A/N: WARNING: This will be a dark, explict type of fanfic-it includes abuse, pregnacy, childbirth, implied incest (sex free-feelings only), relations between Akito/Minato, etc. If you wish to see all warnings I tagged this with go here: /works/4593249
Thanks for trying out my crossover!
The exploding of fireworks into the starry night decorated the sky with trickles of green, blue, red, purple; of all sorts of colors. Not only was the sky colorful, but so was the earth below it- at least in Konoha Village, that is. The burning of bamboo sticks and the use of firecrackers meant to chase off the evil spirits filled the air with its scent, mixing in with the aroma of the food being sold all around.
An eleven year old girl by the name of Tohru Honda looked around with watery eyes, short and unnoticeable, literally a speck in a crowd of millions. With the sleeve of her dark blue yukata, she wiped away the oncoming tears before they could slide all the way down her cheeks.
She didn't want anyone to be able to tell she had been crying. Her mother had told her that because she was almost thirteen, she was going to be a big girl soon and that big girls don't cry over little things.
Still, Tohru didn't even know if this was considered a little thing or not. She had been standing next to her mommy not too long ago, but the moment that the best part of the festival reared near, things started to get hectic. At the sound of beating drums, people were beginning to push and shove for front row spots-which she could understand as she loved the traditional dances as well, but it caused her to be separated from her mother.
And now she didn't know what to do. She didn't want to cry at a festival and be a burden on such a beautiful time of the year and she didn't want to ask anyone to help her either. She figured that they should enjoy the festival, not waste this special moment on her account. It wasn't their fault that she got lost; she should have stayed closer to her mom.
She wiped another tear away and shook away the initial fear by patting her face.
With new determination and drier eyes, Tohru took a deep breath and came to her own conclusion. She would be a big girl and she would find mommy on her own. Or maybe she would bump into someone she knew on the way, at least-perhaps her two closest friends; Arisa and Saki. Yeah, that sounded like a good plan.
With a firm nod of her head, the little brunette squeezed past a pair of talking men, glancing back briefly to apologize to them before moving on. About a minute into her search for her mother, the second chorus of drumming started and Tohru stopped suddenly, turning her head in the direction with wide and dazzled eyes.
The Sohma performance was about to begin. For this festival, it was the Year of the Snake and that meant that Ayame Sohma would be dancing this time.
As if in a trance, Tohru completely forgot her desire to find her mother and it was replaced with wanting to be in the front row to see the dance.
Throughout these festivals, she had never gotten to be up close to the performance before. Usually, she and her mom were stuck in the back or, if they were lucky, in the middle somewhere and Tohru would have to sit on her shoulders to see. Though she never admitted it to her mother out of her selflessness nature, the faraway view wasn't really all that good with her less than perfect eyesight and it made it difficult for her to get into the dance. But her mother tried, and that was all that mattered to her.
However, this was a chance to actually be close up for the first time. She was having no problems slipping by people in this crowd…
Drumming started again, but this time it was not to signal the nearing of the dance. Accompanied by various sounds of different instruments, the drums created an upbeat tempo-one that wasn't too fast nor too slow, but just right for flow-like movement.
In her reverie, Tohru was pulled towards the song that beckoned her forward. Her feet moved unconsciously, allowing her to squeeze through little openings between the bigger bodies. Her blue eyes were wide in amazed stupor despite not looking at anything other than different colored yukatas; anyone would have thought she had been hypnotized at first glance.
To make it past her last obstacle, she got to her knees and crawled between unoccupied space, dirtying her clothes with grime but finding herself greeted by the most beautiful sight she's ever seen.
There were two large silver, man-made snakes that ran down the streets. They were decorated with red symbols all over the body and the head had markings drawn over its face that reminded Tohru of a warrior. Being on her knees, it was easy to see the dancers dressed in all red who were under the snake's body, manipulating it with sticks so that it slithered and swayed to the music.
She watched in admiration as the dancers brought a lifeless imitation of a snake to life with the perfect timing and coordination of its movement. The head bobbed with the drums and the body followed suit, adding such wave-like realism to the animal that it seemed to be alive.
Suddenly, the snakes switched places and Tohru's eyes nearly popped out of their sockets, watching this change. One snake made a full U-turn, circling around the front of the other snake which then followed the other's tail, making a smaller turn to take its spot on the opposite side.
It had been done so effortlessly and so quickly that it sent the villagers of Konoha into a fit of cheers, claps and whistles.
Tohru's jaw dropped in awe at the sight-of course, those snakes were crafted gorgeously and the way they had them swinging to the beating of the drums made Tohru want to dance herself, but her gaze fell elsewhere. And she silently wondered why she had noticed the snakes first.
Moving before the snakes was the Snake Sohma himself; Ayame. He was wearing a loose-fitting kimono that was decorated with 3D snakes pinned to the fabric; long sleeved and red from his torso up, but silvery and black waist down. Like the dangling tails of the snakes, the ends of his outfit flowed, swaying with his smooth and drifty movements. His long and silvery hair that glided with his hypnotic dance kept Tohru from being able to close her still-hanging jaw. Her dazed eyes just kept following it wherever it went.
But like the other performers, like the dancing snakes; Ayame was moving away, getting further and further away from Tohru. The dance wasn't to be in one spot, it was traveling down the street and it wouldn't stop until it made it all the way to the Hokage tower.
