Naruto is sort of kidnapped, but somewhat grateful for it.

Chapter Text

The flimsy rays of the setting sun illuminated his chubby face, whiskered checks contorting with the force of his frown. The village looked beautiful from up here, stately and full of life.

But he couldn't afford to take a moment to enjoy it. Jii-sama said one should enjoy the beauties of life. But he didn't think that held true when he had been taken away from his usual protectors and dropped off by someone he didn't know.

The man in question simply stood under the weight of his stare, facing away at the very edge of the Fourth's head. Naruto scratched his left arm softly, shaking out the gravel stuck to the inside of his sleeves. A frown still etched onto his pouting features. He was feeling a bit indignant over the silent treatment.

Though his blue eyes hadn't left the man's cloaked visage since he was first taken here, gently dropped upon the locks of the venerable Fourth Hokage.

It was a place he visited often himself. Whenever his protectors would allow it. To look over the village he loved, and would one day (he swore) love him in return.

The man was a ninja, that much was obvious, they were the village's fierce protectors, their foreheads emblazoned with the mark of their village. Flinging themselves onto roofs and hurtling into the sky with a wild freedom he envied.

The hitai-ate was an honor he had promised his Jii-sama (as the man looked at him with fond, sad eyes) he would receive one day, he had only a year to wait before his entrance test after all.

One of the villagers had been screaming at him again. Face red and spittle flying everywhere. He had accidentally bumped up against the merchant, on his way to see Jii-sama. The gravel had stung the palms of his hands. The man's yells had made his eyes sting even to his best efforts. He had promised to be done crying, done with tears. They never accomplished anything. Never made the hurt lessen.

In spite of the man's threatening, looming visage, harsh voice crackling with the force of his yells. Naruto could see (sense) that he was more sad than angry. Devastated and hurting. The rumble in his stomach told him so.

There were tears in the corners of his eyes. Haunted eyes that weren't really looking at Naruto. None of them were ever really looking at Naruto. Sometimes not even Jii-sama was. Those were the times that hurt the worst.

He was a smart child for his age, his Jii-sama told him so. He liked laughing, and loud colors and pranks and screaming out his fierce love for the world. He had a temper that made his blood boil and his stomach rumble for bad things. But he never got upset when the villagers got like this, not anymore.

Not when he could feel a grief so terrible, so gut-wrenchingly sad engulfing them all. They were hurting and he was the outlet.

It wrenched at his heart in a way he had never been able to explain to Jii-sama, to receive that treatment when the other children were greeted with smiles and treats and fond laughter. But he accepted it, and he understood. (The kind Yamanaka with the long hair had explained it to him when Jii-sama started getting concerned over his growing resentment. He hadn't understood then. His stomach had been quiet.)

There was a monster trapped inside of him. And it had killed this man's wife and two children whilst he watched. One of the few it was directly responsible for, a flick of its tails rendered them smears adorning the pavement.

She pushed me out of the way, she was my love, my love, and you-you get to live and my baby is dead you took them all and this Jii-san that had loved his family with everything he had was left all alone. (The rumble laughed at the remembrance of beautiful, blood soaked streets and howling glory.)

He didn't understand why one of Jii-sama's Zoo people (they're called ANBU, Naru-chan) had whisked him away from that confrontation. It was not the first of the many he had faced. Nor would it be the last.

They had never interfered before; he knew they were only meant to if anyone tried to hurt him. Which had never occurred before. The villagers were grieving, but they were not stupid. Jii-sama would be really upset if anyone hurt him.

The Zoo person (he was a bird, perhaps, he had told Jii-sama that it wasn't really clear) had stood still, not a muscle moving, for over five minutes now.

He had wanted to show Jii-sama his Maths homework, to receive his promised ramen reward before the sun set down. Something made a bit difficult by this stray ANBU's antics.

The Kurama Clan servants would always cluck disapprovingly when he returned later than that. He didn't want to get lectured again.

"I am a traitor to the village for even considering doing this." the ANBU exclaimed. His young sounding voice coming from seemingly out of nowhere. Naruto's faint irritation vanished with a daunting realization. They were far removed from prying eyes. The ANBU's alert position now conveyed anything but reassurance.

(Traitors are those who forsake their village, Naruto, they are scum.)

Naruto's blood froze to ice in his veins at that particular thought. Bird-san finally moved from his statue-esque position, inclining his head to glance down at the now gaping Naruto. He snorted at him, readjusting his painted mask and crouching down close to face Naruto, moving several meters within a blink of an eye.

Naruto tried to scramble away as quick as he could, but there really wasn't anywhere to go. And he couldn't do any cool ninja tricks to get away yet. Not that there was anywhere to run from an ANBU. The Bird mask concealing his features made the man's quiet staring more intimidating, somehow, not seeing a human face made the situation scarier. He couldn't even muster up his usual bravado.

The ANBU seemed to radiate confusion and concern at his reaction. Which didn't make sense since he was the one being creepy! Would he hurt him? Naruto didn't really want to be hurt.

"I won't hurt you, Uzumaki-sama, I would never." The ANBU's soft sounding voice tried to reassure. He was doing a poor job of it. All ANBU had a cold monotone they couldn't abandon until leaving active service. So Naruto just shook his head in response, arms trembling. 

"I brought you here to tell you something." The man paused to take a breath, and what was going on here? Naruto fidgeted a bit on the spot, trying to look less scared than he felt.

"Because, you see, my senpai, he's the dumbest genius alive, and he doesn't deserve, or well you don't deserve not to see him, and I think he, gods." The ANBU continued on in the same stuttering vein, frantic rambling and stocky movements replacing his eerie silence and absolute stillness. His voice even lost some of its frigid nature.

So Naruto calmed a little bit at the sight. He felt silly for thinking that one of Jii-sama's Zoo people would hurt him. He had probably just tried to joke and failed miserably. The ANBU always were a bit scary and weird. He giggled a little bit as the ANBU started making rude hand gestures and muttering insults at his "senpai." It was funny to see an ANBU being so; human. Though his giggles made Bird-san startle and go quiet again.

But Naruto had never been good with silences. "ANBU-san you're funny! And silly. But why did ya say you're a traitor? You're Jii-sama's Zoo people!" he twittered out. It always noticed the ANBU guarding Jii-sama. The people protecting the Hokage couldn't be traitors. Traitors were rare and they were the worst.

The man sighed and reached a hand to the back of his head in embarrassed consternation, "Ah, yes, I am. I'm just a bit, unsure of how to tell you, or," his voice quieted into an almost choked up sounding whisper "or if I even should." His shoulders tensed, swaying a little bit in his crouched position. Looking as if he might bolt at the slightest provocation.

Naruto grew increasingly concerned at this strange behavior. He really just wanted some ramen and for Jii-sama to tell him a cool story. He hadn't planned on strange ANBU kidnapping him. But now that he was here, he figured he might as well find out what he wanted. So he looked up and into the ANBU's dark non-reflective eyes, giving him a decisive nod.

"I'll keep your secret Bird-san! I promise! Well unless it's somethin' real bad! Jii-sama says a ninja has to be super relinable! Otherwise, the people wantin' help won't trust us with the missions and we won't be able to help, ya know!."

He spread his orange-cloaked arms wide in excitement, thinking of the missions the adventures to come. And he grinned his best "be happy!" grin so the ANBU would cheer up a bit (and perhaps hurry up, there was ramen waiting. Teuchi-ossan had some new flavors he wanted him to try.)

He thought it might have worked. The stressed servants in the kitchens would always smile back at him and feel a bit better when he did this. But Bird-san just drooped down further, like a wilted plant, and looked away.

Keeping silent for a heartbeat before he spoke again. The ANBU clenched his gloved fists. Was he..scared? "You have an older brother, Naruto-sama."

Naruto choked on the question he had meant to ask at that statement, flinching so hard he fell backward. The world started spinning a little bit. Like it did when he ran a lot. He had to shove down his disbelief so he could think. He had been told that his family was dead, all dead. Jii-sama had told him so. But if it wasn't true then?

His chest started flipping and he thought he might cry at the mere thought of this being real. Hand over his now pounding heart he clenched his fist around the soft orange fabric. What exactly was going on here? A brother? Where had he been? Why had Jii-sama not told him about this?

Before he could attempt to ask anything the ANBU swore fiercely. "I can't stay here any longer, the others are coming for you. When they ask you who told you about all this, can you promise not to tell them it was me?" Naruto nodded over eagerly. He needed to know more about what had happened to his Nii-san! Why was Bird-san telling him of all this? Why was it a secret?

"I won't tell you unless you promise." Bird-san said sternly. Naruto rose to his feet almost frantic to know more. Quickly assuring the ANBU of his secrecy. He knew his parents were dead. He –it- had tasted their blood. But he hadn't been aware of a brother.

Bird-san leaned in real close; he could see the whites of his eyes through the tiny holes in his mask. "He isn't your brother by birth, but your parents raised him. And they adopted him into the Uzumaki clan by blood. But he hurt a lot of people when he found out that, when they told him that he wouldn't get to raise you or come close to you now –then- that your parents were dead."

The ANBU was now glancing around him frantically. His words tripping over themselves in his haste but Naruto understood what he was hearing. He had a Nii-san and his Nii-san was upset to be forcibly parted with him and he loved him there was someone that loved him enough to hurt others over it. And was probably in the bad guys' prison even though he couldn't possibly be bad. He was startled out his haphazard, panicky thoughts, sweat dripping down his neck, by a touch. He hadn't noticed himself heating up. Konoha was always warm and temperate. But it suddenly felt warmer than usual, in spite of night approaching soon.

The ANBU grasped for his shoulders, his grip was bordering on painful. The Zoo people didn't really know how not to be strong. "His name is Hatake Kakashi. Naruto flinched and started fiercely at that name. Looking up wide-eyed. For he had heard it before. Everyone had. White Wolf. Thunder God.

Though he only really knew he was a strong ninja everyone seemed scared of. Or maybe it was awe? But that was his Nii-san! So cool!

Bird-san's already tight grip harshened. And Naruto smiled sheepishly at him. He had probably noticed his wandering thoughts. The ANBU simply nodded at him. More serious and grim than goofy now.

"Or well, formally he is Uzumaki-Hatake Kakashi. And ever stoic senpai was so excited for you to be born." His Nii-san had wanted him! He wanted him too so- "I'm leaving this to you Naruto-sama. The village has put senpai in chains, only ever letting him out to sic him on our enemies. But that isn't living. What he did was inexcusable, but he has been through so much, and he- I just had to do something I-"

There was a faint rustling from somewhere close. The ANBU flinched and straightened into a standard superior officer greeting. Hand to his heart. Staring silently at something behind Naruto. His other watchers had found him then. It was weird that they took so long, though it had probably only been 10 minutes. It was slow for them. Maybe they were slacking off again? Jii-sama would relish an opportunity to scold them again.

Swallowing through his choked disappointment at the information spree being cut short, he swiveled his head and was greeted with the sight of ANBU Monkey-chan. She (because the ANBU seemed to be a bit too short to be male) was one of his primary watchers. So he gave her his certified sunshine smile and stretched his arms toward her in a facsimile of a hug, for he knew ANBU were not to be touched. (They did not know how not to be strong.)

"Monkey-chan! Did you lose me? Jii-sama will scold you again, ya know!" He loved getting reactions out of the reserved, distant protectors. And if he was reading her correctly, (he knew he was, the rumbling always knew) she was a bit irritated. But she pretended she hadn't heard him and started harshly scolding Bird-san for taking him away without informing the rest of his watchers.

He stopped paying attention then. Turning to stare at the orange of the sunset. Imagining what his Nii-san was like. What he looked like. He wished he had more people to speak to.

By the sound of the snippets of conversation he had caught whilst walloping through the streets, Nii-san was almost always gossiped about. Most of it was praise, but some seemed to really hate Nii-san. He sunk into his thoughts deeply enough that he barely noticed Monkey-chan finishing her scolding, picking him up and starting the journey back to the Kurama Clan compound. He couldn't even muster up the strength to pout at the treatment.

Nor feel particularly upset at missing out on Jii-sama's company and the holy virtues of ramen. Within the tight grip of Monkey-chan, the wind musing up his blonde spikes and the dying light of the sun stinging his eyes. He couldn't stop thinking. About his Nii-san, about the prospect of family and someone who saw him.

He felt like he'd eaten something spoilt, but also like he was happy. He had an older brother who loved him, who was a super cool ninja, who needed his help. So with a stubborn set of his chin (that he knew would have Jii-sama worriedly questioning him on what he had done this time), he resigned himself to a longtime mission.

He knew that family meant everything.

Chapter Management

• Edit Chapter
•  
• Delete Chapter

Chapter 2: Sinnesslöshet

Summary:

A rewind to the past, Hatake Kakashi does not soldier onwards; but breaks. Konohagakure reaps the consequences. (Aoba does not enjoy them.)

Notes:

Dedicated to kind reviewers. (My ego thoroughly enjoys compliments, thank you.)

(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)

Chapter Text

Aoba adjusted his dark sunglasses with a flick of a hand. Straightening out of his slightly hunched posture, hurriedly jumping toward the Hokage Tower. It wouldn't do to be late to his first assignment as Tokubetsu jounin.

As he leaped higher, relishing in the sensation of the sun on his skin and the wind in his hair, he glanced down at his newly earned flak jacket. Just barely containing his exhilarated whoop of joy, it wouldn't do to shatter his outwardly calm and composed persona. He kept his joy mainly internal. Though practically anyone with eyes would be able to spot his vibrating joy. Tokubetsu at seventeen, whilst not unprecedented to any extent, was earlier than most outside of wartime.

An achievement finally unlocked after years of meticulous training and excellent mission stats. He smiled slightly, just as planned.

As he landed gently on the ground, making a short walk through the ruined, crumbling parts of the most afflicted Konoha district, and into the unaffected Hokage Tower territory. He once again couldn't help but feel pride in how his evacuation efforts during the Kyuubi attack had earned him his promotion.

Spotting a familiar figure in his periphery, he waved a quick hello to his squadmate Raido, looking to have just returned from a mission. The man covered in congealed blood simply gave him a cheery grin back and vanished in a flicker.

His mind drifted to what food he would prepare for his team later this evening, the thought prompted by Raido's brief appearance. Aoba did have a new variation of his sushi recipe to test, though sushi was such a delicate treat to prepare. Perhaps he should go for the curry?

It would keep his ever bickering teammates from complaining overly much. They enjoyed his curry. His dull thoughts kept his mind preoccupied as he once again sped through the streets. His guard was down. As it should be within the confines of Konoha. 

But it cost him, as the force of the sudden blast picked him up and hurled him into the nearest building. Just barely managing to scramble for a safe landing. Exploding wood cut his left leg deeply, a shallow incision of his left brow sent a cascade of blood pouring down his face. Aoba quickly squashed the burgeoning panic at such a sudden attack.

He couldn't help but think of the Kyuubi, sealed within that infant. Had it broken out in spite of the Hokage's continuous reassurances? Would they send him out to fight it this time? Would he die? Would his comrades die this time?

He stopped and started, quickly detecting and interpreting the bright chakra message of what was probably the highest ranking jounin in the area.

Genin and Chuunin gather civilians for evacuation. Tokubetsu, Jounin, ANBU. S-ranked ninja threat toward Hokage tower. Immediate threat. Protocol 45-M-02, category 3 in action.  Tokubetsu, Jounin, ANBU. S-ranked ninja threat toward Hokage tower. Immediate threat. Protocol 45-M-02, category 3 in action.

And then the world lit up. The buildings crumbled. The Hokage Tower, the most important, prized, location in Konoha, shattered into two pieces. Cut apart by white lightning. The skies rumbled, the sunny day replaced by dark clouds at an alarming rate, electricity struck everywhere. Hot white thunder. People screamed, ran for cover but there was nowhere to run. The sky was everywhere.

Aoba hurtled himself toward the Hokage Tower. Positioning himself into a standard diamond formation, quickly joined by other unfamiliar ninja in a mad sprint toward the Hokage Tower.

Ne - I - Tora

Sanzengarasu no jutsu

It was his duty as a ninja to ascertain the safety of his Lord. His crows momentarily obscured his field of vision. He quickly directed them to fly ahead to scout. They only made a short distance before being struck down by lightning.

