Yay! New Chapter! And I'm on break for the next two weeks!
I do hope my honeys enjoy this one, I really am enjoying writing this story. :)
宝石二:Deathless Aegis
Senju Sasuke was like an impenetrable shield, stoic features set in a careful blankness that did not reflect the violent storm of emotion churning his gut. The group of traitors sitting but a few seats away from him were undeniably uncomfortable beneath his oppressive chakra, their pitiful attempts to oust him from the meeting so far even more brittle and vile than he remembered as a single onyx orb drifted to the porcelain yunomi settled, untouched, on the table before him.
Regardless of the calming chrysanthemum fragrance rising from its surface, the invigorating contents had long since gone cold as sensitized senses systematically traced the press of blood in the rain, accursed rot, death and chakra chaos outside.
There was absolutely nothing the 25th Head of the Senju Clan could do to stop what was coming, attempting desperately to realign his failing serenity as Nara Shikaku tilted his head and opened his mouth.
"With the Godaime Hokage currently in critical condition, Your Excellency, the village needs a new source of stability and strength. I believe Senju Sasuke's return was fated, his very presence a boon of protection not even Kumogakura would willingly rise against."
Scoffing internally at the claim, only the formfitting black fabric of his gloves stopped blunt fingernails from digging bloodied crescents into clenched palms.
Sasuke was struggling to ease the sharpened canines grinding painfully against the surface of his tongue in frustration, the daimyo and his council still blissfully unaware of the tension brewing between the gathered shinobi as the Village Elders barely restrained their open contempt for the twenty-six-year-old's presence.
Their little party of ten had been sequestered away in one of the only surviving underground fortresses outside the village perimeter, the patrol of several skilled Jōnin and ANBU undulating sporadically against the Senju's sensory awareness as the meeting dragged on into its subsequent third and fourth hour.
Five days had passed since he returned to this accursed village and already he could feel his mind straining under the hellfire hatred and cautious hope reverberating his bones.
Sasuke was uncomfortably aware of the internal destruction the village was currently balanced upon, most of its predicament pivoting on the split loyalties among its ANBU elite and Jōnin that Nara warned had been going on since the Sandaime's inauguration. It would take time to—.
"I disagree." Came Shimura Danzo's inevitable rebuttal. "Why should we place Konoha's safety in the hands of a half-Senju-half-Uchiha mutt? He has been gone from this village for over fifty years. Isn't it a little convenient that he came back little changed from the day he left?"
"The title of Rokudaime should not to be squandered on nepotism. I have been in service to this country for decades and I believe it is time for us to incorporate a firmer hand. The shinobi of the leaf are—." Sasuke furrowed a brow in brisling anger, scowling deeply at the uncanny persuasive chakra layering the traitor's words as he switched his gaze to one of the three ANBU present tensing his guard the more the elder's swaying chakra rose.
"Senju-san carries the Hokage Codex." Nara interrupted, continuing on as if his words had not just imploded the flow of the conversation with all the subtlety of an explosive tag.
"Legend goes that the scroll can only be handed over from Hokage to Successor, just like it passed from the Shodaime to the Nidaime. It is proof enough that had Senju Sasuke not needed to convalesce in Shikkotsu Forest after the Battle of Rainen's Field, he would have succeeded his father, Senju Tobirama, as Sandaime."
"The temporal difference, as explained by Katsuyu, makes his appearance now a legitimate contender for the title of Rokudaime. A title, I point out, that has been unfaithfully withheld from him."
"You are spinning quite a tale there, Lord Nara." Danzo's objection grated like salt on porous sea-stone, his brewing frustration and hatred darkening the very air around them as the twenty-six-year-old openly and defiantly met his gaze.
The Senju Clan Head was rudely leaning his elbow on the table in response, cheek laid disrespectfully against his palm as he grinned in triumph under the master manipulator's increasing loss of control. Sasuke was sure he would have been flayed alive if he ever possessed an ounce of respect for the man his father once taught.
As things stood however, the callous smirk lifting the corner of Uchiha pale lips only seemed to infuriate the elder more as the raven-haired shinobi leaned back in his chair and, imitating the condescending anger of his infamous uncle; folded his arms belligerently over his chest.
