Chapter Fifteen: Truth Revealed
Ino, Naruto, and Neji arrived at Iruka-sensei's office. They hadn't been back at the academy for a long time, and it seemed as if it all had taken place a lifetime ago. Walking through the halls, they got to the office. Ino looked to Naruto and wondered how best to go about this.
"Now um, I think I should talk to Iruka-sensei on my own," said Ino.
"What makes you say that Ino?" asked Naruto.
Ino wished Neji hadn't come. They hadn't known eachother at all in school; he'd been in the class ahead of them. "Well, I mean, if all of us come here, he might think something was up. Me just asking a bit about Sakura will draw less attention."
"No way," said Naruto.
"What, what do you mean no way?" asked Ino.
"We came this far, Ino," said Naruto. "We're going to do it together."
Neji was silent, and Ino sighed. "...Fine."
Ino knocked on the door.
There was silence for a moment, and then the door opened. Iruka-sensei looked out, seeming very tired. He must have been working late. "Ino, Naruto, Neji? You're an odd trio to be hanging around here. How can I help?"
"Iruka-sensei..." said Ino. "Something is wrong with Sakura."
Iruka blinked. "What do you mean?"
"I... I visited her a week or two ago and, well, I couldn't see her parents anywhere at all," said Ino. "And her crush on Sasuke, I always figured it was like mine, but... she's completely obsessed.
"We're worried about her."
Iruka paused and looked either way down the hall. "I see.
"You'd better come inside and wait. Sakura's situation is delicate, and I'm only able to reveal some of it."
They went through the door, and Iruka sat down at his desk as they stood across from him. "But Iruka-sensei, we talked with other people," said Naruto. "Nobody else can remember Sakura's parents either. It's like they don't even exist, and Sakura doesn't have any pictures of them."
Silence. Iruka looked down at his desk, seemingly wrestling with something. He definitely knew something.
"Iruka-sensei?" asked Ino.
"The situation is complicated, Ino," said Iruka. "And, I'm not allowed to reveal those details; they are confidential. As an academy instructor, I am obligated to protect clan secrets.
"Sakura is...
"Well, she was enrolled in the academy by certain people who are no longer in the village. However, the orders they set up remain, and the Leaf has chosen to keep her there."
"Is she the daughter of traitors?" asked Neji.
Ino glared at him, but Neji just stared back as if daring her to do something about it. Ino shrugged and looked back. "But that doesn't make any sense. Sakura herself thinks she's the daughter of merchants, she has for years."
Iruka sighed. "I can't tell you any more, Ino.
"The files are sealed. I'd be breaking the law by revealing more—several laws.
"If you want to know more, you're going to have to go directly to sensei."
"The Hokage?" asked Ino. "What does he have to do with this?"
Iruka stood up. "Come with me, and he'll explain, however much he wants.
I'm sorry, but I can't say anymore. The Leaf sometimes has to keep secrets for the safety of its citizens. If you want any more information, you have to talk to him."
"Is it that serious?" asked Ino.
Iruka paused and sighed. "It is... complicated, and a public revelation of what is going on could have bad consequences. Follow me."
And so they went, leaping across rooftops to reach the Hokage's HQ. Scaling the spiral stairs around the building, Iruka let them in with a set of keys. Walking into the office, they found virtually no one around. Anko was lounging on a sofa in the waiting room, tossing a bouncy ball against the wall.
"He's waiting for you inside," said Anko, hurling it again.
"How does he do that?" muttered Iruka. "Come on."
Moving in, Iruka opened the door, and beyond was Lord Orochimaru, writing at his desk. Entering, he looked up and pretended to just notice them. "Ah, Iruka, what brings you to my humble abode? I had only just finished my paperwork."
"I apologize, sensei," said Iruka. "Something has come up."
Moving forward, Iruka leaned down and whispered into Orochimaru's ear. He sighed. "Ah, yes, that.
"Well, leave me to it, Iruka. I don't wish to keep you from your responsibilities."
"Thank you," said Iruka.
Iruka bowed and left quickly. As he did, the door shut behind them, and Ino felt suddenly very nervous. Orochimaru seemed somehow... different than before. Like some element of his true self was leaking out.