One of his squad mates gave a choked, gurgling screech, falling to the ground. Either dead or unconscious. He could feel the smarting burn of his closeness to the lightning. This chakra was suffocating. Cold and overbearing and somehow this felt worse than the Kyuubi's of months previous. This one was human.

He barely rolled out of the way of a white hot bolt of lightning, hurtled himself over charred caravans, and with a sure foot quickly flickered back to position. His bleeding leg aching at the action. The commander of the makeshift platoon hurriedly signed an order for any wind users to create spacing.

His legs couldn't help but shake as he saw ANBU after ANBU lying dead on the ground. ANBU were the strongest ninja of Konoha, just what did he they- think they were doing. His panicked thoughts nearly overwhelmed him under the force of the killing intent showering the area, running toward a danger that would surely incapacitate him. Kill him.

The world was vibrating. He had never experienced anything akin to this. Never. Even in the chaotic battlefields of the Third Ninja War. His fellow ninja were dying around him. Wind users were too rare in Konoha. Lightning moved so fast. This lightning hurt worse than any other he had ever been afflicted by. All around him, a cacophony of choking and hoarse screams, insides liquidating.

There was someone distinct screaming. Hoarse yells of absolute madness. He tried to ignore how he recognized the voice, even warped by anger as it was. Even with the thunder eclipsing everything but the harshest screams.

Hatake-sama was the prodigy of their generation, amongst the greatest to have ever been born. Admired by every single ninja permitted to be in his presence. Gennin at five, Chuunin at six, Jounin at ten. And if rumors were correct, now at thirteen, the youngest ANBU in history.

"Sandaime! You made me carry away their dead bodies. My father! My mother! I killed Obito, I killed Rin! All of them, all of them dead dead dead, all of it for you! For Konoha! No one left but him!"

He must be under the control of some genjutsu, Aoba thought as a squad of ANBU carrying a bleeding, charred white cloaked ANBU captain to safety flickered past. Their masks off, frightened expressions visible to the eye. The world was roiling so fiercely he could feel his teeth vibrate in his mouth. His heart turn with the nausea of ozone.

The Hokage was shouting Hatake-sama's name, and if he saw correctly. His student, the great Toad Sage was aiding him in their attempts to subdue the deadly Hatake. Ninja were lying dead at their feet, or attempting to crawl to safety.

The Hokage and his student were clashing with the thirteen-year old in blurs too fast to be seen properly. The screaming of ninja in agony never seemed to end, white chakra lightning hurt like nothing else. Frying nerves and paralyzing limbs.

"I have failed everyone I've ever loved, Sandaime! Failed them!"

The Toad Sage ordered them away. The usual goofy persona washed away, replaced by the harsh gaze of a veteran who knew what he was doing. Ordering their aid in further evacuation efforts.

Sanda Sekai was spreading over the sky, never abating, having already rendered an entire district to charred pebble. Hatake-sama must be running low on chakra at this juncture, Aoba couldn't help but hope. His feet gluing him to the ground even as the rest of his platoon flickered away. He couldn't look away, couldn't move.

Hatake had stopped shouting, he was laughing now. Laughing madly, madly. Killing his own fellow ninja with graceful ease. Dichotomous eyes with a blood drenched Sharingan.

Hatake disappeared with an imperceptible poof usually accompanying a destroyed shadow clone, slipping out of the grasp of the Sennin's toads. Reappearing from underground. A swing of his sabre nearly cutting the Sennin's throat clean through. 

It would seem, Aoba thought, muscles giving up under the onslaught of lightning, ears bleeding, that even with this seeming loss of sanity, Hatake Kakashi was always the smartest fighter in a battle.

"Kakashi, you need to calm down child! I am certain we could arrange something more agreeable-" The Hokage stopped mid shout as Hatake appeared from his side, body crouched low, making a deep incision with his White-chakra sabre.

Grinning fiercely, joyously as the Hokage's blood splattered across his mask. A dodge, a smooth twist of the body and the Hatake was too close to the Hokage once again, dodging the fierce onslaught of the Sennin's toads. Of the newly arrived jounin attacks of fire, water, earth. A too close swing of his sabre prompted the Sandaime to use a wind-jutsu to create distance, grimacing in pain. 

The Toad sage appeared from nowhere, shattering Hatake's arm with a well-placed kick. The man-boy simply laughed louder, his arm hanging limply. Wolves appeared from nowhere, white-furred monsters that immediately tore the nearest ninja's throats out. Setting out to drown the streets in as much blood as their master desired. Hysteria never abating, his laughter once again resembling screams, Hatake-sama encased his whole body in lightning and moved too fast to be caught.

The wolves were howling. And the sound chilled him to the bone. 

Aoba felt his stomach roiling further and promptly threw up on the ground. Head spinning, vision waning. He couldn't help but pass out for an indeterminate amount of time.

It was raining now. Water conducting the electricity being showered down around them. There were too many bodies on the ground. Too many. And was this the horror of Iwagakure? Had this been the plight he had celebrated upon hearing of its invention? Was this the man he had admired so? Tears were slipping down his face now, body shaking with uncontrollable convulsions. He would die here.  He had never been more scared.

Had this been his intent in his wild rush here? Hatake's Sanda Sekai no jutsu was an S-ranked technique, meant to immobilize, kill ninjas within a large vicinity, kill them painfully. Meant to invoke the absolute, helpless horror he was feeling. But the man seemed to be making no effort to control it, was the jutsu simply a subconscious reaction to his anger? It was too frightening a thought. Aoba ran a shivering hand over his blood drenched face. Trying to clear his vision, trying not to think. The gravel cut into his convulsing limbs. It was a painstaking effort to twist his body.

Some ninja looked very beautiful as they fought, he couldn't help but think. And Hatake-sama had always been the best of them. He kept screaming- laughing, even as the rain showered down upon them all. Even as the heavens roared. Aoba couldn't help but think the wetness under the boy's eyes might not be solely from the skies above.

The Toad sage clashed with him again, shouting words Aoba couldn't hear. A gigantic wolf appeared from nowhere, keeping the Sennin still for a second. White lightning struck. (The Sage's arm was rendered charred flesh, he didn't think it could ever be used again.)

Aoba had thought that his new status meant something. That he could aid his village, save his comrades with his new found power and strength. He had trained so arduously.

Even he could see what was coming next. So could the ninja surrounding him, those being kept at a distance by the increasing onslaught of lightning. As two lightning clones immobilized the blanching Sennin for a mere moment. But a mere moment was all Hatake needed. He sobbed in helplessness, rendered immobile by yet another, thankfully comparatively weak, strike of lightning. The world seemed to slow down, darkness illuminated by harsh white lightning. Arms scrambling in the Hokage's direction. Screaming.

A hysterically laughing Hatake shoved a Raikiri enhanced arm through the Hokage's chest. He realized that there was a worlds difference. Between power, and power.

The world left in white lightning- a laughter cut short.

Notes:

I hope I managed the pacing of this correctly. Or managed to at least somewhat convey the horror and helplessness of the situation. Comments are appreciated.

Also, this story won't be very chronological sometimes. But I'll endeavor to leave clues that make it easy to figure out where we are.

I like for a story to be a reflection of reality, so it won't be all proper. You'll have to guess sometimes, as to what actually happened. Real life doesn't give you a complete exposition, yknow? But if anyone is ever confused, do feel free to ask. Or read the comments, your question may have been answered. I don't mind providing the required exposition there, just not in my story.

Chapter Management

• Edit Chapter
•  
• Delete Chapter

Chapter 3: Entré

Summary:

It is a different universe. A lazy Nara and beautiful Hyuuga usher Sakura into the shinobi world. Being shinobi is not a choice, but a duty.

Chapter Text

Chakra was the lifeblood of shinobi. The distinguishing characteristic of all ninja, what made them more than fragile beings of flesh and blood. Suffering from even minor chakra exhaustion, he acknowledged, was a pain beyond all others.

Civilians had only enough chakra for basic human functions, and no potential to grow more. Rigid chakra nodes that made most Hyuuga wince to look at for too long. He distantly acknowledged all of this as facts he was aware of.

He just hadn't expected for him of all people to be delegated to civilian appraisal duty.

Yaruno Nara, slouched position never betraying his growing tension, did not want to be the one to test these civilian children. His lazy dark eyes roamed over the monotone but homely neighborhood. Kicking up faint amounts of gravel as he took a leisurely stroll to his final destination. Anything faster would strain his already aching body. This was going to be such a drag. Civilians generally were.

But one did as his superior officer commanded. Suits him for cashing in on his sick leave during appraisal season. And so here he was a child snatcher with good intentions, here to tear a family apart. To take a child and make it a shinobi. Something more than a mere human. And in the process, ostracize them from their former families. For shinobi only fraternized with shinobi, the team, the squad, the division, was your family.

He didn't mind this reality. He had been born shinobi. What he did mind was having to calm civilians down from anxiety induced frenzies. Or really even suffer in the presence of exhausting, overly emotional individuals. Could this really not have been delegated to an all Hyuuga duty?

How troublesome.

---

When Haruno Sakura returned home, face flushed a match to her hair color, she was surprised to see strangers in her living room. It wasn't as though her mother and father never brought new friends over. She had just never seen them look so scared of friends before. Her rose-haired mother's face was drawn and tense, an arm held around her father's waist. They hadn't even noticed her enter.

"Mama, Papa, I'm back!" she hesitantly exclaimed. Staring a bit shyly at the two formidable strangers as she approached her parents.

She had only just started walking home alone after school. She and her friends enjoyed running about the streets of Konoha, enveloped by the noise, the people and the smell of various foods. Being offered free treats by kind merchants, squealing at the beautiful items of the traveling caravans. Giggling at the inevitable brokering fights between irate merchants and stubborn prospective customers.

But her little adventure had dragged on a bit too long today. The sun already setting whilst she ran through the streets, having made her goodbyes to her friends through hugs and promises to meet again tomorrow. She had expected to be greeted by her parents frowning faces. Perhaps the re-emergence of her Father's eye twitch if he was in enough of a mood.

But she recognized shinobi when she saw them. Could even identify most of the major clans. So as she roamed her eyes over the blank, intimidating ones of a Hyuuga, and the dark visage of a slouched ninja she could not identify, her stomach clenched tight.

She knew what they were here for. She stole a quick glance at her mother, she had been panicking over this visit for weeks now.

The Hyuuga lady beckoned her over with a flick of her wrist, face betraying no emotion. Sakura felt a bit worried about the tense atmosphere and didn't move until she saw her Father give her a hesitant nod. The pineapple-haired ninja just stared out of the window. He wasn't very impressive looking for a ninja she thought, frowning slightly at his slouched posture.

The Hyuuga lady, on the other hand, was beautiful. She looked so graceful and composed. Her blank, pupil-less eyes seemed to see through them all and find them wanting. She couldn't help but blush at how they all paled in comparison.

Lady Hyuuga crouched down until they were face to face. Tilting her head slightly to the side. "You are Haruno Sakura, aged 6 years, correct?" the surprisingly raspy voice of the Hyuuga lady asked. Though her tone suggested that she was only looking for confirmation.

So Sakura simply nodded, just a bit too intimidated to use her voice. She wrung her hands together and broke eye contact. She had never had a shinobi actually pay attention to her before, it was nerve-wracking. Their television (a luxury very few people had) suddenly sparked violently at the shinobi's presence, prompting her father to curse fiercely at the prospect of losing such an expensive item.

Glancing up again she saw the lady Hyuuga making cool ninja hand movements toward the other shinobi. To which he only responded with a lazy wave of a hand and a soft "go ahead."

Her mother seemed to finally snap out of whatever dazed state of mind she had fallen in to. And hesitantly approached the two shinobi, walking slowly, keeping her hands visible and palms flat. Sakura wasn't sure why she was doing that, it looked a bit strange to her.

But she did feel a bit more secure now, with her mother's soft arms around her. She her hair (a gesture Sakura loved and always filled her with ease.)

"Sakura, Hyuuga-sama will have to do a slightly painful test to you now. Don't worry, it'll be over with quickly." her Mother claimed. Somehow, it didn't sound very reassuring when she herself seemed ready to go into a dead faint at a moments notice. He could feel her shaking against her skin. 

Sakura was nervous but she knew the gist of what was going to happen next. It was the shinobi appraisal time of the year after all, and the older kids would always try to scare the younger ones with tales of how painful having to fully unlock your chakra was. Of how scary shinobi were. Though Sakura wasn't sure of how much of that she believed.

The lady Hyuuga who had been waiting to proceed saw the nod of confirmation from her mother. But simply whispered something to herself and started making ninja hand movements again.

Her mother's hands clenched painfully tight around her shoulders. Blue eyes never looking away from the shinobi.

Sakura turned around to see her Father one more time for support. But only managed to incline her head slightly before the Hyuuga started striking her and she howled with the suddenness of the agony now coursing through her veins. It felt like she was burning alive. But also as if her blood was freezing to ice. The combination was nauseating. It hurt so much.

It was over with in an instant. But the after effects left her dazed, curled up in her mother's arms, now drenched with vomit, snot, and tears.

Crouched where she was, still convulsing and shivering. Feeling both hot and cold. Sakura could feel something strange in her whole body. Something that hadn't been there before.

The lazy-eyed shinobi approached after she was slightly more present. Her mother's fingers palming through her hair to soothe her further. He muttered something to himself and sighed heavily, hands in his pockets, before starting on an obviously rehearsed and written speech. Summarily delivered in a droll monotone.

"Haruno Sakura, you have been deemed eligible for shinobi enrollment. You will comply with further instructions sent to your abode within three weeks time. Allocated funds and materials, as well as repainting of your house to signify shinobi presence will be completed within four weeks time."

"As a candidate shinobi, you will be attending one of Konoha's shinobi academies to learn within two months. Following the positive events of this test, well, you'll have to come with us for a couple days." The ninja stopped to give a scarily dark glance at her Father, who had started to protest only to summarily choke on his words.

"After which you'll be returned to your family, and await the start of the Academy year. All clear?" The shinobi had clearly intended this speech for her parents, but he hadn't made eye contact with them once. Wasn't even looking in their direction. And didn't really seem to care for whatever questions any of them might have. The still trembling form of her Father attested to that.

But as he looked her in the eyes for the first time, something in them finally deeming her worthy of his attention, she couldn't bring herself to be particularly upset at the disrespect.

With the kimono-clad Hyuuga's fierce eyes (fierce, scary eyes with protruding veins that could look into her) and the hooded dark stare of the other shinobi, Sakura barely noticed the delayed, shocked gasps of her parents. The widening of her mother's now tear-filled eyes and the angry, red blotched face of her father. She had known all her life that the shinobi would come one day. The warriors, assassins, heroes of their village.

They would come to gauge her potential (she didn't know what exactly they did, but the Hyuuga was looking inside of her.)

She rose to her feet, feeling strong enough to stand already. Desperately wanting to change out of her now smelly dress, she tried to give her mother a comforting but brief hug. The blinding pain of mere minutes before lost to the excitement of the current events. Her mother barely seemed to notice her touch, her Father was now situated on the floor, back against the wall. His eyes didn't seem to be seeing, nor processing anything.

She knew many of the details of how civilians were appraised. As much as a civilian was permitted to know. She just hadn't been expecting it, glancing at her now sobbing mother, no Haruno had ever been deemed worthy before. She knew she belonged to the village now, more than her parents. But looking at the approving, soft gaze of the shinobi accompanying Hyuuga-sama, she could not help but feel pride.

As if she had been honored to join an exclusive club. Both ninjas had suddenly changed in demeanor, from dismissive to attentive, now seeing her as one of their children. It made her feel strangely pleased.

Her family's status would rise considerably as a result of this.

Their merchant business would prosper. Their daughter would be able to provide for the entire family, including far off cousins, for the rest of their lives.

So why was her mother now staring at her, snot-drenched, still crouching on the floor, as if they would never meet again? Was she not proud? She knew that the adults were a bit frightened of most shinobi, but the ones she would encounter on the streets, shrouded in self-confidence and at ease in their own skin in a way she had never been;

Those shinobi had been kind, always. If a bit politely distant. Shinobi would look out for the children on the streets. They were the reason Konoha was safe, the reason crime was close to nil. Why no one was poor nor wanting. So why?

