall. The morning sun was about to rise in the sky, and the light had slowly started to seep through the clouds. It was quite peaceful. He fought back a flinch when the pain in his chest pinched a little.

A response not missed by the person sitting beside him.

"You're wounded..." said Itachi calmly, Naruto shrugged.

"Not quite. I'll be fine..." replied Naruto coolly,

"Sasuke really liked sunrises when he was kid..." said Itachi sadly, as he saw the first glimpse of the sun.

"Yeah" replied Naruto silently,

"You do know what awaits us right?" asked Itachi seriously,

"Yes"

"I won't give you any rosy pictures, Naruto. This might just be a one way trip for the both of us, not that I care whether I live or die. It's all the same to me..." said Itachi honestly, still glancing at the sky.

"You want to go after him, don't you? Protect him from whatever mess he creates in heaven?" asked Naruto with a smile, Itachi lowered his gaze.

"I should not have survived, it was not supposed to go this way. He was supposed to be by your side in this final battle, not me..." said Itachi bitterly,

"Sometimes things just don't go our way. Can I count on you, Itachi? Answer me honestly..." said Naruto seriously, Itachi sighed.

"In my mind, you are still guilty for destroying Konoha and it is still my duty to bring justice to all the people of the village whom you harmed, possibly help recreate it if the Resistance wins..." said Itachi frankly,

Naruto smirked while shaking his head.

"You are possibly the most loyal shinobi I have ever met. If Konoha had truly valued you, then it wouldn't be in ruins right now..." commented Naruto, Itachi nodded solemnly.

"But in my heart I promised Sasuke to start a new life and look after his family. My brother died for me, and I intend to honor the promise I made to him above the oath I made to the village. I don't like it, I don't agree with what I am doing but I will do it regardless. For Sasuke, for Sakura and their unborn child. That is all there is left for me to do now..." explained Itachi sadly,

Naruto stared at the older Uchiha, who had a lived a life the same as him yet remained loyal to a nation which had destroyed his entire life.

"You're a strange man, Itachi Uchiha..." said Naruto calmly, Itachi smirked.

"Likewise, Kaiser. I still find it hard to believe that you forgave me and even allowed me citizenship in your empire..." said Itachi curiously, Naruto raised his finger.

"The only reason I did that was because Sasuke asked me to. I will never forgive you for the treachery you did against me, but I loved Sasuke. Probably not as much as you, but enough to allow someone like you to be given this pardon. That's all..." replied Naruto flatly,

"Fair enough. It seems the two of us are different, yet quite similar in the end..." said Itachi with a faint smile,

"Agreed"

"What can you tell me further about Tobi?" asked Naruto seriously,

"Not much that you already don't know. He's strong, the only reason I even agreed to support the Resistance was because of Hiruzen-sama's wish and because Tobi promised not to harm Sasuke..." said Itachi frankly,

"I don't have any other choice but to take your word for it. Will he really start the Moon Eye Plan?" asked Naruto curiously, Itachi frowned.

"It is hard to say, Tobi is a mysterious person. And he has taken a lot of interest in you, the few times that I did meet him over the years he spoke of you often. I maybe wrong, but I think he was proud of you..." suggested Itachi,

"That's absurd..." said Naruto in denial,

"Maybe, I'm just telling what I felt. This may just be my feeling, but I don't think Tobi wants to harm you or your family. Sure, the two of you have different end goals but has he ever tried to harm you or your loved ones?" asked Itachi, and received a sharp glare in return.

"He killed Gaara and Tsunade, he aided the Resistance with his army of Zetsu clones. I'd say that's enough proof to deny your baseless theory..." replied Naruto bitterly, anger seeping in his voice.

"That is your opinion. But Tobi provided Zetsu clones because otherwise the Resistance didn't have a snowball's chance to stall you or even defeat you. He attacked with the Gedo Mazo only after the Reich scored a decisive victory and the Resistance was on the verge of collapsing. He only intervened when it was extremely necessary and even then it was never his intention to kill your loved ones. Gaara and Tsunade gave their lives voluntarily for their people..." explained Itachi patiently, despite Naruto's glare hardening with every passing second.

"Are you defending that man?" asked Naruto incredulously,

"I only offer a counter theory to your own. Believing it or not is upto you, Kaiser..." said Itachi coolly, Naruto growled.