"How dare you throw around baseless accusations as Konoha's current Jōnin Commander." Shimura turned his anger on Shikaku instead. "Should I remind you it is bordering on treason! Sarutobi Hiruzen was nominated as Hokage before the Nidaime's death, I was there the day he gave the orders. I myself was considered for the position before—."
"Then you wouldn't mind if Sasuke-sama shows his proof?" Shikaku drawled unperturbed, calculating umber-coffee eyes roving lazily over the silent Senju's deliberately provoking posture.
The current Head of Konoha's esteemed founding Clan remained stoic, breathing naught but a quiet 'hn'. The familiar Uchiha nonchalance instantly straightening the Council's backs, the raven-haired Senju languidly brushing their bristling objection aside as he stood from his chair and lifted a large meter-long/three-quarters-of-a-meter-thick scroll onto the table.
He was tracing the intricately braided golden cords that sealed it shut, formfitting black-gloved fingertips delicately skimming the twin chakra-laden tassels as he fished out an unlit kiseru from the confines of his long bell sleeve.
"I acquired this on the battlefield the day my father died." He noted softly, as if the mere memory of its recollection pained him greatly. "The Nidaime Hokage gifted me the last of his chakra to survive an encroaching Kumo battalion." Sasuke rubbed the gloved pad of his thumb over his forehead in memory, the flash of a turquoise Byakugō only adding to the atmosphere's rising discomfort as he couldn't quite conceal the flicker of sanguine rage saturating his visible right eye.
The appearance of his Sharingan was there and gone a second later, only remaining long enough for the elite in the room to shift in discomfort at the display as he picked apart a lacquered redwood cylinder for the decorative senbon it hid.
"As Nara-san explained, the Senju Clan Codex passes from Hokage to Successor. It passed from my uncle to my father, who then passed it to me. Its contents can only be revealed by the Hokage's chosen heir."
"You are welcome to try and open the blood seal, Shimura." Sasuke hummed carefully blank, barely restraining himself from spitting the man's name like the poison it was as he fingered a mocking caress across the scroll's sealed edge.
"I am sure the seal will break if what you said is true."
When neither the elders or Danzo moved to prove him wrong, the twenty-six-year-old rose a questioning brow at Konoha's current Jōnin Commander instead. If he could not humiliate the lying bastards themselves, he could just as well make his ire known in other ways.
"Since Shimura is not brave enough to stand by his own words, would Nara-san like to take a risk?" Sasuke asked instead, watching intently as the lazy jōnin rose from his seat with a put-upon sigh. Nara Shikaku did not speak however, merely crossing the room in three languid strides before accepting the weapon Sasuke extended in nonchalance.
A swift prick of his thumb prompted several crimson drops to rain on a golden-tasselled seal, the Nidaime Hokage's personal blood inscription instantly surfacing on the scroll's dark blue cover before glowing black ink traced several lines across delicate gold sealing cords.
Nothing happened for a moment, only the hum of chakra carving a hint of anticipation in the air as the daimyo finally turned ennuied eyes on the shadowed manuscript. It wasn't long until embittered smoke coiled from the seal edge, a violent burst of chakra recoiling against the foreign blood as the Jōnin Commander ended up lifted from his feet and flung across the room.
Sprawled against the far wall in surprise, the resulting glare narrowing his eyes was aggravated enough the Senju Head's reinforced apathy nearly cracked.
"That was sly of you, Senju-san." The man drawled, appraising the Nidaime's son with a notable huff as he pulled himself to his feet and headed back to his chair. Sasuke, himself, struggled to hold back the surge of satisfied vindication he felt at seeing the man prostrate on his ass — especially since he was the one that thrust him into his current position.
It was a good thing the Senju-Uchiha's bangs were so thick, the feral shoulder length strands falling forward to conceal the growing smile of amusement curling his lips. He could see he had the Fire Lord and his advisors' full attention now, a feat not even Danzo managed to achieve over the last hour.
"As you can see, the scroll will reject anyone's blood and chakra that is not keyed in by the preceding Hokage."
Pushing up the wide bell sleeve of his tunic, Sasuke pricked the senbon against his inner wrist as he allowed his own blood to saturate the same place Nara's had moments before. This time the result was considerably less dramatic, a swaying-undulation disentangling the stubbornly tied tassel as the sealed edge sprang loose in his hands.
"I believe our esteemed elders were students of my father for some time." Sasuke continued, unrolling the first few meters of its contents.
