A Hundred Tears of Scarlet

by TemporaryObsessed

Four Genin teams passed their final test in a year that would later be defined as the start of the Fourth Great War. Among them are a few who could shatter the very foundations of their village. The teachers scramble to keep their kids alive as dark secrets surface and loyalties are tested. Konoha's Genin plunge headfirst in the murky depths of the Shinobi world.

36. Home at Last

"I want ramen." Naruto said. "I am going to eat a big, big bowl of ramen when we get home."

Shizune sighed, "Yes, I know."

The simple action of walking hurt her. Her feet were on autopilot but every movement made her aware of how tired her muscles were. Every clump of hardened clay, every broken branch and every little thing in between stabbed her feet through her worn sandals. They still had a long way to go before they reached Konoha.

Even Naruto looked tired, and singed, but Shizune would be more worried if he had been bouncing and yelling. The last time Shizune had been in the vicinity of this many explosions, a group of enemy shinobi demanding money had discovered a local fireworks factory.

She didn't know what Jiraiya had been thinking, but even he should have know what teaching a twelve-year-old how to do the Great Clone Explosion jutsu meant. Naruto's incredible stamina, combined with his expertise of the Multiple Shadow Clone jutsu had lead to a fallen Temple of the Fallen.

Shizune looked over to the two dragging their feet at the back. One of them had to be supporting the other, but it was hard to tell whom did what. Both Jiraiya and Tsunade had an arm slung around the other. Their feet dug in the ground, trying to use their phenomenal strength to push their feet up or to make the ground shift. Neither spoke, in words. Tsunade occasionally grunted, and Jiraiya rolled his eyes.

It had been decades since the last time they had fought so hard. Even without arms, Orochimaru posed a formidable threat. Kabuto seemed on his way to an even bigger one. His twin snake summons were the only thing that saved him from Naruto's avalanche of explosive clones. Jiraiya had snatched Shizune out of the air just before the water dragon hit and immediately summoned a freakishly large specimen of his toad summons.

Tsunade remained defenseless as Kabuto approached. The young man rivaled Kakashi in ability, and Orochimaru in cunning. As he neared her, Tsunade had began to recite the prayers she had learned as a child.

Orochimaru slithered up and stepped away, grinning like a maniac. Jiraiya and Shizune got occupied with the snakes and thus only Naruto could save her. And he did. In perfect Naruto style with a lot of violence and even more shouting.

Shizune glanced at the boy again. She could finally see the resemblance with the Fourth Hokage. A morbid thought entered her head. The hole in Naruto's shirt, right in front of his heart... She shook her head. That went too far.

The busted bead on Tsunade's bracelet reminded them of the finishing blow she had delivered. Send the gigantic snake summon right back to his nest. He left a nasty blob of purple blood before puffing away. That and the crater Jiraiya had filled with water in the hopes of appeasing the spirits with a brand new pool.

She had witnessed the perfect Rasengan years after the original user had passed and it had been beautiful. Of course, Kabuto hadn't been too pleased but then again, he had taken the hit. Full in his gut. It still made Shizune giggle.

"I want to see another three-way deadlock." Naruto sighed. He laced his fingers behind his head and stared up at the sky dreamily.

"Well," Shizune began, "now that master is becoming the Hokage, you might." And then you'll regret everything.

The famed three-way deadlock had to be the most contradicting event in history. It was both suspenseful and predictable. No one would win. There was no point. Just three overpowered shinobi glaring at each other, eyes twitching to the spot where their sensei used to appear to scold them in their shared childhoods.

"-oh man, and once I can summon all those toads I will be unstoppable!" Naruto chattered on, oblivious to the proverbial raincloud hanging above the heads of his companions. "And then Sasuke can learn some summoning, but not something cool, something like... Crows! That fits him and his emo-act. Sakura can get something really pretty, like a butterfly. Is that even possible?"

Shizune shrugged halfheartedly and tuned the rest out. Naruto had a strange way of telling stories. All he ever told her was about who he would become, or who his friends were. Half the time he spoke like a child and the other half like a presenter. It confused Shizune, but her brain couldn't handle anymore today. She just hoped that she'd see the gates of Konoha by the time he ran out.

"Gods, that kid can talk." Tsunade finally muttered. Jiraiya heaved a long-suffering sigh and agreed.

"Are all those kids like him?"

He gave his teammate a look and then another one until she snapped, "What?"

Jiraiya flinched on instinct but the punch didn't arrive. He relaxed and looked ahead, "I just remembered, you said Orochimaru wanted to use Chi to bring back both Dan and Nawaki. How did he plan to pull that off?"

Tsunade shrugged, "Hell if I know. He probably just tried to bribe me."

"Yeah, luckily you're above that."

The pure sarcasm dripping from his voice earned Jiraiya a stomp on his toes. Jiraiya howled in pain, jumping on one foot and cursing Tsunade's ancestors. She grinned wickedly, feeling her weariness fade away.

"You are a terrible person and a worse medic." Jiraiya stated, grimacing as he tried to stand.

Tsunade huffed at him and stuck her tongue out. They continued walking.