The moment Tohru realized this, she jumped to her feet frantically and ran down the side of the crowd, wanting to continue following this show until it ended. She wanted to keep watching Ayame dance; she had never been so close to one of the Sohma's performances before and if all of them were this amazing, it made her kind of sad that she missed the full experience of the others. She couldn't help it then, but she could now.
Tohru gradually picked up her pace, eventually having to lift up her yukata a little in order to give her legs more freedom to speed up. She hadn't been looking where she was going, eyes locked on the Sohma's dance rather than her own path and she ended up bumping into someone because of it.
The impact was full on and the person she had crashed into, obviously larger and taller than her, knocked her off her feet and sent her bouncing backwards. She fell on her butt; and although it most definitely was a painful landing, Tohru disregarded her own aching body and peered up, her apologetic eyes meeting with a pair of startled blues.
It seemed like they both had the same idea in mind and they voiced it simultaneously.
"I'm really sorry!"
"I'm so sorry!"
Then they both tilted their heads and stared at one another.
Tohru's gaze flickered towards every familiar feature; the blond, almost spiky-like hair that framed his face, the deep blue eyes, the innocently friendly smile-she knew this man.
"Tohru?"
The voice only confirmed her suspicions and said eleven-year old brightened up with excitement, jumping to her feet. She started wiping away the dirt that had gotten onto her clothes. "Minato! Minato, I-!" She stopped, forgetting the dirt that clung to her yukata so that she could tackle the blond into a hug. "Mommy and I were wondering where you were! I wanted to watch the festival dance together, but we couldn't find you!"
Minato's face twisted, failing to hide the guilt that was apparent on his features. "Is that so..?" He asked tenuously with a sheepish smile. As if to ask for forgiveness, he reached down for the little girl and scooped her up into his arms, surprising Tohru who squealed and clung to him for dear life. "I'm sorry, princess. Don't send me to the dungeon now." In response to his joking, Tohru started punching his shoulder, but her attacks didn't faze him in the slightest and he continued nonetheless. "I was hoping to watch it with you both, too. But speaking of your mother, where is she? It doesn't seem much like her at all to leave you alone."
When his words reached her, the fact that Tohru had been separated from her came crashing down on her like a wave against a beach. Her face paled a little and a frown formed on her tiny lips. "She didn't…." Tohru murmured softly, almost sadly. "We lost each other in the crowd and I was looking for her, but then I got distracted by the…."
Reality hit again and her head snapped away from Minato to look off in the direction of the performance. Ayame and the dancing snakes had gotten even further away; it was hard to see them now.
As she watched Ayame dance away, putting more and more distance between them, Minato followed her gaze and then turned back to her with a gentle smile on his face. He knew that look in her eyes; it was the look of pure veneration and awe. It was obvious that this dance was one of the most beautiful things she's ever seen. But the sadness that also etched itself into her expression was the part of her that wished the dance wasn't leaving without her.
"You must really like the dance, huh?"
Minato's voice pulled Tohru from her trance, eyes fluttering rapidly as if to blink away the sparkling fire in them. She stared at him for a few seconds, dumbfounded, but then nodded quickly. "Mhmm! It's pretty."
It could have been part of Tohru's imagination, but she could have sworn that she saw something light up in Minato's eyes. His smile widened; but there seemed to be something wicked about it and it probably should have been labeled as a grin instead. The way he quirked his eyebrows was a little unsettling, too. In summary, Tohru wasn't liking Minato's mischievous facial expression.
"We'll find your mother soon," the blond said. "But in the meantime….want to get the best view possible?" He was smirking. Why was he smirking?
Tohru observed him suspiciously. "What do you mean?"
"You'll find out in a flash~"
If Tohru were to say she hadn't been silently praying that those words did not mean that Minato was about to hiraishin, she would be lying. He had used that technique more than once with her in his arms and it wasn't the most pleasant feeling in the world. In fact, sometimes it tended to upset her stomach and make her want to throw her lunch back up.
Unfortunately for her tummy, a sudden flicker of speed smacked her in the face and she practically held Minato in a death grip, wrapping around him like a snake constricting it's prey. She also screamed, and probably right in his ear, too. But she figured he deserved it.
"Ah….right in my ear," Minato murmured. The slight pain in his voice would have brought a smile to Tohru's face had she not been scared for her life. "You can open your eyes now."
Proving himself to be the Yellow Flash, Tohru opened one eye carefully, and then opened the other as her jaw dropped lower than it had when she watched Ayame dance earlier.
Initially, the fear came before the astonishment. Being a girl who was afraid of heights, Tohru's newly tightened grip could have squeezed all the living chakra out of Minato had she clung any harder than she already was.
She glanced down carefully at the large crowd below to find they had moved to an area a bit ways from the mobile performance and from the ground itself. It suggested that they were occupying a fire escape; a horizontal platform connected to the side of a multi-story building with a stairway that would bring them back down to floor level.
"There you are," a soft voice murmured.
Minato turned and Tohru followed her gaze, finding three familiar men standing with them on the platform. The one who had spoken was Fugaku Uchiha; the head of the Uchiha Clan. Tall and somewhat bigger than Minato, Fugaku's eyes were dark and his black hair reached his shoulders. Tohru always thought he looked so formal with the visible creases on his face.
Then there was Inoichi Yamanaka; the male next to Fugaku with the spiky, ash-colored hair that ran down his back in a ponytail. His blue-green eyes seemed to smile at Tohru.
