In the last chapter – Itachi and Shisui learn to use the transportation jutsu over short distances and the Uchiha fireball jutsu, Fugaku warns Mikoto about Kagura's frequent visits with baby Sasuke, and some of the clan members from the capital are re-called back to Konoha.
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Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, he is owned by Masashi Kishimoto.
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Chapter 11 – Battle Plan
"Due to the impending attack, you two will be withdrawing from the Academy for a few weeks." It was a dark evening in the middle of October. Fugaku had requested Itachi, Mikoto, Shisui, and Shisui's parents present themselves at 11pm in his meeting room. The room was dark, except for two candles burning on either side of where Fugaku and Mikoto sat, side by side. Facing them were Itachi, and behind him sat Kisa, Toshiro and Shisui. After a busy day at the police station and training it was the only time he could schedule a meeting. Besides, he wanted to keep this conversation "under the radar", so to speak. It wasn't that it was a secret, but still…
Fugaku saw the disappointment on the boy's faces. "I'm sorry, but if the attack starts while you are in school you would be separated from your clan, and when the rest of the students realize it is Uchiha behind it you will be singled out and possibly injured. That would be unacceptable. Especially if I had a way to prevent it. Both of you are very talented, geniuses really. You have the drive to train on your own without guidance. Shisui, you have recently learned the Katon fire jutsu?"
Shisui nodded his head. "Yes, last week."
"Good. Then both boys are full members of the clan. You must take your responsibilities seriously. The clan is our life, our reason for existing. You are the next generation of the clan and you must learn all you can so you can carry on our traditions to your children. I am pulling Okimi off guard duty. It has been determined that Orochimaru has left the area, for a while at least. However, until further notice I still do not want you leaving the compound without an adult escort." He stopped talking and it was quiet for a minute. "When the battle begins, you will not participate, no matter how tempted you are, for whatever reason. You are not skilled enough yet and would get in the way, or be injured, or even die. You will stay with your mothers and follow their orders.
"After the battle I will let you know when you may return to the Academy. That is all for now, you may leave." Fugaku bowed his head, as Itachi, Shisui, Toshiro and Kisa bowed to him and left the room.
Itachi saw the three guests to the front door. He was disappointed about having to miss school and he could see on Shisui's face that he was too.
"I'll come by after lunch, and we can train by the lake, okay Itachi?" Shisui gave his cousin a small smile.
"Yeah, that sounds good. I'll see you then." He looked up at Toshiro and Kisa who were giving polite smiles. "Thank-you for coming, even though it is late." He bowed to them and they bowed back.
"It was no problem. Toshiro only got home 30 minutes ago anyway. Everyone is very busy. Good night Itachi." Kisa answered in a soft voice.
After they left Itachi walked down the hall to his bedroom. He stopped at his door, and he could hear his parents talking in the meeting room. They seemed to be whispering a lot lately. He entered his room and shut the door.
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A couple hours' later people started to come to the house. Mikoto lead them to Fugaku's meeting room, where they sat on mats facing their clan lord. No one spoke and everyone had their sharingan on. The room was dark, the only illumination came from a street lamp that filtered through the paper in the sliding door. There were no windows. In all, six men and four women were gathered.
When Fugaku spoke, it was in a low voice. "Thank-you for coming, as ordered. Tonight I will inform you of your part in the coming battle. First, you will notice that only ten of the team leaders are present. There is a reason for that, and you are not going to like it. The person we will be fighting is Madara Uchiha." He paused as gasps came from some of those gathered. "We will not be attacking the Hokage as I have previously stated. Madara is present and has been in and out of the village for the past year and a half. He walks a path of his own creation, one he created for all Uchiha. But we cannot walk that same path and remain within Konoha. That path has ramifications that would affect the whole of the ninja world. The First Hokage fought him over the ideals with which Konoha would be lead. The Valley of the End is the scar that was cut into the earth during their fight. His descendents created the Police Force to protect Konoha and its will of fire. Madara's path was recognized as a goal, but was never meant to be followed. Now he is back. I am not sure exactly how he accomplished it. I have a few ideas, but they are ultimately meaningless. The fact is, he is here and we must stop him."