"It doesn't matter. He is my enemy, and I when I see him again. He dies..."

Itachi quietly observed from the sidelines as Naruto went through a series of photographs presented to him by a grim looking Shin. Judging from the looks on the Kaiser's face, he seemed quite worried.

"Something I can help with?" asked Itachi hesitantly, not sure if his advise had any value.

To his surprise, Naruto didn't look up and instead motioned him to come forward. Wordlessly, the Kaiser gave him the pictures he was previously browsing through.

Apparently, they were recon photographs taken from the sky, since when did the Reich have a fleet?

But that was a lesser concern in comparison to the thing which Itachi was seeing through his own eyes. Even he had to admit, it was a work of true art and cunning.

"Shikamaru Nara seems to have improved his tactics, by drastic levels..." commented Itachi,

"This means the Resistance won't launch a frontal attack like yesterday. They know we are better in that area, and so Shikamaru has decided to do what he's best at..." said Naruto grimly,

"What is that?" asked Shin curiously,

"Confusing and frustrating the enemy through mind games. And when they are completely exhausted, wipe them out in a swift strike. I remember he defeated me with such moves several times when we were kids..." said Naruto calmly,

"What are you going to do?" asked Itachi, and saw Naruto clench his fists.

"I need to reach the Akatsuki by today. If Shikamaru's plans works then we would be stalled in an endless conflict for days, possibly get annihilated too. He has left me no choice..." said Naruto bitterly,

Itachi frowned when Shin got a horrified look on his face on hearing those words, but didn't say anything. There was definitely something which the Kaiser and his loyal friend were hiding from everyone.

Something monstrous.

"Forgive me..." thought Naruto regretfully, glancing at the sky.

Then he steeled himself and turned towards Shin who got a solemn look in his eye.

"Launch Operation Overlord..."

Shikamaru held his breath as the news of the Reich Army beginning their march reached him. Yesterday had been the worst day of his life, right from suffering his largest defeat to suppressing various mutinies across his army. Last night alone, he had to execute 500 of his own soldiers in cold blood in order to stop them from seizing control and initiate their reckless plans when their enemy was so devious.

These fools still believed they could overpower Naruto with sheer numbers, hadn't they learned anything about the Kaiser from the previous battle?

"You seem to have gotten a lot more better at Shogi, Naruto. Or did you always hide your true talent during our games..." wondered Shikamaru,

"Shikamaru, are you sure about this? This would make you the prime target of the enemy..." said Ino worriedly,

"It can't be helped. If we lose today, then our defeat is imminent in this war. Naruto knows if I fall, then the Resistance will soon follow. More than that, he is a man who hates bloodshed so he'll try to kill me and end this war. I plan to use that objective against him..." said Shikamaru seriously,

"Do you really think Naruto will fall into your trap?" asked Ino doubtfully,

"The probability is quite high. He only has an army, so he will have to attack me from land. And then he shall fall in that trap..." advised Shikamaru,

The next second alarm bells ran across the entire camp. Ino shot him a glare, but joined him as both of them ran outside the tent to find out the reason for this emergency.

Their eyes widened when they saw hundreds of birds hovering over their entire camp. Most of the army was made up of crows of all sizes, the rest were ink birds and other flying creatures.

On top of the largest bird stood Sai who coldly stared at the Resistance army lying beneath him. He raised his hand high in the air, and shouted.

"FIRE!"

Shikamaru quickly grabbed Ino and ran for cover as thousands of explosives tags rained from the sky. Hundreds of his soldiers exploded, several were sent sailing away, many more burned, others were hit by sharp shards of metal all over their bodies.

The Resistance Commander's eyes widened in horror when he saw something that terrified his soul.

Across the field he saw Konohamaru organizing several confused ninjas and started leading them towards the tree tops, in hopes of destroying the enemy's fleet that had so dangerously attacked their command center.

"Launch them!" said Sai darkly, no emotion present in the Root Anbu's eyes.

Shikamaru quickly performed a set of hand seals as a barrage of shells rained from the sky. He managed to erect a barrier around him, Ino and a few others when...

All hell broke loose!

The chemical weapon called Hellfire which the Resistance had procured through Orochimaru, and the one which was used by Shino Aburame during the Astarte Encounter was unleashed from the sky.