"You know, it's strange but in all my years of researching that clan, I never found out where they came from." Tsunade suddenly said.

Jiraiya frowned, "I don't think I've ever heard one either. They just appeared, or just lived here and then the Senju's and Uchiha's arrived."

"Yeah but there should have been more information on them." Tsunade insists, "Uncle Tobirama was too careful for that."

Jiraiya shrugged, "Well, now you can continue his legacy."

Tsunade made a face, "She's a kid. I'm not researching a kid."

"You'll have to." Jiraiya reminded her, "She's comatose and we don't know how the hell her body works."

"Hmm, there isn't much in the Archives, right?"

Jiraiya shook his head, "Most is kept in their personal library, I've heard. Only Chi knows how to get in, I think."

Tsunade nodded at Naruto, "You don't think Naruto visited her before? He might know."

Jiraiya kept quiet, staring at the distant back his charge. Naruto seemed to be recharging as he walked, bouncing and gesturing wildly.

Jiraiya huffed. As if he hadn't nearly died earlier that day. Kabuto had torn the muscles around his heart, Tsunade told him after the fight. No fox could have healed that much damage quickly enough. Tsunade's expertise kept him alive and well.

"Did you send a message ahead?"

"Hmm?" Jiraiya snapped out of his musings, "Oh yeah, I send a bird. It should give them a early notice."

They still had two days on the road, at the very least. If Jiraiya was very honest, they'd be lucky to see just one building on fire when they arrived.

Konoha, the next day~

The Jonin had never looked this dead before. In fact, the last time they had looked like this, Lady Tsunade had just gone rogue (retired was the official, diplomatic term) and the shinobi had not yet realized that they couldn't afford near decapitations or careless field-treatments anymore.

Kakashi looked better than the Jonin, for God's sake.

When Asuma arrived at the gates, uniform caked in mud, blood still dripping from his hair and beard, the two guards almost called a priest. Asuma's blades formed his ID and the guards quickly ushered him in.

The Mission Desk shinobi counted themselves lucky for hiring Iruka, the only one brave enough to face the grumpy bear of a man. Iruka greeted him, brought a snack and let him use the outdoor hose to clean the worst of the grime, and filled out most of the forms by memory.

Asuma's mission report looked nothing short of an used tissue, scribbled on with a blunt kunai and dripping with something. Iruka accepted it gracefully, fighting tooth and nail to keep his expression straight. He waved the weary Jonin's grunt away and signed him off on his list.

As Asuma trudged out of the door, the other desk shinobi emerged from their hiding spots. They gathered around Iruka's desk and stared down at the massacred report. Iruka massaged his neck. It smelled like a decomposing apple.

"I mean, I believe him."

"Yeah, seems comprehensive enough."

"Does that say 'chicken'?"

"Nah, I think it says 'capital'."

"Did he sign it?"

"Shut up, Ebisu."

And that was that.

Asuma's return left most of the village wondering if they needed to donate to the Shinobi Corps again. By the time the man arrived at his home, cleaners started to arrive to wipe the grime off the ground behind him.

Only a phantom memory of his nanny's scoldings kept him from entering his house in that state. Grudgingly, he stepped in his little garden and grabbed the hose for another outdoor shower.

Once the dirt had sluiced down his skin and probably poisoned the ground on which his flowers sat, he stepped in his hallway and stripped the tattered remains of his clothes off. The scent of old cigarettes, tea and wilted flowers welcomed him in his living room. Asuma inhaled, letting the familiar scent loosen the knot of tension in his chest.

Bath first, he decided.

Food?

No, the snack from earlier could sustain him for a bit longer.

Sleep.

Sleep.

Asuma stumbled to his bathroom and turned the tap. Almost blindly, he fumbled for the lavender-scented soap and the special salts Genma had gifted him as a joke. The best joke that man had ever made. With a deep sigh, Asuma flopped in the tub and let the hot water rise around his weary body.

Just a few streets further, Guy scared a few ladies by not smiling at them. He walked, rather than skipped, up and down the street in front of the tea shop. His shoulders looked relaxed, but his eyes darted from one door to another, memorizing the customers and pedestrians.

"Shinobi-san?"

Guy shot straight and turned to his mission. The Daimyo's wife hobbled to him with a thin smile on her fuchsia-pink lips. The cursed creature she dared to call 'Sweety-Cutie-Darrrrling' gasped in her grip.

"Yes, ma'am?"

She shoved the cat – gnarly, bald thing with pointy endings- in his arms and waddled past him. "I'm done here. I shall continue for a lunch break."

Guy nodded curtly, "Yes, ma'am."

With swift hands, he grabbed the monster by its tail and held it up to face him. The demon snarled and stretched its claws to no avail because Guy had both experience and arm-length.

"You will behave." Guy whispered at the furless gnome, "Or I will send you to the Inazuka-compound."

The troll-faced mammal narrowed its pale eyes at Guy, but even he knew the name and the reputation. The spawn of Hell wisely kept mum for the remainder of the day.