The silence that fell in the room as he spoke was full of dread. Every eye in the room was focused on Fugaku. A man not of Uchiha blood would have been cringing in his seat, but the clan lord barely noticed. "I have divided the teams up into three lists. The 'A' list consists of the teams you are leading. You will follow me unconditionally to stop Madara. The 'C' list consists of the teams that will, when given a choice, follow Madara. The 'B' list consists of the teams that would like to follow Madara, but given the right conditions will follow me instead. Each list also contains the names of the rest of the clan members. The lists are secret, but you will be made aware of the teams on all three lists. You are not, under any circumstances, to reveal the contents of the lists in anyway, nor are you to discuss the lists again after you leave this room." He passed the three team lists around. He kept the three civilian lists separate. He didn't want them to see too much.
"I do not know exactly when Madara will attack, but I am absolutely positive it will be in the next few days. He plans on using us, arrogantly believing that most of us will follow him, so I am watching carefully to see when he makes his move. The teams on List C will no doubt mobilize right before or during the onset of the attack so watch your backs. The Hokage has been watching me closely since releasing me from prison. He will mobilize minutes after I do. This is not something I wanted to happen. There is no way Madara is going to let that man live. I have warned him, the best I can, to keep out and let us handle this but he refuses. Therefore I will tell you outright that our job is not to protect the Hokage, if he dies, then so be it. Our sole job is fighting Madara Uchiha. We must protect Konoha. We must protect our home. As long as Konoha perseveres, it can always find quality Kages. If Madara wins, and Uchiha walk his path once more, then Konoha will shrivel and die. However, having Konoha ninjas at our backs will be helpful. There is an outside chance he will have some kind of reinforcements – mercenaries to help him." Some of the gathered ninja smiled.
"Toshiro?" Fugaku was a little confused about why his words would make anyone smile.
"We will follow you, Lord Fugaku. The path is not one we wish to walk, as you correctly perceived. Konoha is our home, and its citizens our extended family. The Police Station is our sworn duty, one we have and will continue to defend with our lives." He bent forward and touched his head to the floor. "We serve you, Lord Fugaku." The rest of the ninja's in the room followed his actions.
"As it should be." Fugaku closed his eyes and smiled and he let out a sigh. Mikoto had told him he would feel better after talking to them, and she was right.
After the meeting the attendees used the transportation jutsu to exit the clan lord's house. Fugaku remained in his meeting room until dawn, sitting and thinking. Sometime around 5am he heard Itachi leave his room, then return about thirty minutes later. Probably checking on Sasuke again.
"Mikoto," Fugaku walked in and closed the door to their bedroom sometime after 8am. "Has Itachi ever slept the entire night through?"
"No. He has had bouts of insomnia since he was about two years old. When it flares up he tends to sleep about four to six hours every night, but it has gotten worse in the last year." She looked down at her hands as she spoke.
"Is there something that can be done about that? Sleep deprivation for someone like Itachi can't be good. Plus, he's having nightmares."
"I know. Kagura didn't want to give him any drugs because of his small size, and before starting school I just made him take naps. Perhaps when all this blows over the nightmares will end. He's off school right now, so I'll see if I can get him to take a nap again in the afternoon." Truthfully, Mikoto rarely noticed that Itachi was sleepy. She suspected he may just be a person who didn't need eight to ten hours of sleep at night. But Kagura said… She thought about Fugaku's warning. "If he continues to loose sleep after all this ends, I'll take him to a different doctor."
Fugaku caught the "different doctor" comment and quickly turned his head to face Mikoto, but she was still looking at her hands in her lap. "Hmm. I never noticed until tonight."
"He's a quiet boy, keeps to himself. If…when he wakes up he either meditates or he trains. He also likes to walk down to the lake and sit. It's hard to think of him as a five-year-old boy. He acts like an old man sometimes. But he never makes any noise." There was a high-pitched screech from down the hall followed by loud crying and Mikoto gave a short laugh. "Sasuke on the other hand, makes a lot of noise."
