Warning: Hidan's mouth makes a pretty big appearance in this chapter! Which means a lot of swear words in his part. Just about every sentence he makes has some kind of swear word. I'd say it's because that's who he is, but it's also because I'm hyped up on coffee and swear words are my nectar for proper communication. None of them are what I consider as part of the worst swears to utilize (so no c-word) but... y'know. There are still swears.
~..~..~
Would it be a stretch to find out that Kiba had heard the story of the late, great Sakumo Hatake from the only living surviving member of the Hatake Clan?
Not at all. Even if it hadn't been Kakashi to have told the kid about it, with the countless of shinobi Kiba knew, it wouldn't be a surprise to learn that someone had told them the story of someone that was unfairly ostracized and pushed to the brink of insanity.
Would it be farfetched to believe that the children had taken such a history and changed it enough to create something new, something they deemed worthy of being called fair?
Even less so.
Iruka sighed as he opened his eyes.
There were no stipulations in the homework that forbid taking a historical anecdote and adding fantastical elements to create a new myth from said story. The only true rule he had ordered to be followed was that the students could not plagiarize an existing myth and only change a few names. He had wanted to see his students truly utilize their creativity so they could create something brand new.
In essence, this is what these three kids had done. Even though the source of their story was obvious to him, they had changed the story. They had added a villain in the character of the Village's Elders. They had added a merciful character to sympathize the reader even further to this supposed Nanashi character- quite an interesting name for Kakashi's father, really. And, finally, they had allowed Nanashi a shot at brutal justice, which was a very big derailment of Sakumo Hatake's original story.
Not an ending Iruka particularly approved of, but one he could at least understand.
"I have only one critique to give." He finally spoke up, the fear within the eyes of all three children very clear from his vantage point at the back of the classroom. "But I will wait for everyone to have given their stories to see if any other stories lack this specific detail so I don't have to repeat myself."
There was a flash of terror within the eyes of the children, then they all deflated and made their way back to their desks.
Iruka shook his head softly at their dramatics, smiling softly.
The brutal themes were not some he enjoyed, that was true. But he wasn't going to scold them on it. They had discussed a myth within the class where a man was so stricken by grief by the injustice brought upon him by the gods that he decimated a whole kingdom. They were not in trouble over the massacre of elders- even though Iruka was, justifiably, disturbed by such an idea.
He called on the group of Shikamaru, Ino, and Naruto, and smiled when he saw that they had come up with a myth about two mischievous kitsune trying and failing to outsmart the smartest human to have ever lived. Then, the rest of his students were allowed to perform their own myths- and just like with Kiba, Sakura, and Chouji's group, there were a couple that forgot one important detail that all myths they had discussed held within.
After all of the children had gone, Iruka called for a collective round of clapping over the ingenuity his children had shown. Then he made his way towards the front of the classroom and nodded at all of them before he began to speak.
"You have all done some great work. All of the myths were enjoyable- but a few were missing a very important characteristic. The teams of Kiba, Ami, Ino, and Hiroshi were all missing this specific detail."
The groups he had called on all looked at one another, clearly confused.
"Can any members of the other groups tell me what this characteristic was?"
Silence hung over the classroom for a second. All of the children now looked at one another, whispering amongst themselves as they asked each other just what their teacher was going on about.
One lone, long sleeved arm shot up above the class and Iruka nodded at Shino Aburame to answer his question.
"All of the myths discussed in class had a specific moral stated at some point during the story. Be it at the beginning or end, it was explicitly stated. Much like many folktales from Kirigakure and Konohagakure, it is important for a myth to have a lesson clearly taught by the end of its telling." The Aburame answered with precise words, back ramrod straight.
"Exactly," Iruka nodded and thanked the Aburame. Then he turned to look at the rest of the students, taking in their faces of realization, "The myths we discussed in class are not just stories. They were not just written to pass the time- they were written to teach the newer generations and important lesson. And even though the stories your four groups came up with might have had a lesson, it was not stated in a clear and specific manner. You won't lose too many points for this- but you need to have this clear for the test on this unit."
There were nods from some students and half-hearted pouts from others, but it seemed that all of the kids understood what he had told them.
