The tight grip of unconsciousness slowly slackened. Gradually, Sakura became aware of herself as she came out of a dreamless sleep, for once not getting a rude wakeup of someone splashing water in her face, or kicking her awake, as had become the norm in her life recently.
But something had still woken her up - nearby voices. One in particular that never failed to get Sakura's attention, positive or negative.
"...and that's when we found the old man. That Shukaku thing chased us all the way to him." Ino sounded in her element, confident and projecting her voice. She had an audience and Ino with an audience was usually an annoying thing. "He told us that he was the 'Sage of Six Paths' and that he wanted us to do something. I wanted to hear him out right away, but you know Sakura. She caused a huge scene."
Because being suspicious of someone calling themselves god was paranoid? "Shut up, Ino," Sakura muttered. Her voice was scratchy and weak and she wanted a glass of water more than just about anything.
A hand laid itself on her shoulder. It was a soft touch, but still reassuring when it gently squeezed. "You're still not fully recovered yet. Take some more time to rest."
Sakura knew that voice. "Inoichi-san? Wha-"
She managed to pry her eyes open. As they slowly started to work, the worried face of Ino's father came into a shaky focus. It softened when he saw Sakura's eyes. "You're probably very confused and very dizzy," he whispered. In the background Sakura could hear Ino continue to talk. "Acute chakra depletion. I wasn't allowed to give you a soldier pill."
"Where am I?"
"The Tower. Anko brought you here with the others. Tenzo - he's here too - wanted to report on what happened down in the Yamato Works."
What had happened down there? Sakura's memory was fuzzy after being put in her new body. She remembered Kabuto? Ino and Shikamaru? Then anger, and pain. Sakura rubbed her head; she couldn't remember.
But Ino's droning… that was enough to get on anyone's nerves. "She's butchering the story. Can you…?"
"You two girls," Inoichi muttered, amused. Louder, he called out, "If I can interrupt? Sakura is awake."
Ino was mid-boast when she was interrupted. Sakura managed to mirror the blonde's look of annoyance for a beat before her eyes flicked around the room.
Shikaku, Choza, Tenzo, Anko - there was a large group of people ringing the small room. Sakura immediately felt a bolt of worry looking at Choza. The big man who had saved Shikamaru's and her life was bandaged in a dozen places and one arm was in a makeshift sling. But he was standing on his own, which Sakura took as a good thing. He gave her a small nod, even, when their eyes met. Better than the sneer Anko had on her lips as Sakura's eyes passed over her.
Sakura's visual tour stopped short a moment later. A single, beady little eyeball caught her eyes and made the blood in her veins turn to ice.
Shimura Danzo was standing not a few dozen feet away, looking as he always did - evenly bored. He was standing behind someone sitting, though - the Third Hokage.
Inoichi had to steady her again when Sakura quickly scrambled to her feet. She only noticed she'd been laying on a makeshift cot of blankets when she lost that comfort. "H-Hokage-sama!" Sakura sputtered. No wonder Ino looked pissed at the interruption; she was getting to show off for the Hokage.
Sarutobi started to answer her, but someone else - something else - interrupted. Sakura had missed it at first, but now she saw a small, coiled snake on the table the Hokage was sitting at. It's head shot up, tongue flicking out in Sakura's direction.
She knew that snake.
"Haruno-san. You survive against expectations again."
Orochimaru. "You," Sakura hissed, sounding like a snake herself. "You… you…! You did this to me!" she screamed. Inoichi put a restraining hand on her shoulder, but Sakura squirmed away from it. "You knew! Kabuto told me that you knew!"
The snake was quiet for a long moment. The room seemed to shift, people glancing at each other, as the silence dragged out. "I knew," Orochimaru evenly confirmed.
The admission hit Sakura like a thunderstrike. Kabuto. Orochimaru. Tenzo. The village itself. "How many people knew that I wasn't… wasn't human?" Sakura looked around the room, breathing hard. Her eyes locked onto the Hokage. "Did you know?"
Sarutobi sighed. "We have known since your return to the village." He seemed so old now. Weary. The life was draining out of him with every word, the wrinkles on his face growing longer and deeper. The only thing still animated about him were his eyes, which were staring down at the table. "I thought it was a ruse by Orochimaru, or some sort of infiltrator. I did not truly believe you were still yourself until I read the reports from Tenzo, but by then your situation had become dwarfed by Suna."
