"Hello Maiko."

I looked up from the file I was focusing on. It was giving me an headache anyway. I blinked for a second at the person standing in front of me before I shook myself and grinned. "Aoba! Hi. What brings you here?"

"I was just passing by and…"

"You decided to check if I was still in office instead of in prison?" I joked.

He winced, proof that I was spot on.

"I've not been dragged into the dark abyss yet, despite the disagreement between the butchers and me," I reassured him while spreading my arms theatrically.

"The butchers?" Itachi repeated from the chair where he was reading the Code of Shinobi Law.

I smiled at him. He had come back to me without any apparent physical or mental trauma this morning, which I was quite pleased about. Despite his reassurances, I still wasn't convinced that he was 'alright', though. I definitely had given him more sweets than was sensible, but it made both of us happier. "It's the nickname of the Torture and Interrogation Force."

"A bad nickname," Aoba whispered, pushing his sunglasses higher on his nose and checking that no-one was listening to us. "Is that really the sort of things you should teach him, Maiko?"

"He's here to learn about the work and life of paper-pushers. The awful nicknames are an important part of it. You can't fit in without them."

"There are more?" Itachi asked curiously.

"Of course," I replied eagerly, "at least one for each group. More when they're really interesting or annoying. For example..."

"Maiko!" Aoba protested with a hiss.

I chuckled and winked at Itachi. "More on that later. It will be lunch soon. Do you mind getting what I prepared from the fridge in the break room, Itachi-kun?"

The genin shook his head, closed the book and put it down on his chair before leaving quietly.

As soon as he was out of sight, I stood up and led Aoba towards an empty corridor. "I need a favor," I admitted.

He frowned, made hand seals and murmured the name of a genjutsu I knew would interfere with anyone listening. He had used it before. "Maiko..." he started to say.

I stopped him with a raised hand. "Don't worry, I'm not asking you to stick your neck for me. It's a small favor."

"I'm listening."

"If anything happens. Like… the worst case scenarios going through your head right now. If it happens, there are chances you'll learn about it quickly with your position in Intelligence, am I right?"

"I suppose," he agreed carefully.

"I just want you to warn my mum personally… if it happens."

"Maiko…"

I shook my head and smiled gently. "I know you only met her once but I promise she won't burst into tears in your arms or whatever you're fearing."

"That's not what I'm worried about," he replied curtly. "Maiko, why do you look convinced that something will happen? Is it that bad? I only heard that you pissed off Morino-san but that's nothing new, you piss off people on a weekly basis, and Morino-san is not that important… not yet."

I looked around and stared at the bare walls of the hallway and rubbed my arms, looking for some warmth and comfort.

I had spent the previous night thinking about the events of yesterday. For the first time today, I let some of the emotions I was feeling show as I looked Aoba in the eye. I'd projected bravado and nonchalance only for Itachi's benefit. I was an anxious mess inside. I felt like I was on a slippery slope slowly getting steeper and I couldn't see the end of it… How would it end? In a bottomless ravine? I had barely slept last night.

"Maiko," he whispered with worry.

"I… have a bad feeling," I admitted slowly.

"Bad enough that I might need to talk to your mother."

"Yes. I'm not asking for anything else, Aoba, just that she won't be the last one to know if anything happen. Please."

He sighed, cursed under his breath, but nodded. "Alright."

"Thank you." Feeling slightly better now that this detail was dealt with, I stepped forward and raised my arms for a hug.

He embraced me briefly. "That's not the kind of trouble I imagined you'd give me the first time we met," he admitted.

I chuckled and stepped back. "I'm full of surprises."

"That, you are," he agreed. "Is it true you're sleeping with Hatake?"

I tutted. "A lady never tells." I walked back toward the office.

He stayed where he was but asked: "If you are, why isn't he the one speaking to your mother?"

