Everything Changes
The only sound heard was my own crying. The man I loved more than my own life, was gone. The world was turned to night, but there were no stars in the sky to shine, no moon to give hope and no Kakashi to guide me through the darkness. He was gone, and I felt utterly and completely alone. I don't know how long I clung onto him in despair, but a sharp flair of chakra in the centre of the crater once known as Konoha snapped me out of my grief and into a fighting position. My Sharingan shot alive just in time to see a purple light fly towards me. I quickly dodged to the side and unsealed my tanto. 'A new attack? What's going on? Everything is too blurry.' I quickly tried to sort through my thoughts and push away my grief.
"Kira-chan?" I froze. 'That voice and nickname? How?' I slowly turned around and saw Kakashi releasing himself from the stones trapping him.
"You were dead. You left me. How?" I whispered in shock, before deciding that I really didn't give a fuck and threw myself at him and hugged him closely. "I love you, I love you, I love you…"
"I love you too, but I'm really confused. What happened after Pein killed me?" Kakashi asked me and hugged me tightly. "When did you return?"
"I don't know. I came back to find everything like this, and you were gone." I responded, still burying my head in his chest, refusing to let go.
"I can answer that." A small slug I quickly recognized as Tsunade's summon answered as she crept towards us. "It's all thanks to Naruto."
"Our brat must have grown a lot." I smiled into Kakashi's chest. After Katsuyu explained how Naruto had mastered sage jutsu, defeated all the Peins and tracked down the real one and somehow convinced him to bring everyone back to life, Kakashi and I could only laugh. Only Naruto was able to pull off something like that.
"He'll be exhausted though, let's track him down." I stated and let Kakashi lead the way.
We found Naruto just in time for Kakashi to catch him as he fell forward. He was in surprisingly good shape for someone who had just fought a battle against someone who took down an entire village by himself.
"Kakashi-sensei, Akira-nee-chan!" Naruto muttered in completely joy. "You're both fine!"
"Well, technically I was the only one of us who actually died." Kakashi said good-heartedly and my heart once again clenched in pain. I knew that sight would haunt my nightmares just as frequently as Shisui's death did.
"Talk about what happened so light-heartedly again, Kashi, and I will burn your Icha Icha and show you exactly why Tsunade named my newest pranking scroll a forbidden collection." I hissed and ruffled Naruto's hair affectionately. "I'm so proud of you, Naru-chan. And from what I heard from Katsuyu; Jiraiya is probably feeling just as proud."
"Thanks, nee-chan." Naruto smiled at me gratefully. "Then everyone is alive?"
"Yes. You saved everyone." I told him warmly. "To think I can brag that my otouto saved all of Konoha now."
"It was my student, though…" Kakashi muttered and I gave him a mock-glare.
"Well I'm his favourite." I shot back. "Right Naru-chan?"
"You know it, nee-chan!" Naruto said excitedly and Kakashi dropped him. Luckily, the small distance Kakashi carried him was enough for Naruto to regain enough strength to walk on his own. He still sent Kakashi a glare though. "See this is why Akira-nee-chan is better than you! She buys me ramen and helps me prank and no matter what I do, she's never dropped me before!"
"No respect for the sensei by the brats…" Kakashi groaned and threw an arm around my waist and pulled me closer. "Kira-chan, you're the only one I need, let's run away from this cursed village and raise tons of mini-Kira's and leave these cruel brats behind!"
"You can't just take my nee-chan away!" Naruto argued, still smiling happily. "I'm going to be the sensei and favourite uncle of Akira-nee-chan's future kids!"
"I won't allow it! It's my kids!" Kakashi shot back childishly and kissed my cheek. "I won't let you take them away from me! It's bad enough that you keep stealing my Kira-chan to prank people!"
"Mou, mou, guys, let's not argue over kids that aren't even conceived yet." I tried to stop them half-heartedly. They were pretty amusing to watch, after all. "Why are you even talking about kids? I'm just 21…"
"You never know." Kakashi said philosophically and I smacked the back of his head.
