Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.
A/N: Big thanks to all those reviewers, fav&alerts. Though I can't reply to all of reviews(since I'm both working and studying), I'm deeply appreciated.
BIG thanks to my lovely Beta Vermouth, who'd done all those troublesome corrections for me.
Enjoy!
Chapter 3.
The execution order had been confirmed.
Uchiha Fugaku would be invited to Hokage's office that night, where he was to be finished by the Hokage himself.
The strongest of ROOT members were to sneak into Uchiha compound and kill them all. Once the execution was done, the Hokage's ANBU would come to dispose of the bodies.
By the time a new day dawned on Konoha, everything would be officially revealed to the citizens, and dishonor and shame would befall the once mighty and highly respected Uchiha name.
All the funds in the clan treasury would also be confiscated as punishment.
XX
"So these three must be spared, however," Danzou continued, glancing down at the blond. "However, if you find the slightest window of opportunity, I want you to kill the little one. But don't act rashly, if Hokage-sama's ANBU squad arrives earlier, don't touch anyone mentioned above. Understand?"
The blond merely nodded, his blue eyes pensive with thoughts. Then, looking up he questioned abruptly, "May I ask one thing, Danzou-sama?"
The old man's brows furrowed slightly"What?"
"Why does Hokage-sama wish those three to be spared? They're traitors as well," he blurted, puzzled.
"Because, he's too soft." Smirking inwardly, Dazou rose from his seat, taking a close look at the boy. "That's why he's committing this kind of mistake. You must set this as an example, and remember: sympathy is one of those petty and useless emotions, so don't you ever let your emotions prevent you from making an important decision. Otherwise you'll end up with cruel betrayal."
"Hai."
"Good. Now go and prepare yourself."
Seeing the blond bow and dismiss himself, Danzou sat back and silently smirked again.
Truthfully, he didn't have to assign Naruto to be part of the Uchiha-execution team. His ROOT men were strong enough to match the Uchiha scum, especially without Uchiha Shisui and Uchiha Itachi.
However, if the boy was left on his own to brood, there was a small possibility of the boy being overwhelmed by his own emotions, despite the inhumane training he had gone through to remove all those useless feelings. It was imperative there remained no emotions whatsoever inside the blond prodigy, it was vital no caring traits lingered inside.
Slaying Uchiha would be a perfect final hurdle.
Naruto looked down at his brand new hitai-ate and tantō. With blank disinterest, he picked up the forehead protector and tied it around his upper left arm. He then sheathed double-edged tantō into the scabbard on his back behind his right shoulder, staring vacantly at his reflection on the mirror.
The face that stared back at him felt completely unfamiliar.
Who's the boy with those empty blue eyes?
He closed his eyes. He had killed Shin. His life had been ended by the one he had called 'little brother'.
He had killed the one that called him 'brother'.
He had survived. He was an honorable ROOT member now. He lived by stepping over the scattered blood of failures.
He had to forget.
Forget the past. Forget everything. Forget all but loyalty...
Woosh.
Woosh.
Woosh.
Dozens of men with cat masks landed soundlessly on the rooftops. The pale moonlight created a bright halo against them as their eyes sparkled with bloodthirsty urge.
Standing in the middle, Hyo turned to his comrades and hollered his orders in the typical callous voice of ROOT.
"We're going to dispose of the ninja clansmen first before we deal with the civilian sector and the children."
They all nodded.
"You, Naruto -" He pointed his index finger at the tiny figure among the tall shinobi, then Hyo continued, "While we're taking care of grownups, you'll take care of little ones."
The spiky golden head, the face hidden by one of the cat-mask replicas they all wore on that night, nodded curtly.
"Are we all ready?"
"Yes."
"Then let's begin."
XX
With a heavy growl, an Uchiha chuunin opened the gate and stepped into the clans' grounds. He strode across the yard, complaining loudly about the ravenous hunger that seemed to have taken over his stomach.
It was then that he noticed the blood on the muddy earth.
He blinked in confusion, and looking around he noticed the broken windows.
...
Something was wrong. Something was very wrong.
With a gasp, he peeked through the broken windows and saw the dead bodies of his clan-mates. Eyes widened in horror, he raced through the streets towards his own home, panting, as the taste of blood soared through the air and the descending odor of death settled in.
