My version of some events that happened after the chunin exams. Rated at 13+ because a certain Sand shinobi has a potty mouth, jaan. These characters are not mine, I just borrowed them for a little bit.
Aftermath
Kankuro stopped and lowered Gaara to the ground. Temari stopped too. They had not gone very far but she was so tired that it felt like she had been running forever.
"We need to put some distance behind us before we rest," she said. "If you are tired I can take him."
"You can't carry him, he's too heavy. We have to find out what has happened. We can't just blindly run back home with no details to report. What the hell happened back there? Someone screwed up. That was…"
Gaara muttered something and rolled over.
"What did he say?"
"I am not sure. He has been muttering strange things ever since he… Ever since we left."
"He apologized to you, Kankuro."
"I know. And he keeps muttering stuff like 'he's like me', 'I could be like him', 'fight for those you love'." Kankuro pushed his fingers under his forehead protector to scratch his head. He shook himself. "It still feels like they are all over me," he muttered. "Stupid bugs. Stupid freaking jutsu. Stupid council morons and their idiot plan."
Temari laughed. It was bad timing for it, but sometimes when she was stressed a laugh would just slip out. And Kankuro was making a funny face as he tried to scratch his head and back. She flashed back to her battle during the chunin exams. She had been up against some serious talent and yet at crucial moments the most flirty sounding comments or laughter had popped out of her mouth. Sometimes it seemed that she had even less control over herself then either of her brothers.
"I can look for bugs again but I'd have to look under your clothes."
Kankuro made another face and clutched his jumper close around him, hunching into the folds of the loose material, "Screw that."
Temari knew that the bugs were not the real problem, Kankuro was shaken by the day's events, so shaken that he was having a hard time keeping himself in check. When he was really upset he tended to swear more than usual.
"Screw that," he said again. "I am going to scout around."
"What? But we can't…"
"Just watch him damn it. I won't be long." Kankuro took off at a run, Karasu bouncing at his back.
Temari sighed and sat down beside her youngest brother.
"Boys are idiots."
She pulled her fan around and ran her hands over it, checking for damage. She sighed again and relaxed a little. It felt good to let some of the tension drain out of her body. It was harder for her to maintain a stoic appearance; she did not have Gaara's sand armor or Kankuro's cowl and face paint. It was easier to put up a tough front when you could hide behind a mask.
Gaara relaxed and stopped muttering. Unconscious had turned into asleep. A small bird landed nearby and then hopped closer. It tugged on Gaara's hair, pulling a few of the red strands free and then flew away. Temari supposed that it was building a nest somewhere. Gaara had not twitched and none of his usual defenses had reacted. She was not sure if that was a good or bad thing. She sighed a third time, wrapped her arms around her knees, and waited.
At first Kankuro just ran as fast as he could. Maybe the motion would knock any remaining bugs off. He had not gone far when a stitch in his side forced him to stop. He leaned against a tree, breathing hard. He would never be a sprinter. He did not have the slender build needed for it, like Gaara and Temari did. And they did not have to haul Karasu around. Gaara had his sand, but the chakra infused in his gourd helped to lighten the load.
And Kankuro could not expect his load to get any lighter. Recent events had shown him that he was going to need to master another puppet, but it was going to be hard to balance the improvement in offence against the extra weight. In the past, puppeteers had used other methods to carry their puppets. The great master Sasori, for example, had been able to carry dozens of puppets of all shapes and sizes. Kankuro had Sasori's puppets but that was all. The master was long gone from the village, taking his secrets with him. Kankuro had exhausted all sources of information on the matter. What he needed was a proper teacher or he was never going to become strong enough to advance beyond the genin-level.
He ran his hands across the front of his jumper, sopping up some of his sweat with the loose material. He looked around, he had not been paying attention to his surroundings and that was never good.
A kunai thumped into the ground at his feet. Kankuro backed away, letting Karasu slide from his shoulder.
Stupid idiot, he thought, you weren't paying attention. This is bad.
He could not locate the source of the attack. He could hide, but he could not be sure that he could pick a spot that would be safe from his opponent's view. He could switch with Karasu, but if someone saw him switch then the effort would have been wasted.