"Ah, Naruto, Ino, and... Neji?" Orochimaru paused. "I had wondered when your investigations would lead you this far. I gather you've picked up some more supporters and some level of organization. I must say the investigation was well done, but you might have been a bit more secretive."
"You knew we were looking into this?" asked Ino.
"Of course," said Orochimaru. "You haven't been nearly careful enough. My ANBU monitor everyone who enters and leaves Sakura's house. They then kept tabs on your actions as you investigated it."
"Why didn't you stop us?" asked Neji.
Orochimaru leaned forward on his desk and clasped his hands together. "Well, obviously because I wanted to see how far you'd get. If you could find out the full truth, it would make you a real asset. The Leaf Village survives by encouraging individual ambition for a greater good.
"And, it isn't as though the secret you've been trying to find can actually do any harm by being discovered. Quite the opposite, in fact, the only people it might incriminate, are long dead."
"...I don't understand," said Naruto. "What if we'd caused problems or uncovered it?"
Orochimaru sighed. "Naruto, please have more faith in the Leaf than that. If you had been looking into something you were not supposed to, I should have told Kakashi to reign you in and hid the evidence. Then that would have been the end of it.
"Secrecy is only upheld on the subject for Sakura's benefit. You know firsthand how the Leaf treats those who are considered... different."
"Yeah," said Naruto. "I guess I do."
"As things stand, I thought I'd let you finish and see if you got this far," said Orochimaru. "Though I was hoping you'd try to sneak into my office. While to be encouraged, simply asking flat out is... well, a touch traditional.
"Very practical, though. Just think of it as a... teambuilding exercise."
"So are you going to tell us what is going on here, Lord Orochimaru?" asked Neji, eyes narrowing.
"Well, I suppose that depends on what you want to know," said Orochimaru.
Ino had had enough of this. How could all this be for Sakura's benefit, and why would Orochimaru need to post ANBU. "Where are Sakura Haruno's family, and why has no one in the village ever seen them before?!"
Orochimaru smiled, and it gave Ino chills. "...Are you sure you want the answer to that question, Ino?"
Ino, for a moment, paused. What if she didn't? "I asked, didn't I?"
"True enough," said Orochimaru, standing up. "But you might not like the answer. And if I give you that answer, it will open your eyes to the darker side of the Leaf. Many things have to be done behind the scenes in the Leaf, things that are never seen in the light of day. And not all of them are pleasant or even heroic.
"Out of courtesy, I'd like to offer you a choice between two worlds." He motioned to the door behind them. "In one world, you walk out that door, you forget this ever happened. You train to be the best ninja you can be and never look back. And you don't even have to worry about this. You can believe whatever you want to believe.
"In the other world, you stay in here, you listen to my explanation and see beneath the mask of the Leaf. And once you know a little, you'll see things others don't for the rest of your lives. And you may even feel obligated to act on some of them.
"Which would you prefer then?
"The truth? Or what you want to hear?"
Ino shifted, uneasily. What if there was some really horrible secret behind this? She would have to live with it. What if the Yamanaka clan was involved.
"...I didn't come all this way just to forget about it," said Naruto. "I want to know about this; Sakura is... well, she's important to me."
Ino thought about walking out on Naruto as Shikamaru and Choji had. No, she was Sakura's closest, only friend. "I want to know what's going on here, too?"
Neji paused as they looked at him. "...Will what I learn here put me at cross purposes with the Leaf?"
"A good question, Neji," said Orochimaru. "The answer depends entirely on how you react to it. But, in the immediate future, certainly not."
"Then I accept," said Neji.
He seemed more curious than Ino thought. Orochimaru, however, seemed pleased. "Well then, why don't we find a change of scenery. Follow me."
Orochimaru led them out the door and downstairs. When they reached a cellar filled with all kinds of supplies and equipment. At the far end, he pushed in a loose stone on the wall. The wall then slid aside, and he motioned for them to follow.
Beyond, they entered into a place with many strange vials. Several different huge tanks could be seen, with strange creatures within them. Ino looked around as Orochimaru began sorting through a filing cabinet. It gave her the chills, but Naruto seemed fascinated.
"What is this place?" asked Neji.
"Oh, this?" asked Orochimaru. "This is a laboratory I used to conduct my experiments. I experiment with blood samples, examine corpses, and also use more... unnatural jutsu. I had it installed shortly after I took office. My original lab is too far away.