"This was written exclusively in the chakra hand of Senju Hashirama and Tobirama." What seemed like miles of tiny scrawled treaty drafts, kinjutsu records, Senju lore, Clan jutsu, Academy curriculums, chakra control practices, structural outlines of the ANBU, Konoha's Military Police Force and ranked shinobi all painstakingly but elegantly etched on camphor-scented parchment.
It was a treasure trove of history previously lost to the ages.
"Oh-ho!" The daimyo suddenly chimed; previously bored expression lit with intrigue as he rose a fan to conceal the exuberant smile on his face. The silk-robed man was leaning forward to read some of the more delicate script marked by Senju Hashirama's messy scrawl.
When Sasuke saw his father's former students looking decidedly green around the gills at the contents, he meticulously traced the Senju Vajra inscribed on the dark blue seal before rerolling the parchment and pulling the large scroll from the table. He wasn't going to give anyone more than a few minutes to pursue his rightful inheritance, especially not those currently gathered around him.
The Senju Head continued to watch calmly as Shimura Danzo curled his hands around his cane so hard the wood creaked in strain, the ROOT Commander practically grinding his teeth in frustration as Sasuke calmly lifted his previously untouched yunomi, stoically silent once more, and sipped at the contents contentedly.
"I've decided, then." The daimyo finally spoke after several long moments of deliberation with his advisors, the large fan-like headpiece atop his head clinking softly with beaded strings. His attention never once wavered from Sasuke or the Jōnin Commander as he spoke.
"Senju Sasuke will be appointed Sixth Hokage." The air grew frenetic at the claim, the twenty-six-year-old offering a quiet nod in understanding as he refused to say another word in fear of the brewing anger in his gut making itself known.
Citing that there was still much to do in looking after the injured and cleaning up after the Akatsuki attack, the newly appointed Hokage quietly took his leave with the Jōnin Commander at his side mere moments after the Fire Lord brought the meeting to an end.
As much as Sasuke despised the village and the atrocities it always seemed to inspire; he couldn't deny hating his father's students more for their part in his distinctly sour and far too schooled guiltless expression that followed him out the door made him want to vomit, a single onyx orb turning in Shikaku's direction as they exited the council chambers without another word.
"Happy?" He snapped; footsteps eerily graceful among the treetops as he leapt from branch to delicate branch. They were following the eastern path towards the village, several loyal ANBU trailing quietly in the Jōnin Commander and their new Hokage's wake.
Shikaku didn't deign the Senju's anger a response, knowing instinctively the Clan Head was merely venting his frustration as the midday sun crested the late-autumn horizon. It wasn't the first time he noted Senju Sasuke icy expression filled with hate, the wind rustling mindlessly through the man's messy black bangs as pale lips turned down in a bitter scowl.
"My first order as Hokage, I swear, will be to retire those three permanently."
The Nara silently agreed, lope languid but swift behind the dark-haired Rokudaime as he breathed a quiet sigh of relief. He was just glad they could finally escape the harsh political climate the last decade forced upon the Clan Heads, Senju Sasuke seemingly a bit more politically savvy than a drunkard Godaime too hesitant at times to oppose the elders or the flash of a supernova Yondaime perishing too quickly to make much of a difference.
No, Nara Shikaku knew they made the right choice with what was to come. This time Konohagakura-no-Sato could stand proud without the influence of war mongering secret ANBU commanders and internal disputes chaffing against decades-old treaties.
. . .
Finally breaking away from the contingent of guards Nara hastily assigned to him a few minutes ago, Sasuke allowed a quiet sigh of relief to pass his lips as came to a halt outside the heavily fortified Hyūga recovery tent. He had finally been allowed a few moments of reprieve, the Hokage Codex a new and weightier responsibility against his back as he listened intently to the report Shizune offered the moment he stepped inside the cordoned off medical area.
Moss-green fabric shifted indolently against his calves as he walked, the black Senju mon a prideful symbol embroidered on his back as red-hanao geta silently transversed the path a pair of Hyūga guards parted for him. He recognized the man steadfastly standing at the tent entrance however, the umber-haired jōnin having introduced himself as Hyūga Neji not long after he saved the Lady of their Clan.
As the Main House Protector, Leader of the Branch and Clan second-in-command; his lengthy hair tied low on his back, frozen ice-white eyes, elaborate Clan haori and barely restrained chakra made him stand out among his more modestly dressed peers.
