Finally, I'm back with another chapter! I hope you will enjoy it. All that fighting definitely was a challenge to write. Nackmu is helping me correcting this story, but if you see any errors it be awesome to point them out for me. Thanks to all those who reviewed, I appreciate it a ton! Arigatou!
Ah and: This is still a work of FanFiction, characters and world don't belong to me.
Chapter 3 Recognition
"You and I are flesh and blood. I'm always going to be there for you, even if it's only as an obstacle for you to overcome. Even if you do hate me. That's what big brothers are for."
-Uchiha Itachi
"Are you sure you want to make that move?" Playing Shogi with Shikamaru had proven to be a challenge Sasuke enjoyed. This man didn't seem to mind his silence, he complained about it being "troublesome" at times, but it seemed more out of habit than any real bother. Sasuke lost the match and felt reminded of a time when he used to play with his elder brother, who didn't spare him either. Shikamaru turned out to be a brilliant strategist and Sasuke found himself wondering how he and Itachi would get along.
After playing some matches, Sasuke took his leave and finally headed to the public library. He was eager to learn about the common knowledge concerning the massacre these days. Soon he sat down at a table, opening a book about Konoha's history.
According to the writing, the tragedy had stricken the Uchiha clan at one single night. His clan. It had happened without any warning. Everyone had just been gone the next day and the other villagers looking for his clan had found the Uchiha district in flames. The fire, black in colour, all over the district. It had burned through the night without drawing anyone's attention. Its source could not be detected, nor could the flames be extinguished. At some point later that day it had stopped though. Just like that. No sign of what had caused or quenched it. It was guessed that the initiator had run out of chakra and/or died, but all of that was just theory.
Reading the passage, Sasuke couldn't help but remember the night. How his brother had held him close, refusing to let go. How he had dragged him away from the sight of his life burning to the ground. How Itachi had repeated the words he had said the day before it all happened.
"I'm always going to be there for you,… even if you do hate me..."
Taking a deep breath Sasuke continued reading: Once the Konohanians had been able to enter the compound… after the fire had cooled down and all, apparently not much had been left. The fire had spread from the clan head's house in the center and had turned everything to mere ashes. No bodies were found near where the fire had broken out. It had probably destroyed them all. In those areas spared by the flames, all corpses were found stricken down by blade. It was one of the cold cases in Konoha's history. There were speculations that it might have been caused by some internal quarrel of the Uchiha. No organisation, nor person had ever claimed the massacre to be their doing, and no Sharingan-user had ever appeared afterwards either. Later, the clan was considered extinct from then on.
Sasuke shut the third book he had been consulting, put it back on its shelf and left the building.
He'd gotten the information he wanted. The more detailed history books got it fairly well, except one thing: Some had were just in hiding and him being one of them obliged him to be extra careful in this village. Even after eight years, if they had seen it before, people would still be bound to recognize a Sharingan. Good thing he was always very diligent when using it. He decided to go to the Hokage Monument. Up there, he held the practice sword, as if it would give him comfort. Anger built up once more and for the first time after his return to Konoha, he purposefully sought out the Uchiha district with his eyes. Or rather what was left of it, angry at Itachi and his vague answers.
For peace, Itachi had said. For peace he had slaughtered his own family. He'd claimed, that it had been the only way… that more lives would have been lost, had he let them live. Not once had he denied to be their murderer.
At first his younger self had been so very angry. The grief about the loss was too much to handle for a child. Often Itachi had had to hold him in a tight grip, while Sasuke struggled and fought until he'd tired himself out. Itachi never had complained, he only had said, that it had been to protect his little brother too. Itachi had borne the loathing, the hatred, all the lashing out. He'd borne it simply, without fighting back. He still set ground rules; he still raised him. He taught Sasuke to fight, but he never denied, nor tried to get close, when Sasuke's trust in him so obviously had shattered.
Sasuke remembered, he'd calmed down within a year. Itachi was the only family he had left, and though he trained him relentlessly, outside of that, he never rose a hand on him. He only ever looked at him with that awful hollow gaze. And sometimes, at night, probably when Itachi thought he was asleep, he could see his older brother sit next to the dying fire, staring into the night. Silent tears were running down his cheeks, glinting in the moonlight. And Sasuke knew, he could not understand what Itachi truly was. Maybe he never would.
Itachi didn't pretend, but his way of being still made no sense. He was tainted by his family's blood, the stains darker than the night. He appeared cold and distant, barely human. Most of the time at least. But then there were moments like these, when the shell cracked and revealed this fragile something. It wasn't anything like the loving brother he remembered. It was the guilt ridden appearance of an old man in a body too young, that had faced and fought the cruelty of living too early, for too long. It was the appearance of a child, tired of life. Lost in a world that had forced him to retreat deep inside, so much he'd forgotten how to be true to himself. The face of indifference he wore every day may have been a lie just as much as it may have been his way of living. His only way to deal with reality every day.
Itachi felt pain; he knew what he'd done. It was obvious that Itachi was not what Sasuke sometimes made him be in his mind. It wasn't that simple as to define him only through the actions of that one day when he'd made Sasuke's world crash down.
He wasn't a madman, nor simply the murderer of their family. He was also a victim, probably even more so than Sasuke himself. That he had indeed loved his family. That his reasons must have been pretty severe. And that he was breaking anew, every single day because of what he'd done. Dying slowly… unrelentingly.
Sasuke, who just now noticed that he'd been walking. His feet had unconsciously led the way until he stood in front of the gate, which had once signified the Uchiha compound. The land behind it had been declared another training ground. It was still littered with ruins, halfway overgrown and painfully bare at places where the earth had not yet recovered to produce fruitful soil.
Mechanically Sasuke lifted a hand to open the gate, entering slowly. The terrain lay deserted, the ruins looked haunted, no trace of recent human activity to be found. Sasuke supposed people avoided this place if they could help it. His heart was beating hard, he would never have dared to come here if he had to tell Sakura about it. But now that she had left on a mission, this place, where his childhood had begun and ended, it pulled him in like a moth to a flame. Debris and weed covered the ground, but the layout was still ingrained in his brain. This place has once been his home. His slow steps never wavered as they retraced the way to where their house had stood.
