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SASUKE: The Fanfiction

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INTERLUDE (2)
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    • INTERLUDE (2)
    KONOHA​


    Shikamaru gently bit into the piece of barbeque hanging from his chopsticks. The succulent slice of meat oozed a smattering of oil that glossed his lips. It was tasty as one would expect from a meal prepared by Konoha's very own Yakiniku Q's barbeque saloon. Yet, despite this, the Nara scion chewed on it in a visibly absent-minded manner, his attention staunchly fixed on the shinobi seated across from him. Sasuke, as usual, conversed easily with the rest of their group with all the charm and charisma he had, over the years, become renowned for.

    Sakura and Ino, the twin airheads currently wounded tightly around the Uchiha's dainty fingers, giggled at a joke made at Kiba's expense; the Inuzuka boy growled a threat in response only to suffer even more ridicule. Sasuke was being playful, in that annoying, haughty manner he was so fond of. Naruto, in an uncommon show of solidarity, came to Kiba's aid but quickly came under fire as the Uchiha's attention turned to focus on him. Hinata blushed as the blonde exploded in outrage, challenging his teammate to a duel. At that, even the usually introverted girl spoke up to dissuade the fool from persisting in his ludicrous demands for battle against the Chūnin who earned himself the moniker "Evil Flame" even before graduating from the academy.

    Shikamaru turned his attention to the only two members of this gathering who were not currently snagged in Sasuke's orbit. Shino stared at the group in silence, calm and collected as he always was, his thoughts unknown. Choji on the other hand was too carried away scarfing down the barbeque to realise what was going on in front of him.

    Shikamaru shuddered as the memory of his run-in with the Uchiha during the exams flashed through his mind. His teammates might have forgotten, the feeling of depression from losing the other castle to the subsequent elation they felt at Sasuke's attempts to lift their spirits dulling their memory of the incident. But he didn't. Rather, he couldn't. Shikamaru could still hardly believe Ino had it in her to sit directly beside the monster after how close they had all come to losing their lives at his hands.

    Whenever Shikamaru peered at the taller boy, he felt as if he could somewhat see past the illusion. Behind those bright, lively Onyx eyes was a deadly calm, totally blank, and unreadable. Shikaku once mentioned that their Nara clan's attunement with Yin nature granted them some intuitive insight into the metaphysical. Never once had Shikamaru doubted his father's claim; neither did he plan to begin doing so any time soon. He could feel it. The monster behind those eyes. Something pretending to be human. If one stared at the Uchiha long enough they would begin to see it too; motion fluid in a manner normal humans—skilled shinobi included—would find impossible to achieve, yet unnaturally still when calm. Like a great summit. Unmoveable.

    Impervious.

    "Shikamaru?" the monster called. "What's wrong? You are not hungry?"

    Shikamaru almost made the mistake of making eye contact, averting his gaze to stare out the window at the last moment. "Thank you," he replied, forcing the delicious morsel down his throat. "I might be feeling a bit under the weather today."

    "You need to take better care of yourself," Ino scolded, a smudge of concern peeking past beneath her annoyance. Shikamaru turned to face her, his expression softening as she pouted at him. His gaze wandered. Despite her best effort to hide it, he noticed the girl leaning deeply into the embrace monster beside her, seemingly completely unconcerned for her safety. For a moment Shikamaru wondered to himself if the girl possessed any survival instincts at all. Then he remembered who it was she was leaning against and his expression hardened immediately.

    There was no way the lovesick fool would realise what danger she was in. After all, he had seen how easily the Uchiha manipulated her and toyed with her emotions. It was a fool's errand to expect anything else from the girl.

    Alas, habit was a two-timing mistress. Shikamaru looked up, and by some stroke of bad luck, his gaze met Sasuke's. Instantly, he dragged his gaze back to the open window by his side, pretending to be distracted by the activity outside. But it was too late. The monster's crimson, soul-piercing gaze lingered on the fringes of his memory, pressing against his mind like an excluded ghost, shrouding it in a haze of confusion and uncertainty.

    Slowly, Shikamaru felt his suspicions towards the Uchiha wane. He could feel it seeping out of him, like oil through a grain sieve. He clawed at it to return to no avail … Then he blinked, suddenly feeling much better than he had in weeks; as if a great weight had been lifted off his shoulders. A persistent thought nagged at the back of his mind but he could not, for the life of him, remember what it was.