"Good. Now, please, give the written myth to one member of the group to hand in. Form an organized line, if you'd please, there is no need to rush."
The fact of the matter was that the only group that had written something incredibly violent had been the group of Kiba Inuzuka. The only other group that had utilized murder had been the group of Shino, Sasuke, and Hinata, seeing how they had utilized the death of a main character to justify a trip into the underworld. But, unsurprisingly, Kiba's group had mentioned bloody massacre...
With a soft sigh, Iruka accepted Ino's myth and patiently waited for Akamaru to run up to him with the manuscript in his jaws.
He had never been a fan of needless violence. He was a chunin teacher for a reason, after all. There were a handful of shinobi that considered him too 'soft' for the frontlines. But he was just a person that didn't see why he should slaughter a whole squadron of shinobi when just murdering the leader of the squadron was enough to send them into a spiral of chaos.
Kiba Inuzuka, though, was a product of his environment. His view on taking a life was not surprising. And his influence on his best friends was even less shocking. It was a shame. But they were already ten years old and on their way to becoming fully fledged genin- Iruka scolding them for such a way of thinking would change nothing. All he could do now was hope that teaching all his kids about the value of life would get through to them.
… At least this time they had not glorified the slaughter of their own countrymen.
"That was just mean of the guy! He made us believe we were in trouble again! Like when we were six!" Kiba growled as he kicked at a rock on the ground, earning an agreeing howl from Akamaru. "That was just yanking on our tails... So rude."
Sakura smiled at her friend, an awkward thing that seemed more like a wince than a proper smile.
Honest to kami, she had been terrified when they had finished their presentation and Iruka had remained silent with his eyes closed. She had expected a seething rage like when they had been six- she had expected to be called out on their wretched ideas and to be punished once again. But it hadn't happened. And she was relieved. But she also kind of suspected that she had fallen into a coma because of heart failure brought on by the anticipation of waiting for Iruka-sensei to say something and this all just a creation of her imagination.
"Well... We're older now. Maybe he doesn't mind us talking about such violent things because... You know... We're older." Chouji muttered as he wrung the bandanna that usually adorned his head with both hands. "We were six when we seemed pretty happy over the murder of a squadron of Konoha shinobi."
"But we weren't! It was the old man's story!" Kiba growled.
Sakura quickened her steps so she now stood side by side with Kiba, then raised her hand and placed it on his shoulder. Kiba frowned at her, but stopped walking and allowed Sakura to speak to him without having to run after him.
Chouji caught up to them in a handful of seconds.
"Not everything Iruka-sensei does is because he's out to get us." She told her best friend, then raised her other arm so that she had a hand on each of Kiba's shoulders. "And we're not the only students of his that matter. He's got a full classroom of troublemakers. Not everything we do is going to catch his attention- only the really big things."
"And we haven't done anything big in a while, right?" Chouji chimed in curiously- a question to which Sakura nodded.
"The only big thing we've done is the chokehold we've got on taijutsu spars." Kiba huffed as he crossed his arms over his chest, trying to seem as if he was still angry with their teacher.
But Sakura could see the softening of his eyes and she felt the slight relaxation in his wound up shoulders.
Kiba Inuzuka had never been Iruka-sensei's biggest fan. Neither males had ever gotten along. Especially after their teacher had yelled at them when they were six years old. Because of this disdain, Kiba honestly believed that their teacher had something out for them. But Sakura tried to make him see that, no, the man didn't, and when he did, it was because they had earned a spot on their teacher's watchlist.
"And that he can't prove." Sakura reminded him, then offered a bright smile, "You know he's much more interested in Naruto now. You've mellowed out and all our grades are stellar. He has no reason to worry over us."
They had worked hard to get better with Kuzu's help, after all.
"Yeah, Kiba. We're at the top of the class at this point. He's got bigger worries with Naruto and Sasuke now."
Kiba growled softly, but soon closed his eyes.
Sakura pulled back her hands and maneuvered her body so she stood between both her friends, then threw an arm around either of their shoulders. "I say I smell victory steak."
"Now we're talkin', Pinkie."
Sakura smiled at her friend's eagerness for food then began to haul them in the direction of their favorite steak place. They had enough money to splurge on some steak today. They could steal meat some other day.
