Chapter 64: Malice and Misunderstandings
Ser_Serendipity
Building Character
Is Guided By Things Beyond Their Control
At around an hour before midnight, Amegakure's leadership came together for their first coherent meeting following the attack on their village. It was not a very formal venue: Konan, Nagato, Yahiko, Kimimaro Kaguya, and several other high-ranking shinobi including Nonō Yakushi basically crashed into each other on the rooftops of Amegakure, thick with smoke and bloody neon light. There they held an impromptu summit as they discussed what they'd seen, what they'd done, and what had happened since a quarter of the village had been consumed by fire and death.
Rough casualty numbers were a chief concern. Rain had been decimated twice over; basic estimates were that at least one-hundred thousand people had died, with that and some also being injured. It was easy to say that fifty-percent of the village's population were casualties. There was a perverse relief in that the dead and wounded were mostly civilians; shinobi had naturally weathered the blast, shockwave, and fireball better than those without command of chakra, though over a thousand of the village's ninja were still dead or injured beyond recovery, including Kie and several other members of the Akatsuki.
This put Rain's military strength in an odd place. Ordinarily over seven-thousand high quality shinobi would be sufficient to defend the borders, but these extraordinary circumstances made leaving the country or even taking active missions dangerous. However, up until two hours before Rain had not any Tailed Beasts to enforce its sovereignty.
Now, thanks to Itachi Uchiha's madness, they had three. Two of them were contained in foreign ninja, and the Sanbi in one of Rain's own.
The Nanabi and Fuu was not too much of a concern: her spine could be healed by the medical division with the help of the regenerative powers of a Jinchuriki, a task Nonō swore to address personally, and on paper Waterfall had a defensive alliance with Rain, which the attack would certainly trigger. If the Hidden Waterfall failed to meet their obligation, Fuu would simply be taken as collateral. There was no time or inclination for kindness there; the situation was simply too serious for any of those present to see things any other way.
Yugito Nii and the Nibi was a more complicated case. As the conversation went, she could be returned, recycled, or held as a hostage. Returning her might buy good faith with the Land of Lightning and the Hidden Cloud, but what good was faith worth now? Ripping the Beast out of her and taking it for their own was a possibility, but if the truth was found out Cloud would certainly declare war on Rain for stealing one of their Tailed Beasts and killing one of their elite ninja.
Holding her hostage was the safest option, and it was what Nagato, Konan, Nonō, and two others voted for, keeping Yugito Nii alive for the foreseeable future. Now, they had a bargaining chip with the Hidden Cloud, though the details of how she'd come to be captured by the Nation of Rain were absurd and unbelievable.
Thus, the meeting turned to the next most important topic.
Who had committed this terrible crime against them, and what would be their equally terrible response?
"There are three suspects in my eyes," Kimimaro said. He was pale, covered in dried blood; he'd been dragging bodies from the rubble for hours. "Stone, Cloud, and Leaf."
"Sand and Mist?" Nonō asked. Her face was streaked with dried tears; no one begrudged her. Her son was dead, alongside so many others.
"Too weak," Nagato muttered. He was drained, both from his battle with Itachi and the Jinchuriki and from the events of the night. He, more than anyone present, knew how intense the suffering of Amegakure was, and how much worse it could have been. "An attack like this must have required a Bijuu, though I have no idea what could have produced the beams I tried to turn aside. Gaara of the Desert does not seem capable of the technique, given how he fought in the Land of Waves, and Mist is far and consumed with its own troubles."
"Did turn aside," Konan said, exhausted but unwilling to let Nagato ignore all those he'd saved. "But I would agree. And I do not think it was Itachi Uchiha; he was too attached to his brother to risk his life with such a reckless attack. For that at least, I believe what he told us."
"It came from the east." Yahiko was quiet. Not quiet in a calm way, Konan thought, but quiet like a battlefield after the fighting was done. He was seething, every word delivered with as much impact as possible. He had been coordinating the village's response from the CCCC, giving direction and purpose to panicking and dying shinobi and civilian administrators, and the exhausting work seemed to have left him hollowed out. "That does not necessarily rule out Stone, but what would their motivation be? The Fence-Sitter has not seen any need to interfere with Rain's business before, bar the occasional skirmish. I can't believe that he would launch a preemptive attack like this; it's not in his character."
"So then-?" Kimimaro began to ask, and Yahiko sneered.
"It was the Leaf," he grunted, and Konan turned to him.
"Don't dismiss the Hidden Cloud so easily," she said. The look Yahiko gave her cracked her heart. "Their Daimyo hates us; Kimimaro made sure of that. Their Jinchuriki are well trained. If they believed we were responsible for Yugito Nii's disappearance, they could have sent the Eight-Tails to devastate the city. We discussed just this yesterday, remember?"
"Absolutely," Yahiko said coldly. "The Hidden Cloud are merciless bastards. But do you really think they would send a Jinchuriki halfway across the continent, risk it being captured, and not accompany it with a full-on assault?" He spread his arms, looking out over the smoldering city. "I think if Cloud had done this, our village would be full of enemies now."
"The attack would have destroyed us completely if Nagato had not deflected it," Konan pressed. "They might not have known of his capabilities; if that was the case, they may have been arrogant enough to send the Eight-Tails alone."
"Do you think the Hachibi would be capable of that destruction in the first place?" Yahiko bit out, and Konan flinched. "It's well known that it's the most versatile of the Bijuu, not the most powerful. That honor belongs to the Kyuubi. That is why Konoha kept it for itself all those decades ago, so their power could not be questioned."
"Its chakra is red," Nonō said faintly, and Konan turned to her. "I've seen it. I don't know if the Hachibi's is the same, but the color the sky turned…" She paused. "But be aware, Yahiko. You are supposing that Kushina Uzumaki herself attempted to destroy the very city her son was living in. You cannot separate a Beast and its Jinchuriki. She is an honorable woman; I'm not sure she would be capable of such a thing."
"But as you say, she is a Jinchuriki," Yahiko said, his anger now barely restrained as he paced and gestured. "She is defined by sacrifice. She let Naruto run off here when she and the Hokage must have known we would not return them willingly; at that point, both of his parents gave him up." His voice grew more incensed. "Minato Namikaze has killed hundreds with his bare hands, with a knife, and you think he would hesitate at the notion of his own son being collateral damage? I don't think so. He may have been Jiraiya-sensei's student, but he never took in his true teachings. How could he have, with so much blood on his hands choking his senses?"
