One Thousand Hands (OC- Senju SI)

Pre-Chapter A/N: Happy New Year! Here we go with the first chapter of 2025. Lovely to have you all here, and I hope you enjoy this one. If you do, feel free to head over to Patreon(www.patreon/Oghenevwogaga) and read the next three chapters- I update there daily so there's always something for you to read. It's also a new year, so this is probably the best time to buy an annual membership on my page if you're the kind of person that would do well with one. Have fun. 

XXXXXX- THE YONBI JINCHURIKI 

She hated the way they stared at her, this lecherous group of old men that considered themselves the masters of Iwa's sealing corps. She hated being back here again. All those years, all that training, and the moment she got a chance to prove her worth, it all slipped through her fingers. Shorirama Senju. She hated that name. She hated what it represented. She hated the village that had seen her taken from her family and given this burden to carry. This burden that had been sold to her as a source of power. 

She reached within herself again, trying to feel for the power that was within her. The Yonbi was an uncaring tenant. It did not care for her, or what happened to her, It also did not care when she took its power. It never resisted, but it never made it easy for her either way. Each step was like pulling teeth. She pulled at it regardless because the thought of what would happen if she didn't was enough to keep her up at night. The chakra felt like hot magma in her veins. It was a new pain. She had heard the whispers. She'd been trained unlike any other jinchuriki before her because of her prodigious talent, but even that did not matter now. It hadn't mattered before him. 

Shorirama Senju's blank white eyes stared down at her like a fly beneath his boot and the surge of rage it sent through her system made her slip for a moment. She took even more chakra than she'd planned, and she felt her mind go blank. 

"Again" She heard a harsh voice say as soon as she felt her mind return to her. She scowled as she stood up. She'd taken too much chakra again and lost control. A mess. 

"Where's Han?" She asked. He was at least useful, unlike this lot. 

"Shut up, Jinchuriki. Again" The old man said. She silently promised herself that he would die at her hand while she stared him down. 

"Where is Han?" She demanded this time, emphasizing that she was not going to cooperate until she got an answer. 

"He's been stationed at the border with Kusa. Now Again, Jinchuriki" She took the answer as a victory, small as it was, as she reached within herself for the Yonbi's chakra. This time, she had an easier time pulling it out of her and felt it flowing through her network before it began to leak out of her body. That was one thing about tailed beast chakra that constantly drew her interest. It was so dense that it could not remain internal for long. It had to exert itself on the world around her. As Han put it, they loved to show off. 

Her vision was tinted red as the tailed beast's aura grew to cover her entire body. If she turned around, she was sure she'd find a tail floating behind her. 

"One tail, Version 1 cloak: Success" One of the lesser aged but equally boring foggies called out. 

"Steady, Jinchuriki. Steady." 

"No. Push it" The old fog in charge said, directly countermanding his subordinate. 

"But Hiroshi-sama" 

"But nothing. A single tail is nothing. Roshi could access three and version two" He replied harshly. 

"Roshi was much old-" 

"Push it, I said" The man replied harshly. She wondered if they were yet to figure out that with the enhanced senses of this form, she could hear them as they spoke in whispers. 

"Jinchuriki. Draw on more of the Yonbi's chakra." The one that had been speaking into the microphone finally said. Gladly, she thought. She was playing along with this whole mess for her own reasons. She'd been mistaken as to her strength. Being better than her senseis didn't matter. Shorirama Senju had killed the Raikage. Kubo Yatsuki had struggled to last minutes against him as he played with their attempts to team up against him. That was the level she needed to reach. 

The surge of anger that marked the name of the man she wanted to kill was pushed down with a savage intensity. She could not afford to lose focus at this point. She felt for the line that connected her to the mass of chakra in her gut and began to pull even more. She could feel it as it encroached on her mind. The desire to run wild, to rage against those who would keep her enclosed. The desire to dominate. She cleared her mind like Han taught. "You are you. The beast is the beast. You win because you are greater than the beast." She whispered to herself as she pulled on more and more chakra. 

"Perfect. Hold it there, Jinchuriki. Two tails, Version 1 Cloak: Success". 

X_ 

She ran through the field, as fast as she could, covering the distance between one flag and another before turning on her heel and dashing leftwards to continue the course. The ground beneath her gave way suddenly, but that was no issue, her tails reached out in front of her to stab themselves into the ground and pull her to the other end of the Chasm that had formed beneath her feet. When it came to the wall climbing, she resisted the urge to attempt sticking either her chakra because regulating that would slow her down, and just stabbed her clawed hands into the wall itself and climbed with that. 

She was sure that to outsiders, it must have looked like she was teleporting because it felt like all reality had come to a slow as she sped up. She'd never felt so free before. It was like this was her world—this realm of unchecked speed. From the top of the wall, she jumped without even springing her knees to the first platform and then began to just run across the platforms. The massive leaps that took her from platform to platform felt like mere steps. She didn't have to prepare them or gather acceleration, or force all her strength into her legs. She just intended move from point A to point B, and that was it- her body did it. 