The faded street recalled memories. Itachi's silent panting as he pulled him along that night. And the tears of blood when he had activated the ultimate fire technique, Amaterasu, the black fire.
Sasuke stared at a monument, standing where their house had once stood and might have shivered. Pulling his white loose shirt tight, he took a step back. Wrapped around him like that, his old clothing was a strange comfort at this unwelcoming place.
He raised his hand and retraced the kanji for his clan's symbol that was engraved into the memorial. In the middle, a small insignia described his family's rise and fall in brief words like an ordinary tourist information. The other three sides of the monument were listed with the names of all victims. His own was there too, so was Itachi's.
Itachi, whose only wish had been to live a peaceful life; Forever denied to his brother, who had borne the hatred and who accepted him back, when he began to see reason. His Aniki, whom Sasuke terribly missed.
But Sasuke hadn't come to this place to drown in grief. This was a training ground now, so he might as well use it as one. Thus, he turned away from the uncomfortable memories and started with some to overpower himself, he ignored his exhaustion, as usual. He welcomed any distraction from his emotions. He all but collapsed on the ground late at night.
The next days he was either training, doing further research about the political situation back then, holding out an eye about anything that could indicate his brother's whereabouts and occasionally playing Shogi with this guy, Shikamaru.
What Sasuke didn't know was, that someone was watching him; not all the time of course, but occasionally. He didn't realize he'd had awoken that persons interest, otherwise he'd been more aware.
00000
Team Seven's trip was uneventful at first. It was actually a series of missions in one. They were traveling for three days, infiltrating some areas less under control of the Kage and therefore more so involved in rogue ninja business. Gathering information on the current status of things, if possible, they would also do some high paying missions to gain an extra fund for Konoha. One evening in the inn, Sakura finally managed to catch Sai alone in their team's room.
"Sai?" He looked up from his sketchbook. "May I ask you a question?" Sai laid the pen down and looked at her expectantly. The gesture showed her that she had his full attention.
"You and Tatakai, how…?" She paused, what did she want to ask exactly?
"Sakura, I read that friendship is built on trust. And as I intend to keep that friendship. Whatever you want to know about my new friend, I'm afraid you have to find it out on your own."
"But he agreed to be your friend!?" She waited for an answer but he didn't provide her with one. If Sai didn't want to or didn't think it be important for her to know, he wouldn't dislodge any information. Being sure about that so far, she turned to the wall and tried to sleep. She really should stop thinking about Tatakai now. She had a mission to accomplish and needed to be top fit for it.
00000
The next morning found her and Sai individually and with their own skills to go gather intelligence. Sai, being a user of the ink-Jutsu, sent out some mice. The small rodents weren't of flesh and blood but chakra-based ink. They could serve him as an extended arm or, as in this case, aerials, sending information about pictures or sounds to him from a place beyond his physical presence.
Sakura went to town as a healer. People always got chatty when you do them a favor - and there wasn't a greater favor than releasing someone from their pain. Sakura knew that.
For his part, Naruto had stationed himself at the counter, knowing the worth of the exchange of information that happened in such places. And it didn't take long before he got into a first conversation. It never did. He was a magnet for casual chat, that was his talent.
Kakashi in the meanwhile had an interesting encounter.
The silver haired teamleader was walking towards the somewhat hidden "Mission Office", one of the places where roque ninjas could offer their services or where one could collect payment for a mission completed. Kakashi had to wait at the entrance hall until the current clients were finished. Finally he heard chairs creak, the door opened and two guys emerged. One of them wore a mask, just like him; The other had gray, gelled-back hair. The gray-haired one loudly talked to his companion, who made a quite pissed off expression. Kakashi observed them from the tail of his eye, pretending to study an information board on the wall. Both of them, even though they were definitely suppressing their chakra, had a distinct dangerous aura about them. But what stroke him most was not the invisible aura, it was their clothing. Both wore long black cloaks with a pattern of huge, deep red clouds, edged in white. He'd only heard about one group that had worn such cloaks a long time ago. Kakashi thought they had pulled a great army down with their fall. What were they called again? He couldn't quite remember. So some apparently had survived… He had to inform the Hokage about this.
When the two strangers had left through the front door, and Kakashi realized belatedly that he'd held his breath. He was called into the office.
"Finally" He let out a sigh and took a seat. The room was slightly dusty and had paper stacked in neat piles on the desk. More scrolls were stuffed onto shelves all around the walls.
"So, you'd like to know about available missions and ransoms?"
"Yes, please."
"Well, there are plenty C and B ranked missions left. The A-ranked ones just got taken. Except of course the open ones, those are 'first come first serve'..."
"Interesting clients, you have." Kakashi said while looking around.
"Ah yeah, that would be Hidan and Kakuzu. They have one hell of a mission record, wouldn't want to mess with them. The first is way too cheery and the other way too greedy, scary combination, I tell ya."
"Haven't seen those cloaks for a long while."
"The cloaks? I wouldn't know much about it, and besides, I don't gossip too much about my clients."
"Of course, you don't… Were they the ones taking care of all A-ranked missions?"
"Hm… Maybe..."
"And all the high paying ones too, I assume?" Even if the employee hadn't had such a miserable pokerface, Kakashi would have know by now. He had an excellent sense of when people were lying or simply hiding information from him. During his exclusive training, he'd been taught in interrogation methods, which were more subtle than breaking every single bone a human body provides. Over the years, Kakashi had refined those techniques and aligned them to his own style.
"Not quite, no." The man lied cheerfully, directly to his face.
"Well, frankly spoken, I'm not looking for any mission below A-ranked ones." Kakashi said, getting up.
"I'm really sorry we couldn't help you, Sir" The man said, getting up as well, wringing his hands. Not being able to fulfill a service his client, he was truly upset. Poor man.
"No, it's my fault getting to you so late in the day. I should have known by myself." Besides, you did help me, Kakashi added in silence. Maybe his team wouldn't get the kind of mission here he was aiming for, but that short visit would still be a long report to write without it.
In the evening the four ninjas sat together back in the inn and gathered what they had found out.