He paused, looking over them all. Konan felt a chill run down her spine at the fury in Yahiko's eyes. He'd had the most time of any of them to think, to dread the future, and to connect any possible pieces.
"Listen to me, and then judge for your own," he said with contempt. "Rain is on the verge of overcoming the status quo and replacing one of the great villages. From here, things would only grow more unpredictable for those at the top." Each word was delivered like a punch. "Konoha is the largest, the mightiest, the most invested in the status quo. Their economy is the strongest; they likely will not even notice the disruption of trade this will cause the continent. They are close enough to launch an attack like this without us being able to notice the travel of their ninja; more than that, they have two shinobi who can teleport, coming and going as they please. They are the only ones who could bring a Bijuu to the village's outskirts, direct its attack, and then return to the Hidden Leaf without trace of their passage."
"Now you suppose Sakura's own sensei decided to murder her?" Konan asked.
Yahiko's face twisted up as he spoke. "Obito Uchiha is a monster. Or perhaps he believed she was dead. We removed the Hokage's mark from her. If that was used to track her-"
"But the toad you detected," Konan continued, remembering the panic Yahiko had flown into when he'd directed Nonō to capture the summon. "It was spying on Sakura and Naruto. If the Hokage sent it as you believe, why do so after the attack?"
"Information is imperfect, and decisions can be regretted!" Yahiko barked. He took a breath, baring his teeth. "We revealed to Sakura Haruno that we had no Tailed Beasts of our own, no deterrent, removed her curse seal, and the next day we suffer this attack. We know she has been meeting with a spy here, though their identity is still a mystery. Then, in addition to that, just hours after the attack is launched Itachi Uchiha, supposed rogue ninja who kept the Nanabi for himself, arrives to collect his brother and attempts to assassinate Nagato, our only defense against this violence."
"Supposed?" Nagato said, sounding doubtful. "He unleashed those Bijuu to aid his escape, not to kill me. He turned and ran. I don't believe Itachi is a rational-"
Yahiko snapped. "It was to turn the eyes of the world to us!" he roared, pointing at Nagato with such force he and Konan both had to step back. The other ninja present flinched as well, but they weren't the focus of Yahiko's anger: it was all set against his oldest and closest friends. "The Nanabi, whom we supposedly stole; the Sanbi, long missing from Mist; and the Nibi, to validate Cloud's suspicions! With this, the world will be united against us! Konoha will not even have to shift from its comfortable seat at the summit as the other villages tear us apart!"
"You can't seriously believe that Itachi was working for the Leaf," Konan shot back, feeling an angry flame in her. She didn't think Yahiko was entirely wrong, but she hated when he became this person, obsessed with being right, with domination. "Not after what he did to his clan."
"And yet," Yahiko sneered, "he apparently has such love for his brother, love enough to toss away three Tailed Beasts for his sake. How does that balance out, Konan? The mad prodigy, who loves his little brother but slaughtered his family, his father, and vanished?" He stopped pacing, his face dark. "Which seems more likely in the face of that? Madness? Or a calculated killing? Maybe even by the will of the Hokage?" He twitched. "Konoha is large, stuffed with clans, and the Uchiha were one of the most prestigious and powerful among them before they were decimated. Perhaps they grew too ambitious, and had to be cut down to size."
"Then why not just give Fuu to Konoha?!" Konan said, letting her anger show. "You've always resented the Leaf, Yahiko, but now isn't the time to-!"
"It is only speculation," Kimimaro calmly cut in, and both Konan and Yahiko spun on him. He made a mocking gesture of surrender. "And truly, it does not matter."
That made Konan pause, narrowing her eyes, and Kimimaro stood up straighter. "I speculated as to the source, but it was only academic. Whether it was the Hidden Leaf, or Cloud, or Stone, or some new faction, weapon, rogue, it's pointless. What we must do is the same regardless. Konohagakure is the closest, the most dangerous of our rivals. The Fire Daimyo has already tried to blame the sins of the Hidden Sand in the Land of Waves on us; he will pressure the village and drive them to war with us, if he has not already."
His eyes were cold and pale as bones covered in frost. "We have to gut them first, or at least bloody their nose. The world must be shown that we are not weak, even after this. In fact, we are stronger than ever. If we don't, the imagined weakness will become reality; like you said, Yahiko, the world will tear us apart. It's time to take the revolution abroad."
"I won't allow this: it's far too hasty," Konan said with a grim face, drawing herself up with all of her considerable authority. The rest of those present turned to her. "We have coincidences here, horrible coincidences, but not evidence. Nonō, you called the Land of Fire your home for years. Do you think the Fourth Hokage would ever condone an attack like this?"
Yahiko was frustrated, but he remained silent as they waited for Nonō's answer, eventually she spoke, quietly but firmly.
"I could see it, in the right circumstances," she said. "Minato Namikaze is a paradox. Merciless in battle, but gracious to his friends. If he had been convinced by the right people, I could see him deciding to destroy the Nation of Rain without hesitation; he is a man who'd kill one person to save ten every time. But it would have been very strange of him to send Sakura and then to throw her away the moment the Nanabi was confirmed to be out of our hands. There is information we are missing."
"Perhaps the Daimyo are coordinating," Kimimaro suggested. "Lightning strikes, and Fire follows, if I recall correctly." He turned to Konan. "But it changes nothing. The Hidden Leaf will still stab us in the back the moment we turn our attention from them. They must be culled first."
"I refuse," Konan said, feeling her nostrils flare in anger. Yahiko and Kimimaro were against her, the rest divided; she felt in her heart that she had a duty to be the voice of reason, no matter how much opposing them hurt her. "Sakura Haruno is still alive; she is our first and most valuable recourse in this situation."
Konan turned back to Yahiko. "Yahiko, please," she said. "You heard her plan for yourself; you know she was sincere. She wants to unite the world, not divide it. We have a unique opportunity here. If the Leaf was the one to attack us, it will turn her against them, and perhaps Naruto too. We'll keep two incredibly valuable ninja, and ones who are good for more than battle too. They're smart; they could change the world."
Yahiko narrowed his eyes. "And if they simply take her?" he asked. "What if we send her as an ambassador and she never returns?"