"Because…" I spun around. "I don't trust him as much as I trust you." I winked and turned back, knowing that would motivate him even more to do as I asked. That was a little manipulative of me, but it wasn't like I lied: I didn't trust Kakashi in the same way I trusted Aoba. With this favor in particular, I knew that Kakashi could have many reasons not to do as I requested. I couldn't take the risk.

I passed by Raidou and Genma, smiling at the second and ignoring the first. It was rare, but I knew how to hold a grudge, especially when it involved doubting the loyalty of someone I considered a friend. I hated to distrust him, but the seed of suspicion had been sowed. I couldn't afford to ignore it until I saw how it grew.

oOo

"I heard you're giving Raidou and Iwashi the cold shoulder."

"Are you going to tell me off for it?"

I glanced over my shoulder, still standing in front of the rice pudding I was cooking to avoid it boiling over. Kakashi had made himself at home at the dinner table, his book of the week in hand. Although he would probably deny it if asked, I was pretty sure that he had gotten fond of my cooking… or maybe just of not having to do anything to get some homemade food.

He raised a judgemental eyebrow at me.

I laughed quietly. "Yeah, that's not your style."

"Mh… You're more forgiving usually. As proven with Genma..."

"Genma admitted his mistake and apologized," I pointed out as I turned off the cooker and poured the rice pudding in a dish to cool down.

"What do you want them to apologize for? Not meeting your standards?"

I froze with my hand on the fridge's handle and stared at him. That was an obvious attempt to provoke me, but I couldn't figure out why. In doubt, I stayed calm and replied nonchalantly as I continued to make dinner: "Maybe."

"You've high standards."

"Not really. I'm sleeping with you."

"Ouch," Kakashi said, resting his closed book over his heart as he pretended half-heartedly I had hurt him. "Fair enough."

"Just get to the point, Kakashi."

"Just wondering who is good enough for you."

I dropped the leeks I was preparing on the cutting board and stared at them for a second before shrugging and starting to chop them. "That's easy. Hokage-sama, obviously."

There was the sound of a chair scraping against the floor behind me before I felt Kakashi's breath against my ear. "What if he had been the one to give the order to Raidou and Iwashi?"

"He didn't," I replied firmly.

"How confident of you. He is the Hokage. Do you really think he never dirtied his hands or those of his subordinates? Do you think he wouldn't put the good of Konoha over the well-being of one kid?"

My hand shook on the knife.

"All that you see is the bright leaves of the tree. What do you know of its shadows? Of what goes behind the scenes to keep your little world comfortable and happy?" His hand rested over mine.

I shook it off and forced him to move back with an elbow in his ribs. "I know enough," I replied firmly. "Minato-sama didn't give the order," I repeated.

"That sounds like a prayer."

"Maybe because it is."

"Why?"

"Because if he did, life is pointless and I might as well throw myself from the Hokage's mountain, alright!" I shouted, breathing fast, too fast. Anxiety was back in full force. "Stop pushing, Kakashi! I don't know what you're trying to prove. That I'm a naive fool with a big crush on the Hokage? Anyone can tell you that. Danzou would be really happy to do so! So what? What's your point?" I turned around to glare at him and lifted my chin defiantly. "That's who I am and I won't apologize for it. If you've a problem with that, just get out and leave me in peace!"

He looked at me silently, with the lazy expression of a cat sizing you up.

Tears had come up to my eyes, and I felt self-conscious of them. I was the first to look away. I pushed him back for good measure, pretending to go back to cooking to hide my emotions. I felt too raw, ready to burst into tears if he pushed just a tiny bit more. Once upon a time, in a previous life, if that happened, I'd have run to hide in my bedroom for some peace. In this life, I was just as likely to chase Kakashi out with sharp blades… and we all knew that wouldn't end well for me.

Kakashi put a hand on my shoulder and turned me toward him, but I kept my head angled away. Nonetheless, I felt his lips on my cheek.

"Sorry," he whispered.

I blinked quickly, sniffed and glanced at him hesitantly. He used the opportunity to kiss my lips, but I turned away again. "No," I grumbled.