The entire forest erupted with flames, as if hell had been reincarnated in a second. Shikamaru shivered in horror as he watched thousands of his men and women burn alive. Their screams, their peeling flesh, their agony was unbearable even to watch.

Ino fainted on seeing the horror.

By the time the attack was over, the entire command center of the Resistance along with thousands of their soldiers were burned to ashes. Even the once grassy ground had turned pitch black mixed in with the ashes of the dead humans.

The formation which Shikamaru had formed to fight against the Reich had broken in several directions. His troops were in complete disarray, and Ino was completely out of commission. What a disaster...

"To think you would go this far, Naruto..." thought Shikamaru bitterly,

He sighed in relief when he saw a gigantic barrier on the other side of the field where Jiraiya was protecting what was left of the Resistance Army. By Kami's grace, the Sannin had managed to save thousands of soldiers from getting burned alive.

Shikamaru was about to run towards them when he saw something falling from the sky...

BAM!

When the smoke cleared and Shikamaru managed to get a first glimpse, he took several steps back. For there in front of him stood a monstrosity which could only be seen in a person's worst nightmares.

In the center of a field stood a human. What was terrifying about him was the fact that his entire body was composed of bare bones, and neither did he have skin or muscles. He was a simple skeleton who was wearing an unfamiliar military uniform. The monstrosity confusedly glanced around, its hollow eyes searching for something.

And a few seconds later, he found his target.

"GAHHHH!" yelled the skeleton soldier,

In a mad dash it ran towards a Resistance kunoichi who was trying to get back on her feet. The frightened woman screamed in terror when the creature leapt on her, his bare hands cannibalistically tore through her heart and started stabbing her again and again. All the while it cheered in a demonic voice...

"Shikamaru..."

The terrified Nara looked down to see a completely burned Konohamaru crawling towards him. The boy had lost both his legs, and his left hand. His body was badly burned, and he was bleeding profusely.

"Konohamaru, I..." said Shikamaru helplessly,

SLASH

The Nara froze when an ancient sword pierced through Konohamaru's skull ending his life. Looking up he saw thousands of those skeleton soldiers falling from the sky, and in that moment the Resistance Commander said only one word.

"Run!"

Across the field, far away from the Resistance Army; Kurenai watched in horror as those demons butchered every single human that caught their eye. She had never seen anything like this in her life, no matter how badly those skeletons were wounded they continued to attack until either their foe was dead or they themselves.

She grimaced when she saw Sai leading this charge, absolute ruthlessness was shown by the boy as he slaughtered every Resistance soldier along with his demonic army.

In front of her she saw Naruto's fists were clenched so badly that blood had started to leak from the skin. And a horrible conclusion came to her mind...

"You did this, Naruto?" asked Kurenai in shock,

Now she understood just what he was discussing with Shin and Sai in yesterday's strategic meeting. And now seeing the massacre happening in front of her made her blood chill. This was not war, but a genocide.

And the Kaiser was the one who authorized it.

For his part, Shin stood beside Naruto his ice cold eyes daring anybody, even her to make a move against the Kaiser. The boy was already holding a sharp sword in his hand, ready to be used against anyone at a moment's notice.

"Yes, I did..." confessed Naruto, still looking ahead watching the genocide with his own eyes.

"Naruto, this...is...inhuman" said Kakashi nervously, and flinched on seeing the Kaiser's cold eyes devoid of any emotion.

"Have you forgotten who I am? And what I was?" asked Naruto icily,

Kurenai grimaced. Memories of Naruto butchering the entire Root Anbu Blackops with Sai's help came to her mind, the Kaiser had participated in mass genocides his entire life. Starting with Root, to the Hidden Villages, to the Great Nations, and now with the Resistance...

His Ultimate plan was to destroy the Shinobi world completely!

And now he was carrying it out.

"I will do what is necessary to save thousands of my soldier from needlessly dying today. I had hoped that after yesterday's defeat, Shikamaru would agree to surrender. But regretfully he hasn't and even went forward to make a cunning plan that would have made us suffer terrible losses, and stall us for days. I need all of you and my army to stand against the Akatsuki..." explained Naruto calmly,

"What are those devils, Mein Kaiser?" asked Mifune hesitantly, pointing towards the army of skeletons.