"I would consider it a statement of guilt," Konan said definitively. "And Sakura is willful: she would not allow herself to remain in Konoha if they were responsible. If it was somehow Cloud who attacked us, Sakura and Naruto could be our bridge to peace; they could unite us with the Hidden Leaf, the mightest village, and we could crush Kumogakure together."
Kimimaro sat back, crossing his arms. "It delays the inevitable," he grunted. "But it would at least keep us from potentially fighting on multiple fronts. I'm not opposed to it."
Nagato and the rest were quiet. Yahiko stared at the ground, scratching his chin. He blew out a breath.
"They're still in custody?" he asked, and Konan nodded.
"In the CCCC," she said. "There hasn't been time to collect them." Yahiko pursed his lips.
"Then bring them here," he said. Nagato nodded in agreement. "We'll pick their brains as well. Nagato, you're willing to question them?"
"Of course," Nagato said. "Sakura is a trustworthy ninja. I don't believe she would object."
"Fine then," Yahiko muttered. "We'll get them, and resolve this question then."
Konan sent a clone off, and the leaders of the Nation of Rain continued to rebuild their shattered village.
###
Sakura was pacing in her cell picking relentlessly at the hem of her uniform when Naruto finally stood up and stopped her.
"Hey," he muttered. "You're freaking me out."
"Sorry." She let out a frustrated sigh and he returned to the corner, sliding down it and staring at the ground. She turned to the bars of the cell and the man keeping watch over them. "How much longer is it going to be? He's a medic, you know! We should be helping out!"
The ninja guarding them, an older man named Kyūsuke, shrugged. "It'll be when it'll be," he said. "You're here until someone comes to collect you or relieve me. Simple as that."
"Sure," Sakura said. "I get that. But can you at least see how long it's gonna be?" She gestured at Naruto. "We're not even cuffed or anything. We could just break out!"
"Are you gonna break out?" Kyūsuke asked laconically, and Sakura shook her head in frustration, her newly shortened hair light on her head. "Then I don't see how that matters. You're staying there until-"
"Yeah, I get it!" Sakura barked, stomping away. When she'd told Naruto to allow Nonō to take them away, she'd expected the issue would be resolved quickly, but they'd been waiting for almost two hours now.
Sakura wanted, no, needed to be doing something. Even this brief time of doing nothing had left her feeling hollow and selfish. The Nation of Rain was suffering, and she knew she had the ability to help.
She went back to Naruto, who had stayed curled up in the corner since they'd arrived in the CCCC. "Are you okay?" she asked for the twentieth time, and he shrugged. She'd collapsed on him in relief when she'd seen him alive at the aid center, but Naruto himself had collapsed when they'd been deposited here. She was pretty sure that with nothing to keep himself busy with he'd become trapped in the past.
They still had no idea where Sasuke was. The fear gnawed at her like a worm under her skin.
Sakura sat down next to him, shoulder to shoulder, and he shifted a little.
"It won't be too much longer," she said, half to herself and half to him. "Someone will come get us soon. Once we're out of here, we'll find Sasuke. I'm sure he's fine. If we were he'lll be too."
That made Naruto speak. "Sasuke's the kind of guy who'll jump in front of anything for someone," he muttered. "He did it for you, back in Waves. I'm scared he…" He swallowed, unable to finish the sentence. "I don't know."
"He's smarter than that," Sakura said, even though she knew Naruto was completely right. "And he's strong. Stronger than both of us. We'll find him, and then we'll be able to fix this." She moved without thinking, putting her arm around Naruto, and he turned towards her with a frightened look. "I'm sure of it."
"Oh, hey!" Kyūsuke said. He'd turned away from the bars and was facing down the corridor, and as Sakura looked up began to step away, a smile on his face. "Now here's someone. Come to collect these troublemakers?"
There was a whistle, and then a faint splat.
Sakura blinked. There was suddenly a dark stain and a bit of goo on the wall next to the bars, like a crushed bug.
Kyūsuke wavered on his feet and then fell with a muffled thump.
She scrambled to her feet, and Naruto wasn't far behind her. "Kyūsuke?" she said. There were steady steps coming down the corridor. Sakura smelled blood.
"Someone's coming," Naruto said, staring down at Kyūsuke in shock. "Shit! Sakura, back up!"
Sakura did, leaping back as her mind raced. Was someone coming after them, or was this something else? There was already a Rasengan in Naruto's hand; he rushed forward, slamming apart two of the bars with the force of the jutsu. He tumbled out into the hall with Sakura close behind him, immediately running to Kyūsuke's side as Sakura turned to face down the corridor.
There was a man there, tall and pale and staring at them with yellow eyes that shone in the bright light of the concrete hall. Behind her, Naruto cursed. Kyūsuke was absolutely dead.
"Hands up!" Sakura barked, looking him over for a weapon. The man had hurled something through their guard's head; she knew that now. But he wasn't carrying anything; had it been a jutsu, or had he spat something? He was wearing a Rain hitai-ate, but Sakura didn't recognize him. An intruder? An assassin? They needed to call for allies either way.
"Hey!" Sakura shouted. "Is anyone there!? We need help!"
The pale man advanced, raising his finger to his lips.
"It's no use," he said with a grin. "This building is quite soundproof, you know. All sorts of delicate matters are discussed here."
Naruto was back up and at Sakura's side now, the two of them forming a united front. Her hands fell to her knife; their weapons hadn't even been confiscated. "It must have been a jutsu," Naruto whispered to her. "Something small went right through his eye. There's barely any blood." Then, he raised his voice. "What do you want?"
"You two, Naruto Namikaze," the man said with a sick grin. Something stirred in Sakura. The way he said Naruto's name, a feeling, a memory… her migraine was coming back. "My, this is always such a bother."
He raised both hands and Naruto and Sakura did as well, ready for whatever was coming as he slowly ran through three hand signs, monkey, dog, boar, and then snapped his fingers. It wasn't a jutsu either of them recognized.
Then it suddenly was.
A fog lifted from Sakura's mind, and she blinked. At her side, Naruto did the same, staggering. "Orochimaru?" he whispered, and Sakura gasped as dozens of memories flooded her consciousness. Orochimaru, the Snake Sannin, the man hiding in Amegakure's basement, Leaf's chief spy in the Nation of Rain, the one who'd told her to join the Akatsuki, the one who she'd reported the truth about Fuu to, the one who'd mocked them, degraded them, tortured Sasuke's ancestor, who'd driven her forward this last year and erased his presence in her mind every time out of fear of Nagato.