Something then struck the back of his head..
He fell onto the muddy ground, sprawled. He groaned loudly, quickly looking up to see the face of his attacker. It didn't take long for the trademark coal Uchiha eyes to blaze with rage.
"What the - Who are you? Do you know who I am?"
The tiny boy gazed impassively back at him behind the mask, drawing his blunt tantō. The Uchiha chuunin squeezed his fists at that gesture and sprung up onto his feet.
"Where are your partners? How dare you -!"
"Watch your mouth, you traitor," said the blond invader in a disinterested dry voice, cutting through the Uchiha's indignant speech.
The chuunin blinked. Slowly, his eyes widened once again, the eyeballs nearly popping out from their sockets.
"Wha-what?"
The blond didn't respond that time.
It was already dark. Iruka had kept the students longer for an 'especially lengthened training session', so all students went back home late that day.
Sasuke rushed quickly through the Konoha streets, mumbling hurried greetings to those who waved or nodded at to him. The villagers were quite nice to him; then again, his father was the head of the Uchiha Clan and the one who lead police force, which protected the village of Konoha itself. And his brother_
Thinking about his older brother made his onyx eyes turn sullen and brimming with confusion. Everyone admired his brother, and Sasuke included himself in that group. But those days, Itachi was acting quite strange. Sasuke often witnessed him quarreling with other clansmen. And then when at last clan head Fugaku took an interest in his youngest and not as prodigious son after watching said child producing a superb fire jutsu, he told him not to follow in Itachi's footsteps.
Why?
Everyone in Konoha admired Itachi, and the Uchiha clan had once admired him. Fugaku used to zealously praise his eldest, neglecting the youngest he sometimes seemed to have forgotten all about.
So why did he say such a thing?
Sasuke entered the Uchiha district. Distracted as he was by his thoughts, he did not notice that the streets were much too empty. He missed the dark reddish liquid that was leaking from some of the house doors' gaps. He didn't notice the shattered and cracked windows, nor did he notice the growing metallic scent that was beginning to hang in the air.
Then he noticed.
He skidded to a halt when he saw dozens of shurikens stuck around roofs and walls.
Then he noticed shattered windows and broken doors.
Something was wrong. Something was very wrong.
He moved through the streets of the Uchiha compound towards his home. Moments later he jumped backward with a yelp, feeling something cold and heavy pressed against his feet.
Sasuke almost vomited when he leaned over to look at the bloodstained figures. Those were his cousins. A four-year old girl and a two-year old girl. They used to pick sunflower seeds together...
The two corpses were piteously laid together, the littlest one huddled under the arm of her older sister. Sasuke's entire frame shook when he realized that there was something even more horrifying that the fact that they were dead – it was the fact that their eyes had been removed, and only the empty sockets remained.
His entire frame shaking in terror, Sasuke raced towards his home, desperate, hoping that somebody was playing some kind of sick joke on him. As soon as he stepped into the yard of his home, he froze in his stance with a gasp.
Somebody was there.
There was a sealed well in the middle of the yard, where his spotted another of his cousins. Said cousin was a fifteen year-old who had recently taken and passed the chuunin exam. He was leaning against the wall of the well, immobile, with a blade encrusted in his chest.
And in front of him stood somebody else, looking down at the dead boy.
The naïve Yondaime had simply wanted to talk about that year's festive plans with the heads of the two greatest clans in Konoha; who, coincidentally, happened to be childhood friends of his.
With a silent smug, Uchiha Fugaku entered the ground of the Hokage's tower, wondering whether Hyuuga Hiashi had arrived before him or not.
'Don't worry, Minato-kun. This year will be an unforgettable festival for all of you,' he thought. With a malicious smile, he mentally added, 'I'll make sure of it.'
He passed several ANBU guards, who bowed at him respectfully. The door of Yondaime's office was opened ajar. Has Hiashi arrived already? Clearing his throat, Fugaku strode toward the office door and entered the room.
Minato was sitting alone on his chair, his hands folded onto his desk and eyes closed. The moment the Uchiha stepped inside the room he opened his eyes, his blue orbs sparkling with cold emotion.