    Well, whatever it was, if he had forgotten it so easily, it must have not been important. Likely some chore his mother had nagged him to complete but remains untouched. Lazily, he dismissed the whisperings entirely. With a relaxed exhale, he turned his attention back to the barbeque in front of him.

    How nice of Sasuke to invite them for lunch. Shikamaru thought. Even though the Uchiha could be a pain to deal with sometimes, he really should try to be nicer to the guy. At least for Ino's sake if nothing else…

    ***​

    Konoha Hospital.

    Gaara gasped as he awoke.

    Instinctively, he called on his sand and the mass of silica rushed forth to encase his prone form. It hurt. Everywhere. What happened, Gaara wondered to himself, his brain struggling to recollect. Then it did and a feeling of bone-deep loathing arose in his heart.

    "I will kill him," the Suna-nin croaked.

    "Ha, you are finally awake," came a voice beside him. "Glad to see you are feeling better."

    Gaara willed the sand to prop his body up. His gaze squinted balefully as he regarded the four that occupied the room with him. His attention panned, ignoring Baki and the rest of his squad to focus on the fellow who had just spoken. A Konoha-nin with onyx eyes and ash-grey hair worn in a ponytail. He looked generic enough if one ignored the black-rimmed circular glasses propped on the bridge of his nose.

    "Where is he?" Gaara growled.

    "I assume you are asking about Uchiha-san?" the unnamed Konoha-nin replied. "He and the rest of his team left a week ago on a B-rank mission to the Land of the Waves. It's classified, of course, but since we are all allies I figured it shouldn't hurt to keep you in the loop."

    Gaara's mind spun as he digested the response. "...How long have I been unconscious?"

    "Three weeks," Baki replied, his gaze cold. "Congratulations by the way. You made Chūnin."

    "...Three weeks." The sand Jinchūriki swallowed. His gaze finally panned downwards to regard his own body. Lengths of white bandages wrapped around the entirety of his body beneath the hospital gown he wore. Underneath, his skin was aflame with a persistent itch.

    "You suffered significant injuries during your battle with Uchiha-san," the Konoha-nin supplied helpfully. "The worst of them was the hole Sasuke drilled through your right lung and the severe burns you suffered when super-heated steam leaked past your defences. Had it been anyone else, they probably would have survived."

    "The Kazekage visited," Baki interjected. "He noted your failure and ordered your return to the village post-haste to restart your training. Your critical state delayed our return. Nonetheless, we will remain here until I determine you are fit enough to travel."

    Gaara remained silent even as his visitors vacated the room, the thought of his failure clouding his mind. He leaned back into the bed he sat upon feeling lost.

    If not to destroy those standing in my way, what then is my purpose?

    A gust of wind blew through the open window, lifting the edge of a slip of paper held down by a glass vase holding a few Chrysanthemums. The flash of white caught his attention. Absentmindedly, Gaara willed his sand to retrieve it.

    I look forward to meeting you again, Sabaku-san, it read. Get well soon.

    Signed, Sasuke.

    The letter crumpled in Gaara's clenched fist. His face remained calm. Placid. But in the depths of his gaze, a smouldering of bloodlust reignited; flaring. Burning brighter than ever before.

    A vengeful growl escaped Gaara's maw. I will kill you…

    Uchiha Sasuke!
     
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    • In the United States, chrysanthemums symbolize friendship, happiness, and well-being. They are often tied to the arrival of autumn since they are one of the most popular fall flowers.
    I wonder what it must be like being friends with an Eldritch horror. I also wonder how many more times Gaara would have to be beaten up before the good ol Shonen logic kicks in. Hopefully, he doesn't kick the bucket before then...

    I will have you know; I have ABSOLUTELY no qualms about killing off fandom's favourite characters. As long as it fits the plot I will put them under the knife. Sorry, Naruto/Hinata/Konohamaru/Tenten/Inari's mom/... /[INSERT RANDOM CHARACTER NAME], no plot armour for you.

    Also! yay! Patreon Link!
     
    From what I read until now I see Sasuke as two being. The Eldritch Horror and The puppet. The puppet live and feel like any other normal person while the eldritch horror is experiencing new things it could have never felt before inside the still darkness it came from. The puppet get several benefits as seen in the story but at the end it is just a part of the greater whole.
     
