AN: English isn't my native language and I apologize for the mistakes.
...
Chapter 16
It's an early Friday morning, and a small voice in the back of her mind reminds Hari that she is missing another training session with team Shibi. She doesn't have much of a say in that though. Team Ebo is currently a couple of days outside the village, and their mission must take first priority, because ANBU Owl has her role and orders to follow.
She remains hidden by her designated position, her full attention on the target being shepherded towards her. So far everything is going to plan, and she doesn't have time for distracting thoughts.
The two ANBU chasing the target are both familiar. One is Genma hidden behind his Lizard mask, and the other is herself. Well, not the real Hari of course - she is currently waiting for her turn.
She doesn't have to wait long.
Genma's senbon throw makes the target swing left to avoid it, trying to use the vegetation there as cover from the sharp projectiles – which was their intentions all along. The fleeing man does not realize the bushes he moves through aren't natural ones. Doesn't suspect that the moss under his feet wasn't there a day before. That when he moves under the branches of a tree that it's not a natural phenomenon, but a jutsu.
The target just stepped into Hari's garden, one as lethal to him as a spiderweb is to an unsuspecting fly – and he won't be able to get out.
...
Without warning branches crashes down around him like pillars - forming a solid cage just as roots flash up from the ground to entwine around his legs and up his stomach. At the same time the branches above him, the ones he had pushed aside to run underneath the tree, attacks like lassos by wrapping around his wrists, forcing them apart to prevent the man from forming any jutsu and not activate a dead-man's trap.
All their planning and efforts – the entire mission – would be for nothing if he blew himself up.
Hari frowns when the man nearly gets his right leg free, and she quickly compensate by adding several more roots to coil like pale snakes around his lower body.
It's about then Lizard is within range and gets a clear shot, and with unfair accuracy senbons goes flying. Hitting several of the man's pressure point and making him freeze from temporary paralysis.
And that's when Hari finally rushes out from behind her boulder and finish the job herself. The needle pierce into his neck a split second later, she pushes the injection into his body and the sedative takes effect nearly at once.
The man's eyes droop, his struggles is just about none existent, and then his chin drops down to his collar, mouth slightly ajar as he's knocked out completely just as Lizard and the look alike reach her. "The target is unconscious." Hari confirms before Genma can ask.
"Good work. Start the clean up." He gestures towards the Mokuton use.
...
While Hari begins tidying the man is untangled from the Wood Release and remains in Genma's sharp eyed custody while Hari makes sure there are no traces of the brief struggle. That went as perfectly as they could have realistically hoped for, which leaves her with only one task left, and she turns around and looks right into her own face.
Hari's still unsure what she thinks of the technique.
It's a little like standing in front of your bathroom mirror, but when you turn off the lights and leave the room you realize your reflection jumped out of the mirror and came along.
Simply put; the Wood Clone technique was unarguably useful, but creepy as hell.
...
Hari's chakra reach into the construct – this energy that originated from herself and what little remains now needs to return to its source. It's disquieting to watch all pallor leave the clone as it turns into a stiff, timber statue in Hari's exact likeness for a few lingering moments. Next the wood dissolve into sap before it's absorbed into the palm of her hand. It had already wasted most of the chakra she'd used to create it, but the little boost is enough for Hari to estimate her reserves are up from 77% to 80%. The chakra she just consumed from her worn clone was pretty miniscule to make much of a difference.
Within seconds there isn't a trace of it left, and when Hari turns to Lizard he's rearranged the prisoner so he's tied securely - which includes seals - and is slung over his shoulder. "Where's the others?" Genma asks after taking a quick overview of the area and judging it sufficiently cleaned of evidences.
In response to the order her senses flare out for an echoing signal, feeling a bit smug when it works. She turns 33 degrees to her left and points. "Two and a half hours in that direction," Hari knows that because her second Wood Clone should be stationed with the rest of team Ebo, and that is what she's sensing.
"Let's hope they caught their target as efficiently as we did." Genma say, "A shame the wood variation doesn't transfer information like the Shadow clones does." he muses, and she hums vaguely, as it is honestly not a lack that bothers Hari.
When her Wood Clones deactivate she does not gain their memories. That's because the chakra used for the clone remains there, and she won't get it back unless she dragged her chakra out of the wood and into her coils again. Which was possible with a nifty absorption technique Hisao had taught her.
Creating the two clones had taken a sizeable chunk of chakra, but once finished it didn't require more to maintain their form. Though it was a clone, it wasn't like any other known type.
The Wood Clones was the sturdiest type of chakra duplication – at least according to Hisao, who had been very excited about this fact - since they could take several hits and kicks without difficulty.
Which is why during this mission her Wood Clone was created to protect Genma as a moving shield, and it had done its job admirably by taking most of the brunt attacks from their target. Though their greatest weakness was being cut. The penetrations into the wood could potentially disrupt the chakra flow if hit correctly, but luckily that hadn't happened this time.