"I almost thought that you were sick, Fugaku-san." The quiet, but at the same time, deadly voice of the young Hokage resounded off the protected walls.
Sasuke gasped again when the small figure with the cat mask slowly turned in his direction. Sasuke stared at the pale light of the moon shining brilliantly on the spiky and golden hair of the mysterious figure.
"Wh-who are you?"
Cold silence was all the response Sasuke got. The quiet figure seemed to contemplate him for a while. Then, all of the sudden, he was in front of the young Uchiha, throwing a harsh punch into his stomach.
Panting heavily, Sasuke lay sprawled on the muddy ground. He tried to hoist himself to his feet, but the pain was making him feel like his innards were shrinking inside of him.
The blond paid no attention to his whimpers. Methodically, he threw an arm around the raven-haired boy's neck, locking him in a tight grip, and began to drag him away.
Sasuke screamed in terror as he struggled helplessly, trying no avail to break free from the blond boy's iron-grip. The blond dragged him until they reached the well, lifting its wooden lid while still holding him in a one-arm death grip.
Sasuke's eyes widened with horror at this. "Wh-what are you doing?"
"I'm going to drown you," the invader replied simply, his voice passionless.
"What?"
"So that they won't notice," he answered and then pushed the Uchiha boy against the stone edge.
"Anghhhh!" Hollering and struggling with all his might, Sasuke flapped around his arms and legs, desperately trying to punch or kick the crazed slayer. Where were his parents? Where was Itachi? Why weren't they coming to save him? Were they dead, too?
With a blunt noise, the blond's mask fell off from his face when Sasuke's desperately swinging fists brushed against it.
Both boys stopped their movements.
Sasuke's dark eyes blinked confusedly for a few seconds before they became possessed with anger at the revelation of his killer's face. His murderer was just a boy around his age! But he was so...
Naruto frowned when he saw the furious gleaming passing across the Uchiha's dark orbs.
"Why are you doing this?" The Uchiha demanded.
Cold sapphire eyed sparkled disdainfully. "Now I understand why you people need to be wiped away."
"What?"
"Shut up, son of a traitor. You're all an arrogant bunch of trash."
Sasuke's eyes flared at the blunt insult. "What? How dare you -!" He then screamed again as the blond recommenced his efforts to kill him..
"Sayonara, Uchiha."
Cold sweat broke from the Uchiha's back at the sight of blue eyes brimming with merciless killing intent. Those eyes held no emotion, at all. That boy was a monster!
"Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!"
It was then that one of the mansion gates burst open, effectively interrupting the scene.
"Halt! He's to be spared!"
With another frown, Naruto immediately let go of the Uchiha boy, dispassionately throwing him to the ground.
"Sasuke!"
Sasuke quickly sprang onto his feet at his mother's voice. Mikoto had just entered the gate, a group of ANBU guards beside her.
"Kaa-san!" He rushed toward her, relieved to see his mommy alive. He threw himself at his mother's chest.
"Sasuke…" Mikoto's hand gently rubbed his back, her voice broken and teary. "Oh, Sasuke..."
"Wh-what happened? Where's Tou-san? Nii-san?"
Mikoto couldn't answer. She merely began to sob.
Snorting slightly, Naruto picked up his mask and put it on his face again. Soon, several other ROOT members emerged, landing around him and facing the ANBU squad.
Throwing a glance around the bloodstained manor, Hatake Kakashi heaved a sigh before approaching to the ROOT operatives.
"Is it done?"
One of them nodded.
"Well done."
Kakashi looked suspiciously down at the tiny blond boy. His silver eyebrows began to twitch when he realised just how young that boy was, despite the fact that he couldn't see his face because of the mask.
"How old are you, little one?" He then felt the stares coming from all of the ROOT members. Hmm...
"None of your concern," the blond boy blurted.
Kakashi smiled at that. "All right, then. But weren't you instructed to spare the brother of Uchiha Itachi?"
The disinterested voice replied again,"I did. And forgot his face."
Ruffling his own hair, Kakashi nodded. "All right, cool kid. Your mission ends here."
"Why are you letting go of them?" Sasuke yelled abruptly at the silver-haired ANBU, causing everyone to glare at the Uchiha boy.