"Senju-dono." He greeted stiffly, presenting the 25th Head of Konoha's founding Clan with a respectful bow before allowing him entrance the moment Shizune concluded her report. Sasuke in return, offered a stiff nod before passing through the threshold without another word.
He was not in the mood for formalities.
"You've made a remarkable recovery so far, Hyūga-san." Sasuke noted as he stepped inside, white tent flaps swishing closed behind him as he silently assessed the recovering violet-wisteria chakra cycling through the woman's veins with a flash of his Sharingan.
There was an unusual knot of tension concentrated behind the coils of her eyes, the dense violet mass seeming to ebb and flow with her every breath as pale features turned in the direction of his entrance. The Hyūga Clan Head was already sitting up in her futon regardless of pain, an official scroll delicately unfurled in her lap as unique lavender-spinel orbs lifted to collide with a visible three-tamoed Sharingan.
Sasuke tried not to be offended when she flinched under his sanguine gaze, knowing instinctively his kekkei genkai was a fear inducing heritage many shinobi were terrified to entrust their eyes to.
"I b-believe you are the r-reason for my current recovery rate, S-Senju-dono." The woman responded softly, her voice quiet and whisper-sweet as long, thigh-length, spherulitic strands pooled in evocative stratos curls against starched white sheets. The tender but sincere smile encompassing peony pink lips seemed to draw her audience closer, the twenty-six-year-old somewhat unsure how to respond to her guileless sincerity.
"N-Neji informed me that you saved my life." The quiet stutter startled Sasuke somewhat. He did not expect such an obvious impediment on a woman strong enough to lead the traditional Hyūga Clan. Yet, he was quick to wave aside her gratitude.
"Perhaps. But Katsuyu was the one to notice your critical state first, I merely assisted because she asked me to." Feeling uncomfortable under the openness of her lily-lavender gaze, Sasuke turned toward the hastily overturned crate situated at the far side of the tent.
He was running gloved fingertips over the meagre array of dried herbs the medics collected that morning, the hastily employed 'table' brittle and cracked beneath his touch as mismatched onyx-wisteria orbs turned to concentrate on the medical tincture he was supposed to create.
It was easy to detect the pain clinging to the corner of Hyūga Hinata's lashes, the flashes of Shizune's report earlier also reminding him to reach for antipyretic elderflower blossoms and lemon balm leaves to soothe her mild fever.
"All the same, S-Senju-dono. T-Thank you." Sighing softly at her genuine gratitude, a spool of tension uncharacteristically unwound from the Senju's shoulders as a single, visible, onyx orb cast a curious gaze towards the still closed tent-flap. He didn't want others to hear what he hoped to discus, graceful movements prompting him to kneel at her futon not long after he cast a series of one-handed seals.
The silencing jutsu he erected stretched in disconcerting waves across their canvassed surroundings, his chakra a dense wave of cool humidity amongst the surprising afternoon heat.
Sasuke's attention however, was captured once more by the concentrated mass of chakra collecting behind the Hyūga's lidded eyes.
The Sharingan may not possess the same precision as the Byakugan to see into the flow of a chakra system, but he was more than aware enough there was something unusual about the coloured mass throbbing inconsistently at her temples.
An iryōcoated hand eventually reached forward at her consenting nod, a pulse a turquoise chakra threading her coils as he momentarily encircled a delicate wrist to gauge the state of her injuries. It was strange that she suffered from little more than bruising and difficulty breathing, especially considering the state he found her in.
"Hn," He remarked, withdrawing his hand as he handed her a bamboo suitō. "You should be strong enough to leave in a week. Though, it'll be about a month before you are in top condition." Though the frown never left his features, Sasuke was surprised the kunoichi managed to adapt his dense flow of iryōas well as she did.
Not many had the coils to withstand his unique blend of chakra, especially to augment their recovery instead of hinder it—.
"I-I've b-been informed that Lady Tsunade is i-in critical condition. Will you be t-taking over the medical staff in her absence? I-I don't think w-we currently possess a h-healer as g-good as you without h-her."
"No." Sasuke said softly. "Shizune-san has enough experience and apprentices to take over that position. I've been appointed Rokudaime Hokage in her stead." Curling gloved fingertips in frustrated fists by his side, the twenty-six-year-old reminded himself he came here to speak to Hyūga Hinata about other matters.
