Author's NoteTwo brothers, one the son of Itachi, the other the son of Deidara, both from the womb of Sakura. Hated for the deeds of their fathers, given high expectations for the legacy of their mother's lineage. Watch them grow, and mature, in the face of prejudice and loathing. Bear witness to the deeds of the Brothers Haruno.
I have always been a fan of Samuraiko's works. Thus, I would like to inform you that each of the chapters, and sometimes, specific scenes of each chapter is written to a specific musical piece. All of them can be found on the website to the fic, which can in turn can be found in my profile. Additionally, all of the chapters will be uploaded there, with flash players at the points where I suggest each song to be played.
Also, I would like to inform you that there is a poll on my profile, on if the story should be updated on a weekly basis – making each chapter much shorter, but hopefully no less enjoyable – or on a bi weekly one. Take note that bi weeklies will involve more musical tracks for you to switch to in mid-reading, but no more than if I was to update on a weekly one, but it will be longer chapters.
I hope you enjoy the story.
The Brothers Haruno
Prologue
Naruto could count every moment, second, day, and year that had passed since the demise of Akatsuki. The name was in reference to the dawn of the age their mad leader Pein had concocted. It was only with the self proclaimed god's defeat that his dream of domination and the fall of the Hidden Villages remained merely a nightmare.
The sannin were gone now. Orochimaru was killed at Sasuke's hands, and Kabuto was found dead in the area between the Fire and Sound. When it became evident that the snake sannin would never return, the Sound evaporated, and the Land of Rice was born anew. A new man was found to become its feudal lord. Almost all of the shinobis that served under Orochimaru were either killed in battle, or were executed for war crimes. The Rice had no intent of training more shinobis. It retracted from the world order, keeping its own nose out of its neighbor's business. For better or for worse, the Rice was gone from the history books for good.
Jiraiya was dead. He survived his battle with his old student, but his wounds were too great. He died in the hospital of Konoha. He died with a laugh, telling Naruto to always be careful of women. Stupid Ero-Senin. Of course, no memorial was erected in his honor – the master pervert didn't need one, nor would he have wanted one anyways. His deeds, perverted or otherwise, were all that were needed for anyone to remember him by.
Tsunade died too, but in a way no would have ever expected. She suffered from a hear attack just days before the Rookie Nine returned from their invasion – and victory – of the Rain. Naruto still remembered how much Sakura cried when she heard the news. Her parents had died when a small earthquake collapsed their home as they slept. Of course, Sakura was out on a mission at the time, but the pain was still there. Sometimes Naruto wondered if it would of have been better if she was there. Or would it have been even worse?
Naruto became Hokage just a few months later, after being prepared by the elders of course. It was obvious that he was going to be the Hokage, even if the stupid elders didn't want to admit it. They fought him – and hell, all of the Rookie Nine for that matter – every step of the way. They used every loophole their twisted old minds could come up with to keep him from becoming Hokage. But in the end, they knew Naruto was the natural choice. He had shown he was such a great leader in the Invasion, not to mention selfless courage that most men would never even consider.
Naruto scratched the back of his head. He was known as the number one most surprising shinobi in all of Konoha for a reason.
It probably shortened their lives by a few twenty years, but the elders proclaimed that Naruto was the Rondaime Hokage. He was nearing on twenty then; the war with Akatsuki had lingered on for almost five years. Five years of pain, of bloodshed, and of constant risk of death. Konoha had had enough of battles both political and physical.
It was during those five years that something horrifying happened. Itachi, along with his partner Kisame, as well as Tobi and Deidera, kidnapped Sakura using a feint medical mission. Their intent was to draw Naruto out, and possibly Sasuke as well, killing two birds with one stone. The Uchiha prodigy was right – word had a way of spreading quickly through the land. The four Akatsuki members drew the two teams – Kakashi and Hebi – to the northern frosted mountains of the Stone country, a place where the Flame had few friends.
There were countless deaths those days. Two of Sasuke's partners, Suigetsu and Karin, were killed by the Akatsuki members. Karin was killed in an explosive blast by Deidera after she used cowardly and downright low tactics to bring down Tobi. Suigetsu was nearly cut in half by Kisame's superior swordsmanship.
