Chapter 23
The next time he woke up was due to Susumu shuffling closer and pressing his cold nose against his spine. A deep hum worked his way up his chest, rather displeased with being woken up that rudely and in return he buried his face even deeper into the furs. The cave was starting to echo with the sound of a crackling bonfire, soft steps across the floor and plashing of water as people either filled buckets or washed themselves at the spring. He took a deep breath and stretched his stiff muscles, which made a short tremor go through his body. Susumu whined against his side and shifted in his position once more.
Koguma opened his eyes and blinked against the soft lights flickering across the granite. Susumu's hair was completely muzzled and stood out in all directions, imprints of their clothes lining his face and mouth slightly agape as he breathed through it. He looked fucking adorable. If he had a camera, this would be a moment he would capture with it.
Koguma's twitching shoulders and chest had Susumu furrow his brows and smack his lips, before he too cracked open his crusty eyes. "Wha's funny?" he slurred.
"You look so cute sometimes, like a fluffy little chick," Koguma teased, trying his hardest to suppress his chuckle.
Susumu's nose scrunched and he dipped his head back as if he had to consider what Koguma had said. "Wha-" Then finally the words seemed to register, as his ears turned into a soft pink and he snarled at him in playful disgust. "Pff, shu' up." He turned away from him and nuzzled himself deeper into the furs on his side.
A lazy grin spread onto Koguma's face as he too turned in his position and instead flipped down onto his back. "Is this what Kikyo gets to see every morning? One could almost be jealous-" The air wheezed out of his lungs, as his brother smacked his arm onto his stomach.
"Shut up and stop mocking me," he whined as he too laid on his back and jutted his lower lip forward.
Koguma stabbed him into his side, making the man hiss. "Come on, move, so I can get up as well."
"Are ya stupid? You didn't have a problem with kneeing me as you crawled out during the night."
Now it was Koguma's turn to scrunch his nose and dip his head back. "Did I?" His gaze turned inwards as he considered for a moment and lifted his hand to rub at his jaw- now free of stubbles. "Huh."
Susumu's gaze softened and almost got a worried tilt. "You alright there, Kogu?"
He opened his mouth as if to retort with his usual placative answer, but then he paused and mumbled instead. "Don't know. It's-"
Seeing that Koguma wouldn't finish his description, Susumu grabbed his hand and said, "Yeah, I figured." He squeezed his fingers. "You wanna talk about it?"
A deep and long sigh was Koguma's answer. He retreated his hand and sat upright. "Let's get something to eat. I'm starving."
Susumu propped up onto his elbows and raised his eyebrows at that. "You had quite the midnight snack."
"Did I?"
"Fuckin' hell, Kogu-"
He crawled across his brother, seeing that he wouldn't move and was probably planning on forcing him to talk it out. "Language," he muttered as he brushed through the knots in his hair on his way to the fireplace.
As he sat down, those of his squad that had still been standing somewhat off-way squeezed down besides members of Kama's squad already seated. Before he could even consider looking for a bowl to take a portion of the stew, Naoaki pressed one into his hands. A bit warily, he began eating it, all too aware of the shinobi's tapping foots, shaking legs, tense jaws or flickering eyes. It was only natural that they had questions burning on their minds.
When Asa actually started chewing on his fingernails, Koguma put down the half-finished meal and clasped his hands between his knees. "Alright, spill it."
No one moved and all avoided his gaze. "Thank you for the clothes, taicho," Jiro remarked.
"You are welcome." Seeing the man open his mouth once more, he added, "Keep them. They are the clothes of people long since dead. They won't miss them." Jiro dipped his head in gratitude.
"Where are we, taicho?" Naoaki spoke up. "I mean, what is this place?" The other Uchiha's gave approving nods, as if they wanted to encourage him.
Koguma noticed that everyone had halted in their speeches across the cave and were listening intently. He could almost feel the trepidation of the Hatake. "This," he started, picking his words with care. "is Bear's Den. It has been my family's home ever since they had come to these mountains." He rubbed at his jaw. "This cave- I've only ever known of five people that had entered without bearing the name Kuma. The first was the first of ours to sign the contract with nature. One was a healer that saved my ancestors' life during a pandemic. Another was my mother's mother, who had married into the clan no three days later and the other two had been Hatake themselves- the childhood friend of my father and his son."
Seeing some of the men shuffle in their positions and looking rather awkward, he gruffly added, "I am not saying this to intimidate you or to look for gratitude. I am merely explaining why I would want you to tread with care. No Kuma will ever life here again, but it had been sacred to us for generations." He looked up to his men and Kama's squad and locked eyes with those that dared to hold his gaze. "So, be welcome as my guests here during the snowstorm, rest and heal, stuff your bellies and ready your weapons." A somewhat awkward grimace stretched his lips. "I would have to offer you salt and bread- but I find myself in lack of these things. So you'll have to take my word that you are safe in here."
Some hesitant chuckles met his words, apparently uncertain if he had been attempting a joke or not.
"Thank you for taking us in, Koguma-taicho," the little Okami offered after a while. The teenager looked completive as he regarded the cave.
"What's your name?"
"Shushi."
"Drop the taicho, Shushi-san. All of you. I don't need any of that."
His short silver hair reflected in the flickering light of the fireplace as he cocked his head, grey eyes looking at him with curiosity. "Yes, Koguma-san." He paused and exchanged a look with the other Hatake. As if on cue all of them dropped onto their knees and bowed before him. For a moment Koguma was as confused as the rest of the squads looking on, but then a hot shiver raced through him with the revelation- they had seen the scars on his skin yesterday. They knew now who had massacred the Kitsune.
"I didn't do it for you," he snarled, surely confusing the Uchiha, his brother and civilians further. "Get up. Kin doesn't bow before kin." He picked up his bowl once more and sent them an impatient look as they gracefully got up, completely unfazed by his mood. "Now go and leave me to eat my stew." All immediately moved from their seats, some taking their meal with them, but when someone stopped just behind his back and leaned down, he had to fight an irritated growl working up his chest.
"You're not planning on letting any of us see the end of the war, do you?" There had been no judgment in the whispered words, just a dry observation. Gengaku didn't even wait for a reply and instead moved along to the other Rinkusu sitting in a niche.
Koguma shovelled another mouthful between his teeth. Apparently there was at least one person that thought even worse of him than he did.
They had been snowed in for three days already and the storm didn't look as if it would calm down anytime soon. At first, the men had gotten restless because of it, but soon enough they had accepted that if they couldn't move, so wouldn't the enemy be able to. Soon enough, some of them had begun pulling out card games from their pouches and played away the boredom. Others used the wide open space to go through their kata's and the cave was drenched in the smell of weapon oil with all the polishing they did. One Uchiha was busy sewing in his niche, seeing that he was the only one trained enough to adjust the clothes to fit their new wearers exactly.
Koguma had his father's and uncle's sword lying by his side as he leaned against the wall and stared at the one opposite him. The brown and orange handprints left on it were rather small, as if child-hands had patted against it. They seemed to dance in the light of the fire, clustering out from the centre and to the sides. The left hand corner of his mouth tugged upwards as his gaze hushed to the lower left corner and he wiped his oil-stained fingers on the soft cloth in his hands.
"What are they?" his brother spoke up as he sat down next to him on the furs.
"Handprints."
"I can see that." The eyeroll was practically audible. "I mean, what are they doing there?"
"When a Kuma reached the age of seven, he or she would get a sword, sign their ancestors contract and leave their handprint onto the wall as they received a name from their parents."
Susumu paused in his tapping against his upper thigh, shocked over Koguma's gush of words. He had been rather quiet the last couple of days. "Received a name?"
"An old tradition. Children died often before the age of seven in these harsh regions, either due to sickness, injuries or accidents. So, they would all be called bear cub- Koguma- until they were of age. So, yeah. Calling me Kuma Koguma is as uncreative as it gets."