The next part of the test, the tightrope, was pathetic with how easy it was. She balanced herself on the thin piece of ninja wire that supported her weight easily, and then began to run across it. She was sure that action would have gotten more than a few raised eyebrows, but with how easily she could perceive things, she had all the time in the world to decide whereto place her feet. None of the other parts of the court where even worthy of note with how quickly she went through them. 

In no time at all, she was back where she had begun, standing before the Tsuchikage and two of his advisers. 

"Like I said Tsuchikage-sama, the Jinchuriki shows exceptional promise when it comes to control over the tailed beast. She is younger than her predecessor was by some margin, and already outshines him when it comes to control over the beast." 'Hiroshi-sama' stated. She still hadn't been told who exactly this old foggie was. The others usually introduced themselves without any prompting. They were all too excited to brag about themselves and their worthless achievements, she had come to find. 

"Indeed? And how long can she maintain this state for?" The Tsuchikage asked, clearly referencing her present tailed beast cloak. 

"The Three tails, Version 1 Cloak seems to last for as long as it has chakra left to mix with the tailed beast chakra" 

"And that typically is? I'd like an answer in units of time, this time Hiroshi". 

"Two hours while idle. We expect it to be much lesser when she exerts herself in combat." 

"Combat should not even last half that long" One councillor whispered into the Kage's ear and the man just nodded. 

"And her strength? How does she rate in combat?" 

"Stronger than an elite Jounin, my lord" 

"Indeed? If that is the case, then I must see this with my own eyes. Roshi died to a chunin, and he was much older than she is now." 

"Yes, Tsuchikage-sama. We will prepare an exhibition at a later date with a suitable target." 

"No need. She can spar against my son here. Kitsuchi come forward." 

She watched the man who had led their last mission step forward. The Tsuchikage's own son. He was a young adult, years older than Azula and a bit past his teenage years. Older than Shorirama Senju, she noted. But weaker. Shorirama Senju killed a Kage, and this one struggled to assert his dominance over some up-jumped fools from the Cloud Village. Regardless of his clear weakness, he was not a bad man. He was friendly and treated her well when they were paired together, which was a far cry from whaat she had come to expect from most of the village's shinobi- shortsighted fools who could not see the writing on the wall that she would be better than them in time and then there would be a reckoning. 

He walked over, moving to stand to her left without even uttering a word to his Grandfather beyond the nod of acquiescence to the order. He was dressed in the standard Iwa Jounin Uniform, and had all his gear about him. She could hear his heart beating in his chest. The will of Stone, she thought sardonically to herself. His face looked to be carved from the same stone that formed Iwa's foundation, but she could hear the way his heart beat rapidly as she stared hm down. The will of stone, like every other thing in this damn village, was a dirty lie. He was just as afraid as everyone else was to face her. 

She felt herself internally snarl as his heartbeat began to slow with time. He was dismissing her as a threat. Her. Her!!! She looked at the old fog, waiting for him to begin the fight. This was going to be a lesson in humility for this bastard and his father. They who sought to use her as a tool to assert their dominance and nothing else. 

"Begin" Hiroshi said, dropping his hand. She watched it almost in slow motion, consciously trying to wait for the hand to complete its descent before she moved. She would not have anything marring the victory she was about to claim. The second his hand was completely vertical and facing downwards, she moved. One second she was at her position, and two later, she was at his. Her claws reached out, intent on taking his throat for his impudence. She did not feel the hit that forced her backwards by sending her flying. She actually had to look to see the rounded off spike of earth that had hit her ribs with bone shattering force. 

There was so much chakra moving through her at present that she did not even feel the pain of her ribs being shattered. She landed on her back but rolled with the force and sprung back to her feet in seconds. Multiple spikes came flying at her from his position, and she felt a force welling up deep in her belly. She opened her mouth to let it out on instinct, and out poured a literal river of lava. 

The lava swallowed the approaching rocks and continued onwards to the Jounin's position, forcing him to jump up and backwards away from the attack, still taken by instinct, she reached up her hands and took control of the lava she'd just spat out and made it explode almost randomly across its surface, sending lava flying in all directions and forcing all those watching and the Jounin she was fighting scrambling backwards to avoid the spray. She crouched low to the ground and took a breath before pushing off from the ground and rushing at his position. 

He dodged backwards from her first swipe, but this time she saw the attempt to push her off before it fully realised, and cruel crushed the pillar of stone with one of her tails. The other two reached out for his feet. He managed to avoid one of the tails, but the other took a hold of his left ankle and dragged him down. His hands shot into the ground and rose, clad in gauntlets, as he tried to punch her off. She dodged away from the punch and grabbed the hand with another tail. It wrapped around the hand and crushed it savagely before dragging him up. 