Fine then, he thought, we will do it without any substitutions. Karasu was useful for other things than fighting. He could be another set of eyes for Kankuro. He would use the puppet to scout the area from above and then attack. He was tired, but he could always find the energy for a fight. And it would be an opportunity to work out his frustrations.
He put his palms together and concentrated. Karasu twitched and rose into the air, his joints clacking. He flew up to the top of the trees and then started to hunt. Kankuro watched for movement on the ground. He would use Karasu to flush out their prey and then make them sorry for bothering him.
Kankuro heard soft laughter off to his left. He looked that way and then jerked his head back. The laughter had covered the hissing noise of the coils of wire that were spiraling towards him from the right. He pulled on the chakra strings controlling Karasu, trying to bring him back down to intercept the wire, but the puppet was too far away. The wire coiled around his body, pinning his arms to his sides. He forced his left hand between the strands. As long as he could move one hand, he could fight. His attacker would reveal himself soon and then Kankuro would have a chance.
Someone tugged on the wire and Kankuro jerked back against the pressure. In a moment he would have Karasu in place to take out whoever it was. Kankuro drew his lips back into a sneer. If some moron thought that he was going to stop Kankuro with a skinny little wire then he was mistaken. Soon Karasu would put his arms around the guy and then Kankuro would show the idiot the meaning of pain.
There was a flash of light off glasses and a man stepped into view. It took a moment for Kankuro to recognize him.
"You. What the hell do you think you are doing?"
Kabuto jerked his arm, tightening the wire and pulling the genin to his knees. Kankuro's right hand was pinned to his side, but his left hand was still free. Kabuto tugged again to try and pull him over, but Kankuro spread his knees apart, stabilizing himself. The puppeteer strained against the wire and almost pulled Kabuto off his feet. It had to hurt, the strands of wire were very sharp. Kankuro's expression might have been a grimace, but it was just as likely to be a snarl.
Kabuto heard a clacking noise and sensed another presence close by. He ducked and rolled away. He caught a glimpse of the puppet's shaggy brown hair as it flew by.
A low voice floated through the trees, "He can only use one hand and you still cannot take him down Kabuto? I expect much more from you. Especially now."
Orochimaru stepped into the clearing.
Kabuto stood and pulled on the wire again, "There is nothing to worry about. I am just playing with him. This one is the brother of…"
"I know what he is," Orochimaru cut Kabuto off. "That is not important anymore." He looked at Kankuro. "However…"
"You should pay more attention to this fight, idiot! It is not over!" Kankuro flexed the fingers of his free hand and Karasu flew towards Orochimaru.
Orochimaru laughed, "Do I pay attention to the insects under my feet?"
He made an odd gesture with his shoulders. Kankuro noticed that his arms were hanging limp at his sides. His hands were a strange colour; they looked like flesh long dead.
However, even without the use of hand signs Orochimaru still had powerful genjutsu. In the blink of an eye he had Kankuro in his grip. The Sand shinobi gasped, his eyes going wide. He lost his focus and Karasu dropped to the ground.
Kabuto flicked the wire to send coils around Kankuro's thighs. He pulled and the dazed genin fell over on his face. Kabuto stepped closer, keeping a firm grip on the end of the wire. He flipped Kankuro onto his back with one foot. He was in the grip of Orochimaru's genjutsu, but the expression on his face told Kabuto that he was fighting it. Kabuto leaned over and grabbed Kankuro's free hand. He twisted to dislocate his wrist and triggered a pressure point that would prevent chakra flow through Kankuro's arm.
"That should stop the puppet show."
"Puppet techniques. It can take years to become a master. I suspect that your father decided you should become a puppet user. He was probably trying to please someone on the council. Or were you just not good enough to host to the one-tail? So you were sent off to play with puppets instead. I wish he had chosen your sister. It would have made the creature more useful to me." Orochimaru looked away a moment, thinking of something else.
"But no matter," he continued, "I have made other arrangements. I told him what was going to happen, you know…right before I killed him. You have failed to defeat the Leaf, just as I planned. And now they will ruin you." He laughed at the expression on Kankuro's face. "Oh, yes, it is true. I saw you, you know, in all those meetings. Being so attentive. Trying to please him. How long have you done that I wonder? And in the end you could not tell that it was not him." Orochimaru paused to relish the effect he was having on the genin. "Hmm. Your skills might be useful to me… You probably won't survive getting my mark…but it won't hurt to try. Take off his cowl, Kabuto."