Shame flooded Susumu's face as he remembered his careless remark when he had first met his brother. "Shit. I never-"
"How could you?" A tight smile graced his lips as he turned his head to look at him. "Don't worry. I'm the only one called Koguma now. It's my name. Although I do prefer my pack calling me Kogu."
Susumu pursed his lips and looked back at the wall. "So, you never got to slap your handprint onto it?"
"No."
"Then what are you smiling at it for?"
Koguma hummed, clear satisfaction rolling off of him. "See the handprint at the lower left corner?" Susumu leaned forward and narrowed his eyes to focus on it- at first he thought it was a crude painting of a turkey, but then he recognised the difference in colour. "It's my cousin Yasashiko's handprint. I redecorated it a bit when I was four years old. And seeing that it is forbidden to wipe away a handprint put on, my father couldn't salvage it."
"You-" his brother spluttered, staring at him wide eyed. "You did that?"
The tight smile widened into a grin. "Well. As I said, I was four years old- I had been very upset with my family that week. I couldn't stop worrying about my ritual or the name they would give me after my uncle had brought it up during dinner. My brother," he paused for a moment. "It was maybe half a year before his death, so it didn't mean much when it showed that I wasn't as clever or handy as him. I was the second son, so such weakness could be forgiven. But I wanted to do better, wanted to impress, be strong, be clever and deserve my place at their side, deserve my name." He scoffed. "Four year old Koguma didn't really think he deserved much of anything. So there I was, sitting in front of that wall and moping and stewing and sulking."
His gaze softened from his upset scowling. "I guess I had to have met Kama before that day- I'm sure I had, since our fathers were such close friends, but I can only remember that day as the day I got to know Kama." His gaze was slightly off-focus as he faced the wall. "I sat there, being a miserable little shit and then there is this kid that walks up behind me and says-"
"Hey, you're still not all hung up about that fingerpaint, are ya?" a voice called from further down the cave.
Susumu had to suppress a scoff at Kama's hollering, irritated that he would interrupt Koguma's rare display of opening up about his family. About his past. About himself. But when he turned back to face his brother, his breath got caught in his throat.
Koguma was looking at the wall with pure adoration lining his face.
"Fingerpaint," he breathed in his gruff voice. "Yeah." A soft chuckle shook his form. "I was so hung up about it and there's this little kid with absolutely no consideration for any tradition or simple forms of curtesy, offending one of our most sacred rituals- It made me feel weightless and grounded at the same time. And when he offered to go outside and get some mud to slap my own hand onto it- Well, I didn't quite dare to do that. But redecorating Yasashiko's handprint, when he had only pushed me into a puddle the day before- I could do that."
Steps neared them and a voice drawled, "Shit, we can go outside, get some dirt and slap your hand onto it right now, if you want to." Kama's lazy smirk collapsed completely when Koguma turned his head and looked at him.
"And we got such a beating for it," he continued his story, his tender smile only widening as he saw Kama's stunned expression. "I couldn't sit down for days afterwards and my father raged so terribly, I thought the cave would collapse. So yeah, I can't help smiling when I see that wall."
Kama's own expression had softened until it was a perfect mirror reflection of Koguma's loving gaze. "And although it had been my stupid idea, you were planning on taking the fall for it. It took me completely by surprise- you didn't even mention that I had been there as well, even though I'm sure my father suspected it the moment your father's roar carried through the cave. Only I could have made Takeo so angry."
"And you were idiotic enough to step forward and confess to it. You could've spared yourself quite the beating."
"Not when I had finally found someone stupid enough to go along with my plans and stick to me afterwards."
Susumu had to advert his gaze from them, feeling a shiver run down his spine as they continued beaming at each other. "Yeah, well, I think I'll-" he mumbled as he got up from his spot and shuffled past Kama. They didn't even spare him a glance. "I'll just-" he pointed somewhere to the back of the cave and walked away.
When he shot a look over his shoulder, Koguma and Kama were sitting hip at hip. He could see his brother chuckle at something the Hatake said, his fangs gleaming in the dim light of the cave and Kama unable to keep his eyes from the dimples in his cheeks, grinning like a fool himself. Or maybe he was just staring at his lips.
They sat there talking and reminiscing until night-time fell and everyone had gone off to bed. No one had dared interrupting them, even refrained from commenting- his own death glares and, surprisingly, Gengaku's growls had surely helped with that. Koguma looked at peace and happy. He somehow felt the need to preserve that. What Gengaku's stakes were in this-
"Why?" Gengaku had just snarled at an Uchiha to address him with any questions when the man had dared making his way towards the both of them.
He chewed on his lower lip and glanced at him. "I've known them since we were kids. I've seen this happening years before you even showed up. When Yama no haru fell- I saw Sutoro struggle in keeping Kama down. A nine year old boy. He had to break his arm to keep him from going back to get Koguma. I have seen him go through ten years of his life like a puppet without strings. And I've seen him light up when it became clear that Koguma would stay in Konoha. Like he was truly alive again." He spit into the fire. "Kama deserves this. They both do. And I don't care what you think."
They didn't talk for the rest of the evening.
Susumu was equally very surprised and not at all, when Koguma shuffled into the alcove they had shared for the last three nights.
"Not gonna join Kama?"
His brother paused in his movements. "No." It sounded almost like a question. Did they have such different views on what just happened between him and Kama?
"You could, you know," he whispered back and grabbed his bandaged hand as his brother turned to face him.
Koguma's expression was open, if a bit thoughtful. "I know. I'm not blind."
"Why not?" Susumu pushed. They really needed to get this shit sorted out. He didn't think he could bear having to watch Kama dance around his brother like that for the rest of their lives.
He shrugged his shoulders in reply.
"Kogu-"
"I'm not good at this, Susumu. I'm just making it up as I go," he almost snapped back.
Susumu had to fight down a smile at seeing Koguma so nervous- that was new. "You'll know in time. Believe me."
Silence spread between them as he continued looking at his brother and felt his bandaged fingers draw lines on his hand. Koguma hummed. "Will you forgive me?"
Susumu flinched back from the words, remembering his pledge he had spewed in anger. "There is nothing to ever forgive, Kogu." He lifted his brother's bandaged hand and pressed a soft kiss against it. "I'm the one needing forgiveness for ever saying something like that."
"You'll always have it." He looked at him with genuine earnest, before he turned onto his stomach and buried his face into the furs. Susumu shuffled up against him, his own nose pressed against his side and let out a deep breath.
He managed to stay awake for long enough to notice Koguma's breathing even out, before he too slid off into dreams.
The storm had subsided after five days, leaving the trees in front of the cave like formless shapes and shadows in the bright snow. Koguma hadn't spared his family's home another glance as he had stepped out of the entrance last and sealed it behind him once more. There was no use longing for something that would never be again.
Finding enemies in the silent winter landscape had been almost ridiculously easy after that, especially since everyone was now properly equipped to survive the frosty temperatures. Their targets must have thought them ghosts of Kuma, dressed in deep lush greens as they were- Only too late did they notice the blazing red sharingan, or the silver and blonde hair of the Rinkusu and Okami.
Koguma was just busy discussing the possibility to check if any Kumo forces had made their way further north after Asa had returned from his scout with Jiro, when a hawk began cawing above them. All the men's heads snapped upwards and watched the bird come flying down onto Koguma's outstretched arm.
"We're to go back to base camp," he called out after he had read the message pinned to its leg.
"Only us?" Gengaku questioned.
"The message is general enough that I assume all squads are supposed to meet up." He waved to Susumu to scrawl a quick confirmation down on the back of the message, strapped it back onto its leg and sent it roaring off into the skies.
"Just when things were going smoothly," Kama drawled. "I'll get my men ready."
Beady eyes watched the silver haired man jump down to his squad and order them to pack up their stuff, when Jiro ventured, "Think we won the war, Koguma-san?"