He backed off obediently. "Do you want me to leave?"

I shrugged. "I already started to prepare dinner for two. Just… leave me alone until it's ready."

"Alright."

Half an hour later, we were eating dinner in uncomfortable silence. I knew that Kakashi would bail as soon as he had eaten which would be…

"Thank you for the meal…"

Now.

I grabbed him by the wrist before he could run, even if I hadn't time to finish my rice pudding (seriously, eating so quickly couldn't be good for him). I stood up and draped an arm around his shoulders as he watched me cautiously.

"I know of the shadows, and I can guess what goes behind the scenes. Just because I strive for the best doesn't mean I ignore the worst… or that I condemn those whose work allow me to hold onto... what I guess is a privileged view for some. It's just… who I am, Kakashi." After a few seconds of silence, I stammered: "I don't know how to…"

"You said you didn't believe in the Will of Fire," he interrupted me suddenly, "that you couldn't have faith, or hold onto this belief…"

I nodded.

"... Yet, I never met someone who embodies it so well that it became more than a will. It's your guideline."

Baffled, I stared at him, speechless.

"Maybe you don't see it because you can't imagine another way," he said thoughtfully, tilting his head with a hint of amusement. "The Will of Fire, it's supposed to help us remember our ultimate goal when missions make us doubt and falter. To remember we fight and act to protect our village, our people, the generations to come. When the missions are gruesome, you have to believe it's for the right cause… even when children get hurt in the way… Itachi getting intimidated would have been for the good of the village."

I immediately went to protest.

He chuckled softly. "... and yet, what's the point if you're attacking the same children you promised yourself time and time again that you were defending, right?"

I blinked, slowly understanding his point. "Right."

He poked the tip of my nose. "And for someone who isn't capable of faith, you sure do believe a lot in Minato-sensei."

"Duh. He's Minato-sama!" I replied, spreading my hands raised toward the ceiling.

He smiled behind his mask. "I know."

His smile was contagious. I bit my lower lip as I grinned. His eyes followed the movement, and I barely needed to pull on his mask for him to swoop in for a kiss.

He grabbed the back of my thighs, lifted me and pressed me against the nearest wall. I held onto his vest firmly as I chased the sweet taste of the pudding on his tongue.

When we separated briefly to breathe, I whispered: "You were right. I have high standards… and you meet all of them."

He huffed and nuzzled my cheek but didn't reply or let me continue this line of thought.

oOo

"I'm sorry, Maiko-san. I'm making you late and giving you even more work," Itachi said with remorse.

"Don't worry about it, Itachi-kun. Mistakes happen to the best of us and it's easy enough to fix. It's just a misplaced file. If it's where you think it is, it won't take us too much time," I replied gently, hoping that it would indeed be as simple as that.

It was late. We were both supposed to have left twenty minutes ago, but my usual evening check-up had shown a file was missing. Itachi was supposed to have taken care of it but, despite his attempts to prove otherwise, he was clearly still shaken and I wouldn't blame him for such a small thing.

We were in the secured archives and technically Itachi wasn't supposed to be here, but I hated to let him out of my sight and no-one would know about it anyway... right?

"Haruka-san?" I frowned in surprise at seeing my coworker hunched over a drawer. "You're working late too? Is there an emergency I should help you with?"

She flinched and looked up, wide-eyed. "Maiko… and Itachi-kun," she said, catching sight of the boy. "What are you doing here?" she asked bluntly.

"Just a quick errand," I replied distractedly, stepping forward with my head tilted to glance at the files Haruka was going through. This was the row for personal files of highly classified personnel, mostly ANBU. The open drawer contained files starting with 'HA', and I caught sight of the red seal used for high level assets.

The drawer slammed shut violently. I startled at the noise.

"An errand? Maiko-san, you know Uchiha-kun isn't allowed here!" Haruka said brusquely.

