Okay all here's the twentieth chapter of Second Best. Woah, Twenty chapters, I'm really getting somewhere here. Anywho, I hope you all enjoy it, and all that jazz.
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Second Best.
Chapter Twenty – The Calm Before The Storm.
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On this sunny day in Konoha, the people were getting on with their usual business. Shopping, running errands, eating, all the regular things that usually went on in Konoha every day. No one noticed a dark haired male walking through the village, with a hood over his face. The male snuck through Konoha, very early in the morning, and made his way to the household of Sabaku No Sakura very quickly, and decided to watch the daily routine of the family. It seemed as though everyone were just waking up. Someone landed next to him on the branch of the tree he was concealing himself in. "Hello Aniki." Rokijuii glared as Aoiyuki grinned at him. "I missed you, you know." She said softly.
"You're going to get me caught." Rokijuii hissed back at her.
"I'm not going to let you kill Uncle Sasuke. Whether you like it or not he is your Uncle too." Aoiyuki stated sternly.
"He killed my mother. If it wasn't for him, she'd still be alive." Rokijuii hissed.
"No Aniki, that's not true at all. Your mother got herself into the mess that got her executed. She tried to kill two children. One of which is our cousin. She had some good people killed too. Sakura-San's husband for one." Aoiyuki stated.
"You care about all of this for what reason?" Rokijuii hissed out.
"I care because I have the choice to show my opinions now. I care because this village is my home now. I care because I can see the goodness of the people here. Sakura-San and Uncle Sasuke are included. Uncle accepted me without a second thought. He'd accept you too Rokijuii. He cares about family." Aoiyuki said softly.
"He killed our father. His own brother." Rokijuii stated harshly.
"My mother told us why that was. We both never held grudges. Why do you hate him so much now?" Aoiyuki asked.
"Because it's his fault my mother abandoned me. He never wanted me. She left me with Konan and you and never thought about taking me with her." Rokijuii stated.
"He didn't know you existed until your mother revealed it at her execution. He never had a clue. I was there when she was executed, Rokijuii, and the look on his face was as though he had no idea what she was talking about. It even showed in his eyes. Us Uchiha's don't often show emotions. Especially if it's so great that it reaches our eyes." Aoiyuki said softly. Rokijuii glared at Aoiyuki sternly.
"Why would my own mother leave me alone and never bother with me Aoiyuki?" He asked. Before she could answer, the pair saw Sasuke come into the garden. Ryo, Hiroki, Shinji, Arashi and Fuuko followed him.
"Okay Ryo, Hiroki, Arashi, you three, work on Chakra control today. Remember, only light exercises, your chakra coils are still developing. Shinji, Fuuko, you two are with my today, and I'm going to show you how to throw a shuriken straight. It's one of the first skills they teach you in the academy." Sasuke said firmly. The children all agreed, and the three older boys ran off in their own direction. Rokijuii watched Ryo closely.
"That's my little brother, right?" He asked Aoiyuki. She nodded.
"He's a great kid. He loves it here. He also loves Sakura-San and Hiroki and his father." Aoiyuki said softly.
"Why are you trying to make this hard for me?" Rokijuii asked.
"Because you're going to make it hard for him. You think that if you kill his father, and hurt the people that he cares about, that he's going to come with you to Oto with open arms? He knows his own mother's wrongs. He knows the history of this village, and he knows his father. He's not going to let anyone tell him any different." Aoiyuki stated. "Also, you're making this difficult for me. I won't be torn between my brother and my Uncle." Aoiyuki added more softly. Rokijuii nodded.
"I won't make you choose Aoiyuki. I never expected you too. But I'm not going to stop my revenge. You'll have to deal with that any way you choose to." Rokijuii said quietly. Before Aoiyuki could reply, her brother was gone.
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That afternoon, Ryo and Hiroki were walking back from the Academy. "Ryo, do you think that Iruka-Sensei will let us try Shadow Clone Jutsu? It's Uncle Naruto's best Jutsu, but he says I'm too young to learn it yet." Hiroki said glumly.
"Hey, I'm sure when the right time comes, Uncle Naruto will teach you the Shadow Clone Jutsu." Ryo replied. Hiroki brightened up immediately.