    021 - The Mission {PT. I}
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    • 021 - The Mission {PT. I}
    THE WESTERN BORDER - THE LAND OF FIRE​

    "...Um, Sasuke-kun," Sakura called beside us. Our gaze panned to regard the girl. "Are there ninjas in the Land of the Waves too?"

    "No," we replied, turning back to face the dirt road ahead. "No, there are not ... But as a general rule, most other lands have their own hidden villages where shinobi clans reside. And just like with Konoha, for most countries, hidden villages serve a militant purpose. Mostly mercenary work given their relationships with their host countries, but in the end, they also fill more patriotic roles as well. For example, they maintain the integrity of the territorial borders of the country they reside in. Intelligence and counter-intelligence activities are handled mostly by them. So is espionage, anti-terrorism, power projection, state defence, internal security, and the likes."

    We shot the girl a side glance, and as expected her face was scrunched up in confusion.

    "You find it strange that the Land of the Waves does not possess a ninja village of its own despite the apparent necessity?"

    She nodded, a blush staining her face.

    "Well, you might have not heard it yet, but there is a widely-accepted myth amongst low-level shinobi and civilian circles as to why Waves, and other minor nations like it, do not have hidden villages. In a nutshell, some claim that small island nations that are isolated and already hard to invade would find no use for a shinobi village. Deliberately misleading information of course. And before you ask how I know this, I want you to ask yourself; do those minor nations have a choice as to whether or not they host a shinobi village?"

    "...A choice?"

    "Yes. A choice. Do you think that if a shinobi clan decides today that they want to set up shop in the Land of the Waves and declare their hidden village, the civilian government can just say no and that would be the end of it? I will tell you now, if such a government is not erased and replaced with a puppet regime before the end of the first day a clan decides to take over, I would be very much surprised."

    Sakura frowned, her expression ponderous.

    "But why then?" Kakashi interrupted, his voice filling the silence between us. We glanced at the silver-haired man standing beside us with one brow raised in askance. Annoyed. Ahead of us, Naruto stuttered in confusion as the inane argument he had been having with the Jōnin came to a jarring end with Kakashi's sudden departure. The two had been conversing quite animately earlier; for the man to react to our claims in such a visceral manner…

    Hmm…

    "If it's so easy for a shinobi village to take over these island nations why haven't they done so already?" Kakashi continued. "Also, if that's the case, what is stopping Konoha, or any of the other shinobi villages for that matter, from removing the Daimyō from power and simply taking over the rest of the country?"

    We turned our gaze towards Sakura who waited expectantly for our response.

    Should we, we wondered to ourself, weighing the tactical cost of divulging our thoughts on this matter against the micro-reactions we would be able to glean from the Jōnin should we continue?

    "It would disrupt the balance of power," we eventually said, deciding on a middle ground. The allure of mining data proved to be too strong to resist. Letting the Jōnin have a bit of censored data should not hurt our plans too much. Besides, what we stood to get in return should more than cover the cost. As we spoke we reallocated the majority of our senses to observing the Jōnin. His pulse, muscle contractions, the minute eddies in his chakra pool, and even the composition of his sweat; all became crystal clear to our perception.

    As we spoke, our secondary brain―a super dense cluster of neurons tucked away behind our T2 to T7 vertebrae―worked hard at deciphering the stream of data we were feeding it. It took us three years of diligent observation, studying how mammalian brains matured and what biological processes needed to be stimulated to mimic its growth before we could even begin to grow a rudimentary version of it in our body. To say it was an outstanding success would be the understatement of the century.

    And it hadn't even fully matured yet.

    "None of the other shinobi villages would tolerate the rise of another," we said. "Especially not in a location of strategic importance. The Land of the Waves sits beside some of the most important shipping lanes in this geographic region. Allowing a foreign power to control it in any capacity would be the height of foolishness for both Konohagakure's and Kirigakure's leadership. Our current mission is a clear example of that; did you think the Hokage authorised an investigation into the death of the owner of the Gatō company for monetary compensation alone? We were told in clear terms that this mission request came from the Daimoyo himself. For the Daimoyo to be involved in anything at all means certain national interests are at risk. A shift in the power balance of the Land of the Waves could have far-reaching implications for us here in the Land of Fire, hence a need for direct intervention on our part.