She knew from schoolyard games of ninja, loud proclamations at festivals, from the faces staring down at her from the mountains above, that there was no greater honor, no greater power than that of a shinobi. They were the mysterious military might of the world. Any civilian was blessed to be allowed to live within the confines of a Hidden Village.

Kunoichi were fierce, independent women, never afraid of walking home in the dark. Never cowering to their fellow men. For they wielded the power of chakra at their fingertips. And she would be one of them now.

Haruno Sakura had been deemed worthy. And as the elegant Hyuuga lifted her up into her arms, unbothered by her filthy dress, her shining pink hair and lavished her with praise over her chakra control potential (she didn't know what that meant, but it seemed good) she did not regret being chosen for shinobi.

This was the start of a journey. The man with the pineapple hair and lazy eyes smiled at her. She found herself filled with so much exhilaration, that she did not look back to notice her parents huddled, heartbroken faces following with eyes that seemed to have aged years in mere minutes. She was too distracted by the new world around her.

---

Haruno Sakura. Civilian ID-128765. Civilian Haruno clan. Deemed eligible for shinobi enrollment. Genesis. Recommended class 13-B. Specialization pending further investigation. Hyuuga confirmed chakra control potential: see file (Main Academy, civilian, 45-IC)

Psychological profile (see file, Psych-Civ-21, 12078.) Proclivity toward aggression. Self-confidence below average. More intelligent than average. Highly susceptible to influencing. Recommended; Further distancing from family. (See file: Civilian, sector 3A, 34-67-9).

Recommended; applicant Seduction corps. Recommended; applicant Pre-medic corps. Recommended; Kunoichi association. Recommended; Pre-Assassination. 

Recommended Academy; Main Konoha. Recommended primary sensei; Umino Iruka (see file 314-Chuunin-C)

See in depth file; Pre-Academy, Civilian sector 3A, 34-67-9, file; Assessment, file; Full assesment, Haruno Sakura. 

Finalized report of 568 civilian children eligible for enrollment. By rising standard decreed by High Shinobi Council, eligible children dropped by 33 %. Higher standard still yielding profit, expected graduated genin rise of 49 %.

Report concluded. 

Chapter Management

• Edit Chapter
•  
• Delete Chapter

Chapter 4: Bestämdhet

Summary:

A small boy is desperate for a brother. The monster within him takes advantage.

Chapter Text

Genma scrambled into the shinobi bar drenched in copious amounts of sweat. Still panting slightly. Back itching of what he suspected might be crusted blood no amount of half hearted scrubbing had been able to get off etched to his upper back. He shook out the gravel from his sandals, chewing harder on his senbon, and resigned himself to having Raido get it off for him later.

There was no time to clean up properly. Ebisu was apparently the only one stationed close enough to the Hokage to overhear some of the details of what had happened in Kumo.

And things had happened in Kumo. His lightening rongi was , but even he could understand the frantic shouting between the Kumo-nin he had been spying on. He chuckled lowly to himself, chewing on his senbon, apparently, Konoha was at fault. Served Kumo right.

Though his curiosity for the proper details was overwhelming.

The building was only barely bright enough to see in. Shinobi enjoyed the dark, made for easy concealement. The place was bit run-down but homey. Large entrances and easy access and escape routes perfectly catered to the shinobi population. Though the cheap alcohol was its greatest asset. Alcohol he could use around now, he acknowledged with a wince at his strangely strained body. 

Genma stepped onto the creaking wooden boards of the building, casting an intense gaze for the rest of his generation of jounin. His back was still bleeding from a chunnin's lucky strike. He had made sure to senbon him through the eyes for revenge.

"Hatake Kakashi has assassinated the Third Raikage," Ebisu hollered out in a voice that thoroughly conveyed his satisfaction with the attention being directed at him. The bar erupted into a mixture of awe, praise, and shock. Half-drunk shinobi exploding into loud conversation and debate. Genma just nodded, he'd suspected as much. Perhaps not the death of the ing Third Raikage, but White Wolf in rongi was easy enough to decipher.

Genma couldn't help the mixture of fear and compassion he felt at the thought of his errant acquaintance. He had always admired Hatake Kakashi. Had even had a sparring match with him once. His shoulder ached at the memory.

The man being used as a literal attack dog (or was a wolf more fitting a metaphor) had never sat well with him. Though he understood the necessity. His ANBU guards were messed with too viciously to convey anything other than absolute hatred. They'd lost the man's allegiance. And letting an S-rank ninja bearing a grudge go free was just suicidal.

His imprisonment within the Hatake forest was rumored to include a training regime that would have killed a lesser ninja. But waltzing into Kumo and taking out their Raikage was no joke. Not at all. Even if said Raikage had weakened in his age, his escapades during the Third Shinobi War having taken its toll. The man was still a veritable monster of a ninja. Genma couldn't help but shiver, a bit of nausea weighing him down. 

An affronted shout came from his left. He immediately redirected his focus back to the conversation taking place across the room. Kurenai's eerie red eyes widened in surprise. Her cold voice quivered slightly before it hardened into a seething tone. "I have heard of the Hyuuga's increased brokering for his release. Gratitude then?"

The woman narrowed her eyes thoughtfully. Glancing not too subtly at the closest Hyuuga. The Hyuuga clan member simply glared back at her harshly. The hair falling into his eyes doing a poor job of obscuring the active Byakugan. Asuma's hackles rising was an obvious sight, the burly man's ever present cigar broke and fell off. Ash adorning the muddy floor.

Genma decided to cease his statue act. Before Asuma decided to mess with those of higher status and get them all in trouble. He braced himself against the door's entrance with a clenched hand and attempted to hobble his way over to the still gossiping group. The whole bar was too quiet for Gai to be present, he would have to inform the man of his "eternal rival's" actions at home.

"They had to use the seals placed upon him in order to subdue him. Even then they just barely succeeded. He tried to make contact with Orochimaru."

Was it his imagination, or had the entire bar gone silent?

He sat down clumsily. His back aching. And was greeted with a few mumbled hello's, the atmosphere too tense for much else.
"Why would he try to go to Orochimaru?" he murmured lowly. Genma hadn't been aware of any close relationship between the two, then again, rare were the people who ever got close enough to the legends of the village to know much of anything. Beyond the regular rumors of course. Though Genma had a hard time putting any stock in them.

He chewed a bit harder at the thought of Orochimaru. The man was a power playing piece of trash.

He shifted in his place, trying to get comfortable, the harsh wooden seating dug into the skin on his back. Asuma nudged him slightly, seated to his right, and gave him a friendly one armed hug, they hadn't seen each other in a while. He winked and smirked back at the man.

Ebisu raised his head high, nose in the air with pompous satisfaction. He was a friend, Genma acknowledged, but woe be the times the man had any extended attention directed toward him. "Well, I have heard, that Orochimaru and the White Fang were close. Orochimaru even has some Hatake tattoos!  I suppose a familial relationship then. Trash attracts trash, after all."

Genma simply snorted at his friend. Making eye contact with Kurenai, who harrumphed and rolled her eyes in response. He scuffed his sandals against the floor, deciding to get some alcohol to dull the pain. The light sting of a senbon had a darkly frowning Aoba yelping out of the way.

He managed three wobbling steps before the building exploded.

Every single ninja had vacated the premises within the first seconds of the blast. Their guards were meant to be down within the confines of their village. But they were ninja, their guards were never that lowered. Jounin left completely unharmed. But quickly glancing around at the nearby roof they had all arrived to, a couple gennin and one chuunin were hurt. Nothing they couldn't recover from, he ascertained with a quick snicker at a blushing kid. Scarred face shamed at having been immobilized so easily. Umino Iruka was it?

Accidents like this weren't unusual. Some idiot had probably been showing off an offensive jutsu they hadn't completely mastered yet. Genma changed his senbon's positioning. He had liked that bar.

He could hear yelling from downstairs. Guessing that to be the culprit being rightfully berated, he quickly flickered to the ground.

He really, really, hadn't been expecting the jinchuuriki.

The kid was covered in blood that was decidedly not his own, looking to have been thrown into the dirt by some hot-headed brawny genin. He was surrounded by shinobi questioning him in an overly hostile manner.

The jinchuuriki's frightened expression was belied by determination. The five-year old kid was holding high-grade explosion tags in his arms. (How in the actual hells had he gotten his hands on those?) Genma could feel his already exhausted mind throbbing, a small imperceptible shake in his body. He was really hoping this runt just hadn't known what he was doing, not actually making a poor murder attempt at a whole bar of shinobi. (Or murdered someone before making his way here, ing hells.)

The shinobi gathered around went collectively silent at the jinchuuriki's sudden shaking, the kid was tearing at his own hair.

"So sorry, sofu. I tried y'know but it didn't work. One of them is bleeding bad. Can you tell me about Nii- Ah, not enough, not enough?" The kid was whimpering now, still clutching at his bright blonde head. Tears now spilling out at the thought of having displeased his- sofu?

Genma could swear he shat himself in that moment of realization. His senbon broke and clattered to the ground. The noise was too loud.

He was the highest ranking ninja within the nearest vicinity, it was a daunting realization. He couldn't help but groan internally at the fest an influenced jinchuuriki was going to bring. Maybe Yorino had a point, increased ranking was such a drag.

He jostled his brown hair, sweat having plastered it to his scalp. Quickly switching out his destroyed senbon for a newer one. Best get started then. He tried to quell the shaking (why was he shaking?)

He signed for all thirty-six of the present ninja to leave the area. Casually firing a senbon at a harshly protesting Asuma. Ordering one of them to call on the Hokage. And the Hokage to order the Toad Sage back with due haste.

The kid was looking at him. He was a really cute kid even drenched in blood as he was, too bad the sight of him so close made him twitch for his kunai. The kid's chakra was vile. It was only a waiting game he reassured himself, the Hokage would be here within minutes.

The kid smiled at him, a bright, familiar smile that made his stomach turn.

"Ne, Jii-san. Sofu says you're real stupid." the kid's voice was double toned. A lower, growling voice hiding behind the squeaky one of a five-year old child. He had never heard anything so messed up.

Kami damn it, one sentence from a child should not be so intimidating. He faced jounin for a living.

He dredged up an amused smile. No use in showing weakness, weakness could be exploited.

"I see, how come?" he managed to mutter out. Eyes rapidly glancing around for the Hokage. He really wasn't feeling too well. Was his wound bleeding more?

The kid started up again. And was it really necessary to carry out a conversation here? The kid was that man's, so he couldn't be stupid. The jinchuuriki most probably realized the situation he was in.

"Sofu says you're an even lower grade of vermin, to be a poisons expert and not have realized that you've been poisoned. We'll enjoy watching you die!" and the kid lifted his arms to the back of his head. Looking horrifyingly cheery at the prospect. His eyes flickered red. Prompting Genma to take a tall step back.

Genma felt like punching himself into Iwa. He'd been overconfident. In too much of a hurry to get back into the village. Though to be fair to himself (and he did enjoy being fair to himself) it was a very subtle poison. He could even identify the exact kind, blasted Kumo-nin.

He tried to be angry over the situation. Scared of how twisted the child's mind must have already become, to have that monster shouting things for him to do. (To have murdered someone, he stank of bloodbloodblood.) But he mostly felt a weary sadness. Amplified by the thought of the kid having been fooled into thinking it was his grandfather, he didn't even want to pursue that line of thought any further. Where was the kid's ANBU watch? How had they not noticed him being influenced? He snorted, this reeked of conspiracy. The kid just kept staring and smiling. He tried to keep steady against a wave of nausea and dizziness.

The Hokage finally flickered in, a veritable army of ANBU surrounding him. He felt confident enough in the hospital's medic-nin to figure out that he'd been poisoned, it wouldn't be the first time.

And with that, he emitted a deep sigh, and resigned himself to unconsciousness.

 

---

 

He was too old for this, Hiruzen realized. Too old to be Hokage. Too tired, wrung out like a well-used dish-rag.

He took a deep breath, feeling the air rattle his scarred lungs. The pain had been getting more insistent lately. He dragged a worn hand over his bloodshot eyes. It may be time to recall Tsunade once again to check on the wound.

He would be proud of Kakashi. For taking the white chakra kekkei genkai to such new heights. If only he hadn't been the victim of it. Tsunade claimed only white chakra was capable of frying the chakra network so irrevocably.

"Hokage-sama?" one of his loyal ANBU hesitantly questioned. Monkey-faced visage quivering with impatience.

He would move, Hiruzen decided. He would move as soon as he felt ready to face an adopted grandson under the influence of a monster. Yet another failing. They did not meet as often as he would like, but this seemed quite the thing to miss. What had lead to Naru-chan making contact, in spite of his many warnings? It was the only option, that monstrous creature wasn't capable of doing so itself.

He sighed heavily once more, body aching, slipping on his battle armor. The child was a cheery, bright one. So utterly kind. He liked to think that Minato and Kushina would have loved raising him. And he could have been the child's lazy, retired grandfather. He raised his bo-staff. And flickered away.

He hoped not to have to kill the child. They didn't have another container prepared. Nor was Jiraiya-kun in the village yet. Though he was most likely racing back at this point. Galloping away on his toad.

One of his jounin collapsed the second they appeared outside of the crumbled, still scorching building. A concerning sight. An ANBU quickly picked him up and away. Flickering to the hospital.

The child was simply standing there. Now staring at the high-grade explosive tags within his blood-drenched grasp with a thoughtful frown. Hiruzen decided to quickly nip that in the bud. Moving closer in a second, tearing the tags away and incinerating them immediately. The action only earned him a heart-wrenchingly normal pout.

His thoughts were already racing with sealing procedures and the semi-recent report of a new memory blocking technique, courtesy of a particularly talented Yamanaka. They would have to implement actions immediately. ROOT had some of the best holding cells, no matter how hesitant he felt over putting the child so close to a location Kakashi was occasionally held at.

"Sofu says he really looks forward to seeing you die. Even though he probably won't get to do it himself. Your screams will be really nice to hear, so we're hoping it's painful!" The child's eyes flickered red and stayed that way. Strange growling voice growing in tenor.

He knocked the child out with ease. Gently cradling his bloodied body in his arms. He fiercely wished, not for the first time, that things were different.

Naruto did not see the light of day for six months.

Iruka couldn't help but sweat through the confines of his chunin vest. The day wasn't overly warm, not more so than usual. But staring down at the courtyard of frighteningly young six-year olds and their expectant parents (clan parents, so many clan parents.) Iruka could swear it was boiling. The universe conspiring against him.

The Hokage was still speaking as of yet, thankfully, words of wisdom recounting the splendor of their village and their indomitable will of fire. His speech was so wholehearted Iruka himself couldn't help but get into it at parts. Hokage-sama was an excellent speaker, as showcased by the glittering, awed eyes staring back up at him.

Iruka shifted in place, furrowing his brow in concentration, and tried to discreetly lift his vest to allow some air in. Or rather let some hot air out.

He sighed, even a faint water jutsu would probably set every overprotective parent within the nearest kilometer on his neck. He subtly glanced to his left, and immediately regretted it. Going ramrod straight to the point of straining his muscles. The two heads of the Uchiha and Hyuuga clans were glaring at him with their eyes activated. Sweat trickled down his lower back, the sensation an unpleasant one. He could hear his friends laughing at him in his head. Death was a better fate than this. He was going to get disemboweled before even starting his work.

He impatiently scuffed his legs against the wood, making faint marks against the wooden panels. Izumo and Kotetsu were still making fun of him for accepting the position. He felt his eye twitch, a queer smile appearing on his face at the thought. Perhaps it was time to break out the pranking gear once more.

There was a hole in the crowd. A single ring of solitude. With a figure drenched in yellow and orange standing in the middle.

The jinchuuriki stood still, and as always, the world moved around him.

Iruka averted his eyes, and tried not to think of it, he was good at doing so. The Hokage shifted to the side, giving the crowd a faint bow, a benevolent smile on his aged face.

Iruka's scar itched. He stepped forward.

