Chapter 460: Towards an Uncertain Future
- Location
- UK
- Pronouns
- He/Him
"Hazō." Kei gave a ghost of a smile. "Probability dictates that it must be a good morning somewhere, perhaps in Fang or Claw. If so, please assume we are there for the purpose of phatic greetings."
"It is good to see you," Snowflake said (today identified by the bright green ribbon snaking through her hair).
Both seemed tired. No, not tired but profoundly weary, as if despite having the day having just begun, they were ready to go to bed and roll the dice on whether tomorrow would be any better. Hazō almost felt guilty for making them stay awake to see him.
"I take it Shikamaru briefed you on the Clan Council meeting, then," he said sympathetically.
Kei nodded. "It is reassuring to know that no matter how the rest of the world changes, at least the clan heads of Leaf can still be counted on to act like bickering children whenever significant decisions must be made."
She paused briefly.
"No, the opposite of that."
Hazō laughed.
"Let me guess," he said. "You stayed up late working on logistics for the war, and now you're exhausted and frustrated with the stupidity of the people around you, and struggling to remember why you're trying to save the place to begin with."
Snowflake gave a snerk.
"An astute guess," Kei said, "but no. Merely KEI unpleasantness. Teething issues now that the KEI Master Database is fully armed and operational. To what do we owe the honour of this visit, Hazō?"
"Nothing special. Just…" It wasn't easy to say. Part of Hazō felt like saying such things out loud made them more real, more likely to come true, as if reality would have mercy as long as he pretended hard enough. "Just that we're at war now. Maybe that's not as dangerous as the Dragons breaking free and eating this entire reality, but it's more immediate. I want to spend time together while it's still quiet, before we all get dispatched."
Kei raised an eyebrow.
"To the battlefield, I mean," Hazō clarified.
"I believe you are exaggerating," Kei said. "While, yes, probability dictates that our relationship will soon be terminated by the death of one or all parties—most likely Snowflake and myself, since you are not yet fit for field duty—the risk is not so much higher than usual. We are, after all, shinobi. You recall Yūhi Kurenai's highly-publicised Satsugai Manor mission last month."
Hired to defend a daimyo from an anticipated assassination attempt, the genjutsu expert had single-handedly taken out a squad of elite chūnin through a combination of misdirection, manipulation, negotiation, and ultimately a gruesome bloodbath that left the client a very grateful gibbering wreck. The Hokage had held her up as an example of what all social specs should aspire to, but yes, it also served as a valuable reminder that combat with enemy ninja did not require a declaration of war. The very nature of shinobi missions maintained a status quo of mutual killing, and the resulting hatred between the villages.
"Any mission beyond the humble D-rank carries some risk of death," Kei said, "and as chūnin summoners, we shall surely never see those again. 'Before every mission, say farewell,' as the saying goes. Granted, this war will essentially be an A-rank mission of unknown duration, but as Ami's sister, I am accustomed to watching my loved ones depart on such. At least in a war, we will not be heading into the darkness alone."
Hazō shivered at the cool breeze that briefly blew through the room.
"Talking about our impending doom is a fine and traditional Gōketsu pastime," he said, "but can I suggest another one? I hear good things about boardgames. Under the circumstances, some peaceful escapism would be nice."
"Peaceful escapism? What about Pilgrim's Trail, then?"
A gentle journey down the Fire Country's main pilgrimage route, vying to see who could collect the most souvenirs, paint the most landscapes, and generally accumulate the most pleasant memories? Perfect.
-o-
"Nooo!" Hazō groaned. "Snowflake, why would you take the only village spot? You already had six coins while I'm down to one!"
"What an unfortunate coincidence," Snowflake said, deadpan. "It seems that you must skip several opportunities to arrive at the inn first and have a chance of claiming a cheap meal, or starve while the rest of us luxuriate in our wealth. How do I spend nine coins before the end of the game?"
Hazō looked down at the board, seeking options. His pilgrim meeple looked back in disapproval.
"No, there's still a chance. If I get an encoun—Kei, did you just take the last encounter spot?"
"You encounter a travelling noble," Kei read out the card. "Gain three coins. Why, how convenient. So, Hazō, will you gamble your sole coin on a cheap meal being available at the inn—as long as you hurry—or pray, with slightly higher odds, that there is something affordable at the souvenir shop, or perhaps take the safe option and donate it to the temple for marginal returns?"
On reflection, Hazō should have seen it coming from their last 'peaceful game', which had involved taking turns to save up for and buy gem mines, and featured no player interaction to speak of. With pinpoint precision, Kei and Snowflake had purchased only those mines which other players could afford (or reserved them, which generated wildcard tokens with which to expand their range of targets). There being a limit on gems in hand, Hazō and Noburi had spent most of their turns discarding now-useless gems and drawing new ones, only for the sisters to make those useless next.
"Say," Snowflake asked, "are those inexpensive yet extremely finite dango I smell?"
Hazō sighed. "Changing topics to something that might not drive me to despair, what were you saying about the KEI Master Database?"