    "And as for why the third Hokage isn't the one ruling the Land of Fire. Again, such an endeavour would disrupt the balance of power between the shinobi villages. Long ago, the first Hokage made the mistake of forcing Konoha and the other villages to hand over control of the state to civilian governments. Now, with how power has consolidated, it would cost too much for any one Kage to revert these changes on their own; unless of course, the five Kages all agree to a none intervention pact that would allow them to individually do as they please. But that in itself is impossible as I see no way all five Kages would agree to what would be tantamount to destroying the free market and allowing any of their rivals the chance to corner a more lucrative portion of the Shinobi Military Complex. The risk is simply too much, especially for the hidden villages whose host countries are much weaker economically compared to hegemons like the Land of Fire.

    "Also, remember that civilians aren't entirely powerless, nor are they short on alternatives should the hidden villages reveal any expansionist ambitions. Samurai and non-affiliated shinobi clans still exist, some of whom are loyal to them as per long-standing traditional values. There are also Mercenary-nin, crime syndicates, and other similar groups to consider. And if one even decides to ignore all of this, they still have to remember that the Daimyōs control their respective countries' economies; control that would take months to subvert even if they are assassinated or removed from power.

    "Does that answer your question, Kakashi-sensei?"

    "...Yes," the man said after a brief pause, his expression ponderous.

    "Yo! What rubbish are you rambling about, Sasuke?" Naruto intoned, his eyes squinted in confusion. Beside us, we felt Sakura's blood pressure flare up as she geared to rise―rather violently―to our defence. It was almost comical the way these two always found even the most pointless things to bicker over.

    Still, we loathe to allow them the privilege to do as they please on this mission. It's best we ingrained in their subconscious now that B-rank assignments and above are not assignments during which lollygagging and similar distractions would not be tolerated under any circumstances.

    We let our left hand come to rest on Sakura's shoulder, kneading the soft mass of muscle gently. The girl blushed, her eminent outburst receding near-instantaneously. To Naruto, we shot a placating smile.

    "It's nothing important," we told him.

    And that was the end of it.

    ***​

    "Wow," the demon container said in awe. "This is some fog. I can barely see a thing."

    "We'll be able to see a bridge in a minute," our porter commented from the rear end of the canoe.

    "A bridge?" Sakura asked, staring at a map she just pulled from her pouch in confusion. "But there are no bridges in this region on my map. Was it constructed recently?"

    "Yes," the porter replied. "Although, all construction on it has been halted since the disappearance of the architect in charge of its construction. On the other side of it is the Land of Waves; had it been completed it would have connected Waves to the Land of Fire."

    "...This architect," Kakashi asked suddenly, "was his name Tazuna?"

    "Yes. You know him?" the porter asked surprised.

    "...Who is Tazuna?" Sakura asked. Kakashi sighed in response, dragging his fingers down the length of his face.

    "After we were issued this mission, the Hokage briefed me on all the other mission requests that were issued in the past six months and were in any way related to the Land of Waves. A while before the Chūnin exams, this architect, Tazuna, filed a request to Konoha. He claimed he had delicate documents and needed escorts to protect him from a group of thugs along the border who had a penchant for rough-housing. It was supposed to be a simple C-rank escort mission, but the Chūnin leading the team charged with his request discovered the architect was not perfectly honest when he made his request and decided to cut him loose."

    "They abandoned their client?" Naruto exclaimed, aghast.

    Kakashi shook his head gently in response. "I cannot blame them," he said, placing one hand on the blonde's head. "The architect was the target for an assassination request, apparently issued by Mr Gatō of the Gatō company. Also, when the first assassin struck, one of the Genin on the team was badly injured; to make matters worse, the blade that caused the injury was poisoned, meaning she had to be brought back to receive medical attention. There was no way the team leader was going to continue on a non-essential mission he felt exceeded his squad's capability."

    "So… Tazuna is dead?" the porter asked. He seemed to be well acquainted with this architect given how dark his expression had turned. Kakashi said nothing in reply.

    His silence was all we needed to hear.

    Patreon Link!
     
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    • Ravenaelwood said:
    Kakashi shook his head gently in response. "I cannot blame them," he said, placing one hand on the blonde's head. "The architect was the target for an assassination request, apparently issued by Mr Gatō of the Gatō company. Also, when the first assassin struck, one of the Genin on the team was badly injured; to make matters worse, the blade that caused the injury was poisoned, meaning she had to be brought back to receive medical attention. There was no way the team leader was going to continue on a non-essential mission he felt exceeded his squad's capability."
    Click to expand...
    Click to shrink...