 

---

 

Sakura tried to stare up at their new homeroom teacher, the first of her new teachers to be introduced. Standing mesmerized by every word he spoke. Just as she had been by the Hokage's of moments previous. Though perhaps a bit more in regards to the Hokage, he was the Hokage after all.

The Hokage was the leader of their village, that she had known, but Yorino-san had said that he was called the God of Shinobi. Like the First had been! But the Sandaime was called as such because he knew so much about ninja matters. She could relate to wanting to know everything. That's why Sakura thought the Third might be her favorite Hokage. His smile had etched deep wrinkles into his face, but it had only made him look kinder. She quickly glanced upwards and to the left. Four faces looking down at her. Hokage-sama's face didn't match his stone one very well.

Her Mama was still clenching her hand too tight, and she was a little pale. She didn't mind much, it took much more to hurt her at all since the shinobi appraisal. Sakura had a hard time paying attention to her mother's twitching and shivering, even though he had promised herself she would. Ever since Mama had fallen ill after her shinobi appraisal. She seemed so stressed lately. And Papa didn't really come home much anymore.

The thought made her properly avert her eyes from her scarred sensei's visage. (She really wanted to know he'd gotten it!)
Her Papa had said mean things to Mama, about how she was the one who'd brought shinobi blood into the family. Like it was a scary thing. Sakura chewed on her lip, and tried to give Mama a pat on the hand, being shinobi was special. Her Papa was just being silly, though she missed him quite a bit.

She wanted to listen to the sensei some more. But now that she was distracted, her eager green eyes found so many interesting things to see. Every time she swiveled her head she saw something new. 

Like the beautiful Hyuuga gathering, the ones with pale white eyes and long dark hair further behind her. And the red-eyed, cool Uchiha group ahead of her, most of them donned in Uchiha police apparel. All of the clan families (and shinobi in general) were weird looking, but in a good way. Shinobi didn't look like civilians.

She grasped a strand of her long pink hair, wound it around her finger, the hair that had gotten her so many teasing comments amongst civilians. Yorino-san said fit in well with shinobi. She smiled a bit to herself, letting the strand of hair go.

"Konoha plays home to ten prestigious academies. The one you have been chosen for is the one to produce the likes of the Fourth Hokage, the Sannin, the White Wolf and many more! So let these great shinobi be your example, let them guide your nindo. And let me and your many teachers help you on your path!"

There was a small boy standing all by himself to her left. She could see him suddenly vibrating in his sandals from the corner of her eye, staring up at their sensei intently. She narrowed her eyes at him, curious about what clan he was from. Clanless children weren't called -sama after all.
She had wanted to go stand with him to make him look less lonely right after they had first arrived, but Mama said: "you leave Uzumaki-sama alone."  So she had. And so had everyone else.

Sakura thought he looked very cute, with spiky blond hair and blue eyes with lines on his face, though he was wearing a very orange kimono she couldn't help but frown at. Sakura had thought he was a girl at first, cause his hair was just a bit longer than most boys had it, and then the kimono.

She blushed a bit and looked away at the slight warning tap of her mother. Her sensei was ending his speech, looking very nervous but kind. She crossed her feet in the grass, hair falling into her eyes, a bit ashamed at not having been listening properly.

"Sakura-hime, it's time for me to leave now. Do you remember where your classroom is?" her Mama asked quietly. So much so that Sakura had to strain her ears to hear her, she thought she may not have been able to before her chakra was unlocked.

When she nodded silently, her Mama just bent down and gave her a kiss, before turning around and leaving like a whirlwind. Bowing to people with every few steps. Sakura wrung her hands together and stared until her mother disappeared from sight. The courtyard was emptying quickly. Her teacher was shouting for the children to approach the classroom. So she took a deep breath.

And headed inside without turning back.

 

 

Notes:

This chapter is a bit slower, and shorter. Though hopefully not entirely bad.

Thank you for reading and reviewing.

Chapter Management

• Edit Chapter
•  
• Delete Chapter

Chapter 6: Krig

Summary:

Flashback to the Third Shinobi War. A taste of it.

Notes:

This takes place during the Third Shinobi War. Dedicated to Ilvermere for inspiring this chapter!

Chapter Text

The world exploded over her head, Rin pivoted sharply, throwing herself over the nearest boulder, easing her fall by cushioning chakra over the impacted body parts. Just like Minato-sensei had taught her. She stumbled and coughed sharply once, clearing her lungs with chakra immediately thereafter. Kakashi would have been upset at her for giving away her position like that.

The clearing was still shrouded in smoke, she couldn't spot the rest of her teammates yet. Her hair was singed by the onslaught of fire jutsu. Limbs shivering, an ache between her eyes.

She took a minute, just a second to get her breath back. Trying to quench the irrational anger she felt at her own incompetence. Kakashi would have done a much better job at providing a distraction. Then again, nothing felt like an accomplishment in the shadow of a prodigy.

Breathing steady, vitals-doable. Clenched fists, retract. Steady breathing.

She hurled herself at the nearest tree, finding purchase, increasing chakra output to her the soles of her feet- and catapulting herself upwards. She still couldn't see anything, the smoke prickled her eyes, made breathing difficult. Sight was not a requirement. She prepared her senbon, still hanging mid air and- falling. Now.

Ushi --> Inu --> Tatsu --> Ne --> Inu --> I --> Mi --> Tora

Senbon Kage Bunshin no jutsu

500 senbon, perfect angle, hoarse screams from across the clearing. Rin flipped during her descent, a small release of chakra cushioning her fall. She winced at a quick check her chakra stores, a new shaking in her limbs. Senbon Kage Bunshin no jutsu had been a bit overzealous. She attempted to find some purchase, her legs gave out, and she fell backward. Mental faculties intact but chakra too low to support any extraneous movement.

Rin smiled as Obito caught her, steady chest giving her a frontline view to whatever plan her sensei and Kakashi had concocted. She attempted to blow the hair tickling her nose out of the way. Delighting in the opportunity to just lay somewhere for a flicker of a moment. 

"Rin, you were amazing! You did so well!" Obito gushed. Head poking forward to smile at her. Goggles firmly attached to his face. She couldn't help but blush slightly at the praise. She couldn't quite find the energy to speak, so she just smiled as brightly as she could. A silent thank you to her cheery friend.

The smoke was starting to disperse, giving them a pretty view of the Iwa ninja's reinforcement of nearly 200 shinobi arriving in squads one after one. Briefly kept at bay by her sensei's multimodal chakra barrier. It was showing slight cracks at the continuous barrage of earth jutsu. That it was holding at all was awe-inspiring. Rin noticed Obito's hold on her tighten slightly, he shifted in his crouched position, a quick tremor through his body. Rin sent a prayer to whatever Gods were listening for her teammates to hurry whatever ingenious plot they had devised. It would take genius to get them out of this mess.

Obito shifted again, and she frowned at the action. Briefly pouting in thought she resigned herself to an extended hospital stay. She was a worrier at heart after all. Rin would rather relax in the hospital than have her reckless teammates die on her. A quick chakra echolocation sparked from her weak fingers, directed toward Obito's body and she spotted a nicked vein in his lower thigh. He wasn't the best at dodging, the jagged tear indicated either kunai or shuriken. No poison. But it needed to be sealed, she didn't have the chakra to properly heal it, she couldn't even clench her hands into fists of anger at the revelation.

Rin clucked disapprovingly at him to get his attention, and he tore his eyes away from the increasingly cracked barrier, directed a sheepish smile her way once he realized what she was doing.

She smiled slightly at his lack of protest at her haphazard healing, he had finally learned to submit to the medic's wiser ways. A monumental effort on her part.

Obito started at Minato and Kakashi's sudden appearance. The approach had been too silent. Their bodies were covered in dirt, sweat and pungent blood. She would have flinched could she move her limbs. Thankfully she was spared the indignity of Kakashi's disapproving gaze at such an action. Instead, it was directed toward Obito as they managed to find a second for their usual squabbling.

Minato-sensei mockingly waved at the absurdly large gathering of shinobi on the other side. To their incensed, affronted cursing. Kakashi glared at Obito before he glanced down at her and his steely gaze softened slightly.

"Your Senbon Kage bunshin no jutsu was admirable. Your angle was nearly flawless." he recounted in his regular cold monotone. Immediately breaking eye contact. She smiled at the praise, he didn't give any he didn't fully mean. Her socially awkward genius of a teammate.

Minato-sensei was suddenly by her side, crashing down next to her. Seemingly exhausted but just as cheery and calm as always. He gave her a ruffle of her hair and a proud "good work".

"Kakashi, ready yourself." Minato's voice lowered with the magnitude of his words. His hands slipping through countless hand seals. She and Obito glanced at each other.

The barrier broke and shattered, within a second she was falling backward and Obito was firing the largest fireball she had ever seen him produce. Scorching heat smarting at her body.

Minato-sensei was supporting her body now, she realized belatedly. This must be something he wanted her to see then. She knew Minato-sensei could get them out of here within a flicker of a second, she couldn't help slightly resenting him for not doing so. For expecting too much. 

There was a high pitched shrieking sound suddenly encompassing the overpopulated clearing. Obito and Rin huddled under sensei's seal barrier at his rushed order.

A hundred seals. A hundred seals and they were surrounding all of them. Shutting them all in within what must be a 500-meter radius. The collective of Iwa-ninja had abruptly changed their trajectory, throwing themselves against the seal barrier suddenly in place, knowing they had fallen into a trap. She could see the anger and resignation of a girl that looked to be even younger than her, green eyes watering. And then spinning and spinning and the world lit up in white sizzling chakra.

Kakashi was standing in front of them now. Hand seals too fast for her to see. His hands slammed to a seal on the ground, his entire being cloaked in white chakra, spilling into the ground, under it, into the sky itself- it was the most horrific thing she had ever seen. Blood trickled out of her ears.

They were screaming, 200 shinobi were screaming as they were electrocuted to death, their innards turned to liquid, their skin sizzling off their bodies in saturated clumps of fat, they kept screaming until the sounds of it melted into the sound of the lightning around them. A haunting song. She couldn't help her tears at the madness agony their pain caused them, shinobi tearing off their hair, their skin, choking on their tounges in fear. The smell of urine and feces was suddenly overbearing. And it kept going on and on and on-

And through it all Kakashi stood still, hands to the ground. Feeding the clearing his volatile, dangerous chakra. She heard Minato-sensei grunt with the exertion of maintaining a barrier against its onslaught. She couldn't help her scream. Obito was having a panic attack behind her.

And then it stopped. And everything and everyone within a 500-meter radius was dead. 6 minutes.

Kakashi shook off the lightning still sticking to his skin. Sparks of it still jumping from body part to body part. She subconsciously tried to find purchase against Minato-sensei's chest. She didn't want him anywhere near her with that still on him. Obito was vomiting at their backs, choked and fearful and disgusted.

Kakashi turned around with the same lack of facial expression. Hands in his pockets. As if the absolute carnage he had just committed didn't faze him at all. Rin couldn't help the mixture of fear and disgust she felt for an echo of a second, before she ruthlessly shut it down. She tried not to look to the clearing, don't look to the clearing. The smell, gods, the smell.

She glanced up at Minato-sensei as the man picked her up. He was smiling proudly at Kakashi. The boy himself straightening to attention at the proud gaze.

Rin decided it was an opportune moment to leave the waking world, and promptly fell into unconsciousness.

 

---

 

Rin crunched on the disgusting chakra pill in , quickly exposing her tongue to the air in the vain hopes of dulling the taste. Her world still slightly off-kilter whilst hurtling through the trees. It wasn't a safe state to be in, though there was Kakashi trying to be subtle as he kept an eye on her. So she did feel a modicum of ease, trying to stare at his composed demeanor out of the corner of her eye.

She had realized very early on, that there was no space for safety nor comfort in war. Her clothes stunk, her hair was burned, the odor adding to her overall disgusting state, she hadn't had a proper meal in ages. Showering felt like an alien concept. The woes of having a front line combatant like sensei and his prodigy chunin on your team. The up and down jumping of tree hopping was nauseating, the situation in general so exhausting she couldn't help but allow some irrationality to cloud her mind. The camp seemed so far away, everything seemed so far away, gone with the rocking motion of tree hopping.

Rin bit her lip until it bled, sleep was a necessity she wanted to scream at the two teammates in front of her. Obito lagging behind, bleeding through his bandages once more, dopey-looking facial expression conveying his half-awake state.  Sleep wasn't a luxury, rest wasn't a luxury. Killing 200 people and then moving on as if nothing had happened wasn't okay. Did no one but her acknowledge the fact that the people they had just slaughtered were people? With loved ones and favorite foods and dreams and just as alive as they were? Or rather they once were. She wanted to scream, this was why she had applied for a hospital position, this wasn't- 

Rin sensibly choked on her words, tucked them into the back of where they always sat. Her two genius teammates started discussing intricate sealing procedures, how to maximize their jutsu's efficiency. Father and adopted son conversing with an ease she didn't see them exhibit toward anyone other than Kushina-san. She clenched her teeth until she felt a headache building, glancing backward quickly to check on Obito.

She had killed so many she sometimes saw their faces in her dreams like grotesque photo albums. Those were the nights she didn't sleep well, (she wouldn't sleep tonight) and she spent all night staring up at the stars. Wishing for, something-

She heard Obito crash into the tree before she saw him. The boy comedically face planting in a tree and then promptly passing out. Kakashi moving too fast for her to see and catching him before he hit the ground with a glower on his masked face, a mumbled 'moron' under his breath. 

She didn't say anything, her words tucked back too tightly. And with an aloof glance her way, silently acknowledging her. Kakashi simply threw Obito toward Minato, to his comedically shocked reaction, all flailing hands and panic, before speeding backward-?

The clearing exploded once again, the shockwaves throwing her off balance and into the nearest shrubbery. She was starting to resent this trend. Pain exploded down her ankle, too shocked to properly cushion it like she was meant to. She clenched her hands onto her ankle, barrel-rolled out of the way of shuriken and kunai. She couldn't risk a shunshin in her state, so she spun and shoved her senbon through a man's eyes, ducked underneath another man's legs, accepting a kunai to the shoulder to end his life, a kunai to a woman's soft stomach, innards slipping out slick, a shuriken toward Obito's fierce taijutsu opponent, and finally swiveled not too gently on her hands into a bush to hide.

Her belly flop took some of her breath, she needed one second. One second. She gathered up senbon and aimed, the party wasn't overly large. It was only taking so long because sensei was teaching them a lesson. One only Kakashi had passed, as always. Never let your guard down, even when you're weak, even after a successful battle. Obito's fire streamed over her head. Blood poured out of her shoulder, she vowed to never forget.

A man screamed as her senbon took him out through his pressure points, Kakashi was everywhere and nowhere, white sabre dripping with blood, blistering with white chakra she still flinched from. She briefly fiercely longed for Konoha where she could be herself again, instead of this.

And then they were all dead and dead and gone. Sensei reappeared and smiled at them brightly, kissing Kakashi's bloody forehead. And giving them all comforting hugs. She couldn't help but calm slightly at her sensei's all encompassing embrace.

"I think the two of them deserve some rest now, don't you?" Minato questioned brightly. The question barely acknowledged by Rin's now spinning senses, Obito was passed out on the ground once more. Drool pooling on around him.

"You coddle them, Tou-san." Kakashi snorted and broke their brief flicker of eye contact, glancing down at Obito before walking away to pillage the dead ninja's weaponry.

Minato only patted her on the back. "My cute little son likes the both of you quite a lot, I promise. Now, Rin-chan. By your leave."

Rin didn't understand what he meant until the world starting flickering to black, her limbs numb, eyes rolling backward. 

She joined Obito on the ground. 

Chapter Management

• Edit Chapter
•  
• Delete Chapter

Chapter 7: Skoldag

Summary:

The Academy is one of several shinobi institutions, but fundamentally a serious one. A month into school, Naruto makes a friend. Said friend begins the assimilation process.

Chapter Text

Perhaps it had been a little silly of her to think that the hand signs that looked so fluid and simple when used by the shinobi she saw, would be similarly easy to learn. When they flicked their fingers Tora, I, Ushi, Ne. It looked so beautiful, so fluid.