He was still deeply uncomfortable with the accursed title, even if he was destined to wield it.
"H-Hokage-sama, then. Will she—."
"Ah." He breathed a sorrowed affirmation. "Senju Tsunade expended her chakra healing those she could, Hyūga-san. It speaks of her skill that we suffered not a single casualty. At the time I was able to reach her however, I didn't have enough iryō chakra to offer a familial transfer to supplement the loss."
"I'm afraid she might never wake; her health has been steadily declining over the last two days." Sasuke didn't say anything after that, the twenty-six-year-old breathing a shaky exhale to collect himself as he finally shifted to drop the Hokage Codex next to him.
He was crossing his legs in a more informal position, patiently waiting for the indigo-haired woman to collect herself as he refused to admit the glint of pain veiling her expansive lavender orbs twisted an uncomfortable sensation of guilt in the pit of his stomach.
The half-Senju-half-Uchiha was not used to being in the presence of such open vulnerability. He didn't know what to say or do, his mind fairly numb to sympathy and compassion ever since he was a child.
Growing up in a stilted household drenched in loss and pain tended to do that, the sheer volume of anger and despair he experienced held no guidelines to react to others' open display emotion with anything but awkward discomfort. Uncertain of how to continue, he defensively crossed his arms over his chest before tipping his head back to observe the dirty canvas structure spun above them. It wasn't time yet to—.
"Thank you f-for letting me k-know, Hokage-sama."
"Just…just Sasuke," The Rokudaime frowned, features schooled in a mask of careless apathy as he absently dragged a gloved hand through feral black bangs. A momentary Sharingan-Samsara glare scanned the Hyūga's widening eyes at his request for familiarity.
No matter how much Sasuke convinced himself he needed to preserve the peace his father worked so hard to craft, to honour the wishes of the dead — he couldn't deny his rage at having been forced into a corner.
It hadn't been his intention to stay after he was asked to help, he sure as hell was not prepared for the societal madness that was to come.
"N-no H-Hokage-sama, I-I—." Holding up a hand for silence, Sasuke breathed a quiet sigh as he thoughtfully leaned his lips against languidly-steepled fingertips. He made a snap decision that had been brewing in the back of his mind for the past half hour, there was no way he could allow this opportunity to pass.
"I don't want formality, Hyūga-san. Not after what I wish to ask."
"Nara mentioned you were elected the village records keeper two years ago. I'm not sure how much you've been informed of my circumstances, but—."
"I b-believe N-Nara-san explained it fairly well in his m-missive." Hinata interrupted, a trembling palm coming to rest over her lips in surprise at her own boldness as she quickly looked away from the intense onyx orb snapping in her direction.
"According to Shikaku-san, you spent the last five years, or an equivalent of 67 years in Shikkotsu Forest, b-before Lady Katsuyu asked for your assistance." Breathing a sigh of relief that he wouldn't have to explain the situation again, Sasuke briefly turned his attention to the scroll she had been reading when he entered the tent.
It was only then that he noticed the perfect chakra crack running through the Nara family's wax seal, the elegant curve of her fingernails stained with flecks of verdant green and camphor ink.
"I need an advisor," he said earnestly. "Someone with enough political and strategical knowledge to stand as an equal by my side. I am also in need of someone well versed in the darker parts of the village's history. As you may guess, my knowledge from half a century ago is redundant in the eyes of the current system."
"Nara-san, though Jōnin Commander, is usually slated to fill that role. However, with the state Konoha is currently in, he will be occupied with other things. I also lack someone with the patience and calm to bring me up to speed as well as stay far removed from the influence of the Village Elders."
"Your position as Clan Head and Village Archivist meet those criteria. I was hoping you would accept my proposal until the village is more stable." The Hyūga Head bowed her head in thought, somewhat amused by the aloof Senju with his stoic features and stilted awkwardness. His back may have been stiff and unyielding in posture, yet she could see his pride straining to bow for help as he eventually snapped his gaze away from her the moment she rerolled the scroll in her lap.
"I'll give you a moment to think." He declared, the twenty-three-year-old kunoichi wanting nothing more than to soothe the strangely vulnerable expression on his face as he turned away. The delicate dusting of pink tickling his cheeks as he cleared his throat and stood to refill his own suitō canteen; stopped her from drawing any more attention to his clear discomfort.