    Canon Kakashi was clearly an idiot.
     
    Finagle007 said:
    That's if he even knew about it to begin with. Konoha had no idea anything was wrong in Wave in canon, so I doubt the Daimyo would know anything about Wave's issues either.
    Click to expand...
    Click to shrink...
    You are seriously underestimating the spy networks of the elite.
    Who gave Wave all that concrete and rebar? They couldn't have make it by themselves, so who sold it to them?
    Bridges are very expensive to build and maintain.
     
    022 - The Mission {PT. II}
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    • 022 - The Mission {PT. II}
    THE LAND OF WAVE​

    "Just to be on the safe side," Our porter said, "we'll take an inland waterway through town to a point where we can make landfall under the cover of mangroves. Gatō might be missing―hopefully, dead―but his men are still very much a menace in this parts. Given there is no one to pay them anymore, and the Gatō shipping company lies in shambles after being looted in its owner's absence, those miscreants have turned to extortion to get by. I am guessing you lot would prefer to enter unnoticed. Should they find us, they might try to cause trouble and raise a ruckus, so this should probably be for the best."

    "Thank you," Kakashi replied. We navigated our way through the waterway and mangroves before arriving at a small fishing shack fifteen minutes later.

    "This is as far as I go," the porter said bringing the canoe to port by a wooden jetty. We bid our farewells before departing to make our way into the town.

    "Where are we going to now, Kakashi-sensei?" Sakura asked.

    "Well, apparently, this Tazuna fellow had a daughter and grandson," the Jōnin replied. "Why don't we find them first? They might have some valuable information that they might be willing to share."

    With a goal decided we entered the town. It was a rather disappointing sight.

    The Land of Wave stood in stark contrast to Konoha and the rest of the Land of Fire. As we navigated the filthy, winding streets and alleyways that led to what would have been a market square, we were immediately struck by the squalor and poverty that pervaded every corner. The buildings were dilapidated, with roofs that leaked and walls that were crumbling and covered in a revolting layer of grime. The paths were muddy and filled with garbage; the horrid stench of weeks-old sewage and rotting food overpowering.

    It was a slum crowded with families crammed into small, one-room hovels. Children ran around barefoot and half-clothed, their faces dirty and their bellies empty. One managed to summon the courage to approach us, tugging on the helm of our kimono. We flashed a smile at the unfortunate creature before dropping a handful of sweets in his filthy, outstretched hand.

    A haggard-looking man walked past us carrying a cardboard sign that read, "will do any job you want". Another raced past, clutching a loaf of bread to his chest as he made to escape his pursuers. "Stop him! Thief!" came panicked shouts from behind but nobody made to intervene; a rather regular occurrence it was if one went by the reaction of the general public.

    "What is wrong with this place?" Sakura whispered under her breath as we entered a grocery store.

    "It's been like this that accursed Gatō first arrived," the store owner said to her, lamenting. He was an old fellow, his visage weathered by the passage of time. We turned to face him, although our attention remained fixed on the group of thugs that observed us from outside the store. Hopefully, they were not stupid enough to try to harass a group such as ours.

    "We've become a city of cowards, slackers and fools," the old geezer continued, before shaking his head as if coming to his senses. "Nevermind me, younguns. You probably don't want to be bored by the ramblings of an old fool. What do you want to buy?"

    Our gaze panned across the scanty store. Even the little produce that did sit on the shelves has started to show signs of age. Any longer and they wouldn't be fit for public consumption.

    "We'll like a few vegetables," we told the man. Our teammates turned to face us, confused. We favoured them an empty smile in response. No need to explain every little thing to them. They had brains of their own which they soon had better learn to use.

    "Which ones?" the store owner asked. We pointed at a bunch of the more expensive ones that were obviously struggling to find buyers. As the old man packed our order we tried to lull him back into a conversation. It took a while before we could ease up naturally into inquiring about our secondary targets, but eventually, we got there.

    "Oh, Tazuna's family?" the geezer said as he received our payment. "You mean Tsunami and little Inari? Yes, I know where they live."

    We received our target's address and decided to make our way there immediately. Kakashi sent a clone to deal with the thugs that were tailing us, while we made a small detour on Sakura's request. A portion of the goods we purchased ended up in the hands of the children that approached us earlier, but we were back on track soon after.