"The fruit of many months of tedious labour, finally completed," Kei said. "We now possess a list of every KEI shinobi with the ninjutsu, genjutsu, taijutsu techniques et cetera that they are prepared to teach to others, and the fees charged for same. The core principle is that should one learn such a technique and proceed to teach it to another, one must pay 25% of the money gained to the originator at the top of the chain, to a minimum of 25% of the original fee. Thus, every KEI shinobi receives an incentive to share their personal techniques in exchange for a consistent income stream. When the originator dies, statistically within a few years of beginning to teach, the technique is released into the public domain. For obvious reasons, clan shinobi are excluded from this system, and any sale of techniques to a clan is to be brokered by the KEI to ensure a fair deal. The commission on all of this will help shore up one of the KEI's primary weaknesses, its operating budget.
"It is also a means of preparation for Isan. When the first Isanese arrive, bearing exotic arts and ignorant of the economic realities of the modern world, they will be ripe for exploitation by the clans. The KEI Master Database will secure their income, at rates demonstrably analogous to those enjoyed by KEI shinobi, and incentivise trade in both directions."
"That sounds hard to enforce," Hazō said after a few seconds' thought. "How do you stop people teaching others in secret and not bothering to pay the originator?"
"A risky prospect in the long term," Kei said, "as techniques exist to be used, and thus knowledge of a technique will be revealed as soon as one uses it on a mission with other KEI shinobi. In general, however, I agree that our tools are limited, even with the KEI Intelligence Division. That would, in fact, be the purpose of last night's unpleasantness."
"Oh?"
"At last night's KEI general meeting, it was established that one Fu Kōhei, a ninjutsu specialist genin, has already attempted to cheat the system out of greed. After a brief trial, it was ruled that, as he had abused the agency granted to him by membership of the KEI, that agency would be stripped from him. Thus, he was declared Anathema to the Fellowship of the Konoha Enlightenment Initiative, or AFKEI."
"Is that something distinct from just banning him?" Hazō asked.
"Ami insisted on the formal designation," Kei said. "She hopes that, in time, such apostates will ally to form a rival organisation hostile to the KEI's leadership and policies, and a shared title would be a useful advantage to offer them until an original group identity crystallises. As ever, her genius is beyond me.
"As to the ruling itself, formally speaking, no. Informally speaking, Fu is a traitor to the KEI, one who would exploit his downtrodden fellows with the tools intended to uplift them, and anyone associating with him will de facto be aiding and abetting a known criminal. In effect, we have sentenced him to be"—her voice went very quiet—"ostracised."
"This is something of relevance to you as well, Hazō," Snowflake said, giving Kei a look Hazō couldn't read, "as his current landlord. Many will be watching to see what decision you make in the coming days."
The KEI's declared enemy was a Gōketsu estate genin. Great. Hazō was now stuck between expelling a man whom he'd promised food, shelter, and eventual adoption, on nothing more than the word of the KEI—which wasn't quite a statement that the KEI's authority trumped his own, but was too close for comfort—and publicly choosing to grant those things to a soon-to-be-infamous thief and traitor.
"For what it is worth," Kei said softly, "it was not my intent to place you in such a position. That the AFKEI shinobi happened to be living on your estate was purely ill fortune."
No, Hazō trusted his sworn sister not to corner him for political purposes, and this kind of manipulation wasn't her style to begin with. Nor did Naruto seem like a subtle enough operator to come up with the idea.
Then again, there were enough KEI genin on the estate. Was it so improbable that one of them would turn out to be a bad apple by chance?
"Speaking of troublesome individuals on the Gōketsu estate," Snowflake said, "rumours say you have pardoned Haru."
Hazō stared. "Firstly, I haven't—he's on parole so he can get back in shape before Asuma sends him into combat—and secondly, I just did that last night. How are there rumours that made it all the way to you?"
Snowflake shrugged. "Apparently, all the KEI genin have been watching him in horrified fascination. When he stopped hammering that wretched pillar of rock and put on a haori with the Gōketsu crest right before said genin headed to the general meeting…"
"I see," Hazō said. "Is there anything about the estate that the KEI doesn't know?"
"Why it's home to a Wakahisa fish breeding specialist," Snowflake said with a wry smile. "We have heard some very disturbing theories, only a few of which are accurate."
"What?" Hazō demanded. "Why would he tell anyone he's one of those?"
"I assume that he is not one of nature's infiltrators, and forcing him to spend the best part of a year constantly surrounded by suspicious ninja without revealing any details of his personal background was too much to hope for. Regardless, the majority of rumours do not consider why the Wakahisa would train fish breeding specialists to begin with, and instead pertain to traitorous plots against the Village Hidden in the Leaves, forbidden experimental Water ninjutsu, and of course fish god sex cults."
"Of course," Hazō said resignedly.
"My advice to you if you wish to preserve OPSEC," Snowflake said in tones of perfect seriousness, "is to lean into it as much as possible. Given the rumours about you and Akane, and now Ino as well, few will doubt it when they hear you are exploring yet more new and exciting realms of depravity."