Another aspect of the Wood Clone was that Hari could sense them. Even while the clones camouflaged their chakra until none on team Ebo were able to sense them – Hari still did. They were like living extensions of herself, and Hari still knew where it was even hours away. She hadn't been wrong so far.
And Hari couldn't wait to show it to Santa - he would be so jealous.
"Let's join the others, shall we?" Lizard suggest, though the tone is all Genma, and they set off to rejoin team Ebo.
...
On the way Hari takes a moment to lament her lost spare time.
It hadn't been much to begin with, but with her induction into ANBU it's been none existent. She would have liked for it to have been useful at least, but so far, just like Kakashi had warned, Hari's not been able to pick and choose her missions. But then again, with how hectic things has been lately that was to be expected, and though she is more decided than ever to find Tenzō, at the moment Hari has more on her plate than she's been able to adapt to.
And as busy as she was, Hari wasn't alone there. Her genin team was drifting into separate fields too, and even if it was guaranteed to happen eventually, Hari thinks her abrupt change of career probably jump started the process. The last time she spoke to them it was clear they were being kept busy though. Kasuga had been roped into patrol duty, and was running between boarder stations alongside Yugao and Shisui as a replacement for Itsuki. Santa had applied and been accepted by the Terror and Interrogation Force, and was busy as the newbie learning the ropes. And as a prominent jōnin and head of a clan - not to mention a father - Shibi-sensei was never off the clock.
...
...
A few days later Hari's back in the village, and despite not being off duty yet she has exchanged her ANBU uniform for her daily robes as she stands in Kushina's garden, hands to the earth and say: "Mokuton: root transmission".
Hari may not be wearing her mask, but she is very much ANBU Owl right now. Not that she's told Kushina that. It was just less complicated to come here and be given permission to use this jutsu with her real face.
...
"So if anyone tries to break in from underneath the house, you'll be warned now?" Kushina clarify with wide eyes.
Hari makes sure the roots remains well under the ground as they spread down into the earth. They extend around the foundations of the house, so tightly knotted no gaps remained for anyone to get through.
When the jutsu is completed Hari straightens up and replies: "Yes. It's a new jutsu, and I extended it to reach underneath the entire area." Hari admits. "If someone tries to get underneath the property fence I'll know as long as I'm within Konoha."
The 'root transmission technique' was a jutsu Hisao had helped her puzzle out a couple of weeks before. It was another sensory technique, which consisted of spamming an area with underground roots in a wide network, and thereby maintain an active sensing area that Hari controlled. It wasn't offensive or defensive – just informative. Like an alarm which went off if someone passed over the line - except only Hari herself would hear it.
As it includes sensing a secondary source, distance mattered, but during testing Hari had managed to pick up on someone walk over it twenty three times, four attempts to dig under it with earth jutsu, and five tries at going straight through it. As long as she didn't move too far out of range she sensed it all by using the roots as conducts, and if someone touched them directly it got even easier.
...
Since joining team Ebo, Hari's been doing a lot of experimentations with her Mokuton.
She hasn't trained this way since her days with Minato-sama - and as a result her repertoire has expanded exponentially.
Unfortunately there isn't anyone who can teach her the Mokuton – even with help Hari has always been left to figure out most of the detail work - so her new jutsu had to be puzzled together on her own with Hisao's theoretical knowledge of similar techniques, and the Sandaime's first hand accounts of what was possible. But there were no recipes for them. No; "Do these seals correctly and you get the desired results".
Instead it was a mesh of speculation, trials and errors, logical leaps and a dash of guess work to make them functional.
Hari is still improving, but they are sufficient enough to be useful.
"I can't see any vegetation though… No new bushes or trees" Kushina muses and squints around the garden which appears inconspicuously unchanged.
"It's all underground." Hari explain, probably confirming what Kushina already guesses. "Don't worry, it won't harm any of your plants."
That comment makes the Uzumaki laugh. "My plants? You're the one in charge of my garden, Hari-chan."
"Hey! Naruto loves helping me, and I do have an easier time with gardening than most." She defends herself, gesturing towards the vibrant flora life surrounding them.
"And I appreciate it. This is the first time I've lived somewhere that had such a rich and beautiful garden. I've never been much for plants. I have only ever had cactuses, and I kill even those." Kushina shakes her head. "I blame Naruto's love of gardening on you, dattebane! Minato didn't have much of a green thumb either, so it's not genetic."
...
When Hari turns back Kushina holds a wistful glint in her violet eyes. "You've gotten so far… I wish Minato could see how much you've improved, Hari-chan. How much you're helping us."
"I wish that too, but really; I'm not doing it for him." Hari reply, because as much as she misses Minato-sama he isn't why she keeps coming back. It's not because this is actually an ANBU assignment either.
Hari would have offered to use this jutsu because she wants to keep them safe.