Without Inoichi behind her Sakura would have fallen. All of her indignation and rage seemed to drain away, leaving nothing but a smoldering anger that had no outlet.
She turned to the snake. "Am I really human again? Is this body just another experiment?"
"Without being there to examine you in person I shouldn't be able to say either way with certainty," he hedged, voice growing sly once again, "but… I do not believe that the Sage of Six Paths would bestow gifts to anything but a human."
Sakura's eyes shot wide. The sage! He had said that it was her body waiting on her, hadn't he? He was god. He wouldn't lie!
"This is ridiculous." Danzo clicked his cane against the floor, lips sneering, single working eye glaring at the snake transmitting Orochimaru's voice. "The Sage of Six Paths is a legend. He is a myth." He turned to the Hokage. "We can't base military strategy around such insanity. Haruno Sakura should be imprisoned, immediately. She is another ruse of Orochimaru's to infiltrate the village in this chaos." His attention went to Ino and the blond flinched. "And that one as well. Clearly something has been done to her during her contact with Haruno."
"I won't agree to that!" Choza yelled out. Shikaku put a calming hand on the big man's shoulder, but he still stomped forward. "If anyone here is trying to use this invasion as a way to grab more power, it's you!"
Inoichi stepped around Sakura. "You will not put my daughter in a cell," he said, deathly serious.
Danzo's eye narrowed. "We are at war. Your daughter, and Haruno, could be security risks." The air thickened when Inoichi took another step forward. The ANBU behind Danzo shifted, angling themselves toward Inoichi. "You clan heads have no say in this matter. Village defense is under my authority."
The moment dragged out. Ino was rooted to her spot between her father and Danzo; Sakura struggled to stay standing; the Hokage continued to stare miserably at the table.
The silence broke. "But I have a say," Shikaku called out, stepping forward. His face was drawn into a tight scowl as he stared down Danzo. "I was appointed, by the Hokage of the village, as the Head of Central Command. All of the village's resources - including ANBU, genin in training, and allied personnel - are under my control."
He turned to the silent Hokage. "That can only be changed by the one who gave me my authority. Has that changed, Hokage-sama?"
"Hokage-sama!" "Sarutobi…"
The Hokage held up his hand. Inoichi, Choza, and Danzo all fell silent. His eyes came off the table. He looked at Ino for a long minute. The girl squirmed, fidgeting, and then the old man's attention shifted away from her.
He looked at Sakura.
It wasn't a kind look. The Hokage was sizing her up like a threat and suddenly all the wrinkles, cracks, and blemishes in the world couldn't make the man look anything other than the leader of the most powerful ninja village on the planet. It was a look that pinned Sakura to the spot, shaky legs be damned. Goosebumps picked up and down her arms; her muscles shivered.
The thought came unbidden - he could kill me in an instant. It was some small part of her evolutionary leftover reptile hindbrain that housed the last scrapes of animal instinct that told her that.
And then it was gone. The Hokage closed his eyes and let out a sigh.
"It is said that the Sage of Sixth Paths created our world. That he created peace from an ancient history of mindless bloodshed. It was a miracle." A small, tiny smile tugged at the old man's lips. "Maybe it is foolish to believe, but I can only hope another miracle can take place in our village. Shikaku - I do not resend your appointment."
Danzo's face twisted. "Sarutobi, you cannot be serious. This one," he pointed at Ino, who shrank back, "has spun us a childish fantasy for the last hour and you are listening to her? You believe in gods and devils and other nonsense?!"
"You have forgotten the lessons of our master, Danzo." The words, softly delivered, rocked the ANBU commander back like a punch.
"You dare?" he gasped. It was the most emotion Sakura had ever seen from the man, and looking around the room it seemed to be a rare occurrence for the rest of the audience as well.
Danzo's eye blinked and his hand started to creep up to the bandage around his head.
The snake on the table hissed loudly. It seemed to be a laugh. "Sarutobi-sensei, you can surprise me even now. What a flowery sentiment from the man once called 'The Professor'."
Sarutobi cracked a wider smile, all teeth. "You three children never knew me as well as you thought." He turned to Danzo, whose hand had stopped moving when Orochimaru had spoken. "Danzo, I hope you learn one day that this world isn't as physical and static as you believe it to be. There is a space in between where truly fantastic things dwell."