"Hey, Shit Mouth, what're you doing? We're supposed to be going to Kirigakure to stake out that shark psycho, y'know, make sure he's still doing his job even though he doesn't have a partner anymore!"
Hidan hated the fact that he was stuck with an annoying glutton like Kakuzu for a partner. But, unfortunately, he was the only other immortal in the world that the Akatsuki had been able to convince to join their ranks. And because of this, he was the only person that was considered a good fit for the immortal piece of shit known as Kakuzu from Takigakure.
Because he couldn't technically die, Kakuzu couldn't kill him, like he had done with all the other partners the organization had given him.
"I'll meet you there." The cold hearted bastard grunted at him as he finished adjusting the shoulder straps on the backpack he was taking with him to... well... wherever it was the jerk was heading to. "I've got a stop to make. It'll take me two weeks, so try to control yourself as much as possible while I'm away."
"The hell, Money Bags?" Hidan growled, finally grown irritated with the cold way the other man was ignoring him.
Even though they had been working together for years now, the asshat still treated him like some kid that could be ignored at will. And Hidan was tired of being brushed off as if he was still a genin that didn't know his kunai from his shuriken.
"Listen up, assclown!" The Jashinist stomped his way to stand in front of the door, effectively stopping Kakuzu from leaving the room of the inn he had paid for.
The bastard was so stingy he would rather sleep in the woods than pay for a comfortable place to sleep! The only reason Hidan had paid for the room had been because his back was aching after a ritual gone wrong and he refused to sleep on the ground for the tenth day in a row!
"For years now, you've been pulling this disappearing shit and I've said nothing. I've kept quiet to the higher-ups about the little fieldtrips you make on the side when we're not on missions, not told anyone but Lord Jashin himself about the secrets you insist on keeping. I thought it was a nice way to try and make you hate me less, but you're as insufferable as the day we met and these side trips of yours have only gotten longer. And they're starting to get in the way of our marks." Hidan growled, glaring directly into the infuriatingly emotionless eyes of the heathen.
Now he crossed his arms over his chest, baring his teeth at Kakuzu. "I know you think my brain activity doesn't go much higher than that of a retarded five year old's, but I've got a bit of shocking information for you: I'm more than aware that we're only a day's trip away from Takigakure right now. Ya'know, Takigakure, the Village you betrayed a fuckton of years ago."
There it was.
Kakuzu's eyes finally narrowed in suspicion- meaning that the usually emotionless son of a bitch was finally showing some kind of worry!
Hidan almost smirked at the satisfaction he felt over finally getting a reaction from his Akatsuki assigned partner.
"Now, if you don't want me to tell the bosses about all these stupid trips you've been taking, you'll give me something. I don't give a shit if you've got a piece in Takigakure that you wanna nut and dash on- I don't care where or when you get your jollies off. But I need something 'cause I'm fucking sick and tired of taking your crap like I ain't got a choice."
Quite frankly, Hidan just wanted in on the secret. After years of having let this asswad run around doing whatever he felt like, he felt like he had more than earned getting to know what the secret was.
With a displeased growl, Kakuzu straightened his back and jutted his chest out.
Hidan made sure that his scythe was within arm's length in case the impure nonbeliever tried anything.
One heartbeat.
Two heartbeats.
Three.
Kakuzu sighed and crossed his arms over his chest, looking away from Hidan.
"I'm going to check up on some family I have there. I want to make sure they're fine."
Hidan didn't miss the fact that the prick didn't betray a gender. And he was more than aware that this information was so generic that he could barely go off anything if he wanted to figure out just who this family member was.
But for now, Kakuzu had told him something. And Hidan was many things, but he wasn't the kind of man that broke his word. He had asked for just one thing. And Kakuzu had given him just that.
"Now, that wasn't so hard, now was it, you avaricious fucktard?" Hidan smiled softly as he took a step to the side, freeing the doorway from the obstruction that was his body. "I'll be expecting something more next time you try to pull this crap on me. It's one thing to leave when we're on downtime, but it's whole other cocksucking issue when you pull this in the middle of a Jashin-damned mission."
Kakuzu's eyes narrowed even further, a full blown murderous glare now adorning his face. But Hidan merely smiled cheekily at him and made his way back to his scythe, picking it up before he went to his own backpack to make sure he had everything he needed for his trip to Kiri.
