"If you do not tell the truth about yourself you cannot tell it about other people."~Virginia Woolf
The Cloudless Sky
Cold Hard Truths
.9
Shimari seated herself next to her fellow brunette. Shizune…she believes is the teen's name. She was the niece of Tsunade's late lover or something like that. The girl had gone with the Tsunade when the sannin left the village as her apprentice. Information that hardly held any relevance to the situation at hand, but it could at least be useful. Jiraiya grinned at her from across the bar table where he had roughly sat next to his former teammate. He'd been lucky that Tsunade had made eye contact with him when they'd entered or else he probably would have gotten a fork embedded in his hand. If the twitching from the Senju heir was anything to go by that is.
"What are you doing here Jiraiya?"
Shimari decided to block out the conversation until she was needed. She still needed to gather her own courage. Decide what exactly she was going to say to the sannin. Bile built in her stomach, even thinking about it made her want to puke. It still felt dirty to her. Exploiting her own sorrow to manipulate another person.
Nothing she could do about it though. Not when she did understand the merit of it. "I understand why the old man would send you but why the tag along?" Shimari quickly focused back on the conversation when she could feel eyes boring into her.
She gave Tsunade the single most unimpressed look she could manage and then spoke in a very flat voice. "Because someone decided to ignore the direct summons from their acting Hokage, and since you have gone past your window of morning by several years you're now tethering on the edge of rogue ninja. Sannin or not. That's why I am here." Tsunade gaped at her, turning to glare at Jiraiya. The implications of her words are not lost on the other sannin.
There was no mistaking that the Nara woman loved the village. And would do whatever was best for the village.
"She's a fucking hunter nin?!" Outrage clearly in her voice, Jiraiya sighed and gave Shimari a look. He rubbed his forehead.
"No Tsunade she is not a hunter nin. This is Nara Shimari, you remember, Minato's best friend." Jiriaya interrupts whatever Shimari was going to say in response to Tsunade's outrage. She pins him with an annoyed look. He ignores it. Tsunade says nothing, turning the information over in her head.
"Jiriaya why don't you leave us girls alone for a bit?" Shimari gave him a pointed look. Hopefully it will get the point across. Jiriaya finally notices and sighed .
"Well then I can see when I'm not wanted." He huffs getting up and leaving dramatically. They all ignore him. Shimari reaches for the sake, she usually didn't partake but… this was different.
Tsunade is quiet, staring at her with a sort of wary look. Then suddenly she turns to Shizune. "Go back to the hotel and get some rest, it's been a long day." She says then reaches for the bottle after Shimari sets it down. Shizune is reluctant to leave but she does as she is told.
Good girl… Shimari cannot help but to think.
The two women sit in silence both taking small sips from their glasses. Shimari leans back into the booth, she looks up at the bar's dingy ceiling. So unsanitary. Mouse would be appalled.
"I left the village eight years ago myself… it was an interesting experience. But when I came back I found that my home had turned to rot. My best friends died in my absence, I wasn't there to protect them.. I found their son dirty and covered in bruises. I had to decide if my own personal loss had been worth it… I left, because I lost a child and my partner and yet when I returned the loss was even greater. It hadn't been worth it…" Shimari doesn't drink, she sets her glass down with a sort of somber disposition. Tsunade remains silent.
"Shimura Danzo is dead. He betrayed the village under the nose of the Sandaime, the same Sandaime who let your teammate Orochimaru walz right out of the gates after the discovery of immoral unethical experiments sanctioned by Shimura, by the council of elders. Your grandfather's legacy is in ruin.. What are you going to do about it? Is your personal loss worth letting the village rot." Tsunade flinches, Shimari holds her position.
She was not here to be nice. Or to sugar coat her words. Shimari's only job was to decide if Tsunade was even worthy of the title.
"Dammit." Tsunade curses, takes an angry sip of her sake and Shimari ignores the tears that build in her eyes. The Nara woman is patient and she waits, quietly, watching carefully as the Sannin pulls herself back together.
