Late Reaction Post Go!
"Hazō, this better be important," Noburi mumbled, wiping the sleep from his eyes as he trailed into the secure briefing room, last of the Gōketsu inner family to do so.
Hazō stopped banging the pots together and gaped at his brother. "Did Mari not tell you that I was getting abducted by an S-rank psychopath?"
"I wasn't sure," Mari said. "All I knew was that something was wrong and you needed us out of the way. It could have been an ANBU mission, or a girl, or anything." She glanced at Noburi in amusement. "But, yes, I told them that something was wrong."
"Yeah, but does it need to be dealt with tonight?" Noburi whined.
"Yes, it does. Something else does, too." He stepped forward and swept Akane into a hug. Surprised, she put her arms around him and hugged back.
"I was terrified that he was going to go after all of you," Hazō murmured. He held her for a moment longer, then let go and stepped back.
This feels... slightly out of character for Hazou. Thirteen civilians were killed in front of him because he was too weak to prevent it and Hazou's cracking jokes?
Then again, stress shows itself in a thousand different ways and Hazou hugging Akane does seem to be an instance of "I'm holding myself together with ductape and twine, this is my real fear shining through the cracks." And... thanks for not offscreening this part. I know it's talky, not punchy, and tinged with teenage romance, but I did,
genuinely, smile at Hazou hugging Akane. The idea of Hazou holding on to Akane like a sailor lost at sea was the initial inspiration for the chapter, and this segment makes me glad for having it in the action plan.
"He wanted to verify that I 'still had Lord Jashin's favor' and then he wanted to know why Uplift was taking so long and who he could kill to speed it up. I told him to go take out the Kage of Rock and all of her potential successors."
Mari inhaled sharply, her eyes going wide. "Hazō, did you—"
"I already spoke to Asuma. He's okay with it, and admitted that I'm not disloyal. He even said he trusts me."
Everyone sagged in relief...except for Kagome.
"Drat. Guess I still can't get them to go missing."
"I'll do the full briefing in a moment," Hazō said, "but first I want to ask one thing because it will inform the rest: Mari, how connected are we to Jiraiya's old spy network?"
"Not at all," she said. "We handed over all the information because we are loyal Leaf nin and we didn't keep copies because we aren't stupid. Do I remember some of it? Yes. Will I ever go near those people or share the information with anyone, even you and even under orders? No. Asuma might be warming up to you but I'm not taking any chances."
MARI: "I'm not about to let you accidentally commit treason, because then I'd have to take control of the clan (I mean, who else would we put there, Noburi's a newlywed and Kagome hasn't mastered the mandatory Face-Soup style of Diplomacy), and I'm
not about to have that much paperwork.
AKANE: "Translation: You scared our team mom half to death, so she's reminding you that you're stupid and that she loves you enough to protect you from social/political threats --yes, that means sometimes yourself --even if she can't always do the same with physical threats like an angry S-rank cultist."
NOBURI: "If it's any consolation, Mari, my money would've been on you."
"Better than expected, actually. Yes, I slept for crap, but I have decided to take this as a challenge to do better instead of an utter failure. As Rock Lee might say: I will train harder so that next time fewer mistakes are made. And, as the first step in my training: Paperwork! I'm ready for anything, so...do your worst!"
Again, this kinda feels OOC... did Akane... Wait, did Hazou use YSJ to help? Are we seeing the effects of that? If so, then I'm cautiously optimistic. It's keeping Hazou from spiraling into depression and angst, keeping him focusing on the positive and the limitless potential of the future.
"Skysliders are progressing, although we are no longer allowed to use Hokage Monument as a launch point, as Lord Asuma was worried about information security. The team has found some modest hills that work well enough for basic testing. They have a design which will usually travel in a straight line so long as the wind conditions are calm. The sky spirits are usually willing to support enough that it can travel a hundred feet or so, although the builders were eager to emphasize that they had one test that went two hundred.
Woo, progress! And Asuma's confident enough in the project that he wants to protect opsec!
[*giggles*]
This is yet another instance of Hazou coming up with an insane idea, everyone doubting his sanity, and then Hazou delivering. You'd think that Hazou would've earned some credit, but nooo. Apparently coming up with Skywalkers and Skytowers --thereby revolutionizing military combat as a whole and causing entirely new battlefield tactics to be brainstormed/tested --means that people still look at you weird when you come up with cool shit.
"The aqueduct is in progress. They have installed the initial uptake and the screw to lift the water. The architect is having trouble with that part of the process and doesn't want to build the rest of the structure until the screw is reliable and producing sufficient flow. He asked for another month.
Understandable. Hey, what was the goal for this one, again? Something-something, access to clean water? Something-something, add channels that go to Goketsu farmland?
"This is your weekly reminder that you are still not doing anything with the family iron mine.
What do you guys want to do with this? I know EJ expressed some reluctance in writing it (though I think it was more because we were overleveled for the area?), and that the entire Iron Mine was all but written off as "too much work, not enough profit." But I'm still leaning towards using the mine to help our Artificial Chakra Metal idea (use VD bloodline at various stages through ore refinery to make something akin to chakra metal). And we
did just get a legendary blacksmith, whose skills might help us along those lines.