"Not without supervision," I agreed, "but…"

"No but! Get out! You're taking too many liberties, Maiko-san. Be more serious!"

There was something wrong. Her voice was too shrill, her protest too vehement, her behavior just slightly excessive, as if she was upset or... afraid.

I went to reply, slowly lifting a hand toward my obi, when I was suddenly pushed aside.

"Watch out!" Itachi shouted.

Two shuriken hit the lockers, barely missing me.

As I turned around to face the threat and help Itachi, Haruka suddenly threw herself at me, a blade in hand. In close quarters, I had little space to maneuver and avoid her. I blocked her first attack and pushed her back with a kick, hurling her against the metal cupboard that rattled loudly. As I grabbed my weapons, I glanced to the side to see Itachi engaging a masked figure. ROOT.

Sage almighty… We were in trouble.

I could deal with being in trouble but Itachi being included? That wasn't acceptable. Genius or not, he still only was a genin!

Spurred by desperation, I batted away Haruka's attempt at stabbing me and hit her in the face with the blunt end of my closed fan before sending her sprawling on the floor with a high kick.

Haruka might be a Chuunin coming from the Jounin track but her specialities were genjutsu and ninjutsu. She didn't like taijutsu and didn't practice it much. It was a huge weakness in close quarters.

"Itachi. Switch!" I ordered, running at the ROOT agent who just dared to punch my little protégé in the gut.

Itachi rolled away without hesitation, and I had no doubt that he could deal with Haruka. I unfolded my fans to slash at the real threat.

I didn't have time to think, to analyse, to wonder how and why Haruka ended up working with/for ROOT. And for how long? Honestly, the details didn't matter right now. The result was speaking for itself and, if we survived this, the consequences would be enough to scare me into a panic attack before I could ponder the prelude.

Survival and protection instincts were the only thing driving me. I couldn't remember ever fighting so hard, not even that time when I faced an Iwa intruder.

I relied a lot on dodging for taijutsu and our environment limited me too much. I was forced to block and take hits more often than I'd like, until I was covered in bruises and wounds. Mere determination and focus helped me to ignore pain and continue fighting.

A quick and strong hit got me on the inner elbow, paralyzing my left arm and getting me to drop a fan. Handicapped, I was expecting to be quickly put out of commission, but the ROOT agent faltered and leaned on the side, as if unable to stay upright. I didn't question it and gave tit for tat, disarming him and hitting him in the throat. When he doubled over, I hit him as hard as I could on the back of his head. He dropped to the ground. I sat on his back and immobilized him with my legs and my working arm.

When I finally glanced up, it was to see Itachi standing in front of me, Haruka being tied up and unconscious behind him.

"Good job," I said, blinking in surprise.

He tilted his head in acknowledgement.

"Did you do something to get this guy distracted from me?"

"Yes. A simple genjutsu affecting his balance."

That's when I finally noticed that his eyes were red with the Sharingan (it wasn't as obvious as you would think, certainly not as much as the anime showed, with the characters' big inhuman eyes).

"Thanks," was the only thing I could think to say to that. I had a moment of hesitation, during which I realized that I just had one of the most difficult fight of my life against a colleague and a rogue agent, that this was a right mess and that I had no idea what to do from there.

A rope appeared in my field of vision.

Itachi was reminding me to tie up my opponent. It was standard protocol: fight, subdue and restrain. The genin was relying on the procedures ingrained in him and I was grateful for it. The simple steps were easy to follow. That was the exact reason why they were taught and repeated again and again: because after a fight and the adrenaline rush, you were left shaken and thinking logically was difficult. Without a superior to give orders, a young or inexperienced soldier could be left floundering… like me right now.

I tied him up, remembering the secure knots we had been taught and checking them twice.

When I looked up, Itachi was waiting. He looked patient, but his body language was tense, and he had turned in a way that let him see both of our prisoners.

Our eyes met. He was waiting for me. I was the chunin here. I was supposed to decide how to proceed.

… But I had no idea.