"He killed my cousins! And they -"
"Watch your mouth, Uchiha." That time one of the ANBU guards muttered coldly. "You're lucky to be spared, on Hokage-sama's mercy."
Coal eyes widened once again in shock. "What?" Sasuke gaped at him. No one had ever talked to him like that.
Hyo turned to his ROOT comrades. "Let's go."
"Mission success: every Uchiha has been executed save for those spared three."
Itachi bit his fist, leaning against the door of the apartment. Squeezing his eyes shut, he felt his heart trembling, tense at thought of facing his mother and brother. After taking a deep breath, he faced the door, held the doorknob, and then opened it.
At the sight the three dark heads perked up.
Itachi gulped at the sight of his mother, brother, and aunt Kiyu. They were sitting on the tadami floor, and all of them seemed broken.
The weasel blinked when he felt his brother's stare.
An awkward silence fell.
Itachi subconsciously flinched when Mikoto rose to her feet and strode toward him. Upon seeing her teary face, he gulped again, not knowing what to do.
"Itachi..."
"Kaa-san." His voice shook a little as she came close. The next moment, he found himself crushed by his mother's hug, her arms wrapped around his shoulders.
"My poor child..." She broke into sobs, holding her eldest tightly as if fearing he might vanish if she let go him. "My poor child..."
Itachi stood still, frozen for a moment. Feeling his own orbs tearing up, he squeezed his eyes shut, allowing his mother to stroke his face for the first time ever since he'd become an official shinobi.
"How much of a burden it must have been.." She kept on sobbing. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry..."
Behind Mikoto's head Itachi, saw Kiyu's face, looking at him, her eyes full of sadness, even though she sent him a comforting nod.
His heart felt as if it were cracking. Suppressing rising emotions, Itachi gently pushed his mother away yet held her shoulder with one hand.
"Kaa-san, you need to pay a visit to Hokage-sama soon. As soon as possible. We -"
Mikoto nodded, wiping her tears away. "I know. I must thank him."
"Why thank him?" An irritated voice from the youngest Uchiha rang up.
"Sasuke! Didn't I tell you?" Mikoto screamed.
Itachi looked down calmly at his brother. "Without his generosity you would have been executed, too."
"He killed our father! And all of our relatives are dead! Why did you sell out the clan?"
"Sell out?" His tone turned cold. "Don't you say such words again. All I did was keep my oath to the village. Our clan was plotting a rebellion, and Hokage-sama never forgives a single person who rises against him."
"So why are we alive?" the younger boy snarled. "If he's so deadly?"
"Sasuke!" Mikoto yelled again.
Itachi closed his eyes, his patience growing thin. "In return for my information, I begged him to spare you. He could have refused, and the council didn't want any Uchiha alive except for me. But he decided to spare you, along with our mother and aunt - just for my sake. Hasn't Kaa-san told you already? So now, know your place, foolish little brother!"
Sasuke flinched. His onyx eyes filled up with shock at the sudden outburst from his older brother. Itachi had never raised his voice at his younger brother before. Never.
Heaving a sigh, Itachi lightly hit the wall before turning away and leaving the room.
Mikoto covered her face with hands, and sunk to the floor.
"Have you heard it?"
"What a shame, such a noble clan…"
"'Noble' clan? They were just filthy scum! Those hypocrites..."
"They said the eldest son of the head of the clan had reported it to Hokage-sama..."
"That boy is the only sane one."
"Hey, there goes the wife of Fugaku!"
Mikoto felt her face heating at the whispering. She was walking toward the Hokage's tower early that morning. Before that day, people used to share greetings with her, waving or smiling or inquiring about her family. Now those very same people were giving her disgusted glares, whispering amongst themselves.
"Filthy traitor..."
"Why did Hokage-sama spare them?"
"He's too generous. He's as kind as he is handsome…"
"Why are you talking about his looks now?"
"Shut up, you jealous pig!"
Biting her lower lip Mikoto dropped her head, scolding herself inwardly. 'Don't you cry, fool, this is natural.'
She then wondered how would Kushina react once they met again. Would she change her attitude towards her, too? Or...
Mikoto sobbed silently. Looking up at the Hokage's tower she gulped, reality hitting her just then.