She growled, and Orochimaru laughed. "That's more like it," he said, and it was something he'd said before. "It's not much fun with a fresh slate every time, right?" He frowned, losing his good humor for a moment. "Especially when I've already lost my only good source of conversation in this mess."
"You son of a bitch," Sakura hissed. "You killed him! What the hell are you doing?!"
"Your mission is over, Sakura Haruno," Orochimaru said with a sick smile. "The Hokage has ordered me to retrieve you." As he said 'ordered' his whole face twitched in hatred. How many times had he ranted at them, his perfect captive audience, about how much he despised Naruto's father? Sakura couldn't count it; her head seemed crowded with hateful memories now that he'd broken his memory-suppressing jutsu again.
He obeyed because he was waiting, Sakura knew. Countless moments of speculation had finally come back together again, crashing head-on in her mind. Orochimaru hated the Hokage, but he helped him nonetheless. He'd been waiting for something, but Sakura didn't know what it could be.
All that and more ran through her mind, but what came out was much simpler.
"What?!" Sakura blurted out. "No! We can't leave now! We have to find Sasuke!"
"Don't be stupid, girl." Orochimaru sneered. "Sasuke is gone, and this place is going down the drain, and soon. You'd be a true fool to stay."
"Gone?!" Naruto looked horrified. Sakura was as well, backing away, shaking her head. "You're lying!"
"Oh, he's not dead, Namikaze," Orochimaru said with joy. "It seems his brother collected him. His eyes were finally ripe for plucking, I imagine!"
He said it with such obvious certainty that Itachi would be taking Sasuke's eyes for his own, but of everything the Sannin could have said, this was the one thing that brought Sakura some tiny measure of calm. Itachi wasn't interested in stealing Sasuke's eyes: he'd had plenty of chances before. Sasuke's brother held a genuine, if twisted, love for him. He'd murdered half his family for him.
If Sasuke had been kidnapped by his brother, he might somehow be safer than she and Naruto were.
But if this man took them… he'd erase their memories again. They would lose that certainty all over again.
Sakura shared a glance with Naruto as Orochimaru chuckled, and they turned back as a united front.
"We can't leave," Sakura repeated. "Amegakure needs us right now."
"Plus, if we ditch the village after something like this, it'll look bad," Naruto said, stepping up. His fingers were flexing; he was ready for a fight. "Like, really bad."
"It's true!" Orochimaru said gleefully, and they watched him with wide eyes as he started giggling.
This was what he had been holding out for, Sakura realized. For just a second, she could finally see through to the man's black heart and find what he had been waiting so patiently for.
The perfect moment of malicious compliance.
"Your father has been so careful, Namikaze. So careful and so clever to separate his soul and being a shinobi. He's buried his compassion this entire time, playing passive and having faith in you." A laugh escaped him. "Keh! But in the face of this slaughter, he's finally made a mistake, and I'm only too happy to help him." He gestured with a beatific smile. "Now, be good little ninja and obey his orders, would you? Come along."
All he wanted was the opportunity to prove he was smarter than Minato Namikaze.
All he wanted was to let the Hokage tie his own noose.
Sakura drew her knife with a snarl. "We're not leaving!" she declared. "We're going to fix this! I won't let anyone stop me: not even you!"
"Oh?" Orochimaru said. He licked his lips. "Are you going to fight me, Sakura? You'd betray the village and attack a fellow ninja of the Leaf? I knew you'd get there eventually." He started moving forward. "You always were a traitor."
"Sakura-!" Naruto started to say, but Sakura didn't listen. She attacked.
"Hyouryusuiken!"
Sakura's Flowing Hail Blade, which could cut through concrete without resistance and broke the speed of sound the moment it was deployed, sliced right through Orochimaru's chest and left a terrible gash in the wall beyond him. There was a flash of chakra and a burst of steam, and he kept walking forward without missing a step.
Sakura faltered, staring in disbelief.
"Would you like to try again?" Orochimaru said, now barely more than five feet away. His face grew more and more contemptuous. "You're like your jutsu, Sakura: simple. You're thinking 'it could be a genjutsu. Or maybe he dodged. I should aim for his head. That will get him.' You're not even considering the consequences of your actions; only how best to kill something you don't understand."
"You-!" Sakura swung again, and Orochimaru sighed.
"You're made for the Akatsuki," he said. He made no move to dodge, and the blade struck through his neck. Once again there was a flash of chakra and a burst of steam. This time, Sakura was close enough to see that her blade struck home. It cleaved through Orochimaru's flesh, and his body knit itself back together with such speed it was like there had never been a wound in the first place. Even severing his spine did nothing. "Stretching for something you could never reach."
As he spat the words like a curse, Naruto rushed forward with a yell, clones filling the hall; Orochimaru just rolled his eyes, lashing out with one hand. His fingers extended, and Naruto was slammed into the wall as they struck his temple, cracking the concrete. All his clones vanished, and as Sakura stepped back to swing again Orochimaru unhinged his jaw. His mouth fell open to almost the length of his body.
In one smooth motion, he swallowed Naruto whole.
"Naruto!" Sakura shouted in desperation, holding back her blade as the monster turned to her. Her sword whined, a high-pitched noise like a drill as she gathered her strength for a final blow.
"Careful now," Orochimaru said, regarding her rotating blade with amusement. "You might hit him, you know."
"Then give him back!" she said, praying someone would come.
"That would be far less fun," Orochimaru said. "You won't remember this meeting, Sakura, but you've remembered my words in the past. You're tenacious like that." He loomed over her, and Sakura felt helpless, terrified in the face of his obvious inhumanity. "So I'll tell you something I'm sure of. You're going to die. All your friends are going to die. Your sensei is going to die, and the Hokage is going to die." His eyes gleamed. "Great and terrible things are coming, and I am only returning you so that I can watch you and Namikaze struggle and die in vain. It will be a fitting reward for babysitting you all this time."
Sakura couldn't even muster a response. She just screamed again and stabbed forward, and then Orochimaru ate her alive.
###
When Obito woke up, he realized someone was touching his back.
In a panic, he rolled to the side, but went too far; he fell right out of his bed, carrying some of the blankets with him as he slammed into the floor. Someone was in his room; someone was in his bed!
Wait.
"Obito?"