Kabuto did as he had been ordered. He grabbed Kankuro's hair with his free hand and pulled his head to one side to expose his neck. Orochimaru must have lessened his control over the boy because he started to squirm, trying to get his head free and kick Orochimaru at the same time. He was muttering curses and threats.
"Hold still. You should be honored..."
"Stuff it dumbass."
Orochimaru knelt down and looked into his face, "Such fierce eyes. And the face paint shows them off so well. I do appreciate a man who dares to use cosmetics. I have just noticed Kabuto, that he looks like his father. So what are you trying to do? Trying to stand out from your special younger brother? Or that talented older sister? Or are you hiding the resemblance? If they aren't reminded of who you are, then they won't expect as much from you. Or are you just hiding? Hmm?"
Orochimaru's long tongue snaked out and passed over Kankuro's face, smearing paint all over. Kankuro made a noise; it sounded like disgust and anger mixed together. Orochimaru could taste paint and the salt of Kankuro's sweat. He imagined that he could also taste considerable anger and disgust. Kankuro dug the heels of his sandals into the ground and tried to push away from his captors. Orochimaru could have held him completely still with his genjutsu, but he preferred to have his prey wriggling. It made them feel like they might have a chance to get away and that added to the thrill. He ran his tongue along the boy's throat. Kankuro made another noise. Definitely disgust this time, and perhaps a touch of fear as well. Orochimaru knew he could make the boy whimper, but it would take time. And he just did not have much time. He withdrew his tongue.
"If you beg, I might not do it."
"Go to hell freak…"
Kabuto jerked on Kankuro's hair and pulled the wire tighter at the same time. The young shinobi grunted.
"And take this four-eyed idiot with you." He bared his teeth in a snarl.
Orochimaru set his teeth on Kankuro's neck, just where it met his shoulder.
"Bastard. Just die."
"Beg me."
Kankuro shook his head as much as he could. Orochimaru pressed his teeth harder against his skin.
"Just one little 'please'. That is all I want to hear."
Kankuro pressed his lips tight, so no sound could escape.
Orochimaru forced Kankuro's mind deeper into the genjutsu. He showed Kankuro a vision of the fourth Kazekage's death; with the man on his knees before Orochimaru pleading for his life.
Kankuro tried to shake his head, to deny the vision. Orochimaru bit down harder until he was less than a hair away from drawing blood. He paused like that to let Kankuro's fear build. But then, all of a sudden, he was just too tired. He drew back; it was just not worth the effort. Better to leave this one to witness the end of his village, he decided. That would be a much more exquisite torment. He was going to have to find some way to watch. He had other assets hidden in the desert and he would have to check on them from time to time. It would be nice to be able to mix business with pleasure.
"But then again," he continued his thoughts out loud, " I cannot just leave you alive to tell others what you saw here. It is better to keep the number of people that know about my current…affliction to a minimum."
Orochimaru shrugged, the movement made his arms swing, "You should have chosen to take your chances with me. Dying from my mark can be painful, but Kabuto will not make your death any easier. Foolish pride runs in your family it seems." He looked at his underling, "Do not take too long."
"Sounds like someone is going to need you wipe his ass, Kabuto," a weak voice sneered.
Orochimaru looked amused, "Not too long Kabuto. We have more important things to do."
Kabuto watched him leave and then looked at Kankuro, "Only one other person has refused him like that. I will kill her someday too."
Kankuro was struggling to sit, but Orochimaru's genjutsu was still having an effect on him so he was not succeeding. He rolled onto his right side. He was trying to make the fingers on his left hand move.
Kabuto flicked his wrist to shift some of the coils of wire from Kankuro's shoulders to his throat and pulled them tight.
This was going to be sweet, Kabuto thought. He had watched Kankuro defeat Misumi. The Sand shinobi had been so arrogant in his triumph. All three of them had been arrogant, strolling through the exams like they were nothing. The brat from the Leaf village had humbled Gaara and now Kabuto would have a chance to wipe the sneer off his brother's painted face for good.