"They are a tiny fragment of all the people Ryujin Jakka has killed during its entire existence. Most of them were wicked souls who had sinned terribly in their lives, and by dying through Ryujin Jakka's blade they become its eternal slaves. I brought them back temporarily to fight for me..." said Naruto frankly,

"An Army of the Dead..." said Kakashi worriedly,

"Unbeatable. Mein Kaiser, if you had such a power then why didn't you use it yesterday. Thousands of our soldiers need not have died, even this entire war with the Resistance would not have been necessary. Neither Sasuke, Gaara or Tsunade had to die..." pointed Shino disappointedly,

"There is a catch to this army, Shino Aburame. One which is too heavy for my soul to bear, and I wanted to refrain from using it if possible..." said Naruto sadly,

"What is it?" asked Kurenai quickly, dread coursing through her heart.

"They will kill everyone of my enemies. It wouldn't matter if they were men or women, adult or child, wounded or healthy. Those warriors have no sympathy left in them, only a desire to kill and torment exists in their souls. Just like Ryujin Jakka torments them for eternity, they do the same to its enemies. And since I am this sword's chosen wielder, my enemies are their enemies. Every last one of them shall die today..." said Naruto gravely,

"A sound decision, Mein Kaiser. You saved thousands of our soldiers from dying today, and increased our chances for the final battle against the Akatsuki..." said Shino in a satisfied voice,

"How could you be so inhuman?" asked Kurenai and Kakashi in unison, quite mortified on watching the barbaric massacre of thousands of humans in front of their eyes. Many of them their former comrades...

Naruto turned around, grabbed the both of them by their throats and lifted them high in the air. His eyes burned with anger, hatred, sadness and cold determination.

"I WOULD END THIS FUCKING WAR!" yelled Naruto furiously,

The Kaiser thrashed the two of them to the ground and pointed his sword to them. His eyes deadly serious...

"You don't have to like it, you don't have to agree with it; but I will do what is necessary to save the lives of my soldiers and stop the Akatsuki from destroying the world. Either you two fall in line or join your former comrades in their end..." threatened Naruto icily,

The few Reich soldiers and commanders who had doubts backed away when Shin and Shino stepped beside Naruto. And when the cold eyes of the trio landed on the Reich Army, each and everyone of the soldiers fell in line. Kurenai and Kakashi looked away, but refrained from protesting further.

Kurenai trembled when she saw Jiraiya charge towards Sai who was leading the Immortal Army, Naruto unleashed his divine sword instantly.

"Kill him.." commanded the Kaiser,

Suddenly thousands of skeleton warriors stopped their massacre and a moment later they had their eyes turned on Jiraiya.

''GAHH!"

Kakashi gasped when thousands of undead warriors charged towards Jiraiya on Naruto's orders. It was hard for him to believe that Naruto would take such drastic measures, but when he looked a little deeper a scary conclusion came to him.

Naruto belonged from a family of mass murderers.

The boy's own father had decimated thousands of Iwa warriors like this in the previous ninja war, and Kakashi didn't need to imagine just what kind of man Madara was to whom this boy was related to.

"Sai, your job's done. Get out of there..." said Naruto quickly,

Because even while the skeletons fought madly, Jiraiya was holding his ground bravely. A testament to the power of the man, whom even Naruto considered as the strongest among the Legendary Sannin and a person who trained the Yellow Flash.

But eventually he would be overwhelmed and that would be the end of him. Since even when Jiraiya destroyed the undead fighters, a few seconds later they rose back up and fought back again and again. Hell bent on killing the Toad Sage...

"Why didn't they attack Sai?" asked a curious Reich soldier,

"Because he's already dead and they can't attack such a person. More than that, Sai is my best friend and ally and those demons are my pawns. They obey my commands..." said Naruto flatly,

Shin stealthily came forward and took the Kaiser away from the eyes of his comrades. When they reached near the shade of a tree, Naruto coughed a handful of blood from his mouth. The wound on his chest opened again as Shin started healing it.

"I told you that jutsu was forbidden. From where do you think the Undead Army got the spiritual strength to rise from their graves? From you, Naruto..." said Shin sternly, and watched as Naruto coughed again.