Seriously, they'd been partners for years. Kakuzu should know by now that he was much too curious for his own good. And that he didn't really give a shit about anyone's feelings or wishes. If he did, after all, Lord Jashin would not get any of his sacrifices.
After their myth homework, time passed by normally. They trained every day to perfect all the techniques the old man had taught them and did their best to stay on top of school work so they could get the good grades Kuzu wanted to see when he returned.
At first, weeks went by without a word from Kuzu and none of them worried too much. It was normal for the man to disappear for months on end, only to return for a day or two before he left for long stretches of time yet again. That was just the way his merchant life worked, unfortunately.
But it was weird that he left for such a long time after he had heard about such a big project. The last time he had been around and helped them complete very important homework, he had returned two weeks later to find out about their performance and grade.
Chouji thought it was weird that the old man would take so long to come back, but he didn't question it. Instead he put such thoughts out of his mind by focusing on his friends and enjoying their winter vacation before the next semester began.
They spent quite a few days of their vacation within the Nara's library, searching up more information on earth release jutsu and Takigakure. Aside from that, they went out on miniature adventures with Shikamaru, seeing how Ino's father had decided that this vacation would be the one she would learn about the flower shop and how to run it.
"Alright, we know the plan, right? We're gonna split up, but only on the condition that you strictly follow the paths Akamaru and I create. If any of you so much as steps one centimeter out of line-"
Shikamaru sighed and interrupted Kiba's threat, "Yeah, yeah, we know, Kiba. We can get our brains sucked out of heads by the giant mosquitoes in here. You've told us a dozen times by now."
Sakura giggled softly at the way Kiba's face reddened and he growled at the Nara, but Shikamaru merely shook his head.
Chouji smiled at his friends, then looked over at Akamaru to find that the pup himself was chuckling quietly at the look on his partner's face.
"Listen up, Pineapple Head, this is some serious stuff! The treasure in this Forest could be worth a billion ryo! D'ya have any idea how much steak that is?" Kiba growled at him, even though there wasn't much bite behind his words.
Noticing this made Chouji's good mood sober up.
For the whole week they had been preparing this expedition, Kiba hadn't been right. He was still very much bossing them around and making sure that all parts of this plan were up to par, but there was just something different about the way he was acting... Less passionate, even.
He'd been meaning to talk to him about it when they were alone, but the chance hadn't come up. They had been running around so much to prepare for today that they hadn't really had many moments of peace or relaxation.
"And we understand that. But for all we know, your sister could have just told you some silly rumor to get you out of her hair for the weeks your mom would be in Kiri." Shikamaru pointed out yet again, leaving Kiba to glower at him.
"Yeah, well, whatever. You can leave if ya don't wanna be here."
Kiba turned around at that point, not bothering to offer any other insult to Shikamaru's presence. And Chouji sighed softly, taking that for exactly what it was: something uncharacteristic for their Inuzuka best friend.
Chouji looked over at Sakura, silently pleading for her to grab Kiba's attention yet again. His other best friend nodded subtly with a determined edge to her eyes, then she called for Kiba.
"We've got four hours to search before sundown. Let's get going."
Kiba hesitated for a second before he nodded, leaving Chouji to frown softly.
There was something up with their best friend. But he refused to talk about it.
Unfortunately, this was no surprise. Kiba had always been much too private about his own emotions. Even with his own pack.
Maybe once it was just him and Kiba, he could get some answers. For now, though, he'd have to settle.
The jinchūriki from Takigakure was so innocent and naïve that the Village deserved to have her kidnapped. If they couldn't teach her how to hone even the most basic instincts of survival, then they didn't deserve to have her power.
"So, granduncle, why is it that you've got such pretty eyes but mine are so..." Fū drifted off at that point, undoubtedly at a loss for a good word to describe her own eyes.
Kakuzu grunted softly and didn't bother to help her find a word. She'd need to expand her vocabulary- aside from her skills in taijutsu.
"Clan mutation. Only one in ten kids were born with it." He answered bluntly, then allowed the crackling of the cooking fire and soft chirps of the animals within the forest to be the only noise between them.