I rubbed my inner elbow, where sensations were only starting to come back, the first of them being pain. I winced, sighed, observed the scene and concluded very cleverly: "Well, this is a mess."

"This isn't a real ANBU, is he? His mask is different," Itachi pointed out, glancing at the ROOT agent distrustfully.

"No, he isn't. He isn't working for the Hokage." I stood up slowly and stepped toward Haruka.

"Was he blackmailing Haruka-san? Threatening her?"

I hesitated but shook my head slowly. "No. She wouldn't have attacked in this way if she was an unwilling accomplice."

Itachi watched me with a very solemn face. "So she's a traitor."

"I'm afraid so," I sighed.

A low hiss came from Haruka's mouth as she opened her eyes and shoot me a dirty look. "I'm no traitor."

"Your actions say otherwise," Itachi pointed out.

She struggled against her bonds and glared at me. "You're oh so self-righteous aren't you? The Hokage's favorite, to be looked after and cared for. All eyes on you all the time. This is your fault!"

"What is?" I frowned, dumbfounded. Haruka had always been the jealous kind but this was pushing it.

"They chose me because of you!"

"You're really not making any sense."

"I think I understand," Itachi said suddenly and I raised an eyebrow at him. "With all due respect, Maiko-san, you draw attention, and if everyone is too busy thinking about you and your actions then they won't think twice about Haruka-san, which makes her an ideal mole."

"I…" I stammered, frowned and pointed at myself. "I draw attention? Me? What? I don't… Wait." I stared at Haruka in dawning horror as understanding came to me. "When I was attacked at home… is that when...?"

"Yes," Haruka hissed. "They were all so busy being worried about you being a potential security breach. Did you know there were no ANBU, no guards around for a day at the Hokage's office?"

Left gaping, I stepped forward hesitantly. "Haruka-san… what did they do to you?"

She didn't answer, keeping her mouth tightly shut although her jaw clenched and she visibly struggled.

Feeling suspicious, I came closer and crouched down. "Sorry, but I need to check… open your mouth, Haruka-san."

She tilted her head, squinting at me. "How do you know…?"

I smiled fleetingly. "I'm full of surprises. Open."

She complied, sticking her tongue out without further prompting and confirming what I had already guessed: her tongue was branded with a seal. Danzou's mark.

"What is it?" Itachi breathed.

"A cursed seal," I replied absentmindedly, too busy thinking about what I should do, how to react. I looked back at the ROOT agent and then at Itachi. I had to prioritize: I had to protect him first and foremost, but I also needed to warn the Hokage somehow. "Itachi-kun, listen. You're going to find the Hokage and tell him what happened, alright? Go to the mansion, ask to speak to him urgently. Him, Jiraiya-sama, Shikaku-sama, Kakashi-san or Genma-san, they're the only ones you should trust. Do you understand?"

Itachi nodded solemnly.

"Don't let anyone else see you if you can."

Once Itachi was gone, I turned back to Haruka and her judgmental eyes.

"The Hokage can't save us all," she said scornfully.

"He's the best sealmaster of Konoha and beyond. If anyone can help you, it's him."

She shook her head and looked behind me. I barely had time to register her widening eyes that a kunai whistled past my ear and embedded itself in her throat to the hilt.

I jerked back, shouting in fright and horror as Haruka choked trying to scream. I spun around, getting ready to defend myself, but I only managed to catch sight of the ROOT agent disappearing behind the lockers and leaving behind sliced ropes.

"No," I whispered, kneeling by Haruka's side, "no, no, no!" I said louder until I shouted as I saw her suffocate in her own blood.

There was nothing I could do apart from crying but I tried anyway, my hands quickly getting painted red.

I barely registered the men that grabbed my arms and dragged me away as I shouted her name.

By the time I registered that the men handling me were regular ANBU and not ROOT, Haruka had long ago stopped breathing.

I was the only one near her corpse.

I was charged with her murder.

oOo CHANGES of PoV oOo

"Murder?"