Her fingers stretched to the point of pain, until she couldn't move them the way she wanted to. Until they stung viciously.
A twist of the wrist. A flick of a finger. The gentle and encouraging voice of her sensei.

At least, she raised her eyes to skim the class, she wasn't the only one struggling. The clan children had an easier time, but even they hadn't learned all the signs yet.

Mi, her small hands interlocked, her sensei stepped forward and around her like the wind, adjusted her left thumb to the outside of her right. She glanced up momentarily, at the kind smile of Iruka-sensei, and nodded her understanding. Tip of her tongue clenched underneath her teeth she furrowed her brow before attempting Ushi once more.

She needed to get the hand signs correctly. Her performance on the physical tests they had every day had so far been abysmal. She clenched her teeth, skin of her pinkie tearing slightly, she was in the lower range of civilians. So Sakura would use her brain, her greatest gift, to propel her forward.

There was a sudden burst of light from the corner of her eyes, bursts of blue to her left. She only had time to stare wide-eyed as Uzumaki-sama went through all of the hand-seals comfortably but slowly, blue chakra dispersing around his hands as he channeled his chakra correctly. His eyes squinted and face in a pout.

She couldn't help a pang of jealousy at the ease he exhibited, marveled at it until Iruka-sensei's hand slammed down on Uzumaki-sama's desk and he was startled out of his chair. A hasty 'eeep!' before he landed face first on the ground.

"Uzumaki! No channeling chakra through the hand signs until we are at that stage of learning, you could hurt someone!" Iruka-sensei shouted fiercely, eyes locked on the boy now cradling his bruised head. Sakura couldn't help but flinch slightly, Iruka-sensei's anger seemed a bit extreme. Especially since she'd seen some of the Yamanaka and Uchiha children doing the same with some seals.

Was Iruka-sensei just being mean cause Uzumaki-sama was the Jinchuuriki? Sakura couldn't help but feel a bit sad for the boy. He was always treated with respect, she looked away from the scene, kept her eyes locked on her strained hands, and he was always alone.

"Iruka-sensei! This class is so so boring though! Can't we do something better? Like a jutsu or or a cool taijutsu move!" the blonde shouted excitedly, his voice was always several decibels above average. He was so expressive with his body language, flapping his hands around, bracing them behind his head.

She heard the snickering echoing around the classroom. Yamanaka...Ino? And Kurama Inoue were snickering at the debacle, heads closely held together as they whispered. As her eyes met the strange pupil-less ones of the well-dressed Yamanaka she flinched, eyes lowering at the girls questioning smile.

Wiggling slightly in her seat to make herself more comfortable, she tried to block out Iruka-sensei and Uzumaki-sama's ongoing argumentation. If she stopped practice for too long the supervisor hiding in the room would send the rubber ball her way. She shifted her hand over her small bruises, they stung more than it would seem. And if her internal clock served her well they would have lunch in fifteen minutes and then continue on with their physical conditioning for five hours. She had promised herself she would stay conscious longer this time.

"Ne, you're pretty, what's your name?"

She looked up startled at a voice so sudden and near, only to stare into the too close eyes of Uzumaki-sama (his eyes had flecks of white in them)his face entirely too close to hers. A curious frown besmirching his features. It didn't take much for a child to develop a reflex, the Academy had been ongoing for two weeks now, her punch (fist closed, thumb on the outside, flick of the wrist and hips bracing) was certainly not on purpose.

She stared in shock as her punch didn't even make him stumble, didn't make him flinch nor attempt to dodge. Sakura had impressive punching power for her age, many of her chakra nodes were centered around her hands, giving her excellent power and control. The air was still displaced, her hand hanging in mid-air, the boy's blonde spiked hair shrouding his face. She wasn't even given the opportunity to apologize before he looked up and grinned, orange and white cloaked kimono as radiant as his face. A forgiving thumbs up her way.

"Alright everyone, that was a simple accident. Though hopefully, that tells you something about startling shinobi! Now back to your hand signs before you receive extra laps! Though speaking of, I hope you all observed the form of Sakura's punch, yes? Well..."

Sakura dodged her head, quickly returning to her hand-signs at the sight of the rubber ball in her periphery, bouncing off the face of a yelping Uchiha before bouncing off the wall and onto a now choking Akimichi Chouma's forehead.

Haltingly, painstakingly moving Ushi, I, Ne, Hitsuji-

"You should adjust your fingers some more, if you channel chakra like that it'll just hurt ya lots!" Uzumaki-sama chirped cheerfully, now seated right beside her. For someone so loud and colorfully dressed, she eyed him curiously, he was very sneaky.

Sakura mumbled a quick thank you, confused over why he was showing her this attention. She looked down at her fingers once more, and adjusted them accordingly. Fingers diagonal, pinkies tucked in. The new position hurt even more, she fought to keep a grimace off her face as she presented the boy with her hand-seal once again.

He was making the seal as well, emphasizing his thumbs with a nod at her own. She adjusted them slightly more, tried not to feel a sick frustration at the difficulty. And felt a bit of relief at his approving smile.

The boy's whiskered cheeks bunched up slightly, he crooked his head at an angle and just observed for a second. A strange facial expression she couldn't understand. (She was very good at reading faces and voices and people, Iruka-sensei said they would put her in the advanced class soon.)

"Ne, you don't seem afraid to talk to me. Do ya wanna be friends?" He sounded as cheerful as ever. But hope was sparkling in his eyes, he was the Jinchuuriki of the Nine-tailed Fox. Treated with a mix of reverence, fear, and hatred.

He was always alone.

She smiled back, feeling more confident at his cheerful demeanor, and nodded her approval.

She hoped it would be the start of a beautiful friendship.

 

---

 

"Sakura-chan! 35 degrees left, jump now!

She jumped as high as she could, tucking her knees to her chest, starting a spin to propel her away. She hadn't jumped high enough. The boulder struck her left hip, disrupted her trajectory until he was a mess of limbs and bad angles, landing on her back with all the air out of her lungs. Her nerves sparked and shuddered with the residue impact. She laid wheezing, disoriented until she could actually hear Naruto's concerned shouting.

She struggled to lift a shaking hand to her blindfold, desperately wanting to reorient herself. Not seeing anything was so frightening. She was stopped by what felt like the instructor's foot, to Naruto's incensed gasping.

"Your time was 8 minutes and 48 seconds Haruno, a meager improvement of 94 seconds from last time." his disappointed voice delivered. She couldn't even muster up the strength to acknowledge Naruto's protests, she felt the shame of disappointing her sensei deeply. Tremblingly signing what she hoped was a correct "Will try harder" with her free hand. World still shaking, her brain turned to shaking jello in her head. Her air was trapped beneath her lungs.

She heard his voice soften slightly, felt a second's relief over his kindness. "Your punishment is 24 hours blindfolded and extra classes at Flexibility & Balance." She could hear Naruto's full body flinch echoed by her own, Yuuki-sensei was evil and vicious.

The instructor simply snickered at their reactions. An amused lilt to his words. "Another Academy student will be following you during this period to ascertain your commitment. Do tell us if you notice them at all." He finished off, reaching down to ruffle her head before bowing to Naruto (in spite of his protests) and walking away to the next in turn, Uchiha Sasuke, and Nara Shikamaru. 

She heard Naruto settle down beside her, humming a song she couldn't recognize. Waiting patiently for her to get a hold of herself. Sakura's own personal cheerleader. She was trembling now, her body shaking with exhaustion. Though slightly comforted by the increased ease of breathing. She tried to hold her tears in, really wanting to nap, but they had two hours of trap making in 20 minutes. So she sniffled slightly and tried to swallow it. A quick attempt at rising revealed her need for a medic. Sparks of heat rising from her hipbone, either heavily bruised or fractured.

A quick section of oft-used signs to Naruto, and the world was turned upside down as he picked her up and settled her on his shoulder. A recurring position over the past month. A winding of her stomach, pain reverberating throughout. She had to chant the hand seals backward and forward in order to avoid vomiting.

"Ne ne, Sakura-chan. You don't have to worry so much about this stupid balance exercise! We only just started them and everyone else too!" Naruto tried to reassure. She bit her cheek in order to not be mean. He was only trying to cheer her up.

"Naru-baka, you stayed on for the longest out of the entire class!" she reasonably pointed out. Trying to keep the petulance out of her voice. She saw colors beneath her eyelids at the sudden appearance of stairs. Naruto was not gentle as he huddled upwards. 

He stilled slightly, voice quieting as it always did when she mentioned his performance within most physical aspects. Small and a little sad. "You know that's just cause they have me train all the time. Ever since I remember actually!" he tried to say cheerfully. Voice a bit strained. She regretted bringing it up so callously.

Her entire body rattled slightly, and she gasped at the pain it brought as Naruto jumped into the medic-wing. A mumbled sorry and the world spun once more as she was deposited on the soft bed. Naruto loudly speaking to the "Nice-lady-medic-san!" about her injuries.

"I gotta go to trap-making now Sakura-chan, the nice lady says you'll have to stay here. I'll make a revenge trap for Mizuki-sensei for making you puke last week!" he shouted gleefully.

She gave him a quick but weak shout of encouragement and he was out of the window. Probably jumping on the Academy rooftops even though they weren't allowed to and the new part time Clan History teacher (Uchiha...Shisui, maybe?) liked tackling people off the roofs.

She sunk into the soft embrace of the bed, loosening her tensed muscles one by one, just as she'd been taught. There was nothing to study, nothing she could see, no exercise or homework. Her head felt silent, in spite of the ringing headache.

She wished her Mama was here.

The muttering and talking of other patients and medics filled the room, the sun warmed her body slightly. Sakura wished someone would open a window so she could feel the wind on her skin.

Her Mama would kiss her wounds and her hair. Telling her the stories of the world, soft and steady. And then her Papa would sing her a song, his raspy voice carried by the wind of her open bedroom window. And when the moon was full he would look out and sing his saddest songs. An echoing melody.

Her eyes fluttered as the green-haired medic-nin finally approached her bed. Clucking at her bruised hip. Giving her water to clear her gross tasting mouth, easing her parched throat.

She hoped she could see her parents soon.

Chapter Management

• Edit Chapter
•  
• Delete Chapter

Chapter 8: Döden

Summary:

The children are gently introduced to the concept of death, blood staining theirs. Rabbits are killed and the Hyuuga plot.

Notes:

(See the end of the chapter for notes.)

Chapter Text

Death is more of a fact than a fear in the shinobi world. Raised around it since they were too young to even properly grasp the concept. Murder was not nearly as painful for shinobi as it was for civilians or even for ty samurai. A socialized normality. An inevitability, and for some even a joy. You couldn't be overly affected by murder when you dealt in it.

To civilians, this made them monsters, albeit their monstrous protectors. Mizuki himself had always loved the adrenaline, the power. Screaming and vicious chakra, deadly ninjutsu and smooth, too fast movements making his body tremble with the joy of being alive. Of hanging on the precipice. Though death was a disgusting outcome, the prelude was exhilarating. The door death opened a longing.

To die in battle was the only way to enter Aosaya. And no matter what, he hitched his hips up to sit on the worn cupboard, he would enter the realms of the Shinobi gods. He would dine with his parents, to tell them of the things he had experienced, he'd seen. And they would tell him of theirs.

Mizuki smiled to himself as he basked upon the sight of his brats, strong, hardworking little monsters now calmly (but slightly rigidly for a few, not optimal for sudden movement, he would have to make a notation) standing at attention. Eyes trained upon their superior commander with a piercing obedience. Even his former civilian brats now had the same look in their eyes, the same physique, and mentality.

He was honored to be the one to introduce these children to death. How to process it, and then, his stomach flipped pleasantly, dish it out.

Five wooden throwing stars appeared between his fingers, pointed ends sharpened slightly, he started his lessons as always. Searching for a flinch, a fear of getting hurt, of drawing blood.

A blur in five directions, specks of blood across five still chubby cheeks. Two flinched, three did not. He smirked proudly, better than most classes. His brats were a bunch of overachievers. The shouts from a taijutsu match resounded from afar. Windows having been opened to lessen the choking heat.
He subtly signed for one of the supervisors to close all windows. It wouldn't do to alert any clan's with heightened senses, he withheld a roll of his eyes at the thought, there were protocols in place for these occasions after all.

"Haruno Sakura, Hyuuga Konomaru, you stand on your hands until I allow you to stop. Extended afternoon class at Response & Obedience for two days." he delivered harshly. Delighting in their swallowed protests, downturned eyes at being the failures.

They obediently flipped over, particularly smoothly by the Hyuuga, he would have to note that. As well as the already shaking arms of Haruno, he frowned pensively at the pitiful sight. Though, had they not had pure Taijutsu earlier? It would explain the bruises, the lack of stamina. He liked civilian born children, enjoyed the challenge of the more complex assimilation processes teachers were to make them undergo. Enjoyed stealing back what were now shinobi children from the mindless cattle of the civilian population. He would not see them fall behind, the girl would have to stand until she dropped.

He picked faintly at an itching scab over his bicep, now leaning against the cupboard to stare out the determined looking children. Silent and resolute, huh. They seemed determined to last the class then, he dipped his head slightly to hide his smile.

The whole class flinched at the sight of the rubber ball he absent-mindedly flung toward Uzumaki Naruto, blood spurting from the bright eyesores nose. To his credit, he made no noise, did not flinch or even move. Simply stared back with empty eyes.

His memories sometimes wailed at the sight of him. The loss burning still, (his little sister's giggling laugh, father's comforting hugs, mother's love filled eyes) they would only be lost to him for a time. He gave the kid an approving smile for his effort.

"My little brats, today you finally get your first taste of death." he bellowed sharply, bright-eyed. 

---

 

Naruto had just recently turned six years old. But he knew death.
Tasted the blood of it in his mouth, the copper scent of it in his nose, the sticky sensation of it on his skin. Fading eyes, and fading light.

He tried to sniffle discretely into his sleeve as he wiped the specks of wet red away, small dashes of blood blemishing his soft yellow kimono.
His nose didn't even sting, fragile vessels already healed completely. Pain was always a matter of minutes, seconds, to him.

(Mizuki-sensei had the same hair color as his Nii-san, the lengths he'd gone to for that sliver of information made him want to scream a bit. He wondered if Nii-san still cared as much about him as he cared for his Nii-san.)

He glanced to where Sakura-chan was still standing on her hands, veins buckling, face a match to her hair. The stink of their sweat tickling his nose, Hyuuga Konomaru's low stamina an echoing pant in his ears.

(He liked to think Nii-san cared a lot.)

"We've discussed death over the 7 entire months of your attendance here. You know what death is, and hopefully, you know that we shinobi deal in death. Today, most of you will kill for the first time." Mizuki-sensei's overly excited voice delivered. The permanent smirk etched onto the man's face widening into a rare smile. Naruto valiantly did not snort nor provoke the man at his ever present weird behavior, Jii-sama would be proud.

Furuko Mizumi and Uchiha Kokou were visibly blanching at the idea of having to kill, something, today. He furrowed his brows at the thought, stomach slightly pinched, both at effects of the three-day starvation training the advanced students from the Beginners Frontline combat course were undergoing. And at the thought of his fellow classmates, he glanced at a shaking, panting but still determined Sakura-chan, the thought of his civilian classmates having to experience their first killing with someone as unsympathetic (he was a jerk) as Mizuki-sensei. He swiveled his head toward a now boisterous Mizuki-sensei answering the Shikasa Nara and Shikai Nara twins curious inquiries with an indulgent smile on his smarmy face. He harshly scratched some freshly healed skin on his lower ankle, trying to calm the stirring in his stomach, calm it down.

"Alright kiddos, our live samples-"  Naruto raised his eyebrows at the Uchiha suddenly cutting off Mizuki-sensei mid sentence. Mizuki-sensei himself flinched angrily at the interruption from the bespectacled Uchiha Akemi, face reddening alarmingly. A simple 'stay after class'  forced through clenched teeth was enough to make the girl tremble. Naruto was having a very hard time not starting a fistfight with Mizuki-sensei. Or at least letting him know that he was a dumb, sub par ninja and that his Nii-san would beat him up easy when he found out about him.