Obito stopped rolling, half-buried in blankets, and tried to burrow in farther to hide his face as he went as red as a beet.
"Sorry," he said. He heard Rin start to laugh and then suppress it. "I, uh, freaked out."
"Just a little," Rin said, and he looked up at the bed to find her leaning over the edge with a grin on her face. Something about it took his breath away, and for a moment he just stared, a smile starting to spread over his own face.
Then he remembered why he'd been resting, what had happened, and what he needed to do, and his smile vanished.
"What time is it?" he asked, and Rin twisted to look at the clock on his bedside table.
"10:40."
"10:40?"
"Well, 10:38," Rin said with the ghost of a laugh. "You've got about ten minutes before you need to leave, I think."
"Yeah." Obito groaned and rose off the floor, averting his eyes from the bed. For some reason, he had the idea it would be inappropriate, even though that was obviously silly. "I gotta get dressed."
"I'll stay down," Rin said, and he glanced over at her to find her peeking over the covers with a smile. Another heart attack for the growing tally. "You've got a comfy bed."
"Kushina gave it to me," he said, stumbling over to the closet. "You know she's got good taste in furniture."
Obito got dressed slowly; he had a small walk-in closet, and stayed out of sight behind the corner as he prepared for anything he'd find in the Land of Rain. As he did, he and Rin talked; there wasn't much substance to their conversation. In fact, they both were doing their best to avoid it.
"You still haven't used it, have you?" Rin asked when Obito was almost finished. He paused, and then finished strapping on his arm guard, running a finger over a familiar scratch. That one had come from Hidan, more than two years ago.
"Used what?" he asked, reaching for the other one. Rin rolled her eyes.
"That VCR player," she said. Obito snorted. "All that dust on it, it's hilarious."
Obito laughed. "I guess I'm not much of a movie guy."
"Maybe we could watch one later," she suggested. "When you've got some time; when things are less crazy."
Obito strapped on the other arm guard. "Maybe," he said, and then considered. "Actually, I already told sensei this. I'm thinking I will use Shisui's other eye. Maybe while I'm recuperating?"
He heard a surprised grunt. "Do you trust it?" Rin said with an arched eyebrow as Obito came around the corner. He shook his head.
"I don't trust Itachi. But I do think he intended it as a genuine gift. Maybe a bribe. There would be a lot of more efficient ways for him to hurt me," he said.
Itachi could have just killed Rin, after all. That would have been far worse than whatever kind of trap he could have placed in Shisui's eye.
"And you think we'll need it," Rin said with a grim look.
"I think we'll need it," he confirmed. "But you remember what happened last time."
"Yeah." Rin grimaced. "That sucked."
When Obito had taken his brother's remaining eye for his own, his Sharingan had been out of commission for two weeks. The Uchiha Clan's lore about the Eternal Mangekyo Sharingan had all been born from Madara Uchiha's relatively recent experiences, and he'd replaced both his eyes at the same time out of necessity. For Obito, his more damaged eye had been replaced, but for two weeks his chakra had raged and rendered his remaining Mangekyo Sharingan unusable.
He had no reason to believe the same thing wouldn't happen here. When his previous eye had been replaced, there had been speculation throughout the village's elite as to whether the eye, even damaged, could not be implanted in another. Even if it was near blind, it still imparted the power of the Kamui, after all. It wasn't to be: when Shisui's eye had been transplanted to him, his original eye had gone dead.
There were interesting and terrifying implications there. It meant that eyes presumably couldn't be switched between siblings if another two manifested a Mangekyo in the future, not that it had ever been attempted: one would seemingly end up with a dud. But why was that the case at all? It implied a more than physical connection between sibling's eyes; it sent the clan into furious speculation.
The situation was unique enough it seemed unlikely to be replicated, but in the wake of Itachi's murders it certainly made it seem like the Uchiha clan was made to suffer.
"So you're going to do that right when things are heating up?" Rin asked, and Obito shrugged.
"If me not having the Kamui for two weeks is all it takes for everything to go wrong, I doubt I could have made that much of a difference anyway," he said. There was something a bit freeing in it; in surrendering to an uncertain future. "But the Uchiha have always believed that the Mangekyo's true potential is unlocked when they're both Eternal: Madara Uchiha was one of the strongest men in history, after all. I'm not inclined to think they're wrong."
"So you just want to put more on yourself?" Rin asked. At that, Obito stopped and just looked at her.
"I want to be able to protect the people I love," he said without flinching. Another heart attack: Rin blushed. "I'm not trying to do everything myself; I promise."
"Fine, you got me," Rin said, retreating even farther under the covers. "Do you want me to do the transplant?"
"If you don't think it's too gross," Obito said. He stopped again, not sure how to proceed. "Will you be here when I get back?"
"Do you want me to be?" Rin said with a lilt, and Obito twitched.
"... Yes," he said, trying to sound confident and failing miserably. "But I dunno how long this is gonna take."
"Your team's gonna be coming back," Rin said, grinning. "They're probably going to need some time to adjust." She sprung out of bed not bothering to hide her near-nakedness, and Obito flushed and turned away. "Tell you what. I'll meet you at the Hokage's tower, and then we can get dessert like we talked about. Maybe with your team, if you're up to it."
"And if I'm not?" Obito muttered, and Rin's smile faded a little.
"Then I'll be there for you," she said simply, and Obito felt like he had a fever.
"Alright," he said without the faintest hope of an intelligent response. "See you soon then."
He slipped away into the Kamui and started heading west.
Where the Saru and Kiso rivers met: a swamp only a couple miles to the east of Amegakure itself, but one that was thick and easy to hide in. It had been the site of many battles in all three shinobi wars; there were probably more bodies in that bog than in most graveyards. Orochimaru had always been a creep, Obito thought, but there were practical considerations to such a close meeting place, especially when the Kamui made getting back to the Land of Fire a simple matter.
Several minutes later, Obito popped back into reality high in the thick canopy of the swamp, settling in and quietly waiting. He did the bare minimum to conceal himself. Minato hadn't given him instructions for finding Orochimaru, but he was sure the Sannin had methods of finding him.
Alone with his thoughts. Obito thought things would go a lot worse, but he was still rather composed when another couple minutes passed and he felt something drop on his shoulder.
He looked over and found himself staring into the eyes of a small, darkly colored snake. It was covered in orange and yellow stripes; Obito was pretty sure that indicated it was venomous.