Danzo's hand fell back to his side. "I will protect the village," he said, glaring at the Hokage. "Even from itself, if need be."
He vanished in a puff of smoke. The two ANBU behind him followed a moment later. Tenzo moved away from the wall, hands making a seal, but the Hokage shook his head. "Let him go," he said. "Danzo has always preferred to work in the shadows. At heart, he has the village's best interests in mind."
Shikaku let out a breath. "Well, at the very least we can't count on ROOT for now. What's our plan?" he asked, drawing everyone's attention. "Let's say we take all of this at face value - that Ino and Sakura were visited by the Sage of Six Paths and given certain gifts. Ino, what did he give to you two and how are you supposed to use them?"
Ino blinked. She was suddenly the center of attention again. "Well, I was getting to that before Sakura interrupted," she said, smoothing out her clothes. She was back in her element.
She held out her hand. She focused intently on her palm and even though Sakura had seen it before it was still creepy to see the black ball of darkness bubble up through her skin.
"Gudodama," the Hokage muttered, looking at the thing with frank astonishment.
"We were hoping you knew what this was," Inoichi said. "I've never seen anything like it. It can… eat… anything it touches. Ino, show him."
Ino pulled a kunai out of her pouch. "I can touch it just fine," she said, "but anything else…" She pressed the tip of the dagger into the ball. It seemed to sink in, but when Ino pulled it back out it had been cut cleanly.
"It's similar to a jutsu I have seen before," Sarutobi said, still staring at the ball. "Onoki, the Tsuchikage, has a similar technique. But it requires a great amount of chakra and concentration to perform. This is something different from his dust release. But I do know the ball itself. Gudodama - the 'Truth-Seeking Orb'. The Sage of Six Paths is often depicted with ten of them, floating around his body."
"He gave me one of them," Ino said proudly. "I can even control it! Watch!"
She held out her hand. The ball zipped straight out at the wall, sinking in a small way, before going back to Ino. It spun around her body and aligned with the crown of her head. "It wants to stay there," she explained. "I have to move it anywhere else, or make it go back inside my hand."
Eyes turned to Sakura, expectant. "I don't have one of those," she said, defensive.
"She can control gravity."
Sakura hadn't even noticed Shikamaru, wedged as he was between Choza and his father. "It's why you were unconscious. You almost killed Kabuto and then you passed out from chakra depletion." He looked at the Hokage. "She pushed him into a wall hard enough to crack it and almost caused the ceiling to collapse. Right before it hit him, everything in the room started to… float in the air. It was like floating in a lake."
The Hokage scratched at his goatee, deep in thought.
"That sounds like another trick of the Tsuchikage," Shikaku said. "He calls it Keijugan no Jutsu, the 'Lightened Boulder Technique'."
"It's not the same," Sarutobi interjected. "I thought it could be that as well when your son mentioned gravity manipulation, but Onoki cannot use that jutsu for attack, and he has to physically touch the thing he wishes to lighten. But I do think it is significant that both of these jutsu are similar to ones he uses."
"How so?" Shikaku asked.
"Onoki is unique among all kage," Sarutobi explained. "Like the Second Tsuchikage, Mu, he can mix three different chakra elements into new techniques, such as his Jinton. It is called a 'kekkei tota'."
Sakura caught what the Hokage was hinting at. "You're saying that these abilities might be combinations of elements? But I can't cast a Doton anymore! I'm water natured now! I tested it!"
"Likely because that was your original affinity," Tenzo told her. "The body Kabuto used your soul to mature is closely tied with the earth affinity. That is one reason you had such a singular talent with doton, besides your natural talent for chakra manipulation."
"And you would know that body's affinity inside and out," Orochimaru said. "Wouldn't you, Kinoe? It is no wonder you have a certain affection for my precious subordinate."
The ANBU visibly bristled. "My name is Tenzo."
"So it is," Orochimaru chuckled. "And your guess is well-reasoned. Those bodies, those cursed remnants of ancient jutsu, are supremely gifted in earth nature manipulation. That, and other reasons, make it a perfect vessel for a tailed beast such as the Shukaku."
"Can someone explain to me what that Shukaku thing even is?" Ino interjected. "The old man said it was a friend of his, but it's a giant racoon monster thing! And it talks!"