Her heart began to thump wildly again, that time wilder than before.
How would she face him then?
Had he spared her just out of generosity? Or had Kushina begged him to spare her friend? Or…
"Is Hokage-sama inside?" She asked politely to one of the guards.
The ANBU glanced at her, then without a word he gave her a curt nod.
XX
"Hokage-sama, an Uchiha woman came."
"Send her in."
"Hai."
The ANBU guard left, closing the door behind him. Minato then made several hand signs, and part of them ordered his bodyguards, who were always lurking in the shadows, to leave for a while so as to keep that meeting uninterrupted, while the rest of signs created a soundproof barrier around the walls of the room.
The door opened once again and Uchiha Mikoto entered, obviously nervous, her eyes full of both sadness and fear.
"Hello, Mikoto-san." Without moving his gaze away from the papers he'd been working on, Minato muttered. "Come, take a seat."
Mikoto sat on a chair clumsily. Yondaime arranged several documents on the table languidly, letting the Uchiha female feel more desperate by his silence.
Then, he finally spoke up, and again without moving his gaze away from the papers. "Well, so what brings you here?"
Mikoto squirmed. She hadn't expected that kind of question. Wasn't it natural for her to pay him a visit after such an incident? To both thank him and apologize...
She gulped and took a deep breath before opening her mouth. "Hokage-sama... I... I want to thank you. Not just for your mercy upon us, but also for not putting all of the burden on my eldest's shoulders."
The Yondaime did not respond. He simply rearranged a few more documents, piled them together, and after tossing them backward, he finally looked straight at her.
"Is that all?"
Mikoto flinched at the fierce sapphire gaze piercing through her. "Hokage-sama...?"
He looked almost bored. "Is that all you've got to say?"
"I..."
"So you don't have any other thing to confess?"
Dark eyes widened in confusion. Confess? Did he mean her involvement in the rebellion matter? But, her involvement was only natural...
"I'm sorry, Hokage-sama? I don't understand."
A tired sigh escaped the blond's lips. "You don't?"
The Uchiha blinked, feeling an unwilling shudder run through her spine. She gulped again, as the awkward silence continued except for the sound of rustling papers.
Silence resumed for few more minutes, then at last it broke away by a still calm voice.
"You knew what was going on about your eldest."
She flinched again at that, her eyeballs nearly popping out from their sockets. "Huh?"
He smiled, a bit sardonically. "You have been involved in the matter as well.. I'm sure that you noticed something about your own son. It must have been quite freaky, huh?""
"Ho-Hokage-sama…"
"And still," he crossed his arms, "why didn't you just come directly to me and reveal everything about the coup?"
She clutched her own hands together, feeling blood rushing to her face. "I… I... I just..."
Suddenly, his golden eyebrow arched, creating one of his rare frowns. "Instead of being loyal, you chose to play a game with me. Come on, admit it. Don't play innocent. Your every action showed hinted. I know women as much as you do; I've encountered so many girls like you before. Tell me, do I look that foolish?"
She felt the hair on the back of her neck stand up. So he knew. The whole time, he knew... She must have looked like an idiot, for sure.
One of her instincts started to scream, telling her that something disastrous was going to happen. She trembled a little. She didn't know that she had been that clumsy. She hadn't known that he was so suspicious. She'd underestimated that man far too much…
"I-I don't understand what you're talking about," was all she could mumble, dazed.
The cold blue eyes narrowed. "Mikoto-san, do not trifle with me. I'm in a particularly foul mood today."
"But really, I-"
He rose from his chair. "I don't share your damned husband's taste, so when I play rough it's going to hurt. I really hate it when a girl dares to play a game with me."
Her knuckles whitening, Mikoto gulped again, feeling a shiver run through her body as he approached her.
This man is-
"So what were you going to do," he continued dryly, "if your little flirt succeeded?"
"I-I just wanted to save my children..." she muttered with trembling voice, tears of fear filling her dark eyes.
He blinked. Then suddenly, a cynical smile began to take place at the end of his lips. "So the matter of your children comes out. Well, a typical excuse from women. But I can't see any relation between your excuse and our issue."
So how was it? good? bad?
Shinno appears in Shippuden movie 2: bonds, along with Amaru.
Please review!