His plan to kidnap Fū of Takigakure before the Akatsuki even knew what to do with her had been completed successfully- without any complications whatsoever. Even though the Village had prepared her rather well in control of ninjutsu and she innately worked well with her tailed beast, the Takigakure idiots had gotten comfortable within their borders.
It seemed that these Elders had forgotten all about the Boogeyman their parents had taught them to fear from a young age. Forgotten or chosen to ignore... In any case, it didn't matter. He still knew all secret routes needed to infiltrate the traitorous Village. Only a few of them had been sealed since he had massacred a whole generation of leaders. And he had taken advantage of this fact.
"So..." The green haired girl kicked at the log she was seated on, orange eyes wide as she looked on at the stew he was cooking up. "Is it ready yet?"
"Not yet."
"Aw." She groaned softly, then asked yet another question. "If it's a one in ten mutation, does that mean that my own kids might probably be born with those eyes?"
Not unless someone from his clan was still around to reproduce with her. Fū wasn't related to him in any way. But the child didn't know that. And she would never find out.
"Doubtful. But maybe." He eventually answered.
He picked up the wooden spoon he had been using to cook from its resting place and began to stir the stew. As he did this, he did not miss out on the way the jinchūriki licked her lips- apparently salivating at the prospect of such a simple meal.
Anger boiled up within his veins at the idea that Takigakure had treated her so badly that she was not accustomed to such simple cooked meals. But he soon stamped that emotion down and picked up a bowl from the scroll he had unwound before he had began to cook. All of his cooking and eating utensils were stored in a simple scroll- sealed away for easy access.
"It's ready." He stated simply as he ladled out a serving for the girl.
Admittedly, he was surprised by how fast she moved to get her food. One second, she had been seated at her stump, eagerly staring at the food. In another, she stood directly in front of him, her arms reaching for the bowl within his hand.
He didn't allow her to see how surprised he was, though. Instead he quietly handed the bowl to her, then picked up another one to serve himself.
She swallowed down her serving in less than a minute. And as soon as she had done such a thing, she was holding her bowl out to him to ask for a second helping.
Kakuzu gave it to her, more than aware that if she was eating, then she would not speak.
He turned away from her to lower his mask and eat without her seeing him, all the while telling her to serve herself next time.
By the time he had finished eating and had placed his mask back in its proper place, the rest of the stew was gone and Fū was back to sitting on her stump, this time with the map he had given her in her hands.
"Why is it that we're going to Konohagakure?" She questioned once more, earning an unamused glare from him.
She had asked five times now. And each time, he had told her that she would need to wait for an answer.
Of course, he had told her this in case there were any eavesdroppers nearby to hear them. But now they were in the middle of the forests just outside of the Land of Fire, where very few travelers traipsed through.
He guessed it would be fine to tell her now.
"I know some children there that will be your friends. They will help me protect you, too."
He saw her hair fly loosely as she bobbed her head from side to side from the top of the map. Then she pulled the piece of parchment down and looked at him, a confused frown pulling at her lips.
"But I don't need any protecting. I've got Chōmei with me and we make a great team."
From what he had gathered from the Akatsuki's files, every jinchūriki was unique. Some were able to work well with their tailed beasts. Others ignored them completely. And others were caught in a precarious spot where they tried to work with the beast, but the beast refused to work with them. This particular child seemed to have some kind of partnership with her own tailed beast, Chōmei, the Seven Tails. It was precisely because of this partnership that her chakra control and skills in ninjutsu were stellar, even though other aspects of her fighting style were lacking.
"Be that as it may," Kakuzu picked up the pot he had used to cook the stew and set it away from the fire, allowing it cool off before he went to was it in the nearby stream. "You're family. And those kids are pretty important to me too. In a way, you will all be protecting each other. Besides, you want to make some new friends, don't you?"
He didn't have to look at her to know that she jumped up in excitement, "Of course I do! I want to make all the friends! And that's why I'm so happy you came to get me, granduncle. Shibuki wasn't big on letting me meet other people."
Of course he wasn't. He wanted to keep her power contained in case she lost control. He also wanted to mold her into a loyal weapon of Takigakure. It was a shame he had gotten so comfortable with the Village's security and had allowed her to live by herself.