Last, but not least was Shikaku Nara on the very end. His black hair was tied into a spiked ponytail, but his most notable features were the two scars on the right side of his face. He was leaned against the railing of the platform, looking lazily down at the celebration below.
There was a short pause that followed and then both Minato and Fugaku exchanged a sly smile that had Tohru wondering what sort of inside joke she was missing out on.
Fugaku nonchalantly raised an eyebrow, his smile growing on his lips. "Minato."
Minato eyed him. "Fugaku…." Then he peered at the fair-haired man next to him. "Inoichi."
His attention pulled away from the performance on the ground, Inoichi jerked his head in the direction his name was spoken. And a grin graced his mouth. "Minato," he chided. Then he squinted his eyes at the Uchiha. "Fugaku."
Said man drawled, "Inoichi…." His gaze fell to the dark-haired man leaning against the railing. "Shikaku."
"No." Shikaku said.
"You're no fun."
The little girl clinging onto Minato felt left out. "Tohru!"
Inoichi gleefully repeated. "Tohru!"
Happy to have joined the fun, Tohru threw her hands up into the air. "Yay!" The atmosphere grew light-hearted quickly and they all burst into a choir of laughter, save for Shikaku who heaved a sigh, somewhat upset that the peace was disturbed.
Soon after, he interrupted it with a question. "Oi, Minato. Is this mark going to stay on me forever?" He inquired, eyes locked on the seal imprinted on the skin of his forearm.
"You're going to die with that mark," Minato responded.
"How troublesome…." Shikaku huffed in regretful disappointment, momentarily hanging his head to emphasize it. "You should have used Choza for this."
Minato looked around. "Where is Choza?"
"Take a guess," Inoichi muttered.
"He got a little hungry," Fugaku hinted. "You would have teleported…..elsewhere."
As if understanding where he was by that alone, Minato nodded with an amused smile on his face. "Of course…" He murmured faintly. "So, Tohru? Is this the best view or what?"
Tohru jumped to attention at the sound of her name, unaware that she had unconsciously gazed back to the performance below them. She nodded. "It's amazing! I can see Ayame's dance perfectly from here! And the snakes…! Oh, and we'll even be able to see him when he reaches the Hokage Tower?"
Minato grinned, bobbing his head up and down excitedly."Mhmm! Thank, Shikaku. He's the one who found the place..." His blue eyes darted around and then he choked out a feigned, awkward cough before smiling sheepishly. "...and he let me mark him so we could teleport here. It would have been an awfully long walk otherwise since I don't have my special kunai on me. Plus the crowds are a bit wild."
Turning to the scarred man with a bubbly expression plastered on her face, her eyes dazzled as she exclaimed, "thank you!"
He didn't seem too proud with what he had done with the way he shrugged, but it was something. Even while he talked, his eyes didn't regard them, jaded scrutiny never leaving what was going on below. "No need…. I just wanted to avoid the crowds. It would have been a drag to deal with a large mob of excited people."
Having been paying attention to the Sohma performance himself, Inoichi sideways glared at the Nara clan member at his words. "You know you say, 'what a drag' a lot, but I think that the only thing that's a drag around here is your monotone voice."
Shikaku blinked once-slowly, and continued to stare at the dance below. "You know, I get the feeling you want to fight me sometimes, Yamanaka."
"A little bit," Inoichi admitted, joking or not-nobody could tell.
"Oh man…."
Though directed at everyone, Minato got the butt of it when Tohru smacked him multiple times on the shoulder in excitement. "Shhhhhh! Shhhhhhh! I think it's starting!" She whispered.
When the music ceased and the drumming died, Ayame's dancing came to an abrupt end, stopping before the Hokage Tower. Even the snakes that had slithered around him during the performance stopped and its coordinators crouched down respectfully, bringing the crafted animal down with them. Following in their footsteps, the previously cheering crowd of villagers became silent and turned in the direction of their leader's tower.
Soon after that, the Third Hokage; Hiruzen Sarutobi, dressed in an all red outfit similar to his normal attire, emerged from the entrance of the Hokage Tower, trailed by a well-known man of Konoha.
His name was Akito Sohma.
Tohru didn't know much about him besides that he was the head of the Sohma Clan. It was obvious that he was dressed in many layers, something that he never failed to do during this annual event. His robes were, of course, mostly red and the ends of it dragged on the ground behind him as he walked. He had coal-colored hair and a complexion that sat on the fence, but leaned more towards pale-still, he was very beautiful in Tohru's eyes.
Sarutobi and Akito stopped a few feet from the crowd and the now bowed group of dancers. At that moment, Tohru's eyes fell back to the Hokage tower, watching as more familiar faces made their entrance. It was a large group of Sohma clan members, all coming out in a perfectly straight line and all cladded in entirely red robes.
In the Sohma Clan's family tree-there were always twelve members that represented the twelve animals of the Chinese Zodiac (Tohru was told they were hand-picked by God). According to the legends, the order of them went as such; Rat, Ox, Tiger, Rabbit, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Goat, Monkey, Rooster, Dog and then Boar. And whenever they exited the tower, they always walked as such.
First in line and the Rat of the Zodiac was Yuki Sohma. He was about Tohru's age if not slightly older. Yuki looked quite similar to Akito Sohma, except his hair was a dark grey, almost purple-lish color-practically like his eyes. Never has Tohru seen him smile.