The Jonin were busy. Too busy, actually. Only a few elderly, retired gremlins who couldn't tell the difference between a Genjutsu and their own reflection, still dared to look out of their window and begin with "Pwah! Back in my day-"

Okay, so maybe Kurenai shouldn't treat her team's mission subjects like that. Some of them baked lovely cookies. She just wanted to get out of there to start her own long list of missions.

Hinata smiled as she explained her Byakugan for the fifth time that introduction. Clearly she had been raised too politely. Kiba shifted on his feet and dug his heel in the wooden floor. Shino appeared to be asleep whilst standing. The elderly man in front of them, gave them a look-over and smiled.

"So you're not here for the bills?"

Kurenai almost, - almost Iruka, I didn't touch him I promise, sheesh- broke her vow to protect her village.

Shikaku wished his vows weren't embroidered on a large canvas, framed and nailed to the wall opposite his desk. Even from behind stacks of documents and maps, he could still see the inky letters glaring at him.

With a heavy sigh, he pushed the last of his report aside and leaned back. His eyes burned. His mouth tasted like dust but he had ran out of water an hour ago and couldn't find the button to ring his assistant for a refill. Left with no choice, he pushed his chair back and got up. His knees protested, and for a moment black spots danced in his vision.

Great.

Shikaku really hoped Tsunade could share some of her anti-aging techniques with him. Since the invasion, he felt as if he had aged twenty years in just a month or so. As he stomped through the hallways in search of a tap, he started to rehearse some lines for the meeting at night.

The clan-heads of the biggest clans were to gather at the Hyuuga compound no less, and finally settle some matters. It made Shikaku's blood boil. The arrogance of the clans who felt that they were the right ones to rule the village simply because of heritage. Some of his clan's elders thought the same, but Shikaku never let his emotions rule his mind. Power led to arrogance, and arrogance always brought destruction.

If anyone cared to listen to him, they would understand that too.

Training field, afternoon~

In all honestly, Ibiki wasn't a fighter. His skills were honed and trained precisely to get information out with as much cruelty as possible. While useful, not exactly a battlefield-technique.

The way Shinji eyed him as he gripped a kunai, he knew that she knew.

"Sensei?" she asked. "Are you sure I can't use chakra?"

Ibiki gritted his teeth, "Yes. Get in position and try to aim this time."

Shinji pouted, or at least tried to look pleading, and dragged her feet over to the starting line. Her stance looked fine but Ibiki had no hopes. Shinji had absolutely no focus this day. Her Genjutsu failed, her Water-style Ninjutsu barely made a puddle, but Ibiki had to take her outside. He knew she'd rather spend her whole day in the Archives again, holed up between dusty shelves and old books, uncovering carefully hidden secrets.

She was damn lucky the invasion took away prying eyes. Ibiki couldn't bring himself to imagine what would happen to her if anyone found out the Genin were investigating the Uchiha massacre. Each and everyone of them would have ended up dead at the very least.

Kurenai had found him late at night, when he just decided to lock his office and leave. Her pale face reflected on the concrete wall, Sharingan spinning in her red eyes. It had taken him an embarrassing amount of time to realize he got caught in her Genjutsu.

He lowered his kunai and waited patiently for the message to reveal itself. A vein climbed up the wall, ending in a bulb. A flower bloomed out of it, deep red and magnificent. Ibiki wasn't sure what to do, so he reached out and grabbed it. His hand crushed the fragile petals and closed around a thin scroll.

A simple message, but it took away all his attention. When he looked up, the blank wall yawned back. Ibiki swallowed and turned back around. No sleep for him, now nor in the foreseeable future.

"Sensei..." Shinji whined, pointing at the three kunai embedded everywhere but the target.

"Shinji." Ibiki snapped, patience growing thin, "What are you doing? How did you graduate with this?"

"I'm sorry," Shinji didn't sound sorry, "I have really bad cramps."

Ibiki sighed. The only reason he took her out here, was because Danzo had been spotted near the office. The poor clerk sitting at the reception had dashed into Ibiki's office with a warning and ETA. Ibiki could only remember the blur of finding Shinji, leaving a note for Ryuya to stay away, and then taking off as fast as he could.

"Sensei?" Shinji stood in front of him, eyes wide and head tilted. Ibiki waved his hand.

"Get out."

Her smile blinded him. He watched her leave in a flurry of movements and shouted promises of practice and how much she appreciated him. His students were too kind to him, too afraid to insult him even though he deserved it all. Ibiki let Shinji's words wash over him, heart heavy.

T&I office, that time~

Ryuya found the note before the saw the man, which gave her two minutes to get away. Ibiki had pinned the little letter to the pot of flowers in the hallway which she always admired.

With more questions than answers, she turned around and sped back down the stairs. Voices, male and older, drifted up and she hesitated. Upstairs she had no way of escaping. Downstairs meant possibly walking past him and hoping he wouldn't stop her.

She had witnessed a few of Danzo's inspections, and while she didn't quite understand the fear and sheer hatred aimed at him, she did not want to run into him. Kosuke's story still echoed around in her memories. Chi's intense anger towards Danzo had affected her too, more so now that she could understand it.

