Naruto: The Wind Calamity

Over half of the Council Members watched in confusion as Fujin became the official leader of a new faction in Konoha and gained a clan-like status. Due to a variety of reasons, none of them could step in and put a stop to it. In the end, they could only accept it.

Fujin looked at Koharu, thinking, 'I misjudged her. She isn't as magnanimous as Hiruzen or Sasori, but she isn't too bad either. I still recall how adamantly Hiruzen denied my request to get Elemental Crystals for the orphans or other civilian ninjas. The only way they could have access to them was through the Anbu. However, Koharu sidestepped him with such ease… As expected of an experienced politician!'

Seeing Fujin smiling at her annoyed Koharu even further. Unfortunately, she could only swallow her rage and regret how she had framed her question.

The council discussed how to sell the information to Iwagakure, Kumogakure and even Sunagakure before discussing other general matters.

After the meeting, Fujin and Tsunade returned to the Torture & Interrogation Department and continued their experiments.

Over the course of the next week, Tsunade healed the souls of three more prisoners. During this time, Guy trained Naruto, Konohamaru, Udon and Moegi along with his students. Needless to say, the three kids regretted following Naruto towards Fujin's house.

Initially, Naruto struggled as well, but thanks to his unique physique, he quickly adjusted to it and experienced small but noticeable gains in no time. As for Sasuke, Yoshi kept him in the hospital, worrying the remaining Uchiha orphans once again.

In the Torture & Interrogation Department, Tsunade sighed tiredly, "Finally, it's done!"

Fujin nodded, thinking, 'Impressive. All four souls were healed accurately as per her plans without causing any further harm. In addition, she improved considerably during the second and third healing. Though there wasn't much improvement during the fourth healing, it just shows that she has reached close to perfection. There shouldn't be any accidents with Hiruzen.'

Tsunade replied, "Improving any further will be a long process with no end. This is enough. I'll heal Sensei tomorrow. You should come too, in case there's any disturbance. Eat a soldier pill as I'll heal him continuously until he wakes up. The only breaks we'll take are the ones his soul needs."

Her tone was very serious. Fujin nodded, "I'll be there."

——

Early the next morning, Fujin and Tsunade met on the top floor of Konoha Hospital. Due to Fujin's intel about Obito's abilities, the security had been increased further. Not only had the number of Anbu squads increased, but a couple of Elite Jounins were also stationed permanently. In addition, Jiraiya also occasionally kept an eye.

Entering the room, Tsunade ordered, "Until I leave the room, allow no one to enter or even knock on the door. Is that understood?"

The Anbu Captains immediately answered, "Understood!"

Tsunade added, "Good. Secure the perimeter."

Everyone flickered out, leaving only Fujin, Tsunade and Shizune in the room along with the unconscious Hiruzen. Without wasting any time, Tsunade got to work.

Outside the room, the people in Konoha continued their work as usual. However, everyone could feel a sense of unease, as if the air had been oppressive.

Sasuke, who was a few floors below Hiruzen's room, wondered, 'What is happening today? Why are there so many Anbu ninjas monitoring the area?'

Since Hiruzen was being healed and Tsunade didn't want any disturbances, the entire village was on high alert. While most didn't know what was happening, Shikaku had deployed thousands of ninjas, including Jiraiya, to ensure nothing unexpected happened.

Fortunately, there were no accidents. Tsunade healed Hiruzen for an entire day with just 2 breaks to allow Hiruzen's soul to adjust. Wiping off the sweat on her forehead, she placed her palm on Hiruzen's chest. Shizune and Fujin carefully watched as they understood that she was almost done.

As her chakra entered Hiruzen's body, his eyes suddenly snapped open! His eyes landed on Tsunade and a weak smile appeared on his lips. Tsunade breathed a sigh of relief. The process had been a success!

Looking at Hiruzen, Tsunade muttered, "You went too far this time, Sensei…"

Hiruzen sat up with Shizune's help and replied with a chuckle, "Unfortunately, I'm no longer young. I could only place my trust in your abilities. Since I have regained consciousness, I was right to do so."