Sarutobi had fished his pipe out from his robes at some point in Tenzo's back and forth with Orochimaru and he flicked a spark of fire into it. "It's a walking natural disaster," he said, taking a few puffs. The smell of tobacco waifed throughout the room. "You learned of the Kyuubi attack in the Academy, did you not? The Kyuubi is but one of nine beasts scattered throughout our world. Many are sealed due to the destruction they can cause. Suna has, historically, been in possession of the one-tailed Shukaku. It was sealed into the Kazekage's son, Gaara, which is why I tasked the jounin with capturing him."
"You mean he's like Naruto," Sakura said. Heads jerked toward her, some furious, but she managed not to flinch too hard. "You're saying that Gaara is like Naruto. That Sunagakure put the Shukaku into him like you did the Kyuubi to Naruto."
Ino and Shikamaru both looked supremely confused. The Hokage frowned at her, actually looking angry. "That was classified information," he said. "Did Orochimaru…?"
"You continuously underestimate her talents," Orochimaru replied to the incomplete accusation. "She has known since the night Naruto-kun stole the Second's scroll of forbidden jutsu. She tracked him."
"Be that as it may, it is a village secret." He turned to Shikamaru and Ino, the former looking like he'd begun to catch on. "You are sworn to secrecy, under the same pain of death every adult in the village is. Naruto is the jailer of the nine-tailed Kyuubi, and deserving of our gratitude."
Sakura scoffed. "Gratitude? You turned him into a science experiment! My teammate! And you hid it from everyone!"
Sarutobi let out a cloud of smoke. Measuredly, he met her eyes. "And you spied on him, and Uchiha Sasuke, your other teammate, for a year, going so far as to tell his secret to a traitor of the village." He didn't smile when Sakura deflated, only taking another deep drag from his pipe. "None of us are blameless," he said, leaving it at that.
"Sensei is slow to anger, Haruno-san, but he can hold a grudge," Orochimaru taunted. "I would be careful in the future." Sarutobi gave the snake a flat look through the smoke of his pipe.
"So we can assume that Gaara is no longer the container of the one-tails," Shikaku said. His son gave him a look, but the elder Nara shook his head. It wasn't the time to talk about what they'd just learned. "We need to focus on that. If Suna has as much control over it now as Orochimaru says that they should, why haven't they used it yet? We're already beginning to regain lost ground in the village. Now is the time."
Anko scuffed the thin carpet with her foot. "Maybe something went wrong with the body? Orochimaru's experiments rarely go well. I should know," she added under her breath.
"We can't count on that," Shikaku said."They put considerable effort into securing that body."
No one was eager to share a thought. Even the Hokage was silent as Shikaku's words sank in.
But Sakura had an idea. She caught Ino's eyes from across the room. The blond seemed uncomfortable as well, shifting her weight from foot to foot. "There was something else we didn't mention about the Sage of Six Paths," Sakura hazarded.
The Hokage nodded. "Please." He gestured over to Ino, and Sakura reluctantly walked over to the other girl. Now both of them were the centers of attention and unlike her former friend, Sakura was uncomfortable with it.
"In the mindscape there was someone else. Some other outside actor," Ino supplied. "He called himself 'Tobi' and tried to get us to make a deal with him instead of the Sage."
"We should have led with this," Sakura hissed. Ino returned her angry look with a sneer of her own. "It knew everything. About Kabuto and the body he stole from Orochimaru. He said it was perfect for him. That it gave him access to powers greater than anyone else in his organization."
The Hokage leaned forward. "What organization?"
Sakura nodded her head at the snake sitting on the table. "The one Orochimaru left. The one he stole the fake bodies from."
Silence from the snake. It simply flicked its tongue at them with no way of knowing if Orochimaru had severed the connection.
"I knew he was hiding something!" Anko shouted. "All of this is his fault! He was the one that convinced Suna to invade! His pet spy was the one that ripped Haruno out of her body! It's his past that is catching up to all of us!"
"That does make some sense," Shikaku agreed. Behind him, Chozo nodded.
The snake twitched. "I certainly didn't teach you to be so suspicious, Anko," Orochimaru said.
"Good of you to rejoin us," Sarutobi said.
"I had a matter to attend to. Orders to give. The work of a kage is never done." The snake turned to Ino and Sakura, ignoring Anko's apocalyptic fuming. "Organization, you say? I'm unsure exactly which one this... Tobi could be referring to."