Ryuya stepped down the last step and kept her eyes down. She saw two feet, almost covered by a blue fabric. Shinji's voice cursed in her head. Ryuya gave a short bow, and shuffled to the wall in the cramped hallway.

"Genin."

She froze and lifted her head to look at Danzo's chin. The scar there looked less threatening and more lame the longer she looked at it.

"Yes, Sir?" she replied, keeping her tone low and formal.

"Where is your teacher?"

Ryuya tried not to sound too bitter, "I believe he is out of office today, Sir."

"Why?"

She couldn't tell him about the letter. Ryuya wished Aki was here to give her advice. "I am not sure, Sir. I think-"

Danzo stepped past her, "I only require facts, Genin."

Ryuya's jaw snapped shut. Her temper rose a little. Chi's chakra reacted, teasingly poking at her own. She forced it away before anyone could sense it. She waited in the hallway until Danzo and his two faceless guards reached the top of the staircase, before marching out.

Hospital, later that day~

Chi looked a lot better these days. If Shinji could pretend to have ever seen her asleep, she would say that Chi looked asleep.

Hair brushed and braided, spread over a spotless white pillow. Skin paper-like and pale under the harsh lights. Chi's eyes were closed, her breath even and deep. Improvement. Way better than the erratic pattern of fitful sleep and moments of semi-awareness in which she usually mentioned her mother in some way or another. One time, Shinji swore she heard her speak in a male voice.

Shinji bend over her pillow, eyes on Chi, as she slid her hand underneath the pillow and grabbed the small, flat box hidden there. If Chi woke up, and happened to have a crick in her neck, Shinji would never admit her crime.

Shinji stopped and shook her head.

When.

Chi had to survive. They may not be the best of friends at the moment, but Shinji would never be able to accept her dying without even attempting to talk it out.

Sighing at the unfairness of it all, she sat in the chair, the plastic ones designed to chase guests away, and opened the box.

"You know," she began to say out loud, half to muffle the sounds the box made and half because the nurse told her that Chi could hear her, "I've been practicing my Water-style Ninjutsu."

She spared Chi a glance, "So if you don't wake up soon, I'll make a waterfall right above your head."

Her notes were folded and tucked inside the box. Palm-sized squares of rice-paper, scraps of newspapers and the gray, thin toilet-paper the library provided, scribbled over with pen, ink and pencil. Shinji had become inventive in her information-smuggling. Shikamaru simply handed her magazines with an extra page, or made her memorize his information on the spot.

This little, wooden container had enough secrets to send all of Konoha's Rookies straight to the death row. Even Chi wouldn't be spared if anyone outside their group found out.

"There is a new sushi-bar." Shinji continued out loud, "I want to go check it out with Ryu. We'll judge it and then we'll go together if it's good, so you won't get to complain about lunch again."

Shikamaru's signature appeared in the hallway. Shinji looked up and carefully closed the lid again. The door opened two minutes later, and Shikamaru entered alone.

"Jeez, have you been staring at the door the whole time?" he said as a way of greeting, eyes wide.

Shinji shrugged and offered him his seat. As he sat down warily, she jumped on Chi's bed and pulled her legs up. Shikamaru's eyes went to Chi, the machines and back to Shinji.

"She can't hear us." Shinji told him, lying through her teeth and hoping he wouldn't notice. His unimpressed stare back told her he didn't buy it, but his inherent laziness kept him from walking away.

"Any news?"

Shinji nodded and folded her arms. "Remember how I told you Kakashi sensei had written that note?"

Shikamaru nodded slowly, feeling like a swarm of bees just entered his stomach. Shinji looked like she had bitten in a lemon.

"Well, I mixed up the timelines. He couldn't have written it because he was already comatose. I ran the ink through another test."

"How do you have access to those things?" Shikamaru studied her.

Shinji shrugged, "Promised one of the assistants to go on a date with him."

"You- what?"

If the chair had been any less stable, or if Shikamaru had any less training in balance, he would have fallen right on his head. Instead he landed on all four legs and stared at his former classmate.

She waved her hand, a vague blush on her cheeks, "I used a Genjutsu to look older. He's kind of cute anyway."

Shikamaru stuttered, mind blank for once, "B-but-"

"I won't actually go!" Shinji looked annoyed, "Just forget about it. Focus on this."

She pushed a copy of the original note in his hands. "If not Kakashi-sensei, then maybe Itachi wrote it?"

After one last disbelieving stare, Shikamaru took the copy and leaned back. "If it's Itachi then we're back to the start. We can't interrogate the guy, nor trust him to have written the truth."

'But we agree that this whole massacre is fishy?" Shinji raised her eyebrow.

Reluctantly, Shikamaru nodded. He chewed his lip, a new nervous habit he had adopted from Shinji, as he scanned the information for any hidden clues.

"We're going back tonight, right?" he asked without looking up, "Let's keep this from Sasuke for now."

"Why do you think I haven't brought it up during the meetings?"

