The Insurrection
The Insurrection
Chapter 1- A Changed Village
Konoha had changed.
The village was no longer about brotherhood, about family, honor, dignity or any of its beginning ideals. No, it had transformed into a state of complete control and uniformity. The human emotion and compassion that once made the village what it was now was being stamped out by the tyrants now put in place of the Hokage. These things were no longer necessary, they bred unwanted disruption and confusion in a village that now prided itself on the dampening of freedom of thought.
No longer was Konoha ruled through the love and loyalty that rested in the position of Hokage. This uncertain rule of government had been overruled by the council, and in its place, a Board of six leaders replaced the Hokage, each one hand-picked by the council and each one a horrible abomination of a human spirit.
At the top of Konoha now sat Danzo, an aging militant who was known for his cold logic and his struggle with Sarutobi for the position of Hokage. Though he had lost then, he still remained in control over the ROOT division of the ANBU black ops, which truly inspired fear and terror in all who opposed him. It was by his will that the take-over of Konoha was successful, and now he had achieved total domination; over the council, over the Board of leaders, over Konoha, over the minds of almost every individual in the entire village.
He had succeeded in creating a literal military state.
This had come with the changing times; just years ago, the Akatsuki, an organization comprised of some of the most powerful and vile ninjas in the world, plotted to use the power of the tailed beasts to subjugate the world to their will. However, Konoha's ninja prevailed against them, and one by one the Akatsuki fell, and finally, their leader, Pein, was forced back to Amegakure.
It was there that the final battle was fought, and in the end, Naruto Uzumaki, son of the fourth Hokage, defeated Pein singlehandedly, an act that earned him the title of Sannin, along with his comrades, Sakura Haruno and Sasuke Uchiha, who had diverted from his dream of killing his brother in order to assist the man he considered to be his own brother.
But, the victory was an empty one. After the defeat of the Akatsuki, Konoha's council grew fearful of the rise of a new organization in its place. So, in order to guard against the possible threat of a new terrorist threat, the council authorized the removal of the Hokage position and the implementation of a simple Board of governors to replace it. This new Board had powers over the people that were unheard of, capable of arresting without cause, trial, jury and full rights to interrogation and rehabilitation.
The Board soon began to totally revamp the structure of the Hidden Leaf village, intending to reeducate its people into obedient, productive and uniform civilians. Constant lectures, speeches and broadcasts, all of which were mandatory to attend or hear, were now occurring on a constant basis, each one eating away at the people's ideals and thoughts and that was not all. Now that Konoha was a military state, a huge massive army of Shinobi was amassed, and the Board used them as a military police. They guarded the streets, buildings and all places around the village; they were authorized to detain any citizen without cause or meaning and even kill troublemakers on sight if necessary.
With these changes, Konoha went through a change unlike anything the ninja world had ever even seen before; it was no longer a village, no, even a general term was not enough to convey what it was. It was a full-on Oligarchy, ruled solely through fear, intimidation and when the situation called for it, force.
Konoha had changed.
"Come back here you ingrate!"
The guard's taunts did nothing to slow Tenten down; her fear and determination to escape from the haunt of prison would not allow it.
She leaped with what little chakra she had left across the gap between the buildings; they had shot her with chakra tags early on in the chase. They were an interesting type of weapon, a new one that Konoha had recently added to their arsenal in their efforts to, "keep the peace". Just two of the tags were enough to sap away a little more than half of a person's chakra, making them easy prey for the Military Police force.
But she would not be easy prey; she would be free, or as free as you could get in this village.
She darted around the metal structures on the roof as soon as she hit the ground; the guards, far more graceful than she was in her current state, made titanic leaps and landed far more forward than she did. They were closer and she knew it; their shouts and screams rang through her ears but she would not give into fear.
Before she had a chance to make a leap for the next building, three more guards landed in front of her, destroying any chances she had of making a jump. She didn't have the chakra to make a jump over them; she was almost running on empty as is. The guards behind her drew closer, and Tenten turned left out of reflex. She saw that the gap between the two buildings was just barely small enough for her to cross, though it would cost her the rest of her chakra.
Boldly, she dashed for the side of the building. But right as her foot left the ground to jump, something sticky clapped onto her exposed shoulder. Tenten squinted in agony as her chakra was sapped from her body into the tag, but the worst had yet to come.
She was already in the air.
Without the chakra to carry her across the distance between the buildings, Tenten helplessly plummeted into the gap. Desperately, she grasped for something or anything to grapple on to, but she got a hold of nothing. All she touched was a fire escape that she hit on her way down, snapping her right shoulder blade. As she took one last look up through the gap at the gray sky, Tenten hit the ground hard.
Surprisingly, she didn't die; Tenten had enough sense to land her other shoulder in order to cushion her fall, but it was not enough. Half of her entire body had gone numb from the impact, and all that she could feel now was pain rushing through her pumping head and her shattered bones that were high in number now.