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Sasuke was not just tired, no. Exhaustion caused him to tremble, the effort he'd put into the workout bringing him to his limits. He'd been going at it for the whole morning, the painful memories of the new training field driving him forward. He indeed had found that this "training field" was pretty much abandoned. It was more a maze of overgrown ruins and wild nature than an former residential district now. Occasionally, when there was nothing specific in view, Sasuke could almost think he was back in the woods with Itachi, free and unbound.
But somehow, this only fed on his anger. On shaky legs he got up, to go through the sequence once more with the sword. He was panting, trying not to fall. Just once more. His blows lacked in strength and his body ached a lot without the daily healing sessions Sakura performed on him. He hadn't trained that much, had he? But after having the Kunoichi to heal him for some days in a row, he'd completely miscalculated his actual limits… Of course he'd been able to do thrice as long as before capture. He just wasn't in shape at all.
Unsteady legs brought him back to the street the apartment was in. Back inside, he scrambled some eggs. While waiting for them to roast, he ate a tomato, savoring its taste. One of the greatest things about being in charge of the food: He could have as many tomatoes as he wanted. He could even choose them on his own by their color, size and smell in the store. He could decide when to get which to eat. And he could repeat this relish as often as he liked. The luxury of simplicity.
While eating his eggs, he had nothing to do but chewing, so he started looking around the kitchen. It was as clean as it had been when he had arrived, as was the rest of her place actually. In his mind it arose an older question again. One that, without ever being formed into words, had bothered him ever since he'd woken up in this apartment: He wasn't needed here.
She obviously was an organized person and had been able to take care of everything in here without a problem. He was sure about that because she'd pointed all assigned places out for him. She knew perfectly well about every cleaning utensil and their usage. And from the banter with her friends he'd even learned that she was on leave from her work in the hospital. Thus, this woman didn't lack time to do all these things on her own, either. So, why get a slave? Why get him?
All he'd seen her doing was read, and medical books at that. Oh, and she insisted on healing him all the time. Irritated about rather being used as a healing dummy than a simple, normal housekeeper, he shoved the remaining eggs into his mouth and got up to clean the plate and pan. He hadn't agreed to that. Playing a house-elf was one thing, but how far would the study of his physics go? What if she'd insist on examining his eyes one day? He couldn't let her do that. He had to think of something... He shook his head to clear his thoughts. That was something he still could think about later.
Already, he was itching to train again, but he knew, he'd better give his body some more rest. Otherwise he probably wouldn't be able to move at all tomorrow. Angry about not being able to distract through physical activity, he entered the living room. Grabbing a few of the medical books he'd borrowed from her, he sat down to read.
He'd find something to reduce the ache in his muscles on his own, finally. If he was able to find a way to "heal" himself, he'd be more independent from Sakura, plus she would have less arguments to "check his body", or his eyes.
00000
Sakura sat on her bed in the inn's room. Sai was already out and she somehow felt alone. Nothing to do at the moment, nothing interesting to read, she let her thoughts fly. It was no surprise when they sneaked to that good-looking taboo subject of hers, now living with her in Konoha. She wondered what Tatakai was up to right now.
She looked over at Sai's empty cot. The early morning usually called him out to draw and she missed the presence of another human being, of simple company. It wasn't that her team wasn't good friends. It was just… she found no words for whatever was bugging her. She just didn't want to be alone right now. It had been that way ever since her parents had passed, though she refused to think about them too closely.
She thought about Tatakai's quiet presence in her living quarters, slightly grasping onto the thought, that Sai really had been the first one to befriend him. Though to her, Sai's exclamation still wasn't fully proven. What had Sai done right to crack that shell of distance and silence where she had failed? Had they even talked? Sai's answer seemed to suggest it, though she just couldn't imagine it somehow. Why was she thinking about this anyway? It was all fine the way it was now. She couldn't expected to just become friends with someone she'd bought, someone she literally "owned".
Reluctantly she got up from the bed and checked her clock. They'd meet up in half an hour and then head off again. So she'd better push the subject to the back of her mind and face the current challenge: their mission.
00000
"So, where did we let off yesterday?" Kakashi asked into the circle. His eyes looked small and a little tired, as they mostly did in the morning, but one should not be fooled. The ninja was always present with all his senses, whether he was reading, sleeping or just looking tired.
Naruto continued to explain what he had learned from several locals and strangers in the bar. After his recite, they resumed that it contained much information about everything and anything, but nothing specific enough to help their mission (much to Naruto's disappointment). After that, Kakashi told them about his discoveries in the Mission's Office:
"All high paying missions were taken already, most likely by two guys with black cloaks with red clouds. I don't remember the organization's name behind that insignia, but it highly worries me that they still seem to exist ... So if anyone sees one of these cloaks, retreat and tell me immediately. Don't even try to talk to them! Just avoid contact. Those or no candidates to try new things. You'd lose, that's for sure."
00000
The notes on the sidelines of the book he was reading had taken Sasuke's interest pretty quickly. It was very informative to follow them. Many notes were quite factual, though there were some quirky ones, too. On one page, there was a formula, and below there in thick letters just one word: failed. According to her notes it had been tested on Sai and was a recipe to some nourishment pill. Apparently it had made him sick which she had approved with a huge "!" and Sai's claim for it to be unbearable in flavor, was challenged with doubt if Sai was even capable of judging taste. Her remarks caused Sasuke to snort.
Sasuke also found handwritten alternatives next to several plants and their abilities and where to find them. She even had left page numbers for further information, either within the book or more likely in others, too! That woman really was organized. Worse: she was a maniac; Acribique. He shook his head. It was insane. He grabbed another book, moving on, just to… more notes.
Another reference. He stared at it. A cooking book, seriously? Well, that one caught his interest and he got up again. Sasuke hadn't had need of one before, here, but could easily guess where to find cooking books in a maniac's house: He went to the kitchen, searched through the cupboards. He picked out the one mentioned, walked back to the table, sat down and started flipping through it in expectation.