They sat together, trying to piece together a piece of redacted history. The hours ticked by. Chi's breathing, the steady beeping of the heart-monitor and the rustling of papers became background noise. They both had read these notes over and over again, desperately looking for a hidden clue. It cost them sleep, food and almost their sanity. The greatest motivators however were the micro-expressions Sasuke flashed them every meeting.

With each discussion, he relaxed a little bit more. His shoulders drooped a fraction, his eyes were less shifty and he stopped digging his fingers into his thighs. Small changes, but oh so important to the group.

Shinji noticed it again that evening, when they all gathered in Sasuke's house. Sakura remained glued to his side, understandably so, but even she looked more alive than the previous days.

When Sasuke made them sit in the dining room around a large hotpot, she understood. They all looked like friends now, casually chatting and bickering over their portions. Ryuya arrived with Kiba and Akamaru, whom she ran into outside.

Her eyes shifted from Sasuke to a picture frame on the table. Shinji followed her gaze and it landed on a photo of a Uchiha branch family. Closely related to Sasuke and one of them apparently suffered a notorious death so they had to be investigated too. The photo was old. Older than the massacre.

Aki crept out of her hiding place on Ryuya's shoulder and onto the table. The Rookies tried their hardest not to flinch or shriek as the tarantula crawled over the documents, eyes roving over the information.

"Shisui." she eventually hissed and climbed back on Ryuya's arm.

Sasuke only remembered the lanky kid with curly hair in the frame as his older cousin Shisui, Itachi's best friend and one of Konoha's finest ANBU. Another Uchiha who had not become a policeman. Through some digging by Ino and Shinji they discovered that the circumstances of his death reeked of murder.

A talented guy like him, just jumping down a cliff on a random sunny day? The only plausible explanation because Sasuke, for some reason, couldn't think why Itachi would kill him. Even with all the 'evidence' saying the contrary, he didn't budge.

'The one thing I remember of that guy, is that Itachi was devastated when he died.' Sasuke told them firmly, 'Besides, they were close and both ANBU. Itachi is smart, he would have recruited Shisui to help him.'

Which also helped Shikamaru's hypothesis that Itachi hadn't gone on a solo murder spree. No matter how smart or talented, or powerful, he couldn't have killed an entire clan on his own in one single night. And the perfect help would have been Shisui, except he had died a while before the massacre.

If Itachi hadn't killed Shisui, and suicide seemed too far-fetched, then someone else had and that person could still be walking around. The reports and articles didn't help the mystery. Even the ANBU logs stated that Shisui had committed suicide by drowning in the river.

Shinobi broke the laws of gravity on a daily basis. Half the globe had witnessed Guy and Kakashi race each other with one hand, parallel to the ground as they climbed to the top of the Northern Mountains.

Shisui drowned? No way.

"You think he's still alive?" Kiba prompted, staring at Shisui's photograph along with the rest of the group. Ryuya's head whipped up. Shinji gave her a long, curious glance. Ryuya looked pale and nervous, urgently wiping her sweaty palms on her shorts.

"Can't be." Sasuke replied, "They searched the river according to this report."

He pushed said report over the table. "My f- father only found a bit of his hair and some traces of chakra, but nothing else."

Shinji and Shikamaru almost instantly caught each other's eyes and immediately looked away. No need to hurt Sasuke by accusing his father of lying. They had no proof anyway.

"Can we have a look there?" Shino asked, "Considering we found traces here, we might learn more on the scene."

Sasuke shrugged, "Whatever. Don't see why it's important, though."

Shikamaru sighed, "What if Shisui tried to stop Itachi?"

Sasuke's eye twitched but he didn't start sulking so a win for Ino's inconspicuous therapy-sessions whenever she got him alone. They were booking progress, Ino told Sakura repeatedly as they went out to buy lunch. Just a few more weeks and Sasuke might actually greet them. Sakura looked forward to the day.

"That means Itachi had planned the massacre and told Shisui." Sakura said, "That's possible, considering they were close and both ANBU."

"Why would Shisui-san want kill everyone?" Choji asked.

"I'm guessing they fought over it." Ino leaned on her hands. "But who plans this kind of thing?"

"There is no way that fight went unnoticed." Ino countered, Kiba nodded besides her.

"Yeah," he added, "I mean look at the damage you and Naruto leave every time you argue."

"No one noticed the massacre until the next day." Sasuke muttered under his breath. Sakura winced.

The Rookies looked up in surprise when Hinata bent forward. She usually remained quiet, sipping her tea and staring ahead unblinkingly. Whenever Shinji or Ino brought a new piece of evidence, she'd activate her Byakugan and scan it.

"It is possible, that perhaps there is a political layer to this?" she tapped on a small diary Shino had found, hidden in a closet of a Chuunin. The others blinked at her. Shinji and Shikamaru kept their eyes trained on her.

Hinata continued in her soft voice, "She wrote that many people started to look at the Uchiha clan with disdain. It hurt her a lot."

"Why?" Sasuke starts, voice barely shaking but enough to make Sakura look up warily, 'Why would they dislike us?"