Kushina's grin widens, and for a moment Hari doesn't notice her sunken cheeks, the premature greys strands that's appeared amongst the previously solid scarlet hair. The sickly pale pallor of her face or how the bones around her collar sticks out too much because she can't seem to gain weight.
Instead she transform back into that woman who'd once been brimming with energy and life, and that makes Hari wish she could wrap the entire house in Mokuton. If only so it would ease some of her friend's worries and allow her the peace of mind to remain happy and relieved just a little longer.
There they'd be safe. There no one would hurt them again.
It felt logical to keep them here in this house where they could be watched and secure - the world kept at bay and unable to harm them. But as much as the idea seemed sound in theory – that didn't necessarily mean it was the wise course of action. Not in the long run.
"People don't like being locked up !" Harry said furiously, rounding on him. "You did it to me all last summer — "
...
It was difficult, Hari thought, to know where to draw the line.
When they crossed from necessary precaution and into too much.
It would be easy to make the same mistake here.
Especially with Kushina who wasn't just confined inside a house, but inside her own body too. Because her mind was just as energetic and brimming as it ever was, but her body had failed her, and now she was constantly waging a war against her own limbs to do the most menial tasks.
...
...
"Hyyaaah!" Naruto comes barraging from the garden doors, the boy bouncing up and down in excitement while waving a wooden kunai in one hand and a watering can in the other. "I'll defeat yah', Hari-nee!"
He jabs a wooden kunai in her direction, but Hari doesn't need to look at what he's doing to step to the right and allow him to fall on his face. The toy weapon she had made him goes rolling down the yard, but he splutters and jumps back to his feet, now brandishing the child sized water can as a weapon instead.
He twists around and tries for a side swipe kick, but Hari picks up her left leg and it misses again. He's about to take a second nosedive from loss of balance when Hari's hand flash out and grabs the boy's foot. Hoisting him up in the air by his leg because he might hurt himself if he continues trying to "defeat her".
...
Naruto laughs loudly, loses hold of the water can while he attempts to remain committed to the fight.
Hari holds him up by the ankle, and though she's carrying a squirming three year old in a single hand - this isn't difficult to do. Hari's body is several times stronger than anyone from her old world, so this kind of activity barely register as more than picking up a katana.
Naruto has begins doing wild air punches trying to connect with Hari's ribs, but she holds him far enough away from herself so she only feels the changing airflow as his limbs flaps by harmlessly. As he's dangling upside down gravity has taken a hold of his shirt, and thanks to his uncoordinated movements it falls over his head, causing him to get even more tangled up.
"You should learn the value of a properly executed plan, Naruto." Hari tells him firmly. His reply is muffled by his shirt.
"'Can't plan surprise attacks, dattebayo! I charged!" He shouts as he tries to yank the garment off his face.
Kushina is chuckling at their side. "I would apologize, but you're well used to this."
Naruto had been hell bent on beating her ever since she began teaching him basic acrobatics and katas. He's clumsy and uncoordinated, needs a lot of practise to get even the simplest instructions down, but he's also a hard worker and never lets his many mishaps get in the way of trying again.
"It's nice," Hari admits with a wry smile, taking a hold of Naruto's other dangling ankle and holds him up like he's a sheet she's about to air out. Not that he notices, Naruto is still very much battling his T-shirt for the privilege of visibility. "Its a rarity for me to face an opponent smaller than myself."
Secretly it's gratifying for her ego to finally be physically stronger than her sparring partner too. Even if it's only a three year old.
Kushina watch them, but slowly the carefree happiness she usually expel naturally is clouded by another wave of worry. Considering the circumstances Hari doesn't blame her. The security details around the Uzumaki is ten times the size it's ever been for one single reason:
The peace treaty between Konoha and Kumogakure.
...
A party of representative from Kumo would arrive soon for the sake of negotiations and the signing of the peace agreement, and the last time someone from that nation made it into Konoha Kushina was kidnapped.
Safe to say she was stressing out.
Though in her defence; Kushina wasn't the only one. The ANBU division was on extra patrols around the clock, and the village security was running quarter daily checks to make sure nothing was out of order.
...
Hari had picked a hell of a time to join ANBU. As the first few months as Owl was one of the most stressful periods for the shadow division since the war.
But it was just as taxing to work for peace as working for victory. It didn't surprise Hari - but it did exhaust her.
With a few exceptions team Ebo was taking on less out of village assignments because they were part of the Komorebi platoon – the ANBU forces under the Hokage's direct control - which meant they were also in charge of his safety. With foreign ninjas scheduled to arrive in the village their main focus shifted to protection details. As a result Hari spent most of her time shadowing Hiruzen-sama on his daily agendas from a distance.
Another security hassle was the jinchūriki – namely Naruto.
So the Komorebi platoon was actually split between Hiruzen-sama and the Uzumakis, and Hari freely admitted she preferred guarding the latter, simply because she could do that with her own face as much as she could do it as Owl.