"Dan… Nawaki… they would have expected better of the village. Fine. I will accompany you and Jiraiya back to the village to see the rot for myself." Tsunade finally speaks, her words are clear and pungent. Shimari nods her approval.
Tsunade has nearly proved to be a Hokage worth serving. Shimari would watch her closely from here on out.
…
They returned to the village soon after, there was no fanfare. Shimari had things to do and escorted Tsunade and Jiraiya back to the tower before disappearing herself. "I am assuming she is checking on her chickens." Hiruzen tells them to clear them of their confused air. Jiraiya instantly knows what he's talking about and nods. Tsunade crosses her arms.
She's not happy to be here. But here she was nonetheless. They had business to get to. Tsunade wanted to see the so-called rot for herself. What she found did not impress her in the slightest.
Shimari had been right. She bit the inside of her cheek.
Tsunade never wanted this.
But she had a duty to Nawaki and Dan. To her grandfather. To every single person she'd failed by being blinded by her own grief.
The truth was she had been a coward before.. Now all she could do was be brave. She had to..
…
Shimari teleports to the Uchiha compound first. She had an apprentice to check on, Shisui was on guard duty so she'd already checked in with him. Rabbit was in headquarters doing something she didn't want to interrupt so she'd check on them later. So to the Uchiha district she went.
"Nara-san please sign in!" She smirked at the poor chunin stationed at the entrance.. Not on his life. Shimari kept walking.
The walk to the main house was short. She arrives just in time for a large explosion to erupt in the backyard. Shimari raises her brow at the sound of a seal backfiring. They hadn't been gone that long, surely Mikoto wouldn't have tried to switch Naruto from calligraphy lessons. Well she should probably see what that was about, she lets herself in.
"Mah.. what in the world is going on here?" Two sets up scared eyes look up at her, blue and black, she frowns at them both. Naruto races over to her crying.
Shimari could feel her blood beginning to boil. She squats down to his level, wipes his tears and beckons Sasuke over to them. He comes slowly and completely confused. They would both need to be checked for injuries. Mikoto comes running out of the house, then her whole presence screams high alert, she's ready to attack.
"What happened?" Shimari is the first to vocalize the question she knows is on both of their mines. Mikoto asses there is no other threat, puts out the small fire the backfiring seal caused, picks up the remnants of said seal then joins them by the backyards entrance.
Naruto is so worked up that he can't even get out what the hell has just happened. Shimari could probably make a few guesses but none of them would cause this poor child to be so distraught. Sasuke pulls himself together quicker and answers. What he tells both his mother and aunt, makes Shimari see red.
"Mizuki-sensei gave us the seal to study, he said it was a modified storage seal." Because by the way Mikoto is glaring at the remnant of the seal, she knows it was not a modified storage seal. They share a look that is not nice, Mikoto holds up the seal so Shimari can confirm her suspicions. Shimari flares her chakra in ANBU code.
An ANBU in a snarling pig mask appears next to her. She scoops Naruto up into her arms and Mikoto does the same with Sasuke. Someone had just tried to murder these children.
"Your orders."
"Go retrieve the Mizuki-sensei and take him to Inoichi and Ibiki, I think they will be very interested in the reason as to why he tried to murder two academy students." Shimari doesn't mince her words and she holds Naruto closer to her chest.
Something not nice leaks off the man with the pig mask and Shimari thinks that Boar has been around her too much. She turns to look at Mikoto. "Hokage tower." The other woman nods, Shimari places her free hand on her shoulder and teleports them.
Looks like they were about to see just what type of Hokage Tsunade was going to be.
XOXOX
Hello all! I have not forgotten about this story lol! So here is the next update! I am leaving this chapter where it is because I feel like there is a lot going on so I don't want to overcrowd lol.
Anyway I hope you enjoy it!
Thank you for reading! I hope you all have a wonderful day/evening!
~LaRae