Kakashi Hiden: Lightning in the Icy Sky

is an original story written by Akira Higashiyama and illustrated by Masashi Kishimoto. It is the first book of the Naruto Hiden series.

Prologue
Nearly a year after the end of the Fourth Shinobi World War, Naruto Uzumaki and Sai are on a mission in the Land of Waves to capture Garyō, leader of the Ryūha Armament Alliance. The Ryūha Armament Alliance has been following the example set by Madara Uchiha, and in doing so has cost the lives of several of the Land of Waves' citizens. When they locate the group's hideout, Naruto attacks with his Multiple Shadow Clone Technique. He easily deals with most of the enemy forces, but has difficulty with a masked bodyguard that uses Ice Release. Naruto distracts the bodyguard with a shadow clone for long enough to apprehend Garyō.

Garyō tries to convince Naruto that his group is doing the world some good by releasing it from the corruptive influence of money. As proof, the masked bodyguard tells the story of their son, who was stung by hornets and needed immediate medical attention to be saved. No doctors could be found, however, because all the doctors had been hired by the Allied Shinobi Forces to assist with the war effort and the son died. Naruto shares his sympathies for the son's death, but cannot condone their actions and, despite the bodyguard's attempts to stop him, he escapes with Garyō on Sai's bird.

Later, Naruto meets with Inari at Zabuza and Haku's Grave. Inari discusses the project his grandfather, Tazuna, has been working on: Tobishachimaru, an airborne ship that will revolutionize the transportation industry. Although it's expected to bring great fortunes to the Land of Waves, Inari also believes it will cause mass unemployment. Naruto is reminded of Garyō's earlier words and, although he sees the problem money causes, he still doesn't agree with what Garyō was doing.

Chapter 1
Two months later in Konohagakure, Naruto, having recently acquired a prosthetic arm to replace the one he lost during the War, tries to get Kakashi Hatake's attention. After failing to ignore Naruto, Kakashi allows Naruto to ask him the same question everyone else does: when will he officially take on the responsibilities of Hokage. Naruto points out that Kakashi's face has already been added to the Hokage Monument, so for Tsunade to continue to be in charge confuses everyone. Naruto also argues that Tsunade is too old to continue being Hokage and unfit for the responsibilities, unaware that Tsunade is behind him.

After Tsunade angrily knocks Naruto unconscious, she too asks about Kakashi's plans. Kakashi feels unqualified since he no longer has his Sharingan and therefore can't use the Lightning Cutter anymore. He asks for her to wait until his current mission is complete before demanding his decision. Kakashi is to oversee security for the maiden voyage of the Tobishachimaru, as most of Konoha's other forces are on guard duty for the Blood Prison in the wake of the death of Mui, its previous warden, several years earlier. Tsunade wishes Kakashi luck and reminds him that the Tobishachimaru's existence is currently supposed to be a secret from the other Five Great Shinobi Countries.

Chapter 2
Tazuna tells Kakashi about the Tobishachimaru; its size, the helium that enables it to float, and the elevation it can reach. As the time of take-off nears, a woman runs through the crowd, eager not to miss her seat on the flight. Kakashi catches her as she nearly falls and watches her as she boards the ship. Tazuna speaks to Kakashi about finding a woman of his own and becoming Hokage, finding the two commitments to be quite similar.

As the Tobishachimaru is about to take off, Kakashi spots a hooded figure sneaking off the ship. He engages the figure only to discover that it's Rock Lee. Realizing what's happened, Kakashi boards the Tobishachimaru as it rises into the air. He finds Might Guy who, despite his history of motion-sickness, is eager to be one of the first people to fly in the air. Kakashi is not surprised by Guy's determination, as the injury to Guy's leg he received during the War has done little to discourage him from continuing life as a ninja. Since they aren't supposed to be on the flight, Kakashi and Guy seek out a place where they won't be noticed. In doing so, they discover a group of shinobi planting explosive tags around the ship.