    Thirty minutes later we arrived at the address we received from the storekeeper. But while we did find our targets, we stumbled on a little problem.

    "Stay away from my family!" the lady we identified as Tazuna's daughter, Tsunami, snarled her expression a rictus of rage and loathing. Peeking out from behind her was a small child. It stared at us, its gaze blank. We stared back into the void that was its soul. In its depths we found a sliver of emotion so pure and innocent, yet so ripe with hate. It intrigued us.

    What a beautiful thing we found.

    ***​

    Getting Kakashi's permission to conduct an investigation independently was much easier than we expected.

    Suspiciously so.

    As we predicted, the Jōnin sent a shadow clone to tail us from a distance he probably assumed was discrete. It took about fifteen minutes to shake off that tail; Kakashi's clone continued on, shadowing the clone we tasked with infiltrating the skeletal remains of the Gatō shipping company.

    With that dealt with, and the rest of our team distracted with their own tasks, we made our way back to Tazuna's domicile. We snuck past a catatonic Tsunami, and up a flight of stairs, before arriving at a quaint, little room. The door was locked from the inside, but a subtle flare of our chakra opened the mundane mechanism. It creaked as it swung open to reveal a diminutive figure seated by the window, staring out at the sea outside.

    We stood there in silence, observing the child. Yes, we thought to ourself. We had found it. The perfect vessel.

    As if sensing our ill intent, the boy turned to look at us. His placid expression didn't deform in surprise nor did shock flash through his gaze. Serene.

    "Why?" the boy asked. We cocked our head in confusion.

    "Why did they have to die?" he repeated.

    Our Sharingan swirled into. In mere moments, our chakra wormed its way through the boy's brain as we read his surface thoughts. Names appeared. Tazuna… Kaiza… Our mind whirred, as hundreds of logical deductions were made in milliseconds. Fatherly figures. Both deceased. Suffering cognitive dissonance. Mental stability: Poor. Strategic value: bullish by seventy-eight per cent.

    We blinked, our Sharingan disappearing from view.

    "They were weak," we told him. "You were weak."

    The boy blinked. Then his gaze swivelled towards the door. "Will Mama die too?" he asked.

    "Probably," we told him. "She is also weak."

    He fell silent for a moment. Then his gaze rose to meet ours. "You are scary," he said. "Strong. You can protect Mama?"

    "Yes. Easily."

    "Will you?"

    "For a price, yes."

    "...What do you want?" he asked us.

    We smiled.

    "Your soul."


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    7 Chapters Ahead!
     
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    • 023 - The Mission {PT. III}
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    • 023 - The Mission {PT. III}
    THE LAND OF WAVE​


    Tsunami wasn't too happy to find us alone with her son. It took a bit of effort, but we managed to convince her to sit down for a conversation.

    "You want to be Inari's guardian?" she asked confused. She stared at us her eyes squinted in suspicion. "How old are you? Sixteen? Seventeen? Aren't you too young to be considering becoming someone else's guardian?"

    "Thirteen actually," we told her. The woman blinked, nonplussed. We shot her a reassuring smile. "But that shouldn't be a problem, no?"

    "Thirteen? Are you joking? I will have you know young man, this is not the time for jokes."

    We waved her off. "My age isn't important," we told her. "What is important is Inari's well-being going forward. Your son and I have spoken at length already. He spoke to me about Kaiza and what happened to him. And as I am sure you are aware, I suspect your father, Tazuna, has suffered a similar fate. I would prefer such misfortune does not befall the boy as well."

    "...Inari spoke to you about Kaiza?" Tsunami asked, her bewildered gaze swivelling to match her son's blank ones.

    "Yes." That was a lie of course, but, at this point, we doubted the boy would tattle on us.

    "I hope you don't mind?"

    "...No. No. Not at all." The woman fell silent for a few moments before turning to face us again. "What exactly would your guardianship entail?" she asked.

    "Monetary support for feeding and clothing, as well as education," we replied. "Also, I would be leaving a clone behind to protect you two and oversee his education."

    "...That's generous," she replied hesitantly. Confused. "Thank you."

    "It's no problem," we said as we made to leave. "Oh, and due to the need for discretion, I will have an alibi created for the clone. An old friend of Kaiza, or brother, most probably. That shouldn't be too suspicious. He will arrive a few days later and take up residence with you two. Just act natural when he gets here; it's likely your house would be under observation for a while, so try not to give us away."

