Naruto : Saga of Tanya the Kunoichi

The blue flame in the center of the table flickered. The shadows of the members of Rinshinsho swayed.

Boruto and Sarada were speechless. 

"S-So… Kouga-" Boruto called.

"Blasphemy! How dare you call the Holy Son in his True Name!" Pontifex stood, murderous intent pressed down on Sarada and Boruto, making them shriek in fear.

Umbra raised his hand, calming him down.

"It's fine, Pontifex. Here, I am Umbra, the leader of Rinshinsho…" His voice was deep and cold.

"Umbra… then… what… who… these…" Boruto had no idea where to start.

"This… this is all a game, right?" Boruto nervously asked. Everything was too realistic. Did Kouga get all these actors? Made the whole hall? It's too over the top right?

Umbra's finger kept tapping on the stone table, making a dull thudding sound as if he was thinking.

After seconds, he snapped his fingers.

Snap.

The blue fires in the hall suddenly burst and went out, turning the hall completely dark in a second.

Boruto was shocked slightly, but then a bright light flashed from the carved mural of the goddess, where the eye on Her forehead opened. 

A light projector flashed, creating an image on the opposite side of the wall. It was a picture of an ancient ruin, with mysterious symbols on one of the ruined pillars.

"Let me tell you, the tale of Shinobi World… The looming presence of the Gods that had set their feet on our world since ancient times. Have a seat… It would be a long story."

Kouga pointed her arm to the empty seats next to him. Boruto and Sarada gulped their saliva, nervously sitting down.

The projector zoomed on the images projected. 

"Divine Mother had explored various ruins, found remnants and signs of these beings…"

"They were called by many names. Celestial Clan. The Gods. Or what they call themselves, the Otsutsuki clan."

A picture of a ruin with a pair of symbols engraved on a wall was zoomed in.

"These so-called Gods are devourers of worlds… this picture was taken from Kaguya Castle, in a separate dimension owned by her."

"1000 years ago, a pair of these Gods came down to our world… This was the beginning of us Shinobi."

Boruto and Sarada had their eyes fixed on the projection of murals, pictures, and history of mankind.

"Along with them, they brought a living tool they use to harvest the chakra and the life of all of this world. This… is the Juubi… in its infant state. A sample of research, but the real Juubi is far more fearsome."

A picture of a small creature the size of a cat under a barrier was displayed. The one eyed rinnegan, the spikes over its body, the violent nature was all recorded and displayed. Indeed, these were the remnants of Juubi that Orochimaru had cultivated.

"How… is this a video fake?" Boruto asked, he felt uneasy, really.

Kouga ignored Boruto's questioning. 

"... Once the Juubi consumed an Otsutsuki, it would evolve into a Divine Tree, its root would grow deep into this world. All chakra and life would become its sustenance. Compressed into a singular Divine Fruit."

"The Otsutsuki clan destroyed life whenever they passed, devouring the chakra and genetic information of other beings to evolve step by step - until they reached true Godhood. This is their purpose, the decree of their clan."

Boruto looked at Sarada, as if asking her if she really believed all this. Sarada looked at Boruto back, wondering if he too, was convinced. They turned their heads back to the screen.

"But the ones that had come to our world thousand years ago… had a different story."

"Did you know the legends of the Sage of 6 paths? The originator of ninjutsu… the ancestor of all shinobi. His mother. is one of these Gods."

"Her name is Kaguya Otsutsuki…"

Boruto and Sarada sat up straighter, their body leaned more forward as if trying to listen better.

"Much like the Hyuga clan in Konoha, they had a chaste system, dividing members within their ranks based on their birth, their bloodlines… She came to our world with another. His name, Isshiki Otsutsuki. But when they arrived here, a Divine Tree was already planted on this planet. Kaguya was assigned to guard them for a while. The origin was mysterious, and there were speculated to be left behind by the Otsutsuki before them. But she fell in love with our world. To protect this world and escape her fate, she stole the Divine Fruit, and betrayed Isshiki, killing him."

Boruto and Sarada gasped hearing the story.

"She had two sons, Hagoromo Otsutsuki, the ancestor of Shinobi, and another Homura Otsutsuki, who made a small civilization on the moon."

Boruto and Sarada turned their heads to look at Moonveil. Already figured out she was in fact Mika with her pale skin and silver hair. They both finally understood where she came from. Or so they thought.

