Chapter Thirty-Six
The training room at the Hyūga Compound was uncharacteristically alive. In fact, Kushina would have sworn they were anywhere but the compound given the eclectic crowd in the normally extremely conservative clan's clean and quiet environment. She didn't remember the last time there were this many young people in the compound. Next thing you know, Kakashi will take off his mask and get girlfriend, and Jiraiya will get down on his knee and ask Tsunade to be his wife. Kushina laughed to herself – weirder things had been happening lately.
Spread out before her was most of teams Seven, Eight, Ten, Team Guy, and Team Habanero. The only ones missing were Akemi, Neji, Hanabi, and Hinata – at family therapy. Everyone else was practicing dance and balance drills with Naruto, Sasuke, Shikamaru, Choji, Rock Lee, Konohamaru, Shino, and Kiba all dressed in black tights similar to the ones she was wearing. Tenten opted to wear a floral pattern set of yoga leggings with a white sports top. Sakura wore red tights trimmed with gold and her normal mission top. Ino wore her normal mission gear with a pair of black leggings. The unlikely group had been brought together as a result of Kakashi and the other Jonin-Sensei being away at a meeting with Minato regarding security for the second part of the Chunin Exams. As the genin needed an adult in charge, it soon fell to Kushina to make up for the lack of instructors. More credit hours towards getting my instructor's license back! Indeed, the recent uptick in hours she was accumulating now that she was training Hanabi had Kushina poised to regain licensure by the time the exams ended this October – right around Naruto's birthday.
She watched the boys struggle to balance in a tree-pose stance on one leg; she struggled to stifle a laugh. Each of the boys was highly skilled in his own way, Kushina didn't deny that, but they all lacked focus and discipline in one way or another. Dance and gymnastic movements were simple but effective means of building up focus and concentration.
Being her son, Naruto was her greatest concern. He had no trouble balancing, but he was still struggling to control certain chakra techniques. The work around he came up with for Rasengan was novel, but Kushina reminded him many techniques couldn't be worked around, and there were no shortcuts to becoming Hokage. Naruto would need all the help he could get the next few months. The toads of Mount Myoboku would not be as forgiving as she was.
Sasuke and Kiba on the other hand, were two alpha males on the same team. Both were overly aggressive, frequently too eager to charge in dick first, and neither particularly liked one another. Choji and Shikamaru both wobbled like they were standing up in a rowboat on a rough sea. With only a month and a half left before the second part of the Chunin Exams, discipline and teamwork would potentially mean the difference between life and death in the field. Kushina shivered at the thought of any of these young shinobi not returning from Training Ground Forty-Four – the Forest of Death.
Kushina shook off the bad feeling. Worrying about it wasn't going to solve anything. "All right, everyone, other leg," she called cheerfully. A chorus of groans rose from the boys, and the kunoichi grinned as they all seamlessly changed legs. While kunoichi were almost always required to take dance class, male shinobi were not.
"What a pain, why the hell are we doing this again?" Shikamaru whined.
"Totally," Choji hopped awkwardly, barely avoiding falling on his face.
"She is trying to teach us the important of balance and discipline," the normally reserved Shino replied. Of all the boys, he and Rock Lee were the best balanced.
"Very good, Shino," Kushina complimented.
"Ugh, is this really necessary?" Sasuke complained, arms flailing to keep his balance.
"You can wave your arms and legs around all you want, Sasuke," she replied, "but if you can't keep your feet under you while doing it, what's the point?" Sasuke fell, putting his other leg on the ground. "Ten pushups, please."
"Dammit," he sighed. Soon Choji, and Shikamaru joined him. Ino and Sakura grinned wildly as they admired Sasuke's pushup form. Naughty, Naughty, girls! Kushina stifled her urge to giggle along.
Surprisingly, Naruto and Konohamaru had yet to fall. "You have been practicing!"
"Believe it!" Naruto, Lee, and Konohamaru answered in unison with a thumbs up. Kushina knew all three had been training with Hinata during their off time. Kushina, herself, had been a regular fixture here at the compound lately, helping Neji with his rehab. In fact, Hinata had given Kushina her old room, and Kushina had spent more than a few nights here instead of home in the past month.
"Sorry we're late," Hinata called from the door. She and her sister were both dressed in black tights, as was their mom. Hiashi wore his traditional robes, and he was assisted Neji, dressed in black shorts and a black t-shirt. Angry ridges of scar tissue were visible on the left leg as he hobbled up the step on his crutches. His left leg was supported by a specialized hinged brace that supported him above and below the knee. Nevertheless, the boy was still all smiles as he entered the room.