Second was the Ox; Hatsuharu Sohma. His hair was a rather unique and two-toned, being white with black roots. By his similar height and body index; he could have also been around Tohru's age, but she got the feeling he was younger, maybe ten years old. Behind him was the Tiger; a much younger girl with golden hair and eyes to match. Her name was Kisa Sohma. Then came Momiji Sohma who represented the Rabbit. He took on a youthful, lively appearance with his bright blonde hair and smiling face. He seemed excited about the celebration, obviously unable to maintain the serious composure that the rest of his family held.
Hatori Sohma, one of the oldest of the twelve, was known as the Dragon. He was a very handsome man with dark hair and onyx-colored eyes, one which was covered by his bangs. After him, there was an empty space meant for the Snake, Ayame. Despite his role in the opening dance-his spot remained. Next came the Horse…
Shocked by the sight, Tohru couldn't hold back a gasp. "Her hair…!"
The Horse of the Zodiac, Rin Sohma, emerged from the Tower with a new hairstyle. Her black hair that used to run long down her back was now nothing more than a choppy cut that barely touched her shoulders. As she walked, she looked down at her feet and avoided all eye contact.
Though they hadn't shown it, Minato and the others were almost as stunned by the new appearance as Tohru was. Even Shikaku's eyes widened slightly, looking somewhat horrified.
"Why would Rin-san cut that beautiful hair of hers…?" The blonde asked breathlessly.
Inoichi shook his head slowly. "I don't know, but she's had that long hair for most of her life...for her to cut it so short so suddenly is a bit puzzling."
"Women cut their hair sometimes; that's a fact," Shikaku said, watching the young, short-haired girl walk. "However…. those ends….it doesn't look like it's been cut with scissors. As a person who's witnessed something similar, I have no doubt that her hair was severed by a kunai."
At this point, Fugaku intervened. "I'm not saying you're wrong here, but Sohma members don't have access to shinobi tools. Akito even disallowed members leaving their Clan's estate unless there was an event going on. They couldn't get a hold of one."
"Akito Sohma could if he wanted to…."
Everyone got silent at this, leaving Tohru to be at her mind's disposal. Were they assuming that Rin had cut her own hair with a kunai? No way. And what did bringing Akito Sohma into the equation have to do with it? She didn't understand.
"I don't get it, Minato." Tohru whispered to the blonde holding her, obviously startling him a little when he jerked his attention to her. "What do you mean she used a kunai? She couldn't have because they can't leave their home, right…?"
Putting on a soft smile, Minato shook his head and nodded in the direction of the ceremony going on below. "Let's just enjoy the celebration, alright? We shouldn't be worrying about Rin-san's hair-maybe she just tried cutting it herself, but she's not good with scissors."
Tohru knew that tone of voice and that smile. Having grown up with this man around her, she could tell that Minato was hiding what he really thought from her. However, she decided not to probe him about it and turned back to the ceremony.
Every one of the twelve Zodiac members had assembled now, standing in a straight line behind Akito Sohma and the Third Hokage.
Momentarily, Tohru's eyes flickered to Rin and her newly short hairstyle. Then her gaze traveled down the line of the members she had missed. Hiro Sohma stood beside Rin as the Sheep of the Zodiac. He looked to be a few years Tohru's junior, just like Kisa.
Ritsu Sohma represented the Monkey. He was one of the older Sohma members of the twelve, most likely around Ayame's age. He had long, light brown hair tied in a ponytail that ran down his back. And-unconsciously?-his face seemed to be growing redder by the second. He looked a bit embarrassed, but little Tohru couldn't deny his charm.
Perhaps slightly older than Ritsu, Kureno Sohma stood by as the Rooster. His hair was a gorgeous auburn color and his eyes had a reddish-brown gleam. He was a little pale, but it only served to add to his beauty. After him came the Dog, Shigure Sohma. Somewhat taller than Kureno, Shigure sported black hair, sparkling brown eyes and a charming smile, most likely in his early twenties.
And finally was the Boar; Kagura Sohma. She was probably older than Tohru by two or three years as she slightly passed the latter in height. Her grey eyes were large and expressive, and her brown hair a little past her shoulders.
By the time she had found her place, Akito turned away from his clan and regarded the crowd of villagers standing before him.
"As fellow family of Konoha village," Akito started. "We're gathered here today to celebrate the ongoing survival and thriving of this village since our ancestors founded it. We're here to celebrate the success of living through three Shinobi World Wars. And we're here to celebrate the continuation of the Sohma Treaty that was started on this very day decades ago."
"As the story goes, once upon a time-the Shinobi World was full of hatred. And today, that same world has not changed, but it has calmed. Once upon a time, a Sohma was named God. According to our village's history, God ran away from his past and he stumbled upon Konoha. First Hokage, Hashirama Senju took him in with open arms and gave him a chance to start his life anew."
Unaware of it, Tohru was holding her breath as Akito continued relaying the legend.
"A few years passed and Era of Peace fell upon the nations. During this period, no villages fought with one another and it was normal to see ninjas of different villages visiting. In this time, God fell in love with a kunoichi of the Hidden Cloud. Now, this woman took care of foster children-thirteen of them to be exact, twelve of them which God adored. The thirteenth and youngest child who was known to be the jinchuuriki of the Eight-Tailed Beast….God adored the most. After marrying the woman, God joined her as a second caretaker and together, they raised those thirteen children to become respectful adults, most whom eventually left to make a family of their own-even in different villages. But then…."