Gengaku scoffed. "I doubt it. I bet they're getting ready for a synchronized attack. It's no coincidence that the enemies we plucked off the mountain got fewer and smaller. Something big is coming." His men sent the Rinkusu dirty looks for answering in his stead- Koguma was sure Gengaku hadn't even noticed that he had.
"You won't get out of the Hatake mountains so easy," he told them and sent them stern looks for their behaviour. The men rightened immediately, even if they couldn't supress their smiles upon his gruff joke. "Go and tell the others to be ready in five. And tell Genkai that if he keeps hiding his injuries, I will send him to rear position and let him get carried bridal style by Naoaki. As if I wouldn't spot his pathetic limp."
Both men tried hiding their chuckles behind coughs. "Yes, Koguma-san."
"Dismissed."
The trip down the mountains took them less than it had the first time they came up- after weeks of living up here, all men were well versed in the lands and its tricks. It would have been a disgrace if any of them would still fall into cracks or tap into the seals- Koguma letting them rot in the traps for hours while he had his other men set up camp right beside had surely ingrained the lesson sharply into their minds. He may not be fond of the whole hierarchy thing Konoha got going, but he most certainly wasn't going soft on them- the mountains or enemies wouldn't either. The moment Ite had managed to free himself from a snare after one and a half hours, had earned him a clasp on the shoulder from Koguma, which made the man nearly jump in shock. After that, the others had started to almost hustle for his recognition, seeing that it was actually an achievable thing. It was like raising attention starved cubs, really.
So, when they strode into base camp, the difference between Koguma's and Kama's squads and the others couldn't have been any more obvious-
The shinobi and kunoichi huddled around the meagre campfires watched them warily, shivering in their Konoha uniform, noses red, cheeks blotchy and eyes dull from the cold. Their new pinkish scars were obvious and some even sported dirty and bloody bandages. They looked as if the lands had swallowed them whole, chewed, regarded them as unfit and spewed them out again.
Starting a campaign in winter with forces used to the lush greens of the Land of Fire had been absolute madness, really.
Koguma had planned leading his squad back to their tents and going to the commander to report for duty afterwards, but the Nara had apparently heard the stir their arrival was causing and met them half-way. He was dressed more reasonably than the other Konoha-nin, a plush and thick fur collar stitched to his shoulders and hands stuffed into leather gloves. His dark eyes narrowed as he took in Koguma, Kama and their squads, the tip of his nose dipping down as he frowned.
"Nara-san," Koguma greeted, seeing that the man wasn't getting done anytime soon with his scrutiny.
"Hatake-san. I see you made your men native to the land." There was almost a hint of disdain in his tone, but Koguma's squad held the commanders gaze with ease- surviving the Kuma forests could truly give confidence to a person. Especially when they had fulfilled their task so diligently underneath Koguma's sharp scrutiny.
"It was either that or die."
"Good thing no one died then."
"Only the enemy." Koguma paused and let his beady eyes scan the crowd looking onwards- he most surly wasn't used to other people than his and Kama's squad fluttering around in his peripherals anymore. It was making him feel nervous and want to huddle his men closer behind him. And if Shushi's or Naoaki's nervous shuffle was anything to go by, they felt similarly. Almost automatically, they fell into formation behind him and Susumu. The Nara took his squad's movements in with interest, so Koguma spoke up once more to draw his attention away from them. "You received Kama and my reports?"
The commander nodded, only reluctantly stopping his inspection. "Come back once the last squads have arrived. Dismissed."
Koguma turned around to his men and gave them a sharp nod. They had heard what had been said, no need for him to repeat any of that. "You may join us for supper if you want to," he added, which earned him grateful smiles from Ite and Jiro and even the two Hatake nodded. If the Uchiha would take him up on his offer- it would remain to be seen how close they felt to the squad instead of their other clansmen now. So, all dispelled to meet up with any friends or family at the same time as Kama dismissed his teams.
"Oh," Kama crooned as he fell into step next to him as he made his way to the tent they had been assigned. "He looked like he would shit a pinecone seeing our clothes-"
"A rogue team, refusing to wear Konoha's uniform like good little soldiers," Koguma agreed, having to fight down a smirk.
"He could've probably understood if it only were the Hatake wearing it."
"But the way his eyes bulged at seeing Uchiha in Kuma green-"
"Priceless. And how your squad's all synchronised with you and each other-" Kama shook his head. "It's making them nervous."
"It better should." Koguma took in a deep breath of the crisp winter air. "I'm forcing Konoha's tools to use their heads and sever their umbilical cord from higher authority. The albino won't know what to do with shinobi having tasted the liberty of choosing to follow instead of being ordered to once they return." He clasped down onto Kama's shoulder and turned his head to face him. "Priceless indeed."
They shared a gleeful grin, not at all noticing how Gengaku and Susumu shot a look at each other behind their backs. When they neared the tent, Koguma's attention got drawn to it, his grin muting while he lifted his hand from the Hatake again. Kama's smile faltered completely, his fingers having started to twitch beside his upper thighs as soon as the warm hand had left his shoulder. With a sour look he followed him inside, a polite Gengaku and confused looking Susumu following in their wake.
"Kagami, what is your platoon doing here?" His curls fluttered in the small gust of cold air blasting into the tent as they stepped inside, while he stood upright from his hunched over position. Kagami was standing with Danzo at the table, surely having discussed the maps lying In front of them, while Hiruzen had been busy writing down something into a scroll.
"Same as you," the Uchiha greeted Koguma with a smile as he walked up next to him and spared a glance at the maps lain out. "All of us are called back for a spear attack. Tobirama-sensei figured a synchronized assault should do it to break the northern front and get to Kumogakure."
Koguma's eyebrows furrowed at that. "Really? I can't think of that being a sensible course of action." He spared a look with Gengaku, who had begun chewing his lower lip once more and his own eyes narrowed when he took a look at the maps.
"It's probably not," Danzo remarked. "But we're running into some problems further south- Suna joined the war, after some blue-eyed chunin managed killing one of theirs on a routine patrol- apparently he hadn't gotten the memo that the land had been bought by the kazekage. It's now pinning our troops between them and Kiri. We need to win at least on one front, otherwise they'll manage to circle us."
"Earth?" Susumu remarked, now stepping up to the map as well.
"Still neutral," Hiruzen remarked without looking up, the brush continuing to scratch across the parchment- the ink had to be frozen with the cold. "But who knows for how long?"
Kama walked up behind Koguma, spared a look at the maps, scoffed and turned away. "And what are you doing in our tent?" He moved to plonk down onto his bed, but had to throw off some bags from it first.
"Well-" Kagami's mouth had turned into a downward frown upon the hostile reaction. "Since there isn't that much space to add any tents, we were given the choice to join another."
"Danzo's still so salty he has to share a bedroll with me now," Hiruzen chuckled, shortly pausing to dip his brush into the ink pot. "He's got the coldest toes I've ever had the misfortune of getting pressed against my thighs." His remark made the Shimura scrunch his nose in disgust.
Susumu spared a glance at Kama and noticed him taking in Koguma through his eyelashes at the words- "I call dips on Kogu," he sing-sang, immediately grabbing his bedroll and pulling it next to his brother's furs. "You're always burning at a hundred degrees and I won't risk any frozen toes myself." He was certain Kama was planning his murder. He literally felt the hair at his neck raise underneath his glares. Well, tough titties.
"Where have you even been?" Susumu drawled, wanting to disperse some of the tension now lingering in the tent. Team Tobirama had surely noticed that there was something going on, even if they didn't comment. Probably thought the Hatake was being his usual dick-ish self. He listened to Hiruzen's recollection of their time at the southern beaches and Danzo chiming in every once in a while, all too aware of Kagami watching his brother and the Hatake- Koguma was leaning against one of the tent poles and Kama had stood up from his bed and shuffled up right beside him, at times whispering something underneath his breath which made Koguma's lip twitch ever so slightly.