Fugaku laughed out loud for the first time in weeks. "Yes, Sasuke is a fine boy. I'm glad he's ours."
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Kagura walked slowly to the clan lord's house. She had taken the day off from work and wanted to see Sasuke. This would be the last day she would ever spend with him. She was sure he was her grandson. He was Obito's child. Her husband, Kentaro, and even Madara himself had told her she was wrong. Madara swore he was not inhabiting Obito's dead body, but if that was true why did she see Obito sometimes when she looked at him? She knew what she saw. A teenage boy with messy hair and a big grin. Madara would just sigh when she argued with him. Also, he had died almost a century ago. How could he exist now except through some kind of forbidden jutsu? Rumors of jutsus that moved souls from body to body were rampant. "Yes, Sasuke is my grandson. I know he is."
Mikoto invited her into the house a few minutes later. She was about to make lunch and wanted Kagura to join them. "We are all in the kitchen. Why don't you sit down and I'll pour you some tea?"
"Thank-you. I could use some tea right now." She looked around as they walked down the hall. "Where are the cats?"
"Oh, they spend the daytime out in the woods stalking innocent mice." Mikoto gave a short laugh. The cats were only really needed at night when everyone was asleep.
They reached the kitchen and Kagura sat next to Sasuke. He was wearing a light blue short-sleeve shirt and black pants with light blue socks. Kagura smiled. They were some of the clothes she had bought for him. She grabbed a foot and swung it back and forth a couple times. "How is baby Sasuke today?" He ginned and drooled at her. Itachi handed her a clean cloth and she wiped his face.
"He does that a lot." Itachi said distractedly.
"You seem a little down Itachi." She paused, then moved her gaze from Sasuke to Itachi. "Why aren't you in school today? Are you sick?" She was suddenly very worried. He couldn't get sick, not now.
Mikoto put a soup tureen on the table and sat down on the other side of Sasuke. "No, he's not sick. A little tired maybe." She didn't want to tell Kagura that he had been pulled out of school.
Itachi sensed his mother was uncomfortable with the question. "Shisui and I got suspended for fighting with Yota's gang. It was unprovoked. The teacher told us to apologize, but we refused so the headmaster suspended us for a month." He looked Kagura straight in the eye as he spoke.
"And you are tired, because?" She knew that the school had a hard line on fights that occurred outside of training exercises. Itachi's fight last summer with Yota was well known, as was the latter's reputation as a bully.
"Father lectured Shisui and me late last night." As he said this he looked down at his bowl with what he hoped was a sad face. Mikoto also looked down with a sad face, but inside she was beaming with pride at her son's insightfulness.
"And he is still not sleeping through the night." Mikoto added. She was a little surprised that Kagura asked why he was loosing sleep. Had she forgotten about his insomnia?
"Still, huh?" She ate a few spoonfuls of the soup. "Mikoto, there is a sleep specialist at the hospital. Make an appointment for Itachi and take him in. Itachi, please cooperate with the doctor and tell him anything he asks, truthfully. Not getting enough sleep will affect your ability to think in stressful situations and make you more susceptible to illness." She sighed. "I'm sorry Itachi. It's my fault. I thought you would grow out of it."
Mikoto smiled. "Well, before starting school he just took naps, but now it's a little harder to do that. I'll make the appointment the next time I'm out shopping." She didn't ask why Kagura didn't offer to make the appointment for them, as she usually did. A few days later, when she thought back to that lunch, she wished she had of noticed it.
Kagura reached over to the tureen and lifted the ladle, stirring the contents as she dropped a powder into the large bowl. She scooped another serving into their three bowls as Mikoto was distracted with Sasuke and Itachi searched the floor next to his cushion for the Taijutsu book he was reading earlier.