"It...was...necessary...this...is...my...punishment...for...ordering...this...genocide..." said Naruto painfully,

"You should have told the price you paid for this victory to Kurenai, Kakashi and the others. At least this way they would have understood that their Kaiser sacrificed so many years of his own life to save their lives. You must remember, Naruto. The longer you use Ryujin Jakka the more it consumes your life. It was this reason why I couldn't master its true power, while your Uzumaki, Senju and Uchiha lineage allowed you to master it. But there is always a price to pay for having this kind of power..." warned Shin,

"I...can't...let...them...lose...focus. This...war...is...bigger...than...your...or...my...fate...It's...about...saving...the...world" said Naruto tiredly, wiping the blood from his lips.

"Don't use that sword again, Naruto. I beg you..." pleaded Shin,

"I make no promises, brother. I have tried for years to not use it, but there are times when I have no choice. Today was one such unfortunate day..." said Naruto sadly,

"Will the future generations and even our own people understand why you did what you had to?" asked Shin silently,

"I don't think many will. Every leader has a black mark in his rule, Hiruzen's was Operation Ghost. Mine will be Operation Overlord..." said Naruto honestly,

"Then let's make this worth the lives that were sacrificed today..." suggested Shin, getting a nod from Naruto.

"Agreed"

Naruto ran forward across the dense forests, his vast army along with its commanders following behind him. As a precautionary measure he had left 5,000 of his soldiers behind to encircle and eliminate any surviving Resistance Forces trying to escape. It was a merciless order, but he had given it regardless.

His Immortal Army had orders to return to dust as soon as they eliminated the Resistance alongwith its leaders.

And now nearly 30,000 Reich soldiers and their top commanders alongwith the Kaiser charged towards the final enemy. The one who was a threat to entire humanity and not just the Reich.

Shin and Sai remained at Naruto's sides, Shino was not too far away. These three were the only ones who agreed with his decision on Operation Overlord.

Mifune remained neutral.

While, Kurenai and Kakashi didn't look the least bit happy. And neither did he care about their feelings in this matter, if using weapons of mass destruction was necessary to save his people and the world, then as the Kaiser he had to do it. And there was no going around it, or denying the fact that from a moral point of view it seemed inhuman.

But in a corrupt world such as this, there was no place for morals to exist!

He quickly raised his hands, when he sensed something. The others stopped on his command.

Not a moment later, they spotted thousands of cursed seal bearing warriors arriving on the open grassy fields. Behind them stood a grinning Kabuto, making Naruto growl. Just when he placed his hand on his sword to slaughter these people, Shino stepped forward.

"Mein Kaiser, let us deal with them..." requested Shino,

"He's right. We shall create an opening for you and a small part of our army to go forward..." suggested Mifune,

"I'll stay too..." said Kakashi seriously,

"I need to know where Anko is, she has been out of contact for far too long. So I'm coming with you..." said Kurenai flatly,

While the Reich leadership was discussing their moves, Itachi's sharp eyes picked up the sight of something that made his blood run cold. His eyes widened as he took a step back. That did manage to attract Naruto's attention, just what could it be that shocked Itachi Uchiha of all people?

Turning around the Kaiser stared in shock too, for there came an army of zombie warriors marching towards the battlefield. Hundreds of them...

And all of them were dressed in the battlefield armor of the Senju and Uchiha clans!

"Father, Mother..." said Itachi in shock, his hands trembling as he watched his parents step forward observing their surroundings curiously.

"I can't believe it. He revived those two clans? Together they can be as powerful as my own army, not to mention the army of cursed seal warriors..." thought Naruto worriedly,

If that was not enough, he saw how shaken Itachi looked on seeing his own revived parents standing on the opposite side. The man's life was one unending tragic story...

"Mein Kaiser, I'll take command of our fleet. Attack them from the air, not that I have too many bombs left after our attack on the Resistance..." said Sai seriously,

"I...have...to...stay. I...need...to...free...those...people...from...Kabuto..." said Itachi hesitantly, his eyes quite sad.

Naruto clenched his fists. Things were not going according to his plan, in order to face such a powerful army that included the strongest clans of their world. He would have to...