Suddenly an eerie silence washed over the large crowd of villagers. Even Tohru could feel it from where she was. It was as if everyone were clinging onto Akito's last, fading sentence despite hearing the same story every year.
"War fell upon the ninja nations. Non-stop days of bloodshed, rainy days, screams, anguished cries….grieving the loss of fellow shinobi, friends and family. Each nation held strong and the war raged on. Caring for his now ill wife a week into the world-wide battle, God had a dream-a vision, if you will. He was told that whenever one of his children died, an animal would cross his path, BUT only certain animals. Rat, Ox, Tiger, Rabbit, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Goat, Monkey, Rooster, Dog, Boar….." Akito's voice trailed off quietly, almost spitting as he spoke the last animal's name. "...and Cat. He was told that this was in order of oldest to youngest, meaning that the oldest was the Rat and the youngest the Cat."
Akito paused, leaving everyone apprehensive for his continuation. "God never told his wife about this vision. He thought to himself, 'it was just a weird dream.' He told himself that it was simply because he was anxious and worried for his children...that it wasn't true. Days passed and he never saw a single one of those animals run by him. He brushed it off."
"Soon, any able shinobi had to be deployed onto front lines and God was forced to leave his sickly wife in the hands of the hospital staff. He stayed out there for so long he lost count of how many people in his unit died, how many days passed by, how many times he had to scrape dried
blood off his skin. One day, he got separated from his squad and instead of sticking to the trees, walked on the ground since he was so drained of chakra and hadn't eaten for hours. And that's when he saw it…"
"He saw a Rat…and as the animal stared at him-unmoving, an overwhelming feeling washed over God. Though he didn't believe the dream, he still wept. It was an uncontrollable urge that he couldn't hold back."
"Then God fainted."
"And when he next opened his eyes-he was in a cave and animals were surrounding him, looking down at him. An Ox, a Tiger, a Rabbit, a Monkey, a Boar, a Horse, a Rooster, a Dog, a Snake. In a quick moment, he blinked and all the animals were replaced by a Dragon. And when he blinked again, all of them were gone, leaving him alone in the cave."
"His children were dead. And for each of them, God cried one tear-a total of twelve." A short pause and a slight smile grew on Akito's lips before he spoke again. "Twelve….not thirteen. His youngest child was still alive somewhere. So with renewed strength, God left the cave and he set out to find him before anyone else did…"
By this time, Tohru would tune Akito's voice out so that she wouldn't have to hear the rest. She would hide her face in the fabric of her mother's clothing and try to think happy thoughts because she didn't like the way this story turned so tragic so suddenly. Lacking her mother didn't stop Tohru, she buried her face in the crook of Minato's neck and tried her hardest to block out the rest of the legend.
She didn't want to hear about how God ended up finding out that the youngest child, having been consumed by his Tailed Beast, had killed all of his brothers and sisters. She didn't want to hear how God then killed him and held his dying form as a Cat passed them by. She didn't want to hear about how God had chased after the innocent animal and killed it with his bare hands.
Even if God killing his youngest child did release the Tailed Beast. Even if it had forced the nations to work together and therefore ended the war that could have destroyed everyone…
She didn't want to hear it.
Minato was surprised when Tohru hid her face and he thought to ask her what was wrong, but then decided against it and instead tried to comfort her without words.
Tohru relaxed more when she felt a comforting hand stroke her brown hair softly. It was so gentle, so similar to the feeling of her mother's touch that she almost immediately fell into sweet slumber in his arms.
Minato stared up at Obito who was hanging upside down from a tree branch, clinging only by the chakra in his feet. Despite the fact that the last few attempts by him were an utter failure, he seemed to be getting the hang of it this time around. Unlike his last tries, he was actually lasting longer than ten seconds which was pretty good in his case as his other teammates, Rin and Kakashi, had mastered this trick a long time ago.
The spiky-haired boy grinned down at his teacher from the tree. "See, Minato-sensei? I got this. If I couldn't do a measly technique like this then what kind of Hokage would I be? I bet I could handle the walking part of it right now, too! Kakashi! Rin! Watch this…." Carefully, he took small strides along the branch. "Oh man! Am I going to be the best Hokage or what, sensei?"
Though Minato was aware of the fact that being Hokage took much more skill than being able to tread a branch while upside down, he didn't think a little confidence booster would hurt anybody. He shot the dark-haired kid an encouraging grin. "You're absolutely right, Obito."
"HOLY-!"
The Uchiha suddenly fell from the tree and had it not been for Minato's quick reflexes, he might have ended up with a bad concussion from his head meeting the ground. What should have probably been a 'thank you' and a 'I'll just have to try harder next time' turned into-
"Aw man, this is jank!" Obito shouted the moment he was put down.
Tailed by Rin, Kakashi walked over with his arms crossed over his chest, looking irritated and rather impatient. "No, this is ridiculous," he said with a sharp tongue. "Rin and I got this technique within a few hours. This is your second day!"
Obito shifted his orange goggles, eyebrows furrowing in annoyance as he also stepped forward to confront his silver-haired teammate. "You know what, Kakashi? It takes extreme concentration-you should know this since you're apparently the master at it. I'd be able to concentrate if I wasn't distracted by your stupid face!"
Kakashi's eyebrows shot up and the sharp breath that he sucked in was muffled by his mask. "My face is the stupid one? You should look in the mirror. Make sure to take off those stupid goggles while you're at it so you can see your stupidity clearly!"