Itachi and Mikoto spooned the tainted soup into their mouths. Itachi was the first to feel the effects, after only two spoonfuls. He put his head on his hand and looked at his bowl. He tried to remember what he had been searching the floor for, and why was he was sitting at the table if he was supposed to be in the meeting room fighting with Yota? He put his head down on the table.
Mikoto had eaten about four spoonfuls of the soup when she noticed Itachi drop down onto the table, his eyes glazed over for a moment before closing. She knew at that moment they had been drugged. "Kagura…why…" It was all she could say before her head hit the table as well. She saw Kagura's mouth moving, and, were those tears coming out of her eyes? As her eyelids closed she saw Sasuke being lifted out of his highchair.
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"Itachi? Itachi?" Shisui stood at the front door three hours later and called for his cousin. He was sure he was home, since they were planning on training this afternoon. No one answered when he called. He opened the door and stepped into the entry way and called again. The headman's house was huge and it was possible Itachi and his mother couldn't hear him. He smelled soup and walked to the kitchen, calling out again for his cousin. Something was strange. If they weren't home, why was the front door unlocked? He expected to see Itachi and Mikoto eating lunch, albeit a few hours later than usual, but what he did see shocked him so bad he backed up into the wall and slid down onto his rear end.
Mikoto was slung over the table, her hand reaching for Itachi, who had has head on the table and his arms hanging limply by his side. "They're dead! Are they dead?" Shisui panicked. All he could do was stare at them for several minutes. He finally picked himself up and moved closer to look at them. He noticed that they were both breathing. He shook them both, calling out their names loudly, but they didn't respond. It was then that he noticed Sasuke wasn't in his highchair. He ran down the hall looking in several rooms for the baby. "He's not here!" He practically yelled the words.
Running out of the house he darted off in the direction of his own home, only to be grabbed roughly by Fugaku.
"What's the hurry, kid?" He sensed something was wrong when he saw the boy running toward him with tears in his eyes.
"Oh Lord Fugaku! Something is wrong with Itachi and Lady Mikoto! I can't wake them up and Sasuke is missing! I searched the entire house for him and I can't find him!" The boy was practically yelling, and he was visibly shaking.
"You couldn't wake them up?" It couldn't be…
"Yes! They were breathing, but I think they must have been drugged!"
"You are right, they were drugged. Go get your father, he's at your house. Tell him to come to me now." He watched for a second as Shisui ran off at top speed noticing at the back of his mind that the boy was much faster than a normal eight year old should be. He took off running to his own house.
"Father! Father!" Shisui ran into the house and into the living room without taking his shoes off. Toshiro stood up quickly. He was alarmed, never having seen his son act like this. "Fugaku wants you at his house right now. Mikoto and Itachi were drugged and Sasuke is missing." Toshiro took off without saying anything.
"What did you say?" Kisa ran into the living room from the kitchen, only to see her son collapsed on the floor, sobbing.
Fugaku walked into the kitchen and picked up Itachi. Holding the boy in his arms he sent his chakra through the small body. He wasn't very skilled at medical ninjutsu but he did have some field training. "It is poison, and it's beginning to wear off." As he entered the hallway Toshiro ran into the house. He stopped and saw Fugaku holding Itachi. He quickly walked up to them and put his hand on the boys face.
"This is unforgivable." The words Toshiro spoke were filled with dark malice. "I take it this was Kagura's doing?"
"Yeah. It is. I really hope I am the one to find her, because I want to rip her into a million pieces."
"Do you want me to take him so you can get Mikoto?"
"Sure." He put Itachi in Toshiro's arms. Toshiro walked down to Itachi's room and laid him in his bed. The boy was cold and starting to shiver. He went over to the dresser and pulled out some socks and covered the boy's feet, then found a knit hat in the same drawer and put it over his head. He pulled up the blankets and tucked them around the small boy before walking back into the hall.
"They should be waking up soon." Fugaku said as he walked out of his bedroom.
"Itachi has started shivering. He may be suffering from an overdose, or he may have just gotten cold. Kisa should be here in a few minutes…" Toshiro turned his head as he heard a sound come from the entryway.