"Fine. Mifune, Kakashi, Shino. Take command over 25,000 Reich soldiers and defeat this army..." ordered Naruto,

"Hai, Mein Kaiser..." replied the thee men in unison,

"Sai, take command of air fleet. Your only objective would be focusing your attack on the Edo Tensei Uchiha and Senju clans..." ordered Naruto,

"It shall be done, Kaiser..." replied Sai confidently,

"Itachi, I am assigning you 3,000 of my best soldiers. They shall hold our former clansmen at bay, while you head straight for Kabuto. Make him stop the Edo Tensei at all costs, if Kabuto falls his army will soon follow. Understood?" asked Naruto seriously,

"Yes" replied Itachi stoically, Naruto placed a hand on his shoulder.

"Stay strong. And try to wind up things here as soon as possible, I'll need your help..." said Naruto honestly,

"I'll do my best..." promised Itachi,

"Yosh! Kurenai and Shin shall accompany me along with the remaining 2,000 soldiers. Together we'll try to stop the Akatsuki or atleast hold them off long enough for all of you to arrive and help us in ending this damn war..." said Naruto flatly,

"Hai!"

With quick salutes and last minute goodbyes the once large Reich forces divided themselves into the decided two parts: One extremely large and other quite small. Kabuto moved his forces to stop the Kaiser from going forward, but was stopped when Itachi destroyed the ones who tried to get in the way.

The Reich Army then clashed with their opponents, the mind controlled Uchiha and Senju clans also joined the fray making it a free for all kind of battle.

Kakashi, Mifune and Shino took charge of the ground forces.

Sai attacked from the air.

"Is that you, Itachi?" asked a sweet, surprised voice

And not a few minutes later, Itachi heard a voice which he thought he would never hear again in his mortal life. Turning around he turned to face the two of them...

"Hello, father, mother..."

Naruto and his small force walked straight through the Akatsuki hideout. It was not at all a peaceful stride since hordes of Zetsu clones attacked them every now and then in an effort to stall them.

But it was futile since the 2,000 strong Reich soldiers, lead by Kurenai and Shin were more than enough to deal with the white colored zombies.

The Kaiser walked proudly towards the giant Gedo Mazo, inside of which were stored all of the tailed beasts except for the Kyuubi.

Then he heard footsteps approaching from the shadows.

"So, this is the almighty Kaiser..." said an unfamiliar voice,

Naruto kept his surprise in check when he saw a pair of Mangekyo eyes look at him from the shadows. Kurenai stepped beside him in a protective move...

"Is he the masked man?" asked Kurenai worriedly,

"No, he is not. Tobi has different patterned Mangekyo than this man...'' said Naruto flatly,

"Another Uchiha? But wasn't the entire clan wiped out? We just encountered all of them as Edo Tensei?" asked Shin confusedly,

All of them heard a deep, bitter growl from the man in the shadows.

"They deserve it. Even so, the foolish Uchiha and Senju both shall have a place in my new world..." boasted the unknown Uchiha arrogantly, Naruto smiled.

"Tobi, you don't need to hide. You know I can sense you wherever you go..." said Naruto tiredly,

Laughter echoed through the entire cave as the Masked leader of the Akatsuki stepped forward. With only this time he was not wearing any mask...

Kurenai saw Naruto take a few steps back, pure shock and disbelief visible on the Kaiser's face.

"You..." said Naruto in shock,

"We finally meet face to face, my great grandson..." said Izuna Uchiha, reborn again in flesh and blood. A proud, happy smile visible on his face as he stared at his own descendant.

"Huh? So he's one of yours. No wonder he's strong, Izuna..." said the Unknown Uchiha with a small chuckle,

"Why, thank you...Nii-san" said Izuna deviously, a cunning smirk arriving on his face as he watched the priceless expression on Naruto's face.

Kurenai gasped when several bodies were thrown towards her and Shin from the shadows. It didn't take them more than second to identify them as the Infiltration Team they had sent to scout the Akatsuki.

The Unknown Uchiha stepped forward tossing Neji's cold corpse towards Naruto, while kicking Anko's badly wounded form towards a group of Reich soldiers.

"For someone who's your descendant, he sure keeps pathetic and weak subordinates. Boy, next time send someone who's worthy of my time..." scolded the older Uchiha,

Naruto's eyes changed to his own Mangekyo, the air turned icy cold as the Kaiser's chakra exploded and he said in an icy voice.

"Madara Uchiha..."