"You wanna fight, Ca-ca-see Hata-ki?"
"You're childish, Obi-tit Uch-he!"
"Says the one who sunk to my level!"
From a small distance, Minato and Rin observed this with sheepish expressions on their faces. Both of them seemed caught between wanting to laugh and wanting to groan."They fight all the time, sensei," the brunette said to her teacher.
The older man nodded. "That they do…..and it's most definitely not a good thing, but it's a little amusing sometimes."
"Yeah. Yeah it is."
Even if it was entertaining to watch at times, Minato knew that he would have to break it up before it went too far. The last thing the team needed was two people who bickered so much that they wouldn't be able to work together once the situation called for it.
"Alright, you two!" Minato chided, hurrying forward to get in between the two boys who had gotten so into their argument that there was no space separating them anymore. He gently shoved them away from each other and shot them both a stern look. "Hey! Fighting isn't going to help you learn upside down walking, Obito!" Said Uchiha pouted and averted his angry gaze from his teacher. Minato then glared at the other. "And if your teammate isn't learning, you're only going to be slowed down, Kakashi." Even Kakashi had an irritated expression and he quickly turned the other cheek.
When her teacher sighed in exasperation, Rin came to her sensei's aid and walked over with taut lips. "And there's the childish looking away phase. You boys are hopeless."
"He's the hopeless one who can't walk upside down," Kakashi retorted without meeting the girl's firm gaze. "Doesn't make sense that he can't do that yet he can water walk."
"One is harder!" Obito snarled.
Kakashi rolled his eyes at the idiotic comment. "Both require chakra control to the feet! It's the same thing!"
"I'm pretty sure doing that upside down requires a lot more concentration than being upright!"
"Okay, guys-" Minato started, raising his hands.
"I GOT THIS, SENSEI!" Both boys growled at the time before snapping their attention to the other and continuing their bickering.
Blue eyes wide and hands still in the air, Minato stood there, completely stunned and feeling somewhat teamed up on by his two students. "...Oh?" His hands fell to his sides and he sighed, watching the boys verbally attack each other in defeat.
Rin face-palmed.
With an initial thought to straighten the boys up again, Minato was about to open his mouth when his attention was suddenly grabbed. He was sensing the presence of somebody else, but he couldn't tell whether their chakra signatures were familiar or not. He spun around in the direction and pulled out a kunai, nearly throwing it at the ANBU member who appeared out from the protection of the trees to land before him.
Both Kakashi and Obito ceased their argument and, with Rin, looked to their sensei and the ANBU-nin.
"Minato Namikaze, correct?" The ANBU member inquired.
With a careful nod, the blonde answered, "Correct…"
"The Third Hokage has summoned you and your team immediately…"
Minato and his team followed close behind the ANBU member as they were led into the Hokage Tower and guided to the Hokage's office. While Kakashi and Rin, like their sensei, were rather tensed and a little anxious about being summoned by the Third, Obito was a different story. The boy looked left and right excitedly as they walked, in reverie of being inside the Tower-most likely this was his first time.
When they entered inside the office, they found the Third at his desk, shuffling through a bunch of paperwork and ordering it into neat stacks. The ANBU member stood by as Minato and his squad inched forward and stopped in the middle of the room, each one of them respectfully bowing to their Hokage in greeting.
Sarutobi thanked the ANBU member and dismissed him and he bowed as well before he disappeared in a puff of smoke.
Unable to control his excitement, Obito bit his bottom lip as if to keep from screaming. "Oh, man! Summoned by the Third Hokage himself! This is gonna be good!" He looked to the Hokage with a gleam that showed even behind his orange goggles. "Are we getting a secret SSS-ranked mission that only Team Minato can successfully complete?!"
The Third raised an eyebrow and Rin elbowed her teammate, earning a groan from the boy. "Obito!" She hissed with a sharp tongue.
"Sorry…!" He whispered nimbly, rubbing the area of his stomach that her elbow connected with. When he tried to avoid her scolding gaze, he only met with the piercing glare coming from his teacher and he quickly looked down at his feet. "Sorry…."
When Minato turned to the Third, his scowl was replaced by a small smile. "My apologizes, Lord Hokage….Obito is...uh…"
"Stupid." Kakashi tried.
"Easily fired up." Minato said promptly, noticing the open-mouthed Uchiha point a finger at Kakashi as if tattling on him like a toddler. He addressed it by pushing Obito's arm down.
Sarutobi stared at the odd bunch, eyes unblinking. "Whenever you're ready, Minato."
"We are, sir…" The blonde responded.
The Third nodded slowly and then regarded the three with a solemn expression. "Well….Obito didn't fall far from the tree. There is indeed a mission that I strongly believe would be at its highest rate of success with Team Minato at its core. However…" His expression turned to stone and he held each one of their gazes with his unyielding eyes. "It involves the Sohma Clan…."
There was a long, much needed pause and a cold atmosphere grew inside the office. Minato didn't look away from the Third Hokage-he didn't want to see what kind of faces his students might be making. Personally, he'd take the mission if he knew he could help. But he didn't know how his team felt about the Sohmas themselves. So many mysteries surrounded their clan so it'd be normal for them to feel unsure.
Not an utter came from any of them and so the Third went on. "It's understandable if you would rather not get involved with them. Most shinobi are not interested in doing so due to the rumors about them that are floating about. This mission isn't required of you."