He could only reply with a small shake of head upon the Uchiha's questioning glance- better not to address it. Koguma was a private man after all and he was sure he would hate having any and every one wonder and pry. He was lucky their squad adored the ground he walked on- they had quickly learned to not ask personal questions and keep their mouth shut about any suspicions they had.
Kagami's eyes narrowed when he looked back at Kama's almost smug expression as he managed to make Koguma's beady eyes twinkle with mirth, and leaned back on his seat with a scoff.
Susumu really shared the sentiment.
But then again, he had never seen Koguma so soft. Creases lining the side of his eyes instead of the sides of his mouth or between his brows and he had been sure the latter had to have been permanent by now.
Koguma truly looked like a twenty-one year old man for once, even with his whitening hair.
Susumu rubbed at his face, feeling incredibly tired all of a sudden. Maybe he truly needed to give his brother a little push into the right direction, lest Kama would implode with the urge to finally- yeah, what? Confess his feelings? Kiss him? Pull Susumu out of the bedroll and crawl beside Koguma himself instead? He wasn't too sure why the Hatake hadn't yet. Had it something to do with the whole 'cutting off the hand touching uninvited'-thing? Or was he just being as big a dumb-ass as Koguma was?
Just in time, he witnessed Koguma leaning down to Kama's ear and whispering something to him- His lips stretched into a wide smile, showing off his sharp canines (which could never compete with Koguma's wild fangs) and his hooded eyes shone with the same affection he had stopped hiding ever since they had been cooped up in that cave (not that he had ever really bothered before).
Gods, the Hatake really needed to tone it down a bit, or Team Tobirama would actually start cutting him if the dirty looks they sent him were anything to go by. It seemed the three men had grown rather protective of Koguma as well. Or they just hated Kama's guts. Maybe both.
What a night it promised to be.
The tent had fallen completely silent.
Clothes rustled as some of the jounin shuffled on their feet and metal clicked as fingers patted nervously against weapon pouches. How to get a room full of battle proven shinobi silent?
"That's a suicide mission," one brave soul spoke up from further back.
The Nara had his arms crossed before his chest and jutted his lips forward. The wheels behind his eyes were visibly working in overdrive- one couldn't accuse him of being satisfied with the proposed plan of attack. He looked rather like someone had thrown a wrench into his carefully crafted strategies.
"I'm not going to lie to you. It probably is. But the Kumo forces are huddling close together right here behind the second pass. We need to break it up to have any chance of splitting their forces and getting a shot at Kumogakure. And how to disturb a silent pond best? Throw a pebble in it and watch the ripples spread out and resonate." He let out a frustrated huff. "I know that whatever squads will be thrown at them will probably sink just as rapidly as the pebble does."
Silence spread once again across the tent- Kagami was frowning and even Danzo and Hiruzen looked unusually solemn. Koguma glanced down at Kama, who replied his gaze steadily.
"I won't force any of you. The squads selected will volunteer." His eyes fluttered across the jounin collected. "I know it's not remotely fair to ask this of any of you. To ask you to decide for your squads, your men. But you will be the ones to clear the pass and give those following the chance to break through. You will be the ones that either make or break this whole operation. So, I ask you, are there any volunteers?"
The room was silent. Koguma watched some men exchange glances with each other, while others seemed rather turned into themselves- contemplative, thoughtful, hesitant.
"Squad one volunteers." All shinobi turned around to the kunoichi that had spoken up- she held her head high, her sharp blue eyes replying all stares steady and calm.
"Senju-san?" The Nara looked like he would choke on air.
"Squad one volunteers."
"I don't think-"
She jutted her chin forward and crossed her arms. "Squad one volunteers."
Whispers broke out inside the tent, the jounin collected shuffling nervously.
"She lost them all during the attack-"
"- fought with hokage-sama about-"
"Of course she'd pick a suicide run-"
"- to a squad of Uchiha. They say she hates-"
Koguma had continued watching the Senju and laid notice to her determined stance, the dark lines underneath her eyes, her dull hair in need of a proper cut, the relaxed muscles in her shoulders- a person unafraid of the prospect of death. With a snarl he spat, "Squad five volunteers."
The room fell silent again, before Kama stepped forward. "Squad four volunteers." He glanced down at Kama, seeing a defiant tilt to his head and fire burning behind his hooded eyes- as if Koguma would ever tell him what he could and could not do.
The commander's head had snapped over to them. "Konoha thanks you-"
"Spare your gratitude for those that care for it." His voice sounded as icy as he felt upon hearing the shallow words.
"Team Tobirama volunteers-"
"No," a deep voice cut through. A mocking smirk spread onto Koguma's lips and he crossed his arms in front of his chest. All other shinobi had turned immediately to the entrance of the tent and upon seeing the newcomer, fell down onto one knee.
Kama, Koguma, the Senju kunoichi and Team Tobirama remained standing.
"Tobirama-sensei," Hiruzen spoke up once more.
"No. Three squads are more than sufficient. We'll need all others for the following attack." Twitching red eyes tried to focus on them. He strode towards their commander and joined him at the maps. "At ease," he remarked somewhat distracted as he studied the line-up, finally giving the other jounin the approval to rise from their surely awkward positions. His deep rumble of a voice carried through the tent as he began discussing the Nara's strategy, rather effectively ignoring his team's unhappy frowns. Koguma was honestly surprised Tobirama had actually shown up himself. He wouldn't have thought the man had it in him to actually join such a risky attack. But then again- the albino had grown up with war.
When all were dismissed from the meeting, the three volunteers were ordered by their hokage to stay behind. Team Tobirama ignored their dismissal and remained as well.
At first the man focused on the kunoichi. "Yumiko, do you plan to complete this mission? Or will you use it for your own purposes?"
Blue eyes locked with red ones. "I shall serve to the best of my abilities."
"Such a vague answer," Kama drawled, disgust oozing off him as he glared at the woman.
Upon Tobirama's silent request, the woman added, "You needed volunteers, no? I volunteer."
"Only those that plan on completing the mission at all cost."
"I will. At all costs."
Koguma scoffed. "At the cost of your squad."
She turned around to him, finally something fierce flickering behind her eyes. "Don't you dare belittle me. You and your fucking sensei- aren't you risking your own squad as well? Your brother even?"
"I plan on coming out of this alive." He ignored her and faced the albino instead. "I will give my men the choice to deny this mission. Just because I volunteer doesn't mean they should."
The man's eyes narrowed and his jaw twitched as he grinded his teeth. "Why did you volunteer?"
Koguma gave him a wide smile that was nothing more than a baring of teeth. "Because I will make sure that if she treats this as a suicide run, a little plan of revenge upon an entire clan, she won't get to drag her squad into it." He spat before her feet, making her shortly flinch. "You fucking Konoha-nin lack honour most of all. Exploiting your men's loyalty, their inability to protest your choices- you disgust me."
Tobirama's eyes flickered over to Kama's tense form- Koguma could more feel than see the Hatake's mortification over his words, his complete disregard for standing opposite the strongest man of their village. He was rather disappointed by it. If anyone, he would have thought Kama would have found delight in it. Susumu would have.
"Can I count on squad five fulfilling this mission?"
"Wrong question." The hokage looked ready to burst upon his gruff reply. "My men can count on me making sure they'll get to see Konoha again." He cocked his head and took a closer step to the man- the Nara's hands immediately flew into his little shadow-binding seals, which stretched the shadows around his feet. "What a lucky coincidence you entered the tent when you did. I wonder what would have happened if Hiruzen had volunteered before your clan-member did." He gave an amused chuckle upon the man's twitching when he added, "Hypocrites, the lot of you. Nothing but illusions indeed."
Sensing Kama's stress, he turned around and walked out of the tent without waiting to be dismissed, unwilling to spare another glance at his friends standing frozen. Let them hash it out with their sensei by themselves.