Ino crossed her arms. "Right. And I guess the name 'Madara' doesn't mean anything to you either? The old man said Tobi was the 'will' of Madara and that everyone will suffer if Madara's plan goes off."
"Madara?" Sarutobi repeated, shocked. "Are you certain the Sage said that this was the plan of Madara?"
"What could that possibly mean?" Shikaku asked. He looked incredibly worried.
The Hokage shook his head. His pipe was dangling from his lips. "I don't know," he admitted, and for Sakura that was more frightening than anything else that had been said so far. "Madara - Uchiha Madara - was one of the original founders of Konoha. But he turned against the village and died fighting the First Hokage over eighty years ago, when he was already a grown man. It's impossible for him to still be alive."
"Although, it is said that Madara had a unique control over the Kyuubi and even used it in battle. If that power extended to the other tailed beasts…" He turned to the snake. "Anything to add, Orochimaru? Anything you wish to confess?"
The snake flicked it's tongue. "Not unless you wish to confess some things as well, Sarutobi-sensei. Should you call Danzo-san back?"
The old man grunted and took a long drag off his pipe. "We'll leave this 'Madara' person aside for now and focus on what we know for sure. At the very least, this 'Tobi' stated that he has control over the one-tails. Assuming that, why hasn't the Shukaku already attacked the village?"
"It could be that whatever Tobi is, he underestimated what it needed to control such a power," Shikaku offered.
Sakura thought about that. She thought about the way Tobi could effortlessly control the mindscape, how afraid of it the Shukaku was, how insistent the Sage was that it needed to be defeated. Ino was looking at her, dubious as well. She remembered.
"It definitely knows how to use Shukaku's power," Sakura said, confident. "The Sage said that we had to stop it. That's why he gave us these powers."
"A small ball of something like a jinton and an unconfirmed 'gravity' control that completely drains you of chakra when you use it." Shikaku shook his head and turned to the Hokage. "Even if we believe the story about the Sage of Six Paths, I don't know how to plan for this. If Shukaku is anywhere as powerful as the Kyuubi he will tower over the village. I don't see how two genin can stop it, especially with no training with these gifts."
That thought hung in the room for a moment. The Third didn't immediately answer. His eyes were closed and he was puffing slowly on his pipe, deep in thought. No one else looked like they had any ideas either, judging by their expressions.
Except for Choza. The man frowned and then let out a grunt as he stepped forward. "If we don't know how to use these powers… why don't we ask someone who might?"
The Hokage opened his eyes. "What do you mean?"
"We need to get Asuma in here," Choza replied.
Shikaku blinked. It took him a moment, but his eyes widened in recognition. "You're right, Choza. Hokage-sama, your son was one of the Shugonin Junishi - the Twelve Guardian Ninja... along with Chiriku, the head monk of the Temple of Fire."
Sarutobi exhaled a cloud of smoke. "It is true that they worship Ninshu and revere the Sage of Six Paths, but do you believe they would have any knowledge of these powers? And would they consider the story of these two to be blasphemous? We can ill-afford any new enemies at the moment."
"It's the best idea I've heard so far, Hokage-sama. If they do believe the story after seeing the gudodama then we could potentially have a new ally to help repel Suna," Shikaku said. "A hawk could be sent to the temple within hours, but Asuma would have to write the message."
The Hokage was silent, mulling it over. He obviously didn't like the idea, but he eventually did nod. "Then we shall do it. Akemichi-san, inform Asuma of as much as you deem necessary. He should be at one of the outposts…"
"Outpost A5," Shikaku provided. He gestured to the northwest wall of the room. "It's in the original market district. He's the commander there. It's close to a signal post so you won't need long to find a falcon."
The Hokage nodded. He pushed up from the table and everyone else crowded around in front of him (but not too close, considering the floating ball behind Ino's head).
Sarutobi looked out over the handful of ninja. He smiled and even if it didn't reach his eyes it was good to see. "We have a plan of action, then. Rejoice - we may have a miracle in this very room. Tenzo, I have a mission for you and your newest member."
The man stepped forward, along with Anko. The woman didn't bother hiding her distaste at being that close to Sakura - a sentiment that Sakura returned with a childish sneer of her own. She didn't know why Anko had it out for her but that woman wasn't going to get under her skin.
"What is your wish, Hokage-sama?" Tenzo asked.