He moved to punch her with the other fist, but she caught it in her hand and began to squeeze. He detached the rock glove, freeing up his hand and leaving the glove in her hand, before pointing his palm at her and sending her flying with a gust of wind. She snarled as she felt her mind cloud at being denied her prey once again. He muttered some words that most would not have heard, but she heard the curses aimed at her and her nature but ignored them in favour of attempting to clear her mind and focus. 

He was already down one hand, and was mostly out of the fight. She just had to deliver the finishing blow. He began weaving one-handed seals, but she was intent on not having him finish whatever jutsu he had in mind. She covered the distance between them once again and landed right on top of him. This time, as her chakra pressed down on him, his body collapsed in mud that began to reach around and surround her. She thrashed against the bindings as more and more mud reached from the ground towards her position. 

Moved by instinct once again, she roared, sending out a cone of force that washed away the surrounding mud. She slapped her tails into the ground, causing a tremor that shattered her surroundings and forced her target out of his hidden position. Whatever attempts he made to use jutsu failed in the end as she covered him in lava from head to toe. Once again, she snarled at finding out her target had been a clone. 

Her ears twitched as her foe appeared out of actual thin air with a kunai aimed at her throat. She stared at his face as his blank expression broke at the last minute. His mouth opened against his will to spit blood on her that her chakra cloak boiled to steam. He looked down, and she followed his gaze to the tail buried in his stomach. 

XXXXXX- SENJU SHORIRAMA 

The plan, in the end, was a simple one. Slightly more complex than what I initially had in mind, but still simple enough that we had only needed to ask a few questions to ensure that everyone understood their role in what would be coming. The plan also consisted of several of what my modern-day sensibilities classified as war crimes. 

The first of which, was poisoning the rives that the Suna nin were definitely going to be relying on. That was what he, Uraume and Shiba had been dispatched to handle. Shika had divided them into multiple teams to handle different aspects of the war effort when it came to putting an end to Suna's advance. Izuku and Uzume were set to set parts of the forest on fire to smoke up as much of the land of rivers as possible. Thanks to the Country's generally sparse vegetation, the thickest bits of the forest were the bits that led towards the land of fire, so they would be the first to go to deny the Suna shinobi the chance of relying on said vegetation for their war effort. Omoikane, Inoken, and Choni were going to be focused on picking as much of the land clean as they could to deny the Suna army whatever food they could. The hardest jobs had been given to Kizuru, Toshiro, and Shika herself, who would be working on destroying the Suna army's supplies were possible, raiding their reserves, and getting rid of their scouts were possible. 

The others had been set towards creating fall back points for their little squad, trapping and flagging possible paths of retreat that they could make use of, and trapping the Suna nin's path forward. After the basic preparatory steps, they would move on to the second part of the plan. 

"Have you got it, Uraume?" He asked, turning to look at his cousin. 

"Yes, I think so. The rivers branch out a lot, but I think I've found a straight enough path that should get us to the source in a few hours" She said, and I nodded. 

While Shika had ordered us to poison the rivers without specifying the means of doing so, it was my idea to seek the source of the rivers. Just blindly poisoning a few streams and rivers ran the risk of only getting some portion of the army in our attack. This? This meant the entire land of rivers would be feeling our effects soon. Of course, that meant we were limited when it came to what forms of poison. Would-be War monger or not, I would not be killing thousands of civilians in an indiscriminate attack if I had any other choice, and thankfully I had more than a few options in my newly acquired bag of tricks. 

We tracked the river's path from our hidden positions in the foliage and covered nearly half the length of the land of rivers as we tried to follow it to the source. In the end, we came to a cave, from which flowed a waterfall that branched out and fed nearly three dozen different streams and rivers. Some of them went on to feed dozens more. With the amount of water being contemplated here, I'd expected to find some sort of passage from the ocean that I could poison, but the idea of all that water coming from a single fixed point almost boggled the mind. It didn't just boggle my mind, it had it firing at light speed, making connections with a certain tale that Granduncle Tobirama had spent some time obsessed with. 

"What's in that cave?" I asked Uraume, even as I activated my own byakugan. 

"I can't see into it" She finally said after staring at the cave with narrowed eyes. I agreed, only seeing a grey outline when I tried looking at it with my byakugan. Fascinating. 

A/N: Yippee, Azula POV, and we see how the War begins. My conceptualization of war here is a lot of small missions to destroy, steal, and deny resources from the other side as opposed to large pitched battles. As always, the following two chapters are up on Patreon(www.patreon/Oghenevwogaga) . If you just want to read complete chapters and not my work in real-time, then feel free to purchase this story as a collection on my Patreon(www.patreon/Oghenevwogaga) page so you get to read each chapter after I finish it and not neecessarily the daily updates available with a regular pa-treon membership- nice way to support this story and me while you're at it. Enjoy!