It was on the snowy fields that the younger Uchiha claimed his vengeance. But it was bittersweet – the true reasoning for the slaughter of the famed clan was not one Sasuke wanted to hear. He knew his clan used immortal techniques to turn their members into living weapons, but he refused to listen to reason. It was only when his brother told him with his dying breath that it was to liberate the clan, so that it could begin anew, did he finally comprehend the truth.
Of course, Team Kakashi arrived on the scene just moments after Itachi departed for the world beyond. Naruto could remember perfectly the way Sasuke was looking at his bloody hands, just staring at them as if taking his eyes off of his brother's corpse would be a sin beyond measure. It was with little effort that Sasuke agreed to return to the village. Sakura followed in turn. Juugo disappeared, without a trace.
It was en route that the Copy Ninja silently informed Naruto and Sasuke, out of Sakura and Sai's earshot, that she was pregnant with Itachi's child. He knew not the reason, nor the circumstances. All he knew was that there would be two trials when they returned to Konoha – one for Sasuke, and the other for Sakura. Both could go either way, and Naruto almost didn't want to return to his home. How could he, when he knew both of his best friends could be locked up, or worse, executed?
Even more so, he was baffled as to how Sakura got pregnant with Itachi's child. Did the eighteen year old jonin willingly sleep with the enemy? Was she raped? Did they perform some sort of justsu to create the child without the sex? Half of him told him to demand the answer from Sakura, but his better half, the half that would become the Hokage, told him to wait. To demand would make him lose Sakura forever. Patience was what he needed, no matter how easily it would be for him to slip into rage.
More importantly, Naruto wondered then how Sasuke would react. Would he allow his brother's child to live? Would he consider his vengeance incomplete until the child too was dead? Or would he do nothing?
At Sasuke's trial, the lords valued several things. First off, Sasuke had betrayed Konoha. He had joined with Orochimaru, murderer of the Third Hokage and hundreds, if not thousands of others. But, Sasuke did not kill any of his opponents. All reports of him were knocking his opponents out, or beating them to a pulp, but never once did he take their life, with the exception of Orochimaru. He never took part in Orochimaru's experiments, or of his torture sessions, which the snake sannin was particularly notorious for. And Sasuke did take the life of Orochimaru, as well as that of another traitor of the Leaf, Itachi.
The one factor that Naruto thinks that truly saved the sole remaining Uchiha was his bloodline. The Sharingan was a power the lords were not willing to lose.
Sakura's trial was harder to bear. She had a long list of redeeming qualities – years of honorable service to Konoha, insight on the psychological traumas of Sasuke, as well as being the student of Tsunade and the close friend of Naruto, the sure to be next Hokage. Her one sin was what made the trial so difficult – she slept with the enemy. She refused to go into specifics on how exactly she got pregnant, and thus the lords drew conclusions that she willingly went into bed with Itachi.
None of Team Kakashi was asked to sit in on the trial, and though at the time he was furious, the aged Rodaime Hokage could see why. They never witnessed anything, and the true witnesses were enemies of Konoha.
How Sakura got just a pardon was beyond everyone's minds. Was it the fact that Naruto would curse the lords, and perhaps even disband them once he became Hokage, if they executed Sakura? Or maybe her years of service was enough – barely – to excuse her actions? Whatever the reason, Naruto praised the gods of luck a thousand times the moment he had left the court room. Two years worth of probation was nothing compared to death.
Naruto convinced Tsunade to make sure that close watch was kept on Sasuke, even more so around the child's birth. The child was born healthy and strong, and was named Kambei, after the famous samurai of the Old Age. Sakura was always something of a historian. After the child's birth, Tsunade had considered keeping an ANBU to monitor Sasuke, just to ensure no harm was brought to the child. But then Jiraiya's death was confirmed, and with that, the Invasion. Sasuke had no time to kill the child, even if he intended to, for Naruto brought him along for the invasion. It was a counter measure on Naruto's part. He did not want to return from the Invasion to find out that Sasuke was in jail for the murder of a baby.
It would be shortly after their return home that Sakura would meet up with someone she'd never thought that she would see again – Deidera. The war with Akatsuki was over, and thus, he was no longer an enemy, although to this day Naruto still had a burning rage against the man. He was a wanderer, doing things here and there for what little money a disgraced shinobi could. Somehow, a romance blossomed, and a second child was born. There was almost no controversy of this due to the fact that Akatsuki was no more. Akatsuki was still at large when Kambei was born. Akatsuki was still a threat to the world. But now it was no more, and thus people didn't seem to care.