"I'm creating a new cell as of now with you at its head. Your goal is to discover what you can about the whereabouts of this 'Tobi' creature in the village and, when you feel you have an opportunity, to destroy it. These two," he gestured at Ino and Sakura, "will be under your care. Take whatever resources you need. Shikaku will see to it."
Tenzo took such a charge with his usual apalmb. "And their powers?"
"Discover as much as you can about them. If the Temple of Fire responds before the appearance of the Shukaku then all the better, but I want you to plan as if we are rapidly losing time. Use whatever you feel appropriate to help them discover what the Sage wished for them to do." He turned to Anko. "You will be their direct commander."
Anko blanched. "Me? I've never- Haruno is-"
"They are both your charges now. I have faith in you to do your best."
"I… yes, Hokage-sama." She closed her eyes tight, like she'd just taken a very bitter medicine.
The old man smiled again. He looked at the assembled group. "Good. I realize that I'm asking many of you to accept things on faith, but I truly believe what I told Danzo - that there is the physical world, but also a less-defined current running through it. I won't ask you to believe in gods or legends, but I do ask you keep an open mind."
"Shikaku," he said, walking around the table and putting a hand on the tall man's shoulder, "I leave the rest to you. You have the Fourth's plans. There is no one else in the village I trust with them. Support Tenzo as much as you can."
"Of course, but what are you-?"
"I am going to go and make sure Danzo isn't getting up to too much trouble. And then I'm going to see if I can't even our odds on the ground."
The snake on the table raised its head. "Going to go do your own dirty work, Sarutobi-sensei? Are you certain you won't rethink the terms of our 'alliance'? I'm growing a bit nostalgic for a return to the battlefield."
"If you set one foot in this village, Orochimaru, I will finish you," the Hokage replied. Though, he sounded more amused than angry. "But is that worry I hear in your voice, my former student?"
The snake's eyes flashed. Sakura wondered if it really was just a transmission technique. "Surely that is just your hearing going in your old age," the sannin snapped. The reptile hissed as the Hokage chuckled to himself.
"Must be," the Hokage chuckled as he walked around the table.
Standing in front of them, the old man suddenly didn't seem quite so scary. He was old, bent with age, only a little taller than Sakura was. But his eyes sparkled. Some small flicker of fire had been kindled. "We're laying a terrible burden on you both," he said, thankfully not huffing on his pipe. "I wish it were not so. The Fourth wished to create a world where we would not send our children to do our fighting, but we are not there yet. Think of your families, of your friends, and find the strength to deliver us. If the Sage of Six Paths truly spoke to you both, you are our best hope."
"No pressure," Ino grumbled, but Sakura heard the hitch in her voice and saw the goosebumps on her arms.
The Hokage smiled at her like he didn't notice either. "It shouldn't be for the most talented kunoichi of her generation."
Sakura tried not to flinch when the old man turned to her. His face was still kind, but it seemed… forced? Wistful? Sakura couldn't place the expression. "And Konoha has its fate in your hands as well, even after failing you so completely. I cannot say that you will be rewarded for it, or that people will remember your efforts, but you do have my gratitude."
He held out his hand. It took a moment before Sakura realized he was shaking her hand.
"T-Thank you, Hokage-sama. I-"
The old man pulled her in with a shocking strength. She smelled the tobacco on his clothes as he leaned to her ear. "Konoha will stand with you, whatever your future plans," he whispered.
Shocked, Sakura just dumbly continued to shake his hand. The moment was over in an instant and Sakura would have wondered if she'd imagined if, if Ino hadn't been looking at her suspiciously. The Hokage dropped her hand and clapped her on the shoulder. "Consider it," he said, walking away. Sakura just shrugged helplessly when Ino looked at her expectantly.
Sarutobi stopped at the door. "You have your orders," he said to the room. "I trust that we will all perform our duties to the best of our abilities. The God of Shinobi himself could be watching over us and our actions. Let us not disappoint him."
There were various snaps to attention in the room. The Hokage looked at each person individually, nodded, and simply opened the door and left, closing it softly behind him.
His departure sucked whatever fortifying emotions right out of Sakura. Her legs shook and she slouched down into a nearby chair. Inoichi stepped up and gave her a pat on the shoulder.
"He can be intense sometimes," the jounin completely understated.
Ino crossed her arms. She still seemed shaken. "He was downright scary, Papa! It's like he expects me and Sakura to save the whole village!"