    "...I understand."

    We turned to face Inari who was staring at us unblinkingly. "Be good, ok," we told the boy, patting his head dotingly. "I am here now. No one would hurt you or your Mama ever again, I promise."

    ***​

    Reattaching our tail proved much harder than discarding it.

    In hindsight, it was a bit of a tactical error to not send a clone to Tazuna's domicile instead, but the insurance offered by our main body was too much to ignore for a task of such importance. Either way, duping Kakashi's shadow was not impossible; just very problematic.

    We returned to the rendezvous point Kakashi decided on earlier without further incident. And guessing from Naruto's countenance, they had made significant progress in their investigation.

    "That Gatō bastard!" the blonde scowled as he and Sakura entered the clearing. Kakashi trailed behind them reading that novel of his, apparently unbothered by Naruto's tantrum. In the distance, we felt his clone dispel, and almost simultaneously the Jōnin's gaze flickered to meet ours.

    "How did your mission go, Sasuke?" he asked us.

    "Productive," we replied. "We were able to narrow down the description of the ninjas hired to assassinate that architect. Missing-nin from Kirigakure most likely. Although, they would have most likely erased their tracks by now given their employer is dead."

    Kakashi nodded, still reading his book. "Well, that concludes our investigation. We found an unmarked grave a few kilometres northeast of here. The corpse buried in it matched Gatō's description. From what we heard about their relationship, the missing-nin he hired was most likely responsible for his death. Probably after he tried to swindle them out of their fee … That Gatō fellow was a really nasty one. Drug peddling? Human trafficking?"

    Kakashi sighed as he shook his head, finally putting his book away.

    "What do we do now, Kakashi-sensei?" Sakura asked.

    "We'll wait a bit longer to see if anything else pops up before returning to the village to give our report."

    "...Are we just going to leave these people like this?" Naruto asked, aghast. "After everything that bastard Gatō has done here?!"

    "No, Naruto," Kakashi said, ruffling his hair. "We are going back to the village to inform the Hokage about this matter so more tangible aid can be sent over. We cannot just simply decide to take action; as Sasuke mentioned earlier, there is a balance of power we must respect. The local lords must be informed and the Daimyō has to be carried along if we are going to be able to effectively help these people. Do you understand, Naruto?"

    "...Yes, Kakashi-sensei."

    ***​

    We arrived back in the Land of Fire three weeks later, our mission a partial success. The missing-nin responsible for Gatō's murder remains unknown but from his description, Kakashi claimed to have a few suspects in mind. Overall our first B-rank mission ended on a positive note, tactically at least. We suffered no losses and completed our main objective without any incidents. Although, our teammates, naively, would beg to differ.

    Either way, their thoughts on the matter didn't matter. We adjusted our backpack as we neared Konoha's main gate. There was so much to do and so little ti—

    We froze.

    "Sasuke?" Kakashi called, turning to face us, his brow crooked in confusion.

    We ignored him, letting our backpack slide off our shoulders as we blurred into motion, covering swathes of land in a blink of an eye as we homed unto a familiar chakra signature. A smouldering emotion flared to life in our soul.

    Loathing.

    The weasel turned to face us, its brow arched in surprise.

    "Who is the brat?" the one standing beside the accursed creature asked. It stood nonchalantly, seemingly unbothered by our arrival. Both wore black cloaks with images of red clouds scattered across the surface. The weasel's partner carried on his shoulder a strange blade; it was wrapped in bandages and bore a unique aura. Sentience? It didn't matter.

    Our attention returned to the weasel. "...Sasuke," it exhaled, favouring us an expressionless stare.

    Two things happened next:

    1. Our chakra churned.
    2. All hell broke loose.


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    • 024 - Sibling Squabbles
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    • 024 - Sibling Squabbles
    KONOHA​


    We tore through the tri-layered Genjutsu the weasel weaved with contemptuous ease. In mere milliseconds we were standing before him stabbing towards his guts with a kunai. We formed a one-handed sign, our already halved chakra pool splitting four ways as two more shadow clones peeled off from our back. Halfway formed, with only their upper halves sticking out of our waist, one clone raised a kunai to intercept the massive blade cleaving towards our back while the other formed a series of hand signs. The weasel caught our blade with a kunai of his own as he stared down at us.