The boy was rocking back and forth, still trying to get loose, but his movements were getting slower and weaker. Kabuto took a step closer, a smile spreading across his face.
He took another step and something solid wrapped around him. It was the puppet. Somehow Kankuro had activated the puppet. Kabuto jerked back and forth, trying to get free. He tried to look behind him to see if there were any weapons attacks coming from the puppet. There was a mocking laugh from the across the clearing.
Kankuro had rolled onto his back and had lifted his head and shoulders off the ground. His lips were pulled back all the way to his gums and his eyes were ablaze. Somehow he had freed his right hand and had activated Karasu without letting Kabuto sense the chakra flow. Kabuto realized that Kankuro had sent chakra through the ground, sneaking it by him. The futile wiggling of his left hand had been a diversion.
"Should have paid better attention, asshole. And the puppet show's not over until I say it is."
He twitched his hand and the chakra strings rose out of the ground. Karasu's grip tightened around Kabuto. Kabuto's grip on the wire slipped. He had to get Kankuro to stop manipulating the puppet. He could not let go of the wire; it was all that was holding Kankuro down. He was fortunate that Kankuro could only get one hand to work, otherwise had he would have already activated the weapons hidden in the puppet.
Kabuto inched his free hand to a belt pouch. He flipped the snap open on the first one that he was able to reach. He was trying to get his fingers around the contents when the puppet flopped forward. Kabuto was pitched onto his face. The contents of the pouch flew out and rolled into the clearing. Kabuto gasped. These were bombs! They were meant to be thrown and then explode about a minute after impact. One minute was usually enough time for Kabuto to get away. The impact of their fall started the timers on several of them. Kabuto was able to kick some of them towards Kankuro, while others scattered all over.
Kankuro twisted and strained against the wire. It hurt like hell, but he was getting free. But he was running out of time. One of the little bombs hissed, it was very close to his head. His left hand was still useless, but if he let go of the chakra strings controlling Karasu to defuse the bomb, then Kabuto would get free.
"Let me go and I will defuse them. Otherwise we might both die here."
"Fine. Whatever. We can continue this in hell."
Kabuto's eyes went wide. The genjutsu must have driven Kankuro crazy. He struggled against the grip of the puppet. He thought that if he tried a variation on Misumi's techniques he might be able to wriggle free. However, he would not be able to defend himself from additional attacks for awhile. If he was going to do it, he had to do it right away. Across the clearing, Kankuro had freed his legs and was flailing around, knocking bombs everywhere.
He heard the mocking voice one more time, "Show's almost over, asshole. And it's going to end with a bang."
A muffled explosion caught Baki's attention. It was right in the path of Kankuro's trail. It seemed that the genin had found someone to fight. On any other day, he would be worried about what Kankuro might do to whoever it was. When he was upset Kankuro tended to take it out on whoever crossed his path. However, on this day there were enough high level shinobi moving about that Kankuro might find himself outmatched. And for the first time since the three children of the Kazekage had been teamed together, Kankuro was without Gaara's protection.
The Kazekage. Baki clenched his fists. Orochimaru's revelation about his death was still fresh enough in his mind to shock Baki. The magnitude of the event and the scope of its consequences were hard to imagine.
Baki shook his head to try and bring order to his thoughts. First things first, he had to get his students home safely. Then they would debrief, report to the council, and then go from there. He ran a little faster, he had a sudden sick feeling in his gut.
Five minutes later he arrived at the site of the explosion. Trees had been uprooted by the blast and lay in a pile. The pile was twitching and shifting. Baki approached, all senses alert. He thought that he had missed the fight, but it was best to be cautious. He noticed something on the ground and stopped to pick up a familiar black cowl.
He looked under the pile of wood. Kankuro peered out at him, his eyes wide. He was using one hand to control Karasu and his other hand lay by his side. His swollen wrist was visible even at a distance. Karasu was propped up on his arms; his body was preventing the uprooted trees from crushing Kankuro. The puppet was swaying back and forth, trying to shift the trees off its back.
Baki pulled Kankuro free of the debris.
"Karasu too."