"Because you two might have to," Tenzo said. He was in the center of the room, looking over everyone else. He finally turned to Shikaku. "We are going to need a hardened facility to base ourselves out of. And I'll need to pull some of the Tower's ANBU for our cell."
Shikamaru's father scratched at his pointy beard. "Well, if the Hokage isn't staying in the Tower we can probably spare them. The war is going alright in the village, all things considered, but if you're looking for absolute security… the Forest of Death is probably your best bet."
"You want us to go somewhere called The Forest of Death for our safety?" Sakura asked. Ino mirrored her incredulity.
"I thought you were supposed to be one of the sharpest kunoichi of your class?" Anko scoffed, making Sakura flush. "The Forest of Death was going to be a stage of the Chunin Exam, so it's been fully stocked with dangerous animals and plants. And there's a full suite of surveillance equipment strung up in there."
Shikaku nodded. "And Anko was going to be the proctor of that stage of the exam, so she knows the area inside and out. It's the perfect place for you two to try and get some kind of grip on those new jutsu."
Ino looked back and forth between Tenzo and Shikaku. "Wait, you actually want us to go and train? In the middle of a war? We don't have time for that! We have to get Suna out of the village now!"
"And how are you planning to do that? Ask all the Suna-nin to politely line up in front of you so you can throw your little ball at them?" Anko demanded. "You couldn't even defend yourself out there in the village. If you think you can actually beat a tailed beast, you're more insane than the snake."
"You have such a way with words now, Anko," Orochimaru purred.
The ANBU stepped right up to the table and caught the coiled reptile by the head. It squirmed in her hand but she didn't show any fear of it. "If I catch one wiff of you around the forest, I'll show you how much I've been training to kill you." It was the most serious Sakura had ever heard the woman. Sheer hatred dripped from her lips.
Shikaku saved the poor beast by putting a restraining hand on Anko's shoulder. "He's our ally, Anko," he reminded her. "For now. Until he does something to incline us otherwise."
Anko dropped the snake. It snapped at her, but she didn't flinch; only glared at it angrily as it coiled back up on the table.
"I do enjoy pragmatism," Orochimaru said. The snake didn't seem any worse for wear at the treatment.
"But I will have you pull your weight. You won't get the political protection you're after if Konoha falls too low on manpower, saying nothing if the village falls completely. I want direct help from you." He stared at the reptile and his eyes had flickers of that all-knowing stare the Hokage could give a person. "You're nearby, aren't you?"
All the jonin in the room spoke at once, Anko the loudest of all, but Shikaku held up his hands. "I'm not going against the Hokage's orders," he said. "Orochimaru will not enter Konoha, but Suna has supply lines that are stretched from here to the Land of Wind. And I'm sure he has some forces in place around the village, treaty or no treaty." He turned back to the snake. "Am I right?"
"You are correct," Orochimaru replied after a long moment. "I can ensure that Suna will have to pull some forces from the village to further protect their supply lines. Pragmatic of you to use me for that, Shikaku-san. Sensei never thought to ask."
Shikaku tugged on his goatee, worriedly. "That's why he left things like this to me," he said. Clearly he wished he didn't have to resort to asking Orochimaru for more direct help, but Sakura didn't see how he had a choice at this point.
Truthfully, Sakura didn't sit well knowing her kage would be so close to the village. She didn't trust him, not anymore. Orochimaru had an ulterior motive and it probably wouldn't help Konoha in the long run. But, just like Shikaku, she was stuck until the war was over.
Konoha will stand with you, whatever your plans.
Konoha had to stand itself for the Hokage to make good on his promise. Sakura looked at the snake, what it represented. Orochimaru… she wouldn't let him destroy the village. She promised herself she wouldn't.
As if it had sensed the attention, it turned to her. "And for my precious little subordinate, I have something to provide. Something that may help you all with your little training mission."
Before Shikaku could even ask what the snake meant, there was a heavy knock on the door. Tenzo's head jerked sharply, as did Anko's. They hadn't noticed, or been told via radio, that anyone was approaching.
Shikaku let out a quiet sigh. "This isn't going to blow up in our face, is it?" he asked. The snake was silent, waiting. Shaking his head the jounin shuffled toward the door, ignoring the hissed warnings from Anko.
After a heartbeat, he opened the door.
It's safe to say I won't finish Loyalty before the new year, like I'd planned, but I still like my writing pace. I'm going to get there!