Aoba pushed his sunglasses higher on his nose and nodded. "Yes, Kamizuki-san. I'm sorry I can't tell you more. The investigation is classified."

Midori sighed and waved a hand. "You did enough. Thank you."

Aoba bowed respectfully, feeling too unsettled by the situation to say anything more. Rumors had already spread when he arrived to work this morning: the Hokage's assistants had tried to kill one another and Maiko had butchered her opponent.

The news was going to spread in Konoha's high ranks, especially when regular shinobi would have to replace the two secretaries.

While Aoba didn't believe his friend would have killed Haruka (who happened to be a distant cousin of his, one whom he hadn't liked but still...), this was upsetting. What the hell had happened? He couldn't fathom what had led to this.

Midori watched him leave silently. As soon as he was out of hearing, she put her book away and reached for her wheelchair, pouring herself in it with even less consideration for her dead legs than usual. "Fucking Danzou," she muttered under her breath, "if you think for one second that I'll let you get away with ruining my daughter's life…" Hissing and puffing, she put on shoes and a blanket over her legs before rolling in the hallway.

"Midori-san? Are you going for a stroll?" A nurse asked.

"You can say that. I'm on the warpath."

"Oh… Kunai?"

Midori accepted the blade offered and grinned wickedly. "That's why you're my favorite, Akamichi-chan."

In the streets, Midori kept an eye on the rooftops and threw the kunai at the first giant green bird she saw.

Maito Gai dropped by in front of her a second later, offering back the kunai by the hilt with a mega-watt grin. "Kamizuki-san. I believe you lost this!"

"Yes, thank you," Midori agreed cheerfully, smiling at the courteous jounin. "Would you mind doing me a favor, Maito-kun?"

"It would be my pleasure, Ma'am! What can I do for you?"

"I need you to relay a message to a friend of yours…"

A few minutes later, after sending Gai to do half of the leg work, Midori arrived to the Nara clan compound and caught the attention of the dozing guard by nearly rolling on his foot. "I wish to see Nara Yoshino," she announced.

He let her in but not without grumbling under his breath as she moved away: "Crazy women attract each other."

Midori might have lost her kunai again. Her bad.

oOo

"So, this didn't go as planned," Jiraiya pointed out.

Staring at the reports spread on his desk without really seeing them, Minato kept his head up only thanks to the fist it was resting on. He grunted in answer.

A knock at the door was followed by Genma stepping in, his senbon conspicuously absent. "Hokage-sama. Rin wishes to speak to you urgently," he announced, perfectly professional (a sure sign he was upset).

The door closed behind Rin, who walked to the desk and simply put down a key. "I was told to bring you this."

Minato stared at the item, bewildered. "By who? What is this for?"

"I don't know. Maiko asked me to keep it for her and Gai came by a few minutes ago, saying Kamizuki Midori requested I give it to you, which I'd guess has something to do with the rumor that Maiko is accused of murder," she said calmly, with a poise that showed exactly what she thought of the idea: nothing good.

"Ooh," Jiraiya murmured as he grabbed the key, "looks like Maiko-chan had a contingency plan. Nice foresight. Mh… Small key. Looks like something used to open a small container of some kind. Should I go talk to Midori-chan?"

A flash of chakra warned them of the arrival of Kakashi via the window. He waved at them with two fingers. "Yo."

"Do you have something for us?" Jiraiya asked, looking excited by the puzzle.

Kakashi blinked lazily. "News that Naruto and Itachi are safe with Mikoto-san?"

Jiraiya huffed and waved a hand dismissively.

Minato was more interested and asked: "Is Fugaku aware of the situation?"

"Itachi-kun gave him a report, as you allowed him to. Fugaku-san doubled the guards around their home."

Minato hummed in acknowledgement. After Itachi had appeared at his house yesterday evening and told him what happened, Minato had kept Itachi close to protect him from any backlash from Danzou. Then he had spent the night trying to make sense of all this mess, to make it right. He couldn't just sweep away the accusation against Maiko only based on Itachi's testimony. He needed a stronger defense.