"Kaguya ruled the world as a benevolent God, but humanity failed her. She then ruled with tyranny… but then, her children failed her. She merged herself with the Ten Tails… ultimately losing herself to the mindless desire to devour all chakra, and turned into a real monster. She was sealed, banished as the Moon we come to know…"

"In the 5th Shinobi War, she was unsealed and revived. That is when the 3 Great Heroes - Naruto Uzumaki, Tsuyu Uzumaki, and Sasuke Uchiha fought together, ultimately, killing her."

Silence filled the room for a few seconds.

"Then… it's all over… right…" Sarada muttered.

"No. It is the beginning. The Iron Maiden destroyed God's flesh, freeing her heart and soul from Juubi's influence. Kaguya lived on… and passed onto Mother, her Divinity as a gift. Thus, the Divine Mother was fully reborn."

Pontifex's body trembled, his eyes fanatic as he stood and raised both his hands.

"And from henceforth, Her blood holy! Her flesh Divine! Her gaze sees through Lies and all Truth…!"

Umbra glanced at Pontifex coldly, as if asking what's with this dramatic antic…?

Pontifex coughed slightly, unable to control his fanaticism before sitting down…

"You mean… aunt…" Boruto had his mouth agape. 

"Mother bears divinity, but with it the burden of the entire world. The Evil Gods would descend one day. And She had been waiting, preparing, for the End to come."

Umbra sighed slightly. His blue eyes looked a little solemn. His hand moved, to take off his wolf shaped mask.

"I just want to help mom." Kouga spoke as Kouga, his voice returned to his normal self, although his tone carried seriousness. 

Boruto and Sarada were surprised to see Kouga looking at them with such sincerity. That he was truly serious this time.

"I was playing around at first… but, I know mom was worried a lot… and it's like she's fighting alone…" Kouga said the sentence before placing his mask back on.

His gaze returned cold and sharp. His cold deep voice continued.

"The Order's ultimate goal was to protect this world from the Outsiders, and to aid the Divine Mother in the Holy War against them. Boruto. Sarada. The Order, extend their hands to you. To become the blade against them, and the shield for this world."

Blue flames light up the hall once more. The projector screen was turned off.

"I… It's a lot to take in-ttebasa…" Boruto's palms were already sweaty.

"Then… Papa knows about this too?" Sarada asked, her eyebrow frowning.

"Yes… fate has it that we are the sons and daughters of the Heroes. They know of them… and have been preparing…"

"... I… I am in. My dad would be fighting them too. I can't just watch-ttebasa." Boruto sounded determined.

"I am in too!" Sarada said with a much firmer voice.

"Then I will bestow you, your new name. Boruto, you will be known as Aether. Sarada, you are bestowed the name Equinox..."

The two nodded, feeling pumped up after receiving their names.

"Pontifex, hand them their Eyes. This will be the Key to The Order, and the eternal vow to be the Divine Mother's aide." 

Pontifex stood. And from the sleeve of his robe, he took out two Eye Creatures. One in the form of a white sparrow with one Sharingan eye. The other, a white beetle, the Sharingan hidden beneath its white elytra.

The white sparrow flew to perch on Equinox's shoulder. While the white beetle buzzed towards Aether's hair, already hiding in them.

"Now… as The Order's newest member… you have a task. To bring out a new, unchained self. Each member of The Order would have to go through the trial." Umbra took steps towards them, the sound of his boot thudding along the floor.

They felt anxious as he got closer. 

Umbra dug his hand into the void in his chest, pulling out an object from inside. He placed them on the table in front of them. The black leather book was opened, and along with it, colouring pencils…

"You will need to draw the image of your constellations… the reflection of your soul in The Order. In other words…" 

"Your attire." Umbra's cold voice was absolute.

"What…?"

Boruto and Sarada were dumbfounded. 

"Kouga… are you… playing… was all this… some prank…" Boruto asked to be sure. 

"... Secrecy is of utmost importance. We will have different lives in the shadow, and another in the light..." Umbra said seriously.

Boruto and Sarada looked at each other, not sure whether to laugh or cry. The two drew and made designs, with Umbra and Solstice commenting. Pontifex stood up and left them on their task to worship and pray to the Divine Mother. Moonveil silently sank into the void cracked from the ground to retreat.

***