But this book was also full of notes!? Seriously? Apparently she was a cook, too… So, why the hell did she need a slave? It couldn't be just healing, she worked in a made no sense. It was so ridiculous in fact, he refused to even consider it. It wasn't like slave's went out of their way to get injuries.. and she couldn't have known he'd go off training like that! And his health was quite alright now, and visibly so, well, ignoring the fact that he was still a bit underweight…
Sasuke gave up trying to think about a riddle he couldn't solve alone. As long as he could keep her away from his eyes, she was no threat. He'd better just continue his observation on her and her true intentions silently and at daily base. What had he been looking up in the beginning anyway? Right, he had wanted to find out some alternative way to treat his soreness and he'd been lead to quite a bunch. He supposed, he'd be on the lookout for herbs in the future.
00000
Shikamaru took a stroll through the village. He'd occasionally been observing the new addition to Sakura's household, though it had been troublesome. The first day that guy had disappeared into the public library, not very interesting. Shikamaru decided to leave him be and check up on him sometime later in the evening. But Tatakai'd never returned to Sakura's apartment that night.
The following days, the slave had repeatedly led him to a location that Shikamaru was totally unprepared to visit again. The guy had entered the gate to a training ground, avoided by anyone he knew. It was the setting of a massacre about a decade ago and no one felt comfortable to train in such a sad place. However, as Shikamaru witnessed the rigorous training the object of his observation undertook, he supposed that, for someone with no relations to this very place, it was the perfect spot to train in peace. The guy certainly had received ninja training, that much was clear.
Soon Shikamaru started to notice that the visits of his charge to the public library not only were constant. On some local investigation, Shikamaru found out that no book had ever been picked up twice. Looked like he was a very attentive reader. Moreover, all books consulted had been about the politics of the past 20 years. Just then, Shikamaru realized having left the guy in the library that first time and tracing the very first subject of his research would have been an ideal opportunity to get the information he needed now. Knowing that first subject could have been a valuable clue to get deeper into the head of his target and there was a taste of regret in not having tried to catch it.
Shikamaru dropped by at Sakura's apartment a few times, challenging Tatakai for a play of Shogi, as his opponent never once searched him out. But these visits had been as quiet as all of their interactions. Tatakai literally always had his guard up, face expressionless. His play was intelligent, making the matches enjoyably challenging. Though it also made Shikamaru wary of what this guy was scheming about, not so much at Shogi but in real life.
The most surprising change in the Shinobi's research was presented to him one day when he got into Sakura's home without an appointment. The moment he opened the door, he felt like entering an entire new world. Usually vacant areas as tables, chairs, shelves etc., everything but the ground was covered with herbs. Someone had laid them out, most likely to dry them. As he passed into the living room he saw hundreds of leaves hanging in midair all across the place. A closer look told him it was ninja-wire that had been spanned. Even Sakura who was a medical ninja had never brought it to that extend. The place looked more like a jungle in autumn than a living room. Curious. Very curious.
Even stranger: Tatakai laid amongst them, passed out, or sleeping, he couldn't tell. He noted a cooking book next to the slave, as well as some of Sakura's volumes of herbs. Laying there, Tatakai even looked a bit healthier than weeks ago. He obviously had gained some weight. He must have started some kind of self-treatment through Sakura's medical books.
Tatakai's absence that initial night when Shikamaru had first been assigned by Sakura to keep an eye on him still bothered him though. He indeed wondered how he could manage to get that man to spill anything clue-worthy, or really to any talk at all.
00000
One sunday afternoon found Sasuke taking a stroll through the school grounds of the academy, where he'd gone to school, long ago. Leaning against the gate post, he stared at the swing which hung there momentarily abandoned. Last time he'd been here, he'd been eight and his world still complete. The swing... he vaguely remembered a blond boy... often sitting there, alone. And once again it reminded him that all his family and friends from back then were all gone now. Angrily he passed the playground and quickly entered the building.
The hallways were empty of people, but the far wall was showing off a series of framed pictures. He moved closer, seeing that each frame held a dated group picture of academy students. It dawned to him that he might find some people he used to know on there, and quickened his step.
Indeed, there was Shisui and his classmates! He'd almost forgotten how his cousin looked like. He stared at that one specific photograph for some time, before moving on. A few classes later, his elder brother, Itachi, joined this hall of fame. His appearance of course younger than Sasuke remembered, but it was his brother, nonetheless. He stared at the picture until he had it permanently burned into his memory. Somehow it was painful to see an actual visual of him. Especially one taken before the day that had changed their lives forever.
The display of the former, the good Itachi didn't miss its effect on Sasuke: Memories came rushing back, memories he'd pushed back for years, innocent ones, of them playing in the backyard, of Itachi listening calmly when Sasuke ranted of how boring the academy hours were, of his brother tending to him when Sasuke was sick, despite their father's orders. In all these years, Itachi had never changed the way he treated Sasuke, even later when it was just the two of them... Those memories hadn't fit a clan-killing brother, they still didn't.
Sasuke honestly couldn't understand his brother, things just didn't add up. He'd ignored them most of the times. But in moments like these, they stood out in his mind like a stark white on a black background. He forced himself to move on. And there it was, the picture of his eight year old self, standing in the second row to the right.
Eyes wandering over his former classmates, he froze when he recognized the pink haired girl. She'd been in his class?!… How had he failed to recognize her? He looked closer, blond hair captured his attention, the boy from the sling, right next to her. That boy… was Naruto! God, who else had he missed?
Searching for more familiar faces, Sasuke started looking for Sai, but couldn't find him, he however found Shikamaru. Sai then, oh well, at least one person he didn't have a shared past. Good thing it had been the apparent newbie, who got him to talk.
How much did he still look like the little boy he'd been? If he hadn't recognized anyone of them, would they?
The sound of a door opening somewhere in the building made him freeze at the very place he was standing for a split second. But Sasuke quickly regained his casual poise. Steps echoed the corridor he was in, becoming louder. The person came around the corner, entering his hallway. He tried to keep cool and naturally turned his head to throw a glance… Shit! He recognized the person quite immediately in the fluorescent light. The distinctive scar over his nose: That was Iruka, his former Sensei. This was no good. Sasuke hid his eyes below his bangs and turned to leave.
"Hey you, wait! What are you doing here?" Sasuke lifted his head, not daring to use the Sharingan even for a flash moment. He only stared at Iruka through his bangs. When Iruka got no answer, he got slightly pissed. Then a flash of confusion crossed his face.