"I'm here now. I had to dig out my poison scrolls." Shisui was standing next to her holding a medium-sized box. His face was now set in determination instead of panic.
In all the haste Fugaku had forgotten that Kisa was a poison specialist. "Good. Have a look at Itachi first, he may be having side-effects. Within the next thirty minutes evacuate to the emergency shelter. I will send someone to help since Mikoto and Itachi probably won't be able to move very well for a few hours."
"Right away." Kisa spoke as she followed Shisui into Itachi's bedroom.
"Toshiro, Madara has made the first move. It is time for us to mobilize." Toshiro ran out the front door. Fugaku checked on Itachi.
"He was given too much of the drug." Kisa told him. "It has dropped his body temperature. I don't expect him to wake up for two or three hours. If we are evacuating I also don't have time to extract the poison. It won't harm him, so it's probably best to let his system work it out. The only danger is hypothermia, but since we are with him we won't let that happen." There was a sound from down the hall. It came again, only louder.
"Itachi!" Mikoto was awake. Fugaku and Kisa ran to her room.
"Fugaku! Where is Itachi? Is he okay? He passed out. Kagura drugged the soup. Oh God I didn't think she would go that far! Where is Sasuke?" She was rambling as tears streamed down her face. Kisa took her hand and applied her chakra to check her condition.
"Mikoto, calm down, and I'll answer you."
"I won't calm down!" She practically screeched the words. "Where are my sons!" She activated her Sharingan and emitted chakra with such murderous intent that both Fugaku and Kisa backed away from her.
Fugaku answered her, activating his own Sharingan. "Itachi is in the other room, unconscious. He is suffering from an overdose, but will be fine." He swallowed once, then grabbed Kisa's arm and pulled her behind him before he spoke the next words. "Sasuke is missing. I don't know where he is." Instantly Mikoto was out of bed and ready to attack. He grabbed his wife, knocked her to the ground and pinned her so she couldn't move. "You will calm down, or I will render you unconscious. We are mobilizing right now. Sasuke is our first priority."
"You know what he is going to use the boy for!" Mikoto spat the words out at him.
"Yes I do. Finding him is more important now that finding Madara." He released her and she sat up. "I need to go now. Kisa will fill you in." He turned around and started to walk out of the room.
"Bring him back alive, Fugaku." There was a veiled threat in the words Mikoto spoke to him. Fugaku paused for a minute, looking into Kisa's face. She had masked her emotions and for some reason, her chakra.
"I may not be able to do that, Mikoto." He left the room and hardened his heart as he heard the sobs coming down the hall.
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When Fugaku stepped outside of his house the teams in lists A and B were assembled. The team leader was in front with the members standing behind him or her. As expected, the list C teams were no where to be found. He felt a chakra source appear and disappear. 'That would be Anbu. Apparently the Hokage told them to let me know when they realized I was assembling.' He thought to himself, and then mentally calculated how long it would take for the Hokage's forces to assemble at the front gate.
"The following teams will remain in the compound and assist with the evacuation of the civilians." He named off the teams on list B. "The rest of you, follow me to the Konoha gates." They ran off to the gates, with Fugaku leading the way. As they exited the Uchiha compound the people on the roads ran out of the way and some ran inside of buildings, fearing that something was up. As they approached the front gate they found it closed.
"What is the meaning of this? Open the gate or I'll open it for you!" Fugaku yelled at the guards.
"You can open the gates now." The Hokage jumped down from a building and stood facing Fugaku. "I have mobilized the ninja and Anbu divisions. Do you know where he is?"
"Where who is?" Hiashi Hyuuga walked up and stood next to the two men. He had agreed to allow his clan to be used to defend Konoha at the urging of the Hokage, but he still didn't know exactly what was going on. "Tell me, or we are pulling out."
"Neither of you need to be here. Minato, you know he will not let you live through this. Go home." Fugaku was standing with his sharingan activated.
"I will do no such thing. You are as much a part of this village as everyone else, and I will stand here in defense of my citizens." Minato spoke loudly and with much emotion.
