By the time we reached back to Konoha. I had 25 SS tags. It would have been more. But running with a literal vortex in your hand was quite hard. We reached the village a day before the next clan council meeting.
We arrived to a disheveled compound.
"What happened here?" I asked a shopkeeper.
"The Hokage arrested everyone for sabotage. They say the tags made by you guys were faulty and an Anbu got injured from them."
"I see."
We regrouped in the main hall.
Surprisingly everyone was calm. It appears having a literal Bijudama in your hands made for a more reassuring tactic than anything else.
The whole compound had been sacked. Every thing that was of value, taken. Everything that was not, broken. It was a statement and nothing more. And a successful one. It conveyed the message perfectly.
"I checked the black box. It's still there."
"Good kids. They didn't speak. The armors were still proprietary. The yamanaka could not read their minds because of the Yami."
"What do we do now?"
"Send out invites."
There was no point in trying to prove anything. The system was rigged. It could not be changed. But it could be broken.
We had been allowed to come here and see. This means the Hokage wanted us to go begging him. He wanted to show us what he held.
I wrote a personally signed letter and made copies. One for every clan head and person of interest in Konoha.
It read thus -
The sun rises and the sun sets, uncaring as we mortals live and die beneath its light,
Many have thought that our sun is setting, But the dying spark burns the brightest.
We too shall burn bright. Come Witness our last light, our closing call, our final fight!
I had invited the to right outside Konoha. The rest of the letter basically said that they will regret it if they do not come. And if they can't, then send someone who they trust.
Maybe it was my tone. Maybe it was morbid curiosity. But almost everyone of note showed up. The Hatake, the Inuzuka, the FAK, the AKSE, everyone. The Hokage and his posse arrived last.
"What is this Ren?"
"Judgement."
"It is your clan who faces judgement. Sabotage. Treason. Defection. You are finished brat."
Naotora and the board snickered.
"He is correct Ren, I have to place you under arrest."
"Oh don't worry too much Lord Third. I have your proofs right here. Will you not let your former almost student argue his case. You can arrest me afterwards."
He pursed his lips. But he was still trying to figure out my game.
"From what I know. You arrested my clansmen without just cause. You cause wanton destruction and have leveled baseless accusations. From where I stand, You all will be the ones apologizing and paying a sizeable compensation for each of your transgressions over the years."
"You arrogant little-" Danzo started.
But I didn't let him finish.
"Words are meaningless Danzo. This demonstration will prove my claims."
I dropped the Lord as I skipped away.
------
I walked up to the small platform of Earth release we had made in haste.
I surveyed the crowd. They were all powerful and important people. But they were here for a fun show. They were relaxed. I saw Fugaku mingling while Renga argued something with another elder. The head of the FAK Akihiro Jiro stood off to the side with the Hatake. I clapped my hands together.
"You are all important people. And I will not take up much of your time. I am here to demonstrate the proof of my innocence. I am not a defector, because as you can see, I am standing here." People chuckled.
"And I did not sabotage anybody."
I paused. "What's the proof? You ask?"
I drew out a SS tag.
"Well to be honest, its simple. If I wanted to sabotage somebody, I would use this. And not some random explosion tag."
I waited for someone to ask the million dollar question. My eyes met Miyazaki Satoshi of the AKSE. He shrugged and played along. "And pray tell Lord Kurosawa. What is it that you hold?"
"Yes, you see. I haven't decided on a name yet. Let's call it Yami no Reigan. You can also call it the Tear of Kurosawa or simply Tear for short. But Yami no Reigan is the one I am currently leaning towards. You see, it can only be used in conjugation with a Yami. But anyways. First, this is the last thing on the docket today. Please bear with me. The first, is our Kurosawa armor."
10 warriors dressed in the armor stepped up. "They have many features." As I spoke they demonstrated. The armor had been fashioned according to English aesthetics. A bright blue cloak, long dark boots. Blue leather coat.. With intricate designs in gold. (You can see the cover of my other book 'Falling Tides' for reference.)
"The boots are enchanted with Wind Jutsu. They can be used for short dashes aided with wind." The 10 warriors used a single dash to move forward showing Chunin level speeds.
"The cloak has the chameleon effect of masking chakra."
As I said it almost everyone tried. My warriors pushed some chakra into the cloaks.
"I can still see them." A Hyuga spoke.
"Me too." said an Uchiha.
People waited. Nobody else stepped up. "Well maybe I can't beat those legendary Dojutsus. But is there anyone else?"
Murmurs began when nobody stepped forward. Not all units and clans had eye specific Dojutsus. And it was escaping sensor Shinobi.
"Finally the armor itself is enchanted with defensive seals providing durability like that of a Chunin."
Murmurs broke out. "And just so you know, the ones driving these are all Genin."
They made a few flashy and powerful moves.
Now it had everyone's attention. Even my enemies were nodding their heads in appreciation. They'll try to steal it no doubt later. But for now they appreciated.
"They are quite good Lord Ren." Naotora spoke. "There are some kinks though. I'll be happy to iron them out once you hand them over."
I just smiled and ignored him.
"And now for the grand finale. Witness the power of the tear, Witness the light of the burning sun, Witness the Rise of the Kurosawa."
I Activated a tear. And hurled it. But unlike last time, Hotaru was there to give it a boost using wind release.
The Tear flew aross the horizon far onto a nearby forest.
Just like always there was silence. The light and shock hit before the sound.