There was tension, to be sure. But, the lords didn't act because Akatsuki was defeated, and Deidera, as well as Kisame, had left Akatsuki a good six months before the war even started.
The second son was named Shinchiroji, after the close friend of the same legendary samurai Kambei was named after. Deidera was run out of Konoha by a riot that was beyond Naruto's control. He still considered this his one greatest mistake.
Life was never meant to be easy for the small Haruno family. They were the son of enemies of Konoha, even though they were truly good people in the end, or so Sakura claimed. Somehow, that was enough for Naruto, but it never was for the people of Konoha. Even his own son, Kyuzo, his first child from his and Hinata's marriage, has a severe hatred for the two. Both Hinata and himself attempted to teach their son otherwise, but he could not be swayed. For so many reasons, Naruto was proud of his son. But, he was also ashamed to be his father at the same time.
In the end, the next Genin graduation was quickly approaching. Kambei, although he had good enough marks to pass two years ago, remained behind the Academy, so that his brother could catch up. It was that kind of devotion that made Naruto wish he had a brother. But then he remembered that he did – Sasuke. After the war, the eldest Uchiha left. He said he would travel the world, helping when needed, but always living a modest life, much like the roaming ronin of ancient lore. That was his only way of repaying Konoha, he said, and Naruto supposed that he was right.
Naruto couldn't help but wonder what the Uchiha was doing now. He saying he missed the bastard terribly would have been an understatement, but who was he to tell Sasuke how to live his life? The bastard had his life to live, and Naruto had his.
The sun was setting over the mountains, and Naruto still had a pile of papers to work on. If he knew that he would behind that oversized desk more than actually doing things, like say kicking butt or being a hero, he never would have wanted to become the Hokage.
Without letting his mind wander any more, he got back to work
Chapter One – Graduates
The boy just narrowly dodged the kick from his mother. He looked upwards towards his mother's eyes of jade. She looked down with him with a smirk, and he did the same.
The older boy, his black eyes focused on his mother, charged in from behind. For most combatants, they would of been caught off guard that the two could of pulled off such a maneuver without saying a word. But Sakura had been training her boys for practically their entire lives, so she knew this routine. Besides, the woman was just nearing her thirty third birthday. She could tell her boys were up to no good just by the way they would tiptoe around their small house.
She turned around, staring into Kambei's eyes. He kept a small grin on his face as he launched a punch towards her gut. Sakura's punch neared her son's face. But right when it would have made contact, he disappeared in a small puff of smoke.
Sakura knew that trick too. Kambei would of teleported right behind her, and try to kick her in the back of the head. So, of course, she turned around to give him a good punch in the nose.
But when she turned around he wasn't there. Shinchiroji, with his brown hair in front of his face, was charging right at her, his hands tightened into a fist. He was running low, so that he could kick off the ground easier. Good idea for a slow target, but didn't he know his mother was anything but slow? He always was a tough learner.
She dodged easily enough with a simple sidestep, but then the question became where her oldest son popped off to. But when she felt her son's enormous, but not very well controlled, chakra coming right behind her. She turned around, and licked her lips in satisfaction at the look of shock on Kambei's face. With a simple push of the hand to his forehead, he was down on the ground.
Her youngest child was taken care in with just a simple headlock when he tried to tackle her.
"So, Shi-shi, how many fights was that?"
Shinchiroji let out a groin, despite the tight hold his mother had around his neck. He hated that nickname with a passion.
Since his brother was too distracted to check, Kambei took it upon himself to observe the backboard. "Three hundred and one," he said with a groan.
Sakura released her grip around her son. He let out a small cough. "Our last day, and we can't even beat our mom. What happened to the power of youth?"
Sakura sighed. "You've been sneaking on Gai, now haven't you?"
Shinchiroji grinned. "He's funny."
"He's a moron," Kambei said in a very simple tone.
"He's a funny moron," Shinchiroji elaborated.
"Is there really a difference?"
