Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto and all that
A/N: I may or may not have made some things up-why? Because I don't know all the rules in the Ninja Handbook, that's why. You'll see what I mean by chapter two.
Chapter One: The Return of the Lost Uchiha
The evening was just beginning to fall lightly on the Village rooftops, illuminated by the dim glow of the sinking sun. A few shops in the square were just closing, while others were just opening up. The nocturnal people of the village just began to shuffle out of their houses to start their secret partying lifestyles. It was impossible to notice that there was a stranger in town. Her name was Kasuka.
At Imu-Imu Hajime's Seafood, the owner was sweeping the last bits of dirt out of his stall before locking it up for the day. He reversed the shop's sign that dawned the motto "The Best Fried Squid In Konoha," so that it read, 'CLOSED'. When he was done, and clapped his hands together to shake off any dust, and turned to yank down the iron cover that went over the stall at night.
"Aa!" He jerked back with in surprise as he came face to face with a stranger. Through squinted eyes he took a second look, and raised an eyebrow. "Ohh.."
"Excuse me, sir," the female stranger asked, "Can you tell me where I might find an Inn nearby?"
"New, huh?" The owner, Hajime, said, scanning the girl in front of him. She looked around her young teens, a beautiful face with sharp, cold eyes. Her build was strong and heavy-not too slender, but certainly not overweight. She had long dark hair that fell down to her chest, barely concealing a thin neckless with a red and white fan symbol dangling from the chain around her neck. Inevitably, his eyes moved downward. As he scanned her large chest he said under his breath, "Uchihas do get the best of everything, don't they?"
"What did you say?" The girl snapped coldly, and Hajime quickly averted his eyes.
"I said there is an Inn up this street, and it's fairly decent," he said brightly.
"Thanks." A small smiled played on his lips as he watched her go.
"Wait," he called. "How about a name?" The girl appeared to hesitate for a second, but she never looked back.
"Kasuka," she replied evenly, and was gone.
Hm. I probably shouldn't go around telling anyone my name, Kasuka Uchiha noted in the morning. She was getting dressed after a good night's sleep, and going over her plans. Besides, I'm here for one thing and one thing only, she reminded herself as she pulled on a black sandal. It was easy to tell herself that in the hot, stuffy room but as soon as she stepped outside into the beautiful breeze of her hometown one thought clouded her mind. It's good to be back. She un-crinkled the map she brought with her.
Ugh, I feel like such a tourist, she thought, glancing at the map. I thought I would remember my birthplace. Within twenty minutes, she managed to find her way to a large brick building, where she was sure she would find the Hokage's office. Two things were discovered upon her arrival. She certainly wasn't expected, and Tsunade was certainly not in the mood.
"You're not from around here, are you?" The female Hokage said bluntly after Kasuka had asked what had happened to the Third Hokage, Sarutobi.
"Actually," she replied. "I am."
"You don't look like you're from around here," Tsuande observed, eyeing her choice of dress. She was obviously a ninja. The slit in her black, thigh length dress revealed kunai pouches and sheathes. And why else would she have training weights under her white arm bands? As an answer, she pulled from her backpack a headband. Tsuande's brows knitted together in confusion when she saw the sun gleam off it's symbol. It was a Leaf village headband.
"Look in your books or something," Kazuka said. "My arrival is sceduled by the 3rd Hokage."
"What? What is your name?"
"My name...is Kasuka Uchiha." She dropped the backpack from her shoulders and turned around so Tsuande could see the Uchiha symbol that decorated her back. Tsuande dropped the cup that was in her hand and it's contents spilled over the edge of her desk. The powerful scent of alchohol filled their noses.
It took a few minutes for The Hokage to recover.
"Another Uchiha?" She asked, her eyebrows twitching slightly. Kasuka shouldered her pack and drew closer.
"What do you mean another Uchiha? I am the last." She stared confidently at the blond woman, who smiled.
"Well, we all thought Sasuke was the last of the Uchiha Clan." Kasuka's jaw dropped slightly. It was her turn to be surprised.
"Sasuke? Sasuke Uchiha? That's my little cousin..."
"He's not so little anymore."
"I didn't know he... No one told me... Where is he?" She demanded, landing fist on Tsunade's desk.
"Okay, back up. We have a lot to clear up here," Tsunade told hee sternly, clasping her hands together. " You first explain to me why you're here, and I'll dig up where your cousin is." Kasuka nodded and began to tell her long background.
"Is that all you've got?" Kakashi asked boredly, sending the blond, hyper ninja into another fit of fury. Presently on the training grounds, Kakashi closed one eye. He immediatly picked up the sound of Naruto heavy footfalls.
"Aaaaaah!" Naruto cried, charging. And, he failed. Again. Sakura laughed.