Minato looked to his students and each of them met his unruffled gaze. "It's all up to you."
The first one to respond was Rin. The brunette shook her head and exclaimed, "I don't mind!" Her eyes turned on the Third Hokage and she smiled assuringly. "If we're helping them, especially, then it's okay! I accept."
Kakashi shrugged. "A mission is a mission. I accept, too."
Everyone's attention fell to the dark-haired boy who was staring at his feet, looking as if he were deep in thought. It took Minato calling his name to bring him back to reality and seeming as if he were in a trance, he answered suddenly. "Yeah! I agree with Rin. Even though the Sohmas creep me out a little because they're so bizarre, I want to help them if I can. So yes. I accept."
Meeting the four certain gazes of the members of Team Minato, Sarutobi smiled and nodded approvingly. "It's settled then. You'll be training with Sohma Members."
"Minato. Stay back with me a second." Having been about to follow his team out the office, he had stopped and turned around to find Sarutobi wearing a formidable expression on his face. "Please be aware…. this mission depends solely on you alone."
What exactly had that meant?
Minato wondered.
Was it because he would be the Sohma kids' teacher? Perhaps he was just saying that because they would be his responsibility and any harm that came to them would be under his watch? But if it were really that simple, then how come the Third hadn't just said that? How come when he had tried to question him further and ask what he meant, the man had just walked by without saying another word?
"This place is huge!" Rin's awed voice snapped the blonde from his own thoughts. "It's like a whole different village inside a village!"
She wasn't overexagerrating.
Though the Sohma residence paled in comparison to the size of Konoha village, it was still large for a clan estate. Sitting close by the Uchiha and Hyuuga Clan's homes sat the Sohmas, a smaller area closed off by black fencing and a large rusted gate. When they entered, they were greeted by older, orthodox housing lining the sides of a pavement sidewalk. Between some buildings were small water springs and neatly cut grass, adding a natural feel to the area.
"Everything looks so traditional," Obito mused quietly. "And the air seems thinner here than back in Konoha. It's hard to believe this place is inside it."
"Not really," Kakashi replied, glancing around without a hint of astonishment on his jaded face. "One of the rumors about the Sohmas is that they've withheld a lot of old Japanese traditions that their ancestors were used to decades ago. Our village is overrun with the smell of food, steel and metal due to ninja tools being made and all of the like, too. They don't, and then they have many springs which will make the area prone to humidity-hence the natural scent. So that would explain the air."
The Uchiha whistled."Fancy. Even the air isn't as calming where my clan is and we have a river running next to our estate." He fell behind a few seconds from admiring a beautiful, tall tree and hurried to catch up to the group. "They should try something new, though. You know, like get a fresh look or something."
The brunette walking beside him sighed. "Obito…"
"It was just a suggestion, Rin."
Leading the group, Sarutobi finally spoke up for the first time since their arrival. "Speaking of traditions and ancestors, please be as reverent as possible when we reach the Main House. Akito Sohma needs to utmost respect. Do not speak suddenly or without asking." He shot the kids a hard look when he glanced over his shoulder. "And I mean it."
"Akito Sohma…..as in the head of the family, Akito Sohma?" Minato inquired.
"That would be correct. He hardly ever leaves the Sohma estate and is rather…." The Third paused as if trying to find the right word. "...skittish when its comes to outside visitors he's never met before. You must take this opportunity in the most highest regard; treat it as privilege and do not challenge him."
Kakashi cocked an eyebrow questioningly at the back of the old man. "Challenge him how?"
"In general, Kakashi. If it's challenging him or testing his position over you, do not do it." Sarutobi said in an unwavering and firm tone, unknowingly sending a chill down the backs of everyone on Team Minato. "Treat him as you would treat anybody you respect. Trust me when I say that Akito is not someone to be trifled with. Do you all understand?"
In unison, they all confirmed that they understood. "Sir!"
Still, Minato thought to himself. Do not challenge him? He wasn't someone to be trifled with? Just what kind of man was Akito Sohma?
They walked in silence, every step bringing them closer and closer to the Main House of the Sohma estate. Though the place was undeniably beautiful, it appeared that the more they admired it, the more the place seemed deserted. Since they first arrived, not one Sohma member had been seen. Perhaps they were all inside, but that puzzled Minato personally since he knew there were kids here. He had spent most of his childhood playing outside whenever he could….even the children of Konoha now did the same.
How come they didn't?
Eventually, the line of houses stopped on the left side and suddenly where there should have been a home, there was a large box of some sort. In the front, it was barred like a prison cell and the rest of the walls, most likely built from pure wood. It caught the attention of Minato and his entire team, but Sarutobi ignored it as they walked by. He ignored the fact that there was a small, orange-haired child sleeping inside of it like a caged animal.
Rin almost stopped dead in her tracks, but Kakashi gently pushed her back into a stride, coaxing her to keep walking. Still, this didn't stop her mouth from opening. She looked to her teacher, noticing that he refused to look at the boy in the box. "Minato-sensei…..that boy…"
"They may have a reason for it," Minato said with surprising briskness.
Her eyes darted between him and the caged child. "But-!"
"Just leave it alone, Rin!" Kakashi growled, his hands pressed to her back to keep her from stopping. "It's none of our business why they have him locked away like that."
"So you're saying that it's okay to lock up a kid like that?"
The silver-haired genin rolled his eyes, obviously irked by the assumption. "No. I'm not saying that at all."