Baki pulled Karasu free and set the puppet aside. He removed the last of the wire wrapped around Kankuro. He was as careful as possible but Kankuro kept flinching whenever he was touched. The wires had made deep cuts on his upper arms and legs and the sides of his neck. Kankuro pushed himself away and settled on his knees away from Baki.
"Baki."
"What happened Kankuro?"
"Baki," he repeated. Baki realized that the dazed look in his eyes was due to more than just his injuries.
"Snap out of it, Kankuro."
Kankuro gazed at Baki a few moments more. Then he clenched his teeth and smashed his injured hand against the ground. He gasped and almost fell over, but his eyes cleared.
"Good boy," Baki said, nodding in approval. Kankuro had used the pain to clear the genjutsu.
"Baki. How did…" he gasped. "Gaara? Temari?"
"They are fine. What happened here?"
Kankuro swallowed, "It was Orochimaru. And that Kabuto guy." He looked around the clearing. "The bastard got away somehow. Baki. He said…he said that he killed my…that he killed the Kazekage."
Baki sighed and nodded, "It was Orochimaru at the exams."
"But how? When?" Kankuro took a deep breath. "How come no one… Baki! Did you know? Tell me you didn't know."
Kankuro pulled himself upright. He squared his shoulders and prepared to face his teacher. Karasu stirred and rose off the ground. It was obvious that Kankuro was well beyond the end of his strength but he was still trying to fight, even though he had to know that he was outmatched. Baki did not really care much for the tactics of puppeteers. He thought that they relied too much on their tools and he found the art just a little too showy. However, there was no denying Kankuro's spirit and determination.
Baki kept his gaze fixed on Kankuro; to make sure that his answer would be believed.
"Kankuro, I did not know. He fooled me too." He thumped his fist on the ground and let Kankuro see his shock and anger.
Kankuro stared at him, "I believe you."
His shoulders slumped. He cradled his injured wrist in his lap, "So it is true. He wasn't lying to try and scare me. But how? He had to have help. Someone on the council." His voice was getting fainter, "What is going to happen? The Sound, the Leaf, they could attack us. So many have died. Temari was right. And Gaara…" He started to topple over, "I just wanted…I just wanted him to see me make chunin."
Baki caught Kankuro as he slumped over. He stood with the boy in his arms.
Kankuro stirred, "Karasu. Don't forget him."
Gaara sat with his arms wrapped around his knees, watching his brother. Gaara had watched a lot of people sleep over the years, but few were as interesting as Kankuro. Except when he was in the deepest of sleeps, his hands would move all the time. Gaara sometimes wondered what he was doing; reliving past fights, making up new moves, or fighting some dream monster. If the last was true it was possible that the dream monster had Gaara's face.
Kankuro's eyes opened. Gaara leaned forward to look down at his brother.
Kankuro gasped and rolled over on to his side, away from Gaara. He put his uninjured hand over his face, "Damn it Gaara, don't hover like that."
Gaara leaned back and after a moment Kankuro rolled onto his back. Baki and Temari had wiped his face off when they had looked after his injuries. It was easy to forget how pale his skin was; you almost never saw Kankuro without his face covered by something.
"Where's Karasu? Where's Baki and Temari?"
"He is over there," Gaara pointed at the puppet. "Temari went to get some more water. Baki left. He said that it was important that he get back as fast as possible. We would just slow him down. He was very upset. Why is that Kankuro?"
Kankuro did not say anything, but he put his hand over his face again. He shuddered and his hand slipped down to his neck, just where it met his shoulder. He rubbed it and shuddered again. Gaara did not really know fear but he knew what it looked like in others. Gaara had spent many years frightening Kankuro before they had been joined into a team. It had been some time since he had seen this look in his older brother's eyes. He had seen it a lot while he had perfected his Sand Coffin technique. Kankuro had been a handy subject, especially when he was sleeping.
"Baki has to get back quickly. The council needs to know what happened. You saw Orochimaru, right? Well, before he impersonated the Kazekage, he killed him." Kankuro took a shaky breath. "Who knows how long ago. We have to be ready for whatever happens next. And the council doesn't do anything without a lot of arguing." Kankuro frowned. "Idiots, they will probably waste what little time we have. And the villagers will be the ones to suffer for it. If nothing else, they will make sure that they're well protected."