"Okay, everyone, break for five, and we'll pair up for takedown drills!" Kushina called out. As the group dispersed, Kushina ran toward Akemi, "How'd therapy go?" she asked as she hugged her friend.
"Well, I think we're making progress," Akemi replied with a smile.
"Is that so?" Kushina asked with a grin as she turned to Hinata and Hanabi. Kushina knelt down to hug the girls.
"Aunt Kushina," they both said in unison. Progress indeed! Hanabi had never called her Aunt Kushina until now, and the lines of her grandfather's scowl were finally starting to fade.
"Okay, you girls get warmed up and you'll join the rest of the class, okay?"
"Okay!" they answered in unison.
"First Lady Uzumaki," Neji bowed his head.
"Neji, please," she smiled, patting him on the shoulder, "it's Mrs. Uzumaki or Miss Kushina while we're here!"
"Very well, Mrs. Uzumak," he bowed again.
"Go ahead and get warmed up, and we'll get started," she said. Neji hobbled to a chair next to a set of low parallel bars. When Neji got out of the hospital last week, Hinata had them installed. In addition, she had seen to purchase a pulley system, ankle weights, resistance bands, and a few other rehab items. Normally, Neji would be looking at another month of doing basic rehab in the hospital, learning to walk again. However, these weren't normal times. Neji seemed hellbent and determined to get his leg up to full strength before the four-week deadline to the Chunin Exam.
"Hey purple-eyes," Kushina caught Naruto approaching, hugging Hinata. Kushina grinned; she hadn't yet told Akemi and Hiashi that they were officially a couple – they would have to be blind not to see it. Of all the ugly things that happened in the past few months, the budding relationship was probably the brightest spot.
"Kushina," Kushina bowed, "thank you for looking after this motley bunch." He smiled, almost grinned. Hiashi was probably the other bright spot to survive tragedy. Despite all the loss and heartache, the man took well to acting as regent on Hinata's behalf, rather than being clan leader. He smiled frequently, previously a rare occasion, and despite still appearing tired, he didn't anymore look like a man twice his age. Hinata had already begun making changes to the clan structure base on his suggestions, making it less rigid and encouraging mingling among the clan. Furthermore, Hinata also officially ended the practice of marrying within the clan, going so far as to annul several marriages that had been forced or resulted in infertile couples. As Hiashi hoped, the clan would have a future, along with almost a dozen weddings to officiate in the next two months.
"It's my pleasure, Hiahsi," she said, returning his bow. She turned back to the group of students. The very future of Konoha was in this room. Sakura no doubt was infatuated by Sasuke, much as Ino seemed to still be. Thankfully, Ino was no longer pursuing the boy, having accepted the loss to Sakura. She'll find someone before long. Tenten meanwhile was eying Neji as he warmed up his left leg with simple range of motion exercises. Although not training to be a medical-nin like Sakura or Ino, Tenten, Tenten had been invaluable helping her doing rehab exercises with Neji for the past few weeks. In her brief stint at a medical-nin's assistant, Kushina had undergone some basic physical therapy training, working with getting wounded shinobi back in action. She had seen worse, but she also hadn't been this pressed for time, either. If he didn't get walking independently in the next few days, he wouldn't be able to participate in the Chunin Exam.
"Ready Neji?" Kushina asked, hoping she wasn't rushing things. Even with the best medical-nin techniques available, the muscles in Neji's leg had gone a frightfully long period without blood flow, and several of his quadricep muscles had to be completely reattached – some trauma the body still needed time to recover from. Normally, he'd be easily looking at six months of rehab.
He pushed himself up from the chair, balancing on his good leg. "Ready," he nodded. Neji hopped to the bars, careful not to bear full weight on the leg just yet. He seized the bars like they were the only thing preventing him from falling into a bottomless pit should the floor turn out to be a genjutsu. He stepped forward with his left leg, careful to keep his right hand on the bar in the event the leg buckled. It held firm. Neji swung forward with the right leg, temporarily bearing full weight on the injured leg. Kushina caught the pang of discomfort as Neji's lip quivered. Despite a brave face, tears forced their way past clamped eyelids as he put his weight down on the right leg.
"Come on, Neji," Kushina said softly. Every instinct said to not push the issue, that he was hurt. Deep down, the rational part of Kushina remembered they couldn't baby the leg forever, lest it become useless. "Come on, Neji!" she encouraged him louder, more forcefully, "Show us what you can do!"
