The funeral rites lasted for more than four hours, allowing all of the deceased to get their respective rituals with full respect. Kawaki stood beside Naruto's clone for the entire duration, observing the mourning families of the martyrs and traitors alike and lost in his thoughts. He occasionally asked some questions regarding a ritual, which the clone patiently explained to him.
"Is it done?" He asked as the gathered citizens slowly started dispersing.
"Yes," Naruto's clone nodded before popping into non-existence.
Kawaki blinked with some surprise before shifting his gaze back to Naruto's real self approaching him.
"Now's my chance." Kawaki didn't hesitate and activated his Kāma, enhancing his physical stats and leaping away as he burst into a desperate sprint to get away from the man.
"You are just meaninglessly exhausting yourself, Kawaki." Kawaki suddenly collided with Naruto's abdomen. "You don't get to escape while you are under my care."
"Sounds an awful lot like prison."
"When the alternative is you escaping and immediately getting caught by Kara, I don't care what you call it. You are staying here. Plus, I'm curious about your Kāma." Naruto grabbed Kawaki's hand, which was covered in his Kāma's red tattoo, and examined it closely. "Still no divinity, huh? Let's see how it reacts when I do this."
Naruto activated his divine source which was constantly nourishing itself by taking Momoshiki and Urashiki's divinity.
Kawaki immediately groaned and tried to yank his arm away from Naruto but to no avail. The red tattoo of his Kāma started glowing as his face morphed, a horn growing out of his left side as his hair was pushed to the side.
"Let me go!" Kawaki punched Naruto in anger, but a black orb appeared in his path, blocking the attack and absorbing the shockwave so that their surroundings wouldn't get damaged.
Naruto had a look of intense focus as he allowed the reaction to continue, uncaring of Kawaki's panicked state.
"There it is," Naruto said and brought his attention to Kawaki's consciousness, sending himself into his mindscape.
He found himself in a pitch-black space. He couldn't even see what he was standing on. At that moment, a light shone on a humanoid silhouette, illuminating its pale skin with black marks all over it. Its head had a horn extending from the side of the head and a slight depression with gray markings on its crown.
"It seems my concerns weren't unfounded," Naruto heard the figure speak in a deep voice. "Welcome, Uzumaki Naruto. I am Isshiki Ōtsutsuki."
"I know," Naruto said. "You've probably already sent your people to retrieve Kawaki. That's all well and good. I won't hurt them too much. But the kid stays in Konoha. I am awfully curious about the benefits that I will obtain once he matures further."
"That look in your eyes. Is that greed?" Isshiki spoke thoughtfully, sounding as polite as ever. He didn't see Naruto as a threat despite all that had happened. "I see. That's where you've found your confidence. You must be trying to turn yourself into an Ōtsutsuki. Momoshiki must be suppressed by you, correct? That is why you do not have his Kāma."
"Correct. Now, if you don't want to share his fate, I suggest that you stay away from Konoha and Kawaki. I'm sure that with your deep roots, you can find another vessel for your Kāma."
"Your confidence is commendable. But unfounded, Naruto Uzumaki." Isshiki was still polite despite the provocative nature of Naruto's words. "The time will come for you to realize that soon. Farewell. I look forward to our official meeting."
Isshiki waved his arm and pushed Naruto out of Kawaki's mindscape.
"Let. ME. GO!" Kawaki exclaimed with a demonic voice as the pupil within his left eye turned yellow, and a barrage of black rods shot toward Naruto's direction.
This time, Naruto obliged and activated his Six Paths Sage Mode. He immediately dodged the rods by weaving between them, and multiple chakra projections extended from his back, catching all of the stray rods to make sure none of them inadvertently hurt someone.
"What…the…fuck…" Kawaki huffed and fell down on one knee as his transformation receded, deactivating his Kāma completely. "What did you do?"
"I sent a message," Naruto said, returning to normal as he fixed his cloak. "Come. I'll show you to your new home for the time being."
"If you think I am going anywhere with you—" Kawaki's words got stuck in his throat as a primal fear terrorized his mind. The look that Naruto gave him was enough to freeze him in his tracks.
"Behave yourself, Kawaki. I will take you to my home. To meet my family. Do not show your rude attitude to my wife or my kids, do you understand?"
"I do." Kawaki knew that he didn't have the option to refuse. "Y-you talked to him just now, didn't you? To Jigen."
"I did," Naruto nodded.
"You remind me of him."
"I expected as such," Naruto nodded. "You want to grab something to eat before we pick my daughter up from the Academy? You didn't get to have breakfast, right?"
"What?"
"I'll take that as a yes."
"I thought we were going to your house."
"We are. After eating and picking up my daughter on the way."
"Okay." Kawaki was a little afraid of the Hokage and didn't want to anger the man.
…
"Daddy!" Himawari ran up to Naruto. "I got full marks on today's test."
"You had a test today?" Naruto asked.
"You didn't remember?" Himawari's eyes widened, and her beautiful blue orbs turned white as she activated the Byakugan. "You've started neglecting me again."
"I would never." Naruto slipped his arm under his daughter and picked her up. "I, naturally, remember your test. I was just teasing you."
"Humph. At least you sent your real body …" Himawari said. "You've gotten so many new threads. It's eight now."
"You didn't even use hand signs to change the frequency." Naruto looked at Himawari like he was looking at a monster. "How much are you practicing this ability?"
"I do it all the time," she said, looking away from him and shifting a little to make herself comfortable in his arms.
"You remember our conversation about using your abilities responsibly, right, honey?" Naruto said. "If I find that my daughter is being a pervert, then I will have to take some special measures to make sure that you use your abilities responsibly."
"I know, I know … I'm not a pervert, Daddy," she rolled her eyes at him. "I only practice when I know it's safe."
"Once this whole Kawaki mess is over, I might have a clone spy on you for a few days."
"Daddy!" Himawari looked outraged and hit his shoulder repeatedly, making him laugh. "Let me down."
"Never," Naruto shook his head and kissed her cheek. "Oh, before I forget." He stopped teasing Himawari and gestured toward the teenager standing beside him. "This is Kawaki. He will be staying with us for the time being."
"Oh?" Himawari looked curiously at the dark-skinned teenager. "Hello, my name is Himawari Uzumaki." She greeted him politely with a slight bow while she was still in Naruto's arms. "You seem a little taller than my big brother."
"I'm Kawaki," the teen responded with a complicated expression on his face. "Thank you for letting me stay in your home."
"Is he the reason you had to leave after dinner yesterday?" Himawari asked Naruto. "I didn't see you until I fell asleep."
"No, that was something else," Naruto refused. "He was the one for whom a number of your friends' parents were mobilized for battle yesterday."
"Itsuki didn't come today," Himawari said. "Shino sensei had us stand in silence for the seven shinobi who were lost yesterday."
"Is that the child of one of those people?" Kawaki asked. "The ones who died?"
"Yes," Himawari said.
"He went with me to the funeral," Naruto said. "I wanted him to pay his respects to those we lost in yesterday's battle."
"Oh," Himawari said. "Can we get a snack on the way?"
"What do you want? Ice cream? We could share again."
"No, I want something else. I want taiyaki. The one with the chocolate filling."
"Your wish is my command," Naruto said. "Come on, Kawaki. We will get a snack before going home."
"What's going on …" Kawaki asked as he followed Naruto. "I was terrified of him just now. He completely changed the moment she came into his eyes. He feels like a harmless human … Someone I could just stab and run away from …"
He knew that the harmless persona was just an illusion. The man in front of him seemed just as dangerous as Jigen to him.
***
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