"Hmm,… should I know you? You seem familiar somehow …" Sasuke held the gaze forging a mask of impassiveness. He couldn't afford to slip up right now. This guy knew Uchiha and Sasuke clearly looked like one.
Suddenly, he felt another chakra signature, a familiar one. He heard the front door open.
"Tatakai? Are you in here?" Shikamaru was poking his head through a door. Sasuke turned to him and their eyes met. The Nara asked: "Up for a spar?"
"Hn" Sasuke lost no time to follow the opportunity presented and made his way to escape from Iruka, even though he wasn't really feeling social towards Shikamaru either. That was how they found themselves walking side by side away from the school grounds, neither sure where they were going.
"Your usual place?"
"Hn"
He realized too late that Shikamaru waited for him to take the lead. He obviously was in trouble: Where should he go now? And what did Shikamaru consider his 'usual place'? The Hokage monument or the training grounds over at the old Uchiha district? For how long had he been spied on? Breathing in, he focused on calming down, he was probably just overreacting. Why would anyone suspect him of anything? Even if anyone knew that he had ninja training, which should be quite official by now through the training session he had with Sai. He'd done nothing suspicious, hadn't he?
Oh well, there was no reason for them not to go to the Uchiha compound. He wasn't known as Konohanian but as a slave from unknown origins, who had changed owners more times than he dared to count. It would be more suspicious not to go now. So he lead the way.
00000
"Interesting choice, but I suppose it's peaceful to train here." Shikamaru commented calmly when they approached the gate of the former Uchiha district. He watched Tatakai's reaction attentively. It was almost nonexistent, but still there. He stored it at the back of his mind, looking forward to pick up more of those little puzzle pieces to put together a behavioral profile, eventually...
One would have thought that a life without talking would lead to distinctive body language as a means of communication, but Tatakai just didn't seem interested in communicating much at all. Shikamaru was still musing over the thought, when Sasuke suddenly stopped walking. Without much warning, Shikamaru's instincts told him to move. It had been a simple Kunai, but the attack had been quick and hard to trace. Shikamaru countered with throwing a Kunai as well, followed by kicking and blocking.
The use of chakra introduced itself slowly but naturally into their fight. That was when Shikamaru decided to take the next step.
"Do you know why everyone avoids this training ground?", he asked panting slightly. The change of mimic, it almost reminded him of anger, but he just couldn't make sense of that and he was given no time to think about it more, because his opponent slammed his foot right into his chest, sending Shikamaru crashing into a nearby tree. Coughing he got up.
"Uh troublesome. I was just trying to make conversation..." Instead of a verbal response, Shikamaru was quickly attacked again. However this time, he was prepared. He blocked and kicked the slave's chin which made him stumble backwards. Tatakai's mouth had turned into a thin line which told Shikamaru that he had hit the right spot. He didn't let him out of his sight as the other regained balance. Tatakai held eye contact as well. Visibly annoyed, he slowly drew his sword. He subtly raised his other hand, holding it over the blade and came to a stop. It was a neutral position, ready to defend or attack at whim.
Shikamaru felt that something about the fight had changed. The atmosphere was different now. It had gotten more serious, even though his sparring partner was hardly readable as it was. Shikamaru's instincts were telling him that something was weird… The other simply seemed to wait now, irritatingly so. So, what was his strategy? Shikamaru knew he was missing something obvious, but he couldn't put his finger on it.. The other was a good strategist, but even though a Shogi board could tell a lot about a person's way of thinking, it usually was accompanied by additional information like through a conversation and body language. But both these resources were very reduced here.
Shikamaru construed that it was nearly impossible to tell the skill set or mindset of this individual currently. He was still tapping in the dark. The limited information he had allowed him to only do momentary steps, adjusting constantly as he went. This wasn't how he usually did things. His strength was thinking ahead, not improvising. That was Naruto's cup.
"You looked up quite a lot in Konoha's public library! Our city's history is an interesting choice." As Shikamaru didn't expect to get an actual verbal answer, he slowly took out another Kunai, still keeping his eyes trained on his opponent. He didn't want to reveal his shadow technique yet, however this change of atmosphere definitely made him wary. If Tatakai turned out to be no danger to Konoha, he could be a worthy asset. Even though a slave, he seemed to wear nothing restraining his chakra, which probably had to do with Sakura, but still. His instincts drove Shikamaru to be more on guard with this man. His interest in Konoha's history was weird. No one knew his intentions yet and he seemed a master at hiding things. It was doubtful that he was a spy, as there had been no predicting that he'd be bought by Sakura and such. But whether this man was well-disposed towards Konoha or not, Shikamaru couldn't tell. How was he supposed to find that out?
"What were you looking up?" Again no reaction. Sword raised, the other only waited.
Why was this slave so interested in their village? What was he looking for? The local public library only held non classified generic information, nothing that could be used against Konoha. Could there be any hidden information written down in the records? But they were meant for the public eye, considered safe for everyone to look through, even foreigners… It was a public library after all. And then again, the books the slave had been picking hadn't been all that ancient. This couldn't be just a random research subject to pass time. There must be something he was missing. He could sense it. It was as if the other knew what he was searching for and where to find it. He'd gone straight for those books and hadn't ventured to any other subjects so far. What was his aim? He couldn't be a spy… A spy wouldn't go to the public library, but more likely try to integrate himself to gain trust, whereas this individual rather failed doing so. His insistence to remain mute only made him that much more suspicious, though.
As Shikamaru had already excluded to option of him being a spy, he had to find out who this other was. It bugged him not to know it yet, nor even having the slightest clue. That person and his behavior… It was clear that Tatakai was more than just a slave. This fight proved it once more that he indeed had been a ninja in the past. Just who the heck was he? And how was he connected to Konoha?
"What connection do you have to Konoha?" Shikamaru tried it directly. The guy just stared at him, unblinking, looking like a statue.