"Don't worry about going to Konohagakure, then." He finally grunted out, before he stood up and picked the cooking utensils to go and clean them. "You'll make new friends. And you'll be safe while you learn how to properly defend yourself without having to resort to using your... little friend."
"Oh... Okay... Uh..." He could hear her feet kicking at the log as the hesitation of her thought permeated her monosyllabic words. "C-Can I go with you, granduncle? I... I can help clean!"
Kakuzu stopped himself just short of breathing out in exasperation.
This was why he had never wanted kids.
"Fine."
All for his plan, he reminded himself. He was doing all of this for his plan.
"Your team isn't even a pack, you bitch! They're just genin smooshed together because the Hokage had nowhere better to put you!"
"Yeah, well at least we're not a bunch of losers that got together because we were stupid enough to make our teacher hate us!"
"We're a family! But you wouldn't get that- you don't have a pack yet."
"You talk a big game for someone that doesn't have one either. Your little band of miscreants is going to get separated when you become genin. None of your skills are compatible for making a real team."
"Shut up! You don't know that!"
"I know that you all main taijutsu. The Hokage would have to be senile to allow you three to stay together. Now shut up and go look for that stupid treasure. Remember my cut."
"If you keep talking like that, you aren't getting any cut."
"It's funny how you think you can stand up to me, runt."
Kiba hated that word.
He also hated how easily Hana got under his skin.
With a heavy sigh, he washed his hands in the river a few meters away from their treehouse. Their search for Hashirama Senju's treasure had been fruitless and he was beginning to think that Shikamaru was right- Hana had just sent them on a wild goose chase to get him out of her hair for a few days.
Still, it had been just one day of searching in the Forest of Death. Sakura was right: no great expedition found success in just one day. They needed to keep looking because, if they tried hard enough, they would find what they were looking for.
"Dinner's ready, Kiba!" Chouji called from their treehouse and Kiba sighed softly.
He wasn't all that hungry now that he had remembered this morning's argument with Hana.
"I'll be there in a minute!" He shouted back, then allowed himself to sit back on the riverbank.
Things with his family had never been easy. But ever since his father had died, everything had gotten so much worse.
There were days when he wanted nothing more than to run away to Chouji's house and stay there, never to leave again. But he knew that even though Chouji's parents tolerated him, he wasn't the kind of person any parent loved. If even his own mother didn't like him, why would anyone else?
Dammit.
He didn't want to think about this.
So distracted by his own thoughts, Kiba didn't notice when a very familiar smell began to waft in the air. But he did notice when a sharp slap sent his head whipping forward. And he certainly did notice a surprised gasp from a voice he did not recognize.
"You need to be more aware of your surroundings, Inuzuka. You'd be dead twenty times if I was an enemy."
Seriously? Of all the days for the guy to come back... It had to ben on the one day Kiba didn't want to deal with his shit?
Tears stung at his eyes, but Kiba forced himself to ignore them.
"Yeah, whatever, I know I ain't perfect. Y'ain't tellin' me nothin' new, Kuzu." He growled up at the man, but soon crossed his arms and looked back at the flowing water. "What're ya doin' here, anyway? Pinkie and Pork Chop will be hella happy ta see ya."
Silence hung suspended over them for a second, Kiba's frown deepening when the man didn't move away.
"There's a Nara. I need you to get rid of him."
Kiba sneered at himself and didn't bother looking up at the man. "It's eight at night. Getting him outta the Forest will be more dangerous than it's worth."
The man remained quiet. Then grunted, "Fū, stay here. I'll come get you both in a minute."
With this order, Kuzu left. And when Kiba turned to look at whoever it had been the man talked to, the Inuzuka found a green haired girl with a broad smile looking at him. She was wearing black pants with a cream colored shirt- both pieces of clothing seemed pretty big on her.
Kiba blinked at her in confusion, more than at a loss as to why the old man would be with her.
After a couple of seconds of staring back at him, the girl waved animatedly and pointed at herself. "My name's Fū! It's real nice to meet a new friend!"
..~..~..
I hope you all liked this update! I am sorry for any of you that don't like the Hidan swears, but, in my defense, that is his character.
Please review and tell me what you thought about this chapter!