...
Kumo had proved willing to kidnap Kushina simply because she was an Uzumaki once upon a time. If they tried again, potentially aiming for the youngest and more malleable Uzumaki this time, they would not only get the long-livety bloodline but the Kyūbi in the same deal.
Which brought up… issues. There was a reason no one was allowed to mention the Kyūbi aloud anymore. Especially not amongst each other.
...
Hari hadn't understood at first, not back when she was hurt, grieving and angry - only able to see one side of the tragedy. And the suffering of the people of Konoha was still a valid point that worried her greatly. They had in no way forgotten all they had lost as it wasn't the kind of thing easily repressed or ignored. Hari would know.
But she was in on the secret now - was in the prestigious position to see more than just one side – and Hari had come to understand that the Kyūbi law was to prevent the information about what happened the night of the attack from reaching foreign ears more than anything else.
It had become especially obvious after Kushina finally admitted the truth of the attack to Hari. "Naruto is the third jinchūriki." Kushina had admitted one late night several months before. "The first was Uzumaki Mito, the wife of Senju Hashirama. But the second… the second was me."
The admission had come up because Hari had finally built up the courage to ask how exactly Kushina ended up with a ruptured chakra gate.
She'd received more answers than she'd expected, even if Hari hadn't ever imagined just how central to all this Kushina was. Perhaps more than even Naruto. From going into labour to the man who had kidnapped her and ripped the Kyūbi from her body - to Minato's sacrifice and death.
...
It explained so much about how Kushina ended up in her current state and why she felt so different to Hari's sensory ability than compared to before.
Until that night Hari had credited Kushina's changed chakra pattern to her illness. And that was part of it, though before Hari could have picked Kushina out from a sea of people with no difficulty. But now she knew that was because the Kyūbi had been inside her, and Hari had always been a little more aware of nature chakra than was normal, yet that tint had disappeared from Kushina.
Instead that presence was inside Naruto, though unlike Kushina's seal his was more secure. So it took Hari actively searching for the tint of nature chakra inside the boy for her to finally find that sense of gravity that had once swarmed around his mother.
...
"But there's a difference between me and Naruto, and it's not just our seal designs." Kushina admitted quietly. "Very few people ever knew I was a jinchūriki. A large part of what protected me was the fact I was allowed anonymity. Not even the Sannin knew I carried the Kyūbi, but Naruto…" And despite having spent hours sharing horrible memories, it wasn't before that moment Kushina's face twisted and a glimpse of uncontrollable fear flashed in her eyes. "Too many people saw what happened that night."
Kushina was right to be afraid, and even the leaders of the village had decided people to stop speaking.
Hari could admit it wasn't without reason.
If people weren't allowed to speak about anything concerning the Kyūbi it would be much harder for a spy or a traitor to figure out the details and tell someone. What little was public was baseless speculations at best, and they were mixed with several wild rumours that was impossible for anyone without proper insider intel to distinguish between lies and truths.
It was for Naruto's protection. To give him a chance to remain anonymous and secret for as long as possible. So that what happened to Kushina for being an Uzumaki – to Hari for holding the Mokuton – wouldn't happen to him too for being a jinchūriki.
Because in his case it probably wouldn't be a kidnapping attempt either. He was Uzumaki Kushina's son, the child of the Yondaime and the holder of the Kyūbi – if the other villages found out about him the assassination attempts would never stop.
...
Suppressing the information flow with the Kyūbi law was a way to allow Naruto the chance to grow strong enough to protect himself, but it also bred resentment within the population.
Hari couldn't decide if there was ever a right decision they could have made.
If they hadn't done it the wrong people would know by now, and Naruto might have already been killed. Or perhaps Hiruzen-sama would have been forced to lock him up and isolate him completely for his own safety. Though the path they had ended up taking… well, he was free to walk around but people wouldn't forget.
No matter what Naruto would be the one to pay the price.
It was very fitting, the name they had given those like Naruto and Kushina - jinchūriki – power of a human sacrifice.
...
Though Hiruzen-sama hoped it would allow the boy to make friends with the younger generation that would grow up unaware of his burden. Hari thought that a little naive and surprisingly optimistic of a man who'd lived through three wars, but hadn't shared her opinion - because she knew just how difficult this balancing act had been.
There was Naruto's happiness and state of mind on one side, while his life and safety was on the opposite corner - and one would always get in the way of the other.
...
...
When the time came a lot of colourful language was being thrown around simply as a stress relief, though at least the Kumo delegation were punctual, so "long overdue" wasn't actually accurate despite their long anticipated arrival.
Hari didn't see them enter the village in person because Team Ro, under Kakashi's leadership, were the ones charged with watching the foreigners movements within the village. Team Ro was three times the size of team Ebo, so they could take part in guarding Hiruzen-sama and watch the Kumo ninjas at the same time, while Hari and her squad got stationed at the Uzumakis.