"People only appreciate power when it saves them." Shikamaru sighed, eyes distant. "The Sharingan is great for your clan, but a pain to everyone else who doesn't have any fancy bloodline. Can you imagine being a civilian and seeing the Sharingan?"

Sasuke's hands clenched and he dropped them into his lap.

"I remember that." Shinji said. She huffed, amusement relaxing the tense lines in her face. "Three policemen once came to my house because they found out that my aunt has a criminal record and is wanted by three nations."

Ryuya blinked at her. Shinji looked smug for all the wrong reasons.

"A-anyway," Ino began, "let's brainstorm this some more."

The Gates of Konoha, the following day~

Konohamaru's jaw began to hurt by the time Tsunade and Jiraiya walked through the gates, leaving the Chuunin on guard to fall in a star-struck heap. His one arm still slung around Naruto's waist, and the other clenching his kite, Konohamaru let his eyes absorb the sheer greatness of the two legends.

Off the sides, Shizune gave him a pitying shake of her head and crossed her her arms, waiting for any official to come pick them up. They needed a place to stay for now, food for forever, and in Tsunade's case, a barrel or two of sake.

Naruto bounced on his heels, craning his neck to see if any of his classmates had come to welcome him. Konohamaru's insistent tugging on his jacket made him abandon that quest and look down.

"Hey, hey, who is the new Hokage gonna be?" Konohamaru asked, eyes glued to the now-bickering Tsunade and Jiraiya. No one else had joined the group, so it had to be either one of them.

Unless the future Hokaga was the young woman who had dressed for a funeral and had the face of someone mourning that the wrong person had died. Konohamaru didn't think it likely.

Naruto pointed, "That old lady."

Said lady whipped around and glared daggers at Naruto, "Watch your mouth brat."

Konohamaru wrinkled his nose, "Eeh? What about Jiraiya-sama? She's too old."

"Oi-"

"Yeah, but she's like super strong." Naruto replied with grand gestures, "She picked up a tree with one hand and carried it around to block the sun!"

He spun Konohamaru around to face the unfortunate chestnut that laid on its side, roots and all. A dizzy squirrel fell down from a branch.

"Really?" Konohamaru gasped.

Naruto nodded furiously, "I swear! She's really old and drunk all the time but she is strong enough to be Hokage."

"Until you're old enough to take over." Konohamaru finished solemnly. Naruto agreed.

"Who's old here?" Tsunade growled.

At that moment, Asuma arrived like some sort of guardian angel. He looked a bit pale, had clearly not slept and felt more relief than genuine joy at seeing them. Konohamaru waved at his uncle. Naruto ran up to him.

"Asuma-sensei!"

Asuma huffed a small but sincere laugh, "Hey kid, good to have you back." Safe and sound and not yet elbow deep in the bowels of Konoha's politics.

"How is everyone? Have you seen them?" Naruto asked in one breath.

"Oh, I've seen them." Asuma told him, unable to keep the dark tone hidden. "Your friends are helping out with the reconstruction of the arena."

"That sounds boring." Naruto muttered under his breath, "And what about Kakashi-sensei, and Chi?"

Crappy, still comatose, hospital is getting raided by the T&I. Can't even get a moment of peace these day. I wish I was in a coma.

"They're still the same." Asuma decided to say.

"Ahw..." Naruto's eyes dimmed and Asuma felt a stab in his chest. He ruffled Naruto's hair.

"But now with Lady Tsunade back in town, I'm sure they will all be fine." Please let them be fine.

"That's right, Naruto." Jiraiya laughed, dragging Tsunade closer. "She may be an ancient crow, but she's still the best heal-"

A freshly repainted wall shattered in bits as the Toad-sage burst through it, and the wooden fence behind it, and the older wall that had survived the invasion behind that one, and one elderly lady who had to cross the street alone since Kakashi's last fight. Jiraiya came to a halt just in front of a food vendor who dropped his roasted potato in shock.

Konohamaru peeked through the gap in the walls and back at Tsunade who dusted off her knuckles. Shizune raised her eyes to the sky, with an expression that said she only endured her master because she couldn't kill her.

"Told ya." Naruto grinned at Konohamaru.

"Uhu..." The latter breathed in awe.

"Well," Asuma scratched his head, peering over his nephew's head, "we need to get going to the mission desk and then meet with the Commander."

He cupped a hand around his mouth, "Jiraiya-sama! Meet us at the Tower when you can!'

A groan drifted over to them. Jiraiya's limps twitched a little. Asuma shrugged, too tired to care, and steered Konohamaru and Naruto around with one massive hand each neck. Tsunade and Shizune followed with a sigh.

The entire road to the Mission desk the two ladies spent looking around at the village they had left behind years ago. Some villagers paused in their movements when they got a second look at Tsunade. Parents quickly introduced her to their kids who gaped.

A few older Shinobi sneered and abruptly turned away. Words like 'rogue', 'coward' and 'traitor' were whispered amongst them but no one dared to say it out loud. The classic glares directed at Naruto joined the fray, though lessened and carefully hidden. Asuma had squared his shoulders when the first gossip reached his ears, and lit a cigarette, daring anyone to make him stop smoking.