"Kogu-"
"Not here." There were to many eyes and ears following them. Instead he made his way through camp and towards the tent they had shared with Team Tobirama for the last four days- Danzo had slapped a silencing seal on the tarp two nights ago, because 'damn those snoring Fuma three tents down'. It would come in rather handy now.
The warm air greeting him as he entered their shelter, nearly clogged up his nose and made his numb fingers burn with the blood starting to circulate through them once more. Susumu was sitting on their bedrolls and lazily polishing his katana, while Gengaku had taken it upon himself to throw a kunai up and down as was rocking on the hind legs of his chair.
Immediately Kama latched onto his arm and turned him around harshly, his blotchy cheeks looking almost feverish. "Fucking hell, Kogu-"
"Language."
Susumu had jumped up from his spot and stormed over to them, surely planning to tear Kama's hand away.
"Do you want him to suspect you? Do you want to get labelled a traitor, because you're doing a damn good job-"
"What happened?" Gengaku spoke up, the kunai pressed tightly between his fingers now as he watched the scene unfold.
"You might as well have challenged him. You only missed smacking a glove into his face to top it off-"
Koguma snarled, feeling red hot anger well up inside of him. "Since when do you pull your tail before authority?"
"I know what fights to pick. You can't challenge the goddamn hokage-"
"What did you do?" Susumu was now standing beside them, his hand raised to pull Kama off him, but shooting him a wary look.
"No one forced you to volunteer as well, Kama."
The Hatake looked as if he had slapped him with the cold words. "No one- you absolute idiot, of course no one did. But if you think for one second I'd let you do this on your own, you must not be as sharp as I took you for."
"Volunteered?" both Gengaku and Susumu spoke up.
"What are you planning, Kogu? Since you sure as hell are up to something," Kama added, seeing that Koguma wouldn't answer.
"I have no idea what you're talking about."
Kama hissed between his teeth and finally let go of his arm. "Stop pushing me away. I told you to take me with you when you do shit like this. And you promised me you would. What are you up to? Because this mission is bullshit and you know it. We'd be lucky if we get out of it alive. Any of us."
"Out alive-" Susumu muttered. He stepped up to Koguma and shoved the heaving Hatake away. "The fuck's he talking about?"
He didn't even look at his brother as he ordered, "Gather the men for dinner. I need to talk to them."
"Koguma, stop ignoring me and finally tell me what's going on!"
With a quick movement he grabbed his brother's hand before he could shove against his chest. Irritation and anger flickered behind his beady eyes. "Gather the squad."
Susumu gave him a sharp look, hurt radiating off him, but followed his command and stepped out of the tent.
"Leave," he spat at the Rinkusu. The man was either stupid or brave for hesitating, but then left the tent as well.
When only he and Kama remained, he rubbed across his jaw and allowed himself to take a deep and shaky breath. There was no use in getting angry now. "Kama-" his voice broke for a moment, so he had to clear his throat. "Sometimes I think I'm going completely mad. She's planning on letting them all die. They're in her care, her responsibility. I-" A bitter chuckle shook his shoulders. "Do you hate me, Kama?"
"Never."
"I'm not too sure you wouldn't if you knew-" He sat down on the chair Gengaku had occupied before, all too aware he wasn't making much sense. "I don't have a plan. I just grab opportunities as they present themselves. And then I make things up as I go."
Kama stalked over to him and dropped into a crouch in front of his legs. "What opportunity do you see?"
"Short term? Make her pay for her selfishness. Get out of this mission alive. Sow disdain to higher authority." Kama watched his bandaged hand intensely as he reached out towards him. His silver hair seemed rather thick as he played with a small strand sticking out of the messy high ponytail. What he wouldn't give for a creek or shallow lake now. "Long term? Make them pay."
Kama gulped upon his distracted answer, his throat bobbing with the movement. "Who?"
"Not your cubs." They locked eyes with each other. "I have the terrible urge to ask you not to come along."
"Why not? I'm clan, just like you. I can take care. I'll have your back." Warm, slender hands laid down onto his knees, making his jaw twitch.
He let the strand glide through his fingers and instead cupped the man's cheek. "Because I would go mad if anything were to happen to you." The chair groaned underneath his weight as he leaned forward with his upper body, while gently pulling Kama's face up to him- their foreheads connected with a soft bump. Koguma's lips stretched into a pleased smile seeing Kama's eyes pitch black with his blown-wide pupils.
His warm breath hitched against his lower face and a deep and satisfied hum resonated through his body when he breathed out through his nose. "Do you actually sleep with your summons to always smell like wet dog?"
"Do you sleep with sheep to smell like a shepherd?" His voice was rather hushed and wobbly, whole body tense and brimming.
"Furs, actually."
A warm shiver ran up his spine as Kama's fingers shortly tensed at his knees. "Sometimes during missions they do." The warmth his hands had been radiating disappeared, only to reappear moments later as they twisted into his hair at the back of his head. "Kogu." His warm breath stuttered against his lips as Kama's eyes flittered down to his mouth. "When are you finally going to kiss me?"
He couldn't stop smiling even if he were to try. "Kama." The name sounded almost like a caress. "How about when we both get out of this alive?"
A low growl answered his teasing reply and then warm, soft lips met his.
It was a gentle kiss, languid and without haste- both men wanting to enjoy the sensation for as long as they could. Koguma could feel Kama's heart race where his fingers dipped against a vein underneath his jaw and felt his own chest expand with a deep and satisfied breath.
The Hatake pushed against him, forcing him to lean back as he deepened the kiss- a deep hum of his met a breathy moan of Kama's as their lips moved against each other. When Kama hissed as he managed to cut his skin on Koguma's sharp teeth, a grin spread his lips and he had to stifle the chuckle coming up inside of him. As soon as Kama began grinning as well, they leaned back again to look at each other.
Kama shortly sucked at the small cut on his lip, teeth gleaming as he beamed at him. Hooded eyes were filled with affection and mirth and his cheeks burned bright red. Koguma brushed over the rosy lower lip, uncaring that he for once grinned like a fool as well.
"A thought for a thought," Kama murmured, slowly releasing his grip at his hair and instead lying his hands back down onto his knees. "I'm thinking I need to be damn mindful of your teeth when I kiss you again."
A deep chuckle escape him. "I once actually tore a person's throat out with these, so it's better if you do." The Hatake's expression was caught between a wild excitement and stunned adoration. Feeling his chest expand with warmth upon the pride shining in his slaty eyes, he added dumbfounded, "I'm thinking that this is what it should be like."
Kama's breath hitched and his thumb started to draw little circles on his right knee. "I'm thinking I never smelled anything more lovely than you aroused."
"I-" he paused.
Seeing Koguma struggle to find the words, Kama added, "I'm thinking of seeing you standing in the Hokage's office- I knew right then and there that I had a crush on you. I don't know if I already had it back when we were kids, or if it simply developed over time, when I got older, when I looked back at it all and realized I would never again meet someone like you-" His thumb continued drawing circles. "I can never hate you, Kogu. Never."
"I'm-" Koguma mirrored Kama's movements and gently brushed against the man's cheek. "I'm not good at this, Kama."
"I think you're doing rather well." He lifted one of his hands to grab Koguma's still brushing at his cheek and pressed a soft kiss against the palm. "Just don't push me away again."
Koguma hummed in reply. "I rather feel like pulling you closer."
The predatory gleam behind Kama's eyes was the only warning he got before the man leaned forward and pressed his lips against his once more. Koguma pulled him up onto his lap, having a firm grip on his lower back and rather thrilled that it was now Kama's turn to dip his face down to him as he tugged at his ponytail. His face started to burn with heat when he actually to god moaned tasting the blood from Kama's cut, but the Hatake seemed to take utter delight in the sound. Their faces slanted as Kama gently deepened the kiss, his tongue teasing as it flickered against his.
They panted when they separated again, Kama's eyes now glassy with desire as he stared at his surely glistening lips and Koguma gave in to the urge to lick across the sensitive skin. It was a weird sensation tasting him on them. "Can't we kick out the others tonight?" A shiver ran down his spine hearing his hoarse voice.