"She's fallen into the alley! Get her, before she escapes!"
Tenten would not be captured; she would not be subject to the horrors that she knew awaited her in the village's prison. Those who went there never came back, and if they did, it was in a body bag. She had heard rumors of how they treated the inmates like lab rats, twisting them into mutated abominations of their former selves. Some were brainwashed, becoming hopeless shells of, perfect pawns to be shanghaied into the Military Police.
With her will, the only power she had left, Tenten placed her blistered hands on the dirty concrete, and pushed herself up from the ground. Her chakra was now completely exhausted, her natural strength was all that remained in her body, and she knew it wouldn't be enough for her to escape.
But she didn't care; she was going to run, and die running if it came to that.
"There she is!"
Tenten stood with honor, the honor of the Shinobi she once was; the honor that had been driven away by the village's transformation. Her death would stand as a representation of that honor, and would signify the hearts and minds of those who still retained it.
The guards entered the alley, guns and kunai now drawn. Tenten quickly whipped out a scroll from her back, one of the weapons she had retained from the "old days". Opening it with blurring speed, she bit her finger and swiped the blood across the scroll, activating its effects. From out of the scroll, dozens upon dozens of bladed weapons appeared and each one flying at the Military Policemen.
The blades grazed a great many of the soldiers, but her weapons were effectively useless against their armor; her weapons were outdated as it was. Unfazed, the soldiers raised their weapons and Tenten closed her eyes, awaiting her end as a relic of the past.
"CHIDORI NAGASHI!"
The voice rang through her ears like an explosion, and following it, Tenten heard the crack of thunder. She opened her eyes slowly to find the soldiers now dead and motionless on the ground and a man in the center of their corpses. Electricity was sparking from him like a Tesla coil, shining through the alleyway with a brilliant light that was hard to even look at.
Gradually, the electricity died out, and the man's appearance grew clearer. He wore a white obi with wide, blue pants, jet black hair and a pair of crimson eyes. Tenten gasped at the sight of him; he never had imagined that he would go against the village he had sworn to protect after his past sins.
He turned around to see Tenten's shaking body and tattered clothes. She could barely stand to look at his entrancing eyes that seemed like a kaleidoscope of intimidating design. Tenten fell onto her butt, sending waves of agony and pain rushing through her body once again.
"Are you alright Tenten?" Sasuke questioned, calm in his tone.
Tenten nodded hesitantly; Sasuke kneeled beside her, but she crawled away at his advance, not willing to trust anyone in this type of age.
"I'm not going to hurt you." He claimed.
Sasuke's sharingan deactivated; the sincerity in his eyes became much more apparent to Tenten. His statements were now more believable and trustworthy, now that the threatening gaze his eyes gave off was gone.
"Sasuke…what are you doing here?" Tenten rasped for breath.
Sasuke offered her his hand.
"I'm here to help." He offered her is hand. "Can you walk?"
"Yes, I'm fine." Tenten replied.
Tenten pushed herself up from ground, but the pain was too much for her body to bear. Her attempt failed miserably as she fell onto the concrete, getting half of her face now drenched in dirty water. Sasuke sighed and then put his arm under her gently and pulled her up from the ground, carrying her weight as he did.
"I don't like it when people lie to me." Sasuke spoke.
She didn't respond, she only kept quiet in fear, because even basking in new freedom, it still gripped her like a vice.
"Why were those police after you?" Sasuke inquired.
Tenten spoke hesitantly, hoping Sasuke wasn't a snitch like many of the people in this village.
"I tried to save a kid from being bullied by them; they took it as an offense against them and started chasing me." Tenten explained. "I've been running from them ever since."
Sasuke sighed again. "Everything's an offense to them nowadays it seems."
"Why are you helping me Sasuke?" Tenten demanded weakly, trying to sound tough.
He turned his head to her slowly, and…he smiled a small smile.
"I'm just one of those people Tenten." Sasuke exclaimed.
Tenten was not satisfied with that vague answer, and never in her childhood was she wooed by Sasuke's charming smiles, even if they were a little cute.
"Where you seen by anyone other than the guards?" Sasuke questioned.
She shook her head. "No, I mainly ran from them on the roof tops, there aren't as many cameras up there."
"Smart move." Sasuke complimented. "But it's probably better to be safe than sorry-"
Tenten finally put her foot down.
"That's it pretty boy!" Tenten exclaimed with a disturbed voice. "I'm not going one step more until you tell me what the hell is going on, got it?!"
Sasuke looked at her nonchalantly in spite of her outburst; he did that a lot as it seemed.
"I'm just trying to help you Tenten." Sasuke claimed again. "Now just calm down and be quiet."
Tenten had heard some sense in that last statement; shouting was literally a crime now, as people would snitch on anyone if it meant getting on the good side of the higher ups and the Military Police.