The trio entered the Mission desk while Asuma bid goodbye. Konohamaru lingered at the door.

"Where are your friends?" Asuma asked.

Konohamaru waved in the general direction of the Academy. "We got busted trying to add paint in the coffeemaker, so they got detention."

Asuma sighed, feeling a headache build behind his ears. He had spent countless of meetings assuring the teachers that Konohamaru did not deserve special treatment and that the Sarutobi clan did not appreciate it. Still, the teachers would smile in that conspiratorial manner and promise him that 'Not to worry, Sarutobi-san. We take care of our students' .

He had been nice and polite at first, stern later on. Now it seemed to be time for anger. Asuma looked at his nephew, so much like his sister and brother-in-law. With them gone and erased from history due to being ANBU, Asuma had taken responsibility of the boy.

"Do you want to get some barbecue?" he prompted, feeling hungry and tired. Konohamaru perked up.

"Yes!" His smile lit up the whole street. He bounded close and grabbed Asuma's hand to pull him along.

Just like that, Asuma knew all his work had a meaning. If one day, Konohamaru could retire at his age and just life a good life with a nice family and no threats of war, it didn't matter what Asuma had to suffer through. All they did, was to make sure the next generation could have a better life.

They made it about two blocks before a window shattered behind them and a few voice screamed. Asuma picked Konohamaru up with one arm and sprinted.

The next morning, too early~

It had been two decades since Tsunade had last seen Kakashi and she had to say he had done a spectacular job of both fulfilling and failing all expectations she had had of him. Tall, fit, lanky and a permanent member of the bingo-book. Injured, poor haircut, smelling like dogs and anxiety-ridden students. Honestly, she hadn't expected the students and didn't know if she had to pity him or laugh at him.

His three students stood at the end of his bed. Naruto, Sakura and Sasuke were grim-faced. Sakura and Naruto clutched the metal railing of the bed, Sasuke had stuffed his fists in his pockets, Sharingan out as if it would do him any good.

With a final check, she lifted her hand from Kakashi's head and wiped the sweat from her chin. Kakashi didn't look any different, but at least his neurons had sorted themselves out and any damage to his body had healed too.

"He'll live." she told the kids and walked to the sink to wash her hands. The mirror in front showed her red-rimmed eyes and dry skin. Hatake's have always been a pain.

At least this case hadn't been has difficult as Neji Hyuuga's eyes.

The paperwork and discussions for his treatment had taken up most of the night. Jiraiya had to come and study the seal and discuss the dangers of trying to heal the damage to Neji's eyes with that barbaric thing. Hiashi Hyuuga insisted on at least two supervisors when he discovered that not a single Hyuuga medic could do what Tsunade could. Tsunade for one, had spent the night looking wholly unimpressed and itching for a drink.

Decades have passed and yet the Hyuuga's still have a stick up their rears.

"Tsunade-sama."

Ibiki materialized behind her.

"Yes?" Tsunade lifted an eyebrow, not enjoying being startled out of her musings.

Ibiki bowed curtly, 'I am Morino Ibiki, Chi's Jonin teacher."

His entire attire screamed T&I and Tsunade had to wonder what her sensei had been thinking.

"The Ketsueki?" she asked. Ibiki nodded and took a step back to indicate that Tsunade could follow him. The room they were in was split in half with a beige curtain. The first bed had Kakashi. The bed behind the curtain had Chi. Tsunade dropped Kakashi's chart on his bed and walked over. Ibiki followed her exactly two steps behind.

Chi looked dead. Tsunade had to be very honest and take a second look at the equipment measuring her brain activity and heart-monitor. Tsunade grimaced at the irregular lines on the heart-monitor's display. According to her brain-activity she should have been in some sort of classroom, with a ton of stimulation. Yet her body remained limp and unaware as a doll.

Tsunade brushed a hand over Chi's forehead, lifting her eyelids one by one. Deep red irises, unseeing pupils. She let them fall shut quickly and scanned the rest of her face. Lips pale and chapped. Hair brushed and braided by someone. Skin cold and waxy. Her bones poked out, her veins swollen and purple beneath the olive skin.

God I hate it when my life isn't easy.

"She has woken up several times." Ibiki said behind her, "But she was incoherent and always fell back."

Of course she has.

"Hmm..." Tsunade pressed her hand on Chi's chest and concentrated. With her free hand, Tsunade covered Chi's eyes.

"Their eyes are connected to their veins." she murmured, answering unasked questions, "Her veins are expanding as I speak. Never seen anything grow this- ah, fast."

Tsunade moved her hand from Chi's chest to her abdomen. "Ribs are not healing right so her veins are growing around it to support them- hang on..."

A sickening crunch sounded. Chi's heart-rate spiked briefly.

"Fixed that." Tsunade continued and moved her hand again. Ibiki winced at each crack and hiss as Tsunade healed all the old injuries. Behind them, Sakura poked her head in the closed off space, frowning in concern.

"I thought they had already healed those." Ibiki said after a particularly loud rattle from Chi's arm. It sounded like segments of the bone clicked back in place and he couldn't imagine the pain if she had been awake.