Chapter 3
Kakashi and Guy infiltrate the ventilation ducts so they can move around the ship and gather information unnoticed. They watch as the ship's passengers are gathered into the dining area by enemy ninja and their leader, Rahyō. The Konoha ninja that have been inserted onto the ship as security engage the opposing forces, but their bodies are frozen from some remote location by a person named Kahyō. Rahyō tells the passengers that they are being taken hostage until Garyō is released from the Blood Prison. Starting in half an hour, if Garyō isn't freed, one hostage will be killed followed by another every subsequent ten minutes. Additionally, if Konoha involves Naruto Uzumaki in this, the Tobishachimaru will be blown up.

Chapter 4
A member of the Ryūha Armament Alliance delivers a message containing Rahyō's demands to Tsunade. After confirming the story, Tsunade radios Shikamaru Nara - who is currently in charge of the Blood Prison - with what is happening. As they try to decide what to do, Lee breaks into the transmission to inform Tsunade that Kakashi and Guy are on the ship. Shikamaru has Ino Yamanaka contact Kakashi and Guy while Tsunade assembles Konoha's available personnel, with the exception of Naruto.

Chapter 5
With twenty minutes until the first hostage will be killed, Kakashi and Guy continue through the ducts while they decide what to do. Guy's motion-sickness abruptly strikes, revealing their location to Armament Alliance. Ice shards start attacking them from all directions and they separate, with Kakashi quickly forced to defend himself with his new Lightning Release: Purple Lightning. The duct dislodges and he falls into a restroom, where he finds the woman he met earlier hiding. Kakashi introduces himself to her as a Konoha ninja and brings her with him.

Kakashi summons his eight ninken and sends them to find all the explosive tags planted around the ship. As the ninken disperse, Kakashi finds a safe place for the woman to hide. Because time is running out, the woman pleads with him to release Garyō so that nobody will be hurt. Kakashi responds that he can't do that, but promises that he will save as many people as he can. Kakashi attacks members of the Armament Alliance and neutralizes several, to which Rahyō responds by freezing two hostages to death. Rahyō offers to give ten more minutes for Konoha to comply with his demands before killing anyone else if Kakashi surrenders. He does so and is bound with ropes.

Ten minutes pass without Garyō's release, so another hostage is killed. Kakashi is angry with himself for allowing himself to be tied up, but is finally contacted by Ino. She reports that the ninken have found all the exploding tags and delivered them to Guy, who will set up a distraction so that Kakashi can gather the remaining passengers and get them to safety. Before breaking off communication, Kakashi requests that Sai be sent to provide assistance. As Rahyō prepares to kill another hostage, Guy elsewhere detonates the exploding tags, disorienting the ship and causing a fire to start spreading. Before Kakashi can act, however, the still-unaccounted for Kahyō stabilizes the ship and puts out the flames. Rahyō takes hold of Kakashi demanding an explanation, prompting Guy to fall from the ceiling to fight him.

Chapter 6
Even though his leg is in a cast, Guy remains as fast as ever, allowing him to evade Rahyō's ice-augmented physical attacks. He is even able to deliver some successful kicks, though has difficulty disguising the pain it causes him. He brings out his Sōshūga in order to engage Rahyō, but watching his own rapid swinging of Sōshūga causes his motion-sickness to return. Rather than be debilitated by it, Guy turns it into a fighting style he calls Seasickness Fist. While Rahyō struggles to hit Guy, Pakkun chews through the ropes binding Kakashi. Once he's free he sends Pakkun away and prepares to join Guy, but is interrupted by the appearance of Rahyō's younger sibling: Kahyō, the same masked shinobi Naruto fought two months ago.