Naruto had spent the rest of the day being celebrated by the villagers and with all of them distracted, I started searching for Tsunade. Only to learn that she had ended up in a coma for using her chakra to heal as many as possible. As the Hokage she had, of course, given her all to save as many as possible. I quickly had Kakashi track down Shikaku and Kamiko. The four of us gathered together inside a privacy barrier Kakashi drew up, and I quickly ordered Kamiko to update me on everything I missed before turning my attention to Shikaku.
"Danzo will want to use this to his advantage." I stated, knowing just as well as the other three that this was a fact and not a calculation. "With Shisui's eye, he'll be able to convince both the Council and the Daimyo with little problem."
"Tsunade anticipated this. She's had her letter for her successor ready for months." Shikaku said and handed me a sealed envelope. "The problem is that we can't prove Danzo is using the eye to achieve the position. Not without a Hyuga witnessing it, which would be hard seeing as only the core part of the Council is allowed to attend a meeting with the Fire Daimyo and his Council."
"What about a Hyuga ANBU Guard?" Kamiko proposed calculatedly. "While he or she wouldn't be allowed to interrupt the meeting, combining it with our previous reports on Danzo would be enough to demand a trial for treason against Konoha."
"So you're saying to let him get the hat?" Kakashi asked her sceptically. "It'll be hard to take it back if he does."
"Actually, while the Hokage is essentially a dictator, he'll need the approval of all Commanders who in turn can only approve if their forces do." Shikaku explained thoughtfully. "A trial would be enough to keep our Shinobi from approving. It's risky, though. One wrong move and he could have us all stripped of our ranks for spreading false information and sabotaging the future Hokage."
"Kamiko and I have been gathering information on Danzo and Root for years now." I stated with a slight smirk. "Kamiko and I are both excellent at infiltrating and collecting intel. You'll be surprised over how much dirt we have on both him and the rest of the Council."
"Really? I didn't expect him to leave any proof." Shikaku was impressed and it showed clearly. His normally lazy eyes were shining at the thought of planning something which now had a large chance of succeeding. "How much?"
"The illegal integration of new Root Agents, his dealings with Orochimaru, how his meddling in Ame essentially formed the Akatsuki and how his Root Agents have been sabotaging possible alliances with many different villages." I summarised calmly. "The best part, of course, is that all of our intel is currently in a safe house outside of Konoha and therefore not destroyed."
"Adding all of that and his use of Shisui's eye to manipulate himself into a seat of power is enough to have him executed for treason." Kakashi realized and looked at Akira and Kamiko with a raised eyebrow. "I know for a fact that there's no way you two were ordered to do this."
"I've been working with Jiraiya on intel on the Akatsuki for years. After Jiraiya heard three of his previous students were killed by Hanzo in Ame, he personally investigated what caused their deaths and found that Danzo was the main reason Hanzo was able to corner them. Jiraiya suggested I check if Danzo had been involved in more things that could potentially ruin the village." I explained with a shrug, like I was explaining the weather. "I had Kamiko do most of the work solo. We couldn't risk it being known."
"I'm impressed." Shikaku said with a smirk. "I knew I was right in suggesting you as an ANBU Commander."
"That was you?" I hissed at him, remembering my suffering from the paperwork before I discovered the practicality of Shadow Clones and all the pranking time I had lost. "You are one evil man."
"Why thank you." Shikaku smiled lazily. "But back to the matter at hand, Akira do you have a Hyuga who can confirm for us?"
"That won't be a problem. I'm in charge of choosing who guards the Council Meeting." I stated with a slight smirk. "I assume they'll call the meeting today."
"Probably. So we should be at the places they expect us to be." Shikaku said and gave us all strict looks. "Make sure no one knows of this meeting."
"Of course." I responded on behalf of Kakashi and Kamiko as well. "Let's head out."
Much like we had predicted, the elders called a council meeting just an hour after our meeting had ended. Like we planned, I placed Eagle; a Hyuga, in charge of guarding the meeting with a special order to look for anyone using any kinds of jutsu. With Tsunade out of action, the core of the Council, meaning The Elders, Shikaku and myself, would attend a meeting with the Fire Daimyo and his council to discuss the future of Konoha. As we expected, Danzo interrupted the discussion on how to proceed with the rebuilding of Konoha.