"You realise Ino will kill him?" Kei asked.
"True," Snowflake said. "Stick to the treason."
"Pretending that entire conversation just now didn't happen," Hazō said, "if it comes up, let people know Haru hasn't been pardoned yet. I'm keeping that option open. Right now, I'm just having him go apologise to the yakuza families and pay them blood money—which, now I think of it, he doesn't have because he gave it all away. Huh."
The two girls exchanged glances.
"You realise Akane will be furious when she returns," Kei said.
If she returned, corrected the voice from somewhere deep and dark inside Hazō's soul. If she'd encountered Rock soldiers, taking out patrols in preparation to open up a second front… Or just a chakra beast powerful enough to wipe out a patrol, with some terrible ability like the quisling tyrant had…
"It cannot be helped," Snowflake replied. "Even if Hazō were to apologise in person as she insisted, after such a delay nobody would believe he was doing it on the Hokage's orders. Hazō, it may be in your interest to abandon hope of placating Akane, and focus on developing contingencies for when other shinobi begin to imitate Haru as she feared. Not that I imagine the war will leave much time for such thoughts, on your part or theirs."
The war might not leave time for much. In fact, that was part of the reason Hazō had come to see Kei and Snowflake in the first place.
"Actually, there's something war-related that I wanted to talk to you about, Kei."
"Yes?"
"Asuma wants Mari to fight in the war."
"Of course he does," Kei said with an edge of puzzlement. "You forced his hand with regard to that issue some time ago."
"What do you mean?"
"You asked him for permission to teach her the Shadow Clone Technique," Snowflake said. "In effect, you were requesting for her to be added to the active duty roster, since there is no earthly reason why a non-combatant would be taught a classified A-rank ninjutsu. The Hokage would hardly refuse, when refusal would equate to a formal statement that he did not wish Mari to act as a Leaf shinobi."
"I assumed you did it in awareness that it was in any case only a matter of time," Kei said. "Mari, after all, never so much retired as went private. She has served the Gōketsu in every way that she would otherwise serve Leaf, with the possible exception of assassinations. ANBU, and thus the Hokage, could not help but notice eventually.
"Regardless, why is Mari's fate my concern?"
"Because I think you should give some serious thought to whether you want it to end like this," Hazō said. "If you don't decide what you want now… you might never get another chance.
"What are you after, Kei? An apology? Reparations? If so, what kind? Is this about you and your relationship with Mari, or are you acting on behalf of the others who died in Hidden Swamp? I know you might not have all the answers yet, but I don't want you to run out of time to look."
Kei nodded heavily. The room was silent.
"I want my Mari back," she finally said in a voice just above a whisper. "I want the bold, beautiful, impossibly heroic woman who paused her quest to change the world because she cared about my feelings. I want the woman who took care of us in the wilderness, who paid attention to how we felt and took great care not to hurt us—not for real—even after years building habits of apathy and cruelty. I want the woman who apologised, and promised to do better, and did better. I want her to come back and replace the woman who forgot I could feel pain, and the woman who used my pain against me the night before my wedding. I want her to apologise in a way that makes them gone forever.
"I cannot have that, Hazō. I am not someone who can understand people, or redeem them. I am not someone who is good with trust. I do not know what causes me to feel it, or why some things destroy it and others do not, or where it goes or how to bring it back. But the Mari who is there now claims I must trust her, while unable or unwilling to offer me anything that would help."
She reached up as if to wipe her eyes with her sleeve. Snowflake promptly put a handkerchief in her hand instead.
"Who… who cares about reparations?" Kei asked. "Who, says the selfish little girl, cares about the others from Hidden Swamp? I cannot save them. Mari cannot save them. There is no room in my hands to hold onto even my own happiness, much less play-act a champion.
"How can I trust her, Hazō? How can I look at this woman with immense, untold power to hurt me, and trust that this paragon of deception has my best interests at heart, unlike her identical twin to whom my pain is nothing if facing it would interfere with her narrative of redemption, or her other twin who will break me to the exact extent that I stand in her way? I am not Akane, to trust unconditionally and have faith in my ability to survive betrayal. I am merely"—she gestured with her hands—"this.
"My hero cannot save me this time, not even if she is truly here. Even Ami cannot save me from my own weakness. All the answers in the world cannot change that."
Hazō looked at Kei's moist eyes, then down at the board. His woebegone pilgrim looked up at him in mute condemnation. Hazō couldn't think of anything to say to either of them that would turn the situation around, much less if the endgame was nigh.
-o-
You have received 4 + 1 = 5 XP.
-o-
I'll try to do the Ino scene tomorrow. If I fail, I'm sure @eaglejarl will do a sterling job (assuming he doesn't want to offscreen it).
Voting is open. Assume that nobody died as a result of the Ino scene and the results of the offscreen stuff aren't in yet.
Voting closes on Saturday 28th of August, 1 p.m. New York time.
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