Another knock at the door and Genma walked in to announce: "Nara Yoshino to see you urgently, Hokage-sama."

Shikaku shifted and sat up on the couch in the corner of the office, where he was stretching after a very early start to his day. He straightened and glanced at his wife as she stepped in.

"Yondaime-sama," Yoshino greeted him politely, "this has been entrusted to me and I've been asked to give it to you." She put down a rectangular wooden box in front of Minato.

Jiraiya moved forward cheerfully. "A box! And the key seems to fit! Perfect!"

"Thank you Yoshino," Minato replied, more reserved.

"When did you get that?" Shikaku asked as he stood up and smoothed out his ponytail absentmindedly.

"Maiko-san asked me to look after it two weeks ago," Yoshino explained. "I was to give it to you or Hokage-sama only if something happened to her. I was led to believe that it contained something like… a testament." Her voice was heavy with implied questioning as she stared at her husband.

Shikaku rubbed his face and shook his head. "We're not there yet. Thanks Yoshino. I'll keep you updated on what I can."

"See that you do."

After her departure, Jiraiya made a show of opening the box with the key, although he carefully checked for any traps as he did so.

They all watched as it opened without flourish to reveal a simple scroll… or not so simple: it was branded with a red seal: "Hokage's eyes only". Minato inhaled sharply.

"What is it?" Kakashi asked, leaning against a wall indolently but bending forward with interest.

"This looks like four others I've seen," Jiraiya noted, suddenly as serious as he could be.

Silently, Minato applied to the scroll a seal checking for any threats before opening it without delay. He glanced at its contents (or at least the start of it, as it looked quite thick and long) first. "It's the same author," he confirmed, "and it looks like... Maiko wrote it."

"The girl is our Mysterious Informant? Are you kidding me? How old was she when we got the first one? Twelve?"

"Mysterious In— Are you talking about the one who warned you about the Kannabi bridge mission?!" Kakashi straightened immediately. Rin's eyes widened.

"And the kidnapping attempt on Rin. And the fucking mess during Naruto's birth. And the kidnapping attempt on the Hyuuga's heiress. Yep, that's the one," Jiraiya confirmed as he tried to read over his student's shoulder.

"Are you sure Maiko wrote it, Minato?" Shikaku asked. "She might be a go-between."

"Same writing. And it starts like this…" Minato cleared his throat and read.

"Hokage-sama,

If you read this, I'm out of commission, one way or another. If I'm dead, let it be known that it was an honor and a pleasure working for you.

I didn't plan to offload all of this on you at once, but I had to take precautionary measures to ensure that those informations would reach you regardless of my status. That genjutsu fright reminded me of how fickle life is.

There is no going back after this, so let's be clear: yes, I, Kamizuki Maiko, am the one (and only) responsible for the information you received previously. For reasons I won't disclose here, I'm aware of past, present and future events, mostly focused on Konoha, but not exclusively. This knowledge is of no great interest if left in my possession, but with it you can change much more than you already did. You can create a better future. You already started.

Here is what you need to know…"

Sorry for the delay everyone. 2017 didn't start so well for me after all. I had a bad panic attack that led me to a lot of anxiety then family trouble, then health trouble, then computer trouble, so a lot of anxiety... Give me a break, 2017, alright?

I'm finally starting to get better. Now I hope you enjoyed this chapter! As you can see things are changing! (This wasn't betaed, by the way, it probably showed... EDIT 12th march: it has been betaed by the wonderful Sage Thrasher) Next chapter should come much faster (hopefully, if things continue to go back to normal), I've already started on it.

I was surprised to discover how many fav/followers this story gained in the meantime. More than 1k! Wow! Welcome everyone! Thanks for all the reviews, I read them all and appreciate your support a lot! I'd love to hear what you thought of this chapter.