"Very well, Sasuke-dono." She eventually compromised. "I'll accept."
It went unspoken that she'd only be able to help when she made a recovery from her injuries, regardless of how effective his healing techniques may be.
"Hn." Sasuke breathed a sigh of relief, retaking his seat by her side despite a look of sheer consternation furrowing his brow. She was still refusing to drop the formalities, he thought. Though, he supposed, getting her to call him by his first name without honorifics would take more time and trust than what he willingly granted in the last few minutes.
As Rokudaime elect and 25th Senju Head finally stepping out of dimensional isolation, he would have to get used to being in a position power and respect. It surprised him, however, that the proud Hyūga Head stilled with a quiet smile before asking him to refer to her as Hinata.
"It would only be fair, S-Sasuke-dono." She smiled. "A kindness for a k-kindness." She extrapolated at his confused frown; her demeanour definitely easier to deal with than the previous heads of her Clan. It was strange however, how the delicate guilelessness of her expression and open tranquillity soothed his senses the closer he drew.
Having to physically stop himself from sweeping aside the trimmed Hime bangs brushing the ridge of her brow, the twenty-six-year-old shinobi awkwardly dropped his gloved hand in his lap as he forced himself to his feet.
"I've noticed an odd mass of chakra concentrated behind your eyes and situated at the frontal lobe of your brain." He tried to cover his slip. "I cannot be sure why or what exactly it is, so perhaps you should keep your Byakugan inactive for now." At her consenting nod, Sasuke flicked a tired gaze at the silent entrance of the tent before resecuring the clasps of the Senju Clan Scroll against the dip of his spine.
"I'll drop by in few hours to check up on you again. Please get some rest. The tea should help with the pain and dizziness you feel." With that, the twenty-six-year-old stepped away from his patient without another word as he exited the flap and moved on to his next task.
At least Yamanaka Inoichi was waiting for him the moment he stepped outside, a gloved palm coming up to shield the half-Uchiha's eyes from the harsh glare of the sun as they traced a languid path towards Konoha's outer rim.
The protective chakra barrier he meticulously prodded with his senses felt fragile and cracked far more with age than what should have been strengthened with routine upkeep. Now, all he had to do was figure out why it didn't activate to stop the attack.
. . .
Verboten. The land red-hanao geta currently transversed had been hallowed ground forbidden to him since Uncle Madara's defection, a deep sense of loss and frustration anchoring his mind in reality as finely honed chakra senses traced the small doorway deliberately carved inside Konohagakura's brittle barrier seal.
Yamanaka Inoichi was a quiet but calm presence by his side, his own sensory chakra trained on the two-sided doorway sequenced to a series of suspicious chakra signatures at the edge of the Uchiha district. Sasuke, himself, hesitated only momentarily when crossing the dilapidated and abandoned structures untouched by Pein's destruction.
Whether by luck or design, he had yet to tell. Especially since he was still emotionally reeling from the information Nara provided him a few days ago. The entire Uchiha half of his heritage had been wiped out in a Massacre a mere decade before, leaving but two of the mainhouse descendants alive. Both walking in the footsteps of his uncle before him, both abandoned and persecuted by the village in their own way.
Fuck! Not only that, he was the only surviving Senju beyond his relative Tsunade. The fact that war and destruction had wiped out the rest of his Clan made his pain all the harsher, both his families in this kami-forsaken place had cursed by the gods.
"Are you sure the barrier corps never noted the fault before?" There was a frown furrowing his brow, chin-length raven bangs bisecting the turquoise diamond sealed on his forehead as a spread of chakra brushed tentatively against the open crack of poison and darkness clinging to the protective shield.
How vile and corrupted it felt, unlike the pure Uzumaki ingenuity that wove through the rest of the intact chakra dome.
"Hai." The Yamanaka responded, his teal eyes frowning at the same spot the Rokudaime's chakra was carefully but systematically outlining the out-of-place suture on the seal. Like legend suggests, the son of the Nidaime Hokage had definitely inherited his father's awe-inspiring sensory abilities.
He was leagues above the current Yamanaka Clan Head, the strongest sensor currently employed under Konoha. It was a fact the blond-haired shinobi was currently witnessing for himself, the Uchiha-Senju's vastly encompassing chakra swiftly withdrawing kilometres of strings, spanning from one end of the village to the other, back to himself as the sanguine flicker of his dōjutsu consumed the visible black of his right eye.