"All constrained to ethical guidelines, of course. That was one of the sensei's requirements to give me this position."
"This stuff is uh... pretty cool," said Naruto.
"Yes, well, I fear I haven't had time to use much of it with all the paperwork I must deal with," said Orochimaru. "Kabuto does most of the work these days.
"Now, let's see, where was that commission?"
"Commission?" asked Ino. What did a commission have to do with Sakura?
"Oh yes, I often performed certain experiments on behalf of other members of the Leaf," said Orochimaru. "Sometimes it was to cure a disease, other times to deal with a crippled leg. I've made a great deal of progress, at least until Tsunade left me. I'd hoped eventually to replicate kekkei genki, or perhaps even create some.
"I even did some work for the Yamanaka Clan, Ino. On behalf of your Father and some others.
"Speaking of which." He drew out a file and tossed it through the air with a flick of the wrist. It spun through the air and slid under Ino's arm. As she tensed, she took the file and drew it up.
"Years ago, this was a request sent to me by Fugaku Uchiha of the Uchiha Clan," said Orochimaru.
"Fugaku Uchiha..." said Ino, opening the file and looking through it. There was a lot of stuff she didn't understand. But Sakura had helped her enough with biology to figure out what it was. She read it. "Project Purity? He... he wanted you to create a human being?"
"Are you saying Sakura was created in this... lab?" asked Naruto.
"No, not this one," said Orochimaru. "I hadn't installed this one just yet. But other than that, yes. She was custom-tailored to breed with an Uchiha.
"You see, the Uchiha Clan has a bad tendency of marrying close to the blood to maintain their Sharingan. Fugaku was rightfully concerned about inbreeding. But he didn't like the idea of marrying his sons to one of the other clans. The Hyuga were the only ones he considered worthwhile, and all attempts to negotiate an arranged marriage were a disaster.
"Fugaku and Hiashi despised one another and were not willing to compromise. Both considered one another an inferior clan with delusions of grandeur. This is why Hinata was never betrothed to Sasuke."
"But what does this have to do with Sakura?" asked Ino.
"Fugaku was a facing a situation where his sons were probably going to have to marry into common blood," said Orochimaru. "The Senju are all but extinct, and most of the other clans disliked the Uchiha at best.
"But if he married one of his children to a commoner, his bloodline would be contaminated. Most ninja clans deliberately breed their children to have favorable traits, while commoners have no such advantage."
It began to sink in just what Orochimaru was saying. "So... so he asked you to create Sakura?"
"Oh, yes. Her and several others," said Orochimaru. "It was cleared with the old administration. I was asked to create a female whose genes were custom-tailored to be recessive. Any children she bore would be almost completely Uchiha, with her own genetics being more or less assimilated.
"It's all very complicated.
"Sakura Haruno was then given to the Uchiha to do with as they will."
"But how?" asked Ino. "How could you sell a child into slavery?"
Orochimaru laughed. "My dear girl, Neji Hyuga, wears a brand on his forehead. His family can kill him for any reason and suffer no legal consequences. At the time, I was trying to become Hokage and was in need of Fugaku's support.
"Refusing would have doomed my campaign and alienated the Uchiha. I was also operating on certain... false pretenses. I thought that Fugaku would raise the child as a member of his household."
"But... but why is she so obsessed with Sasuke?" said Ino. "It's like her total focus for her existence. She shouldn't be like this." She wasn't even sure how to handle this; all she could do is ask more questions.
Orochimaru sighed. "You can blame Shisui Uchiha for that."
"Who?" asked Ino. The name sounded familiar. Hadn't he been murdered by the river? It had happened right before Sasuke's family had been killed.
"The only Uchiha who could match Itachi in battle," said Orochimaru. "He may even have been stronger.
"He possessed a unique power with his Sharingan. It allowed him to put people under a permenant genjutsu. It makes someone believe something so utterly and completely that they think they are doing it of their own free will.
"He used it on Sakura when she was less than a year old."
The sheer volume of it hit Ino harder. She tried to think of what to say as a million memories hit her and were rendered harsher. "So... you mean to say that Sakura has literally been brainwashed from birth to fall in love with Sasuke and marry him?"