Fugaku was taken aback. It was not what he expected the Fourth Hokage to say to him. He bowed his head. "So be it." He answered Hiashi's question. "I do not know how he accomplished it, but Madara Uchiha has returned from the dead. He has been in and out of the village for the past year and a half preparing for some kind of offensive. I did not know what exactly his goal was. I suspected it had something to do with the path he and the First Hokage fought over at the Valley of the End. But now I realize it may be something else." He sighed without meaning to. "He kidnapped my infant son a few hours ago. We only found out a short while ago. He is going to use the boy to…"
"Stop. There is no need to continue." Minato did not want the people assembled around him to hear the next part. He raised his voice and spoke to someone standing behind him. "Sound the evacuation order! Get all the civilians into the shelters! Now!" Several people ran off, followed closely by about forty ninja's who spread themselves throughout the village.
Hiashi repeated the command to evacuate the Hyuuga compound to a man standing next to him. "How are we going to stop this man? He was all-powerful back when the First fought him."
"We need to find where he is keeping Sasuke. My son." He clarified when Hiashi failed to recognize the name. "He needs the boy. If we can get him away then his plan is ruined. I am thinking he will withdraw if that happens."
"Why would you think that?"
"We can't discuss it here." Minato interrupted. "He probably has the boy in one of Orochimaru's abandoned laboratories. I'll send people out to search the known locations. You two send your people out to accompany my teams. Your doujutsus will speed up the search." They broke up and separated their teams and within fifteen minutes the area within a mile radius around Konoha was being searched.
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After drugging Itachi and Mikoto, Kagura picked up Sasuke and took him to his nursery. Tears were falling from her eyes. She couldn't get the look of betrayal Mikoto had given her out of her mind. "I have to do this Sasuke. You understand, don't you? I have to protect my Obito. I would do anything to protect him, wouldn't I?" She pulled a warm jacket with a hood over Sasuke and put a pair of lace up shoes on his feet. She folded the coat's mittens over his hands, then wrapped him in a blanket. She checked his diaper bag to make sure it had diapers, food, water and formula. She then stuffed extra clothing in the bag.
Shouldering the diaper bag she looked around to make sure she wasn't forgetting anything. "Don't worry, Sasuke, you will be well looked after. I promise." She used the transportation jutsu to disappear and re-appear outside the gates. She walked northeast of the village and waited.
"Here already, Kagura?" Kentaro spoke as he and Madara walked up to her.
"There were no problems. I drugged the soup and they ate it right away."
"They?" Madara had expected only Mikoto to be home.
"Itachi was also there. He said he was suspended from school for fighting."
Madara smirked. "Likely, Fugaku has pulled the boys out of school to keep them under protection when we attack. He is definitely proving to be smarter than I originally thought."
"Can we get inside now? I don't want the baby out in the weather for very long." Kagura adjusted her arms. Sasuke was awake and looking persistently at Madara's orange and black mask.
Kentaro gave a small laugh. "I think he likes your mask, Lord Madara."
"Well, he has good taste. Follow me and you can start setting up for later." He walked back into the forest with Kagura following him and Kentaro bringing up the rear.
They approached a staircase that was cut into the ground. At the bottom of the stairs was a set of double doors with white snakes carved into the wood. "This was originally one of Orochimaru's labs. There is a genjutsu cast in the area that makes people walk by it without noticing. As long as the ninja's surrounding the area are here the genjutsu will remain and you will be safe." Madara walked down the stairs and let them into the chamber. It was already lit and a furnace was burning in the corner. The room was large, but the furnace had heated it well. It was still a little colder than room temperature, but Kagura was sure it would be good enough for Sasuke.
In the center of the room a seal had been drawn on the floor. A large pillow had been placed in the center of the seal. Kagura walked over to it and laid Sasuke down. He started fussing so she sat next to him and started talking to him softly. He soon went to sleep.