"Fucking hell, Kama," he breathed, having to shortly rest his head against the man's collar bone lest the world would start spinning around him. "Give me some time to adjust or I'll lose my balance."
He felt the cold air tickle against his head as Kama pressed his face into his hair and breathed in deeply. "Am I going too fast for you, Kogu?"
"You always were the quicker one between the two of us."
Kama's chest vibrated with laughter. "If it weren't you saying it, I would be certain there had been a joke at my expense in there." Some of the tension left his shoulders as fingers started to scrape along his skull- Koguma hadn't even noticed they had hitched up. "You set the pace, Kogu. I'll adjust."
After another deep breath, he lifted his face again and looked at Kama. "Good."
Kama's eyes shortly fluttered to the entrance of the tent. "They'll be back soon," he whispered with a gentle smile.
Koguma was sure gratitude would actually make him drown, thanking all gods that Kama understood that he wouldn't want everyone to see them like this. See him like this. He felt weirdly vulnerable at the moment.
When Susumu and Gengaku entered the tent again, he and Kama were standing by the maps lying on the table and tried to come up with a strategy to actually survive the next day. They weren't planning on dying anytime soon now.
His men's faces were dipped in flickering shadows cast by the campfire somewhat off their tent.
"I'm not telling any of you to join me on this. It's your choice. There is no judgment if you rather choose to join the main forces." He rubbed at his jaw. "No person should have to bear the burden of choice from someone else. I want your loyalty to be given, not forced."
Feeling a steady grip on his lower arm, he faced his brother. "Of course I'm with you, Kogu. We've been a damn team for fifteen years. You're not doing this without me."
They shared a small smile and he shortly laid his bandaged hand onto his in gratitude- he would have been surprised if Susumu had declined the mission. Even if he had whished he would.
"I'm in as well," Jiro spoke up. "I'd gladly follow you on this, Koguma-san."
"Me as well," Ite joined. He looked at the Shiranui in surprise. "You'll need a medic out there." Apparently seeing something in Koguma's gaze, he added, "I'm not doing this for Risu's sake. But rather because I understand now why he followed you in the first place."
The Uchiha hushed among each other, Naoaki shooting them stern looks, before they too gave him a quick bow. "We are in as well. You led us well. We hope you continue to do so in the future."
Shushi and Maku, the two Okami, were the only ones left now. Koguma faced them and offered, "I know there are no friendly feelings lost between your clan and me. If you rather want to join Kama's squad or the main forces, I will not stop you from doing so. I have been rather surprised you hadn't objected to me being your captain in the first place."
The elder man scoffed and leaned forward onto his knees. "I find it interesting that you still refuse to call it your clan." His brows furrowed as he started to scratch with his nails against the pads of his fingers. "Pup, I fought beside your father and uncle before you were even born. Just like them, you have a talent for making men follow you everywhere you go. But I'm unsure if you share their undying devotion." His grey eyes locked with his and he laid his hand down onto the younger Okami's head. "Promise me you'll take care of my nephew and me out there."
Koguma regarded both with his beady eyes. "You are my responsibility. I promise."
"Then I will join you as well."
"As will I," Shushi spoke up.
He leaned back on his spot on the block of wood, the icy winter air stinging in his airways and making his nose run. "I thank you for your loyalty. I will make sure all of you can enjoy other miserable nights shivering in your bedrolls."
Asa laughed at that and poked Genkai in his side. "Oh, don't worry about that, Koguma-san, Genkai and Naoaki are keeping rather warm together." Two sets of blazing sharingan eyes stared him down, making some of the other Uchiha's laugh out as well.
"Well, then my threat having Naoaki carry him bridal style doesn't hold that much weight anymore, does it?" both men's cheeks burned with embarrassment upon his gruff reply. "Very well, I'd say we better start eating our stew before it turns into complete mash."
Bowls were passed around as Koguma filled them and handed them to Susumu next to him. Their breaths steamed in the air as they chewed on the blazing hot meal and all men warmed their fingers gratefully at the warm ceramic. Genkai and Naoaki seemed rather pleased with how little their squad seemed to care about the revelation, since no one had commented on it after Koguma's reply. They had started to shuffle together to sit hip at hip now. Jiro and Asa were sharing ideas on how to plaster seals onto objects or people with a single touch and Ite was discussing possible uses of the plants he had collected in the Kuma forests with Shushi and Maku.
"Kogu, wasn't this the type of shit Kikyo warned us about when she told us not to do anything stupid?" Susumu drawled beside him as he filled his bowl once more.
"I also distinctly remember her saying Risu was the only sensible one between us."
His brother gave a startled laughter at that. "True. But that idiot did once insist we should kill that mop of bandits to get to those damn books of his-"
Koguma took another bite of the stew. "He nearly lost his nose when he dived for the box and that trap went off. All for some romance novels."
"Everyone always thought he read medical texts or scrolls containing new jutsu, but in the end he was just like a middle-aged wife, spending fifty ryo every week to get the latest copy."
"We still have some of his books back at the compound," Ite offered almost hesitantly. Upon their inquisitive gaze he put aside his bowl and ventured, "He carried them inside one day, claiming one or both of you had threatened to burn them?"
Susumu snorted into his bowl, nearly managing to choke on his food, but Koguma was too busy hiding his own suffocating. "Fucking Madara-" Susumu wheezed as he smacked against his chest. It made the rest of their squad stop pretending not to listen to their conversation and instead grow silent. Having Susumu talk and chat was a regular occurrence, but Koguma joining in was rare. And none of them had ever talked about their former sensei.
"Risu always hid his most dirty novels up in the rafters, thinking we wouldn't bother going up there to get them- and we didn't. But when he started hiding them in Madara's house as well-" Koguma shook his head, his beady eyes filled with warmth. "Curiosity killed the cat. Well, Madara turned red as a cherry tomato when he recognised the content of the scroll for what it was, spluttering like a damn teenager-"
"He threatened to burn all the scrolls he could get his hands on, chasing us out of the house with kunai and shuriken-" Susumu stopped to wipe the tears from the corner of his eyes. "I never understood why he had to chase us out as well. We had nothing to do with it- his own fault for being so stuck up about it."
"And just to be a little piece of shit, Risu started putting them in the weirdest places- in drawers, underneath his cushion, among his official clan correspondence-"
Now Asa roared in laughter, shocking his clan members with the realisation illuminating his face. "So that was what he grew all angry and embarrassed over! During one clan meeting he went to open one of the correspondences received and almost bristled like a cat, before he quickly burned it in his hands. The elders were so shocked-"
"I remember," another Uchiha spoke up. "They demanded he tell them who had sent us such an offending letter to have it immediately burned. It was the talk of the clan for weeks."
"Oh, Risu would have loved that," Koguma chuckled, sharing a delighted smile with his brother. "He tried to make me embarrassed with them as well. Started reading them out whenever you were off to visit one of your flirts."
"Did he now?"
He hummed. "Yeah. He was so disappointed when it didn't bother me."
Susumu's smirk turned melancholic. "Getting you to blush was one of his life missions."
"Well, he did make Madara blush."
"Looked rather cute when he did." He brushed through his feathery hair. "Looked fucking normal for once. Like a real person, not a clan-head."
Silence soon spread over their group as all stared into the campfire, lost in their own thoughts.
"Koguma-san?" Naoaki spoke up after a while. After his confirming hum, he added, "How was he before- before he left?"
Koguma put down his bowl, the crease between his brow deepening as he frowned. The other men looked at him with different degrees of curiosity as he took his time to answer. "Sad, mostly. A good man of strong convictions and deep love for his clan, who simply got swallowed by grief over what was lost." He shared a look with Susumu. They rarely spoke of their former sensei and he was unsure how his brother thought of the man now, three years later. But there was no anger in his eyes now, only something close to pity. For him or the man, he couldn't tell. "We all know grief. And we all know how much the comfort of those we trust can ease it. He would have needed that, I think. Knowing that his clan was with him."