    "Hello, Itachi," we said. Behind us, the weasel's accomplice stood in a deadlock with our still half-formed clone. The gilled fellow looked down in surprise at his feet where a mass of shadows anchored both him and the weasel firmly in place.

    "Sorry about dragging you into this," we told him, his identity surfacing in our mind. "Kisame, right? I hope you don't mind if I and my brother catch up a little."

    "...Yes," The missing-nin chuckled as he strained against our binds, staring straight into the eyes of our clone like a proper fool. "Itachi, you never told me you had a little brother. I thought you killed off your entire―"

    "Kisame! Close your―" the weasel ordered. We smiled fondly.

    It was already too late.

    "Sōzōamatsukami: Yomi's Garden!"

    Our right eye bled as reality sloughed away, a domain of deathly energies appearing in its place. Our celestial sharingan reappeared in the darkening sky above, glaring down at us. A heavy mist rose from the ground, weighing down our chakra. All around us, a forest of skeletal trees sprouted. The ground beneath our feet grew slick and crystalline, and the shadows lingering about swelled until they reached greatly exaggerated proportions.

    Behind us, the missing-nin collapsed to the ground, limp. We ignored him, as we focused our attention on the weasel before us. "You resist," we said staring at the Mangekyō that spun placidly in his eyes. Tendrils of shadows slithered around Itachi's eyeball, holding it in place and preventing his eyelids from closing as we did with his partner prior.

    Our smile returned. "Not for long though," we said. As long as we held eye contact our will would continue to grind away at his until eventually he too succumbed to his―

    "Amaterasu!"

    We flickered out of the way. The backlash from losing eye contact and forcibly dispelling Sōzōamatsukami struck us with the force of a descending asteroid. We gasped as we suppressed our lurching chakra, and it was only by the soundness of our mind that we noticed the infernal heat creeping up the length of our right arm. We looked down to see a mass of black flames burning away at the appendage. Our chakra cycled in a bid to dispel the flames, but that only sped up its combustion. We raised our left hand, moulding a blade of chakra in our palm before bringing it down on the burning arm.

    It fell to the ground with a muted thud.

    A shame…

    With that temporarily dealt with we looked up at the weasel with our good eye, half-blind in the other. Itachi, again, tried to weave Genjutsu, and again, we slapped it away with contemptuous ease. His exhaustion was apparent.

    So was ours. More so than his. But it wasn't over yet… we hoped.

    *BOOM!*

    The tree behind the weasel exploded into a cloud of smouldering sawdust from where Kakashi's attack struck. The Jonin was thrown off target by an illusion, his lightning-coated palm striking just mere inches from the weasel's head.

    Itachi stared at him in the eye with contempt.

    We sighed. It was foolish to expect otherwise.

    "Tsukuyomi!" declared the kin-slayer. In front of him, Kakashi shuddered, falling to his knees seconds later, panting as he tried to resist the effects of the Jutsu afflicted upon him. A familiar curse. We remember how poorly we fared against it years prior. The Jonin was a lost cause; we could already feel his chakra waning.

    "W-what do you want?" Kakashi asked.

    The weasel gave no reply. Carefully, he lifted his stricken colleague unto his shoulder before turning to leave.

    "...Next time I find," we rasped before he could flee again like the pathetic creature he was, "I will kill you."

    The weasel paused but again said nothing as he walked away, melting into the forest shadows.

    Gone.

    We didn't try to stop him. Rather, we couldn't. Our muscles were locked up from overexertion and our chakra coils burned in pain. Any more, and we would be unable to defend ourself should the need arise. Our shortsightedness cost us dearly, we would not dare let it do so again. By our feet, what remained of our right arm was slowly consumed by the fire.

    The flames showed no signs of abating, our living flesh turned into tinder. Fuel.

    "...Well. That was impulsive," we sighed, berating ourself.


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    • That was close. Kisame would have died If Itachi didn't use Amaterasu. And Sasuke loosing an Arm is cheaper than him losing his life. This just shows how strong sasuke is tho because in canon Itachi would have no way used Amaterasu on him.
     
    Itachi: "I know I want to die..." *Looks at Sōzōamatsukami's everything* "... But not like this! Holy shit!" *Uses Amaturasu and GTFO's*

    It seems Itachi's plan was a little too successful for him to handle. :V
     
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