"They will remain for three days." Cow say and rolls his shoulders, easing up some of the tension in them. "I hope they will pass by fast."
Hari agrees, but that went without saying.
Guard duty is more mentally tiring than anything else. Keeping awake and aware was part of ANBU boot camp, and something Hari was good at, but that didn't automatically mean she particularly enjoyed the task.
They were long shifts - lasting twenty four hours before she'd get a six hour break - and then she'd repeat the sessions until Kumo had crossed back over the boarder on their way home from Fire Country. Hari pray they will remain uneventful shifts, as this was not the time to hope for some excitement to make the hours pass by faster.
During day one Hari remains at her post watching Kushina and Naruto's day pass by. There's less laugher and noise than normal. As Kushina can't quite hide her anxiety even while trying to entertain her son.
The most exciting thing to happen is that twelve hours into her patrol Cow exchange posts with Frog, and he's brought along lunch.
A tantalizing smell reach Hari when he opens the bento, and she realizes that was no ANBU cafeteria stew made by a grumpy plebe, but a proper home-made meal.
Which begs the question; when did Hisao learn to cook?
Hari still remembers years ago, back to the only time Hisao had invited her to dinner when he still lived in the flat above her own. It had ended in burned fish and vegetables that tasted like fire from too much chilli, and a detour to the closest Yakitori place for something edible.
But he's gracious enough to share his home-made bento with her, so Hari doesn't complain. It's even better than what she'd be able to cook herself.
...
...
Twelve hours later Fox arrive to relieve Hari for her own break, but she doesn't bother to go home.
Instead she heads for ANBU headquarters and the available on call-rooms there. There are two bunk beds in each room, and right now it's the only place she'll feel safe enough to fall asleep.
The second day drags on in much the same fashion, though she literally runs into Kakashi in headquarters when he hurries out of the on-call room she had been about to enter, hair dishevelled and unusually abrupt in his movements.
Hari isn't sure how they managed it, but the door opened when she was about to go in, and next she's sprawled on the ground while ANBU Dog looks down at her with obvious surprise.
"What were you doin' down there?'' said Stan, dropping his professional manner.
"Fell over," said Harry.
"Choo fall over for?'' sniggered Stan.
"I didn't do it on purpose," said Harry, annoyed.
...
Hari's sleep deprived, while Kakashi's blood pressure seems to be unusually high – which is the factors she'll later blame for this embarrassing clash in the middle of headquarters that several witnesses got to observe. After all they are ninja – this is the kind of thing that should be natural to avoid.
Kakashi swiftly helps her up but doesn't do much more than nod at her in apology before he's sprinting down the corridor.
Something tells her this isn't the time to point out he's wearing his top inside out. With the armour over it no one will notice, and Kakashi's clearly pretty stressed. It couldn't be easy being in charge, and it was at moments like these Hari was reminded that Kakashi – for all his genius and laid back attitude – was only seventeen years old.
...
...
When Hari arrive at her guard spot on the third day Lizard is there and has already been on duty for twelve hours patrolling the north and west passages to the Uzumaki residence.
Hari hasn't really been in ANBU long, she is closing in on three months since she graduated from Boot Camp, and is still called "newbie" by Fox whenever he's in a mood. So though she's ready for a long, boring shift of staying hidden while remaining alert and on guard the entire time, Hari's still getting used to the rhythm of these tasks.
And perhaps the reason Hari hoped so strongly for this to go over quickly and incident free was because parts of her knew she would never be that lucky.
It's not two hours into her shift, around half past three in the morning, that her root transmission technique blares to life in her senses.
Someone is using earth techniques underneath the Uzumaki house.
They had passed right through her roots.
And Hari doesn't hesitate. She activates the ANBU tattoo seal with a shock of chakra and then throws herself off the roof. Lizard is right on her heel and covering her back.
Though the lights are off Hari knows perfectly well Kushina isn't sleeping. That she's probably in Naruto's room and keeping him within eyesight at all times.
That she won't be of any help to either herself or her son if someone make s it into the house.
Hari can't know for sure who they are after. Doesn't care - They won't get either of them.
...
Hari falls to her knees in the flower bed, blurring through seals before the palms of her hands smack against the ground.
The entire plot trembles when she catch the person taking a walk several feet underneath her.
She feels them try to struggle, but despite how Hari prefers her suiton element, that is exactly what it is: a preference.
In truth, her suiton is no stronger than her doton. That's what it means to have two main affinities. They are equally potent when Hari wields them, she just have a habit of falling back on what she has the most experience with.
But in this situation doton is the much better option to catch the uninvited mole.
Attempting to dig their way underground could allow them cover and stealth, but it only worked as long as they remained undiscovered - and now they were stuck.
No less than ten ANBU lands around her, and Hari say simply: "One intruder, directly underneath me - heading towards the house. I've got them trapped in a doton jutsu."