"Oh c'mon," he said, and the snake waved its head back and forth, measuring him. "What, do you think I'm a kid?"
"I recall you enjoy walking through walls to surprise people." The voice came from directly below him, and Obito looked down into Orochimaru's smirking face. "I wouldn't call that any less childish, Obito Uchiha?"
The Sannin hadn't aged a day; in fact, he actually looked younger than the last time Obito had seen him, and paler as well, like he didn't have a drop of blood in his body. He wore dark, expensive looking clothes, totally at odds with the swamp he stood atop, and was alone.
Obito narrowed his eyes. Under the Sharingan, Orochimaru's chakra was ridiculously dense and dark. It reminded Obito of his sensei, and more specifically of his Sage Mode.
That didn't matter as much to Obito as the realization that Orochimaru was alone. "Where are they?" he asked curtly, and Orochimaru bowed theatrically.
"This was no easy thing, you know," he said. "The village was in chaos after that attack. You wouldn't happen to know who was responsible, would you?"
Even now, Orochimaru was obsessed with information. And in this case, he was clearly expecting an exchange. Obito grimaced.
"It was the Hidden Cloud," he said, and Orochimaru nodded with an impressed look. "They've developed a new chakra weapon, unlike anything I knew could exist."
"Well, that's not a small category," Orochimaru said with a snide grin, and then his mouth extended, unhinging and growing wider and wider. As Obito watched in disgust and anticipation, Naruto and Sakura emerged.
They were different than he remembered. Older, taller, and more filled out. Sakura's hair had been cut short, while Naruto's was long and shaggy. Naruto's outfit had hardly changed, though his jacket was now more blue than orange, but Sakura…
She was wearing the symbol of the Akatsuki; a black hoodie covered in red clouds. They were both also covered in burns and bruises.
"There you are," Orochimaru said, rehinging his jaw. Obito leapt down from the tree, face to face with him.
"Where's Sasuke?" he asked. Orochimaru rolled his eyes.
"Obito, you should be on your knees, in awe, at the fact I was even able to find these two," he said. The snake fell out of the tree as well and landed on Orochimaru's shoulder, and he brought a hand up, doting on it. "Do you understand how difficult it is to locate two shinobi in a city of thousands when half of it has burned down and there are tens of thousands of corpses to pick through?" He sneered. "Sasuke Uchiha couldn't be located. Perhaps he was vaporized."
He was lying. The thought burned through Obito with such force that he almost lunged forward and throttled the man. But it was more complicated than that; as they stared at each other, Obito read every inch of Orochimaru's body language, the contempt in his eyes. He truly didn't know where Sasuke was, Obito was sure, but he had suspicions. And he was reasonably sure that Sasuke wasn't dead.
"You…" Obito's hands curled into fists, and Orochimaru glanced down at one in amusement. "Was Itachi in the city?"
At that, Orochimaru showed a microscopic amount of surprise, so minor that only the Sharingan could possibly have detected it. "I heard a rumor he had been," he said after a moment, smirking. "You don't possibly suppose he could have come for his brother, could you? What a horrible thought."
Obito had never hated a supposed ally as much as he did right at that moment.
"Why are they unconscious?" he asked instead of leaping forward and taking Orochimaru's head off, trying to stay focused.
"Oh, these poor children have had an exciting day," Orochimaru said, always smiling. "I understand they were both close to the blast; they simply couldn't handle the joy of going home after such a difficult experience."
"You knocked them out," Obito said, and Orochimaru grew less amused. "Did they want to come with you?"
"Should I take them back when I return?" Orochimaru asked with a bored sneer. "I'd be glad to; I'm sure the Akatsuki would be glad to have Sakura returned-"
"No." Obito bent down, placing a hand on both his students as his gut churned. There was no way in hell he was letting them return to Rain after what had happened. They needed to be safe; they needed to be home. "You're heading back to the Hidden Rain?"
"Oh, it's a comfortable place for me now. Somewhere I'm appreciated," Orochimaru said. "Do tell Minato that I won't follow such a barefaced order again. It makes my skin crawl."
"Tell him yourself if you care that much," Obito spat, drawing himself and his students into the Kamui. Orochimaru stared at him as he disappeared.
"Maybe I will," he hissed, and then he and the real world were gone.
###
When Sakura woke up, she was very, very confused.
She was seated in a chair, a large, comfortable one. Naruto was at her side in an identical chair, also groggily stirring towards wakefulness. They were in front of a wide desk, and behind that desk was a man who looked like the Hokage but had bizarre golden eyes with horizontal pupils. He was watching them patiently, and behind him stretched Konohagakure lit up with a thousand lights, a pale shadow of what Amegakure could muster to push back the night.
She rocked forward; she wasn't bound, though she'd half expected to be. Sakura was suddenly, horribly awake.
"No-!" she gasped. She couldn't remember how she'd gotten here. By her recollection, she and Naruto had been imprisoned, wondering if Sasuke was okay or not. Then, there was a gap; now, she was here. She'd been drugged, or a genjutsu had been cast on her, or something. All she knew for sure was that she must have been kidnapped out of Amegakure, cause she certainly never would have left by her own will.
"Welcome back," the Hokage said. At Sakura's side, Naruto blinked at his father's odd appearance. "Sorry for being so abrupt, you two."
"Dad?" Naruto muttered, looking around. "Are we… we're back in Konoha?"
"You are." Someone stepped past them to the Hokage's side. No, not someone.
Sakura shook her head. Obito. Obito was standing there, looking exhausted and in full ninja gear. Had he been the one to pull them out? He certainly had the ability to. She'd thought that the first time she saw her sensei again she'd be filled with relief, but her mind was filled with too many concerns to even register a hint of relief at seeing him.
"Obito-sensei?" she asked, and Obito nodded with a little smile. "What… what happened?"
"I ordered you extracted after Rain was attacked," the Hokage said, and Sakura's head swiveled back towards him. "Obito met our inside man halfway and got you back here." He leaned forward. "Sakura, there's a lot we need to discuss, but first thing's first: I felt your Hiraishin mark get removed. You're wearing an Akatsuki uniform." His eyes were somehow both kind and cold. "Did you accomplish your mission?"
Sakura gaped, barely able to pull herself together enough to comprehend the question. Naruto stirred with a grimace.