"I see." The Rokudaime's expression was filled with visible discontent, a single Sharingan-activated orb drifting across the array of abandoned houses falling into ruin and dusty, bloodstained, streets dripping with a sorrowful heaviness undisturbed by time.
Taking a few steps away from the edge of the forest where they were currently situated, a spinning copy-wheel orb traced the chakra dome upward to follow the careful stitches of a decades-smoothed opening.
"Hn. It's been here for a long while. Probably decades."
"Do you wish for me to inform Matoaka-san so they can reseal it?" Sasuke paused for a moment in thought. It would definitely help in resecuring the village after its disastrous fall and current exposure to their enemies, yet it would also alert those aware of the hole's existence that they had been found—.
That the Hokage knew someone in the village allowed the Akatsuki entrance.
"No." He countered instead, towering hundred-and-eighty-eight-centimetre frame turning gracefully on the single slat of his geta as he traced a sorrowful but determined path down the nostalgic main-road of the Uchiha District.
His escort took up position a few steps behind his languid gait.
Memories of his early childhood spent beside his Bearer Izuna and his Seed Father Tobirama's more happy disposition swirled to the forefront of his mind, the beginnings of the district he knew back then a stark contrast to the truly massive and eerie polyandrium it grew into half a century later.
He didn't much like the atmosphere of hatred and despair cultivated here, reminding him a little too much of the spiralling state of madness he escaped not too long ago with Katsuyu's help. It was—.
"I'm sure you've already inferred what I have," The lilt of his baritone kept stoically-even, a vivid three-tamoed Sharingan cycling down to a deep obsidian mirror reflecting galaxies of turmoil. He was observing the Head of T&I Department from the corner of his eye, the blond-haired shinobi merely answering his curiosity with a determined frown as they stepped passed the towering Uchiha gates.
"It'll be better to have a loyal ANBU stationed here to observe the coming and goings." He noted, a quiet stillness and swirl of chakra launching him back into the branches of a tree as they took a short cut towards the centre of the enemy's destruction — to the place he found Hyūga Hinata bleeding out in the dirt and stirring dust.
"I want you to report any changes you or the Barrier Corps manage to trace from today on. Keeping in mind that we a have traitor in our midst…not just a devastating enemy."
"Hai." Inoichi nodded gravely. "I'll have Shikaku weigh in his opinion on the matter." Nodding his acceptance at those words, neither Clan Head spoke another word as they crossed the soil-churned basin quickly cleared of wood, concrete debris and a new tributary the Nidaime's son guided through the ruined Konoha valley earlier that day.
They couldn't expose the population to water tainted by blood and death before they rebuild, after all. Especially since the Senju had the power to provide a fresh and clean source.
"I'll leave you here, Hokage-sama." Inoichi stated, watching in amusement as a wave of scurrying genin and chūnin scrambled from the heavy sensation of the newly elected Rokudaime's barely restrained chakra. Just as many elite and civilians shifted away from their current tasks to train curious eyes on the distinct Senju mon engraved on the twenty-six-year-old's back.
It was amusing for the Yamanaka to note Sasuke's irritation at the use of his title in the centre of such a large crowd, especially considering the official announcement had yet to be made. Yet, knowing the inns and outs of a hidden village, the shinobi population was probably already aware of a new Hokage walking in their midst.
There was no denying the man's unique heritage in that moment, feral black bangs tumbling forward to conceal the left half of his face as he struggled conceal the frown pulling down the corner of pursed lips. He absolutely hated being the centre of attention, a deadly glare following the Yamanaka's swiftly retreating form as he disappeared into the mass of the gathering crowds to complete his order.
The damn bastard outed him on purpose!
Though Sasuke had always been considered rude and brusque, he couldn't completely ignore the civilian curiosity and respectful bows following in his wake. It would do no good, after all, to alienate the nation that now fell beneath his protection.
With the sun dipping low on the horizon and a considerable bonfire lit in the centre of the hastily erected tents to prepare for the coming night, a quiet sense of calm settled amongst those gathered as the Rokudaime Hokage headed towards the medical tents after a brief but acknowledging nod to appease their curiosity.
He was a man of few words, dusk coiling a multihued miasma across the spiralling heavens as he pondered the chaotic mess of emotions, so far removed from the icy apathy and control he instilled in his heart over the past five years — brewing like a curse beneath his skin.