Hopefully this fight wouldn't drag on much longer. Shikamaru narrowed his eyes before he started a series of shots. However, his attacks went straight through. And even though the other hadn't moved an inch, he appeared unaffected. What was this? What kind of Jutsu did he use now? Shikamaru turned his head to carefully check his surroundings, when he suddenly felt the strange feeling lift and the ice-cold touch of a blade at his neck. Shikamaru held still, while Tatakai made his way around him from behind, the katana pressed against his throat with slight emphasis. When he was straight in his line of vision, a twitch passed the slave's lips, a fainting sign of a smirk. So, he did have facial expressions.
Shikamaru felt the weapon being slowly pulled away. His eyes followed the blade until it was returned to its scabbard. Then, much to his surprise, his opponent took a step back and bowed in front of him, as if to take a call. Shikamaru being startled, missed his turn to bow before Tatakai turned around and headed for the exit.
What had that Jutsu been? Could it have been an illusion? How unusual: most people preferred physical combat over illusionary confrontation. An interesting fact, though he supposed it made sense. The other's body still wasn't in the best state, even though he must be better already. So illusions were a good option to keep ground in a one on one fight when having to deal with physical limitations. And his control over chakra must be pretty good too, if it had been a Genjutsu. But when had he called it into existence?
It seemed Tatakai had incorporated a reflection of himself into the surroundings. But even a simple technique like this would still require the use of hand signs.
Shikamaru recalled their fight while walking home. Tatakai indeed had had his hands out of his focus for a few moments first while drawing his katana, and then again while raising his hand over the blade. That must have been it. He'd made eye contact too, his dark eyes demanding attention. Shikamaru was quite sure of it now, and already thought about how to detect such things in the future and how to counter attack. The Genjutsu certainly had come out very cleanly, clearly proving that this Tatakai had some special skills in imagination.
However, the most interesting aspect was that Tatakai had tried to escape Shikamaru's scrutiny with that kinda Jutsu. Shikamaru's preferential way to get information, had been the technique of provocative questioning, here. The aim was simple: goading an adversary their reaction. Though Shikamaru didn't get any verbal answer, which he hadn't expected for obvious reasons, he got a very worthy information instead: Tatakai definitely hadn't liked being questioned.
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Sasuke calmly left the training ground. So Shikamaru had grown suspicious of him. If he had found out that he, Sasuke, had sought the public library, he must have been followed. And he still did because he had found him in the school today. Not only being interrogated was annoying Sasuke, also the directional questions bothered him. Shikamaru didn't even try to hide his intentions. Sasuke had to admit that he kind of respected the Nara for it. But he wouldn't make it that easy for him.
Sasuke guessed that Shikamaru wouldn't follow him immediately. He had surprised him with his gesture of bowing, he'd seen it in his eyes, and Shikamaru would brood over it for some minutes at least. Good. To get rid of his guardian, Sasuke decided to move to the Hokage monument by body flicker. The technique allowed him to move at a high speed, nearly invisible. Exactly what he needed.
Sasuke checked if he had done anything suspicious to attract Shikamaru's attention. There was nothing confidential in a public library. He'd simply been trying to piece together what kind of events had lead to his clan's massacre. And why Itachi possibly would have done it. The public library provided enough information of the time period to get a general idea. The times had been unstable, but the Third Hokage had done a pretty good job in keeping peace. He'd had trouble finding the information he'd hoped to find between the lines, though.
His thoughts wandered back to Nara Shikamaru. Had his guardian found out what kind of lecture Sasuke had been looking up there?... Good thing he hadn't used the Sharingan on him. It would have identified him unmistakably as an Uchiha. Sasuke bet on Shikamaru being erudite enough to know about the signature Jutsu and recognize it, even though he most likely hadn't had seen one with his own eyes yet. The Genjutsu used in their fight had been a regular illusion anyone could evoke. It wasn't comparable to the visuality of a real Sharingan...
He also wondered what he should do next time they sparred. He could block off his hearing. Shikamaru wouldn't expect that and it would be good practice. He hadn't done traditional Genjutsu in quite a while...
His thoughts wandered to the time Itachi had taught him all about it. It had been torturous, energy sapping and intense. Yes, Itachi had been a harsh, but good teacher. And an awful family member.
Just what had led up to him killing off his own family, when he seemed so peace-loving?
Sasuke had so often questioned why, but Itachi had never provided an answer.
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Sakura turned the key to her apartment, entering it. She felt no one inside, but still called out. No sound but the echo, so Tatakai was out. After taking off her shoes, she went to her room to unpack. The apartment was quiet and clean as always. There was no sign of someone else besides her living in here. The door to her room hadn't been opened either. She put her bags down on the bed, pulling out the used cloths. She lumped them together in the laundry basket. There, she came across some of his clothes. Good, so he actually was living here and using this place like a home. A little more lighthearted and with a whiff of satisfaction, she started to put the clothing into the washing machine. The eco program would take about 2 hours, that she would be stuck at home. Usually, she did some cleaning in the meantime but as everything was already done, she had nothing to do. She wandered to the kitchen, sitting down on a chair. Everything was neat in here, too. Should she summon him? For what? Company?... He might be hanging out with Shikamaru, that would be good… Then she noticed strange a smell. It had been there the moment she entered the apartment, but she had not been paying much attention to it before. But in the kitchen it had increased tenfold, so that her brain couldn't ignore it any more. She raised her head in astonishment: some dozen of herbs were hanging down from the ceiling. Flowers and leaves were bundled in clusters. She recognized Silybum marianum, Calendula officinalis and Tanacetum parthenium. There were even some Perilla frutescens and Artemisia princeps, and a few others she couldn't identify without looking them up.
What had he been doing?
She sat that way, staring at the ceiling for an undefined time. She remembered having done the same thing in her early study years, just that the lines have been hanging in a corner of the study hall. Back then, Tsunade was quite mad when she found out, but Sakura's passion for the herbal treatment had calmed her teacher down soon. Today, they had students who did those things for them. She only rarely did experiments… Sakura hadn't expected that Tatakai would be interested in herbal treatment. It only could be for medical care because there were more suited plants when it came to taste. So, where was he? Collecting more plants?