Chapter 7
While Guy continues to fight Rahyō, Kakashi engages Kahyō. Kahyō attacks with Ice Release: Earthen Consecutive Chains of Ice and Kakashi counters with Purple Lightning. Kakashi tries talking to Kahyō, arguing that the Armament Alliance can't really want to destroy the world because they, like Madara Uchiha before them, in fact love the world too much. In reference to the death of Kahyō's son, Kakashi sympathizes, but states that it is inevitable that a shinobi will lose somebody they love. Kahyō retorts that the deaths of fellow shinobi are one thing, but that the death of their son, Hakuhyō, is an innocent life that can't be compared. Kakashi points out that Armament Alliance is now threatening to kill the innocent passengers aboard the Tobishachimaru.

Kahyō becomes angry by Kakashi's observation and performs another Earthen Consecutive Chains of Ice that starts spreading across the area, engulfing everything it comes into contact with. Rahyō tells Kahyō to stop and, when his order is ignored, he knocks Kahyō unconscious. Though the Chains of Ice disappear, a hole is left in the floor and the different pressures between inside and outside start sucking out passengers. Kakashi catches Guy before he's sucked out too, but cannot maintain his grip on the ship's hull. Guy tells Kakashi to save himself and Ino breaks in asking for an update, but Kakashi can only focus on one thing: Kahyō's mask has come off, revealing the woman he met earlier. Kakashi loses his grip and starts falling.

Chapter 8
Kakashi watches around him as he falls through the air with many other passengers. He makes eye contact with Guy and together they accept the fact that they're about to die. Just as Kakashi starts to reflect on what death means for him, he and everyone else are saved by Sai. Kakashi informs Sai of what they learned about the Armament Alliance's shinobi and asks how things are going on Konoha's end. It becomes apparent that events are not going in the Armament Alliance's favor, which Kakashi assumes they will have prepared for. Kakashi sends a message to Ino that Tobishachimaru is heading to Blood Prison and asks Sai to take him back to the ship so he can try and stop it. Sai complies, but finds the Tobishachimaru has risen well above its usual altitude owing to the ongoing conflict on board. The hole in the ship has been filled with ice, so Kakashi finds another entrance.

Chapter 9
In Konoha, Guy reports to Tsunade and pretends his innocence. Before she can get started punishing him, she is forced to take a call from the Third Tsuchikage. The Tsuchikage informs her that the "secret" Tobishachimaru is visible from several countries, including his own Iwagakure. Although he and the other Kage have actually known about it for some time, they've trusted Konoha to keep its own affairs. However, the Tsuchikage shares reports that there is a large amount of blue fire powder, a powerful explosive that reacts to water, on board. He wants to trust that Konoha will handle it, but he warns that he will not hesitate to destroy the ship if it seems like it will threaten Iwagakure; the other Kage will do the same for their own villages. Tsunade tells him it is bound for the Blood Prison in Kusagakure. The Tsuchikage ends the call stating his hopes that that is true, or else Konoha will be held responsible for anything that happens.

Tsunade immediately calls Rahyō, tells him the Tsuchikage's threat, and asks him to stop the Tobishachimaru. Rahyō refuses. Down in Konoha, villagers can now see the Tobishachimaru as it flies above them towards its destination. Tsunade decides that the ship must be destroyed before another village is forced to intervene. She has Ino tell Kakashi to do what he can but also warn him of her decision. She sends all available Konoha ninja - except for Naruto - to the Blood Prison with the standing order to destroy the ship if it is about to cross the border into Iwagakure.

Chapter 10
After receiving Tsunade's message from Ino, Kakashi sneaks back to the dining room where the remaining hostages are held. A mother pleads with Rahyō to let her son go, as his asthma is acting up and the medicine was lost during the earlier chaos. When Rahyō learns that the boy's father is a doctor in the Land of Waves, he decides to let the boy die to punish the father for allowing Kahyō's son to die. Kakashi emerges from his hiding place and asks Kahyō not to allow the boy to die, explaining that Sai is outside and that he can take the boy to safety. Rahyō offers to kill him in the boy's place, prompting Kakashi to start using Purple Lightning. As he does so, however, his body becomes internally cold and ice starts spreading across his body. Only by coating himself with chakra can he stop its spread.