It only seemed to calm the closer he walked to his self-appointed duty, a frown furrowing dark brows when the electric skitter of raiton chakra and the rumble of an earth affinity disturbed the peace of the cordoned off medical area.
"Shizune?" He frowned, watching an unknown blonde coolly crossing her arms beneath an ample chest. Those icy blue eyes had pinned down the Godaime's clearly frustrated assistant, the uniforms of the three interlopers distinctly different from Konoha shinobi as their hitai-ate — bearing a symbol he'd rather melt off their heads with a well-placed katon — snapped in his direction instead.
"Evening, Senju-sama. I believe you're needed—."
"I cannot deliver this missive to anyone but the Hokage. With Tsunade indisposed, I demand that you point me in the direction of the next person in charge." Konoha's medical kunoichi seemed frustrated at the group currently cornering her away from her duties, her umber eyes and defensive posture refusing to move away from the isolated medical tent that currently housed the Godaime in critical condition.
"Hn." Sasuke interjected, impatiently holding a gloved hand for the sealed letter the foreign kunoichi gripped between a forefinger and thumb as he narrowed his eyes at the light-haired/dark-skinned teens turning their scorching glares in his direction.
"I believe Samui just said she wants to talk to someone in charge," The fiery redhaired kunoichi began. "Are you deaf?! The Raikage—."
"Senju Sasuke," Shizune interrupted with frustration, "was elected Rokudaime Hokage this morning. Will that answer your request, Kunoichi-san? Please stop bothering my patients, I have other duties to attend rather than entertain your students' childish slights." Without another word, the yukata-dressed women disappeared behind the line of medical tents and out of sight.
"The letter." Sasuke prompted, ignoring the stares of disbelief alighting his frame and the genuine flicker of fear attached to the sound of his name. Extracting the folded paper from the jōnin escort's unmerciful grip, he nonchalantly cracked the seal and pursued the messily scrawled contents.
He knew exactly what was going through their minds in that moment, their pitiful expressions practically begging the kami of the universe that he was not the real Massacre Maven they grew up listening to terrifying bedtime stories about. He didn't care that he was, he never once regretted crippling Kumogakura as much as he did in a single afternoon — it was their own ruthlessness that prompted his response.
The Senju-Uchiha however, said nothing. Pinching the bridge of his nose to stave off a growing migraine sweeping across his forehead, he struggled to contain the physical and emotional fatigue the sleeplessness from the last few days instilled in his mind.
Why couldn't he catch a single moment of rest that day? The line of age drawn in the corner of his right was slightly more pronounced in sunken fatigue, his hair a feral mess untamed by his striking Uchiha genes as the heavy moss-green fabric of his Uchiha war tunic swayed restlessly against his calves.
Before he even managed to puzzle out the contents of the Raikage's frankly atrocious handwriting, the twenty-six-year-old tensed in preparation for the rushing footsteps of a chūnin messenger heading in his direction. Under the fading sunlight his leaf hitai-ate glinted of steel and apathy, a large, official, scroll cradled under a flack-jacketed arm.
"A meeting of the Five Nations been called, Rokudaime-sama." He interrupted. "A request for all Five Kage to be present, two personal guards each, in Tetsu-no-Kuni a week and a half from now has been issued. General Mifune of the Samurai has been elected to mediate."
Breathing out a sigh of frustration, a single onyx orb flitted in the direction of the Hyūga recovery tent situated just a few rows away from him. Why did everything have to happen at once? He was too drained to think, glaring momentarily at the three foreigners invading his destroyed land impatiently waiting for his response to the letter in his hand.
"Three hours, Kunoichi-san. I need time to go over the implications of the Raikage's missive before I give you an answer." With that, the twenty-six-year-old didn't even wait for a reply as he headed in the direction of Hyūga Hinata. Instructing those present to keep anyone out of the for now, Sasuke asked Neji to send for the Heads of the Clan as quickly as possible.
There was a lot they had to do, after all, before he was forced to leave the devastation Konoha had just survived to appease the rest of the Kage and daimyo of the lands.
His tenure as Hokage had barely begun, yet he was already regretting ever agreeing to this. The world was in absolute chaos as he predicted, the Senju Clan Head quietly craving the serene quiet of Shikkotsu Forrest.
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