He hadn't written down anything for her, though he should have known that she would be back any time now. She got up again, moving around, putting her bag away, trying to pass some time. Smiling she had taken note of the abnormally large collection of tomatoes in the fridge, especially compared to other foods. After showering and hanging up the laundry, she sat down in the kitchen again. It was late afternoon now, they had agreed to meet up at Ichiraku's at around six thirty, so she still had about three quarters to go. She finally touched her neck, pushing a tiny amount of chakra into the subjugation seal. It started glowing, then faded again a moment later. She felt the response a moment later.
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"Oh, welcome home, Tatakai. You already look much better!"
It was true: He'd gained some pounds since being here, and the sunlight had returned a bit of colour to his skin, though he was still naturally pale. He was wearing his old clothes again, his katana in the purple Obi.
"My team is going out for Ichiraku's this evening, I want you to accompany us."
"hn" His answer came as short as usual. He disappeared into his room, only to reemerge a short while later in clean clothes.
"So, what have you been up to? I see you collected some herbs?" He ignored her try to chat and show of interest making his way to the fridge, taking out a tomato.
"You really like those, don't you!?"
Again, this absurd talk about the obvious. "Hn"
The girl chuckled at his response and got up to make herself ready.
They were still a little early when they arrived at the noodle stand. The walk there had been quiet and peaceful. They sat down at the counter and waited. He noticed the others before she did. Naruto entered first, followed by Sai. Kakashi appeared late as usual.
It turned into a lively evening. Sasuke observed the group dynamics quietly yet again. So this was Naruto, the outcast from school. Back then, he hadn't really been able to relate, nor had he been very concerned. He'd had his Uchiha friends, an amazing brother and no worries other than him being too busy. Now that he thought about it, he wondered why Naruto had been such an outcast in first place?
"Hey let's do something with the Teme tomorrow." Naruto said at once. Sasuke turned to look at him.
"We could train together, or maybe ask for a D-rank, for a change."
"That's a great idea!", she said excitedly.
"Well then, let's train tomorrow. It's getting late" Kakashi said, standing up. "Say seven o'clock?"
Naruto got up excitedly, laying an arm around Sasuke. "Yeah, let's spar tomorrow, ne?"
Later, in bed, Sasuke couldn't sleep. He kept thinking about Naruto, the loud, lonely boy from back then. Okay, he still was loud, but was he lonely still? He remembered how Naruto had put on a face of smiles and laughs most of the time, but the expression that had stayed in Sasuke's memory the best, had been the expression when he used to sit on the swing. Not playful, butalone, sad and lost. If Sasuke was honest, it reminded him of his brother. He'd often seen that expression in Itachi's unguarded moments. Back then, he hadn't cared so much, but now it bothered him. Did he, Sasuke, ever wear that expression himself?
Was his brother ever coming for him? What had happened to him anyway? Sasuke wasn't sure if he should trust these gut feelings anymore, telling him Itachi was still alive.
He clenched his fist, thinking of Naruto's words again. "Yeah, let's spar tomorrow, ne?" The bright smile, the friendly gesture. Naruto was trying to befriend him, that was obvious. Sai had been nice to him, too. And Sakura, she had taken off the chakra restraints, even though she had been informed the he wasn't the typical slave, that he was dangerous. Fools! They let a complete unknown into their midst, without knowing of what he was capable of. How could they trust him? He just didn't get it.
Itachi came to his mind. Their clan had trusted him too, his kinsmen. They had known his abilities. So what was the value of trust? Still and again, in some weird way Itachi had regained some of Sasuke's trust, and he knew, that this was more than just the reassurance of Itachi training him.
How could Naruto still have that innocent naivety about him? Or was that a facade like in the past? Which was the real Naruto? He still seeked people out like that, wanting to befriend them, though all these people, these children had always rejected him...
He, Sasuke, just couldn't do that. He'd never have the needed ease, nor courage to just approach people. Not as a kid and not as a teen. Besides, he had secrets to keep.
Yet, the Naruto he had met now was intriguing. This Naruto had kept on smiling, whether it was a true smile or not. Sasuke had lost his smile the day his family died. Yet, Naruto had lost his family even earlier. While Sasuke had at least the chance to have a family life, Naruto probably hadn't. That must have been tough, growing up without people who cared for you. But that was the cruel part of it for Sasuke: He had all this and lost it. Naruto somehow didn't… Would it have been easier to have no family from the very beginning then? No one to love, no one to lose?…
Sasuke must have fallen asleep at some point. It was already dawn by the time he woke up. He remembered that his mistress was back, so he had to get up and make breakfast.
He heard the shower was already going as he went to the kitchen. Breakfast passed quietly and soon they were on their way. Sai and Naruto were already there, making bets on how late Kakashi would be this time. Even Sakura placed a tip.
"Wanna bet too?" The question was directed at Sasuke, who just averted his eyes. He looked down the street, waiting for Kakashi to come. What he didn't know was that the others weren't that far with their estimation. They waited about half an hour for their Sensei, spending the time discussing some Ninjutsu techniques Sasuke wasn't familiar with.
Kakashi brought up his traditional excuse, smiling widely under his mask. During the way to the training ground, he briefed them of the upcoming exercise. Once there, they set it up quickly and started. It was a mixed teamwork fighting exercise, including the protection of an item on the ground. Subject was how to proceed when being outnumbered, infiltration and also combat strategy. In their case, it was always three to two people. As the groups would switch members, everyone would get to experience both.
Kakashi was pleased to see Tatakai actually participating in the strategy discussions, respectively in his own way. The team members occasionally managed to surprise him still, but he knew them all well. The most surprising though was the unknown addition they had. The slave-boy had obviously been trained, and he'd been trained well. He, though acting like a loner at any other time, had quite quickly adapted and efficiently worked together with whomever was in his team. He didn't speak, but when he was teamed up with Kakashi and Sai, he quite clearly communicated per hand signs, and the plan he'd come up with, had actually worked rather well. His swordsmanship had improved a lot together with better stamina and speed. The boy had gotten fast in the past two weeks since they'd sparred last. It made Kakashi wonder what that this kid's limit would be, and how far he was from reaching it.
Kakashi couldn't help but also notice that as far as the similarities of look went, the boy's expressions weren't close to the blank look or fake smiles that Sai tended to have. Instead of a blank expression, this one had a guarded cold one. Kakashi supposed that it wasn't a bad thing.
