Chapter 90: I, Your Father, Honor the Dead

(A/N: Patrons are officially twenty chapters ahead~)

"Well, this was unexpected..."

As Konoha had an ongoing alliance with Taki, Wu felt no qualms about sneaking into the secluded village. Most people had trouble locating its entrance, but as he could fly in the sky, Wu had no difficulty spotting the nearly kilometer-high tree beneath which the village was constructed.

Unfortunately, while Wu was able to find and enter Taki with ease, what awaited him at his destination were the tell-tale signs of a massacre. He couldn't detect a single person within the village, and the skeletal remains of more than a hundred men, women, teens, and children littered the area around a partially destroyed manor.

Though she had been getting along with Wu, especially after eating his cooking, Kurotsuchi couldn't help remarking, "Looks like being an ally of Konoha isn't all it's cracked up to be..."

Narrowing his eyes, Wu turned to Kurotsuchi and stated, "Say something like that again, and I will literally bend you over my knee and smack your ass until you apologize to everyone here..."

Snorting through her nose, Kurotsuchi looked as though she wanted to say something but ultimately decided against it. Instead, she looked at their surroundings for a few seconds before asking, "Well, now what? I don't see your little friend anywhere. Maybe they got taken away by the people who attacked the village...?"

Shaking his head, Wu asserted, "I can't imagine a Jinchuriki going down without a fight, and there is virtually no damage to the surroundings. For now, I'm going to conduct a preliminary investigation before informing the village of what has transpired..."

Looking up at the massive tree that seemed to encompass the entire sky, a thought Wu didn't vocalize appeared in his mind. Trees didn't grow to more than eight hundred meters on their own, so he wasn't surprised to sense a considerable amount of Natural Energy within its trunk. As such, he was planning to claim the massive tree and the encompassing lake as his private sanctuary. He sure as hell wouldn't let someone else come by to claim it...

Interrupting Wu's thoughts, a sound similar to the wind howling tickled his ears, followed by a raspy, feminine voice stating, "Leave this place...there is nothing for you here...only death..."

As the voice was projected into his ear using some kind of Chakra-based sound transmission, Wu managed to trace its origin to a verdant cacoon hidden amid the massive canopy above. He hadn't noticed at first due to its moss-colored membrane, but now that he had, his vision zoomed in on the structure to find a despondent-looking girl with tanned skin, mint hair, and orange eyes staring at him from a small opening in the cacoon's side.

"That's pretty neat...infusing Natural Energy into your threads to blend in with your surroundings...?"

Realizing that Wu had discovered her location, the mint-haired girl broke out of the cacoon and attempted to fly away using insectoid wings that had unfurled from the small of her back. She was fairly quick, but it didn't take long for Wu to cut her off, hands raised in a placating gesture as he said, "I'm not your enemy..." in his most soothing tone.

Seeing Wu 'standing' in the air, confusion marred the girl's tear-stained face as she asked, "You can fly...?"

Resisting the urge to point out they weren't exactly on the ground, Wu gave a curt nod before revealing, "I'm not wearing my forehead protector right now, but I'm a Shinobi from Konoha. Can you tell me what happened here?"

Hearing Wu state his affiliation, tears began to build in the corners of the girl's eyes as she weakly asked, "Where were you...? Everyone...everyone is dead..."

Hugging her shoulders, the girl began to tremble as the wings keeping her afloat started to waver, struggling to keep her upright. Wu was tempted to float over and try to console her, but now that the cacoon no longer veiled her Chakra, he could sense the presence lurking within her limber, athletic frame. He could also tell that her mental state was extremely unstable, so much so that he was genuinely surprised she hadn't transformed...

Exhaling a sigh, Wu's expression became somber as he admitted, "I can't even begin to imagine the loss you're mourning right now...I can, however, promise to make the people who did this pay dearly. Please, tell me what happened here..."

Meeting Wu's gaze, the bronze-skinned girl revealed, "We...the village was attacked by a group of missing-nin from Amegakure. They came to steal the Hero Water enshrined in the village...Shibuki...Shibuki-sama did his best to defend the villagers, but he was killed by Suien...a traitor that left the village years ago. After that...after that..."

Remembering the details of that fateful day, the mint-haired girl began sobbing into her hands, unable to continue speaking. Suien and his men had killed everyone in the village to conceal the fact they had stolen the Hero Water. They tried to kill her as well, but she managed to flee, hiding in a nearby forest for several days before eventually returning to find the village abandoned.

As the girl inevitably lost control of her wings, Wu swooped forward to scoop her into his arms, cradling her gently as he said, "There, there...let it out..." while caressing her back with his Mystical Monkey's Palm. As he did so, the girl began sobbing loudly, clinging to his body with immense strength despite her very apparent fatigue...

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After laying the mint-haired girl to rest in the partially destroyed manor, Wu figured he could endear himself to her by gathering up the remains of everyone in the village and burying them. Fortunately, Kurotsuchi wasn't a completely insensitive bitch, so she helped out by using her Earth Release to create each grave with a simple clap of her hands.