Orochimaru shook his head. "No. Sakura has been brainwashed to have the children of any suitable Uchiha they decided on. Sasuke is the subject of her affections by virtue of being the last man standing.
"Somewhat ironic, given that he was probably the only one who didn't know about it."
"How could you let them do something like that, Orochimaru?!" said Naruto.
Orochimaru shrugged. "I couldn't do anything, Naruto.
"Sakura was legally Uchiha Clan property. They could have done whatever they wanted to her, And Fugaku didn't trust me enough to bring her into his household, however.
"Of course, not all of the specimens were Uchiha Clan property; some clans were keeping their options open. And not all of them were given the same treatment by Shisui. They weren't entirely sure that artificial humans would be able to function properly under his influence from such a young age.
"Sakura was judged to be the least valuable, and so she was put under genjutsu."
"But how could they do such a thing?! To a toddler?!" said Ino in horror. She looked to where Neji, whose face was impassive. He had hardly reacted.
"I doubt they even thought of Sakura as a human being, Naruto," said Neji. "The Uchiha had a superiority complex that considered even the Hyuga inferior. As far as they were concerned, they had the right to rule the Leaf. We were no better than rebellious vassals."
"I never heard anything like that from them," said Ino flatly. She remembered Fugaku had met once or twice with Dad, even.
"Were you listening?" asked Neji.
"What about the others?" asked Naruto. "Are... are they as bad off as Sakura?"
Orochimaru walked over and took the file back from Neji. Shutting it, he filed it back. "The others were, fortunately, never brought under the direct control of Shisui's eye. As you can no doubt attest, Ino, Sakura was wholly unable to function before she met you. Fugaku was aware of this and decided to use the procedure at the age of twelve or so.
"Old enough to have the ability to obey orders without making a scene, but not so old that they could resist.
"I think that Neji is correct, Sakura and the subjects were nothing more than chattel to the Uchiha.
"Thankfully, the Uchiha massacre saved the others."
"There's got to be something we can do!" said Naruto. "Can't you fix it? You're the Hokage, the most powerful man in the world!"
Orochimaru smiled at that as he looked back. "I actually have been cooperating with the Yamanaka on deprogramming her for some time. We've managed to make a great deal of progress to that end, thanks to you, Ino.
"However, I will be honest. I expect this is a problem Sakura will have to deal with for the rest of her life.
"Shisui's mastery of hypnosis is unparalleled in history."
"So... we can't help her?" asked Naruto.
Orochimaru seemed to consider things. "I actually come up with some solutions.
"Shisui's brainwashing endlessly drives her to fall in love with Sasuke because he is the last Uchiha. If Sasuke, however, were to leave the village and disappear with no way for her to find him, she might move on. The genjutsu would have nothing to drive her toward, so it would go dormant.
"However, if she ever runs into Sasuke again, the genjutsu would reactivate. It might even destroy aspects of her personality to ensure her compliance. For instance, if Sasuke were to go rogue and try to destroy the Leaf. A well-adjusted Sakura might well decide to kill Sasuke to defend the Leaf.
"At which point, Shisui's genjutsu would systematically chip away at her confidence and resolve. If necessary, it would weaken her loyalty to the Leaf and drive her to alienate those close to her. It would work at her constantly, and no matter how hard she fought against it, she would be reduced to the same state she is in now. That being the state the Uchiha wanted her to be in.
"And she'd think it was her idea, to begin with."
"You mentioned you had solutions," said Neji.
"There are two instant fixes to this problem," said Orochimaru. "The first fix is to kill off Sasuke and Itachi Uchiha. With no Uchiha left alive, Sakura would be able to live a normal life. Obviously, that is not an idea I'm fond of."
"We can't kill Sasuke!" said Naruto. "He's part of our team, and he didn't have anything to do with this!"
"What's the other option?" asked Ino, deciding she had to take charge.
"Have Sasuke Uchiha impregnate her and then abandon the village for good," said Orochimaru. "Part of her programming is to raise the children that result from her union with an Uchiha. So if she were to have a child, she would refocus on them. With Sasuke gone, she might be able to recover somewhat."
"This is sick," said Ino.
"I am well aware," said Orochimaru. "It's also one of many reasons why the Uchiha massacre was met with mild applause by most people in the know. Really, Itachi did the universe a favor."