Dog is one of them, and though Frog is her captain he's currently sleeping in preparation for his next twenty four hour shift, so Kakashi is the one to step forwards. "Bring them up. Alive." He orders.
...
A couple ANBU disappear into the house in case there are more threats, while the rest remains at the ready to assist Hari as she carefully brings the intruder to the surface. They are wiggling and getting increasingly desperate, but Hari's doton proves stronger than theirs, and with some careful manoeuvrability the person is expelled through Kushina's rose bushes and right into the mercy of Konoha's black ops.
He's unconscious and restrained within a second, one of team Ro's ANBU disappearing with the man slung over his shoulder towards Torture and Interrogation just as Kushina and Naruto are escorted out of the house.
"We're moving you to Sandaime-sama's residence until the threat level can be reassessed." Kakashi informs Kushina.
Her expression is one of frigid ice, but she doesn't protest – she knows perfectly well this is happening because it must.
Kakashi signals for one ANBU to carry Kushina, another to carry Naruto, makes three flank them and takes the lead himself before he turns to Hari and Genma. The only two who remains from team Ebo at this post that's soon to be abandoned. "Report to ANBU Lion, he needs to know."
So they set off. Lion and team Kim is cooperating with several other agents on the village gates and outer boarders.
ANBU is a large division, and there's a lot of teams with different specialities - most of which Hari doesn't know of, but she thinks everyone is currently rotating either inside or outside the village, and communication is important.
They have nearly reached the south gates when their ANBU tattoo blares to life again - and this time someone else is sending out the alarm.
The thing about the ANBU signal is that it has a distance limit. Only other ANBU within a certain range can feel it. The only exception is the Hokage himself - who can send a signal to any tattoo he needs because he's the one that holds the seal key to each of them. This isn't the Hokage signalling them though.
This is a warning of another emergency, and Hari and Genma are very close.
...
...
They get to the south gates only to find Lion and most of the ones stationed there gone. "What happened?" Genma demands of the remaining ANBU and two chūnin squads that's stationed there.
The thing is – they do it in the open, while all the hidden agents are gone.
"The Hyūga district." The ANBU reply urgently. "Something happen. Lion-taichō is in pursuit."
They hurriedly exchange reports, explaining what just happened at the Uzumaki residence so the ANBU can share the information to those who may need to know, before Lizard makes the decision to continue after Lion.
"Come on Owl, we'll follow." Lizard say, and it's not unfounded.
They are one of the first to know something is wrong, and the alternative is to remain at the gates and wait for further instructions. But if Lion and his operatives needs help they are in a unique position to go back them up. Not to mention Dog was clear in his instructions: report to Lion – and they had to find him to do that.
So without delay Hari and Genma dash at a full sprint in the directions they've been given. And though neither are on team Kim – the tracking team of the Komorebi platoon - between them they have more than enough experience to be able to follow the trail. Especially when they find the tracks of a wild chase leading from a hole underneath the village walls and into the forest.
They run further and further away from the village.
Twice there had been an attempt at diversion – whoever was fleeing had created clones that had taken off to the sides, but it was clearly rushed and poorly executed, and they figure out which is the real tracks quickly on both occasions.
As they follow the trail Hari categorizes what she knows so far.
There was an incident in the Hyūga compound, and someone escaped. They went underneath the south wall, but from the tracks they were initially followed by a single pursuer, and now ANBU was chasing them as well.
...
Their tattoos flares again, indicating they are still within range of whatever is going on.
Hari follows at a full sprint after Lizard, trees flashing by as the ANBU tattoo acts up a second time, making it even easier to pin point where the ones summoning them were. Any ANBU could run chakra into them, it was a way for agents to verify each other behind the many masks, but to a sensor like Hari it was also a method to follow them if they kept the signal active long enough.
She had them locked on now, and they fly through a clearing, past a fallen trees and signs of a battle, and comes to an abrupt stop. There are marks of a fight and a few ANBU are already on the scene – though the only ones she knows by mask is Lion and Horse.
Hari momentarily stops all movements as she recognizes the male without a mask in the clearing.
Hizashi looks furious and rumpled, and Hari can guess who had been the one to chase the fleeing target out of the village. Though she really wants to ask why.
Why would Hizashi go for a wild chase like this? Why kill a Kumo ninja now?
...
Because there's a corpse in the clearing, a person with the Kumo uniform and headband is left to the side, Hari easily able to pick up on the vacuum of a recently killed person. There's no visible signs or blood of blunt force, and she's pretty sure this is what someone killed by the Hyūga jūken taijutsu style looks like. It targets the inner chakra coils and organs without rupturing the skin.
"Owl," Horse speaks sharply. "You're a medic, correct? Can you fix the victim?"
Hari wants to say no, no she can't save them.