Through a grimace, Neji swung his left leg forward, again curling his lips in agony. Kushina remembered when she was in labor with Naruto. The first contraction hit with a near-religious experience of pain. After the false labor the week prior, the intensity of the contraction had told her and Lord Third's wife that they were dealing with the real thing. "Come on, Neji! Push it!" she called, echoing Lord Third's wife coaching her through Naruto's difficult birth. Nothing good comes easy!
Again, Neji surged forward against the pain. Like giving birth, the process of growing strong after injury was extremely painful. Learning to walk requires falling down. Learning to dodge and block requires getting hit multiple times. Learning to win means dealing with loss. Kushina walked to the end of the bars, "Straight to me, Neji!" Kushina gestured with her hands.
The boy ground his teeth, and he powered through one step, and the next, and the next. As he reached the end of the bars, he looked damn exhausted collapsing forward into Kushina's arms. "Is it time for a break yet?"
"You wouldn't last five minutes in labor, Neji," Aunt Akemi called from the opposite end of the bars.
"She should know," Kushina said, "she delivered you!" Kushina bared her shark's teeth, "In fact, I'm told you kept her and your mom up the whole night before you were born!" She patted him on the back playfully.
"She's still sore about that?" Neji half-gasp, half-laughed. "It's been fourteen, almost fifteen years! When is she going to let it drop?"
"Probably not until we're all in the ground, and even then," Akemi winked.
"Come on, Neji," Kushina assisted him back to the bars, "let's see if we can do it again."
"Neji," Sasuke's arrogant voice quipped as the boy approached, "Your not going to take that from a bunch of old ladies!"
That Uchiha boy is cruisin' for a bruising! "Oh Sasuke, honey," Kushina batted her eyelashes, "I'm about to make ballet drills a permeant fixture in your life IF YOU DON'T SHUT YOUR PIEHOLE!" The fiery habanero was back, and Sasuke stood frozen, ready to wet his pants. Kushina decided to revert to her, sweet, motherly voice, "Oh, and you'll be wearing pink tights if that's the case," Kushina channeled Kurama's grin.
"Hey, I'm all for that!" Sakura called as the rest of the group gathered around. "Now come on, Neji! Show us what you can do!"
"Come on, my man!" Lee winked as he flashed a thumbs up.
"Neji, I believe in you," Hinata said sweetly.
"Come on, big guy!" Naruto cheered.
"Sorry to put you on the spot, son," Kushina patted Neji's shoulder, "Can you try it?"
"Believe it!" he winked, doing his best Naruto impersonation. Kushina giggled with Neji as he began working his way back to Akemi.
Kakashi's ears rang as he removed the headphones that cancelled out all sound other than the recordning that he'd listened to about a thousand times now. The sound enhancement of this particular set meant that he could hear everything, right down to the lip smack of the person recorded. Unlimited technology, and it still doesn't tell us any more that we already knew.
"What do you think, Kakashi?" Itachi asked.
"I think, if I listen to it any longer, I'm going to start hearing Lord Rasa whispering sweet nothings to me in my sleep!" Kakashi yawned, "I can tell there is an abnormality in his voice at the end, but that's it." Kakashi rubbed his good eye, hoping he wouldn't now add deafness to his list of physical issues.
"So, you can hear it, then?" Itachi asked.
"Yes, I can hear it," Kakashi vented, "but even you can't tell me if it's an abnormality that is unusual to him or just a nervous tic he picked up." Kakashi rewound and played back the recording and hit play, "P-p-please! There has to be an arrangement we can make!" The man's voice changed barely perceptibly as he stammered, becoming deep and wispy before returning to normal. The audio techs had strained for weeks to explain the variation in voice quality, assuring Itachi and him that it wasn't a technical glitch in any of the equipment.
"Give me news, gentlemen," Lord Minato came through the door dressed in his full Hokage garb.
"I'm afraid, same as it was," Kakashi said. "We can tell the abnormality is there, but we have no idea what it means."
"What about the forensics report?"
"It's should be faxed to us at any minute," Itachi replied.
Minato eyed Itachia and back to Kakashi, "Gentlemen, I know this is unusual, but I think an outsider better familiar with Lord Rasa might be able to tell us more."
"Does he have proper clearance?" Kakashi rubbed his forehead against a brewing headache.
"Certainly," a gravelly voice called as the distinguished man entered, "a former Hokage should have all the security clearance necessary in this case?"
"Lord Third!" Kakashi and Itachi got up to bow. "It's all right, gentlemen," the older man gestured for them to remain seated. Lord Sarutobi turned to Minato, "Perhaps they can tell me what was so damn urgent that you needed to bring an old man out of retirement?" The retired Hokage grinned, suggesting it was a pleasure to be out and about.