"I can't believe you put that on her," he muttered. His father glanced at him. "What, didn't you trust her?"
"It was only to track her," Minato said with a confused look. "Nothing more."
Naruto settled back with a scowl, and Sakura shook her head, trying to figure out why she felt like she was in danger, like she was in the wrong place. She'd been sent to find out if Fuu was in Rain in the first place; telling the Hokage she wasn't should have been the simplest thing in the world. And yet, it was difficult; it felt like she was doing something wrong.
"Fuu's not in the Nation of Rain," she said, and Minato smiled mirthlessly. "Itachi Uchiha was lying. He's collecting the Tailed Beasts for his own purposes."
"Beasts?" Obito asked, and Sakura was absurdly glad that her sensei's question had covered up the minor lie she'd told.
"The Akatsuki believes he's captured the Sanbi and Nibi, in addition to Fuu and the Nanabi," she said, feeling just a bit more comfort. "The first a couple years ago, and the latter very recently. They're not sure of his motive."
At that, her sensei and the Hokage shared a glance. "The Nibi?" the Hokage asked, and Sakura nodded. "One of the Hidden Cloud's Jinchuriki? Well, that might explain some more things."
"What?" Sakura asked.
"Kumogakure was responsible for the attack," her sensei said, and Sakura realized that to make things right she'd probably have to kill most of the leadership of the Hidden Cloud, and maybe the Land of Lightning too. "They've developed a new weapon to make it possible." He frowned. "But that's not something for you two to worry about. Sorry. It's been a long day."
"Where's Sasuke?" Naruto asked. He wasn't here, Sakura thought. Whoever had taken them out of the Nation of Rain had left Sasuke behind.
Or…
"We're not sure," Obito said. "But we think he's still alive." He gave the both of them a tired shrug. "Itachi came here earlier today, and then headed for the Hidden Rain right afterwards. He was looking for Sasuke."
`It seems his brother collected him.`
Sakura didn't recognize the voice; it wasn't hers. But it was there like a colorless memory. She mouthed the words in confusion, and the Hokage glanced at her.
"Looking for Sasuke?" Naruto asked, and Sakura focused on him, the words slipping away. "But… how could he not know?"
"Great question. No answer there," Obito said, looking bitter. "But no matter when he showed up, I'm sure he would have tried to track Sasuke down. With the village the way it was, I wouldn't put it past him to just pull him out, the same way we did to you."
"You shouldn't have," Sakura said, and both of them gave her a surprised look. "We should have stayed. We would have been back soon enough anyway."
"What do you mean?" Minato asked, folding his hands. Sakura breathed out, trying to control herself, but frustration and rage and despair were welling up inside her and threatening to burst out with every word.
"We're going to be ambassadors," she said laboriously, weighing each word with care. "Shinobi of both villages. I was working with the Amekage to bring the Nation of Rain and the Hidden Leaf closer together. Naruto and Sasuke and I… we were going to come back as ninja of Rain."
"And then go back to Rain as ninja of the Leaf," Naruto cut in with obvious desperation. Sakura fell back with silent relief, her whole body shaking. "We're both… we thought it was the best way to make everyone happy. Sakura, tell them what you told Yahiko! I can't do it the same way! We have to go back!"
"That's a wonderful idea," Minato said, approaching his son and kneeling down with a sad smile. Sakura watched on the edge of hyperventilating as the Hokage broke both their hearts. "But there's no way that's possible now. Not after what Cloud's done." He reached out and placed his hand on Naruto's shoulder, and Naruto almost shrunk back under his touch, eyes wide. "We've already lost track of Sasuke; I can't allow any chance of the two of you going missing as well."
"Lord Hokage…" Sakura twitched, fear and fury burning her reason away. She leapt up out of her chair, standing tall as the Hokage glanced over at her. "Minato, don't do this."
As the Hokage watched her and her sensei stepped forward, Sakura did her best to prevent an irreversible mistake. "If we're gone, the Nation is going to think we ran. It'll look suspicious so soon after the attack. Right now, we're the only shinobi loyal to the Leaf that Rain really trusts. You need us there. You need an advocate there! I'm a member of the Akatsuki; my opinion is respected! I'm trusted! If I return and explain the mistake, I'll be believed. If Cloud really was responsible for this, then we need to unite and destroy them! The Leaf and Rain coming together in a military alliance like that could prevent a far more terrible war, and those…" She bared her teeth, her whole body trembling with rage. "Those murderers will get what's coming to them! We'll be sure of it!"
Everyone in the room looked her over and Sakura realized she was panting, her face burning with anger.
"Sakura," Obito said, too calm, too condescending. Sakura glared at him, and he narrowed his eyes. "I've already told our agent there who was responsible for the attack: I'm sure he'll pass it on to the Nation of Rain. You're not necessary for that. And…" He hesitated, tapping a finger against his side. "I thought the same as you, but the Hidden Cloud hasn't done anything to the Leaf. They-"
"Attacked a rogue nation?" Sakura spat, and she saw Naruto freeze up as he realized what she'd suspected the whole time. "Killed a bunch of troublemakers and criminals, right?!"
"Don't…" Obito said it softly, and Sakura sneered in his face. He sighed. "Sakura, don't act like a flight risk, please." As Sakura looked around the room wondering if it could be that simple, her sensei spread his arms with a pleading look. "I agree with you," he said. "And the Hokage is going to get there as well, once we have some more information.
"If you agree with me, let me go," Sakura said. Her chakra was crackling in the air, sending her hair on end. "Let me go right now."
"Sakura." Sakura had never heard the Hokage speak in such a flat way, and it made her freeze. She looked over at him. He'd stood up; his posture wasn't threatening, and his chakra wasn't raging. His face was placid, and everything about him was perfectly neutral.
But she still felt in more danger than she ever had in her life. Seeing the Hokage standing there and watching her with lukewarm eyes, Sakura felt more instinctive fear than she had when a city-destroying weapon had picked her up and thrown her for miles.
"I respect everything you accomplished in the Nation of Rain," Minato said, and Naruto stood up behind him with a wary look. It seemed to Sakura that the room was shaking. No: the world was shaking. "You performed beyond our wildest dreams. You achieved a level of independence and trust that is truly commendable. I sincerely believe that once you feel more comfortable, you are likely already more than qualified to take up the responsibilities of a Jonin here in the Hidden Leaf. You have blossomed into a spectacular ninja, Sakura."