"Listen to me closely." Sasuke did a quick shoulder check to make sure no one was coming. "I'm going to patch you up as best I can; if they see you with those injuries, they'll suspect something."
Nodding, Tenten listened with intent.
"Once that's done, I'll get you some clothes to disguise yourself; after that, I'm going to have to set you off on your own." Sasuke began to walk forward, still carrying her. "Go some place safe; avoid all guard posts; even walking next to one could spell trouble for you. Use the alleyways as much as possible and you should be safe."
Tenten snickered sarcasm. "Where is safe?"
"With people who don't snitch." Sasuke replied.
"Everyone snitches if the situation is right." Tenten rebutted.
"Touché." Sasuke said. "Seriously; isn't there anyone who you can trust?"
Tenten searched her thoughts; she had one person in mind, but he had changed in the past few years. He had become a man of the law, and the law was not something she, or any one could trust anymore. But-
-he had protected her so much when they were younger.
"Isn't Neji someone to consider?" Sasuke suggested.
Tenten hid her gasp; it wouldn't be surprising to her if Sasuke read her mind. Things like that were not uncommon now in these times.
"I can't trust Neji; he's buried in the Military Police. He would never-"
"Neji may be a man of the law, but he's a man with principles." Sasuke retaliated. "Besides, he's always dotted on you and protected you."
Tenten snickered again. "You're making it sound like he likes me."
Sasuke had a chuckle of his own.
"What was that?" Tenten demanded.
"Nothing." Sasuke played off.
Sasuke carried Tenten out of the alley, being gentle not to worsen her already severe injuries. The last Uchiha took a look over his shoulder at the alley after hearing something rattle. Nothing was in sight, but Sasuke hurried along, not even willing to trust his Sharingan eyes.
A knock on his door brought Neji back from his deep meditation. He was disappointed at the least; he had just gotten over a day of work on the Military Police, a stressful job, even without any trouble occurring during his shift. Daily meditation had helped to keep his mind at ease, but he could not suffer any interruptions.
Who could it be at a time like this? Neji questioned silently.
Neji stood up, stretching out his unusually aching legs; jumping across the now larger gaps in the Konoha buildings would do that to a person. He missed the old days, when the village was more humble and easy to maneuver across; now the village was a spotless industrial city, modeled after the late Amegakure (Hidden Rain Village). Tall shiny buildings now dominated the sky, providing a frightening sense of vertigo for anyone not used to it.
He crossed his small apartment to his front door, opening it slowly. In his doorway he found a battered, dirty, rain pounded Tenten, looking unusually glum, though the quality of her clothes and condition was a viable explanation for that.
"Tenten." Neji motioned towards her injuries. "What happened to you?"
"Neji…help me…" Tenten rasped.
Tenten lost her balance as soon as the words left her mouth, and she plummeted into Neji. His trained reflexes kicked into action and caught his childhood friend before she fell onto the ground. But even as he held her in his arms, Neji could not help but feel unsure; why was Tenten so hurt? Had something happened to her? Was she… in trouble?
"Are you alright?" Neji inquired.
"My arm, it's broken…and I think my leg is snapped." Tenten moaned in pain.
Neji felt Tenten's leg, and she was right; her leg was distinctly broken, as well as her shoulder bone.
"What happened to you Tenten?" Neji asked.
Tenten became uncertain, even without his Byakugan active, Neji could clearly see through her anxiety. She was hiding something.
"I…Neji…they…" Tenten ramble.
"What's going on Tenten? Tell me!" Neji desperately pleaded for an answer.
The only words that came out of Tenten's mouth were sobs that were followed expectedly by falling tears a plenty. Neji could not bear to see his teammate in such misery and held her close. Tenten's cries echoed through his apartment, and Neji could only stand and keep Tenten in his embrace.
"Neji….please…let me stay with you." Tenten pleaded through her sobs.
"Tenten, what's going on? Are you in trouble or something?" Neji questioned.
Once again, Tenten did not answer his question; Neji became suspicious that Tenten was involved with something that got her hurt, and he knew that it was something she was trying to keep it hidden from him. No doubt his position as a policeman was the thing that made her hold her tongue; it had already driven many of his friends away. It was not uncommon, actually; Military Policeman rarely had any friends or family to speak of.
Neji was torn; he knew Tenten had done something wrong, but could he bring himself to betray Tenten in her time of need? Law and friendship were concepts that he had yet to make a decision about. Should he question her further, or be the friend that Tenten had always believed in?
But then Neji came to his senses; there was no decision, he had already made that decision on the day he lost his teammate, and he would not lose another.
"Tenten, it's alright." Neji looked at Tenten with sympathetic eyes. "You can stay with me as long as you want."
Tenten buried her tear stained face in Neji's shirt, her sobs now becoming quieter and more seldom in occurrence.
"Thank you Neji." Tenten rasped.
"Don't worry." Neji began to take her inside. "I won't lose you like we lost Lee."