And despite the victim being a Kumo ninja that is not a good thing, because they are in the middle of a peace signing – a dead cloud ninja might prove catastrophic – and Hari can't resurrect the dead.
...
It's then she realizes Horse is speaking about someone else. Hizashi shifts to reveal he'd been holding another person – a child.
An injured little girl clutching her face - shaking and facing into Hizashi's chest. And even from a distance Hari can see there's blood.
"My daughter. Fix her." Hizashi demands with a familiar urgency that sounds harsher than Hari recalls from their previous interactions… and Hizashi doesn't have a daughter…
It clicks, and Hari's eyes widen behind the mask as she understands this is his twin brother Hiashi.
That girl is Hyūga Hinata – they are the clan Head and his daughter and heir.
Hari's stomach turn when she looks at the child.
She can't be older than Naruto.
...
"When I caught up to him he ripped out her eyes." Hiashi growls when Hari moves forwards, hands going through seals for a diagnostic jutsu.
Horse holds out two bloody eyeballs. "But we managed to retrieve them. Can you put them back, Owl?" Hari recognize them as Byakugan and doesn't need to ask to understand what happened.
Failed kidnapping attempt.
A child taken and then it's discovered, the chase led here and then the kidnapper decided the child could be left behind as long as they brought the eyes back to Kumo.
"Hinata-hime?" Hari asks carefully, but the girl jolts at the sound of her name and clutches her father's yukata. She curls into him and refuses to let go. The last any of them wants to do is to force her, but Hari can't help her unless she gets a better look at her.
"Hinata let go. There's a medic here. She will help and make you see again." Hiashi tries to comfort his daughter. And though he is furious and still battle ready this is his injured daughter, and it's obviously a situation he doesn't know how to react to.
"Your father made the bad man who hurt you go away." Hari adds carefully. "So now I'll be able to help you feel better, Hinata-hime."
...
With shaking movements one hand leave her face and the trembling girl turns towards Hari's voice. Her bleeding eye sockets are swollen and empty, and she's clearly terrified and in pain, so Hari doesn't waste time now that she's been allowed an opening. First on her list is making sure to knock out the poor traumatized child with a healthy doze of sedation jutsu and sterilize everything.
Hari has experience with eye trauma. There had been a few cases at the hospital and Konoha had two clans consisting of bloodline users with the strongest dōjutsus in the world, so it was part of her training to have general knowledge of the area.
It was stressful to work in the field, but Hari blocked out the other ANBU setting up a guard perimeter while discussing their next course of action. Ignored the worried father hanging over her shoulder and observing every movement with blazing Byakugan eyes.
The Hyūga clan head wasn't a medic, but with a dojutsu that gave him ex-ray vision he was a useful assistant with an anatomy knowledge just as detailed as Hari's.
...
The right eye went in without complications, but even before she set to work on the other Hari knew it would prove more problematic.
That's what happens when someone rips out eyes.
There's a large possibility of damaging them, in fact it was pure luck the other one wasn't worse.
This was clearly a hurried and desperate attempt, and if the Kumo ninja had planned to run from Konoha to Kumo holding the eyeballs she wonders what they expected to remain of them by the time they got there.
"Oh bloody hell, come on," Hari couldn't help mutter as the optic nerve refused to act according to her command. Then there was the chakra network to the eye which had been torn too.
Hinata couldn't be much more than three years old, which meant everything was tiny and much closer together than on an adult. The Byakugan wasn't like a normal eye either, and though Hari had been given some general warnings about what to expect if she worked on a Hyūga, this was her first time interacting with the dōjutsu as a medic. And it was a tiny Byakugan, and so everything was several times more intricate.
Hari wasn't going to give up just because it was difficult though.
Hinata may be the youngest patient she's ever treated, but not by that much. As a trainee she treated a five year old boy after the Kyūbi attack, and though his injuries had been very different Hari learned a lot from that.
...
When she finishes there's a tenseness in the air, and no one speaks until Hari's hands stop glowing green.
ANBU Lion addresses her first. "What's her condition?"
"She's stable and the eye transplants were successful… but she should be moved to the hospital at once. The previous damage to the left eye needs a specialist, as I'm confident she'll regain sight, but dōjutsus are more complicated, especially with someone so young. The hospital has machines that'll be able to locate any potential lingering injuries and she should be looked at by a Hyūga medic with clearance to know about the secrets of the Byakugan." And it went without saying as a none Hyūga, Hari wasn't privy to such.
"Thank you." Hiashi say, voice tight as he fluidly scoops up his unconscious daughter and turns to ANBU Lion. "I'll bring her back myself."
Lion gestures to Horse and orders quickly: "Escort them, and Hyūga-sama,"
Hiashi had been turning, but stops mid motion and glance back at Lion. "When you're in the village agent Horse will protect your daughter and bring her to the hospital. But you need to report to Hokage-sama at once."