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Despite being a fairly famous Hidden Village, Wu was only able to locate the remains of 138 people. By the time he had finished, well, long before then, the mint-haired girl had woken up, her expression completely blank as she watched him and Kurotsuchi bury the villagers. The people of Taki had never been particularly kind to her, forcing her to live on the outskirts of the village, but they were still the only family she knew. Losing them all left her feeling empty, a sentiment exemplified by the blank, unfocused look on her face.

After concluding the burial rights for all of the villagers, Wu exchanged a few words with Kurotsuchi before making his way over to the mint-haired girl, saying, "You're going to return with me to Konoha. You'll be safe there until we complete our investigation and-"

Though she had the same expressionless look on her face, the mint-haired girl shook her head, asserting, "This is my home..." in a dull tone, adding, "Someone must watch over and protect the graves..."

Resisting the urge to point out that a 'stray' Jinchuriki would only invite trouble, ultimately disturbing the graves she intended to protect, Wu took a seat next to the girl and supplanted, "Then I'll stay here. I may not have arrived on time, but I can help ensure nothing disturbs the people resting here..."

Surprised by Wu's words, the mint-haired girl blinked a few times before looking at him, asking, "You'll stay...? But what about your village...?"

Adopting a sad smile, Wu reminded, "I can fly, remember? Even if I take my time, I can traverse the distance between Taki and Konoha within two, maybe two-and-a-half hours. Had I known one of Konoha's allies was in danger...I would have flown over at my fastest speed..."

Furrowing her brows, a trace of anger appeared in the mint-haired girl's burnt orange eyes. However, even though she wanted to blame Wu, she knew he wasn't the one responsible for Taki's destruction. Rather, he had comforted her and promised to make the people responsible pay. Now he was offering to help her protect the village, immediately after burying the remains she didn't have the heart to approach...

Catching Wu a little off guard, the slightly older girl abruptly leaned her head against his shoulder, whispering, "My name is Fu..." before asking, "Can you tell me yours...?" in an even fainter tone.

Nodding his head, Wu managed to breathe a bit of life back into Fu's eyes as he revealed, "Back in the village, I am known as Senju Wu. Outside, my alias is Saiko Dadi."

As pretty much everyone in the Elemental Nations was aware of the surname Senju, Fu's brows perked up as she asked, "Are you related to 'that' Senju Clan? I thought that Tsunade Senju was the only remaining member...?"

Smiling wryly, Wu replied, "It's...complicated. I'm not related to the Senju by blood. However, Konoha does recognize me as the next Head, and I've received the blessing of two of the most celebrated members of the Clan. Once things have calmed down a bit, I'll introduce you..."

Nodding her head, Fu fell silent and stayed that way for several minutes, gaze focused on the location everyone she had ever known was buried. She was vaguely aware of the fact that Kurotsuchi was staring at her, but she didn't acknowledge the rave-haired woman's presence at all. For now, she just wanted to continue leaning against Wu in silence. He was the first person in her entire life to lend her a shoulder to cry on, so, even if he had a girlfriend, she wanted to borrow him a while longer...

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True to his word, Wu remained in the ruins of Takigure alongside Fu and Kurotsuchi. The latter was more than a little annoyed that their journey to the Land of Hot Water had unceremoniously come to an end, but she also understood that the circumstances were somewhat...unique. Taki may not have been a large village, but it was relatively famous and had produced a number of capable Jonin. Such a village being wiped out was a pretty big deal, especially to their allies.

With Fu's consent, Wu had Konoha dispatch ten Teams to conduct a 'very' thorough investigation of Taki and its surroundings. They also updated the Bingo Book using information Fu had provided, elevating Suiren and a few of his more prominent associates bounties and affording them the not-so-coveted 'Kill on Sight' status. As for Taki, Wu made it clear that the village was off-limits, a sanctuary under his direct supervision and protection. A few people wanted to seed it with new residents, converting the natural wonder into a military outpost, but Wu 'politely' told them they could fuck off.

Fortunately, while the Waterfall Daimyo had attempted to make a fuss, the old codger didn't have a viable claim to Takigakure. The village had been operating independently for more than sixty years without any oversight from the local Daimyo. They were self-governing and even had a treaty to that effect, so all the old man could do was bluster while Wu claimed the land as his own. He could have given the man a peach to shut him up, but he didn't want the remaining Daimyo believing they could pressure him by simply making a fuss.

As the last remaining member of Taki, the only person with any legitimate claim to the village was Fu. Since she supported Wu's decision, there was little the Waterfall Daimyo could do unless he were willing to try and seize it directly. The Land of Waterfalls did have a standing military, but Wu was already internationally reputed as someone capable of contending against the Five Great Shinobi Nations. Trying to seize something he had claimed as his own was much easier said than done, a truth the Daimyos of Sound and Grass had learned the hard way...

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(A/N: That's one way to win over a Jinchuriki...)

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