Tsunade's expression dulled as she said, "Stop putting up a strong front. You know you haven't recovered entirely. Only 20% of your soul was left. Even with my skills, your soul could only recover to 33%. Recovering it any further will take a lot of time…"

Tsunade sighed. Though Hiruzen put up a brave face, everyone in the room knew how much pain he was bearing at that moment. Orochimaru, who was merely missing his arms, suffered tremendously. The pain Hiruzen was experiencing couldn't be put into words.

Hiruzen smiled again and said, "It's fine. Being alive after summoning the God of Death is good enough."

He turned his gaze towards Fujin and teased, "I didn't expect to see you so surprised. Didn't expect my old bones to survive?"

Fujin replied, "No, I knew you'd wake up. It's just that I overheard Shikaku-san saying that you won't wake up until someone becomes the Fifth Hokage. I didn't expect him to be wrong…"

Fujin's words stunned the three ninjas in the room, especially Hiruzen, who was so surprised that he missed a breath and began coughing violently. Tsunade and Shizune immediately helped him while glaring at Fujin.

Tsunade scolded, "Fujin, now is not the time for jo…"

Before she could complete her sentence, Hiruzen asked while breathing deeply, "What do you mean? Has the Fifth Hokage not been appointed yet?"

'...'

Tsunade and Shizune were left speechless by Hiruzen's worries. The old man was more worried about being forced to take the reins again than about his fragile soul and health. They had a feeling that Hiruzen would refuse to ever leave this room if the next Hokage wasn't appointed.

Shizune quickly said, "Lord Third, don't worry. Lady Tsunade has accepted the position of the Fifth Hokage."

Fujin chuckled and added, "And, Shikaku has been the Acting Hokage in your absence. So, you can relax."

Hiruzen was relieved and surprised at the same time. He thought, 'Tsunade returning to the village and accepting responsibility after acting for so long is already a surprise. To think that Shikaku would accept such a troublesome job… What happened when I was unconscious?'

Before he could ask, Tsunade said, "I suppose you're already aware of the consequences of having an injured soul."

Hiruzen nodded, "My reserves will fall drastically and I won't be able to control my chakra as usual. I'll need to train my chakra control again and relearn how to manipulate my chakra with a shattered soul. It's unlikely I'll ever regain my former strength, but I'll relearn the Reaper Death Seal in case Orochimaru attacks us with the Edo Tensei jutsu again."

Tsunade frowned and asked, "You plan on taking a dozen rank S ninjas simultaneously despite your condition?"

Hiruzen chuckled and said, "Don't worry. Even though Orochimaru's Edo Tensei was very formidable, it has one weakness. Summoning more dead ninjas increases the pressure on his soul. He could barely even move.

With his soul injured, it is unlikely he'll ever be able to control that many rank S ninjas simultaneously. As long as his soul doesn't recover completely, we don't need to worry."

Fujin asked, "Isn't his knowledge of souls very deep? What are the chances that he heals his soul?"

Hiruzen's expression became serious. If Orochimaru regained his strength, Konoha could face another calamity. And, Hiruzen wouldn't be able to save Konoha the next time.

Hiruzen sighed and answered, "It is difficult… very difficult. Unfortunately, I can't say for sure. Did he approach you?"

Tsunade nodded, "He claimed he had other means to heal himself. However, I don't think they can heal his soul completely. Otherwise, he wouldn't have approached me."

Hiruzen agreed, "We can only hope that is the case."

Fujin muttered, "Oh well, if luck is with us, he may run into me at some point before he completely recovers. You should rest now, Grandpa. Leave the troubles to us, unless you plan on returning back to the Hokage's seat."

He immediately earned a glare from Hiruzen. Hiruzen warned, "Don't underestimate him just because he is injured. This is a good time to kill him, but he'll fight back with all his hidden cards. We still don't know if he has any more capable subordinates or allies."

Tsunade chuckled, "Otogakure is no more and Orochimaru is on the run. I wouldn't be too worried if he runs into Fujin."

Surprise appeared on Hiruzen's face again. He asked, "What happened when I was unconscious?"

————————————

A/N : If you can, then please support me on P@treon.

Link - www.pat /DevilHex

(No space)

Alternatively you can support me on UPI (google pay) - patilsarvesh8@oksbi

Can read up to 50 chapters ahead on P@treon.

Thank You Travis for supporting me on P@treon.