"Of course," he nodded, "Kakashi, please play the sound file."
"Ummm… Lord Third," Kakashi rose, offering his chair, "this might be easier if you listen through the headphones." Kakashi bashfully stepped aside as the older man took his chair and put the headphones up to his ears. Normally, he didn't get into hero worship, but Lord Third was a living legend and still highly respected as a leader. There is also the fact that you helped put his lifelong friend in prison for the rest of his life. If Lord Sarutobi was bitter over Danzo, he didn't show it. "Tell me if you hear anything unusual, sir," he said as he hit play.
As he did, Kakashi heard the fax warming up and printing. There was a quiet conversation between Itachi and Minato. Before he could join in, Lord Sarutobi spoke confused, wrinkling worse his already careworn face, "Play that again, Kakashi."
Kakashi replayed recording. As Lord Sarutobi listened, Kakashi began feeling something ominous in his stomach, almost like his sharigan was about to activate. As he watched the man's expression, the feeling grew more intense. "You're sure," the former Hokage asked, "that you were speaking to Lord Rasa?"
"We were on a live video link with him," Minato said, "I could tell he was stressed, but I couldn't detect why."
Lord Sartuboi pulled off the headphones, "I don't know who was speaking, but it wasn't Lord Rasa." The room was silent; a pin dropping could have been heard.
"If not him, then who?" Kakashi asked. The feeling in his stomach deepened.
"I don't know, but that certainly wasn't him," Lord Sarutobi shook his head.
"How can you tell?" Minato asked, rubbing his chin.
"The accent is wrong, so is the intonation. Lord Rasa, even when startled, is a controlling, authoritative man." Lord Sarutobi tented his hands pensively as he leaned back in his chair. "I can say with more than reasonable assurance that's not him."
"Gentlemen," Itachi said, "I have the forensics report from Kenji Takahashi's apartment." The young man looked hard and long at them.
"And?" Kakashi asked.
"His shoes had traces of sand with red rust granules embedded with them." Itachi paused.
"A sand type found only in the region of the Village Hidden in the Sands," Kakashi completed. So, one of the assassins did have a link to whatever this is, and it isn't a coincidence!
"So, we have someone impersonating Lord Rasa, and we now have a link between the Village Hidden in the Sands and the attempt on my son's life," Minato said.
"And we have the remaining two parts of the Chunin Exams connected as well," Lord Sarutobi remined them.
"Perhaps we should call off the exam," Minato suggested, "If something sinister is planned, the genin could all be in danger."
"Lord Minato, if I may," the elder Hokage spoke, "If there is a sinister plot at work, continuing the exam might be advisable. If the enemy thinks he has the element of surprise…"
"We could get the future of our village killed," Minato replied heatedly, "Including my son," he turned to Itachi, "your brother."
"Lord Minato," Kakashi spoke up, hoping to calm the dispute, "I understand that putting Naruto or any of the genin in harm's way is unappealing, but they are going to be in danger one way or the other." Kakashi scanned the room, hoping he wasn't overstepping his bounds, "Sir, if not now or when the finals happen, how is it any different when we send them on any mission and the opposition proves more formidable than expected?" Like what happened in the Land of the Waves. Kakashi left the thought unsaid. Minato didn't need reminding that his son had already been in grave danger a number of times in the span of a year – or that Naruto was still in counselling from the last time.
"Lord Fourth," Itachi spoke, "I have no desire to put my brother's life in danger," he said gravely, "but if we act now, we might unmask this danger with the element of surprise, and on ground of our choosing. When will we ever have that guarantee again?"
Minato looked conflicted, "If we do this, we have every resource on standby, and we pull the plug the second anything goes pear-shaped. Agree?"
"Agreed," Kakashi said in unison with Itachi.
"Good, now let's meet with the others, and discuss where the threat might be from."
"Jiraiya…. Jiraiya…" a heavenly voice spoke weakly. Initially it was so hard to move his eyelids, Jiraiya worried he'd died or was about to die. I'm not ready yet! I'm not ready to say good-bye to my son and grandson! Tsunade!
"Jiraiya," the voice came clearer. The voice was firm, but also worried, "Jiraiya, please say something!"
Jiraiya now forced open his eyelids. "Ugh," he moaned as his eyes adjusted to the bright light around him. As his vision cleared, he was rewarded by the image of her coppery eyes, her pale skin, and her steely blonde hair. Tsunade! Jiraiya's eyes focused. He was in Konoha Hospital. As he regained his sense of self, Jiraiya felt various aches gnawing at his body. Even still, he couldn't help but laugh, "You couldn't wait to get me in bed again, could you?" he laughed against the aching in his chest.