"The GED continues to work well. Many of the civilian members of the clan have expressed their enjoyment and sense of empowerment at the lessons. Most of them sounded surprised about that—they had expected it to be a waste of time, but I am aware of at least twelve people who were continuing to study beyond the requirements. There have been no further incidents with any of the teachers.
1) Good thing, about the teachers. That's all I'll say on that.
2) Education broadens one's perspectives and fundamentally changes them for the better. I won't go too far into a rambling paragraph about my personal philosophy regarding education, but suffice to say that I believe that the pursuit of an education is worth it for its own sake, even if it's not profitable. Luckily enough, many of the civilians involved in the GED are learning skills that make them more... useful, I suppose is the right word, to the wider Leaf as a whole.
Maybe once enough time has passed, the Nara can do a study and show Asuma that it's worth educating the civilians. And, hopefully, by that time, Asuma will have made the first steps in this regard and have sponsored first generation ninja --remember, Asuma told Ebisu that if he could prove that clanless ninja really were inherently equal in potential to clan ninja, Asuma would readily change policies accordingly.
"The storage seal bank is continuing to generate a profit. I asked the Nara to put together a report on the effect it's been having, as I thought that would be something you would enjoy reading. It should be ready in two weeks, but the preliminary data is very positive.
"The sewage and plumbing teams have put together a preliminary test project that has seen basic success, although the ground is now too cold for further development. They are pleased with their 'septic field' idea and look forward to continuing the research once the thaw comes.
Woo, progress!
"NINJA!"
The villagers of Bakuchioka had been burying their dead in one of the fields. At the sentry's word they dropped their tools and ran in all directions as fast as they could, not even taking the time to look.
"No, please! Please, it's me, Hazō, the one who tried to save you!"
No one slowed down.
This... this made me sad.
"Please, my name is Gōketsu Hazō. I'm the son of Jiraiya of the Three, if that helps. Hidan forced me to be here yesterday. He forced me to play those games. I did everything I could to save you, all of you. Please don't run. Please."
Um. Hazou? Announcing that you're the son of a very famous, very deadly ninja isn't necessarily a good thing.
Also, those last two sentences fucking broke my heart. It's hard to remember, sometimes, that Hazou is a teenager. But
God, did I read his voice as becoming soft, quiet, and increasingly heartbroken.
"Please, I did everything I could," Hazō continued, a slight optimism buoying him up at the woman's reaction. "I risked cheating against a man who could have killed me with a thought. It was the only way I could save you. Please don't run. You can if you want, I won't go after you, but please don't."
"What do you want?" the woman asked hesitantly.
"I want to apologize and to make restitution. I should have been able to do more, to save everyone."
"Your gracious apology is gratefully accepted, honorable ninja. No restitution is necessary. We thank you for your kindness." She bowed, repeatedly and deeply, nudging Kanako to follow along.
"You're fine, magical ninja who can kill us all without a thought. You're okay, you're thanked. You're a wonderful and moral person. Please leave, we're terrified of you."
The man forced himself to a seated position; it took multiple seconds and he winced multiple times. He wiped the worst of the dust off his shirt and gave the deepest bow one can manage while moving only the head and neck. His face twisted into a bitter smile. "Too many died? My Lord, we lost thirteen. That's a bad winter."
Hazō blinked. "A bad winter?" He looked around in shock at the collection of huts that surrounded them. "How can you survive that? There's...two hundred people here? How can you sustain that loss rate?"
The man shrugged a lifetime of fatalism. "We have children to replace them. And sometimes people move here. The land is good and we are close enough to Leaf that the monsters are largely suppressed, yet not...too close. If you'll forgive the words."
Close enough that the chakra beasts aren't too much of a threat and far enough away that they don't normally get the attention of ninja. This... made me sad. Even in Leaf, who treats their civilians far better than most other countries do, civilians fear drawing the attention of a ninja.
"How many sacrifices are required? Are they looking for lives, or wives, or...?"
...Wives. Because a ninja looking to help must be putting on airs to win the in-laws' favor. Or because it's a transaction. X amount of good deeds in return for a spouse. Ugh. I'm disgusted that this is apparently a thing and saddened that it likely works. Let's step those Till'n'Fills up so that the Fire Hamlets aren't so vulnerable to plays like this.
"You've never seen this kind of thing?" Hazō asked. "Didn't the medics come out last night? Asuma—the Hokage—said that he was going to send some to look after you."
"Yes, My Lord. They came. They looked us over and found that we were hale enough."
Hazō frowned. "They didn't actually heal anyone?"
Kunio shifted nervously. "They did an excellent job, My Lord. They were most kind, and wise. It was very gracious of them to come."
"How many people did they actually apply healing chakra to?"
"I have no numbers, My Lord. I never learned."
"Nobody," Kanako whispered. Her mother blanched and covered her daughter's mouth again.
"They were very generous with their magics, My Lord," the mother babbled. "Very skilled and wise. We were most fortunate to have them visit us, My Lord."
Only the Iron Nerve allowed Hazō to keep the volcanic fury from showing on his face. It would only terrify those he spoke with.
...Do you think Tsunade would care if a few of her medics went dead? We lightened her load with the Goketsu Clinics, right? Surely she can afford to lose the two or three that were stupid enough to do this? Because I kinda want their heads on a pike right now. Or, barring that, a front row seat to whatever justice Tsunade beats out of them for their dereliction of duty.