"The hokage would hang you for talking about him like that." Koguma looked up to meet Shushi's gaze. There was no judgment in the teenager's eyes, only that same wonder he sometimes sported when he regarded him.
"A leader that would need to silence his subjects is probably no leader at all." Seeing all of his squad members stiffen, he added with a bitter smirk. "I'm just reminiscing about the man that had been my sensei. Nothing more. If it makes any of you uncomfortable, I shall stop." He picked up his bowl and continued eating his now cooled down stew.
When Genkai almost hesitantly shared a story of how Madara had to save him out of a tree once and he had managed to twist his long hair terribly in the gnarly branches, he had to hide his satisfied grin behind the bowl. Especially when Naoaki answered with a story of the man himself.
Sowing disdain to higher authority could only work if you plough the ground beforehand.
When Susumu and he entered the tent later that night, team Tobirama still hadn't returned. Kama was already lying on his bedroll and reading a scroll, but he saw his soft smile when he faced him. Following a whim, Koguma simply grabbed his own furs and chugged them right beside the man. Seeing Kama light up like the sun was satisfaction enough to ignore Susumu's shocked gaping or Gengaku's raised eyebrows.
Kama's smugness was almost palpable when he put down his scroll, turned on his side and shuffled up against him as he laid on his stomach. Koguma fell asleep with warm breath fanning against his hair and an arm wrapping around his upper back.
"Any last minute speeches?" his brother whispered as they stood in front of their teams- his and Kama's squad were distinctive with their green colours. They also looked collected and ready. The Senju's squad however-
He crossed his arms in front of his chest. "No, not really. There is nothing I can say to make this any better." The Uchiha's looked solemn, like they had already accepted that they would die today. It truly didn't help that their other clan members looked much more resolute, more confident.
Steel scrapped along wood as Gengaku pulled his sword. He knelt down, turned the blade to face the ground, stabbed the snow and spoke up, "May this sword always defend those wronged and courage steel the hand leading-" Kama and the other Hatake joined his lead, also pulling their swords and kneeling down to repeat the ancient words.
"May an opponent find mercy at the end of the blade yet cut down those disrespecting-" Koguma's men watched on with interest, shooting inquisitive glances at him. After some reluctance, he too drew his odachi and followed the movement, his brother copying him smoothly.
"May the honest wielder always strike true and shed blood for honour and glory-" Susumu didn't know the words, but Koguma did and his deep voice carried through the synchronised murmur of the other Hatake. The Uchiha under his command, as well as Jiro and Ite followed the movement, those that didn't carry swords just kneeling down instead and bracing their arm onto their upper thigh.
"May loyalty sharpen the blade and render it unbreakable." Koguma saw his reflection in the blade, his father's blade- sometimes he thought he could understand why Madara had tried to claw his own eyes out.
He rose first, his brother and men soon following them. Kama and the other Hatake came up last.
"None of us will be slaughtered like lambs today." The other Uchiha nearly flinched underneath his gaze as he locked eyes with them as well. "We define our own worth. And it is greater alive than it could ever be dead." Steel sang as he sheathed his blade. The vicious grin spreading on his face was the only warning squad one got- In a smooth movement his hand snapped forward and grabbed the pale Senju next to him around her throat. "But then again-" she scratched at his steely grip, her eyes bulging and spit glistening on her lips as she tried to get out of his hold. "-sometimes bait is required for a good hunt." His fangs dipped into his lower lip when he regarded her like a predator would with prey. "Dishonourable scum. Let's hope they won't smell your rotten stench when we sent you among them."
The wild gleam in Kama's eyes made fierce excitement coarse through his veins and his grin only widened when he got rewarded with a vicious one of his. They had agreed on this after all. And how he cherished that Kama went along with him- a merciless Kuma. Even Susumu replied his gaze steadily and determined, although he knew his brother didn't care for excessive cruelty.
Squad five and four looked on like silent witnesses, his men calm, Kama's blank. Five pairs of sharingan eyes stared down the few clan members wanting to step forward and help their captain. Oh, he truly ploughed the ground well.
"Jiro." The brown haired man stepped forward. "Would you like to give her the chance to fulfil this mission at all costs?"
"Gladly."
She lost consciousness soon enough.
The camp lying just behind the pass was massive- tents upon tents erected, smoke curling in the air as campfires cooked breakfast, men stumbling across the wires and piles of logs littering the ground as they made their way to the nearby water reservoir to clean themselves for the day to come. Crusty eyes blinked against the brightening night sky as the night shift switched with the day guards and stained steel clattered as shinobi and kunoichi alike polished their armour and weapons.
It was almost incomprehensible that Yumiko got to stumble as far into the camp as she did, even if she was dressed in Kumo-clothes of a scout they had caught half an hour ago. Really- did no one question her glassy eyes or uncoordinated movements? They must have thought her another sleepy comrade trying to get awake on that cold morning.
Their attack was perfectly coordinated with the explosion going off halfway up the camp- he really needed to congratulate Jiro with that masterpiece of a seal when they were done with this. Koguma had known it would happen and still it managed to nearly throw him off his feet with its sheer force.
Shinobi distracted by the blinding light and rumbling blast didn't even notice as they jumped at them- it was like cutting through stalks with a sickle. Only slowly did their targets recognise that the attack wasn't actually coming from the centre of the crater left by the explosion, but rather from the direction of the pass.
Susumu's gen-jutsu worked in perfect tandem of those of the Uchiha, making entire groups freeze still in their spots and giving Asa and Naoaki the chance to burn them down. The Hatake's summons snarled as they jumped through the crowd, tearing off limbs and heads alike, their mouths sticky with blood and hair. Koguma kawarimied from one spot to the next- either cutting down opponents with his uncle's kodachi, or jumping in to save his men from any unexpected attacks.
They cut a path of death, panic and destruction halfway through camp, before finally the opposing captains and commanders managed to coordinate their men and women.
When he saw that an entire wall of shinobi were getting ready to blast them off the face of the earth, he took up position beside the Uchiha already flying through the hand seals and joined their deep breaths- a massive wall of fire raced down onto their opponents, hissing and steaming as it either met water jutsu, the snow covering the ground or streams of lightning. Using the cloak of the disturbed and mucky air, he broke off his jutsu first and jumped at the opponents waiting, his kodachi raised high.
And as the dust and steam blew away with a gust of wind, the Kumo forces' gaze hushed from his shadowed form flying through the air, illuminated by the morning sun from behind, to the sheer masses of other Konoha platoons finally joining them- their silence was more eerie than any roar could have ever been.
It was a goddamn massacre.
He was too late to save the kid's left half of his face from getting fried by a lightning jutsu, but at least he was still alive. Shame about that sharingan of his though. Behind him Genkai snarled as he jumped at the Kumo-shinobi looking on in disbelieve upon his sudden arrival- the shock didn't disperse as his head rolled across the ground.
"Eniko," Genkai whispered as he cradled the youth against his chest. Koguma blocked the kunai coming flying at them and moved on to take down more opponents. He had seen Naoaki's enraged face through the crowd- he would take care of them.
His nostrils flared when he had just cut a man in half, and turned around to block the half-hearted attack coming at him. Steel clashed upon steel, making sparks fly.
"Kogu-kun."
"Yasashiko." They paused, both taking in the exhausted and bloody figure of the other. "I won't fight you."
"Neither will I," his cousin replied. "You look like shit- you need to get that cut taken care of or you'll bleed to death." He gave a pointy look at his left sleeve soaked in deep red blood.
"Didn't you learn your lesson from the Kitsune?" He nodded at the ugly slash across Yasashiko's skull, some of his intricate braids cut off. It bled freely onto the messy scar already adorning the right side of his face. "You must be getting old."
"Says you- you've got more white than brown on your head now."