Kakashi asks Kahyō what she's done to him, to which she explains that she branded him with her Chains of Ice when they first met. Despite having neutralized Kakashi, she agrees to his request (against Rahyō's protests) and allows the boy and his mother leave, but she warns Sai that she will kill a hostage if she sees him again. After Sai is gone, one of the passengers complains about this special treatment, asking if he would have been allowed to go if he brought a sick child. Kahyō freezes him to death. She explains that this is what her Chains of Ice do to normal people; for those with chakra, it only prevents them from using chakra for anything other than saving themselves.

Kahyō shares her history with Kakashi, how she left Kirigakure so that her son, Hakuhyō, would not suffer because of how he was born and be corrupted by the village's dark practices. They settled in the Land of Waves and found the happiness she wanted for a time. Hakuhyō died in time, stung by hornets and with no doctors to save him; this is the part of the story Kakashi heard before. What Kahyō never mentioned was that Hakuhyō was stung while protecting a friend of his, even using his ice release to keep the friend safe. The friend responded by abandoning Hakuhyō, not wanting anything to do with someone who had abilities like Hakuhyō did. This proved to Kahyō that, no matter how hard she tried, she could not escape the cruelties of the world. Kakashi has no response to her story and allows Rahyō's men to take him prisoner.

Chapter 11
Kakashi is locked in the ship's kitchen. Because of the ship's higher elevation, he theorizes that the air is thin enough that the men guarding the door aren't thinking clearly. This ends up proving accurate as he tricks the guards into letting him go. He returns to the dining area once again and finds the passengers are being fitted with parachutes so that they can evacuate the Tobishachimaru safely. Confused about why Rahyō has suddenly had a change of heart, Kakashi concludes that the parachutes must be packed with blue fire powder and that they are just over the Blood Prison; when the passengers descend through the clouds above the prison the explosives will be primed and detonate on landfall, enabling Garyō to escape.

Kakashi reveals himself and demands they stop, explaining to the passengers what's happening. The passengers can't remove the parachutes on their own and Rahyō's men start throwing them over board. Kakashi intervenes, briefly diverting his chakra from fending off the ice in order to use Purple Lightning on the remaining passengers and release them from the parachutes. While Kakashi dedicates his chakra back to regulating his body temperature, Kahyō questions Rahyō about whether Kakashi's accusation is true. Rahyō reluctantly says it is. Saddened, Kahyō attacks Kakashi but her ice projectiles miss and Kakashi, in his counter, discovers the ice binding him is gone. He attacks her, but stop short of killing her, realizing that's what she wanted.

Kahyō admits that Kakashi's earlier words have been resonating with her, but only now has she become convinced that she was wrong. As she starts articulating her regrets, the Tobishachimaru begins to sway from all the damage it's received and a fire breaks out. While Kahyō focuses on extinguishing the flames, the floor starts to give way. Kakashi gets the ship's pilots to safety and then tries to rescue Rahyō, telling him he can't save the world if he's dead. The ship heaves again and Rahyō is flung from Kakashi's grasp. As Kahyō cries out, Rahyō shouts his wish to have met someone like Kakashi sooner.

Chapter 12
At the Blood Prison, Konoha's forces watch the Tobishachimaru high above, wondering what's happening on board. They eventually notice that the Tobishachimaru is rising higher into the sky and conclude the threat is over. Parachutes start descending around the Prison and the Konoha ninja prepare to meet them, but are surprised when they start detonating holes in the Prison's walls. Shikamaru realizes what must be happening and coordinates efforts to stop the parachutes from hitting the ground and also saving the people the explosive are attached to. Meanwhile, as prisoners start to escape, Armament Alliance forces storm in looking for Garyō. As they get a handle on neutralizing the bombs, Shikamaru sends some of them after the escaped prisoners while he goes after Garyō. As he nears, however, he finds Garyō coming toward him instead, Ino already being in control of his body. Shikamaru escorts Ino/Garyō back to the Blood Prison.