"This is your own fault, Naruto! You shouldn't say things you don't mean!" What happened was, in an act of both anger and overconfidence, Naruto had told Kakashi he could hit him with one hand behind his back. Kakashi ordered he prove it. Now Naruto was trying his best to even touch Kakashi-with, of course, one hand tied behind his back. It was cruel, yes. Kakashi's lessons were ususally valuable, but cruel.
Sasuke Uchiha watched without a smirk on his face; he believed they were wasting valuable training time. Until, that is, Kakashi decide to have him join in.
"Why don't we see if Sasuke can do it?" Their Sensei suggested, his favorite way to motivate his young student. Naruto growled. "You too, Sakura. All of you." Sakura, in the act of tying Sasuke's arm behind his back, groaned.
Me too? She thought. Oh come on..!
Team 7 spent all their energy trying to accomplish this task. It irritated Sasuke that Kakashi would hardly even look at them. Instead, he had other things he was more concerned in. Like the person in the distance that had been watching them for quite a while.
"Wait," Kakashi commanded and the three stopped their relentless attack to catch their breath. He held out one hand and his eyes darted to the side. "You there. Do you need something? You're on Team 7 training grounds," he stated, but not unkindly. The person covered by the shadows stepped fully into the sunlight. At first, because of the girl's hair Kakashi thought it was Kurenai, but as she drew closer he saw that she wasn't. Everyone paused to evaluate the stranger. First, her dark eyes settled on Kakashi.
"Excuse me, I'm looking for..." She began to say in a not-so-friendly tone, but she must have spotted what she was searching for. Kakashi's breath caught in the back of his throat when the girl turned her back to him, revealing the Uchiha symbol on her dress. His eyes tore to Sasuke, who must have seen it, too. Kazuka was feet from him now, staring him right in the eye.
In Kasuka's eyes, she saw the grown boy in front of her transform into the same eight year old Sasuke she had left behind.
"Sasuke...? Sasuke!" Before he knew what hit him Sasuke felt arms thrown around him and minor suffocation. He pulled roughly from the embrace.
"Who are you?" he said icily. The girl he had pushed away glared.
"It's Kasuka," she turned a little, displaying her back. "Kasuka Uchiha. Nice to see you too." Like Tsuande, it took a Sasuke a while to regsiter just who the girl standing in front of him was, and Sasuke wasn't one to forget a face. Slowly, his expressioned changed.
Shock. Disbelief. Belief. Was that a smile edging on the corner of his mouth?
"Well, say something!" He heard her demand and felt himself being swallowed by Kasuka's embrace again.
"Come on," she whispered in his ear, ignoring the incredulous looks from Sakura and Naruto. "We have to go to the Hokage's, and I'll explain everything."
"I don't understand, this is impossible. How do I know it's you!" Sasuke, hardly able to contain himself, demanded when Tsunade confirmed Kasuka's claim.
"Why would I lie?" Kasuka snapped testily, also impatient. "I could hardly believe you were still alive. But I know it's you, you look like your mother, my aunt." Sasuke gritted his teeth.
"Tell me what's going on," he said. Tsunade watched the confrontation from her desk. Kasuka Uchiha drew a deep, calming breath and sat down. She looked Sasuke in the eye and began her tale.
"Don't you remember how I went on vacation to the Land of Snow? Well, maybe you don't remember, I know when we were little we didn't see each other that much. But I went to visit my friend who had moved away. So I did, and I was there for, maybe, a week. Yeah, only a week. One day, there was a knock on the door. I opened the door innocently, and I was shocked top see a group of masked ninja at the doorstep. They were sent to infrom me of what happened. They ... the told me Itachi had massacred my clan! They told me I couldn't return to the village, because it wasn't safe for me. They told me the Hokage said I could come back at the age of fourteen. I was devastated. I felt guilty. I felt guilty that this hadn't happened to me, too. Why was I spared when everyone else was...dead? And why Itachi? I spent the rest of my time there training, and I completed my training at the ninja academy there. I vowed to destroy Itachi, no matter what. And when I turned fourteen, I went back to the village. I came here to Konoha to reclaim the Uchiha manor and get information on Itachi. NO one ever told me you were alive." At this point, Tsuande intervened.
"I was told by the Third Hokage's trusted council that he kept this secret from you because he feared you would still come to Konoha and try to contact Sasuke in some way, giving Itachi your location. He feared he would come back to annialiate you."
"That's ridiculous! So ke kept Sasuke a secret from me all that time?"
"It wasn't my decision, so sit down and calm yourself," Tsuande ordered. "And I believe this was also kept from Sasuke for the same reason." Kazuka glanced at her cousin. His fists were clenched so hard his knuckled turned white.
"So all this time, I thought I was the only one. Alone. And..."
"I agree with the third Hokage. It was a wise decision. I'm sure Itachi would have came back for you, Kazuka, if he had known." She grunted. "Well, you're back, and I'm sure everyone is dysing to see the second Uchiha."
"I'm sure," Kazuka said sourly. "I just want to go home." She looked at Sasuke, who nodded.
"I would say you two have a lot to catch up on..."