"You asshole!" she hammered a fist into his right arm, stinging all the way up to his neck. Tsunade began weeping, tears running down her cheeks, "I thought you were dead!"
"Not yet," he said, grinning slightly. "Tsunade, my son, I need to talk to him…"
"He's on his way! H-he'll be here soon!" She composed herself. "Do you mind telling me what the hell happened, and why you've been gone for so long, you big jerk!" She was angry, and she had a right to be. He'd been gone almost five months.
"Tsunade, there is a great threat gathering to the village, a lot of it I can't talk about."
"Can't or won't?!" She said indignantly, "You take my heart and nearly break it for a third time! I'm too old for this!"
"Tsunade," he took her hand, "I'm sorry I left at all." Jiraiya felt his throat threatening to close. Since leaving in February, he had fantasized every night that he'd stayed and not taken the mission.
"Really? How many?" she demanded.
"How many what?" he asked.
"How many women warmed your bed since you left?" her voice was taught, wondering if she was able to handle the truth about what he was soon to say.
"None," he said without hesitation. She's honestly worried about that?!
She gripped him by the collar of his hospital gown, "Jiraiya, you'd damn well better not be lying to me!" She approached nose to nose with him.
"After what we shared," he chuckled, "No one else would do, babe!" Finding his arm had enough strength to move by now, he brought it around her and pulled her into him, losing himself in the sweetness of her lips. They were lush and heavenly. And to think they say it's all downhill after the first time!
Jiraiya could have tensed in preparation for her to slap him in the face, but he didn't bother. If she was going to leave him over this, he wanted to enjoy every last heavenly millisecond.
Much to Jiraiya's surprise, the milliseconds stretched into full seconds. Despite the pain in his chest where he had clearly broken ribs, he resisted every instinct to break from her. Finally, the hunger for air forced Tsunade to separate from him. He hot, heaving breaths tickled warmly against his face in the cold conditions of the hospital. "You're not kissing your way out of this one, you fiend!" she heaved. "I'm still pissed with you leaving for five months!"
"Mmm…" he giggled, "I guess that means you'll have to keep me here and not let me out of your sight!"
Tsuanade initially balked, but soon grinned, "I'll break both your legs this time, if I have to," she kissed him forcefully.
"I can come back later, if you'd prefer," Minato's voice called from the doorway.
"Ahh!" Tsunade screamed as she separated from Jiraiya.
"Ya know, for someone who never walked in on his parents, you have an annoying habit of walking in on me at the worst possible moments, son!" Jiraiya chided. I can't tell who is worse, him or my grandson!
"So I'm told," Minato winked. "I can always come back if you two need to finish!"
The implication was there, but Jiraiya was physically in no condition even if his son was serious. "Sadly," Jiraiya laid back on his pillow, "I'm afraid what I have to tell you is too damn important." He turned to Tsunade, "Sorry, babe, but I need to talk with my son."
Tsunade straightened, "I'll check on you in a bit," she turned to Minato, "Don't take too long, he does need to rest." She left the room.
"You old hound!" Minato said, shaking his head, "What could be so important to let me interrupt your little make-out session with the lady of your dreams, Dad?"
Jiraiya felt his mood shift back to somber, "Sadly, it's not good news."
"Tell me about it, I've seemingly had nothing but bad news all day," Minato replied.
"I found the group of mercenaries you sent me to investigate, Obito was with them." Jiraiya said."
"Good," Minato nodded.
"Not good," Jiraiya corrected.
"What do you mean?"
"He has a new identity, at least outwardly – Madara Uchiha." The words sent a chill down his back.
"Madara?" Minato's eyes widened, "He's been dead for over a hundred years!"
"Are we so sure?" Jiraiya asked, knowing the implications of what he was saying. If history was to be believed, Madara was ridiculously powerful, easily as strong as Minato if he had taken all of Kurama's chakra.
Minato stared back with haunted eyes. "No body, not even the faintest record of where it's buried if it still exists. My god, could they have found it?"
"Even if they haven't, there are many ancient things hidden by the fog of the Three Great Shinobi Wars, son. I'm afraid, whatever Obito's plan was the night he attacked you, it was only the tip of the iceberg." Jiraiya rested his head back on his pillow.
"I'm afraid you're right, Dad," Minato sighed. "A lot has happened while you were gone."
Jiraiya leaned his head up, "Tell me." Minato did.
Author's note: hey everyone, I hope you're continuing to enjoy. Stay safe, stay healthy, and I'll see you all next Saturday!