He smiled, and Sakura's heart fluttered in terror. "But don't forget who you are. Where you came from. You have had a terrible day, I'm sure. I would be shocked if you did not lose friends today, the both of you."
Naruto choked and Sakura flinched, feeling her eyes burn. The Hokage was relentless, his tone mild and reasonable and all the more terrible for it. "Please, at least get a good night's rest before you try to make any life-altering decisions. I have considered everything you have raised, though of course I was not aware you had any plans with the Amekage to return to the Hidden Leaf yourself."
"But…" Sakura whispered, feeling her pride shrinking and feeling more like a child than she had in months. She didn't know what to do; she didn't have the energy left to make the right decision.
She didn't even know what the right decision was anymore.
"Do you think the Amekage are rash people?" the Hokage said gently. "Do you think you being gone for a day or two will drive them to action they wouldn't have taken otherwise?"
Sakura was far too overwhelmed to put a coherent thought together. She stumbled back against the wall of the office, bringing her hands up to hide her welling tears.
"I don't know," she croaked from behind her hands. "I don't know. This is too…"
"It is," Obito said, finishing her thought before she could. He drew closer, and Sakura had nowhere to run. It felt like it was just her and her sensei, and she couldn't decide between relief and desperation. "It would always be too much, no matter how much you've grown, Sakura. That isn't weakness. That's just being human."
Sakura couldn't hold her tears any longer. "I'm back too soon," she wept, still hiding behind her hands. "I didn't do everything I needed to."
"That was gonna happen no matter what too," Obito said sadly, somewhere right in front of her. "But Sakura… I'm happy you're back. Your parents will be happy you're back." He hesitated. "Your friends will be happy too. Ino spread around what you told her in Waves. They've all been waiting for you to come home."
She'd never been more pathetic in her life. Sakura couldn't muster a response: she was reduced to quietly crying and slumping against the wall, trapped at a crossroad so enormous she couldn't comprehend it.
Someone came to her side. It was Naruto, not Obito, and she was struck with deja vu.
"Sakura," he muttered in her ear, and she stiffened at the heat of his breath. "Do you want to stay?"
She twitched, a hitch in her weeping, and Naruto kept speaking with the same quiet determination. "If you want to leave, I'll be right behind you." She felt him glance back to the room. "But if you're staying, I've got to know. We have to go get Sasuke."
Sakura choked on Naruto's trust. It was too much responsibility. Why was he giving it to her, instead of making his own decision?
But that wasn't it, she realized. Naruto was just telling her that her decision would be his too. He was there to back her up either way, stay or go. Just like he'd followed her to the Nation of Rain, he'd follow her here too.
The realization crushed her heart and gave her strength in equal measure. She stood there, quietly sobbing for nearly twenty seconds, and then bent her head to his and whispered in his ear.
She made the easier decision.
"I'll stay."
"Okay." Naruto pulled back, looking out to the room and speaking when she couldn't. "We're not going anywhere," he said, standing firm. "But we've got to go find Sasuke."
"Of course," Obito said, obviously relieved. "I was going to leave as soon as we were done here."
"And you'll take us with you," Naruto demanded, and Obito laughed.
"Do you think you're in any condition for that, Naruto?" he said, and Sakura managed to wipe the tears from her eyes and look out onto the room. The Hokage and her sensei were still watching them, but some of the tension had left them. "Don't worry: we've already got a good retrieval team lined up."
On cue, the door opened and three more ninja entered, all women. Rin Nohara was in the lead, and she gave both Sakura and Naruto a jaunty wave as she strode through the doors. Obito, she gave an amused look, which he returned with an apologetic shrug. Behind her was Mikoto Uchiha; for the first time Sakura could remember, Sasuke's mother was in full ninja gear: her vest was strapped with several blades, including two swords and a tanto.
The last person to enter made Sakura blink. Hinata Hyuuga was bleary-eyed and had obviously recently gotten out of bed, but was wearing her chunin uniform and looked around the room with obvious alertness.
"Mikoto?" Naruto asked as Sakura made eye contact with Hinata. She was astonished at the focus in the other girl's eyes. "You-?"
"It's not your fault, Naruto," Mikoto said grimly. "No one could keep Sasuke from Itachi if he put his mind to it."
"Maybe," Naruto said, biting his lip. "But if you're going, I definitely am too." He stepped up with a fierce look that sped up Sakura's heart. "If you're trying to grab him back from that lunatic, you'll need everyone you can get, right?"
"Naruto, I'm not sure if you're ready for-" his father started to say, and then Naruto spun on him.
"I'm going!" he barked. "And Sakura is too! We're not leaving him behind, and we're not letting anyone take care of it without us!" His father gave him a bemused look, and Naruto scoffed. "We're not going to run off. There's no fucking way we're letting that freak keep Sasuke. That's all."
Naruto's father shrugged off his harsh language. "Sakura?" He turned to her as she finished wiping away the last of her tears. "Are you-?"
'I'm fine," she said with enough strength to fool herself. "Naruto's right. If I'm coming back, I'll come back with Sasuke." She pushed herself off the wall and breathed out all her fear and doubt. "And if we might have to take him from Itachi, the more the better. Me, Naruto, Rin, Mikoto, and Hinata…" She paused. "And you, sensei?"
"Of course," Obito confirmed. "I'll be taking us to the edge of Ame to begin our search. I'm sure you're familiar with Hinata's range."
Sakura nodded. "Good," she said, and felt her face twitch into what could eventually be a smile. "Then at least we'll have a mission together the first day I'm back, right?"
Obito's smile arrived long before hers could have. "True enough," he said with a little laugh. He turned to Hinata. "You ready? You're the star of the show, after all."
"I'm ready," Hinata said, and Sakura gave her a smile. Even if this was the most terrible day of her life, she was glad to be working with the Hyuuga again. There was no one better for tracking down Sasuke, no matter where itachi had taken him. "I'll find him."
"Then let's go. Gather up." Obito stepped to the center of the room as everyone surrounded him, and he looked back to the Hokage as they linked hands. "Any guidance for Itachi, sensei?"
"He's dangerous," the Hokage said, and Obito nodded. They both glanced at Mikoto, and she closed her eyes and nodded. "Don't take unnecessary risks."
"Will do," Sakura's sensei said, and then they all faded from reality and were dragged west to the burning Land of Rain.