"More importantly, there's something we need to do before that." Danzo said gravely. "We'll need to decide who'll be the next Hokage."
"Wouldn't it be better to wait until Tsunade has recovered?" The Fire Daimyo asked, fanning himself lazily.
"Daimyo-sama, Tsunade is still in a comatose state." Koharu Utatane stated and it was clear that she had little respect for the current Hokage. "With the village in its current situation, and who knows when Tsunade will wake up, waiting may not be the best course of action."
The Daimyo nodded slowly as Koharu explained the situation, clearly understanding the gravity of the situation. Konoha was in shatters and the village needed a Hokage to put the pieces back together.
"Also, she's responsible for the destruction of Konoha!" Koharu finished harshly and I had to pinch my tight to stop myself from sending killing intent her way.
"I was hoping for Jiraiya to become the next one…" The Daimyo complained. It wasn't a well-hidden secret that the Fire Daimyo was a huge Icha Icha fan. "I really liked him, but he's no longer with us… Then who else can do it?"
"Well then I…-" Danzo started only for Shikaku to interrupt him.
"I recommend Nakamaru Akira for the job." Shikaku stated. I didn't bother concealing my glare at him. 'You want to condemn me to even more paperwork?' I mentally hissed while Danzo glared at both of us.
"Shunshin no Akira, no?" The Damiyo questioned, looking interested in the idea. "She might be a good choice. What do you guys think?"
The Damiyo's Council looked amount themselves for a second before responding.
"She's got an impressive reputation, the needed strength and benevolence. So maybe?" One of the members said.
"Isn't she still too young? If I recall correctly, she's only 21." Another argued and I smirked slightly under the mask. 'Hah! Take that Shikaku! I'm too young!' I mentally cheered, keeping my posture completely still.
"If my memory serves correctly, Minato, the Yondaime Hokage, was around the same age." A third stated and my previous joy vanished completely. 'Damn, right he was also in his early twenties…' I realized with a frown. 'Well, better me than Danzo. I can always sick my Commander position on Kamiko. She deserves it for making fun of my reading difficulties.'
"Who was Nakamaru Akira's sensei?" the first Council Member asked the elders.
"Uzu no Hayato, the Yondaime's teammate." Homura answered earning looks of approval from the Daimyo's Council and the Fire Daimyo himself.
"Oh really? Also, they were the students of Jiraiya, who was the student of the Sandaime, who was the student of the Nidaime, right?" the Daimyo confirmed, earning nods from the Konoha delegation. The Daimyo smiled in approval. "Then there's no problem. Well then…"
Danzo was glaring harshly as he interrupted the Daimyo. "The teachings of the Sandaime are precisely what allowed the village to be destroyed in the first place!"
The Daimyo flinched and covered his face with his fan while Danzo continued, leaking killing intent.
"The leader of the Akatsuki, the man who destroyed the village, was also Jiraiya's student." Danzo stated fiercely. "This is what happens when you sympathise with foreigners and teach them ninjutsu! It's weak! Everything of it!"
I stayed completely silent, knowing that interrupting now would only bring us further from finding proof that Danzo was indeed a traitor to Konoha. Much like we had predicted, Danzo walked out of the meeting with the Hokage hat, despite how intensely Shikaku argued against it.
"Eagle, report." I ordered the Hyuga in front of me, Shikaku and Kamiko flanking my sides.
"As you predicted, Commander, Danzo-sama utilized a strong Chakra from his right eye. It appears to cast some sort of genjutsu, but I have never seen a genjutsu of such power. From what I can tell, the genjutsu is discreet, but once taken root, practically impossible to get rid of." Eagle reported calmly and handed me a sheet with both illustrations and notes. "I wrote down everything I could see and how I believe it to work. Commander, surely a man like that cannot be the next Hokage?"
"We're taking care of it, Eagle. For now, I need you to track down Dragon, Morino Ibiki and Hatake Kakashi and have them meet us here as quickly as possible." I ordered him. "We have much to do. Expect a summoning of the entire force soon."
He nodded respectfully to both Shikaku and Kamiko before bowing deeply to me. "As you wish, Commander."