It wasn't actually an order, because ANBU Lion had no jurisdiction over the Hyūga clan head, but it was clearly indicated that Hiashi would be a fool to ignore this "advice".
Hiashi seems about to argue, but after a heated glare that reminds Hari that ANBU masks are redundant when dealing with members of the Hyūga clan, the man nods stiffly, and then they set off for the village with haste.
...
With their departure Hari sees that there's only herself and Lion left in the clearing. She had noticed vaguely when Genma was sent off while she concentrated on her job.
There's no time to waste though, and Lion whirls on her with orders at the ready. "Owl, you are to run to the north boarders and close it. No one comes in, no one comes out. Aim for station 4f first, they see the most traffic in that section and needs to be closed off. Continue west and stop by every outpost until you reach 7h. Remain at the last post until further notice." Lion rattle off succinctly despite their precarious situation.
"Yes, Lion-taichō." Hari sets off for her destination, and pray nothing more has happened.
Because when it rains - it pours. And these two incidents could be the first of many, though no matter what they led to Hari was certain they were connected.
...
The question remained: Who were the main target?
Had the attempted break in at the Uzumaki residence been a distraction?
Hari had set off that alarm first, taking focus away from the other sections because of where and what was happening. After all – Konoha had to respond quickly when foreign ninjas got too close to their jinchūriki.
Most likely Hinata was taken while ANBU was swapping out members between posts to send agents to secure the Uzumakis. It may have been too large a response for a capture Hari could have handled on her own – but that was impossible to know beforehand. At the time they had to act as if more would follow.
Hari shakes the thoughts away. With her limited access to information she knew it was impossible to be sure.
This could still get worse. A lot worse.
They were in a State of Emergency – because though most didn't know it, Konoha was now on the brink of war.
Yet Hari had a job to fulfil and so she only focused on flushing her body with another wave of chakra, washing away any fatigue and increasing her speed as she dashed for the boarders. Though a tiny part of her mind wondered when she'd get to see her bed again.
One thing was for sure, her shift was nowhere near finished.
...
...
It would be two months before Hari set a foot within Konoha again. And when she arrives home, exhausted from consistently patrolling the outer boarders with minimum sleep, she runs into Yugao in the hallway standing in front of her mailbox without moving. Hari feels like she's wrung out, physically exhausted and ready to sleep for a week, but Yugao might actually look worse than herself.
"Yugao?" Hari asks, hand coming up to gently nudge the girl's shoulder. She looks away from her mailbox.
"Hari…" Her voice sounds strange, her eyes looks a little sunken and she's clearly very lost in her own thoughts.
"What's… wrong?" Because something is wrong, and it's confirmed as Yugao's eyes close, and her shoulders stiffen. "Yugao?"
"Sensei…" The girl answers, and her voice breaks before she clears her throat.
That does not sound promising, and Hari feels something cold run down her spine. She thinks she know where this is headed now. Despite being out in the middle of nowhere fending off scouts and random attacks with minimum interaction with the people inside Konoha, Hari knew the village had been turning upside down after the catastrophic end to the peace treaty – the Hyūga clan in the very centre – as everyone prepared for another war.
...
Except…five days ago Frog-taichō had been seriously considering sending Hari east with a mixed ANBU squad to cover a section and hold the perimeter in case of an attack. But then… then a few days later Hari had been sent home instead.
She was glad, it was promising that they felt she could go home and rest. She had nine whole hours to herself before she had to be back on duty, but it was still the most time off since this started.
Though between all these things Hari had heard some troubling rumours. A demand from Kumo. One she had thought baseless because… because Hari hadn't wanted it to be a valid threat.
"Hizashi-sensei is dead." Yugao say, and she doesn't bother to dry away the single tear that runs down her cheek.
...
AN: I was uncertain about where this chapter should go. Because the slight change of events I had a draft of that last part where Hari arrives to the scene and finds Hinata injured and Hiashi dead as a result of the chase instead, and the ANBU were the ones to kill the kidnapper. Since... well, why not?
But then I thought; was that possible? Hiashi, even during the fourth war, made it through without injury. He is a very, very scary guy power wise, and with his bloodline I'm just not sure he could lose, not with that kind of motivation. Another aspect was; that would drag a lot of the story attention to the Hyuga, and though I wouldn't necessary mind more of them I'm a little afraid of distracting myself too much, even if it's part of the "bloodline theft topic" I've got going in this story, but it would mean I had to cover how the entire clan structure got changed up alongside all the other theme's I'm attempting to keep in place. Because in those notes Hizashi would remain alive, but as he's already branded he would not take over as head - instead I imagine their father would retake the seat until they deemed a Hinata (with a lot more pressure on her) was old enough. And I just imagined it all, and honestly; in the end I just realized Neji would probably be just as much of a resentful bully while living under his strict grandfather's rule instead of his guilt ridden uncle, and felt so sorry for Hinata I went for the version which was closer to canon events.
Thank you so much for reading