"How would you like to be kept in a cage, Kakashi?" Rin countered defensively, face twisted in exasperation. Though she tried to keep her voice low as if to avoid disturbing the Sohma members who were probably inside, the vexation in it was undeniable. "You wouldn't like it, would you? To be treated like a monster or something inhuman? To be caged up like-"
"I wouldn't, but-"
"You two, be quiet!" Minato snapped lucidly, blue eyes narrowing when he looked back and regarded them both with an icy glare. Though piercing at first, his voice softened after. "Kakashi is right. For now, we're in no position to question or investigate the matter. I highly doubt they would have a child locked away for no good reason. Just leave it alone, Rin."
Once again speaking after minutes of being silent, Sarutobi glanced the younger man's way with an amused expression on his face. "You have such a talkative team, Minato…"
"...My apologizes, Lord Hokage."
The Main House was the largest building of the entire estate and Sarutobi couldn't help but chuckle at Obito who nearly fell backwards trying to look up to its highest point. At the entrance awaited Hatori Sohma-known as the Dragon of the Zodiac-dressed in an traditional kimono. He didn't say anything to the group, he simply bowed respectfully and then turned to enter the house, suggesting that they were to follow him inside.
He led them to a spacious room, practically occupied by nothing other than air. It was one of the most emptiest rooms that Sarutobi has ever seen in his lifetime; and though he would never admit it out loud, he was pretty damn old. So that should have said something.
Sitting in the corner was that very same man that left this estate only once a year and stood by Sarutobi to tell a very familiar story to the people of Konoha. Head of the Clan; Akito Sohma. Pressed up against the corner, it looked like he could have been sleeping, head tilted down enough to leave his bangs hanging over his face. Likewise, he also looked like he could have been dead, unmoving and stiff.
However, when Hatori called his name, Akito raised his head-slowly-as if waking up from a long slumber. He didn't seem to have been sleeping, though.
He pushed himself up to his feet as Hatori led the group into the room.
Just like what he wears during the annual Sohma celebration, Akito was dressed in many layers, a robe obviously too big for him that dragged across the floor as he walked to the front of the room. Even his sleeves passed his fingertips by a few inches.
Hatori got to his knees on the ground, sitting on the back of his legs and placing his hands in his lap. He then lowered his head slightly, something that was similar to a bow in a sitting position.
All it took was a glance from Sarutobi and Minato, Rin, Kakashi and Obito followed Hatori's example, figuring that this was another one of the traditions that the Sohma Clan held onto.
Akito Sohma didn't even look at them, instead taking soft strides over to the Third Hokage.
"Good afternoon, Hiruzen Sarutobi…"
"Akito Sohma…" The old Hokage greeted with a faint smile. With a small turn, he gestured to the blonde man sitting on the ground. "This is Minato Namikaze. He is the one I've chosen to accept your mission-him and his team. The girl is Rin Nohara. The boy with the goggles is Obito Uchiha and the other is Kakashi Hatake."
When the Third looked back at the head of the Sohma family, he wasn't surprised to see him staring at Minato with a hard scowl. His dark eyes were slightly narrowed and his eyebrows furrowed, a measly twitch in his face. It was almost amusing to the Hokage.
"Are you taunting me, Lord Hokage…?" Akito growled under his breath, flickering his sharp gaze to him with a gleaming danger that wasn't as threatening to the older man as it was most likely was supposed to be.
Sarutobi shook his head, expression humorless and unwavering. "I would never."
Suddenly seeming to be seething with rage, Akito gritted his teeth, jaw clenched as if he were holding himself back from doing something unethical. The air changed faster than a fingersnap, becoming thick and tense with the emotions that Akito may have been compressing within himself. Even Team Minato sensed this, a nasty feeling settling in the pits of their stomachs.
Akito moved, his footsteps gentle, but rapid.
Minato raised his head and found that the dark-haired Sohma had crouched before him, holding him in his calculating scrutiny. Though he kept his eyes on the blonde, he regarded the Hokage once more. "This is one of the best shinobi you have, Sarutobi?" He questioned in a whisper.
"Yes," the Third responded in a careful, genuine voice. "I am not trying to spite you."
None of Team Minato had time to wonder why exactly Akito would consider this to be something spiteful towards him because before they could even ponder the possibilities, the Sohma broke into a fit a audaciously insane laughter. Literally, insane. He sounded like he was cackling.
He startled everyone-save for Sarutobi and Hatori who seemed unfazed by it as if they were used to this coming from him.
Then Akito lashed out at Minato, wrapping his long fingers around his neck in a dangerously tight grip that threatened his trachea. In an immediate response, the blonde choked out an ugly noise in a futile attempt to get a quick gulp of oxygen, his hands reflexively shooting up to grab Akito's arms as a means of countermeasure.
After momentary shock; Hatori, Rin, Kakashi and Obito leapt to their feet instantly and came to Minato's aid, each one of them getting ahold of Akito in a frantic endeavor to keep the Sohma from strangling the man to death.
From the side, Sarutobi stared at the struggling group and then looked to the room's doorway, glad that he had been smart enough to station to ANBU members nearby in case Akito ended up snapping.
A/N: Hopefully you liked it! I mean, I guess you must have if you read this far. This was just a little idea I came up with while re-watching Fruits Baskets and being a Naruto fan.
If you liked it, please let me know in a review/comment! They motivate me much more than favs/follows alone!