He pouted as he turned his eyes toward a now violently trembling Sakura, Mizuki-sensei was entirely too keen on stupid command protocols."As I was saying. Iruka-sensei, Yuukai-sensei and I caught the rabbits for you. You won't get that luxury next time. You-"  Naruto promptly clocked out on what seemed to be the early onset of a Mizuki-sensei lecture, quickly directing his attention elsewhere. 

Sakura-chan collapsed face first as her arms gave way, followed closely by a now vomiting Hyuuga. Both students looked ready to pass out. He gave them both compassionate smiles as Mizuki-sensei simply nodded for them to take a seat. The stench and presence of vomit having disappeared within a glance.

He tried to block Mizuki-sensei's view of Sakura-chan as she haltingly ambled her way behind him. She could cry a little bit, Sensei was usually okay with that as long as he didn't see. And Sakura-chan's blotchy, shivering visage indicated her need to do just that. Sakura-chan's friend Yamanaka Ino reached forward to hold her hand, soothing her better than Naruto ever could. 

He directed his attention forward. Thinking, for the millionth time, on how to get to his Nii-san.

 

---

 

Smooth sidestep, foot rigid, angled left right left right, throw.

Hinata tried very hard not to squeak out loud as her third rabbit choked on the kunai now lodged in its throat. Landing on her feet as she dodged the slow projectiles meant to distract her. She felt like a cruel monster watching its tanned pelt stain red. Convulsing movements until it stilled. The copper scent was nauseating, made her head twirl and twirl like the dancers at the parties in the compound. She hated everything about it.

Her eyes smarted as they surged into 360° degrees (a quick snippet of the rabbit's fading chakra system, dead ones scattered around, Mizuki-sensei laughing with Shisui-sensei, her classmates waiting for their turns outside the door, five people hiding in the roofs.) before her eyes snapped back. Her Mama had told her every Hyuuga's eyes was fluctuating and uncontrollable until a certain age, but she didn't want to see the creatures die in more ways than one. She bent her legs forward, landing on her hands, propelling away. She didn't want to cry at her first assessment, Father would be disappointed. And Mizuki-sensei would be sure to report everything to Father, they all always did.

Her sixth kunai of the day bounced off the wooden floor, missing its squealing, terrified mark entirely. She was still in the extreme upper range, but Father and the council would be displeased at this showing. Disappointed, frowning, towering figures following her every move. She blinked frantically to keep the tears at bay, her arm steady. Dodged and spun to the left to avoid the clattering of a heavy wooden doll.

Hinata struggled to breathe in calmly, having been moving rapidly without pause for over 5 minutes, limbs shaking slightly with the effort. Having not eaten for two days made her brain sluggish. She was already constructing excuses, her father's voice was an ever-present echo. The guiding compass of her existence.

Angled throw, piercing the last rabbit's foot in place. A whispered plea of forgiveness for causing it prolonged suffering. Sweat glued her blue-tinged bangs to her face, dry throat making itself known at her surprised squeal. Coiled wire cutting into her skin, impact with the ground beating the air out of her lungs. Her sweat-soaked hands struggling with the kunai.

She couldn't help but think the rabbit's shrill squeals sounded very human-like toward the end.

 

---

 

Hinata hobbled out of the assessment room, body aching to the bones. She wanted to go home so Mama could hug her and cuddle her to sleep. She was at the point of tripping over her own feet, sandals scuffed beyond repair. Konomaru-kun and Akemi-chan made haste at the sight of her queasy face, quivering body keeping the leaf emblazoned door half-open for Kurama Inoue.

With the two reliable Hyuuga helping her weak body stay upright she made her way toward the boy she had been nervously avoiding all day. There was only one task at hand before she could be escorted home. And Mama could make her some cinnamon buns and maybe Father would be satisfied with her performance.

He was smiling, as most common. She didn't know the Jinchuuriki very well. But she liked to think he was one of the very few people as beautiful on the inside as on the outside. Her face felt horribly warm at the thought, stomach quivering. Her traitor companions simply snickered and dragged her closer. Sending each other indiscernible looks through twin blank eyes.

He noticed them coming, he wasn't really approached by anyone other than Haruno Sakura. But his smile was as bright as the sun, eyes scrunched up in delight. Uzumaki Naruto seemed to be one to take so much enjoyment out of so little.

She stopped before him and they all bowed slightly, as was proper. Though his smile turned slightly strained upon them leveling. "Uzum-aki-sama, y-you're hu-umbly in-invited to the H-Hyuuga com-po-und thi-s this Sun-day." She bowed once more, arms outstretched with the invitation containing all further details. Short rehearsed sentence delivered without complete disaster.

Hinata managed to smile nervously before rapidly ambling away once more. Aided significantly by her cousins vice holds. The two already engaged in casual shinobi grapevine gossip. As a cheerful voice from behind shouted: "Thank you Hyuuga-chan!" in utter sincerity, her face bloomed red once more. Giggling slightly.

She did wonder, though she hadn't questioned Father. (He lost his patience with her stuttering too easily.)

Just why were they inviting Naruto-kun to a private dinner?

 

Notes:

Comments are very much appreciated. It's hard to know if anyone is reading or enjoying the story otherwise. Thank you!

Chapter Management

• Edit Chapter
•  
• Delete Chapter

Chapter 9: Tjänster

Summary:

The Hyuuga return their debts. Naruto is an anguished little soul, but fundamentally a troublemaker, even unintentionally so. The Elder Council punish a wolf pulling at his chains.

Notes:

(See the end of the chapter for notes.)

Chapter Text

He smiled at the gathering of dignified Hyuuga, their white kimonos bent with the state of their bows. Trying to keep his smile benevolent, like Jii-sama would. To convey his gratitude in a proper manner. Though he couldn't help but groan internally, clan procedures were so exhausting. And the Hyuuga clan, in particular, was insistent upon propriety. He made sure to bow deeper toward the clan head. He was still not sure of why Hyuuga Hiashi had invited him to this feast. (Favour of the Jinchuuriki perhaps.)

He sent a quick grin toward Hinata-chan's blushing visage, partly hidden behind her resplendent mother's cloaks. The red-faced girl simply blushed further, now completely hidden behind her mother's kimono. His classmate's two-year-old little sister stared at him disapprovingly, blank eyes making the tiny child more intimidating than she should have been. Naruto simply smiled guilelessly at her.

He rolled on the balls of his feet, using the burning in his stomach to sense the antsy division of ANBU gathered just outside the gate. The late evening chill ruffled his hair. The chill clearing his lungs.

Jii-sama would probably have him brought to the Tower immediately after leaving. ANBU were not permitted in clan territory after all. Naruto flashed a mischievous grin toward the sky, the thought of the wild scenarios he could concoct in regards to what had happened here making him giggle. Jii-sama would have a heart attack.

Hyuuga-sama, stately figure finished murmuring with some other identical looking Hyuuga, beckoned him closer as the rest of the gathering turned and left. He waved them a cheerful goodbye, he'd had fun tonight. (It was nice to not spend the evening alone.)

Naruto wasn't sure if the cold fierceness most Hyuuga conveyed was a consequence of whatever emotional conditioning they were put through as children, or simply a byproduct of their eye's abilities. There was no need for overt emotion when your eyes could catch the tiniest hints, after all. And besides, his eyes drifted over the clan head's graceful movements, there was a distinct air of pomposity surrounding the clan, perhaps emotionlessness added to their image. He followed slowly, hands reached behind his head.

Emotion could be exploited. (Remember kiddos, anything can be exploited) he could hear traces of Mizuki-sensei's overly excited voice instructing. (Anything can be exploited. So you watch, and find the angle.)

The small overhanging was lit up by beautiful lights, bells attached to every one. Wind provoking the bells to chime a beautiful almost-melody. He looked up at their swaying, a rare content washing over him.

Hyuuga-sama stared down at him, waiting for Naruto's attention. So he gave the stale-wart man a small grin. The Hyuuga reluctantly liked him, which was nice to see. But Naruto couldn't help but frown curiously at the almost nervous hesitance the man was feeling, a sensation he'd caught whiffs of during the extravagant meal, a permeating tension inhabiting the gathering.

"Uzumaki Naruto, the Hyuuga always return their debts." The man's strict voice intoned, almost attempting to reassure him. Naruto found this turn of events slightly confusing. Scrunching his face up in thought, he didn't think he'd paid them any favor recently. Maybe he'd pranked someone they had a spat with?

Hyuuga-sama stiffened mid-breath, activated eyes sending a frightening glare toward the intruding squad of ANBU over his shoulder. Harsh chakra messages Naruto hadn't learned to read yet echoing in the air. He grimaced and mirrored the glare, his more confused. Was Jii-sama really that concerned?

Hyuuga-sama bent down to Naruto's diminutive height, soft hair brushing against his face. He tried not to sneeze at the tickling sensation.

"Uzumaki-Hatake Kakashi. Coordinates; 41°25'01"N and 120°58'57"W."

Naruto went simultaneously hot and cold. Nearly exploding then and there. A wide-eyed, almost disbelieving gaze directed toward the frigid Hyuuga. He knew it wasn't proper, but he couldn't help throwing himself against the man in gratitude. A crushing hug of appreciation. The man simply stood still, humorously frozen in place. But Naruto needed a minute to hide his tears, he knew couldn't give anything away to the ANBU. His eyes stung, nose clogging up. He felt so happy, happy and sad and excited and scared all at the same time. Heart burning, hands shaking. The Hyuuga clan had in one minute done what he couldn't accomplish in months.

The bells tinkled softly in the background. He tried, very, very hard not to cry.

He'd finally found him.

 

---

 

Naruto skipped toward his room in the more secluded section of the Kurama clan compound. Dark brown walls and the fading moonlight guiding his way. Waving cheerfully at the occasional servant as he passed them by, he was greeted back with faint smiles or nods. Naruto valiantly kept his composure all the way to the secure comfort of his room.

Orange Uzumaki spirals and white walls beckoned him home. He shook off his fancy sandals, squeezing out of one of his more posh kimono before scampering his way to the small kitchen. He'd left the window open, the chill of the room left goose bumps along his arms.

The lights weren't on, his only source of warmth some hastily prepared ramen. Naruto grabbed the bowl tightly to his chest, easing the frostiness of his insides, the chill he was reminded of when he was alone.

The room was quiet, and empty, he hated, hated the quiet.

So the warm tears dripping down his face, splattering into his ramen, the suddenness of his hoarse whining yells, the shaking and hiccuping- were simply to brighten the room. Nothing else.

It would be wrong to say that he felt invisible. That he felt the world move past as if he wasn't a part of it. As if he didn't exist at all. Instead, he was painfully visible, he'd made sure of it. And entirely ignored. And maybe that was worse.

He was so scared. Of meeting his Nii-san (and having him look at someone that wasn't Naruto.)

There was a loneliness so asive stuck to his skin, his insides. Ever since he had first realized, making sandcastles whilst watching children play together or drag their indulgent parents to play, laughter and hugs and kisses he'd never experienced.

Ever since he'd realized that no one loved him.

No one truly loved him, just for being himself. Just Naruto.

He wished he could tell Nii-san of how lonely he was. How cold and harsh it felt, trapped in this room. Did he feel that way as well? Did he feel lonely too?

Was it strange, to miss someone (so much) that you didn't even know?

(Was it selfish and horrible to hope that the man that had killed for him would love him more than anyone?)

He fell asleep with his head scrunched to the table, wet tears still b in the corners of his eyes. Hands hugging himself to sleep.

He dreamt of thunderstorms.

 

---

 

"Hiruzen, I'll presume the child has been retrieved then?" the scraggly voice of Utatane Koharu inquired firmly. Smoothly settling down beside Mitokado Homura, matching seiza on either side. Shimura Danzo flickered in thereafter, biting wind dispersing across the room. Hiruzen sent a desolate stare at the mountains of paperwork stacked behind him, too heavy to even budge.

He openly sighed at the absolute headache of this situation. He'd been just about to put his aching bones to bed, though it would seem there was no rest until death for a Hokage. His thoughts had been running in increasingly morbid manners as of late. Tensions with Kumogakure were increasing by the day. Fraying his nerves and testing his patience.

He nodded Koharu's way, the woman's eyes flashing satisfactorily. Homura looked about half asleep, feigning interest with an inquisitive hum. Danzo's intensely questioning gaze was the one to start the discussion.

"Technically, we never explicitly forbid the Jinchuuriki being hidden from our sight by the clan's, however briefly." Koharu intoned reasonably. Always one to play at the role of the devil's advocate.

Hiruzen adjusted his more relaxed seating, taking some pressure off his sore back. Koharu was correct, they had not explicitly forbidden such a thing. It was simply taken for granted, an admitted error on their end. Ninja would take advantage of any loophole, it was to be expected.

Danzo interjected harshly, always one to hurry. "The Hyuuga should know better, first they broker for the Wolf's release, then they approach the brother." The insinuation was not missed by the members of the room. Hiruzen hastily signed for the ANBU to leave. Though he doubted, snorting faintly, that the rumor mill wouldn't be fully at play by the morrow. Shinobi were such gossipers.

"Cease your insinuations Danzo, the Hyuuga are momentarily blinded by gratitude. They are not, however, idiotic." a startled Homura intercalated. Grizzled fingers adjusting his green spectacles.

Hiruzen agreed, certainly. Upon retrieving the boy the child had seemed slightly dazed, muted in an uncharacteristic manner. Questioning him had simply revealed the child to be confused but happy over the clan's kindness.

His weary heart clenched in his chest, the boy was far too lonely. But not one to lie to one he saw as grandfather, The Hyuuga had revealed nothing. Nor insinuated anything beyond an alliance, or a half-hearted proposal to take a Hyuuga wife. He lifted some wafting tea to his face, a warm sip leaving him slightly more present.

"The child knows nothing, this was simply an attempt at ingraining themselves with the village Jinchuuriki. Perhaps paying Kakashi back through extended care toward his brother?" Hiruzen suggested. He really didn't need Danzo picking a fight with the Hyuuga. It would certainly not end well for anyone. And not something they could afford, the present political situation being as it was.

Koharu muttered under her breath. Beckoning Homura to refill her tea. The room smelled of fragrant aromas Hiruzen couldn't help but inhale deeply.

"I suppose we'll leave the matter at that. Though do make sure to forbid any further access into clan property. It is not worth the trouble, and I am too old for late night meetings." Homura half-jested. Refilling a glowering Danzo's tea without any coaxing, Hiruzen was simply happy to have the matter dropped. He felt reassured enough.

Of course, Danzo was not satisfied to let the meeting end, or simply resume in the morning. "In other matters. We must punish the Hatake boy for his childish actions toward the former Kurama Clan head. He must be put in his place." Danzo intoned harshly. Obviously angered (pride and ego left wounded) by the Hatake child's lack of obedience, as well as his continued thwarting of their demands. Hiruzen himself could admit to a slight frustration. Kakashi-kun was not making it easy for himself by killing a clan head for a stray comment.

He rubbed his aching head at the thought, bumping against aged wrinkles. Kakashi-kun couldn't kill someone for making an inappropriate insinuation about the Jinchuuriki in his care. Then again he mused, taking another sip of his tea, the overconfident Kurama should have been more cautious of making derogatory comments within the unstable Wolf's presence.

"Class A-rank Seduction mission seems appropriate," Homura suggested. Palming his afflicted shoulder. Hatake's split unraveling of his restriction seals had left most in the room with painful white-chakra burns.

He would certainly not be brought into a High Shinobi Council meeting again, some clan-heads were still complaining to the day. Hiruzen reached down for his pipe, taking a deep drag of delightful nicotine. Relying on seals to curb an Uzumaki, albeit an adopted one, was simply not reliable enough. He couldn't risk another escape attempt, nor the death of another clan-head. Thankfully, Shikaku had proposed some new ideas. He took another deep drag of tobacco, calming his nerves, a hand braced under his chin.

Koharu frowned at the proposal, rising to her feet. "Increasing his enmity toward us is not a favorable approach. His files warn against these types of missions."

Minato-kun had indeed harshly forbidden his boy from being handed any missions of that type. Some sort of incident at the time of the war, during a brief stint of captivity. It was not something Hiruzen liked to think of.