Chapter 13
The Tobishachimaru continues rising into the sky, and Kakashi realizes it's only a matter of time until they start to experience the Armostrong limit. He tries to convince Kahyō to help him stop this and save the lives of everyone still on board by punching a hole in the helium sacs that keep the ship airborne. As they prepare to do this, Kakashi sees the Tsuchikage and his men flying outside, ready to destroy the ship if necessary. At the same time, Ino delivers a message from Tsunade that Kakashi is to personally see to it that the ship is destroyed before the Tsuchikage has a chance.

With no good option available to him, Kakashi sticks to his original plan of puncturing the helium sacs. The Tobishachimaru starts plummeting back to the ground. Kahyō uses her ice to keep the ship together and ease its fall. It works, but this rapidly depletes the moisture in the air and she can no longer make ice, at which point the ship starts tipping again. The Tsuchikage catches up with them and offers to take Kakashi and Kahyō to safety. Unwilling to abandon the rest of the passengers, Kakashi leaps through a hole in the hull out into the clouds the Tobishachimaru is falling through and uses Purple Lightning. He briefly loses conciseness, only to wake up a few seconds later as rain starts to fall.

Kakashi is rescued from the air by Kurotsuchi. As she escorts him to the ground he watches as Kahyō uses ice to glide the Tobishachimaru to a clearing by the Blood Prison. Kurotsuchi drops him off and the Tsuchikage, before leaving, gives him a message for Tsunade: the next generation will inevitably replace their own. As he watches Konoha's ninja wrangle the remainder of the escaped prisoners, Kakashi can't help but feel this is true and that he, as Hokage, would like to watch over things until they're ready.

Chapter 14
The passengers emerge from the wreck of the Tobishachimaru. Although some are battered and bruised - Sakura Haruno heals those who are - nobody died in the crash. When Kahyō emerges, Tsunade orders she be taken into custody because the Armament Alliance's stunt has destroyed Konoha's credibility and caused the Land of Waves to abandon their plans for airborne transportation. Before she can have Kahyō thrown into jail, Kakashi appears and asks to be allowed to decide her punishment.

Because of how many passengers died because of the Armament Alliance, Kahyō should be sentenced to death. However, Kakashi is willing to reduce her sentence to life-imprisonment if she will agree to be the new warden of the Blood Prison, dedicating the rest of her life to keeping those imprisoned there within its walls. He explains to Tsunade how the Chains of Ice work, and how they make Kahyō uniquely qualified to replace Mui, the previous warden. Shikamaru approves of this, believing it will be in all the villages' best interests. Tsunade agrees on the condition that it be Kakashi's first act as Hokage. Kahyō vows to accept this assignment if that is what Kakashi asks of her, so he officially takes on the title of Sixth Hokage.

Epilogue
Four months later, Kakashi prepares to read a letter. As he opens it, he recalls the Five Kage's inspection of the Blood Prison under Kahyō's care and how she met with their approval by humiliating the Fourth Raikage in a fight. He tries several times to read the letter, but keeps getting interrupted by other villagers, all of whom seem to know that the letter is from Kahyō yet who all seem to be badly misinformed about the nature of his relationship with her. He discovers this is Naruto's doing, who is openly publicizing his fantasies about Kakashi's feelings for Kahyō. Kakashi attacks him in anger, but decides to let it go when he realizes Naruto is only upset for being excluded from the whole affair. To make it up to Kakashi, Naruto invites him and everyone else to Ramen Ichiraku.

Trivia

 * Akira Higashiyama is also the author of another three Naruto novels: The Tale of the Utterly Gutsy Shinobi, Naruto Jinraiden: The Wolf that Howled at the Sun and Naruto: Demon Castle in the Light (Blood Prison).
 * Though the novel makes references to Naruto the Movie: Blood Prison, the details are different from the events that took place in the movie. Hōzuki Castle and Mui are both referenced as having been destroyed in a joint operation by Konohagakure and Kumogakure several years before this story takes place.
 * The last line of the novel is a Japanese metaphor for "blossoming love".

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