"Lord Orochimaru, is there... is there some kind of therapy we can do?" asked Ino.
"You can not get between her and Sasuke for a start," said Orochimaru. "If something is regarded as a threat between her and Sasuke, she will be brainwashed to cut it loose. This is also why she is so aggressive with you, Naruto. Your affections to her are perceived as a threat to her mission.
"However, I suspect she genuinely likes you and enjoys your company.
"If you can create a relationship with her which is perceived as helping her get to Sasuke, she may indulge in it. From there, you can get her to focus on other things as a means of supporting her relationship with Sasuke.
"Tell her to play hard to get. Or convince her that having a life outside of him will make her more attractive to him. Just remember that her entire existence revolved around him, and breaking that bond could break her.
"Be careful."
Silence fell over everyone.
"I... I can't believe the Uchiha would do that," said Naruto. "I knew some of them were jerks but... brainwashing Sakura so she'd have no choice but to be Sasuke's wife."
"I think you misunderstand, Naruto," said Neji. "The Uchiha would gain nothing by having Sasuke marry her. She had no property and was already theirs and could bear children. Sakura was fated by destiny to be Sasuke Uchiha's slave, not his wife."
"That's not her destiny," said Ino flatly. "It's just what the Uchiha tried to force her to do."
"Is there a difference?" asked Neji.
Ino paused and tried to find something to say. He said it so matter of factly. "...Lord Orochimaru, what happened to Shisui Uchiha?"
Silence fell.
Orochimaru shrugged. "Well, I shouldn't really be telling you this, but the information was sealed years ago. And there really isn't any harm.
"Some time ago, certain factions within the Leaf started conspiring to overthrow me. Their goal was to supplant the rightfully elected Hokage and replace it with someone more to their tastes. And Shisui Uchiha was an integral part of that plan. His ability was going to be used to take away my free will and make me abdicate.
"And they also were making plans to seize you as well, Naruto. They would have threatened to kill you and unleash the Nine-tailed Fox on the village to force everyone into line.
"Needless to say, I was not pleased when I learned this. So I caught Shisui alone by the river bank and killed him with my bare hands." And then two red lights flared to life within his eyes. Ino's eyes widened as she saw two red emblems. "I always wanted my own Sharingan. Now I have one of the best."
Ino thought about Shisui Uchiha. He'd already brainwashed Sakura, and then he'd tried to overthrow the Hokage and take over the Leaf. And Orochimaru had flat out assassinated him in retribution.
"...Good," said Ino.
Ino was glad Shisui was dead.
Anyone willing to take away someone's free will like that deserved it. She certainly wasn't going to tell anyone about this, especially since the Hokage had requested it. It had all happened years ago anyway.
"Of course, by talking to you about this," said Orochimaru. "I've brought you into my confidence. I suggest you don't tell anyone about what you heard here today without my permission. It is not relevant, after all, and will only inflame old passions.
"Keep your silence on this subject, and you may well have a bright future ahead of you.
"Tell anyone... well, it could cause the Leaf some serious problems, and I'll have to have your memories suppressed."
"You can trust us, Lord Orochimaru," said Naruto.
"The more power you have," said Orochimaru, "the more responsibility you have to go with it. You cannot mention this to anyone. Not Sasuke, not Kakashi, not Teuchi or your friends or any family. Some of them already know, of course, but revealing the information would still be criminal.
"If you don't feel capable of keeping the secret, I can have the details wiped from your memory right away."
"...Thank you, Lord Orochimaru," said Ino. "But I'd prefer to remember this."
"Then I expect you to keep what you have found here an absolute secret," said Orochimaru. Ino bowed.
The three of them left the Hokage's office wiser but troubled.
"This doesn't make sense," said Neji. "Why tell us any of that? What could he gain from it."
"Well why not?" asked Naruto. "He trusts us. And Lord Orochimaru one of the good guys."
Neji looked startled for a moment and then looked at Naruto. "I see, that's why."
"What?" said Naruto. "What do you mean?"
"Nothing," said Neji. "Figure it out for yourself."
And he walked off.
Of course. It had been about Naruto. Ino was going to have to talk to Kakashi-sensei about the non-classified aspect of this.