Danzo snorted derisively, a callous wave of a hand. "Children are punished when they misbehave."

Kakashi did not leave them much choice. He had to be reigned in, and not much else seemed to be working. And if the Hyuuga had indeed planned something (their loyalty toward Hiruzen himself was not nearly as strong since his reclaiming of the Hokage seat) this would be a way to prevent it. The mission would only last for a month at most, and hopefully, the warning would stick. Hiruzen looked up at Minato's bright portrait, neck cracking unpleasantly, and pleaded for forgiveness.

"So it shall be done. Meeting adjourned, we'll reconvene in the morning."

And so he set his tea down, and went to bed.

He dreamt of his sensei's last words.

Notes:

Everyone's continued support is very heart-warming. I'm very grateful.

Chapter Management

• Edit Chapter
•  
• Delete Chapter

Chapter 10: Psykos

Summary:

Hatake Kakashi is sent for punishment; enemy forces scouting where they should not is a trigger. Takigakure burns by his hands. The Ino-Shika-Cho are appalled, but brazen in the face of their Hokage. Naruto plots.

Notes:

(See the end of the chapter for notes.)

Chapter Text

Chakra levels were running low, a sharp drag, sting, pull, warning him to slow down. Take a breath. Slow down.

Blood ran in rivulets against his skin, raised sores across his body. Burst capillaries, frothing.

Thirty minutes full sprint to camp. Twenty minutes full sprint to go. Aoi heavy against his back. Bleeding too heavily. Kunai through her stomach through her spine.

White thunder, white white white

He ran and the wind was a force at his back, fear an echo of his throat. Little sister a weight on his bruised shoulders.

Panicked chakra ran amongst the tendons of his ankles, cushioning a sharp turnover soggy wetland, bleeding arms. Useless in their sockets. Burning, tearing liquidizing, lightning. White.

“White Wolf, Thunder God. Izun, what was he doing there,” she whispered weakly, delirious. Lungs rattling in her chest. He tucked a scream back in his throat.

Parameters had not indicated the presence of an S-rank operative of a hostile village. Parameters had not indicated the presence of the White Wolf.The flat fields (flat fields easy to spot they were so easy to get) sank beneath his feet. His normally shoddy chakra control even more slippery beneath his half-hearted attempts. His feet sank, stuck, slowing him down.

They must have been set up. His stomach burned, acid in his throat. They wanted their Kekkei Genkai. His teeth gritted against each other, tongue bleeding. 

“Izun. Izun. He’s following us.”

Clenched jaw, drawing too much chakra to his lower body. Vesicles bursting over the fields. (Blood trail, blood trail, but making it to camp is more important.)

S-rank ninja present a low-brow brothel bordering Takigakure. It stank of conspiracy.

Aoi moaned against his shoulders, warm blood coating his back. He bit his tongue once more ran faster, faster. He had no use of his arms, couldn’t comfort her. Keep her steady. Muddied fields clung to his legs.

“Izun, will I get to go to Aosaya? Or maybe the Pure world?”

There were warnings tucked to the back of his head. Sensible things. Why had the man destroyed the entire brothel at the mere sight of them? White, burning lightning. Everyone dead dead dead, screaming in seconds.

Why was he following them when he could have caught up so easily?

The shinobi’s presence was a beacon at their back. White, crackling chakra. Playing with him, mocking him. This is how you will die. You’ll be hunted down like an animal. Left to die in the soggy fields of Takigakure. Your little sister dead at your ineptitude.

“Nii-san, don’t be sad. Don’t cry. We promised each other not to cry.”

Tears brimmed in the corners of his eyes. Tendons ripping painfully, headache beating to the sound of his footsteps. A minute glance upwards, crepitating storm clouds inching across the sky. Out of nowhere. Storm clouds out of nowhere.

Two kilometers distance from camp, he struggled not to stumble as his chakra tapered. Screaming in desperation, futile useless even at the end. Weak muscles, body sinking into the swamp. Inagi-san should be close enough to sense them, close enough (to save them?)

“Izun. Nii-san.”

He activated his eyes, sharpening hawk eyes peering kilometers ahead. The camp was floundering, shinobi running back and forth. Points in their direction. Shouting orders too blurry to interpret. Running.

Running away.

Storm clouds inched across the sky. Faster now. Ozone raising the all the hairs on his body.

He propelled himself against a slippery, half-sunken rock. Soles of his feet bursting against the overload. A bloody, painful mess. His voice was a hoarse half-way scream, shaking limbs and desperation. Aoi exhaled and-

stopped breathing.

His death flickered centimeters from his face, a crescent mooned-smile.

~Yo!

The world flickered white, screaming in the background.

---

 

They burst into his office like presumptuous rookie-genin, bowing nearly perpendicular to the ground in unison. Hiruzen decided to forego any admonishment over manners. Too tired to do anything but stare as the three men rose and straightened. Resolute expressions on their faces. 

“Sandaime-sama, I’d like to give my advice as Jounin Commander.” Shikaku Nara intoned deeply, the man’s half-lidded eyes tense. Scarred face only betraying a hint of disapproval. His ever present companions resolute against his back. Hiruzen sighed and nodded for the Clan Heads to speak. Avoiding the more obviously accusatory eyes of Akimichi Chouma. Shuffling paperwork to the edges of his desk.

His ANBU buzzed across the room, still on edge after yet another Hyuuga meeting. The noble Clan incessantly brokering for Kakashi-kun’s release. And now the Ino-Shika-Cho Clanheads storming into his office without prior notice nor any valuable information to share, he was sure. They had not been on any missions in two weeks. He raised a hand to his temples, attempting to squeeze the headache out. It seemed everything nowadays pertained to the White Wolf.

His advisors shuffled in their seats. Homura ignoring the gathering entirely, discussing actions for Kumo’s increased hostility with a stern-faced Koharu.

Danzo’s gaze was a piercing thing. Leaning forward on his cane. The man had a fondness for the Ino-Shika-Cho, he would not have bothered to listen in otherwise.

“Sandaime-sama, setting the White Wolf free to rampage amongst the borders of Takigakure sent a message we all approve of to those troublesome Kumo-nin. Sneaking too close as they were. But the Sanda Sekai killed innocent civilians, Takigakure will-

Akimichi Chouza’s large stature inched forward, the emotional man interjecting harshly. “He didn’t kill them. He slaughtered them. Had lightning consume the entire landscape.” His large voice bellowed across the room. Meaty hands clenched tightly. Hiruzen faintly recalled one of his Clan members being present in Takigakure.

He raised a finger to stop his ANBU for reprimanding them for insolence, the men were bordering on disrespectful. Danzo’s blistering was a palpable thing, Hiruzen merely side-eyed him into silence. He kept his face cold, betraying nothing. Eyes on his multitude of official paperwork. 

(Perhaps, Kakashi’s punishment had been a step too far. Then again, he had not expected the man to find Kumo-nin sneaking around. Nor to react so..harshly.)

The room held still. Dust particles dispersing softly. Early morning sunlight sending shadows across their faces. Nothing but the soft muttering of his former teammates against their ears. Yamanaka Inoichi’s pupil-less eyes were stark against the light. The tall man bowed reverently before placing two calming hands on his companion's shoulders.

“Hokage-sama, I handle most of Hatake’s psychological evaluations personally. He only loses control in that way when he’s deeply traumatized. This triggered trauma must have been set off before we received reports of the calamity.”

And it had been a calamity. He glanced at Shikaku’s analytical eyes. Thankfully a group of Nara had been present nearby to subdue him in tandem with the seals.

The Yamanaka nervously broke eye contact against Hiruzen’s non-responsive gaze. Bowing slightly once more as he continued speaking. His companions following foot. “Hokage-sama, we recommend against sending the White Wolf out on any psychologically pressuring situations, our lack of control over him may cause future political upheaval.” Hiruzen was aware of all this, these men were not telling him anything he had not considered. He reached into his sleeve, sending tobacco smoke into the air, teeth clenched upon the comforting handle of his pipe.

He looked away, staring out at the mountains above. His forebearers stern gazes pinning him down.

“It will be taken into consideration. Now leave.” He was in no mood for any further discussion. The three men flinched back in unison, flickering away intelligently.

Danzo snorted unamused at the interaction, turning to the other Council members discussion fluidly.

They discussed well into the night.

---

Sakura wheezed once, twice, panting breaths and dripping sweat from her face. She wobbled on the soft cobbled ground, almost to her limit. Bruises fiercly stinging.

“You can do it Sakura-chan! Fight on! We only have one more lap!” Naruto, stamina monster that he was, shouted without a hint of exhaustion. 

The soft cobbled street (certainly placed there to make it harder to run) stank of sweat. A well-used practice road for Konoha’s academies. The scent stung her eyes, prickled her nose. She rose from her bunched over position, nodding toward Naru’s bright grin, hands held behind his head, and set off once more. A hobbling, pathetic run, but a run nonetheless.

Mizuki-sensei flashed past them, checking up on all of the groaning children attempting to make their way around the 20 kilometer trail for the fifth time, and gave her a pat on the head she couldn’t help but feel pride over receiving. Slightly stale smile more reassuring than creepy for once.

She tried not to flinch as Naru’s shadow flickered and stayed. Nine winding tails etched into the shadows. It happened with more regularity as of late. His tails would suddenly whirl in the shadows, a force onto its own. When people reacted like Mizuki-sensei, running by their side with a tense look in his eyes, hand held over his kunai pack, Naruto would lose his smile. Mizuki-sensei kept a predatory stillness to his shoulders as they continued running, until the shadows flickered, and he left in a whirlwind of leaves. Nothing but silence as they continued running.

“Sakura-chan, I think my ANBU went to talk to Mizuki-sensei, but they won’t be gone long or go very far,” Naruto muttered under his breath, running a lot closer to her now. She couldn’t help her confusion. She knew about the ANBU, Naru had joked about them before, but why did he want them gone?

She didn’t think she had the air to waste on questions, so she simply stared at him questioningly, blowing stray hairs out of her face as they ran, surrounded by lush forest and the sound of her harsh breathing.

“Sakura-chan, you’re tons smarter than I am. And I need to get somewhere I’m not allowed, but the ANBU are always following me.”

She blanched at the statement, about to question him loudly before he hushed her, finger to his mouth with a serious tone to his blue eyes. She looked down at her shaking feet and sighed, he was always serious when his eyes went resolute, face blank and not contorted into his usual warm smile.

“Is this- one of your - prank plans?” she managed to wheeze out. Halfway through regretting depleting her air on the question, a dirty look sent the brightly clothed boy’s way. He simply stuck out his tongue, smoothly flipping through the air as he jumped over the large rock in their way, show-off as he was.

“Will you help me out if it's real serious?” he pleaded, voice going high pitched. Blue eyes the perfect imitation of a puppy’s. When she frowned defeatedly he merely smiled pleased. Taking her by the hand to pick up their pace before their time ran out. Her aching knees almost buckled at the sudden speed.

“Sakura-chan, I’ve tried doin’ this alone for a month. And I really, really wanna see him, you know!” His voice broke at the end. A sudden grief she’d never seen from him before. She couldn’t ask who ‘he’ was before Naru signed for her to keep silent. ANBU probably returned to their stations. She nodded and continued running, distracting her body with haphazard answers to her Theory of Chakra worksheet. 

As they closed in on the finish line, to the sight of the other children collapsed on the ground, panting and sweating in the hot sun. She stood standing proudly, for once not entirely exhausted or passed out. She squeezed Naru’s hand in reassurance as the other children went silent and yelped away, wide-eyed, at the second re-emergence of his tailed shadows. Sad blue eyes reflecting the sky itself.

She simply glared at the whispering children, the dark glances from the adults, the clearings sudden silence, and vowed to help her friend with whatever illegal activity he wanted to accomplish this time.

Konoha’s Will of fire burning brightly in her soul.

Notes:

This was one of those chapters that simply refused to be written. Hopefully, the next one will be a bit more, interesting. But the fic is moving slowly because it is one for the long haul, it's nowhere close to finished. So I hope you all continue to find it interesting and stick with me to the end. I'm grateful as always.

Chapter Management

• Edit Chapter
•  
• Delete Chapter

Chapter 11: Nästan

Summary:

Survival exercises monitored by Mizuki lead to trauma. Sakura punches a bear with strength she should not possess, someone in the Hokage's government is intrigued.

Notes:

(See the end of the chapter for notes.)

Chapter Text

He was dreaming, he realized. In the midst of burning people alive. He was dreaming, in the midst of swallowing humans whole. Dreaming, as he pierced his parent's chests, reveled in his final piece of revenge. Locked away away-

He was dreaming. As he apotheosized in the purification of fire and wind, cleansing vile creatures from the sins of their putrid existences. Feeding off the strength of their chakra, a tickling of his throat. The world shook underneath the grandness of his being. Bacchanal in the glory of his strength, the feast of their fear, their screams, their blood. 

One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine

-tails

The village burned in fire, in wind, in water, in earth, in lightning.

His howls caused earthquakes, a flick of his tails blew mountains away, a breath caused tsunamis. 

Naruto woke up, and his screaming, his choked tears, body curled into itself, 

the plea to just please stop no more please no please stop-

Was blown away by the winds of the dark forest night. Silence. 

 

---

 

“My tiny little kiddies, no classes for today!” Mizuki-sensei bellowed, hands spread as if he were imparting the word of God, eyes glazed over as always. The sight made slightly more frightening by his bloodied visage. Sakura made sure to keep her eye on a glowering, even more blood-drenched Naruto, his arms folded over themselves, her idiot friend would pick a fight with Mizuki-sensei at the slightest provocation. Especially after that training exercise. The entire classroom stunk of coagulated blood, the only sound being their harshened breaths and the occasional whining of the Inuzuka dogs. She thought Sarutobi Mando actually may be unconscious.

A monotonous voice harkened for Mizuki-sensei’s attention from behind her head, dark sunglasses glinting in the face of the spilling sunlight. Aburame’s were quite the odd bunch. The idea that they were carrying bugs in their bodies still freaked her out, goosebumps gathering on her bloodied flesh at the thought.

“Why are our classes canceled Mizuki-sensei? Will we be permitted to relocate into our homes to refreshen ourselves in such a case?” Aburame Chiyome mumbled from behind her raised collar, head tilting at an angle. Bugs visibly buzzing over the bloodied spots on her clothing, Sakura narrowed her eyes, Aburame were difficult to read, but she thought the rigidity in her stance indicated either discomfort or anger. All of them had lived in the apartments on school grounds for weeks now, after all. Mizuki-sensei’s broadening smile, white teeth juxtaposed by his pink gums, was all the answer required. She rubbed her bruised arms and looked away, trying not to think of her Mama all alone.

Surreptitiously glancing over the room, the three Nara in the class were all sleeping close to their future Clan leader, Shikamaru Nara’s brows drawn uncomfortably close. All of their small, fragile hands close to form a jutsu at a moment's notice.

To the upper right corner, the five Uchiha of the class were playfully mocking one of the Clan head’s sons, Uchiha Sasuke, for furiously scrubbing at his arms to try and get the blood off. His haunted black eyes scrubbing relentlessly, ignoring everything around him. Everyone in the class looked like some combination of discomforted or severely upset. Three days in the forest had traumatized them all for life, she didn’t think she could look at a slug without screaming ever again.

There were tear tracks etched to her face, a shaking in her limbs she couldn’t will away. The slick sensation of bear organs coating her skin, stomach fluids and regurgitated food her companions through a night of hiding from Sensei. She had been one of many to fail the test.

The only one to remain his cheery, unbothered self-was Naru-kun, yawning from his seated position, but other than that pleased and as energetic as always. Her inherited tick mark b under the surface at the mere sight of his ease. He hadn’t been bothered by the hell they’d lived through at all.

“As I said, you get the day off kiddies, now get out of here. Yeah, you’re allowed to clean off. Return to your barracks.” Mizuki-sensei muttered gruffly, losing interest in the class at the sight of their unamusing reactions. Most of them shaking from where they were seated. She averted her eyes as the class filed out, the loud whining of suddenly awoken Nara, buzzing Aburame and the crunching of a couple Akimichi a stampeding force.