"New trend. I'm only imitating our lovely hokage."
His cousin snorted and they finally dropped their weapons from each other and shared melancholic smiles. "Shame about those peace talks not working out, eh? Take care, Kogu."
"Take care, Yasashiko. Retreat should the battle go in our favour. I don't want to see your ugly mug again." They both disappeared to fight another fight not a second later.
He appeared just in time to drag his stumbling brother away from an opponent twice his size barraging him with fierce tai-jutsu. His own bones sang as the man's leg connected with his lower arm and he could feel his scars stretch taunt underneath the assault. Susumu used the opportunity and cut his leg off with an exhausted swing from his katana- the shinobi's screeching only ended when Koguma drove his sword into his chest.
"Thanks," Susumu panted, shortly swaying on his legs. Koguma hastily grabbed him by his shoulder to stabilize him.
"Everything alright?"
"Peachy. Just a tad tired, is all."
He let his beady eyes scan the mess around them. "We're almost there."
"How can you know?"
"We're not the only ones growing tired." With a swing, he pulled his brother behind his back and stopped the attack of another opponent with his blade. With a kick, he drove him backwards and twisted around his axis to escape a low-level earth-jutsu racing at him- it hit the first opponent in his face instead. The kunoichi was panting as she tried focusing on him and Susumu, her fingers shaking with the strain to form yet another array of seals- a gust of wind sent her flying off into the crowd.
"Danzo."
"Koguma." The man's eyes were blown wide and he looked almost haunted as his gaze wouldn't stop flittering across their surroundings. A nasty cut adorned his chin and had soaked the front of his uniform in blood. "Have you seen Hiruzen or Kagami?"
The clang of steel rang in his ears as he blocked kunai coming flying at them. His grip was surely bruising as he pulled Danzo out of the way of a wooden pole smashing down where he stood. With a sharp tug at the weapon, he made the attacker stumble right into the reach of his sword- he died choking on his own blood.
"Not recently- I saw them maybe," he spared a glance at the position of the sun hanging rather low in the sky. "An hour? Two? ago down closer to the pass."
Danzo leaned down onto his upper thighs. He looked close to a panic attack with his erratic panting and shaking limbs. "How did you do it?" he croaked. "I nearly wanted to kill Hiruzen for volunteering-"
"Susumu-" But his brother was faster and already kneeling in front of the collapsing man. He cradled his face and forced him to look him in the eyes.
"Pull yourself together, man. I mean, Kogu just does these things because he's a stupid impulsive idiot. Nothing more, no thoughts to it. Come on, breathe in. Breathe out." He repeated his breathing exercise with the Shimura until it didn't look like he would faint on them anymore, while Koguma kept all attackers at bay.
"Get off me!" Danzo snarled suddenly and slabbed Susumu's hands from his face. With wobbly knees he got back on his feet and was gone in a shunshin a second later.
"The hell-" his brother whispered as he joined him to cut down more shinobi racing at them.
"Probably some deeper issues going on there-" Koguma mumbled between clenched teeth as he snapped a man's neck.
He grew numb at some point, his movements automatic and detached. No true thought behind it anymore- disarm, bring them down, cut to kill- disarm, bring them down, cut to kill- slash, cut, stab.
He snarled when pain radiated up from his upper thigh- with the back of his hand he slapped the kunoichi standing behind him away, making her tumble across the ground. With grinding teeth he pulled the kunai out of his flesh, the pain making him shortly stumble. Before he could even consider limping at her, a massive gust of water swept past him- with the numb fingers of his left arm, he grabbed his brother by his collar and pulled him out of its path.
It seems the hokage was finally getting fed up with the whole ordeal and wanted to end the fighting. The last Kumo forces finally dropped their weapons upon seeing the onslaught and their comrades drown in the frosty landscape.
It was finally done with.
Warm arms wrapped around his waist as Susumu pulled him close to his side. "Fuck, we did it Kogu."
"Language."
"I don't give a shit." They shared tired grins before Koguma lowered his face and pressed his nose into his brother's bloody hair. Bird of prey, indeed.
"We made it," he confirmed. "You did well."
"Pah." His sturdy hands squeezed at his side. "Only because you had my back."
"Always." He leaned back from him and twisted out of his embrace, hiding his stumble in a move to pick up a kunai. "Find those of our squad still standing-"
"Going to find Kama, are ya?" Koguma took in a deep breath of the air- it tasted like blood, fear and death. It made him slightly nauseous. "Will you be sharing bedrolls from now on?" Still he didn't react and closed his eyes to try and keep control over the light feeling spreading in his head. The sky was steely and growing darker as the sun started to set opposite the pass.
"I would need to find a new tent," his brother ventured cautiously.
"First, find our squad." He didn't wait for him to reply, instead sheathed his sword and made his way through the battle field.
There wasn't much left of the massive campsite. The crater Jiro's explosion had left was now filled with water and ghostly figures lying face down inside it. The tents were but dark smudges in the muddy snow, either burned or trampled down during fights. Left and right, Konoha shinobi were either taking opponents prisoners, searching for loved ones or looking for lost limbs.
He had to stop at a large boulder standing in the middle of the field and lean against it. The world had started to tilt slightly out of balance and his legs felt weirdly numb. He slid down against the rough stone and landed into the soft snow with a groan. Looking down at the blood soaked cloth covering his left arm, he remembered his cousin's warning- it seemed blood loss was getting at him now that the adrenaline wore off. A few heartbeats later, he let himself plonk down onto his back into the snow and stared up into the sky. The urge to yawn was getting ridiculously hard to ignore. His eyes were weighing down and he felt exhausted to the bones.
He hadn't even noticed that he had closed his eyes until he heard a chocked whimper and shaky fingers pressed down against the left side of his throat.
"Not dead yet," he mumbled. A shuddering exhale met his words and the hand moved to stroke his skin instead.
"Shit, Kogu, don't scare me like that." Kama's voice waved with ebbing terror.
"Just felt like taking a nap." Silence met his weak attempt at a joke. When he opened his eyes Kama stared right back at him- the man looked positively spooked. Maybe he should have made more of an effort to stay awake. "I think I might need Ite."
"I think you do," Kama replied and tried sending him a reassuring smile. It came out rather wobbly. Instead of answering, Koguma reached out with his right hand and got rewarded by Kama helping him sit upright. The snow had been getting rather cold. He held him by his elbow and back of his neck to help him stabilise himself and Koguma reached out with his right arm to fist his hand into his silvery hair.
As he locked eyes with Kama, a slow smile spread on his lips- the worry and fear still shining in the hooded grey made his heart swell and head feel weirdly soft.
With a hum he leaned forward and kissed him.
It was different this time. For a moment Kama seemed taken by surprise, not reacting at all and only upon Koguma's pushing did his lips part. And when he tried to take lead like he had the day before, Koguma tugged at his hair and rebuked him with a short snarl before he deepened the kiss in his own pace. A throaty moan answered his action and Kama was perfectly compliant after that. The man almost whined when he broke off the kiss.
"You taste like blood," Koguma murmured, languidly licking across his own lips. Hooded eyes followed the movement and a tremor raced through Kama's body.
"I tried to steal your trick and tear someone's throat out."
A pleased grin spread onto Koguma's lips upon hearing his husky voice. "And how did that go for you?"
Kama smirked as he let his tongue travel across his sharp canines still stained red. "Messy. I'm sure it worked better with those fangs of yours."
"We'll probably need to find out, won't we?"
"Fucking hell, Kogu-" Kama breathed, his cheeks turning a blotchy red. His equally nervous and excited shuffling that followed made Koguma lose his balance. They shared exhausted chuckles when he swayed and had to bump their temples together to not fall over. "Please tell me that's not just blood loss making you talk like that."
Koguma simply started kissing him again.
He was so done with fighting against wanting this.
They didn't even notice a frowning Susumu observing them somewhat offside and squad five, squealing like teenagers, collected behind him.