"So he is dead. I wondered when I saw Orochimaru." He looked at his brother. "Does it hurt?"
"What?"
"His death. Does it hurt? Where do you feel that sort of pain?"
Kankuro's eyes widened. He started to tremble all over.
"He was our…the Kazekage."
"How do you know so much about what they will do?"
"What?" Kankuro could not follow the path of Gaara's thoughts.
"The council. You seem to know a lot about them. How is that?"
Kankuro swallowed and tried to focus. Gaara seemed calm and the best way to keep him like that was to answer his questions. Kankuro could not be sure, but he thought that Gaara did not mean to torment him, but was actually interested in the answer.
"I sit in on the council sessions sometimes."
"Why?"
"It was his idea. The Kazekage." Kankuro's gaze drifted as he remembered. "A few years ago, he said I had to learn about how people perform. I was supposed to learn to read faces. He said that a puppet master has to know what makes a good performance. At first I just sat in the corner, he never said anything to me. But then after a while we would talk after meetings and he would ask what I thought about this thing or that thing. What was the real meaning behind a speech. What did I think of so and so's motivations. And then he would ask me what I thought while we were in session. But then he stopped… That must have been after he was…"
"Killed," Gaara finished.
Kankuro nodded, "He was just starting to acknowledge me as a person. And now…"
"Do you think this would have happened if I was more like him?"
"What? Like who? The Kazekage? I don't know what you…" Kankuro struggled to make sense of what his brother was saying. It sounded like the stuff he had been muttering before. "Oh, you mean that kid. Naruto?"
"Yes, if I had been…if we were closer. If we could act like true team mates."
Kankuro shook his head, "This is all on that bastard Orochimaru. He had his own agenda. If you weren't…you, he would've just done something else."
"But if I was more like him, then there would have been something..." Gaara trailed off. "Can it be changed? Could we change it?"
Kankuro looked astonished, this was not his brother. The whole conversation was surreal.
"What would you do now, Kankuro? If it were up to you."
Kankuro considered the question. His good hand drifted back to his face. He ran one finger slowly down his nose and chin and then traced a line straight down from under his eye and then along his cheek towards his ear. Then he did the same thing around his other eye. He repeated the entire gesture while he spoke.
"We have to get all the men we sent to attack the Leaf back to protect our borders. The Sound will probably attack us. Some the weaker clans in our nation may be a problem as well. They may decide it is the right time to make a play for more power. And we need a new Kazekage right away. And he has to have the council behind him. Or at least they have to obey him."
"What about the Leaf?"
"A lot is going to depend on who their next Hokage is. They will also want to find someone fast. Depending on who it is…the right person will see be able to see that Orochimaru planned hurt us too and will settle through negotiation. But, if you get a vengeful type…"
Kankuro dropped his hand onto his chest and began to toy with the bandage on his wrist.
"So I could help by keeping the borders safe."
"Gaara, you have bigger things to worry about. The council was pushing to 'do something' about you before all of this. And now…"
"But if I could show them…"
"How? Why would they believe that you would want to help? Gaara, you haven't exactly…"
Gaara raised a hand and wiped his sand armour away to reveal his true face. The brothers stared at each other, really seeing each other for the first time.
"You mean it, don't you?"
Gaara nodded, "I do. I have decided. It starts here and now. I will be acknowledged by the village. I will learn to fight for those I cherish. I will learn to cherish others. I will find a way. And I will deal with Orochimaru."
"Get in line. The Leaf will want to deal with him. And I've heard that the Akatsuki want him too." Kankuro laughed. "That's okay by me. You guys fight over him. I just want his four-eyed lap dog." He closed his eyes, he was tired.
One eye opened, "It's not going to be easy. Everyone will be out to get you or out to use you. It will be hard to know who trust. We will have to plan carefully." His eye drifted closed.
"We?"
Kankuro lifted one shoulder in a shrug, "Why not? They don't like me all that much either. When I did get to speak in council meetings, I wasn't polite enough, apparently." His lip curled in a faint sneer. "Idiots." He yawned.
Gaara watched his brother fade into sleep, "I will watch you now."
"Good. And later I will watch your back….little brother."