"Well we'll always learn together, right Aniki?" Hiroki asked. Ryo grinned. He knew Hiroki only called him Aniki when he wanted a purely honest opinion, and not to be placated.
"I think we will. I'm certainly not going anywhere Hiroki." Ryo answered. Ryo grinned as the pair walked down the street. They didn't realise that they were being watched. Rokijuii felt his heart clench.
"Aoiyuki wasn't lying. They have a real bond. Just like the bond I share with her." Rokijuii thought to himself. He heard someone land next to him and turned to glare at Aoiyuki. She grinned at him, and he took note that Coco was draped around her shoulders. He gave the cat a surreptitious scratch under the chin.
"So, you're starting to see what I've seen?" Aoiyuki asked. Her long blue hair, floated in the gentle breeze.
"I see that Ryo is happy here. That doesn't mean that I'm giving up my revenge on Sasuke." Rokijuii hissed. He once again disappeared. Aoiyuki sighed to herself.
"Why are you making me pick brother." She uttered to herself. Then she disappeared from the branch, leaving the tree empty.
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Naruto stared at the stack of paperwork that Tsunade was filling out. "Why do you always have so much paperwork Baa-Chan?" Naruto asked. Tsunade glared at the cheeky blonde.
"It's because the Hokage's life isn't easy. This is like hell on earth. Why did you bring me here to be the Hokage?" Tsunade asked, still glaring.
"Because you needed to come back and heal Kakashi-Sensei and Sasuke. And because Ero-Sennin is too perverted to be a Hokage." Naruto stated.
"You should've seen Sarutobi-Sensei in his younger days." Tsunade muttered to herself.
"What did you say Baa-Chan?" Naruto asked, a confused look on his face.
"Nothing Gaki. Just let me get on with this. Tell Aoiyuki to stop slacking I haven't seen her all day." Tsunade stated.
"That's weird, she's usually already asked for some sort of assignment by about nine o Clock." Naruto said.
"Well not today. Can you go and find the kid? I'm kind of worried about the gaki. She's usually here constantly." Tsunade asked. Naruto nodded.
"I'll go and look for her." Naruto replied, and disappeared out of the office. Tsunade sighed and went back to her paperwork.
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Sakura was in the graveyard, placing flowers. Shinji was with her, and she carried Akina in her arms. "Mummy, do you think Dad would be proud of me now?" Shinji asked.
"Of course, he would be sweetie. Your Dad would be so proud of you now. I'm sure that he's in the heavens watching over you Shinji. Never forget how much he loved you." Sakura said softly. It still broke her heart that Kankuro had died so pointlessly.
"Ryo's Mother had Dad killed right?" Shinji asked bluntly.
"What makes you think that sweetie?" Sakura asked.
"I heard you and Uncle Gaara, and Auntie Temari, and Uncle Naruto talking about it. She said she did when Uncle Naruto was talking to her after you bought her back here." Shinji stated bluntly.
"People do bad things sometimes Shinji. It's the way some people are. She did terrible things, but that doesn't stop her being Ryo's mother." Sakura said kindly.
"I know. But it must be sad. To know your mother took someone's Dad away?" Shinji questioned.
"Yes, it must be sweetie." Sakura answered. The pair walked away, Shinji's hand in Sakura's. Once again, Rokijuii went unnoticed, as he watched from a tree. Once again, Aoiyuki appeared next to him.
"Can't you see attacking this village would be pointless Rokijuii? It's not worth your soul to avenge your mother's misdeeds." Aoiyuki begged. Rokijuii could hear the tears in her voice. He didn't have to turn around to see that she was crying.
"It's too late for me to turn back now Aoiyuki. Don't get in my way." He hissed. Then disappeared. Aoiyuki sat in the tree sobbing.
"I don't want to fight my own brother. But if I don't warn them then he'll strike and lots of innocent people will get hurt." Aoiyuki thought as the tears slipped down her cheeks. She heard someone beside her. She turned her head to see Naruto.
"Hey what's wrong kid? What's got you upset?" Naruto asked her kindly. He sat down next to the girl and hugged her as if she were his own child. Aoiyuki managed to stop herself crying. She'd made her decision, though she knew she'd hate herself for it later.
"Naruto-San, my brother's army is outside Konoha. They're waiting to attack." Aoiyuki said softly.