But there was another detail, beyond skill and physical constitution, that caught Kakashi's attention: Tatakai seemed to constantly be observing Naruto. It was subtle, but to Kakashi's trained eye, still noticeable. It was stronger when they were fighting in opposite teams, but also when teaming up, Sasuke had an special focus on Naruto as partner. What had lead to this sudden spurt of interest? What was he looking for?
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Sasuke enjoyed the activity. It had been so long ago, since he'd had done anything of that kind. The last time had been some time before their capture. It was complex, challenging and even fun. In addition to that, it gave him the opportunity to observe the others in a new setting. Strange thing was that only Sai and Kakashi were able to read his hand signing. Neither Naruto nor Sakura seemed familiar with it.
But Naruto had changed a lot. He still seemed as obnoxious as back then, however while in combat, he definitely had gotten more focussed and it even seemed his insistence of playing pranks was paying out, sometimes. Naruto didn't look lonely anymore, his eyes had lost that desperation for acknowledgment. Within this group he seemed at home.
It reminded Sasuke at what he had lost. What he never would regain.
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Kakashi had declared the exercise as finished and they now were discussing it. Tatakai didn't participate in the review and it bothered Kakashi. Tatakai's input, especially since he was still new to the team, and obviously well trained, would have been very valuable. He wondered why he didn't use the hand signing as a tool of communication now. Sure, signing was designed for communication during a mission, but as in his special case, he could have added his thoughts that way just as well. He was sitting, a little offside (though on purpose or not, Kakashi couldn't tell) and observed the group interact. It was still a pleasant atmosphere.
After lunch break they would train independently or with partners. Kakashi used the chance to take Tatakai aside for another mock fight, wanting to test out the youth's abilities.
Tatakai started out fairly harmless. His sword fighting had improved a lot, mainly his speed, as his form had been near flawless beforehand already. His stamina was better, too. The two weeks on his own had done wonders to the boy. He'd really been taking care of himself apparently. Still though, one could only get so far in two weeks... Tatakai was tiring out, at least physically. There, the first Ninjutsu tactic. Kakashi blocked it with one of his own. He definitely was good and would be an uncomfortable opponent, once he was back in form. Gladly there were no sides currently. He was great in one on one battles and had turned out to be a valuable team player as well. Kakashi pushed more, curious of what else this enigma had in stock.
Bright blue summoned lightnings were thrown after him. Thunderstruck, Kakashi blocked. A lightning Jutsu? And an unfamiliar one at that. This was turning out as very interesting. He countered and the fight took another step up. Kakashi was now starting to seriously evaluate the boy's skill level. He took note of the smirk that had appeared on his opponents face. Tatakai motioned to the side with his eyes. Kakashi dared to throw a quick look into the indicated direction. What was Naruto doing there? He focussed back on his sparring partner, but then, he heard Naruto move, followed by a familiar swishing sound of a thrown weapon. Kakashi sidestepped the incoming weapon easily, recognizing it as a Kunai. What was Naruto doing? This was not his fight.
Tatakai did not seem bothered by Naruto's interruption at all. In fact, he fell back, apparently content in letting Naruto handle it.
Naruto didn't seem as pleased with that. "Teme, don't dodge. Fight!"
He drew another Kunai to keep Kakashi away. Tatakai searched out Kakashi's eyes once more, now smirking. The blonde was going in head over heels like usually. Suddenly, Tatakai signed 'Genjutsu'. The next moment Naruto was gone, the young man charged. Something was weird though, why was all sound gone? It couldn't hurt to try the Genjutsu release.
"Kai!"
Sound returned with a snap. So, it's indeed been a Genjutsu! He seriously felt played now, and Genjutsu of all things. It made Kakashi kinda mad. He hadn't noticed a thing, probably because he hadn't expected one. Moreover, Naruto had been portrayed very well, like only a master of illusions could. But the kid gave him no time for further contemplating. The speed Tatakai attacked with now had accelerated again. Genjutsu must have been a way to recharge his physical strength. Now Kakashi really paid attention. This wasn't just a mock fight. He recalled the boy warning him of the Genjutsu. No one usually did send out warnings to an adversary. But he did. He'd signed it. Kakashi remembered having learned these signs long ago… in ANBU! An invisible shudder went through his spine. Now he realized what had been strange about the signing. Those signs were from the ANBU Black Ops, which was why both Kakashi and Sai had understood them perfectly and naturally, whereas Naruto and Sakura hadn't.
Kakashi averted another attack with the katana. This was highly worrying news. How come a non-Konohanian, especially such a young one, knew ANBU hand signs? He was no old codger in disguise, was he? Kakashi had to find out immediately if this guy was a serious threat to Konoha or not.
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Sasuke was having fun. The fight had become more challenging as they went on. Good, he'd been itching for a decent fight, after all that thinking about Naruto's and his similarities. And it was really fun to confuse the Sensei, whom he had witnessed poking his nose into those Icha Icha paradise books, while he was supposed to watch his students who were working their asses off. That had pissed Sasuke off.
Naruto's base patterns were so easy to recreate in the Jutsu, his way of speech and all. As long as there was no reason or need to be creative, Naruto was straight forward. And Genjutsu had always been fun, even without the Sharingan. He had learned it plenty, especially for coverage.
And the gaze Kakashi had, just before he released the Genjutsu, and especially the expression afterward, it had been so worth it. Yeah, always expect the unexpected, old geezer. He hadn't had this much fun and this good of a challenge in a long time.
Then, some exchanged blows later, Kakashi's eye suddenly grew cold, colder than ever before. Immediately Sasuke was on guard. Maybe the old man wasn't as easygoing as he'd thought…
But nothing could prepare Sasuke for what happened next. Slowly Kakashi moved his hand to the headband that covered his left eye, lifting it up. Sasuke froze at the sight. How... How could this be? He was paralyzed. Was this a Genjutsu, too? It had to be.
"Kai!" Sasuke shouted quickly, but nothing happened. It was still there. A red iris with three tomoe spinning inside, the signature of the Sharingan. Right there, in Kakashi's uncovered eye socket.
Another Sharingan.
Sasuke began to shake.
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