Sakura took it upon herself to end the squabble before it evolved into something worse. Despite Kambei's tendency to avoid trouble and Shinchiroji's ability to always find it, the two were keen to start any and all battles they could in any way possible. Their fathers surely had some influence on this – Deidara had told her he despised Uchihas just because of Itachi.
"Enough," she said in a tone that demanded attention. "No more talk on how much of a moron Gai is. Now in the house. You guys need to rest."
The two brothers nodded. Tomorrow, they were graduating. They wouldn't be their mother's little boys any longer. They would be shinobis of the Fire. Granted, they would just be lowly genin, so their mother would still boss them around, if not because of her motherly instincts, but because she was a jonin. Regardless, they would go from cultural rejects to tools of the Lord of Fire.
They didn't say another word as they went into the small house. Sakura contemplated just what to give her boys for their last supper as students.
In the end, she just cooked them some frozen food because she wasn't a good cook, and didn't want to give her kids food poison.
It was mid afternoon the next day when the ceremony was just beginning. The ceremony took place in the very same stadium the Chuunin exams did. It was a sense of irony – the same place they would be ordained as shinobis would be the same place they would fight in order to advance.
A platform was raised in the very center, where the Hokage and the Academy Master would hand out the forehead protectors and words of encouragement. The students were filled to the right of the platform. They all wore kimonos of various designs, conformabilities, and price tags. Shinchiroji complained how his made his arm itchy, and Kambei in turn answered him with a glare. As each of the graduate's names would be called, they would enter the stage, and then they would exit by the left. It was intended to get done with as little chaos as possible. And the theory worked.
Whenever a name was called – "Sukowa Aruso," "Takewora Tudoma" – there would be a gathering of applause. The graduate would take the forehead protector into his hands with an immense amount of pride. Naruto would smile and nod approvingly – such a gesture would be enough to motivate a young child for his entire life.
For those who were still waiting for their names to be called, a few thoughts were going through their minds. After years of hard work, they were here. They had dreamed of this very moment more times than they could count. It was almost surreal. Were they really here, or was this just some dream that was just far too good to be true? A few self inflicted pinches later, they realized this was no dream.
They were becoming shinobis.
When Kambei's name was called, the stadium suddenly became extremely quiet. A few clapped, if for nothing else than for the sake of respect. Kambei shook off the insult, and walked towards the chamber. When the Academy Master handed him the forehead protector, it was just as well made as all the others. For some reason, Kambei was expecting one that was worn down and rusted.
The Master did not have the look of pride as he had given the other students. The Hokage clasped his hand on Kambei's shoulder. With that, he moved off the platform.
"Haruno Shinchiroji." The stadium was just as quiet. Shinchiroji made his way up the stairs, keeping a happy expression on his face to show the glares were not affecting him. This was a mask he had put on many times before, and he mastered the art of hiding his true emotions.
The Master showed Shinchiroji the same glare he gave his brother. Shinchiroji knew his place, and moved on. It would have been exhilarating to kick him in the knee, but that was not the way a genin treats an Academy Master.
Naruto smiled as he said "Glad to see you here". Shinchiroji nodded his head in thanks, and made his way to the other newly appointed genin.
That very same day, Naruto found himself not taking a nice nap, but behind his desk, staring into the eyes of a certain ronin. Said ronin was no other than Saname, whom in particular had a very interesting history with the Rodaime Hokage. In fact, if Naruto hadn't intervened in a certain situation, she would be dead. It was not out of particular kindness from his usually warm heart either.
The woman was named the White Flower for a reason. Her kimono was unusually white, and her hair was an odd blend of white and gray. Despite her previous career as a samuraiko, no scars were visible on her flesh. This could be attributed to the fact she knew how to use chakra in the ways of recovery methods, a trait few samurai would willingly pursue in the name of their honor, even if the use of medical chakra was never forbidden by bushido.
"They day is here," Naruto said. His fingers were intertwined under his chin.
Saname nodded. "The boys Haruno are now genin?"
"Hn. Its been a long wait for them, but you in particular."
"I will uphold my vow, Naruto." To not refer to the kage by their title was very unusual, if not downright insulting, but these two had an interesting relationship.
"Tomorrow is the day then?"
"Yes," she answered.
"I don't remember the last time a ronin actually trained shinobis."
"I'm not the Hokage who assigned said ronin to the genin."
"You don't want to be," Naruto said with a grin.