Tsunade shook her head, "Nope. Just enough to make it look healed. Unacceptable, I can't believe any of these medics graduated. I'll deal with them later."

Ibiki clenched his jaw and looked at Chi's braids. Sakura swallowed a gasp and shot back behind the curtains. Sasuke glanced at her, face tight and a deep sense of unease lingering between them.

It took another hour before Tsunade deemed Chi's body to be healed. It took another two hours before she nodded at Ibiki and told him that Chi would wake up within two days if not less. After that, she left Ibiki to sit guard besides his student. She felt dizzy with the amount of new information on the Ketsueki she had just discovered and ached to write it all down, but for now her memory would have to do.

Tsunade stepped in the cool hall, still mostly empty and clear of rushing nurses. The sterile air, the sharp scent of alcohol, and the faint beeping that crept out of every room in this wing made her feel like she had never left the hospital. Tsunade pushed another door open without letting that thought remain in her head for too long.

"Lady Tsunade!"

She bit back a groan. The kid dressed in too much hair and all the spandex his injuries and the nurses allowed, smiled brightly like he did every morning.

He had been her first patient last night, simply because the doctors begged her. They couldn't watch both the student and the teacher cry for one more day in each other's embrace.

Rock Lee, the darling weirdo, had thanked her profusely for easing some of the pain he had been in. Might Guy had thanked her even more. Tsunade didn't feel accomplished at all. She knew that she had to tell the kid that his career was most likely over. She let him sleep in peace through the night but today she had to ruin his day and life.

"Did you sleep well?" Tsunade began, "Any pain, any stiffness in your legs? How is your head? Did you get your IV-changed?"

Lee blinked, saw a challenge and accepted it, and straightened up, "Amazingly. No and no. Head feels great! Yes, the nurse did that fifteen minutes ago-"

"Great." Tsunade cut him off and kicked the chair behind herself. "Listen, I know it is early, but we need to make this clear."

"Ehm." Lee faltered and Tsunade felt a bit of pity for him. If she had had any more time, she would have waited for Guy to arrive, but alas.

"Lee," she folded her arms, "I am not going to sugarcoat this. Your leg is pretty much destroyed."

To his credit, the sparkle in Lee's eyes remained, though his smile wavered. Tsunade let her face soften, "I am afraid there is nothing I can do for now. I will need to do more research first and by the time I get to a solution, it might be too late for your bones. Since you can't use chakra, you're healing process is different from the rest. I'm sorry, but I cannot allow you to continue as a Shinobi."

It took over forty minutes before Lee conceded and accepted her conclusion. When Tsunade left the room to get some much needed coffee and a break, her throat felt dry and her heart heavy.

Rock Lee stared at his hands, resting on his blanket. Neji remained quiet, thankfully. Tsunade had put him under a load of painkillers to ease the imminent pain and discomfort of having repaired eyes. The seal remained, and Lee refused to look at it without Neji's permission so he kept his eyes on himself.

On his hands and his useless leg. Lee tried to suck the tears back in but they landed on the white blanket in big, fat drops of pain. Lee took a deep breath and held it, willing his racing heart to calm down. He exhaled in a shudder and wiped his face. No point wasting tears. He should be out here, defying the odds as he always did.

On a whim, he hauled his wheelchair close and pulled himself on the seat. The dull ache in his leg made him pause and Tsunade's words echoed in his mind. His hands shook on the armrests and he clenched them.

"No." he gritted out and fastened the seatbelt, "I won't give up. I refuse. I refuse."

He kept his chant up as he rolled away from his bed. His door-handle turned out to be a cunning foe, but he defeated even that and prepared to enter the hallway. The wheelchair remained in exceptional quality due to Ten Ten's diligent oiling and Lee's tendency to walk on his hands, and therefore was soundless.

Lee only managed to get his toes in the hallway when familiar voices drifted over. He stilled on instinct and leaned closer to hear more.

"-just shut up and listen to us!" Sakura, Lee's princess with pink hair, hissed, presumably at Naruto.

"But Kashi-sensei is going to wake up soon..." Naruto whined. A muffled twack silenced him.

"Just come with us." Sasuke of all people said. Lee didn't know why, but he knew Team 7 was up to no good.

"And don't you dare tell anyone about this." Sakura demanded.

"Only we and the others know." she continued over Naruto's vows of silence, "Anyone else finds out and we're all dead. Do you understand?"

A beat of silence, during which Lee could hear his own heart thud at a rapid tempo, and Naruto spoke up again.

"Even Sasuke?"

"Especially Sasuke." Sakura assured him in a tight voice. "Now come on already!"

Lee rolled back in his room and closed the door as quietly as he could. With his ear pressed to the door, he could hear the trio walk by. He waited a few moments before racing to Neji's side of the room.

Whatever those three were doing, it sounded dangerous and the best way to prove himself, was by challenging and defeating that danger. And also by making sure the last Uchiha heir didn't die. And of course his lovely Sakura. And he liked Naruto.

But mostly, he needed Tsunade to see that he could still be a shinobi.

"Pssh, Neji!"