Madara watched Kagura with Sasuke. She did have a way with children. Getting him to quiet down that quickly. He wanted to walk over and see the boy more closely, but he knew that wouldn't help. He sighed. "Kentaro. You know what to do." Madara started walking out of the chamber when Kagura ran to catch up with him.
"Lord Madara. Please. I… Can I see Obito's face, just one more time?" She caught a hold on his arm. He placed a hand on her shoulder and Kentaro walked over and stopped three feet behind her.
"Kagura. I am not inhabiting Obito's body. I'm sorry, but your boy is gone. Dead." She let go of his arm and turned around.
"I understand. That's okay." She turned back around to face Madara and put on a big smile. "Sasuke looks just like Obito did when he was a baby. I looked through the pictures. It's amazing. You should be very proud of him. He will help us restore the clan to its rightful path. Obito believed in the path. He was a timid boy, but his heart was in the right place. Goodbye, Lord Madara, please put Uchiha back on the right path and restore the power of the Sharingan." She turned around and walked back to Sasuke. Madara watched her for a couple minutes, then left the chamber.
The masked man walked into a clearing a half mile from the chamber. There was a seal drawn on the ground and an unconscious elderly man was tied up in the center. He sat down on a stump and looked at the scene in front of him. Kagura was half insane. There was no way she would be able to do the ceremony. Kentaro would do it. He would kill Kagura, then perform the ceremony. There was no way around it. "Damnit!" He yelled out to the empty air.
"Cursing already, and it hasn't even started yet." He looked at the man standing in front of him. Or rather, the projected image of a man.
"What do you want?" Madara was more than a little pissed.
"Just checking in. I also have a huge stake in what goes on here tonight. You can't fault me for protecting my interests." The man's ringed eyes blazed powerfully at Madara's sharingan.
"Is that what you call it? I have an idea for you, why don't you follow the orders I gave you earlier and fight Sasori of the Red Sands? Or is it too much for you?" Madara stood up and looked at the image in front of him.
"I'm getting ready to do just that right now. He should be here in a few minutes. My partner is on her way and will meet you at the pre-arranged spot to accept custody of the baby. Don't be late. She's already pissed off at having to babysit, let's not make things worse." He paused and looked to the right, then chuckled. "Well, he's here. Look's like it's time for me to play. Don't worry, I won't kill him. Much." He disappeared. Madara shook his head. The bargain with the man was necessary, but they didn't like each other. And he didn't like having to give Sasuke to the man's partner. He would have preferred to return the baby to Mikoto. They didn't like that idea. They wanted the boy under their control. He would humor them, but he also planned on keeping a close eye them.
"It's almost time." His thoughts returned to Kagura. He had to harden his heart. Her mental condition completely stemmed from the Uchiha's problems with having children. He would fix that. When the true power of the Sharingan was achieved the clan would be re-born. There would be many children. He hoped Kagura would be re-incarnated back into the clan. Then she would be happy. He wanted her to be happy. She had been very important to him once.
"What?" He suddenly realized what he was thinking. "I am Madara Uchiha." He spoke firmly. "Go to sleep. Do not bother me again." He felt a sharp pain in his head. He yelled "I said go to sleep!" He got up and walked to the outside of the seal.
Time passed and the sun began to set. He had heard ninjas roaming around the area a few time in the last couple hours, but due to the Genjutsu they never saw him, or the underground chamber. As the sun finally fell below the horizon Madara smiled beneath his mask as he looked at the unconscious man in front of him.
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After the teams set out to search for the underground laboratory Madara was suspected of using, Minato guided Fugaku and Hiashi outside the gate to a spot where they could be alone. "Fugaku. Tell me what is going on. It appears that my guesses have been wrong."
"My guesses were wrong, too." Fugaku admitted. "He has kidnapped my son. There is only one use for an infant. To create a Jinchuuriki for a demon. Specifically, the Kyuubi. He will keep the boy, then release the demon again at a future date when he has more control of it." Minato and Hiashi blinked at him in shock.
"Are you sure of this?" Hiashi said quietly.