Naru-kun turned toward her excitedly, a conspiratorial gleam in his eyes. Unbothered by the copious amounts of stinking blood stuck to his hair, the muddied red of it oddly suit him.

“Ne, ne Sakura-chan! I came up with a plan where we-” she flinched back, hand on her kunai-pack as Naru-kun was grabbed by the scruff of his kimono, flailing as he was lifted off the ground by Mizuki-sensei’s hard-handed grip. Attempting to kick their sadistically smiling Sensei as he was playfully wiggled around mid-air.

“Jinchuuriki-sama,” Mizuki-sensei drawled mockingly, too close to Naru-kun’s face to be comfortable. Naru’s tantrum imminent by sight of his nine-tailed shadows violently swooping across the room. She stiffly jumped over a desk to the left as one tail came too close, they were shadows, but that didn’t make them any less creepy.

“You, on the other hand, can’t escape from your training. And lucky, lucky you! You even get new teachers of the ANBU variation!” Naru-kun’s body stilled entirely at that tidbit, making eye-contact with her. Their nonverbal communication wasn’t the best, so she only stared back questioningly. Guessing this to do with his imprisoned older brother, guarded by ANBU and imprisoned somewhere. (The brother who was also an S-rank ninja! One of the 48 known ones of the Shinobi world! She’d nearly broken a chair in excitement upon that revelation.)

“They’re waiting outside, now get out.” Mizuki-sensei sniped long-sufferingly, his usual mixture of mocking sarcasm and underlying hostility as prevalent as always. He threw Naru-kun out the door one-handed, her friend comedically skidding face first before bellowing a quick goodbye and running away excitedly, torn skin healing in seconds.

Mizuki-sensei was a very tall adult, Sakura realized belatedly as he stared down at her dispassionately. Her neck still stiff from almost getting pummeled by a bear, flashing memories of the fierce whiplash and stress that had caused her to leave a trail of vomit through the air as she flailingly tree-jumped to safety in the dead of night. She still had crusted vomit on her shirt.

“And you get to meet the Sandaime Hokage-sama face to face! Aren’t you excited? He’s a bit curious about how you punched the head off a grown bear, you see, you see.”

And so she was torn into a whirlwind, body thrown over Mizuki-sensei’s shoulders. And unceremoniously thrown into a waiting room of some kind, smarting from the impact.

---

Naruto skidded across the halls with a bubbling joy inside his chest. Barely restraining himself from shouting in excitement and hope. Crusty, stale kimono slowing him down slightly as he dodged past students, equipment and the odd assortment of traps littered across the hallways. He had felt Bird-san only yesterday, only yesterday! As the man skulked around the edges of the Kurama Clan compound, his Nii-san's friend would help them meet, he totally would! Naruto twisted and flipped over Iruka-sensei's grumpy visage, the man shouting at him long-sufferingly as he hurled himself to the exit. Green leaves and fresh air enveloping his lungs. The morning Konoha sky matching his eyes.

“Hey, civilians aren’t allowed on Main Konohas’s Academy grounds!” a childish voice yelled out. Naruto skidded to a stop, dust raised behind him, in curiosity. The Academy grounds were usually so dull, he grinned at the prospect of joining a good fight.

Uchiha Itachi, the young prodigious 5th classer, was smiling benignly toward two civilian boys, a bright bruise on his face. Two old enough to almost be adults, with dulled eyes and what smelled like, he wrinkled his nose, enough alcohol to stink halfway across the schoolyard. But they felt very sad, shaking hands grasping on to their baseball bats, shifty eyes, sadness swept up in a heady mess of anger, resentment, hatred hatred hatred. He could never muster up the will to fight people who didn't wanna, not really. 

Glancing around surreptitiously, arms now folded behind his back, most of the on break students were standing there staring in confusion and slight disgust. Ninja children didn’t interact much with civilian ones. He could feel the horror, scary, help, no, of two women running toward them from up the road. Their gut-wrenching dread and the heaviness of their panicked steps resounding from afar. Why was everyone so tense? It was only a bruise, a weak one at that. Uchiha were just pale enough to bruise easily.

The only thing he had time to properly process after that was the sight of Mizuki-sensei’s bloodcurdling smile and two mothers protectively embracing their children, on their knees, white-faced and pleading-

And then the world spun in the familiar sensation of a forced shunshin, he came face to face with Bird-san’s masked visage.

Naruto’s grin was bright enough to rival the sun.

---

Notes:

Apologies for the particularly short chapter, I've been very short on time recently. The next one will be longer, I promise. Thank you for reading, sincerely so.

Naruto only gets glimpses of Shinobi-civilian tension. Bird-san takes priority.

Chapter Management

• Edit Chapter
•  
• Delete Chapter

Chapter 12: Minnen

Summary:

Hatake Kakashi has two sets of parents, the first are dead. The second intent on making the relation blood-bound. Rin is absolutely done. We visit the days of the Third Shinobi War.

Notes:

Dedicated to the brilliant Sumeri, her amazing fan art having inspired me to write another throwback chapter.

(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)

Chapter Text

She jumped and twisted from the unstable branch, neck prickling, white wolves unflinchingly pursuing her ever since she’d entered the territory, it felt too much like being prey to feel comfortable. Even though she’d been reassured of their good intent. She landed unsteadily on the wet grass, chakra system too exhausted to properly cushion anything. Shaking leaves out of her hair as she approached the small house, nestled in the midst of the Hatake Clan forest. It was a quaint house. The wolves were prowling at her back, not threatening, just, watching, she’d never felt relaxed around Kakashi’s silent predators. Glancing at her back, neck stiffening slightly, the white phantoms streaked across the forest, lightning fast. Perhaps they would be less menacing if they didn’t mostly abhor anyone who wasn’t Hatake.

Rin knocked on the door politely, warm summer breeze providing only a modicum of relief from the heat, sandals scuffing against the soft grassed dirt. Kushina-san’s smile was a shining beacon, her monstrous strength cracking her back open as she was embraced, long red hair tickling her nose. Somehow, the woman always smelled of salt water.

“Rin-chan! Welcome! Close the door behind you and take a seat!” Kushina-san sang cheerfully before rushing back into the house, an odd assortment of sounds and some palpable flailing from sensei emanating from the kitchen. Rin walked haltingly, one stiff foot after the other, one hand braced on the painted walls as she made her way, drained to the bone. Tense muscles smarting across her body. The hospital was as short-staffed as ever, war-time holding no mercy for medic-nin, stacked hospital halls spilling out into the winding corridors.

She took her seat in the homely living room, decorated with a myriad of seals and beautiful artwork, a spacious couch just waiting to comfort her ahead. Though she couldn’t help but feel a modicum of unease, present at her sensei’s house. As if committing an intrusion of privacy. She had only been invited once previous. Hadn’t even encountered any of her teammates since the commission of a short period of leave from the frontlines. Or well, everyone but Sensei, they couldn’t ever afford him completely off the frontlines. But now she was at her sensei’s house, present to aid in an outlawed adoption ritual.

Kakashi was lying on the couch, half-lidded eyes just barely acknowledging her presence before returning to his book, lazily slouched back at the very end of the edge. Gloved hands cradling the pages. She sat down demurely, attempting to keep her poise in the face of the younger boy. The music of Kushina-san’s singing the only penetrating sound, lilting tones of some language she didn’t understand. Kakashi stiffened at the sound, glancing toward the kitchen underneath white eyelashes, eyes softer than usual. She fidgeted slightly, leaning back toward the couch. Neck aching even more.

She looked across at his uninterested visage, stomach hurting just slightly. “The intricacies of elemental-infused sealing.” Rin painstakingly decoded. A book on sealing from Kumo, written entirely in lightening rongi. She averted her eyes harshly at the sight, clenching her hands in her lap, calluses of hard work and insistent laboring mirrored back like a question mark. She could barely speak lightening rongi, much less read an entire book in it.

“Kashi-chan! Come and help wash the dishes!” The home smelled delicious, she hadn’t eaten anything but ration bars for over twenty-four hours.

“Hai, Kaa-san.” Kakashi drawled nonchalantly as he rose. Ever graceful. Carefully bookmarking his pages before making his way over the brightly lit hallways. Silent footsteps and straight back. Her gaze followed him out of the room, she hadn’t ever thought the rigid, cold Kakashi could ever seem so content inhabiting a space. Being human.

Minutes of silence (interspersed by the occasional laughing and bantering from the kitchen) passed by as they waited for Obito to arrive. Rin had always been indulgent of his quirks, but her teammate needed to arrive now. If only to alleviate the awkward tension, Obito had a way of brightening up a room.

She shifted where she sat, soft couch fabric irritating an unending amount of scabs, mostly distracted by her fleeting thoughts. She understood the reasoning behind the ritual, Kakashi would become an official member of the near-extinct Uzumaki clan, some of his DNA altered and chakra characteristics adapted. It was a necessity. Rin bit her lip softly, eyebrows furrowing. His Kekkei Genkai would be safe, evidently. The couch rustled softly underneath her nails, running them back and forward. Rin certainly didn’t know enough about sealing to speculate on any further effects. She scratched her thumb firmly, peeling off some of the battered skin, sparring practice with Hyuuga Hikari left marks for days.

Increased chakra capacity would be a boon for him, certainly, but was it really one he needed? Her insides felt like goo, whirring around like the fan above. There was a reason the adoption ritual was never practiced anymore, skilled seal masters were a rarity anywhere other than Konoha. The room hummed incessantly, a buzzing in her mind.

Minato-sensei walked back into the room laughing, soft pink apron tied to his body, dragging a reluctant Kakashi by his straps. The boy’s eyebrows bunched together in reluctance. Sensei just smiled at her and waved, the personification of sunshine, she couldn’t help but think. Not the vivid brightness of a sunrise, but the demure awe-instilling beauty of a sunset. He sat down wearily, relaxing into the comfortable couch as well, a soft heaving sigh. Son complacently joining at his side.

“Speaking of, did you ever take a look at my failing seal? Your poor Papa feels like tearing his hair out over it!” Minato-sensei cried dramatically. Hugging a pillow to his chest in sudden despair. She couldn’t help but giggle at the sight, hands placed over . Kakashi’s white-gray mane of hair shook in reprimand, blank eyes staring expressionlessly.

Minato-sensei poked a single eye out from underneath the pillow he had been using in an attempt to suffocate himself. Eyes perpetually fond. She fidgeted where she sat, hands winding together, it was difficult sometimes, rectifying this Minato-sensei with the one on the frontlines. It felt like an uncomfortable dichotomy.

“Tou-san, your sealing is as impeccable as always, I didn’t get half of what was going on,” Kakashi muttered. Rin felt slightly as if she was trapped behind an invisible glass wall. The noises of spilling cutlery resounded harshly from afar, Kushina-san’s offended cursing following quickly. The sound of something being hurled out of the window.

Sensei sighed and quietly slumped back further, most probably only half as discontented as he seemed. Squeezing the pillow to his chest once more. He winked at the sight of Rin’s bemused staring. Yellow hair mused up against the couch.

“You’re not very meticulous Tou-san, you tend to rush through the actual maths of your sealing. You made a rounding error in your one-hundred and thirty-second enthalpy conversion, 0.6 instead of 0.98.” Kakashi murmured straightforwardly, inching back toward the kitchen. Minato-sensei simply gasped and dove for his son at the revelation, hugging (squeezing) him close to his chest in affection, cheek perched onto his head, before running out of the room excitedly.

The door opened and closed rapidly, a sharp sound. “I’m here Sensei, Kushina-san, Rin-chan, Bakashi!” a new voice bellowed out, seemingly out of breath. A speck of orange, dark blue and white rushed into the apartment. Limbs everywhere at once before slipping over the carpet and landing right at Kakashi’s feet. Skid marks prevalent on his bespectacled face. Her teammate stared down unimpressed as she laughed. An incredulous look on his face before walking away. Obito’s face reddening in embarrassment. He followed Kakashi into the kitchen hollering.

Her back ached as she reclined back on the couch, muscles tensing at her low chakra content, content to nap until dinner. Hopefully, Kushina-san’s cooking was as divine as she recalled. She needed to remember to ask when they would be deployed, hopefully, she had time for one more visit to the Inuzuka compound. Rin shivered, she would most likely be flayed upon returning if she didn’t.

She faded to the sound of Minato-sensei’s joyful laughing.

 

---

 

The wind dragged across her cheeks as they jumped deeper into the forest, the disgusting taste of chakra pills stuck to her gums. Obito’s bright clothing a beacon in the dark. She used her newly gained chakra to regulate against the chilly night. Woozy from lack of sleep. They dived down at the sight of an enormous seal engraved onto the forest ground, stark black lines etched into a large perimeter. The serpentine eyes of Orochimaru-sama examined them silently as he awaited their arrival, too pale hand reaching for Kakashi’s face at his approach. An almost smile, but then always a smirk, flickering past.

The gathering of eight shinobi stayed tense and silent, faces flickering in the roosted flames. Minato-sensei and Sandaime-sama touched down quietly, vials of blood in their arms. (Kushina-san’s mocking laughter, a smile with too many teeth; you didn’t really think all the Uzumaki perished in the Fall?) She made eye-contact with Obito’s resolute face, standing to her left, doubtfully examining the twisting seals underneath their feet, and was reassured by his perpetually goofy smile, a thumbs up directed her way.

Ushi, Ne, Mi

They took their positions with a flame on each side, branching seals to feed filtered, pure chakra into. Uzumaki blood, Uzumaki chakra onlypermitted into her teammate's body. A body as still the grand statues of Konoha, loomed over by the heavy-handed Toad sage’s bizarrely muted presence, seals painted upon every crevice. Rin felt an unease she couldn’t explain. As the winds grew colder, a howl caught in the breeze. Fires flickering. She glanced at Kushina-san’s fiercely proud smile, hands interlocked with Minato-sensei. She had only one mission here, save Kakashi if something were to go wrong. If the seal were to twist his body, or the blood to poison his.

Ushi, Hitsushi, Tatsu

Two feet on each side of the seal, mirrored on each side by eight. Orochimaru-sama's laughter sounded like the hissing of snakes. She felt pride at her insides at Minato-sensei’s small smile, she was the only medic-nin they trusted to keep her silence. No harm would befall anyone as long as she was present, her jaw locked resolute. Jiraiya-sama smiled broadly, finishing with a flourish of his brush, wide-grinned.

The clearing lit up in blinding white-

Saru, Ne, Tora, Mi and on and on and on-

And Kakashi screamed in a way he should not have.

 

---

 

Healing was made slightly difficult, the intricate weaving of chakra stitches, needing to be regulated with centimeter accuracy, when encircled by the distant hollering apologies of Jiraiya–sama, chased across the clearing by an infuriated Kushina-san, chains tearing into the dirt where he ran. Her hair burning red.

Minato-sensei and Orochimaru-sama simply stared as she worked, their gazes unnervingly intense. Orochimaru-sama seemed evaluating, reminiscent of her Medic-sensei’s. At least the others had left minutes ago, thankfully. She struggled not to sigh at their overprotectiveness, it was only a shoulder wound, it would heal easily. There was no need for attempted murder, she did not miss the snakes attempting to slow Jiraiya-sama down either, it was not subtle. No matter how nonchalant Orochimaru-sama acted.

“Um, Orochimaru-sama? Your snakes appear to be strangling Jiraiya-sensei,” her Sensei informed, staring across the clearing, hesitant glances directed Orochimaru-sama’s way. Her fingers jerked, six stitches misplaced, she felt like joining Kushina-san in her rampage. Hopefully, her teammate would wake soon. Very soon.

“Yes, the fool’s mistake was elementary.” his hissing voice intoned, acknowledging his genuine attempted murder nonchalantly. Rin was becoming increasingly convinced of the eccentricity theory. The stronger the crazier. It would certainly explain Jiraiya-sama’s shouts of “Mercy Kushina-chaan!”  and “Get your snakes off me Oro, I’m dying!”

“I see.” Minato-sensei accepted easily, disregarding the matter with a nod. She could see him smiling at Kushina-san’s chains felling three trees in a row, blue eyes shining.

As soon as the war was over, she swore, headache steadily approaching, she was becoming a stationary medic-nin. Permanently.