"Very sure." He thought back to the elder council's insistence that a child be born by a specific time. He should have seen it back then.
"So what do we do?" Hiashi wasn't happy about this. The Uchiha clan was nothing but trouble in his book. They had no control over their members. No discipline.
"We have several options. The first one would be the best. That is to disrupt the sealing ceremony. If the demon is caught between its current host and its new host it will die. It is possible that this will break Madara's hold on this world and he could also die again."
"Isn't that the same as releasing it? How would that kill it?"
"Because it is not being released. It is being pulled from a host and pushed into a new host. The restrictions on the seal are very strict and breaking it will result in death. Madara is closely connected to the Kyuubi, that was known to the First when they fought all those years ago. Killing the Kyuubi might, in my opinion, kill Madara."
Minato spoke up "There is only a slim chance of us finding them."
Fugaku sighed. He knew that was true. "The alternative that will work, beyond any doubt is to allow the ceremony to complete then steal Sasuke back. I will then kill the boy. Once the Jinchuuriki dies, the demon also dies. This will weaken Madara – hopefully he would also die."
Hiashi couldn't believe what he just heard. "You would sacrifice your own son?"
"I don't want to! If they can find Sasuke before the ceremony then we can disrupt it. But as Minato has said, the chances of that are so slim… An Uchiha body used as a Jinchuuriki for the Kyuubi would be nearly as powerful as Madara himself. Perhaps more powerful. We can't allow that kind of power to be released into the world again." He trailed off. Minato had been very quiet, except for one statement. Fugaku continued "There is no one in this village powerful enough to stand against him. Even if the Third and Fourth combined their powers it would not be enough. Even the three great Sannin would be defeated. The Kyuubi must be eliminated to kill him completely. And even so, that is still just a theory of mine."
"What was your original plan then, if you knew you couldn't kill him?" Hiashi was getting agitated. He was afraid that the second option would be their only choice.
"Put up a united front of Uchiha against him. The best we could do would be to drive him away. Perhaps in the confrontation we could learn something about him. He is very loyal to the clan and very concerned with its welfare."
"In other words, you were going to wing it and see what happens?" Hiashi looked down. "I guess with someone like Madara, there isn't much else you could do. So I take it there is something wrong with the current Jinchuuriki holding the Kyuubi?"
"Good question. I suppose he must be very old by now. Perhaps Madara is moving the Kyuubi to a younger body because the current Jinchuuriki is dying. I wish I had thought to check up on him earlier. He hasn't lived in Konoha for decades, so it's kind of out of site out of mind. Not that it's an excuse, of course." Fugaku had been mentally kicking himself over this in the two hours since he discovered Sasuke was missing. It was so obvious it was pathetic. He was supposed to be the clan lord and the chief of police. An oversight this large… how could it have happened? Kentaro was by his side most of the time. He hated to think it, but perhaps he was under the traitors influence more than he thought he was. His heart hardened when he thought of Kentaro. He now hated the man with every fiber of his being. If he had to kill Sasuke, then Kentaro's death would be painful and last over several days.
"So all we have are those two options." Out of habit, Hiashi scanned the area around where they were standing. He could sense the change in Fugaku's demeanor and correctly guessed what was going on in his mind. The painful death of whoever was responsible for this. 'There must have been a traitor or traitors positioned very close to Fugaku for this to happen.' He thought to himself.
"No." Minato finally spoke up. His voice was quiet, but his tone was confident. "There is a third option." He smiled when the two men in front of him looked up at him with identical expressions of curiosity. He thought about his wife. She had gone into labor a few hours ago and the baby was expected in a couple or more hours. She should have been evacuated to a secure area by now. "I will return in an hour to fill you in on the plan. In the meantime, I want you two to join in the search. We must find Sasuke."
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Next Time: "Chapter 12 – Sasuke and Naruto" What is the link between these two boys? The Fourth Hokage Minato Namikaze, makes a decision he hopes will save Konoha and Sasuke. How will Kushina take it? Also, Fugaku is attacked and the Giant Monster Battle of the Summons begins!